It’s amazing how many non-teacher Americans get angry, frustrated, and even downright rude about a teacher’s summer. When June comes around, so follows resentment. The vitriol is then repeated in late August when students report back to school. But here’s the thing – these people need to channel their criticisms towards producing a greater cultural shift. […]
Current Events in Education
Posted inCurrent Events in Education, How to Fix Education, Uncategorized
CA Bill Addresses Suspensions and Expulsions
Millions of students get suspended from school every year – and it is mostly students of color. According to the US Dept. of Education’s Office for Civil Rights, 16% of black students are suspended every year, compared to 5% of white students. When a student is suspended, he or she falls further behind in school, […]
Posted inCurrent Events in Education, Featured, Social Studies
A Call for National History Day
All teachers search for that moment when what you do in the classroom raises administrators’ eyebrows, students’ hopes, and the goosebumps on our own skin. These pivotal moments in our interconnected lives show us – emotionally – that our job is more than just worksheets and pencil sharpeners; it’s changing lives. One of the most remarkable […]
Posted inCurrent Events in Education, Special Education
10 Things Only a Special Education Teacher Would Understand
By: Teresa Cooper Whether you’re a co-teacher, a resource teacher, a life skills teacher, an Autism specialist, or a behavior support specialist, you know that working as a special education teacher comes with a special set of skills and that things exist in our world that other teachers just don’t understand. As a tribute to […]
Posted inCurrent Events in Education, Featured, Instruction & Curriculum
The Beauty of Mistakes
I still do spelling tests in my classroom. I know some schools have gotten away from weekly spelling tests, for one reason or another. I feel that it is an important skill to continue through all grades. We are two weeks into school, the second spelling test, and it happened. One of my overachievers melted […]
Posted inCurrent Events in Education, High School, How to Fix Education, Uncategorized
Teaching Ferguson: Resources for High School
We cannot help but return to school with heavy hearts and confused minds over the events that took place early last month in Ferguson, Missouri. And yet we should not be silent about it in the classroom – for the good that can come out of this is the opportunity to demonstrate for students the […]
Posted inCurrent Events in Education, Featured, Instruction & Curriculum, Opinion, Parents
Exercising Caution On Independent Reading
School has started! I absolutely love what I do. As I prepared for my new crop of kiddos I made the rounds to my normal haunts to purchase ‘new stuff’ for my classroom. I always get excited about getting new things for my students. Whether its games or art supplies, I anxiously await the smiles […]
Posted inCurrent Events in Education, From the Front Lines, High School, Uncategorized
Meet the Parents: A Young Teacher’s Back to School Night
When people find out I teach high school, they often reply with some surprise, “but you look like a high school student yourself!” I sigh, they tell me I’ll be thankful for my youthful appearance as I get older, and we move on – but through these interactions, I am constantly reminded of the additional […]