Nineteen years of education have enabled me to watch the pendulum swing back and forth a few times. We have gone from grouping to whole class to differentiation. Methods and techniques come and go, each time reintroduced with a new twist. So many things in education recycle themselves and each time educators are ignored as […]
Current Events in Education
Posted inFeatured
It’s Pi Day!
Pi Day comes once a year on March 14. It is a special day for a few reasons. The day itself can be written as the abbreviation for the number pi: 3.14. It also happens to be Albert Einstein’s birthday. I used to love pi day with my students because it gave me a day […]
Posted inCurrent Events in Education, Featured, Instructional Strategies
It’s Pi Day: A Day to Exercise Your Inner Mathematician!
Pi Day comes once a year on March 14. It is a special day for a few reasons. The day itself can be written as the abbreviation for the number pi: 3.14. It also happens to be Albert Einstein’s birthday. I used to love pi day with my students because it gave me a day […]
Posted inClassroom Management, Current Events in Education, Featured, From the Front Lines, Opinion
Deskside Manner: What Teachers Can Learn From Doctors (Part I)
I recently missed a day and half of school for a bunch of medical appointments. As I sat in various waiting rooms, talked to a host of medical assistants, and shook hands with more than a few doctors, I realized something – we teachers have something to learn from the doctor-patient relationship. We need to […]
Posted inCurrent Events in Education, Opinion
Why Teachers MUST FIGHT Kim, Katy, & Kanye
We’ve seen this late-night skit too many times before: young Americans being asked simple questions about American history, United States civics, or current events. The people who are captured on camera are usually dumb-founded or give answers that make the audience and/or the questioner laugh (or cry). I used to think it had to be […]
Posted inCurrent Events in Education, Opinion
Why Teachers MUST FIGHT Kim, Katy, & Kanye
We’ve seen this late-night skit too many times before: young Americans being asked simple questions about American history, United States civics, or current events. The people who are captured on camera are usually dumb-founded or give answers that make the audience and/or the questioner laugh (or cry). I used to think it had to be […]
Posted inCurrent Events in Education, Featured, Opinion
Stop Censoring Our Classrooms
A staple of democratic society is the ability to civilly converse with those of like and unlike mind. At least, that’s the idea. These days politicians on both sides of the aisle rarely agree on anything, and their communication style is anything but civil. Viewpoints are dismissed with prejudice, and compromise is unattainable. While there […]
Posted inAsk a Teacher, Classroom Management, Current Events in Education, From the Front Lines
What Are We Teaching Teens About Making Excuses?
I get really tired of excuses. In fact, in my classroom when my 8th graders try to excuse their behavior, lack of homework, or unpreparedness I tell them kindly yet firmly, “Excuses are useless.” Initially quizzical looks form on their faces, and then they start to stammer…which is exactly when I interject my reasoning. […]