Twice a year the school system demands we stop and reflect. This is not enough, but I love this time of year when I look at the growth all students have made. Not everyone is where I want them, but it is important to focus on how far students have come in the year and […]
Featured
Posted inFeatured, High School, Literacy
Teachers as Voice Over for the Student-Hero Journey
Saturday, March 14th, Cornelius Minor, a Staff Developer at The Reading & Writing Project gave the luncheon keynote address to over 300 educators at the 2nd Annual Conference for The Teaching Studio at The Learning Community, a public charter school in Central Falls, Rhode Island. While he began his address with humor and participation, Minor quickly got to […]
Posted inCommon Core, Featured, Mathematics, Special Education
Tips for Parents: Conquering Common Core Math: 8 Tips to Use at Home
I teach students who fall far below grade level in math and parents tell me all the time how impossible Common Core Math concepts are. They don’t even get it, so how can they help their children? But math itself doesn’t change–the way we look at it does. If you want to help your children […]
Posted inCurrent Events in Education, Featured, How to Fix Education, Opinion
The Resource Desert: Schools in the 21st Century
Dry. Thirsty. Tired. Beaten-down. Hopeless. Stranded. Barren. Arid. Scorched. Desolate. Endless. These words can describe a desert, but they can also describe some of our nation’s resources for education. Taxpayers / community members (their demonym of choice depends on how angry they are) will be the first to tell you that. Property taxes – the most […]
Posted inCurrent Events in Education, Featured, From the Front Lines, Instruction & Curriculum, Opinion
Encouraging Success In Our Students
Success was always important when I was growing up. I’m an only child, so the pressure was palpable from my parents. They were always pushing me to do better, wanting me to ‘amount’ to something worthwhile. Unfortunately their worthwhile careers were those of a doctor, attorney or highly paid businessperson. Not that of a […]
Posted inCurrent Events in Education, Featured, High School, Instructional Strategies, Parents
Tips for Parents: How to help your high school ELA student succeed in Common Core
There are major shifts in all curriculum with the new common core standards. Many parents are intimidated by the changes and all doing all they can to help their children succeed. As an ELA teacher, I have a simple and obvious solution to help your high school student read. Seriously. Don’t just hand them a […]
Posted inCurrent Events in Education, Featured, From the Front Lines, Parents
Cayman Naib: Story of Student Tragedy
[fusion_builder_container hundred_percent=”yes” overflow=”visible”][fusion_builder_row][fusion_builder_column type=”1_1″ background_position=”left top” background_color=”” border_size=”” border_color=”” border_style=”solid” spacing=”yes” background_image=”” background_repeat=”no-repeat” padding=”” margin_top=”0px” margin_bottom=”0px” class=”” id=”” animation_type=”” animation_speed=”0.3″ animation_direction=”left” hide_on_mobile=”no” center_content=”no” min_height=”none”] Cayman Naib was an 8th grade student in the suburbs of Philadelphia. He had a smile that linked ear-to-ear. He was a happy kid. He was your typical 13-year-old. But come […]
Posted inFeatured, Opinion
Cultural Sensitivity – Being Tolerant, Teaching Tolerance
The highest result of education is tolerance. — Helen Keller As the demographics of the United States continues to change over the next several decades it becomes exceedingly important for teachers to become culturally sensitive to their students. Knowing the cultural backgrounds of your students will make communicating with parents easier. It will also make […]