Imagine 1996, a young girl fresh out of college in the Midwest. She interviews with nearby schools and after the third school she is offered a position to teach in her own small town. This is a dream come true. Energy and excitement fill her as she sets up her first classroom. At this point, […]
Confessions of a Teacher
What are the confessions of a teacher? Read these articles and find out.
Posted inConfessions of a Teacher
10 Thoughts During a Failed Lesson
Thought 1: “I like this lesson” It might not be my best, but I’m satisfied with it. It’s educational. It’s collaborative. There’s some entertainment value. It certainly is important to their lives and what we’ve been previously talking about. It’ll be successful. Thought 2: “What the h*#%! is going on here?!” It doesn’t seem like […]
Posted inAsk a Teacher
Using Current Events in Teaching the Executive Branch
As an eighth-grade civics teacher, I am about to start my unit of study on the Executive Branch. To be honest, I’m a little scared. Strike that. I am very scared. “Why are you scared, George?” you may ask. “If you stick to the facts, you’ll have nothing to worry about,” In normal times, I’d […]
Posted inConfessions of a Teacher
The Death of Reflection in English/Language Arts Classrooms
I had the saddest experience today. In English IV, British Literature, I assign my students a coat of arms assignment. They have to design a personal coat of arms on a poster then write about the color, animals, motto, and research their first and last name. They have to write an experience they went through […]
Posted inOpinion
In Defense of My Students…From a Teacher in Florida
Guest Writer: Chele Allan It’s taken me quite a while to psychologically and emotionally process the Parkland school shooting. As a teacher in Florida, this is very close to home. My own school had an active shooter less than one block from the campus earlier this school year. While the shooter wasn’t after students, he […]
Posted inConfessions of a Teacher
More Than A Teacher
Teaching is an art, a sacrifice, and has the goal of changing the future one child at a time. It’s a noble profession, but does that make you all that you are? I think the public forgets we are more than teachers. We are parents and children. We are husbands, wives, and significant others. We […]
Posted inElectives & Special Areas
Using Popular Music in the Secondary Classroom
Teachers born between 1950 and 1980 makeup both the baby-boom generation and those known as “Generation X.” The music with which they grew up is a reflection of the historical periods that produced it – Vietnam, the Cold War, the Fall of Communism, September 11, 2001, and the events that followed. Teachers of social studies […]
Posted inSocial Studies
Social Studies in a Political Era
“Build the wall! Build the wall! Build the wall!” Several of my 8th-grade students chanted President Trump’s campaign slogan several times when I explained to the students our next unit would be on immigration. One student, perhaps the brightest I’ve ever taught, approached me after class that day and asked me, bluntly, “Mr. Miller, what […]