Over spring break, I read an amazing book called Readicide by Kelly Gallagher. We’ve talked about the book on the site before in this excellent article, so I won’t go too in depth here. We do not have reading goals in my classroom, mostly for the reasons that Gallagher outlines. I want my students to read [...]
There are many aspects adults can agree on about teenagers. The most crucial acknowledgment is that they are a tired group. The research, the data, and the science all confirm that sleep matters. Bottom line: we need to start schools later — no earlier than 8:30 am. The AMA, AAP, and the CDC agree with the benefits of [...]
The U.S. Education Secretary, Betsy DeVos, and I do not see the world the same way. She is interested in privatizing education to support an agenda where parents can use public monies to attend private (mostly religious, mostly Christian) schools. DeVos and her allies have supported charter schools, which have diverted much-needed resources from public [...]
January is finally over. I swear this month had 974 days in it. After returning from Winter Break I felt as if I just could not keep up with myself. There is always so much to do and so very few hours in the day to balance everything. Normally this is when my really bad [...]
I was gone two days this week because my fiancé had back surgery. Two. Whole. Days. This may not seem like much to most, but I teach special education with some very routine-oriented students and this was a huge whammy in their little lives. I know we want our classrooms to become autonomous and for [...]