Many times I’m asked what it’s like to work in an urban school in an urban area. Knowing they are genuinely interested, I usually just laugh and tell them to come visit my my classroom. Knowing the 99.9% of them won’t, I decided to give a real “no holds barred” look at what a day is like […]
Middle School
Posted inFeatured, From the Front Lines, Instruction & Curriculum, Middle School
Testing Time is Here in Physical Education Too!
Many Physical Educators are now in the midst of their physical fitness tests across the nation. Just like classroom teachers, we need to do a “pre” and “post” assessment in order to not only evaluate our students, but also our planning and classroom strategies used throughout the year. Part of the testing process has to […]
Posted inFeatured, Literacy, Middle School, Social Studies
The Poet Reminds Me
The month of April is a perfect time to to give attention to poetry. A middle school colleague and poet urged me to give some undivided attention to this often waylaid genre. My first email response was to do no more than to consider it but then I took a big breath and sent a […]
Posted inMiddle School, Stellar Educator of the Week
Congratulations LaShanda J. – Our Stellar Educator of the Week!
Name: LaShanda J. School: Charter School of the Dunes, Indiana Years Teaching: 5-6 years Specialty: Middle School – English/ Language Arts, Social Studies Congratulations to LaShanda J., our Stellar Educator of the Week! LaShanda was nominated by one of her colleagues, who wrote about the impact LaShanda has made on her students: LaShanda has […]
Posted inCurrent Events in Education, Featured, High School, Middle School, Opinion
We Need a New Progressive Era for our Schools
[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”] Recently, a blog post written by Dr. Kathleen Berchelmann called “18 Reasons Why Doctors and Lawyers Homeschool Their Children” hit the internet big time. In it, Dr. Berchelmann explains why it […]
Posted inCharter Schools, Current Events in Education, Featured, Middle School
Politics As Usual – Pt.1 (Charter School Diaries #12)
Week 3/25-3/29 [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”] In any job, there is always office politicking going on. In public education, district-wide politicking is the norm. The cycle is never ending. Policymakers are pressured by parents who […]
Posted inCurrent Events in Education, Featured, High School, Instruction & Curriculum, Middle School, Opinion
What Frustrates Me About Non-Public Schools
This article is published simultaneously with its partner article, “What Bothers Me About Public Schools“ Let me preface this article by saying that I am in no way, shape, or form opposed to private or charter schools. There’s a school for every child on this planet, and for some students, it’s not a public […]
Posted inCharter Schools, Current Events in Education, Middle School, Opinion
Study Your Students (Charter School Diaries #11)
Week 3/18 – 3/22 Educators can be some of the most rigid people in a school. Many educators believe that the schoolhouse is simply for kids to come prepared to learn and that they should only do just that; students are to be well behaved, fed, rested and prepared to learn. Unfortunately, that is not […]