In this series, #36weeksoftech, I will review tech tools in my classroom. I will give you my honest opinion and some pros and cons as seen through the eyes of my experience as a teacher. This is my 21st year of teaching and I teach all subject areas in my fourth-grade classroom. Using technology is […]
Instruction & Curriculum
Posted inInstruction & Curriculum
Why Poetry Is So Great for Teaching Growth Mindset
When she first studied students to learn about how a growth mindset can be instilled in people, Carol Dweck gave kids puzzles. After successfully completing the somewhat easy puzzles, one group of kids was praised for their effort while the other was praised for their talent at puzzles or for being “good at puzzles.” Thus […]
Posted inInstruction & Curriculum
Teach Like Someone is Watching–Because Someone is Always Watching
Do you ever feel that you aren’t teaching at your best? Not that you are deliberately not trying, but that you aren’t being deliberate about how you teach all of the time? Sometimes I go home and think about how the day has gone and realize, that I could have done better. So what, right? […]
Posted inInstruction & Curriculum
And then, the Plot Mountain Blows its Lid Off!
You probably have encountered the plot mountain diagram: Exposition. Rising action. Climax. Falling action. Resolution. The plot mountain diagram is taught with short stories in English Language Arts at different grade levels, but I suspect that like most graphic organizers, the plot mountain diagram is over-taught, especially in […]
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Deliberate Practice and Growth Mindset
I have been obsessively researching growth mindset over the past few weeks. And one of the many misconceptions that I have discovered is around the idea of effort. It seems that many people believe that a growth mindset means trying and trying until you get it right. The more you practice, the better you get. […]
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A Paul Bunyan Story Map Becomes a Lesson in Racism
As it often happens, I was looking for one thing (Google’s expansion into creating maps and navigation tools) when I came upon another. I had clicked my way to a story map of the folk tale hero Paul Bunyan. I had followed a link to the Osher Library Map Cartographic Southern Maine University website and soon was down an […]
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Harnessing Competition
I have a room full of highly competitive students. Most of them are first born or only children and their natural wiring towards competition can drive a teacher crazy! Instead of trying to stifle their exemplary leadership skills, I use it for my advantage. Not to the point of pitting one against the other, but […]
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[Podcast S2E9] Practicing Self-Care By Teaching in the Dominican Republic
During this episode, Franchesca Warren talks with The Educator’s Room writer, Whitney Kaulbach as she discusses how her journey to self-care took her to teaching in The Dominican Republic. For the past couple of weeks, we’ve discussed the need for teachers to not only advocate for self-care but to understand that teachers must be taken care of […]