Cross Posted from Chalkbeat, TN, April 21st, 2014 You walk into a classroom. You see students are excitedly conversing with each other, taking notes on their papers and drawing models. The teacher rotates around, speaking very little, but when he does, he typically leans down, examines a student’s paper and then asks a simple question. […]
Instruction & Curriculum
Posted inFeatured, Instruction & Curriculum, School Improvement, Social Studies
Teacher Education Programs Through the Lens of History Educators
On Sunday, April 13th, I attended the final session time of the Organization of American Historians Conference in Atlanta. Sunday is very quiet with many attendees heading home. I decided to attend the Educating Future History Teachers session. I wanted to see what was being done to prepare teacher candidates now compared to my program […]
Posted inFeatured, Instruction & Curriculum, Mathematics
The Case for Using Calculators
There are a multitude of opinions on the topic of calculators, ranging from: “I learned math without a calculator” to “what happens if children are dependent on calculators and there isn’t one around” to “children should not move on to higher level math until they can do basic computations mentally.” I am going to explain why […]
Posted inFeatured, Instruction & Curriculum, Mathematics
Top five reasons to go to the 2015 NCTM Annual Conference
I have attended the past eight NCTM (National Council of Teachers of Mathematics) conferences. The event has become an annual highlight in both my academic and professional careers. For me, the conference has always been about learning. There were some years when I savored a walk through the exhibit hall to discover the newest software […]
Posted inCurrent Events in Education, Featured, Instruction & Curriculum, Social Studies
Irish & African American Struggles for Freedom: Day 2 at the Organization of American Historians Conference
On Saturday, April 12, I again attended the Organization of American Historians Conference 2014 in Atlanta. Saturday was a very busy day as there were more people there than on Friday. I arrived to the conference around 10:00 AM and explored the exhibition hall. Several of the publishers represented there were giving away their stock […]
Posted inClassroom Management, Featured, Instruction & Curriculum
Life Through the Lens of a Yearbook Advisor
My dad is a professional photographer so cameras have always been a part of my life. Perhaps that’s why being on one end of the camera or on the other makes very little difference to me…it’s all good! As a child I was taken in-tow from job to job with my father; I posed for this poster, that spread, this advertisement, […]
Posted inInstruction & Curriculum, Mathematics, Social Studies
Mathematics with a Social Justice Agenda?
I attended several sessions on Teaching Mathematics for Social Justice at this year’s NCTM Annual Conference. I noticed similar faces in all of the sessions I selected. This meant that hundreds of other faces had completely excluded this topic as one of value to their pedagogical growth. I started wondering how this important work would […]
Posted inClassroom Management, Elementary School, Instruction & Curriculum
Packing Up Your Clip Chart
My philosophy in teaching, and in life, is to leave things better than you found them. Each person is placed here for a purpose and a reason. As an educator, it is my role to foster the strengths within each student and help them reach their potential. This task, while difficult, is best done with […]