On a cold day in central New York, I had the fantastic opportunity to take 26 students to tour the Harriet Tubman National Park, located in Auburn, NY. After an enlightening hour, we loaded onto the yellow submarine (aka the school bus) and watched the movie Harriet at the local Movie Tavern. By the end of the […]
Instruction & Curriculum
Posted inInstruction & Curriculum
What Becoming a Math Teacher Leader Taught Me
Becoming a math teacher leader was never really on my radar. When I first started teaching math, I taught the way I was taught or how the textbook presented topics. Many of my students struggled with this method of teaching, so I looked for alternatives. When opportunities for professional development in math arose, I signed […]
Posted inInstruction & Curriculum
Valuable Lessons from an Extremely Bad Professional Development
You know that something has gone wrong in a professional workshop when the experience starts to feel disrespectful. I sat in a workshop today from 9 am to 3 pm about a new math curricular resource. Approximately an hour and a half into the workshop, I started to feel pretty angry, because the training was […]
Posted inConfessions of a Teacher
#RealTalk Why We Haven’t Quit Teaching
Quit teaching: The past few articles I’ve written have been controversial. The craziest response I’ve received has been, “Wow! Can tell you are young and have a long way to go! In fact get out now! Your students and parents deserve it…” When I first read this response, my “irritated, frustrated, and over it” reaction […]
Posted inInstruction & Curriculum
Self Care Won’t Solve Teacher Burnout. Organizing Will.
The Self Care Trap There was a time (I suppose we’re still in it) when an endless stream of “trauma-informed” initiatives passed through my Facebook feed, e-mail inbox, and classroom. A lot of these offered some variation of mindfulness training for teachers or students. Whether it was through yoga or meditation, numerous programs promised safer, […]
Posted inInstruction & Curriculum
Teacher Self-Care Calendar- November 2019
Download our November Teacher Self-Care Calendar. To download the PDF, click Self Care Calendar 2019 (1).
Posted inInstruction & Curriculum
Why I Almost Quit Facebook
Guest Writer: Meran Khon “Did you see this?” The question came in a text message from my principal, accompanied by a screenshot of a Facebook post by a parent. The photograph showed a close-up of a child’s finger, but it was the all-caps type and multiple exclamation points that made me catch my breath. This […]
Posted inInstruction & Curriculum
This Is Not A Drill: The Impact Of Our New Normal
Under the handle of my classroom door is a red button. That button allows teachers to secure their classrooms from the inside. Before the red button, teachers used their keys to lock their doors from the hallway. The mechanism protects us, but during the first lockdown of the school year, my red button fails to […]