This past week, the National History Day program announced that it lost one of its biggest benefactors. Though National History Day (NHD) doesn’t announce the benefactor’s name, it does reveal how much it’s going to hurt the program — a total net loss of $800,000, annually. If you don’t know what the National History Day […]
Instruction & Curriculum
Posted inCurrent Events in Education
Teaching Black Consciousness and White Privilege
One matter we have gotten over very quickly as a country is the notion, beginning in 2008 and carried throughout the Obama presidency, that we now live in a “post-racial” society. Â The fact that an African American was twice-elected to the nation’s highest office gave rise to the idea that racial discord can now be […]
Posted inInstruction & Curriculum
Mindfulness in the Math Classroom: Why it Matters and How to do It
Teaching and learning both create stress in students and teachers, especially as learning becomes more high-stakes for everyone. However, through mindfulness activities, teachers and students can become more productive in the process. It helps control emotions, maintain focus, and increase productivity. When emotions run high, you’re going to want to practice these mindfulness techniques in […]
Posted inInstruction & Curriculum
The Prize: Mark Zuckerberg & His $100 Million Gift to Newark Public Schools (Book Review)
The subtitle of Dale Russakoff’s book begs the question —Â who’s in charge of America’s schools? In the push-and-pull system of school reformers vs. union members, outsiders vs. insiders, school boards vs. state and federal leaders, elites vs. grassroots, admin vs. teachers, and a host of other stakeholders over the “best interests of students,” it’s not […]
Posted inInstruction & Curriculum
38 Days a Teacher: Leadership, Followership, and Fellowship
I found myself standing in front of 27 students, my first day as their teacher, the Monday after Thanksgiving. I was brought in as their Spanish teacher to pick up the pieces after their previous teacher ran screaming into the night, unable to deal with the behaviors and diverse academic needs of the 130 students […]
Posted inCurrent Events in Education
Testing Season: Prepare to be Accountable
It’s testing season In New York, the state tests are here. Technically speaking the ELA tests have gone by already, other than make-ups that need to still happen. The math 3-8 exams are still to come, and in the tiny rural school system I teach in these tests are all taken seriously by the teachers. […]
Posted inInstruction & Curriculum
4 Ways to use the NCAA Tournament to Enhance your Math Classes
The big scream coming from administrators, curriculum coaches, and students alike is for relevancy in teaching. Sometimes, as math teachers, we have had a hard time picking up that relevancy piece. I find that the best time to bring students into the fold is during the NCAA tournament because so much math can be taught […]
Posted inInstruction & Curriculum
Yes, Failure IS An Option
We’d be hard pressed to find an innovation that has changed our modern living as much as the light bulb. When Thomas Edison and his employees experimented with methods to bring about an incandescent light, they finally arrived – almost by accident – on using a cardboard filament. After its success, he famously quipped “I […]