How often do you think about self-care? At the beginning of the year? During grading periods when you’re stressed out and wondering why you’re teaching? When you’ve had a fabulous weekend/day/month off and you think about how awesome it feels? When you’ve had enough and decide to take a ‘mental health sick day’?s That’s what […]
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Teaching: Taking on the Moral Imperatives (Part II)
So now you’re fierce, are you? Fierce like, how? For Part II, I want to talk more about being fierce. It’s not just standing up against the onslaught of union-bashing and data mashing designed to demean teachers. It’s being unafraid to fight for what kids really need And it’s about actively pursuing greater understanding in order […]
Why I Want to Karate-Chop the SmartBoard and 19 Other Rants
Why I want to karate-chop the SmartBoard I worked for a district who had the nicest SmartBoards and projectors around. I liked them, they were easy to use, and they were only there a few years. But, the darndest thing happened: the same year we took a forced pay freeze, the district purchased new equipment […]
Teaching: Taking on the Moral Imperatives (Part I)
What moral imperatives? I have been thinking more about the moral imperatives of teaching. These imperatives can hinder instruction and progress. That’s why the only option is to address and hopefully resolve them. They are moral imperatives because it’s wrong to not handle them. Preparing students academically-now that’s the job, a duty. Consultants, education experts/leaders (folks who travel around and talk about […]
Despite the Teacher Shortage, Some Educators Need to be Coached out of the Profession
When you are a teacher, it is easy to be so consumed with your classroom that you might not notice the work of your colleagues. Â You might assume your principal did a great job of hiring your colleagues and they are all working their butts off to do what is best for our students just […]
“Let Them Eat Cake:” How Teachers Can Resist Banned Words
            Words never uttered can be extremely significant. Often the perception of words said (or unsaid) carry more importance than truth. In October of 1789, Marie Antoinette did not look down at the swarming hordes of fishmonger women storming the Palace on Versailles and […]
2018…Helping Teachers Have the Best Year Ever
One year ago, I made the decision to write down what I hoped for The Educator’s Room. It took me many tries, but when I finally hit publish, I was confident that 2017 would be the year where things would become easier for not only the writers of The Educator’s Room but for education as […]
The Second Quarter Blues
The weeks between Thanksgiving and the New Year are often cited as the most wonderful time of the year…Â except when they are the worst. In schools that begin around Labor Day, the Second Quarter – or second grading period – typically stretches from November to January. Due to holidays, concerts, sporting events, interruptions, and the […]