Have you signed up for The Educator’s Room Daily Newsletter? Click here and support independent journalism! The three-year anniversary of the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic coincides with my birthday. I remember having a school potluck on that Friday, not knowing the very next day that we would be informed that we would not be […]
reflection
Posted inOpinion
I Thought This Would Be the Year “After” COVID, But I Was Wrong
Have you signed up for The Educator’s Room Daily Newsletter? Click here and support independent journalism! I sat in front of the computer, thinking about what I could come up with to keep my students engaged for this last week of school. The computer screen began to blur reminding me of the metaphorical “blur” of […]
Posted inInstruction & Curriculum
A Year of “Awesome Highs” and “Devastating Lows”
Have you signed up for The Educator’s Room Daily Newsletter? Click here and support independent journalism! Dear Fellow Teachers, Ah, summertime. Warmer weather, longer days, and for students and teachers alike, the end of a school year. For many of us, we look forward to resting, relaxing, and taking care of those home improvement chores […]
Posted inOpinion
Rat Infestations, Permanent Voice Damage, & Grieving In the Classroom : Reflections on the Absolute WORST YEAR of My Teaching Career
This has been the absolute worst year of my teaching career. By far . . . It started too early—much too early. Our teacher meetings began on August 14th. Whatever, you may ask fellow teachers, ever happened to the Tuesday after Labor Day serving as the year’s genesis? Anyone who has spent any time in […]
Posted inInstruction & Curriculum
4 Questions to Celebrate Your School Year
As I write this I’m seven school days away from summer vacation. At this time, I’m filled with the usual mixture of emotions. I’m excited to recharge and relax. I’m sad to be saying goodbye to my students, while wondering if I could have done more. I’m anxious for the next year, wondering how I […]
Posted inInstruction & Curriculum
Dear Principal
Every year when school comes to a close, I feel I must reflect on my own actions and decisions as well as the actions of others on my campus. I understand that it takes an extraordinary kind of leader to navigate the lanes of district mandates, student needs, and teachers wants. This letter is intended […]
Posted inElementary School, Instruction & Curriculum, Literacy, The Student Teacher Diaries
Student Teacher Diaries: The First Lesson Plan
I see lesson plans everywhere! I have always been the teacher that goes somewhere, looks at something, picks up a book and can think of ways to bring it into the classroom as a lesson. A friend once commented, “It does not matter where we go you think of a way to teach kids.” There […]
Posted inElementary School, Professional Development, Series, The Student Teacher Diaries
Student Teacher Diaries: In The Beginning
This semester, along with leading 24 fourth graders through the second half of the school year, I will be mentoring a student teacher. It was 20 years ago I went through this journey on the other side. Things have changed drastically in education during that time. First of all, the vocabulary. Tomorrow I will begin […]