The other day, I overheard a colleague having a conversation with a student. My colleague asked the student, “Why are you here?” The student responded by asking the same question to my colleague. My colleague replied with, “I’m here because I have to be here.” It was at that moment, I knew a learning opportunity … More Attitude Is Everything
The other day, my class was finishing up their last assignment for the day, when I had one student who was refusing to do anything. They were struggling with being focused and having a good attitude. In fact, he was sitting at his table, head down, and loudly rubbing a piece of paper on the … More Just Breathe
Dear New Teacher, Congratulations for making a step into being a positive influence in the lives of young people. The teaching profession is an honorable profession, but is often a very thankless job. There will be times where you will feel overwhelmed, tired, and think you are not making a difference. Let me encourage you … More A Letter to a New Teacher
There used to be a methodology in education, specifically in mathematics, that was called “Drill and Kill.” This was usually used in the early years of education – elementary years. “Drill and Kill” was a way to get students familiar with fact operations. Students were given a worksheet with 20, 40, or even 100 fact … More “How” Then “Why”
Have you ever perused the National Education Association’s (NEA) website? The statements made on the website show the true colors of the association that says they stand for education. However, not once do they focus on real world learning, creating classrooms that work on skills that are needed to be successful beyond the classroom, encouraging … More The NEA Is The Worst Thing For Education
Why are your students struggling to meet academic goals? Why is your class struggling to follow the expectations? Why is the school culture struggling? How can you be more intentional in the classroom? How can you help your students better understand the content? How can you help your teachers be great at what they do? … More Reflection Is Key
It’s an honor and a privilege to teach students. If you don’t think so, don’t become and educator. The classroom is a place that should inspire, encourage creativity and problem solving, teach 21st century skills, and most importantly, be a place that connects the real world to what is being taught. It is the job … More What Are You Teaching
At the beginning of every year, teachers go through content standards and lesson plans and figure out how they are going to get through all the required content standards for that school year. Elementary teachers who teach all subjects have hundreds of content standards to get through throughout the year. High school teachers who teach … More CONTENT
You walk into a room filled with desks, tables, chairs, a whiteboard or chalkboard, posters on the wall, and little knickknacks around the room. Color seems to be everywhere, unless you’re in high school where color seems to slowly fade away, and you are greeted with motivational quotes and sayings on the wall. You have … More Welcome To The Classroom
Welcome To The Classroom 