Yesterday was the last day of school. There was a pizza party, yearbook signing, and lots of adorably dramatic pre-teen tears mingling with shouts of joy. In theory, I should have woken up today with a feeling of freedom and
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Awaken the Sleeping Giant
“Within every school, there is a sleeping giant of teacher leadership that can be a strong catalyst for making changes to improve student learning. By using the energy of teacher leaders as agents of school change, public education will stand
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What Google Says About You: A Challenge
So it’s the end of the school year. A delightful feeling of renewal is sprinkling down like magic as you look forward to summer break. You are probably putting together an epic summer To-Do list of projects, appointments, and fun
Read More Awaken the Sleeping Giant
“Within every school, there is a sleeping giant of teacher leadership that can be a strong catalyst for making changes to improve student learning. By using the energy of teacher leaders as agents of school change, public education will stand
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Until the Last Day
Every year, there is a point in which I think, “I have done everything I can for my students. I don’t know what else to do?!” This usually occurs during the weeks after our standardized test. I teach third grade
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The AZ Teachers Professional Development Pilot Program
Attention all STEM teachers, do we have news for you!! With all the doom and gloom this past legislative session there is one piece of legislation that is going to make a difference in Arizona and that is our bill
Read MoreVouchers Can Bridge the Income-Tuition Gap
Note: Some numbers from the Private School Review provide perspective for what follows: Currently, 64,353 Arizona students attend 478 private schools. Elementary schools charge an average of $6,268 per year for tuition and high schools charge an average of $17,116.
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Teacher Appreciation Weak
Ah, teacher appreciation week. I look forward to the handmade cards and homemade goodies, and if I’m really lucky, school supplies or a Starbucks gift card. But here’s what I really want for Teacher Appreciation Week. Stop undermining the teaching
Read MoreA Warning for Public Education Advocates
Who knew the answer to all of our challenges was so simple that it could be written in bullets on the back of a napkin? Recruit top performing students from public schools. Label non-randomly selected samples of “lowest-performing” students and
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From One Moment to the Next
Last Monday in Coolidge, I was coaching a cohort of teachers who are pursuing the National Board Certificates. Ben Barth, a massage therapy teacher at the Central Arizona Valley Institute of Technology (CAVIT), was in the zone. He planned to
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