Arizona gets a blue ribbon for its euphemisation of political dialogue. In order not to appear like a Common Core State Standards state, they named them the Arizona Career and College Readiness Standards. The difference between the CCSS and the
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The Slippery Slope of Teacher Certification
I swore I would never teach junior high. Junior high, two swirling years of what, as a student, I experienced as daily hell. I owe all my patient and forgiving junior high teachers a debt of gratitude. By the time
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Two-minute(ish) Challenge
We have all seen the challenges posted on social media or overheard a colleague who is on a 30-day challenge. Maybe they are changing what they eat for 30 days or doing the 30-day push-up challenge. Either way you know
Read MoreI Teach In a Traditional Public School and I Support School Choice
I’m a traditional public school teacher (and union rep), and I support school choice. As a right-leaning independent with a high concentration of libertarianism running through my veins, I default to political positions that tilt the balance of power toward
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This is Our World
This past fall our district passed an override adding 50 new teaching positions and upgrading technology. This was a great victory for our community and schools. It showed a partnership, commitment and trust had been built and a promise moving
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Saving Time in IEP Meetings
As a special education teacher, I’m constantly on the look out for time savers that help me accomplish my massive workload in less time. There are so many things to do in special education! (Regular ed teachers, I know you’ve
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The Magic of the National Board Process: The Gift That Keeps on Giving
My friends tease me about my stash of office supplies that I constantly carry, sticky notes raining in my wake as I walk and highlighters filling every pocket. My house looks like Mission Control as binders bristling with sticky flags
Read MoreIt’s Cursive! It’s Cursive!
A bombshell study published this week by a team of meta-researchers who reviewed the data on everything by everybody ever studied in education, suggests that the answer to field’s woes is much more simplistic than ever imagined. The culprit? Cursive.
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Lights, Camera, Take-Action: Valuing Teachers throughout the Year
As I sort through my endless number of email messages, I am reminded that this is the time of year when most school districts will have a special end-of-year ceremony to honor their teachers. My district has an award ceremony
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The Varsity Letterman
Is this the end of the 3 sport athlete? Recently I was at a track meet and got chance to sit down with the coaches from a rival school. Being at schools with similar demographics we share a lot in
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