Slid across the desk with triumph — an iPhone shows me a picture of a former student in rainbow glitter with a caption: “Like Lizzo says: ‘All the rumors are true, ya’ — or at least about me. I am
Read MoreRead the Fine Print
Always read the fine print: 1. We believe that God wonderfully and immutably creates each person as male or female. 2. We believe marriage is ordained by God, and joins one man and one woman in a single union. These
Read More
My Last Day
A draft of my letter of resignation: To Whom It May Concern: The day you mandate that teachers have to legally be unethical, dishonest, and horrible humans will be my last. While I see that legislators have been stacking racist,
Read MoreCraving Critiques
The lights are dimming, and a crooner’s voice comes on over the loud speakers: “Good Evening, and on behalf of Walt Disney World, we welcome you to Illuminations!” This moment sparks joy and whimsy for thousands gathered at Epcot nightly.
Read MoreReclaiming Our Time
‘First Chapter Fridays’ have been a fun concept catching lots of attention on social media and Pinterest boards for ELA teachers the last couple years. If you’re unfamiliar with this craze, it is the idea of sharing just the first
Read More
An Ode to Community College
“Bragging rights,” I assured him. A colleague and I were walking to our cars discussing all of the letters of recommendation that we had written this year for “prestigious” schools. “Why are people applying to be in debt at these
Read More
4 Suggestions to Help the Sub Crisis
Thankfully, the room had an entire wall of windows, so it didn’t matter that I couldn’t find the light switch. As the students arrived, they rattled off dozens of questions. I am uncertain if all of them made their way
Read More
An, An, An, Anaphora
My students surprise me every day. My students delight me every day. My students amuse me every day. My students question me every day. The repetition of phrases like that is a rhetorical device known as an anaphora. While we
Read MoreUnconditionally
Crowded in a standing-room-only auditorium, I looked beyond the waving sea of tissues, and listened intently as the speaker had to enunciate over a chorus of sniffles. A young woman who had graduated a few years after me was recounting
Read More
Puns & Peace of Mind
This summer, I saw my life unfold on the silver screen — yes, my life has been adapted into a feature film. The flattering part of it was that when it came to casting, the executives at Disney spared no
Read More