I’m sure I’m not alone in the belief that my school team is the best. I know many of you would look at the team of people you work with and wouldn’t want any other group of educators. I’m
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Spring Break is in the Air: Part Two
A year ago, I wrote a blog called Spring Break in the Air in the hopes of changing the discussion from the Coronavirus to something positive. I was getting stressed out and tired of hearing about this virus that was
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The Power of Music
“Music education opens doors that help children pass from school into the world around them – a world of work, culture, intellectual activity, and human involvement. The future of our nation depends on providing our children with a complete education
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Lessons from Brooks’s Preschool Classroom
Ring, ring. “Hi! This is Mrs. Clark. I am your student’s English teacher.” In my 8th year of teaching, I feel comfortable picking up the phone, calling a student’s home, and saying those words. FINALLY. The act of calling families
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How to Hit a Curveball
From school administrators to teachers to students, we often hear the phrase “When things go back to normal.” I am a bit tired of hearing that, but not for the reason you may think. We all want to be back
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Understanding Teacher Guilt
“I’m failing” I have heard that too many times in the past week. Tears, even from those who usually don’t cry, accompany the statement. Each week I meet with grade level teams. In these collaborative team meetings we talk about
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Bringing the Inside Classroom…Outside
The first two rounds of COVID immunization have been given out and all eyes are on the levels. With the governor mandating in-person testing, districts that have not returned to school will most likely return to some form of in-person
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Caption This…
The third quarter is always the longest, and this year has been longer than most by about a decade. Participation is way down and classes seem to go on forever. And it’s my job to do something about it. So,
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The New, New Normal
It has been almost a full year since our school closed for Spring Break last year and COVID quarantine began. In that time, I have mastered Zoom (most days), digitized all of my files, loaded my entire life onto Google
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Illuminations
“How has remote teaching changed you as a teacher?” my principal asked. Like a good educator, this question came at the end of our discussion. He had already walked me through guiding questions that he knew would churn up a
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