As a busy teacher/advocate, I am careful to whom I rent space in my head, meaning, I don’t perseverate about things outside my control as much as I did as a newer teacher. Angry parents don’t phase me anymore. Administrative
Read MoreNOT a Superhero
So everyone dreams about being a superhero when they’re a kid, right? The idea of cape-crusading, building-climbing, crime-defeating glory sounds pretty awesome to anyone under ten. Superheroes are known for saving the world in cool costumes while soaking up love
Read MoreMost Spirited
Earlier this week, just a few moments after sunrise, I found myself looking down at my school from atop a steep slope. I was pulling weeds, and raking a rocky hillside. No. This was not penance for some classroom stunt.
Read MoreMental Health First Aid
There’s no way to describe the sound of toddler choking until you hear it. Once you hear it, you can’t forget it. A gasp? A wheeze? I saw his eyes. 4-year-old eyes. Eyes of a non-verbal preschool student with Autism.
Read MoreStory from the School Garden
In 2008, Lisa Moberg, now an NBCT and once a blogger for Stories from School Arizona, was teaching on a third grade team in a West Valley Title I school. The team had heard about the Western Growers Foundation grants
Read MoreSchool Safety Grant
Between September 16th and 27th, you may have noticed your school counselors missing from your school site, your grants manager may not having been communicating with anyone, staff members may have been pulled off campus to attend urgent meetings. This
Read MoreThe Words We Use
I read a quote yesterday that said, “What if every time you said that a student was attention seeking, you said instead they were connection seeking. How would that change your perspective?” At first, I could hear the diatribe running
Read MoreA Teacher by any Other Name
The day is finally here! Today is the day I am getting married on the beach in beautiful La Jolla, California! This whole quarter has been a whirlwind with adjusting to life as a new mom, starting over in a
Read MoreDare Greatly: You Are A Teacher Leader
I have an assignment for you: Look in the mirror and say, slowly and convincingly, “I am a teacher leader.” Feel weird? It did to me for a LONG time. I didn’t see myself as a leader; I was “just
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