Revised & updated on 6-20-23 Have you read The Knowledge Gap by Natalie Wexler? This is a great read for both teachers and parents which talks about the state of our public education system. In the book, Ms. Wexler makes the case that our public education system is “broken” (in terms of what is taught).… Read More
Teachers work hard. We spend endless hours planning, thinking about planning, looking for resources, thinking about our individual students and what might work best for them, and reflecting on our teaching. Most of the time our effort pays off. But what about when we feel as if we are working and working and the students… Read More
Regardless of what curriculum you are given, there are some effective teaching strategies that are tried and true. These strategies can be adapted for anything you teach and will give you the best learning outcomes for your students. In Facebook teacher groups, I often see teachers ask if anyone else teaches a specific curriculum for… Read More
One of my big tasks for January is to re-focus and set new goals for myself. And one of those goals is to make a handy list of tips to refocus my students when our energy is lagging or when we are getting “squirrelly”. (Squirrelly = fidgeting all over the place, like a squirrel.) Using… Read More
Photo by Suzy Brooks on Unsplash I begin teaching black history in January. In my ideal world, there would be no need for a “black history month” because black history IS American history and would be taught all year long. But, until that happens, I support having a month set aside to focus on black… Read More
First things first — take care of YOU. It’s hard to go back from a break! While one of the best parts of a teacher’s job is the breaks during an academic year, it can also be a tough transition. So be good to yourself this week. To make your first day back the best… Read More