A Broken System. This is something that I’ve heard a lot of college professors utter when talking about lesson planning or unit design: “teach to the middle.” This idea makes sense in a more traditional lecture based instructional model, but fails to meet the needs of the modern student. This also only makes sense if we want to continue destroying … Read More
Stop Hoping For Better Students and Focus on Better Teaching In Your Classroom
Quit Complaining About “These Kids.” Seriously, stop it. We spend a lot of our days visiting districts, observing classrooms, and talking with teachers, and I’m starting to hear something more often than I should. I keep hearing teachers say things a long the lines of: “This would work, but ‘these kids’ can’t do it…next year will be better.” I’ve had … Read More
5 Mistakes Districts Should Avoid When Rolling Out A New Initiative
So as you sit in a meeting, you start to hear rumblings of a new initiative that your district will be rolling out. This could be anything from a new policy, a new vendor coming in, or maybe a new curriculum that is being purchased. We all have the same gut reaction, “Grreeeaat…another thing to do.” As teachers, we are … Read More
3 Things I learned from Teaching in A Fishbowl.
In case you don’t know what the term means (you probably do) teaching in a fishbowl is when your classroom is being observed by other professionals, administrators, colleagues, and stakeholders constantly. Essentially it means that your teaching is always on display. Now, I know you are thinking, “I would hate that!” but I assure you it has its benefits. When I … Read More
3 Ways to Fall in Love with Teaching Again
Have you fallen out of love with teaching? I know that title is a little corny, but if you are in a place right now where you are having to drag yourself out of bed and into your classroom, you need to keep reading. How Did This Happen? You might be wondering how you got to this place. When you … Read More