TL;DR: Summer needs to be a time of rest and an intentional reset yourself for the next school year. Summer as a new teacher can involve working at a summer camp or summer school. You can take professional development. Or you can work seasonally for a local business. Congratulations! You have (almost) made it to the end of the school … Read More
Disability and Language
TL;DR: There are three types of language that people use to describe disabilities: person-first, identify-first, and person-centered. To be most respectful, connect with individuals in the community and ask for their preference in language to use. “She suffers from cerebral palsy.” “He is ‘on the spectrum’.” “She is a person with a hearing impairment.” “He is a blind man.” There … Read More
Making the Shift from “Getting by” to “Getting BETTER”
TL;DR: Change your mindset from finishing the year by just getting by. Instead, recognize what you learned and how you’ve gotten better. Reflect on how you have improved this year, how you have learned from others, what you’ve learned from PD opportunities offered. Don’t go back to “just surviving” in education. Work together to be better together. Recent interview with … Read More
Living the BLENDED Lifestyle
TL;DR: Make the shift from balancing your life to blending your life. The blended lifestyle is the mindset of recognizing that no matter what you are doing, it’s who you are that matters most. When I made the shift from trying to balance my life to blending my life, I went from surviving to thriving almost instantaneously. You’ve probably heard … Read More
The Long View vs. The Short View
TL;DR: Navigating a crisis requires a short view. It is time to refocus on the long view. In order to focus on the long view, educators need to begin with the end in mind, create a guiding coalition, identify a strategy for the first weeks of school, and focus on systems work vs. patchwork. “Leading through a crisis requires taking … Read More