TL;DR: Instead of a New Year’s resolution, think of selecting a word for the year. Kintsugi is the Japanese art of repairing broken ceramics with gold, silver, or platinum to create beauty in imperfections. How can we apply kintsugi as we learn and grow in 2022? Embrace imperfections, flaws, and mistakes this year. You are spectacular as you are! One … Read More
A Heart in the Write Place
TL;DR: This article is an interview with Dennis Mathew—an author, innovator, and speech-language pathologist in Oklahoma. We can’t ignore racism and things that are not right in the world, but we can bring the light. Dennis makes sure healing is infused into all of his works and that they can easily be used in the classroom setting. Self-discovery is a … Read More
Building Professional Connections in Your Network
TL;DR: Having a professional network and people to connect with is valuable. Even though reaching out can be difficult for some, find ways to connect to people in your school. Make connections with other professionals outside of school, even non-educators. Let’s just be real here for a moment. Having friends definitely makes work —and life, for that matter— better. We … Read More
Before You Throw in the Towel: REASSESS
TL;DR: Being a teacher is not for the faint of heart. Teaching is a calling. If you ever feel helpless, unappreciated, or want to leave the profession, don’t. Instead, REASSESS: remember, evaluate, affirm, seek, study, eliminate, survey, and shift. By nature, I am highly reflective. As a teacher, I often looked forward to ways to redo a poorly executed lesson … Read More
Classroom Management Then and Now
TL;DR: Classroom management has changed quite a bit since the days of Harry Wong. Today’s classrooms have shifted physically and philosophically to empower students in their learning. Consider including wellness breaks in an instructional period to allow for meditation, hydration, or socialization. La-Shanda joined Rae on the Daily Drop In to chat about classroom management and including wellness practices with … Read More