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Book Review: The Distance Learning Playbook
Listen I was mowing the yard, listening to some education podcasts a couple of weeks ago, and listened to two different podcasters interview the authors of The Distance Learning Playbook: Teaching for Engagement & Impact in Any Setting. First, it was Justin Baeder of Principal Center Radio interviewing Douglas Fisher....
Reformation: Adjusting Responsibilities of Learning and Control
Listen In the past, both the responsibility for learning and classroom control rested squarely on the shoulders of the teacher. If your students were loud and misbehaving, or if they failed a standardized test, you were not only held responsible for it in a figurative sense. Instead, you could lose...
Technology and Education in the 21st Century By Debbie Thoreson
Listen As a teacher, I have often thought, “Seriously, why does this student think I’ll believe this is hard for him?” After all, I begin with the same historical texts as I have for nearly a decade; yet I notice each year there are more...
Student Reflections on Virtual and Hybrid Learning
Listen There is no question that this has been a very challenging year for teachers and administrators (OK, understatement doesn’t even begin to describe that statement). But, our students are facing these challenges without the benefit of maturity, life experience, or a college degree! Let’s not forget that...
Checking in on Mental Health
Listen We have written a lot about mental health in the last 6 months since the world seems to have gotten turned upside down, but that’s just how important of a topic it is! While most of this seems to have started with the COVID-19 pandemic back in March, the...
Reformation: Technology
Listen Perhaps the first and most obvious way schools are changing right now is in the area of technology. We are using it in ways we definitely never could have predicted!And that is very frustrating for so many teachers and students. However, when the pandemic dies down and we find...
Multicultural Fun for the Early Elementary Classroom
Listen It’s never been more apparent that we need to be both accepting and welcoming to students from all cultures and backgrounds than it is now in our society. Children need to see themselves reflected in the things we do - in our literature, in our lessons, in the ways...
Spend "180 Days" with Kelly Gallagher and Penny Kittle: A Book Review
Listen Ever attend a professional development training and think to yourself, “Yeah, I’d like to see you try that with my students!” Or maybe you find yourself disregarding the advice of your administrators, writing them off with, “But how long has it been since you’ve been in a real classroom?”...
Building an International Community of Educators
Listen While teachers are usually great about sharing lesson plans, borrowing decorating ideas, and team planning, many schools attempt to recreate systems in-house rather than seeing what other districts have done in the region, throughout the country or even across the world. With the world at our fingertips and education...
How to Advocate for Change: A General Guide for Teachers and Paraprofessionals
Listen Present the Facts Once you are prepared, don’t just show up at your principal’s door or a board meeting without an appointment. After all that work, you need your administrator to listen to you and give you their undivided attention for 20 to 30 minutes. Arrive on time for...
How to Advocate for Change: A General Guide for Teachers and Paraprofessionals
Listen So far in this series, we’ve talked about narrowing your focus to one specific need or complaint, gathering others to help you make a change, and identifying the decision-maker(s) you should address in asking for changes.Today we’ll focus on something many teachers overlook or skip: doing your homework. We’re...
How to Advocate for Change: A General Guide for Teachers and Paraprofessionals
Listen In our last post, we talked about the need for educators, as the only experts in the field currently, to step up and share information about what they and their students need especially in this time of pandemic and unrest. On the whole, teachers do not like that they...