and living life one day- and book- at a time
Goal My goal this week is to find a way to encourage my students to like Poetry. They are not having it. Gratitude I’m thankful for March. I know it is going to be extremely busy and hectic, but this week marks the end of the 3rd 9 weeks. Guidance “Your best teacher is the …
There’s something that happens in schools when the weather starts to warm up. You see, as the weather warms up, the students get restless. Sometimes it has to do with hormones (thirteen is that wonderful age where many begin to feel the fluctuating hormonal roller coaster as their body begins to adjust). Sometimes it is …
Recently we were notified that South Carolina had created another set of standards for ELA. This will be the 4th set of standards I’ve taught since I began teaching in 2012. Of course, we will not begin teaching these standards in middle school until the 2024-2025 school year. I think my biggest problem with a …
The literacy specialist who visits our school and district shared with us an article title, “Every Child, Every Day,” that talks about the six things that every student should experience in the ELA classroom every day. She stated that we should strive to have students do those things in our classroom each day. I sat …
Each year with the use of computers in the classroom, the temptation for students to copy and paste straight from the internet becomes greater. Many students don’t know how I can so quickly identify what is their work and what belongs to someone else. Most of the time it is as easy as looking at …
Welcome to another Monday! Let’s get this week started! Goal
It happens. You have the fabulous lesson, and you start to teach, and then something happens and a disruption breaks out. It’s bound to happen when you have 23 students in a room, and 15 of them have learning disabilities or behavior issues. You’re going to expect that to happen. You redirect, move closer to …
I’ve seen bullying in the classroom. I’ve seen one or two students bully another. I’ve seen them start the others in the classroom to follow their agenda toward students. This year, though… My last class period has a student that most seem to target. He is a likable young man. Well-mannered, thoughtful, and polite. He …
This year has been a huge push to analyze student testing data. Every month we gather in a backroom behind the stage with other teachers of the same subject and look at test scores. We discuss why the students aren’t progressing, and we’re asked what we are going to do to change things. Can we …
As an ELA teacher, there are certain things that make me irritated. Most of those correspond with written communication. Over the years, I have developed these dislikes more and more. And yes they go far beyond the misuse of certain words being used incorrectly, such as your, you’re, there, their, its, and it’s. Even beyond …