and living life one day- and book- at a time
When it comes to organizing sub materials in the classroom, there are several approaches that can be made. I love to have extra materials for my subs along with lesson plans that I may have prepared. The reason? Sometimes kids will finish in a hurry and a sub may need extra work for them. Also, …
At the end of each school year, I like to reflect on what I did that worked, and what I did that did not work. When it comes to lesson reflection, I generally do that as I go along, but classroom organization is a whole other issue in itself. In the past, I have tried …
Sometimes my students manage to find me online by accident, and sometimes they go digging through Google like they are detectives on a mission. I don’t lie to them when it comes to my passion, but I am often surprised when the realization of what I tell them in my beginning of the year spiel …
It is almost Thanksgiving Break, and I am in survival mode. Not only am I in survival mode, but I can sense that many of my students are as well. The holidays are coming up, and some seem to need extra attention. Survival mode during the holidays can mean many things for many people. For …
As an ELA teacher, you know for certain that it involves a lot of paperwork. Essays take the longest to grade. Work can easily pile up. Parents begin to hound you wanting to know why their child’s grade hasn’t been updated, or why it suddenly dropped after you put a grade in. There are many …
Nurses, Police, and Teachers can tell you that things go crazy when there is a full moon. The energy kind of ramps up a bit, and usually chaos follows closely behind. But what if there isn’t a full moon in sight? Friday, on my way to work, I listened to my grandson in the back …
Teaching. From the time I was little, I was always teaching. I would teach my brother while he was trapped in his playpen. I would line up my dolls and play school. I always wanted to teach someone something. It seemed to be who I was. When I was an adult, I took a survey …
Two months ago I was diagnosed at the age of 53 with ADHD. Upon speaking with other adults, it’s not something that is unusual. Much of our symptoms are combined with other things such as anxiety, stress, and our mental health that many doctors fail to realize that perhaps those things are a direct correlation …
There is a clear difference between children and adults in how they handle put downs. I think if it came down to it, I’d be more upset over another colleague saying something than I would a student. It’s how we handle conflict. As an adult, you begin to master the art of “oh well.” Lately, …
In my classroom, the switch to discontinue lecture and teaching specific texts for teaching reading skills. Prior to this year, I had taught through lecture, and while I was secondary certified, I was comfortable with teaching certain pieces of literature. I thought that was what ELA was all about. I could use specific pieces of …