and living life one day- and book- at a time
Each year at the end of the year, I assign the students a quest. They are usually apprehensive because they are unsure as to what is going to unfold, especially since I know what is about to happen: Someone is going to lose all of their gold that they have saved so carefully for a …
At the beginning of the year, there’s usually an icebreaker that I love to use. Many of the teachers that I teach with in middle school typically use the same one, and it’s Find Someone Who. I’ve use multiple versions of this. I’ve used it as a get to know one another activity for those …
Over the years, I’ve learned that building a good rapport with my students is a priority when it comes to teaching. I have been in classrooms where students have continuously shut me out for one reason or another, and I’ve also been in classrooms where students enjoyed my class and were more than eager to …
What advice for new teachers would you give? Often teachers coming into the profession have an ideal expectation and are often hit with the harsh realities once they are in the classroom. Much of the work can be overwhelming, but over the years I’ve learned to focus my priorities and create a manageable schedule for …
What is it like to teach middle school? Imagine you are on a roller coaster and you are just about to pull into the station to disembark the car, but the brakes suddenly fail, and you are now off on the same ride again. That pretty much sums up what it’s like to teach middle …
At the beginning of each year, I teach my students the RACE writing strategy. I find that many times, as students reach middle school, they lack the ability to fully explain and cite evidence from the text. While the ability to cite evidence is a key standard, it is also an important skill when writing …
I’m going to start giving you a glimpse into the day in the life of a teacher on a regular basis. I’m still going to provide you with helpful articles and ideas for the classroom, but sometimes as a teacher, you just need a place to cheer about the positives and rant about the disasters. …
When I began my journey toward teaching, I had big ideas and plans. Before I graduated, I had already been in the classroom for several student teaching experiences, plus I had written a lengthy paper on my personal teaching philosophy, and of course, raising my children made me feel prepared to step into the classroom. …
I’m not sure who in our county checks the calendar to decide when to have the county fair, but I sure wish that they wouldn’t schedule it during a full moon. Each year, we have the lovely experience of having fair week and a full moon happening at around the same time. I don’t know …