Award Winning Teacher – International Speaker – Author
By Terabass (Own work) via Wikimedia Commons I am an eternal optimist and truly believe in my heart that time travel will be possible one day. It is with this belief I write this letter that I will one day travel back in time to deliver to “First Year Teacher Me”. Yes, I realize that […]
Continue ReadingThis afternoon my wife and I took our sons to the MortonArboretum in Lisle, IL. We have been members there for a few years and go there on a fairly regular basis. Today happened to be a special occasion of sorts with a scare crow walk, food vendors (including some fine micro-brew), and various crafts […]
Continue ReadingAs many know, I teach social science as well as language arts at the 6th grade level. If you have ever taught in the junior high setting or have a junior high aged child, you know how difficult it can be at times to keep them engaged and excited about a topic. In my language […]
Continue ReadingToday was a great day at school as I had my first parents in the classroom event. During my three social science periods I invited parents to stop by and take part in the activities I had planned for the class. On average I had about 50% of the parents in each class show up […]
Continue ReadingThe little things matter in life and certainly matter in a classroom. It is these little things the speak volumes for who we are as teachers. Often times these are overlooked and can manifest into large and significant problems for teachers. Here is a list of little things that I see daily which send a […]
Continue ReadingMany people will share their ideas about classroom management and how to go about controlling kids or keeping order in their classrooms. They will tell you how to create rules and how to keep the kids in line so you can teach your lessons without interruptions. If they are really thorough they might even provide […]
Continue ReadingThere have been many conversations around the world of education for an eternity about the role homework plays in the learning process. My own thoughts are well documented and I personally don’t care for homework in most cases. I have often said that if we do our jobs right in school, kids will want to […]
Continue ReadingI recently read a great post by Pernille Ripp over at her blog titled “I am Nothing Special – Why Are Teachers Afraid to Share theirSuccesses?” I left a comment as it was something I had a strong reaction to as a result of personal experience. Initially, I was not going to share my thoughts […]
Continue ReadingI have written about this subject in the past but find myself coming back to it. There have been numerous posts floating around that surely do not help ease the potential tensions between teachers and parents. I felt compelled to share something new I am trying this year that directly relates to building relationships with […]
Continue ReadingI have read two articles recently that have both stirred some strong feelings in me as a parent and as an educator. The first was an article titled “What Teachers Really Want to Tell Parents” by Ron Clark. In this article Clark goes on to list a handful of things teachers should be telling parents […]
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