Award Winning Teacher – International Speaker – Author
As I continue to evolve in my role as a Junior High Librarian and Learning Commons Director, I want to constantly reflect on my practice. One thing I get a lot of feedback on is the work we are doing in our Maker Lab. In some cases, I have received criticism about some of the […]
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For 13 years I taught Language Arts to junior high students. I had a list of reading standards that I needed to teach on a yearly basis. I had to make sure kids knew the theme, perspective, conflict, author’s purpose, create beautiful plots lines, and many other standards. During that time we read lots of […]
Continue ReadingAdministrators are the leaders in schools and in some buildings have been rebranded as lead learners, program directors, chief storytellers or some other trendy term. Now, some of these leaders are leading in title only but not through their actions. They wield their authority in a dictatorial manner which does little to help the teachers […]
Continue ReadingAnyone who works in education knows the institution’s obsession with data. What I mean is school districts are always worried about their data. Are the test scores high enough? Are the students making adequate growth? How many kids do we have in the exceeds category or in the needs improvement category? What do these numbers […]
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As I am in the home stretch of my first year as a junior high librarian, I thought it a good time to reflect a bit. One of my focus areas this year has been literacy growth. Part of that is have an environment and culture within the library space that is welcoming and engaging […]
Continue ReadingAs our new president takes the oath of office and assumes the role of Commander in Chief and leader of the free world, I felt as though I would take some time to offer him some advice. It is well known our former president, Barack Obama, was an avid reader and a lover of knowledge […]
Continue ReadingI love trying new things or changing up the way I do things at school. Whether I look back at my years in the classroom or in my new role in the library, I am always on the move and trying different and new things. My goal is to always make the experience for the […]
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As someone with nearly three months of experience as a junior high librarian, I felt as though it was time for me to share my vast knowledge and wisdom in this new role. 🙂 In all honesty and seriousness, I am still figuring it all out but wanted to reflect on my first few months […]
Continue ReadingSocrates has been credited with uttering the phrase, “the unexamined life is not worth living.” This is an expression I have discussed many times with my good friend and fellow educator Chad Miller. In our many conversations we come back to the understanding that in life, reflection is crucial to growth and evolution of one’s […]
Continue ReadingThis month I officially started the next step in my teaching career. I have taken the position of Library Resource Center Director in the junior high which I have taught in for the past 13 years. Now some people might wonder, “What is a Library Resource Center Director and what do they do?” Basically, I […]
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