Maker Projects

Recently, I have been posting a great deal of content via my Instagram and twitter feeds around things our students have been creating in our library. Yet, as a follower on twitter pointed out to me recently, I really have not shared the how or why with many of the projects. With that in mind, […]

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Tough Topics

Sexual assault, rape, harassment, and abuse are currently hot topics in the world and often ones we don’t like talking about. In light of recent world events, I’ve thought a great deal about these topics and their impact on our society. For many people, it is hard to fathom having to go through a situation […]

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Stories of the Refugee

Turn on any news station and undoubtedly, you will hear stories pertaining to immigrants and/or refugees. One thing I fear most Americans are struggling with is having empathy for these people. I don’t say that as a criticism, but more a reality of the lives many of us have lived or are living. It is […]

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We Need More Honesty

We need more honesty in education and fewer platitudes and false idealism. Far too often, educators willing to call out problematic aspects of their jobs or raise criticisms are being labeled as negative or accused of bashing teachers. Yet, in reality, they want nothing more than to lift up their profession and make learning better […]

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Favorite Maker Activities 2018

This year has been one for the ages in terms of the flat-out cool stuff I’ve been able to work on with students. I wanted to share our highlight reel with everyone in hopes it will inspire some great end of the year projects or something to look forward to next year. If you have […]

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Straight White Male

When a student is struggling with their sexuality or gender, I don’t know what to tell them. When an African American student struggles with society’s treatment of people of color, I don’t have an answer. When an autistic student is easily frustrated or acts out, I don’t often know how to help them. When I […]

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Moments

As teachers, we are tasked with teaching content and helping kids grow into productive and successful citizens. We are given a set of content standards we must cover and a battery of assessments to determine if we have succeeded in doing so. Our evaluations are based on how we plan and deliver our lessons as […]

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