I’m writing this post for entirely selfish purposes. Tonight is back-to-school night, and I need to get my head around what I want to say. Things are different in my classroom this year in some pretty significant ways. I’m all … Continue reading
It’s school year 2015-2016 eve. We have the 9th graders in the building tomorrow for orientation. Then everyone on Friday. I’m ready. Well, I’m not actually ready in terms of lesson plans sketched out in detail and copies made and … Continue reading
Whereas yesterday left me feeling somewhat inadequate, today left me feeling inspired. That is the roller coaster of great professional development if you ask me. The day started at 7am with a run with Liz–my former high school student from … Continue reading
Greetings from DC!? We’re not quite in DC. The Gaylord Hotel is not quite DC. It’s certainly something, but not quite DC. Anyhow, it was a tiring but inspiring day, as they always are at this conference. And if you’re … Continue reading
Greetings! Sadly summer vacation is over and it’s time to get back at it. Well only sad because summer vacation is awesome but I have to admit I’m excited to get back to school. I love my job, my colleagues, … Continue reading
Nicholas Kristof, NYTimes columnist, recently published “Professors, We Need You!” This piece argued that academics are essentially irrelevant in the biggest debates in our society because they isolate themselves in the ivory tower and cultivate a culture that values nearly … Continue reading
We’ve been back to work since last Thursday, and we still have a few days before the students show up. This is a good thing because my classrooms aren’t ready and my curriculum bits aren’t finalized and my specific plans … Continue reading
Oooof. The end of the school year is never easy, for me, for the students, for the parents, for anyone. And this one has been particularly tough. I have had some things happen this semester which have been really challenging … Continue reading
A 2007 teacher of the year from Arkansas writes about a view of school reform that relies on the assets that already exist within the system, rather than obsessing on the deficits. Read it here.
My seniors just finished their final for this semester, a formal speech of their research paper argument about a controversial issue in society. We organized these speeches into panel presentations focused on broad topics that unified 2 to 5 individual … Continue reading
