My experience in education hasn’t been long, being that I’ll enter my 6th year in August, but it has been full of change and growth. The evolution I’ve gone through has been extensive, including philosophical changes, shifts in my mindset, and entirely new instructional practices. When I reflect on my growth, it’s exciting to see… Continue reading Risky Business
Tag: teaching
The Case for School Librarians
School librarians are a significant part of the educational experience we offer our students. They provide collaborative, engaging learning environments full of information for our kids. They are a wealth of knowledge on the books they have available, easily able to recommend and direct kids toward their next great read. They develop positive relationships with… Continue reading The Case for School Librarians
Love, Mrs. G
Dear kiddos, It’s here. We’ve made it to the end of sixth grade. Some days have flown by, while others have seemed never ending. But we did it. Congratulations on successfully navigating your first year of middle school. You have come so far from the kiddos who were nervously trying to open their locker and… Continue reading Love, Mrs. G
Teachers are Professionals
When we enter into the teaching world, we are usually aware of the difficulties that come along with it. The long hours, the low wages, the tough conversations, and the emotional toll it can take. This is fairly well publicized, and many of us know it’s part of the job. What some of us don’t… Continue reading Teachers are Professionals
An Ode to Poetry
Oh, poetry. You beautiful, expressionist, challenging, frustrating beast. Many struggle to find your deeper meaning, your hidden messages. Children sit in schools, turned off and annoyed by your very existence, writing the same poems (ahem, haikus) year after year. This year I took a new approach to teaching poetry, and it’s one that I wish… Continue reading An Ode to Poetry
On Homework
The past few years, this topic has undergone a barrage of scrutiny. From the arguments of it being absolutely necessary for a student’s development, to the ones reviewing the number of hours students spend at school each day, it’s a hotly contested issue. Then there’s the consideration of including it in an overall grade, or… Continue reading On Homework
Feedback FROM Students
“It is not enough to simply listen to student voice. Educators have an ethical imperative to do something with students, and that is why meaningful student involvement is vital to school improvement.” ― Adam Fletcher, Meaningful Student Involvement Guide to Students as Partners Feedback in the classroom is an important aspect of educational practice. It is… Continue reading Feedback FROM Students
On grades
Grading has gone through a lot in the past decade. It’s been through a massive overhaul, coming out the other side looking quite different from when it began. Some of the changes, necessary ones in my opinion, are finally beginning to become commonplace in our practice. They are starting to take hold. I’ve written previously… Continue reading On grades
Let’s talk about new math
I see the hate for “new math” in a lot of different places. Instagram posts, my Facebook newsfeed, even the local news. I know that social media is a bubble, often giving less than accurate portrayals on the general public’s opinion, but it seems like there is a large number of people out there who… Continue reading Let’s talk about new math
Bringing Tough Topics into the Classroom
I often get asked how I approach certain topics with my 6th grade students. It should come as no surprise that I spend quite a lot of my time thinking about and discussing education, and that it comes up in conversation with people in my day to day life. When I share some of the… Continue reading Bringing Tough Topics into the Classroom
