The Rewards of Teaching!:It’s Not About the Money, Honey!

 

Don’t get me wrong. I like getting paid to teach. Now if someone offered to cover the mortgage …READ MORE…

Where Does Data Come From? : Replacing “Teach”er with “Test”

Data can guide instruction. I get it. I have used data to guide instruction, and it works.

But just like anything else, too much of a good thing makes it… too much! READ MORE…

Damult Dice!:A Math Game Everyone Will Love!

What is Damult Dice?

During  #5thchat, a  ”tweecher” tweeted about Damult Dice.

My immediate reaction was, “What’s Damult Dice?” Amy sent me all the info I needed to play this game and I was hooked. I shared it with my students the next day. I shared it with a few teachers. Yes, I was that excited about this game! READ MORE…

Why Can’t We Keep the Music Teacher?: Losing Arts in Schools.

 

I sat, mesmerized, as the music teacher coaxed the most beautiful songs out of 30-40 3rd, 4th, and 5th graders.  This was not the first time. I have been to many of her concerts, and I am always amazed. READ MORE

Vocabulary and Spelling City: Lovin’ It One Year Later!

It’s been a year since I began using SpellingCity. I have to say that my students and I really enjoy using it. Not only that, but SpellingCity keeps finding new ways to keep my students engaged with added features, all beneficial to the classroom.

These are the features I loved a year ago, and thankfully, still exist today:READ MORE…

Teachers, Targets, and Test Scores!

My stomach is in knots and I want to scream.
I want to hit something.
I look at my students’ test scores, the growth they have made,and I am proud of them.
I refused to teach to the test, and they still kicked DCAS !

I looked down the AYP column on the all-glorious data chart, and saw that some of my students grew by over 100 points. Only two of my students did not show “growth”.READ MORE…

 

Appreciating Teachers!: My Top 10!

Chocolate, gift certificates, and lunch are great! I really do appreciate all the thanks I have received during the week.

But I’d like to  share some tips on what would REALLY make me feel appreciated!

This goes out to anyone who interacts with teachers,in no particular order:READ MORE

“My Resume is Ready”: Losing Good Teachers!

 

Not my words. 

I live and breathe teaching. I really can’t imagine doing anything else, well, except writing.

These words were spoken by a teacher friend of mine.

He sounded so down when he said it.:(

He is overwhelmed, as are we all.READ MORE

I’m a Poet, And I Know It! Celebrating National Poetry Month!

I love National Poetry Month! I used to write poetry, maybe I will again some day.  But in the meantime, I like to give my kids a chance to grow to love writing poetry as much as I do.

There was a time, pre-standardized testing, when we would gather up all our original poetry, pair it with two really funny pieces of poetry, and have Poetry Day. We would invite the parents, and each child would share  one of their poems. We would read the two poems we chose as a group, one in the beginning, one at the end. Afterwards, we would have snacks and juice, provided by the parents. Aaaah, good times. READ MORE…

 

photo credit: Enokson via photopin cc

Are School Field Trips Becoming Obsolete?

The 5th grade went to the Blue Rocks baseball game today and we had a blast! I loved interacting with my students outside of the classroom. It’s rare that we get the chance to do that anymore. We sat in the stadium, talking, laughing, and cheering. It was as far from standardized testing as you can get!:)READ MORE…