As I shared in my last post change was going to keep coming into my classroom as I have decided to move away from lecturing as much as possible. In order to prepare for the lesson I had told them to log in onto their MindMeister.com accounts (which we had used together as a class before) and create a map…Continue
"When you control a man's thinking you do not have to worry about his actions. You do not have to tell him not to stand here or go yonder. He will find his "proper place" and will stay in it. You do not need to send him to the back door. He will go without being told. In fact, if there is no back door, he will cut one for his special benefit. His education makes it necessary." - Dr. Carter G. Woodson, "The Miseducation of the Negro"
(To see the post with accompanying photos, please visit my blog at http://www.fortheloveofteaching.net. I can't get the pictures on the ning to look right.)
Today my class was featured in an article in The Edmond Sun. The reporter discussed our growing class brain in…
Today I changed the seating arrangement in my classroom, and split it down the middle with students facing each other, forming a kind of wide U. I decided to do this after a conversation I had about building community and creating good classroom space. But also I thought to myself 'we are in the third…
I thought readers might be interested in my article about digital citizenship and character education, in the February, 2011 issue of Educational Leadership. It echoes a number of points from my book, Digital Community, Digital Citizen.
You can read “Character Education for the Digital Age- Should We Teach Our Kids to Have Two Lives or One?” in Ed Leadership at: http://ow.ly/3On3S.
I am a Special Education teacher at the middle school level with a fully included roster of 12 students. My roster is usually split with half of my students in one class with me and the other half in another classroom with my teacher associate. I follow my students throughout the day to all their major classes and let them go on thier own to the minor or elective classes. Not a difficult day for me, right? Well it can be.
I have had regular education students ask me why I am not a…
Anyone who knows me knows how much I enjoy and focus on motivation and recognition. Knowing that, I suppose it is no surprise that I incorporated it into my formal observations of my teachers.
Today I had three formal teacher observations. Yes, three in one day. That is a lot in one day. Therefore, I thought I would make it a goal to provide immediate positive feedback for each of the teachers I visited. I was trying to think of the best way to give that feedback. …
Today my goal was to visit with each substitute in my building and improve the relationship with each one. Many times when substitutes come into the building they are ignored. The only time they are focused on is when they are unable to control the class. The only expectation of a sub is to keep the kids quiet and engaged long enough so the end of the day bell can ring. Often, when a sub comes into the building they do not have anywhere to hang their coat or… Continue
Added by Steve Bollar on February 23, 2011 at 9:09pm —
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I speak with educators, principals, and administrators every day that feel trapped, alone, and many times helpless, when it comes to fixing the deep fundamental problems in our education system.
What I find so powerful about the Internet is building real online communities. I am not talking necessarily talking about sites that attract…
"...a racially imbalanced school is not educationally harmful."
—Louise Day Hicks, Boston School Committee, 1974
The Boston Public Schools is the oldest public school system in America, founded in 1647. It is also the home of the nation's first public, elementary and high schools.
If you didn't know, I really enjoy watching short videos. In particular, I really enjoy watching videos that get me thinking and reflecting on my educational practices and beliefs. I have been using short videos in Professional Development sessions to get educators at my high school talking and discussing issues related to education. This is the third installment of the series..."videos that WILL ignite a discussion." I encourage you to check out…
The topic of discussion around the Global Crisis of HIV and AIDS is difficult. It becomes even more difficult when you add the need to have this discussion in our public and private school settings. The stigmas are huge, but the dangers to our students, of being ill-informed, are even bigger.
My son Jason is experiencing first hand, how difficult the discussions really are, working in Florida as a patient advocate for…
In 1904, the most coveted school in New York City opened its doors, named after PeterStuyvesant, the last Dutch governor of New Netherland. By 1938,…Continue
Added by Mary Rice-Boothe on February 18, 2011 at 12:00pm —
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Editors Note: I know that I am preaching to the choir since most people that read this are on Twitter already.
In the past week much has been made of the fact that as an Orthodox Jewish Educator living in Memphis TN. that I have over 1,300 followers on Twitter. Yes I am still amazed and humbled by this fact and at times when I am asked why people follow me I have a tough time answering. However when I am asked why I tweet or what I tweet about the answer is easy. I…
I believe there is one relationship within a school that is the most important - the relationship between teacher and parent. Teachers that communicate to parents directly and encourage a partnership of student development and learning create a bond and trust and parents want to be actively involved.
Enter school fundraisers.
Many times, teachers resist supporting fundraising from the parent group or principal because it interferes with the…
Back in September I shared a story with my staff; I spoke of the mustard seed and its microscopic size. I also spoke of how the mustard seed, small in size, when planted, grows to become a large tree. I also explained that if we each had the faith/belief the size of a mustard seed we had the ability to move mountains.
During that meeting, I gave everyone a mustard seed and asked that each of you hold the seed in your hand. I wanted each of you to realize that…
Essay Definition can vary widely depending on the Person DefiningEssay definition can be different depending on the source. The narrowest definition of essay is “a short piece of writing on a particular subject”, as appearing in Oxford Dictionary. Most common form of essay is written in prose. In practice, essays are regarded as short pieces of writing, though there are some exceptions like John Locke’s” An essay concerning human understanding”. In its broadest sense, definition of essay…See More
