Last week, fellow teacher and blogger Sara got me thinking about all of the professional development I’ve attended over the past two decades. I’ve unironically been shown Sir Ken Robinson’s TED Talk about how schools kill creativity right before being asked to dig into state testing data, I’ve made a pinewood derby-type car out of […]
Ready for six more grading hacks? Let’s take a field trip this week as we talk about the importance of keeping you whole. Continue reading
Ready for six more grading hacks? Here’s episode #2 of my new YouTube series designed to help you reduce grading time Continue reading
The calendar isn’t lying to us; it really is time to update the syllabus and get into that back-to-school frame of mind. You might be curious how I run the show, so here’s a copy of my course outline along with an episode from my classroom management series discussing the eight words that comprise my classroom rules. Continue reading
Fellow English teacher Heather recently asked, “How do you do grades?” With her permission, I’m posting our email conversation in a Q&A format. Maybe you’re new to the classroom or, like Heather, just looking for a new approach. Either way, here’s a look at how I keep scores. Continue reading
Confession time: I’m Facebook dumb. I’ve never really understood social media. All that liking and tagging and following leaves me as confused as my grandpa at Starbucks.
All I want is a black cup of coffee. I mean, all I want is share cool ideas and resources with my English teacher friends. Continue reading
I hate name games. Painfully awkward, these games have never magically connected me to people just because they’ve repeated, “Her name’s Laura and she likes llamas.” Nope. Not happening around here, people. For the first day of school, I usually start with a one-minute welcome and intro. of my background, have students make name cards they […]
