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Sesame Street: Word on the Street

heather — Tue, 13 Jan 2009 05:37:52 +0000

OK, so as I write this I’m watching Sesame Street with my 2 year old. This big-feathered muppet just announced that the Word on the Street is, get this…Struggle. I kid you not. I guess times are tough even on Sesame Street. (...)
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Post tags: 100% accountability, 2008, blog, character, Character Education, Childrens Television, education, education policy, ELA, k-12, k12, madoff, middle school, school accountability, school funding, sesame street, teaching, TLN, tween, UCI, Writers Project

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God bless us, everyone…

heather — Mon, 05 Jan 2009 04:19:57 +0000

On Christmas Eve, my 2 year-old son and I were driving home to meet my husband, when our Honda CR-V was hit by another car. It was pretty bad. But it could have been much worse, for which we are very thankful.

While much of the gratitude that I initially felt is slowly being replaced by the growls of frustrations involved with getting on with life, I have, nevertheless, reflected on the actual accident, and realize that even at the time of the crash, there was a teachable moment.(...)
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Post tags: blog, character, Character Education, k-12, k12, middle school, tween, UCI

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“Hit a Jew” Day. Um, er…

heather — Sun, 26 Oct 2008 22:41:05 +0000

I’m not sure what one can say about this latest story. AP reports that a number of students at a St Louis middle school are facing suspension for a spirit day gone awry. But how “Hug a Friend Day” de-evolved into “Hit a Jew Day” is beyond me. (...)
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Post tags: character, Character Education, critical thinking, diversity, Ed Tech, integration, life long learners, new teachers, reform, school accountability, student safe, technology, Title I, tolerence, writing

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The Carnival #178 is in town!

heather — Wed, 02 Jul 2008 15:49:35 +0000

An (aspiring) Educator is hosting this week’s Carnival of Education #178. I’ve tweaked my How to Take Control of Your Teaching list and although it’s still in an evolving state, you can read it here. Enjoy the Carnival and the post.

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Post tags: 2008, achievement gap, assessments, blog, book review, btsa, budget, Careers, carnival of education, character, Character Education, classroom library, collaboration, computers, concrete, contract, CORE, credential, critical thinking, CUE, Curriculum, curriculum design, curriculum development, differentiation, Ed Tech, education policy, ELA, electives, essay, essay starters, jobs, k-12, k12, Language Arts, life long learners, merit pay, metacognition, middle school, NCLB, new teachers, online, peer teaching, performance pay, PI, podcasting, powerpoint, professional development, Proficiency, school accountability, school funding, speeches, standardized testing, technology, tenure, Title I, TLN, top 10, union, voice, websites, Writers Project, writing

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An Honors Student Does Not a Critical-Thinker Necessarily Make

heather — Thu, 05 Jun 2008 03:06:08 +0000

So my colleague who currently teaches 8th grade Language Arts tripped on a cord, flew to the corner of a table and was momentarily knocked unconscious behind her desk today. It was during her Honors class.(...)
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Post tags: budget, character, critical thinking, education, education policy, ELA, employment, equity, firing, honors, jobs, k-12, k12, learning, life long learners, performance pay, teaching

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Don’t Knock the Less Experienced Teacher

heather — Fri, 23 May 2008 17:41:59 +0000

Look, we all know the statistics. Many of the hardest-to-teach classes are being taught by the least experienced teachers. According to Education Week, a study was recently conducted in Philadeliphia evaluating 9th graders, “the make-or-break year for many students on the path to dropping out of school” which found that “students are more likely than their upper-grade peers to be taught by inexperienced, uncertified teachers.”

While I understand the argument, I also know that these young teachers have an advantage that I will not have years down the line: energy.

When I was in my early years of teaching in my mid-twenties, I was hired to teach at an inner city school. It was, in fact, the under-funded alternative school for those students kicked out of the other schools. We had broken glass in the halls, police tape from the weekend still strewn over the kindergarten yard come Monday, and no textbooks. A classic Michelle Pfieffer/Hilary Swank/Morgan Freeman movie in the making.

I actually jumped into the deep end of the pool, and there wasn’t any filter, so there was moss on the top and calcium deposits coming from the cracks in the bottom, but it was there that I learned to swim. (...)
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Post tags: 100% accountability, 2008, achievement gap, ASCD Brief, ascd community, btsa, budget, Careers, character, collaboration, credential, curriculum development, education, employment, failing, firing, free, induction, integration, jobs, k-12, k12, Language Arts, learning, life long learners, merit pay, middle school, NCLB, new teachers, peer teaching, performance pay, PI, Proficiency, reform, school accountability, school funding, student safe, Title I

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Book Review: Skulduggery Pleasant

heather — Tue, 20 May 2008 16:58:13 +0000

I loved Derek Landy’s Skulduggery Pleasant. Let me say it again: I loved this book. It’s edgy, dark, and hilarious. I haven’t read a vivid character like this is a long time. Skulduggery is in one breath a rapscallion, a role-model, and a rogue. Picture Errol Flynn sans skin.(...)
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Post tags: Attention-getters, book review, character, curriculum design, curriculum development, differentiation, education, ELA, essay, hooks, peer teaching, sensory detail, voice

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