Teaching is hard. Venting doesn’t make you feel better. Griping isn’t a positive way to connect with your colleagues. Complaining is outright toxic.
So my solution, and one that was recommended to me as a new teacher, is to stay away from the teacher’s lounge, metaphorically speaking.
There’s a metaphor for formative and summative assessment that’s stuck with me many years after hearing it. I don’t know where I heard it exactly, but it’s how I’ve remembered and explained formative vs. summative assessment to pre-service and beginning teachers over the years.
I don’t know about you, but when I was studying to be a teacher, I loathed lesson planning. Planning lessons was not as intuitive as I thought it would be.
Now that the new school year is well underway, it’s time to start thinking about professional development. I’m not talking about those presentations your school makes you sit through, which may or may not be helpful for your practice. I’m talking about personal professional development. Personal professional development answers these questions: What do you do to stay current in your practice? How do you ensure you’re pushing yourself forward and growing as a teacher?
Maybe this is your first year teaching, if so: congratulations! Or maybe it’s your 30th. Congratulations to you, too! Either way, teachers spend the end of summer and beginning of school year the same: preparing for new students. The first order of business is usually getting that classroom ready for instruction. Your classroom is your school home, and it’s important that it reflects your personal style as a teacher (you’re going to spend a lot of time there–might as well enjoy yourself!) and is welcoming, safe, and conducive to learning. Consider these ways of organizing your classroom this year.
At the start of each new school year is a fresh beginning–a chance to re-brand, try new things, or make an impact on your students. No matter what your focus is this school year, make sure you take the time to build relationships. In the classroom, relationships are your foundation. These relationships are the first step in creating a positive classroom culture. Building relationships costs zero money, is easy to accomplish, and sets a positive tone for your year ahead.
It’s August, which means a new school year is rapidly approaching. If you haven’t already, it’s time to begin thinking about school. In order to…
As the push for content area reading increases, and becomes more complex with the growth of technology and new literacies, I hear a lot of buzz around “wide reading.” Wide reading is a push for students to have regular reading time integrated into daily classroom practice, in all content areas. The idea that students need to read isn’t a new one. What is new, however, is how students should go about this reading and why.
This week I’m thinking about goal setting. I wrote a blog for Smart School Counselor, so I’ve had goals on the brain. If you…
Any teacher can tell you summer is a much needed break from the chaos and excitement of the school year. Once this time of year hits, it’s so easy to sprint to the finish line and stay in summer mode up until you start seeing back to school sale ads. Enjoy your summer, but make it a productive one with these 4 must-dos.