New Year, New Traditions

This school year, I'm doing something new...

That Time I Missed a Faculty Meeting

Teachers report back to school in less than a week, and I can't help but reflect on something that happened near the end of last school year. It's been a while since I did this, so here's another tip from this veteran teacher...

First and Last Day

First Day

Last Day

One hundred and ninety days...

How to Make Friends, According to Middle Schoolers

In my early 40's, I did something I didn't normally do...

Six Words

It's been YEARS since I had my students write just six little words about themselves...

Handle With Care

 Sometimes students are like fragile packages...

First Days of School

This week students returned to school, AND we had a blast...

When Your Student Becomes a Teacher

 I've always known that a teacher can go a long time, perhaps a lifetime, without truly realizing his/her impact on students...

Fancy a Plank or Some Wall Sits?

I'm not quite sure whose idea it was, but my students and I started an interesting trend, the last two months of the school year...

First Chapter Friday

I've been reading a chapter from a new book every Friday to my students...

Ice Breakers for Students

 

More than ever, it's important to connect with students on a digital platform, so this book of questions came at just the right time...

Shut Down, Unplug and Disconnect

I returned to my new school today for day one (out of 10!) of pre-planning, and I had to remind myself of something...

My Favorite Teacher, Equity and Reflections

Day two of teacher orientation and icebreaker activities got me thinking about my favorite teacher, of all time, and what I want to remember going into this new school year...

First Impressions as a New Tiger

Today I returned for a new year at a new school.  I'd like to journal my experiences here as I embrace change and choose courage over comfort. So here are my first impressions, so far, of the greatest middle school in the nation...

Like Tug of War

Dear Gwinnett County Public Schools, I'd like to share my thoughts on returning to school this fall...

Go For It

During one of our weekly walks, a friend of mine asked me a really good question...

Courage over Comfort

In January, on my birthday, I did something I hadn't done in more than five years...

Dear Students

More than ever, it was important to write to my students at the end of this school year...

Last Monday

What a difference a year makes. A year ago, this picture was taken on the last Monday of the 2018-2019 school year...

Seize the Opportunity

Our country's current quarantine in response to the deadly coronavirus got me thinking back to a very uncertain time in my life...