Kids need to know that their feelings are real and ok. Even the feelings of hopelessness, despair, and depression.
Educational Rant-Resiliency
Educational Rant: Comfort Zone and Coronavirus
I am towards the end of the second week of Coronacation from school. Well, it is actually the 3rd week because we had spring break before the enforced hiatus from school. Did I struggle the 1st week- couldn't focus, couldn't get motivated, kind of hid away from the world and was sort of in shock... Continue Reading →
Educational Rant-Pokemon Cards
This is from about 100 years ago when I first started thinking about this shit: We Don’t Want them to Cry Recently I asked why my son wasn’t allowed to bring his Pokemon cards to school. Well, he is allowed to bring them for sharing, but not for recess or trading. This all goes along... Continue Reading →
Educational Rant- Work
I took the day off today. I had to take my boys to the High School to get them registered for the upcoming school year. I am sitting at a table with my 8th-grade son and his soon-to-be advisor. She looks over his middle school transcript and sees that he is not doing very well... Continue Reading →
Educational Rant- Tears
My job is hard. I am sitting at my desk in tears. And it is not the grading. It is not an overwhelming lack of time to do the tasks that I have to do. It is not the lesson planning or the lessons that flop. It is not the holding of my bladder for... Continue Reading →
Would You Put Up with This Shit?
I don’t think so…. You are an educated professional. You went to college, university, tech school, whatever. Maybe even got a master’s or PhD. You are well-paid in your profession, respected, given autonomy, support, maybe even empowered to do your job. You work long hours as needed, but you can accumulate vacation time. You can... Continue Reading →
Letter from My Principal
The principal sent this out today: Dear Staff, Starting next week, we will no longer require you to submit weekly lesson plans. We recognize that this is a task that may have low value and just added weight to your week. We realize that lesson plans do not equal student learning and that oftentimes... Continue Reading →
CELL PHONES & CONTROL
CELL PHONES, CONTROL, AND THE TRUTH ABOUT TEENS I’ve been subbing in middle and high schools this year, and like everywhere else, the rule is the same: No phones. This isn’t new. It’s one of education’s greatest hits — dragged out every year like we haven’t debated it for a decade straight. The Exhaustion of... Continue Reading →
Educational Rant: Busy Work
Educational Rant: Busy Work The Wind, the Notes, and My Rising Blood Pressure I’m sitting here getting mad.My daughter is outside, trying to take pictures of her math notes with her school laptop. The wind keeps blowing the pages around, and she’s getting frustrated. I finally ask what she’s doing, and she says she has... Continue Reading →
Value
Value I went to the board recently for reasons that I am not discussing here…maybe another time.. The high school has a program called School Of Choice or SOC. It has been in existence for at least 20 years. Maybe more. It was in progress when I began teaching at the High School in 2004. ... Continue Reading →
Bullying
When my daughter was in 5th or 6th grade she was getting called a certain derogatory name due to the fact that her body was developing quite early. I recall her coming home and telling me her experience and her feelings around this. She was hurt and confused. She couldn’t understand why this girl said... Continue Reading →
Educational Rant- School Lunch
Educational Rant- School LunchAfter 3 days and one week of school, there have been a lot of opinions, assumptions, rumors- whatever you want to call them- about the new lunch program. A brief lesson: Senate Bill 4 was passed this past spring to support free breakfast and lunch for ALL students in New Mexico. Los... Continue Reading →
Educational Rant- Compliance
I am sitting at the kitchen table in tears. These tears I have been holding back for days, and I didn't know why until now. I decided to go to Powerschool. I never do this. I used to do this. I used to be obsessed, and I had notifications, and I got a ding every... Continue Reading →
Educational Rant- Success
Success. We talk about success all the time, especially in school. Success is getting your assignments done. It is getting an A on a test. It is advancing to the next level. It is graduating from high school, college, kindergarten(whatever). Success has been defined by income and status. If we see someone who has a... Continue Reading →
Educational Rant 