# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
PK-12 and college level resources covering academic success, student development, parent involvement, college preparation, career planning and more.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
I'm a 6th-grade teacher in a public school in Florida. I have a great rapport with my students, and they know I like to joke around a lot. I tease and can be a little bit sarcastic, but it's more funny than mean. My principal recently dropped in unannounced to observe my classroom, which happens at least once a semester, and I'm kind of floored by what he wrote about my teaching in his informal evaluation. To sum it up, he said that I'm overly sarcastic and miss signs that I'm upsetting my students. I don't know what he's talking about. No one was upset! In any case, he wants me to cut it out. I met with him and may have been a little defensive, but I think I'd know if my approach was offending kids. I've been at this teaching gig for a long time, and I'm only flippant with students who I know can take it - and who I know dish it out to their friends, too. Should I be worrying about this?

I'm going to start with the obvious, which is that your principal has issued a directive. He wants you to eliminate sarcasm. So the short answer is yes - you should be worrying about this. There's a reason he dropped in unannounced; he wanted to observe you when you were less guarded. Your approach that day was clearly flippant, and he thinks you offended kids. Perhaps you put them on the defensive, too, which is ironic considering you felt the same way when you met with your principal. That's not a good feeling for an adult or a child.

I'm wondering whether your S pidey sense is less keen than you think. Although you're right that some kids tolerate sarcasm better than others, very few enjoy it. Even kids who dish it out can be hypersensitive. At best you're poking fun, at worst you're using humor at someone else's expense. Your comments might seem harmless and jocular, but there's a good chance you're undercutting your relationship with your students. Sarcasm erodes trust, especially when you make a biting comment about a kid in front of their peers. Whether you're joking about their academic ability or the fact that they zoned out, you're embarrassing them. Remember that these are 6th graders. There's nothing more brutal at that age than public humiliation. Your students are drawing conclusions about you, too. They're going to be less willing to raise their hands if they're worried about your reaction. Some kids will internalize negative remarks that aren't even directed at them. Plus, while girls this age are prone to hearing any critical voice as screaming, middle school boys tend to mask their feelings. They might laugh when they really feel like bolting from the room. Your principal likely picked up on cues you've been missing, such as a student's uneasy body language or deer-caught-in-headlights expression. Or he might simply believe that sarcasm has no place in the classroom.

If you can't go cold turkey, start by limiting sarcasm to one-on-one interactions with students with whom you have a trusting relationship. If you've had run-ins with a kid in the past, shoot for sincerity. Start paying closer attention to everyone's reactions. Snarky can be funny or it can be mean. A student is unlikely to tell you the truth, but your partner, friends, or colleagues might be willing to be more honest. What do they think about your interpersonal style? Ask yourself some questions, too. Do people tend to get defensive around you? Do you find you often have to explain what you meant? Do you frequently have to issue apologies? Are you using sarcasm relentlessly, or do you know when to switch gears and be serious? Do you tend to exhaust people, or feel like you always have to be the funniest person in a room?

In the end, this isn't optional. Your principal thinks your approach is cutting and inappropriate. Here's the good news, though. If you're less sarcastic, your students will probably enjoy your class more, not less.

For more Career Confidential: http://bit.ly/2C1WQmw

Have a question that you'd like Career Confidential to answer? Email contactphyllisfagell@gmail.com. All names and schools will remain confidential. No identifying information will be included in the published questions and answers.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Is it OK for a teacher to be sarcastic with students? - kappanonline.org

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
I'm a 6th-grade teacher in a public school in Florida. I have a great rapport with my students, and they know I like to joke around a lot. I tease and can be a little bit sarcastic, but it's more funny than mean.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
I still remember my first winter break in my first year of teaching. I scratched out Christmas Eve and Christmas as true "days off," but then I worked the rest of the time. I read two books on teaching. I took home a giant box full of papers to grade. I planned out my first three weeks of lesson plans.

Don't get me wrong, I did this leisurely, between cups of coffee and . . . more cups of coffee. To be honest, I enjoyed it.

When I started back, I felt ready to roll. I had used my time productively. But then something happened in late January. I felt restless and tired. I yearned for a break - not just from my classroom but from the daydreaming of projects and the incessant lesson planning in my own head. I wanted to watch a movie and read a novel and hang out with friends.

I needed to be unproductive.

So, months later, when I sputtered into Spring Break, I treated it like a break. A real break. A totally unproductive break. I gave myself the permission to avoid grading. I avoided professional books and blogs (unlike the summer when I would immerse myself in professional reading). I didn't feel an ounce of guilt from the people who complained that "teachers have it easy" (not true) because of how much vacation time they get.

Listen to the Podcast

If you enjoy this blog but you'd like to listen to it on the go, just click on the audio below or subscribe via iTunes/Apple Podcasts (ideal for iOS users) or Google Play and Stitcher (ideal for Android users).

http://www.spencerauthor.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/Renewal-on-Winter-Break.m4a

Watch the Video

I've been doing a series called Different From Day One. You can find them here on my YouTube Channel. This is my third video. If you like it, would you consider sharing it and clicking the "like" video?
Subscribe to YouTube Channel
Teaching is Exhausting.

Teaching is exhausting. There's the sense of presence you need, the constant energy you bring, the give and take between students, the conflicts you have to navigate, the sense of pressure about the tests and the tension between what you believe about learning and what the system requires of you.

This is especially true for introverted teachers like me. We work in a profession with constant communication and collaboration. It's beautiful, yes, but it's also disorienting to introverts. You can hit a place where you feel lost. And, even if you love teaching, it can feel draining.

Sometimes it's more than simply exhaustion. There's often a perfectionism in teaching that can lead to an unhealthy striving and lack of contentment. Sometimes you need to break up with busy:
Subscribe to YouTube Channel
When Teachers Rest, We All Win

People say that teaching is a marathon and I think they're right. Even when you finish a marathon and you cross the finish line and you receive that metal and you crazy proud of what you've accomplished, you still find yourself collapsing on the ground in exhaustion.

That's winter break right there.

I mention this because I sometimes see a narrative that the "good teachers" are the ones who spend their summers in professional development or in committees planning out lessons. It's easy, as teachers, to get sucked into the martyr syndrome, believing that you should selflessly give everything you have because you're doing it for the children. I call this the "superhero myth." It's an idea I explored in this video I co-created with my friend Trevor Muir:
Subscribe to YouTube Channel
Martyrs aren't any good to kids. Students need teachers who are energetic and patient. However, this requires rest and restoration. Moreover, students need teachers who are passionate about the content they are teaching, which is why it's a positive thing when teachers spend part of the summer geeking out on history or art or math or science. If we want kids to fall in love with reading, it helps to have teachers who spent a part of their summer lost in their own fictional worlds or playing around with the ideas they read in a Malcolm Gladwell book.

Teaching is an exhausting gig. It's okay to take a break for a week or two (depending on your school calendar). Read a book. Watch movies. Go hiking. Swim. Binge watch Stranger Things. Kick the soccer ball around with your daughter. Go hiking. You've poured your heart and soul into this gig. You shouldn't feel guilty for resting. It's what your students need.

In fact, there's a ton of interesting research in the book that suggests we are more productive and more creative when we spend time resting.

This idea is echoed in an article, where author Thomas Oppong wrote:

According to research, the brain gradually stops registering a sight, sound or feeling if that stimulus remains constant over time. You lose your focus and your performance on the task declines. When faced with a long creative problem, it is best to impose brief breaks on yourself. Brief mental breaks will actually help you stay focused on your task and improve your idea generation approach. A structured downtime can help you do your best work. We tend to generate redundant ideas when we don't take regular breaks. If you're hesitant to break away because you feel that you're on a roll, be mindful that it might be a false impression. Your brain needs downtime to remain industrious and generate better ideas.

I love that idea. We need to rest. We need restoration and renewal.

Seven Strategies for Finding Renewal on Winter Break

There's nothing wrong with doing professional reading or lesson planning or any of that during the break. If that's your thing, please ignore this entire post. But if you want to treat the winter break as a true break, here are some strategies you might want to try out. For the last week, I've been talking to current classroom teachers and adding their strategies to those that I've used:

1. Take some time for reflection. This can be tricky, but I've found that it can help to take a day (or even a half-day) and review student surveys and take an honest look at what's working and what needs tweaking. If you're someone who spirals into guilt or feels shame easily, take a different approach. Do end-of-the-semester surveys a little earlier and then spend this reflection time thinking about what went well. One activity would be to list 30 things that you are doing well. In other words, ask yourself, "where am I crushing it as a teacher?"

2. Take nothing home. Ditch the grading. Avoid the lesson planning. One of my teacher friends said that he works extra hard two weeks before the break and makes sure everything is ready for him the moment he walks into his room after the break. His philosophy is to "sprint through the finish" by spending a few extra hours on Monday and Tuesday before the break so that his materials are ready and his lessons are planned for the first two weeks after winter break.

3. Find inspiration from other domains. Read a book. Watch a movie. Go hiking. Take a real vacation. Spend time doing what you love. Some of my favorite ideas have been inspired by things I read in unrelated books. I got into Genius Hour after reading a book on Google. I changed my feedback process after reading a book about Pixar. I regularly reshape my design by reading works from UX designers. I'm constantly being inspired by podcasts I listen to as well.

4. Keep a brainstorming space. Sometimes the slack you feel on your time off can lead to creative breakthroughs. You have those brilliant ideas when you go to bed or when you're in the shower or while you're on a walk. It can actually help to record those and then walk away from it. I've always kept a notepad where I can jot down ideas for projects, lessons, or activities I want to try out.

5. Do something creative. Paint, draw, make friendship bracelets. Okay, maybe not friendship bracelets. But there's power in doing something truly creative outside the domain of teaching. It helps build empathy with your students as they do creative work while also allowing you to hit a state of flow.

6. Spend time with people you love. This is obvious, but it's something that came up over and over again as I talked to people. They described times when they failed to be fully present with people because of the lesson planning or grading that was looming over their heads. I talked to one teacher who said she felt like she totally missed out on her children's early childhood years because she couldn't "turn off the teacher planning brain."

7. Practice mindfulness and meditation. I have a friend who taught for over thirty years and is now teaching again after being retired for a year. She takes part of the winter break to do meditation, practice mindfulness, and keep a journal. She schedules a time at an abbey and treats it like an important business meeting.

Note that these aren't recipes or requirements. They're simply ideas you might want to experiment with on your time off. In the end, the more renewal and restoration we experience, the more creative we will be in our teaching. And that, in turn, is better for students.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
I still remember my first winter break in my first year of teaching. I scratched out Christmas Eve and Christmas as true "days off," but then I worked the rest of the time. I read two books on teaching. I took home a giant box full of papers to grade.

# data[].attributes.body
What if you could start the school year over again? What would you change?

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Editor's note: This blog was originally published on January 7, 2015. The suggestions it offers were adapted from a resource originally produced by Teach for America.
January is when most folks set out to quit smoking, save money and recommit to any number of worthwhile goals.

But for teachers, January is smack-dab in the middle of the same old (school) year. If you're a teacher, chances are you think of August, not January, as the time for a fresh start. The thought of getting 30 youngsters to turn over a new leaf now-after nearly 20 habit-forming weeks-gives whole new meaning to the word resolution.

But what if you could start the school year over again? What would you change about your classroom? What's stopping you from making those changes now?

During this time of year many teachers, especially early-career teachers, feel as if negative behaviors and patterns have settled in and become "the way it is" in their classes. These challenges interfere with student learning and undermine your ability to create a nurturing and inclusive classroom environment. Whether it's constant and disruptive talking, low participation, lateness, meanness, bullying, cheating or inappropriate use of technology (you fill in the blank), these problems can make even the most creative and hardworking teacher feel exhausted, inept and ashamed.

You don't need to feel that way. More importantly, your students are capable of more. Consider these steps, and resolve to a two-week turnaround of a negative pattern you see in your classroom:

1. Commit to change. Sure, first impressions matter, but that doesn't mean there's no chance for reinvention-even if it's the middle of the year. What is the price of not changing? Ignoring the big problems simply means you'll continue to revisit the same issues daily. Believe in your students, and be strategic about changing your practice so that they can accomplish more in the second half of the school year.

2. Name the problem. Identify the biggest behavior problem you are facing in your classes. Analyze the factors that are causing the problem, and reflect on your role.

What is the behavior I would like my students to stop? Why do I consider this behavior a problem?

When does this behavior happen? Who is involved? What is the student perspective?

Do students know my expectations? Did I give clear directions? What kind of feedback have I given students who were not following directions?

What are my own beliefs and assumptions about this problem? Have they changed?

Do I model the behavior I want to see? What are my expectations for myself, and have I been consistent in following through on them?

Do I trend toward positive reinforcement or negative reprimand? Do I highlight good behavior?

Have I invested as much as I could in building strong relationships with my students?

3. Seek support. Analyzing the problem and coming up with solutions are hard. It's important to ask for help and seek the support you need from those around you. What are the resources available to you? Who are the people in your school who handle these challenges well? Have you taken advantage of them? If not, why not?

4. Teach expectations. While it may seem obvious, it's important that classroom management and curriculum and instruction not be thought of as separate domains. You can teach, and reteach, behavior in the same focused and engaging way you have learned to teach multiplication. And you can involve students in that learning in the same culturally responsive way you do in other lessons. While they can be useful, relying merely on reactive interventions-talks and lectures, rewards and prizes, detention and loss of privileges-is often not enough. Plan and practice how you will authentically teach your expectations.

5. Give your plan time to stick. Learning and unlearning behaviors take time. Once you adopt a new system, rule or practice, you and your students will need time to adjust and get the hang of things. Because they may have seen it happen in other classrooms, some students may expect you to give up on your efforts to make change, especially if they resist. Don't make that mistake. Allow opportunities to explain, model and practice new systems. Give it at least two weeks.

Responsive and reflective teaching means that you are relentless in your efforts to make school welcoming and productive for all students. If behavior management or classroom culture issues are getting in the way of that, then addressing those issues must be a priority.

So, what will you do to turn around your classroom this new year?

Chiariello is an educational consultant who specializes in culturally responsive standards-based education.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Teaching Tolerance provides free resources to educators-teachers, administrators, counselors and other practitioners-who work with children from kindergarten through high school. Educators use our materials to supplement the curriculum, to inform their practices, and to create civil and inclusive school communities where children are respected, valued and welcome participants.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
For more details on these super-curations of the best article summaries from the first 17 years of the Marshall Memo, click on the book cover.

Below are Kim's classroom materials, articles, books, and graphic displays. Almost all are available in full (free) by clicking on the title. Here's the table of contents - click and you'll zip to each grouping.

1. Ideas and resources for the school closure crisis

Ideas and Resources for Covid-Time, updated November 9, 2020

Asterix and Lucky Luke Worksheets by Kim Marshall

"Rethinking the Way We Coach, Evaluate, and Appreciate Teachers" in The Education Gadfly, February 20, 2019

"How the Danielson Rubric Could Be More Effective for New York City Teachers and Principals" in Chalkbeat, April 11, 2014, revised November 28, 2018

"Pushing Back on Outmoded Beliefs" in Leaderboard, Michigan Association of School Boards, Spring 2019

"Rethinking Differentiation: Using Teachers' Time More Effectively" Phi Delta Kappan, September 2016

"Using Student Learning in Teacher Assessment" (with Douglas Reeves) in Edutopia, April 30, 2018

"Teaching Sex Education: Seven Key Questions" in Phi Delta Kappan, October 2018

Sex Education Pre/Post-Test, revised 2016

Sex Ed Pre/Post-Test Answers (revised 2016)

900 lessons a year - Part I: The 900 lessons a teacher teaches every year (about five a day times 180 days) - a lot of work, and a daunting supervision/evaluation challenge. How ineffective it is to observe only one lesson, which is often what happens? How can that have any impact?

"Race or Class?" Boston Observer September 1984

Hucksters in the Classroom by Sheila Harty, Learning, July/August 1980

"Busing: Is it Curing or Poisoning Public School System?" Boston Globe, February 15, 1980

"The Making of a Magnet School" Boston University Journal of Education, May 1978

"The Desegregation of a Boston Classroom" Learning, September 1975

"A Magnet School with No Magnetism" Boston Globe, August 8, 1975

900 lessons - Part 2: Imagine that we could observe every lesson and rate it on a 4-3-2-1 scale. Here are hypothetical graphics for a highly effective, effective, mediocre, and ineffective teacher. Notice that they all have their ups and downs, but on a day-to-day basis, the first two have a much, much more positive impact on students than the last two. Looking at those four teachers side by side, we see what the best teacher fears most - being evaluated on a not-so-good lesson - and what the ineffective teacher prays for - being evaluated on a "glamorized" lesson that's not representative of day-to-day instruction.

900 lessons - Part 3: Here is the supervision and evaluation challenge faced by a principal with 30 teachers - 27,000 lessons a year! Next we look at what a successful intervention with an ineffective teacher might look like - a month in, after lots of support and an improvement plan, things go from horrible to mediocre, then with more support the teacher moves to effective.

900 lessons - Part 4: Finally, we see the four teachers with ten randomly spaced mini-observations to get a sense of how accurate a picture we can get of 900 lessons with only ten classroom visits.

12 Lesson Summaries from Kim Marshall Sex Education Course, revised 2016

Sex Education Curriculum (revised 2016) - 12 one-hour lessons in PowerPoint with clicker questions providing a comprehensive, "abstinence-plus" learning experience for middle-school students. For information on piloting this curriculum and an introductory workshop, please contact Kim Marshall at kim.marshall48@gmail.com. Kim offers a 2-hour workshop for teachers who will be implementing this curriculum.

"Newest Book, Touchy Subject" an interview by Katie Liesener in Brookline Magazine, February 2007

The Great Sex Secret (Sourcebooks, 2007), a tasteful exploration of the history and current status of male-female sexual inequality (our of print but available on Amazon)

"Preventing Sexual Abuse: A Pilot Curriculum in 22 Boston Schools" in Boston Public Schools Newsletter, 1986

"Sex Education in Action - Rated PG" Learning, October 1980

"In Praise of Assessment (Done Right)" Phi Delta Kappan, March 2018

"Merit Pay or Team Accountability?" Education Week, Sept. 1, 2010

"Is Merit Pay the Secret Sauce for Improving Teaching and Learning" Education Week, Dec. 16, 2009

"Interim Assessments: A User's Guide" Phi Delta Kappan, September 2008

"Interim Assessments: Keys to Successful Implementation" April 12, 2006, a report for New Leaders for New Schools

"Test Prep, the Junk Food of Education" Education Week, Oct. 1, 2003

"MCAS Has the Potential to Change Education for the Better" Boston Globe, Nov. 15, 1999

"No Surprises, No Excuses: Tests Our Kids Can Study For" Boston Globe, August 31, 1997

Let's Clarify the Way We Use the Word 'Curriculum', Education Week, Sept. 1, 2004

"Reading Recovery" East Zone Journal, June 1991

"Social Studies Curriculum Revision K-8: The Boston Experience" Social Education, April 1985

"Eight Common Myths About Remediation" in Boston Public Schools Elementary School Newsletter, June 1985

"The Reading Problem: Some Sensible Solutions" Learning, April/May 1983

"'Teachers, Always Use Your Judgment' - An Interview with Jeanne Chall" Learning, November 1981

"Making Marking Meaningful" Learning, September 1981

"Speak and Spell: A Classroom Hit" in Learning, November 1979

"Minicourses: A Way to Add Spice to the Basics" Learning, April 1979

"Uniformity in Textbooks the Wrong Approach" Boston Globe, October 20, 1978

"You Can Turn Around the Failing Student" Learning, October 1977

"Tracking: An Indictment" The Teacher Paper, December 1974

"The Learning Station Way" Learning, January 1974

"Love, Hate, Change and Hope in Grade 6-G" Harvard Bulletin, September 1971

"Law and Order in Grade 6-E" Harvard Bulletin, September 1970

"The Big Picture: How Many People Influence a Student's Life?" Phi Delta Kappan, October 2017

"How Principals Can Reshape the Teaching Bell Curve" in Journal of Staff Development, August 2015

"Putting Supervisors on a Steep Learning Curve" Kappan Learning on the EDge, Oct. 28, 2014

"Quality Assurance: How Can Superintendents Guarantee Effective Teaching in Every Classroom?" in The Councilgram, March 2013

"Improving Teachers and Principals Go Hand in Hand" in Gotham Schools, January 14, 2013

"A How-to Plan for Widening the Gap" Phi Delta Kappan, May 2009

"The Big Rocks: Priority Management for Principals" Principal Leadership, March 2008

"No One Ever Said It Would Be Easy: A Response to Parish and Aquila" Phi Delta Kappan, December 1996

"Teachers and Schools: What Makes a Difference" Daedalus, Winter 1993

"Who Should Make Curriculum Decisions? The Boston Experience" The Harvard Principals' Center Newsletter, January 1983

"How Effective Is Our School?" Harvard Graduate School of Education Alumni Journal, September 1980 (from Larsen Day speech at Harvard Graduate School of Education in May 1980)

"Getting Your Fair Share of the School Dollar" Learning, May 1974

"Who's Afraid of Christopher Jencks?" Learning, January 1974

Principal Evaluation Rubrics (revised July 31, 2017)

"Getting Teacher-Evaluation Rubrics Right" in Rubric Nation: Critical Inquiries on the Impact of Rubrics in Education (Tenam-Zemach and Flynn eds., Information Age Pubishing, 2015)

Teacher Evaluation Rubrics (revised January 2014)

Principal Evaluation Rubrics (revised May 2013)

Comparison of Danielson and Marshall Teacher Evaluation Rubrics, February 2013

"The How's and Why's of Teacher Evaluation Rubrics" Kappan EDge, September/October 2006

"The Critical Importance of Good School Leadership" in Journal of Jewish Day School Leadership, December 2018

"Mini-Observations: A Keystone Habit" (with Dave Marshall) School Administrator, December 2017

The Truth About Teacher Evaluation, American School Board Journal, April 2017

"Should Supervisors Intervene During Classroom Observations?" Phi Delta Kappan, October 2015

"How to Make Teacher Evaluations Accurate, Fair, and Consistent" in Education Week, July 19, 2013

Rethinking Teacher Supervision and Evaluation: How to Work Smart, Build Collaboration, and Close the Achievement Gap (Jossey-Bass, 2013) - Available on Amazon

"Let's Cancel the Dog-and-Pony Show" Phi Delta Kappan, November 2012

"Fine-Tuning Teacher Evaluation" Educational Leadership, November 2012

"Teacher Observation: Tech or No Tech?" in Education Week, October 31, 2012

"Visit Classrooms Early and Often, and Give New Tools to Principals", Boston Globe, March 25, 2011

"'Mini-Observations' - Seven Decision Points for the Principal" Education Week, Feb. 4, 2009

Jon Saphier and Kim Marshall on Teacher Supervision and Evaluation, July 2008

"Is Supervising the Heck Out of Teachers the Answer?" Education Week, May 7, 2008

"What's a Principal To Do?" Education Week, September 20, 2006

"It's Time to Rethink Teacher Supervision and Evaluation" Phi Delta Kappan, June 2005

"Recovering from HSPS (Hyperactive Superficial Principal Syndrome): A Progress Report" Phi Delta Kappan, May 2003

"A Principal Looks Back: Standards Matter" Phi Delta Kappan October 2003

"How I Confronted HSPS (Hyperactive Superficial Principal Syndrome) and Began to Deal with the Heart of the Matter" Phi Delta Kappan, January 1996

Linear Curriculum Calendar 2019-20

"Guns, Germs, and Steel" summary - A 14-page synopsis of Jared Diamond's Pulitzer Prize winning explanation of the fates of human societies, with a teacher's guide and online resources (Dropbox link)

The Story of Life, from the Big Bang to You by Kim Marshall, illustrated by Ingrid Johnson (revised edition, 2019)

Reading Stories, Book 1 - 92 high-interest stories with comprehension questions originally written for my Boston sixth graders

Reading Stories, Book 2 - 94 high-interest stories with comprehension question, originally written for my Boston sixth graders

English: 36 Cumulative Units in Grammar, Writing Skills, and Word Analysis, Book A

English: 36 Cumulative Units in Grammar, Writing Skills, and Word Analysis, Book B

English Books A and B Teacher's Manual

Math: 35 Cumulative Unit in Concepts and Skills, Book A

Math: 35 Cumulative Units in Concepts and Skills, Book B

Math Book A and B Teacher's Manual

Tintin Series Worksheets - One-page comprehension questions on each of the 20 books in the Hergé Tintin graphic novels, with an "expert test" at the end and answer sheets (1980)

Covers of all the Tintin books

Vocabulary: 36 Units in Spelling and Word Meaning (Educators Publishing Service, 1981)

2. Classroom materials

3. Teacher supervision, coaching, and evaluation

4. Rubrics for end-of-year evaluation of teachers and principals

5. School leadership and effective schools

6. Improving classroom teaching

7. Assessments and accountability

8. Sex education

9. Kim's Books

The Best of the Marshall Memo, Book Two: Ideas and Action Steps to Energize Leadership, Teaching, and Learning
This book is a distillation of high-impact ideas from the first 17 years of the Memo, available on Amazon and Barnes and Noble. Each chapter has 8-10 article summaries on a major topic, followed by solution-oriented professional learning suggestions. This highly practical set of insights, research findings, and strategies will energize leadership, teaching, and learning.

For an overview, table of contents, suggested uses, reviews, and pricing, click here:

Chapter Six of this book - What Makes Learning Stick - is being offered as a free PDF. Just click here.

The Best of the Marshall Memo: Book One: Ideas and Action Steps to Energize Leadership, Teaching, and Learning
This book is a distillation of high-impact ideas from the first 16 years of the Memo, available on Amazon and Barnes and Noble. Each chapter has 8-10 article summaries on a major topic, followed by solution-oriented professional learning suggestions. This highly practical set of insights, research findings, and strategies will energize leadership, teaching, and learning. For a free download of Chapter 2 (Managing Time for Impact), click here.
For an overview, table of contents, suggested uses, 24 reviews, and pricing, click here:

The Best of the Marshall Memo: Book Two: Ideas and Action Steps to Energize Leadership, Teaching, and Learning Kim Marshall & Jenn David-LangAmazon, Barnes and Noble

The Best of the Marshall Memo: Book One: Ideas and Action Steps to Energize Leadership, Teaching, and Learning Kim Marshall & Jenn David-LangAmazon, Barnes and Noble

Rethinking Teacher Supervision and Evaluation, Second Edition (Jossey-Bass, 2013)

The Story of Life: From the Big Bang to You (Holt, Rinehart and Winston, 1980), out of print, but available free under Classroom materials above

Opening Your Class With Learning Stations (Education Today Company, 1975), out of print

Law and Order in Grade 6-E: A Story of Chaos and Innovation in a Ghetto School (Little, Brown and Company, 1972; paperback 1973), out of print but used copies are available on Amazon

10. Graphics on teaching and the K-12 big picture

11. Boston's 1974-5 desegregation crisis

12. Book reviews

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
For more details on these super-curations of the best article summaries from the first 17 years of the Marshall Memo, click on the book cover. Below are Kim's classroom materials, articles, books, and graphic displays. Almost all are available in full (free) by clicking on the title.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Web pages come and go, but we try to keep the following list up to date. If you find a link that doesn't work, please let us know.

Contents

Basic Information

David Blatner, author of The Joy of Pi, wrote a short article about pi for the BBC in England.

The Many Digits of Pi

If you want to download digits of pi, check out these sites:

"The story of pi reflects the most seminal, the most serious and sometimes the silliest aspects of mathematics." So say Lennart Berggren, Jonathan Borwein and Peter Borwein in their new book, Pi : A Source Book. Their Web site offers comprehensive pi links and meat for the mathematically minded.

Come celebrate National Pi Day (March 14, of course) at the Exploratorium. Find out how to participate on what is also Einstein's birthday! John Tierney also wrote a nice piece about pi day at The New York Times.

A NASA/JPL scientist explains why even astrophysicists need only 15 digits of pi.

The Web companion to Darren Aronofsky's fascinating film "Pi". You can also find information and links about the stock market, Kabbalah, migranes, and a number of other topics relating to the movie. You can also read a short article about this movie written by Joy of Pi author, David Blatner, published in The Seattle Weekly.

Along with pi fun and facts, you'll also find the binary decimal expansion of pi. From the binary coding you can also see and hear pi -- a great twist!

Find out what pi approximation day is, and how to celebrate it!

Did you know that 3 + 4/28 - 1/(790 + 5/6) is ia pretty good approximation of pi? Not only that, but it uses all the digits between zero and nine! Check out more cool approximations and submit your own to the contest!

Michael Hartl thinks we should use tau (2pi) instead of pi. Interesting points. He refers also to this article called " Pi is Wrong!"

Articles about Pi Day and Pi

Sasha Volokh of Emory Law School includes fun poems (or piems or pi-ems) for Pi Day.

A fun article about pi day in the Washington Post (focusing on the 2015 "pi day of the century" celebration, but with lots of other good stuff, too).

PBS has a fun review of pi day, with the subtitle: "For the Love of Pi and the Tao of Tau". They added another article with great pi (and pie) images here

Time interviewed Joy of Pi author David Blatner in this short Q&A from 2011

Here's all kinds of fun information compiled by CNN.

A fun article for kids from TIME magazine, including a photo of the author.

History

How did the theory of pi evolve? Who devoted their lives to calculating digits of pi? From the Bible to Buffon, this site explores human exploration of the number pi.

The story is told in some depth in The Joy of Pi, but here's some more on Indiana's attempts to round up pi.

A short history by Lazarus Mudehwe, with links to the Albany Pi Fan Club

Calculating Pi and Digits of Pi

Here is the formula that allowed David Bailey, Peter Borwein and Simon Plouffe to compute the ten billioneth digit in the hexadecimal expansion of pi. If you are "non-technical" there's an explanation for you too!

Want to test your computer's strength? Check here if you want to know more about computing pi. Look for the section entitled, "Special Numbers and Functions" and click on the section for computing pi. A little further down, under "Human Interest" is a section on the Indiana legislatin of pi. More on how to compute here.

Pi explorers and authors Bailey and the Borwein brothers offer up an article "Ramanujan, Modular Equations, and Approximations to Pi or How to Compute One Billion Digits of Pi" in an effort to follow up on part of Ramanujan's work.

A great description of how to calculate pi based on the Fibonnaci numbers. Background information and explanations are available.

Pi and Mathematics

A discussion of the Bailey, Borwein Plouffe Algorithm written by Victor Adamchik and Stan Wagon.

This is a great place to see what questions about pi Dr. Math has fielded in the past, and to ask any questions about pi that you might have. A great resource for anyone who wants to know more about pi. You can also check out the Pi FAQ organized http://forum.swarthmore.edu/dr.math/faq/faq.pi.html

Pi, from Wolfram.

A good look at this classic probability problem and its relationship to pi.

Ilan Vardi asks an interesting question: How can we prove that pi (as a constant) actually exists?

Kevin Knudson explains a fascinating connection between pi, the Wallis formula, and physics (specifically the energy states of the hydrogen atom).

Memorizing Pi

Olle offers up a variety of pi tatoos.

A list of record-holders in the "pi memorization sport."

Antreas P. Hatzipolakis has collected Pi mnemonics from all over the world and Web (ie. sentences to memorize the first digits of pi) and poems related to pi. A great place for those who want to join clubs with pi memorization requirements!

As a "loyal member of the Ancient and Honorable Society of Pi Watchers" Ivars Peterson has written many account of this intrepid number. Here he discusses ways of memorizing pi.

Fun and weird!

Pi Mysteries

Charles Lucy describes LucyTuning and how pi relates to 'the natural scale of music,' including references to John "Longitude" Harrison's work on the subject.

Check here to find out how the ancients may have encoded the numeric mysteries of the pi in the Bible.

Pi and Music

A wonderful composition played on the violin based on mapping the first 200 digits of pi, by Steven Rochen. Watch and listen at youtube.

Lars Erickson's orchestral symphony based on the number pi (some of this was also used in The Joy of Pi audio book, published by Random House Audio, available at audible.com).

Felix Jung has created a delightful way to convert the first 10,000 digits of pi into music using a Flash-based animation.

More Pi Songs at YouTube

There are, of course, many pi tributes on YouTube, including this pi song, this short " pi is exactly three!" excerpt from The Simpsons, this keyboard pi movie, and this awesome rap. And more! Here's Mathematical Pi (sung to American Pie). Another brilliant pi rap.

The inimitable Kate Bush includes a song about pi on her new album Aerial, in which she actually sings 100 or so digits of pi. And it's a good song!

Bill Crozier writes: "As an experiment, I tried in 1980 to get pi to 50 places stuck in my head by writing a song about it. It worked. I can still recite it now, 20 years later, by singing the song."

Fun with Pi

A very funny spoof on the movies "Pi" and "American Pie." Caution: some adult themes. Of course, it's not funny unless you've also seen those movies.

Sound out the depths of your pi knowledge with Eve Andersson's great trivia game.

Do you spend sleepless nights wondering where in pi your birthday or phone number show up? Wonder no more! Just type in the number sequence and voila! you'll know.

Several people have created pi-inspired images. Here's one link with 3-D imagery, including the cowpi graphic.

Pi Greeting Cards

Send an Internet greeting card for Pi Day (3/14) from 123greetings.com

Buy pi day greeting cards from Greeting Card Universe

For "proof" that pi is rational...a fun, alternative pi resource.

Mike Keith has put together several great literary adventures related to pi, you can find them here. Plus, Mike shows how to decode pi to see a picture. Check out his cool book here!

Wacky Pi Stuff

Can you imagine 5,942,157 digits of pi on a single poster? You need a magnifying glass to see the numbers, but it's quite amazing.

In case you need a pi T-shirt or a pi hat or a pi mug... Here's some cool pi stuff for sale!

You know you want a silk tie with a pi pattern on it!

Two artists take pi and turn it into art!

Here's a low-tech but high-fun pi ruler that lets you find the circumference or diameter of round objects.

It turns out that pi is critical when making rocking chairs (if you don't want them to fall over)

Pi Fan Clubs

Dedicated to all things pi, this is a wonderful site of links and fun pi stuff. Similarly, check out the German site, too.

Pi Link Pages

Things to do on Pi Day in School

On pi day (3/14, or March 14), Google changed its site logo. Awesome!

Pi Pages in Other Languages

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Web pages come and go, but we try to keep the following list up to date. If you find a link that doesn't work, please let us know. David Blatner, author of The Joy of Pi , wrote a short article about pi for the BBC in England.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
I remember my kindergarten teacher, Madame Liliane. I remember her fondly, with the emotion we attach to good childhood memories. I remember her as a towering figure who seemed to have all the years in the world. I remember her as the embodiment of all memory of humankind as she mesmerized the small group of four and five year olds in the Ecole Jean Jacques Rousseau, a small school in Venezuela, with her stories about life in France, the country she and most other teachers in that school came from. I remember her creating an array of ways for those students to learn, from one another, with each other. She taught us the basics of literacy, read us stories, played with us with plasticine clay. I remember her comforting children who cried, having a hard time saying good bye to their parents as they dropped them off in school. I remember her engaging us in conversations about fairness, about taking turns and sharing, helping us begin to see the world through the eyes of others. I remember also that we could always come back to Madame Liliane. Each day, there was always a different couple of students in the upper grades who came to visit her during school recess, to talk to her as she sat in a folding chair, under the big mango tree that provided cover from the tropical sun in Caracas, as she looked over us as we played and ran around that section of the courtyard reserved for the kindergartners. In time, as a first and second grader, I too would occasionally invite a classmate as we went out to recess 'let's visit Madame Liliane today'. Her presence reminded us of the good times on which much of our love for learning was grounded, and her interest in our new learnings pointed out for us the pathways that linked new knowledge and curiosity about new questions to things learned in the past.

It was those memories, and the recognition of how much I had learned from Madame Liliane, that would cause me decades later to begin the acknowledgements of my doctoral dissertation at Harvard in this way: 'To all my teachers, from Madame Liliane who taught me to read and write, to my doctoral advisor, Russell Davis, who taught me about educational planning'. I suppose it was because those good experiences with teachers that I pursued education as a profession, married a teacher, and continue, five decades after I last saw Madame Liliane, to work with teachers. As my two sons, now in college, journeyed from kindergarten to high school in public schools, I had many opportunities to appreciate the good work of their teachers and the power of effective professional practice, anchored in expert knowledge.

These personal experiences lead me to value Teacher Appreciation Week, a celebration in the United States resulting from the efforts of Eleanor Roosevelt in 1953 to honor teachers, and subsequently of the National Parent Teacher Association in 1985 to turn National Teacher Day into a Week. It is fitting that it was Eleanor Roosevelt who stewarded this movement for teacher recognition, as she had some years earliter stewarded the inclusion of education as a universal human right in the declaration which was adopted by the United Nations to advance world peace.

Opportunities to recognize good teachers are important, whether they are local, at the community, state or national level, as exist in many countries of the world, or Global, as the initiative of the Varkey Education Foundation with the Global Teacher Prize. Teachers are, after all, the stewards of the global movement to educate all children that the inclusion of education in the declaration of human rights initiated. It is because of their work that humanity has experienced a dramatic transformation over the last seven decades in schooling most children.

But recognition of the good work and expertise of teachers should go beyond acknowledging them and thanking them, important as that is. It should cause us to examine what are the conditions in which teachers work. To ask in what ways those conditions support them to do their best work. These conditions include certainly the esteem in which they are held in their communities and in their societies and how they are compensated, but they should also include how much voice they have to define their practice, and especially how many opportunities do they have to develop their skills, before they teach, and throughout their careers. Those critical conditions are the result not just of what teachers do, but of what the rest of us do, or fail to do.

With a group of colleagues in Massachusetts, I have just published a small book discussing what we learned together studying the efforts of Singapore, a nation that has made great strides in supporting the teaching profession as a way to empower all their students with the competencies they will need to thrive in the 21st century. We have titled this book 'Fifteen Letters on Education in Singapore', inspired by the 'Letters on Silesia' which John Quincy Adams wrote with his observations of the early education system in that nation. In that book we offer some lessons we think others could learn from Singapore about how to build a twenty first century teaching profession. Our hope is that the conversations about what these lessons mean for other countries will include, especially, the voices of teachers.

Fifty years later, I still remember Madame Liliane and all the good things I learned with her. My love for learning, and for teaching, is deeply rooted in the memories of that year in kindergarten. I hope all children can have experiences that become, in time, equally beautiful and powerful memories. For this reason, I hope to contribute to creating conditions that empower teachers to be very competent professionals, so they can empower their students to become architects of their own lives and contributing members of their communities. In creating those conditions, each of us has an important role to play, beginning with, but extending beyond, recognizing good teaching and good teachers.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
I remember my kindergarten teacher, Madame Liliane. I remember her fondly, with the emotion we attach to good childhood memories. I remember her as a towering figure who seemed to have all the years in the world.

# data[].attributes.headline
Resources for Practical and Compelling Educational Change

# data[].attributes.subject
Resources for Practical and Compelling Educational Change

# data[].attributes.body
Rick Wormeli, topics include alternative models of assessment and grading

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
2. Please inquire about combining topics and/or customizing workshops, seminars and addresses if those listed below do not work well for you. The last thing Rick wants to do is waste time with material your group already knows or does not need.

# data[].attributes.headline
If I Knew Then: A Letter to Me on My First Day Teaching

# data[].attributes.subject
If I Knew Then: A Letter to Me on My First Day Teaching

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
If I Knew Then: A Letter to Me on My First Day Teaching

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Many teachers and parents believe that homework helps students build study skills and review concepts learned in class. Others see homework as disruptive and unnecessary, leading to burnout and turning kids off to school. Decades of research show that the issue is more nuanced and complex than most people think: Homework is beneficial, but only to a degree. Students in high school gain the most, while younger kids benefit much less.

The National PTA and the National Education Association support the " 10-minute homework guideline "-a nightly 10 minutes of homework per grade level. But many teachers and parents are quick to point out that what matters is the quality of the homework assigned and how well it meets students' needs, not the amount of time spent on it.

The guideline doesn't account for students who may need to spend more-or less-time on assignments. In class, teachers can make adjustments to support struggling students, but at home, an assignment that takes one student 30 minutes to complete may take another twice as much time-often for reasons beyond their control. And homework can widen the achievement gap, putting students from low-income households and students with learning disabilities at a disadvantage.

However, the 10-minute guideline is useful in setting a limit: When kids spend too much time on homework, there are real consequences to consider.

Small Benefits for Elementary Students

As young children begin school, the focus should be on cultivating a love of learning, and assigning too much homework can undermine that goal. And young students often don't have the study skills to benefit fully from homework, so it may be a poor use of time (Cooper, 1989; Cooper et al., 2006; Marzano & Pickering, 2007). A more effective activity may be nightly reading, especially if parents are involved. The benefits of reading are clear: If students aren't proficient readers by the end of third grade, they're less likely to succeed academically and graduate from high school (Fiester, 2013).

For second-grade teacher Jacqueline Fiorentino, the minor benefits of homework did not outweigh the potential drawback of turning young children against school at an early age, so she experimented with dropping mandatory homework. "Something surprising happened: They started doing more work at home," Fiorentino writes. "This inspiring group of 8-year-olds used their newfound free time to explore subjects and topics of interest to them." She encouraged her students to read at home and offered optional homework to extend classroom lessons and help them review material.

Moderate Benefits for Middle School Students

As students mature and develop the study skills necessary to delve deeply into a topic-and to retain what they learn-they also benefit more from homework. Nightly assignments can help prepare them for scholarly work, and research shows that homework can have moderate benefits for middle school students (Cooper et al., 2006). Recent research also shows that online math homework, which can be designed to adapt to students' levels of understanding, can significantly boost test scores (Roschelle et al., 2016).

There are risks to assigning too much, however: A 2015 study found that when middle school students were assigned more than 90 to 100 minutes of daily homework, their math and science test scores began to decline (Fernández-Alonso, Suárez-Álvarez, & Muñiz, 2015). Crossing that upper limit can drain student motivation and focus. The researchers recommend that "homework should present a certain level of challenge or difficulty, without being so challenging that it discourages effort." Teachers should avoid low-effort, repetitive assignments, and assign homework "with the aim of instilling work habits and promoting autonomous, self-directed learning."

In other words, it's the quality of homework that matters, not the quantity. Brian Sztabnik, a veteran middle and high school English teacher, suggests that teachers take a step back and ask themselves these five questions:

How long will it take to complete?

Have all learners been considered?

Will an assignment encourage future success?

Will an assignment place material in a context the classroom cannot?

Does an assignment offer support when a teacher is not there?

More Benefits for High School Students, but Risks as Well

By the time they reach high school, students should be well on their way to becoming independent learners, so homework does provide a boost to learning at this age, as long as it isn't overwhelming (Cooper et al., 2006; Marzano & Pickering, 2007). When students spend too much time on homework-more than two hours each night-it takes up valuable time to rest and spend time with family and friends. A 2013 study found that high school students can experience serious mental and physical health problems, from higher stress levels to sleep deprivation, when assigned too much homework (Galloway, Conner, & Pope, 2013).

Homework in high school should always relate to the lesson and be doable without any assistance, and feedback should be clear and explicit.

Teachers should also keep in mind that not all students have equal opportunities to finish their homework at home, so incomplete homework may not be a true reflection of their learning-it may be more a result of issues they face outside of school. They may be hindered by issues such as lack of a quiet space at home, resources such as a computer or broadband connectivity, or parental support (OECD, 2014). In such cases, giving low homework scores may be unfair.

Since the quantities of time discussed here are totals, teachers in middle and high school should be aware of how much homework other teachers are assigning. It may seem reasonable to assign 30 minutes of daily homework, but across six subjects, that's three hours-far above a reasonable amount even for a high school senior. Psychologist Maurice Elias sees this as a common mistake: Individual teachers create homework policies that in aggregate can overwhelm students. He suggests that teachers work together to develop a school-wide homework policy and make it a key topic of back-to-school night and the first parent-teacher conferences of the school year.

Parents Play a Key Role

Homework can be a powerful tool to help parents become more involved in their child's learning (Walker et al., 2004). It can provide insights into a child's strengths and interests, and can also encourage conversations about a child's life at school. If a parent has positive attitudes toward homework, their children are more likely to share those same values, promoting academic success.

But it's also possible for parents to be overbearing, putting too much emphasis on test scores or grades, which can be disruptive for children (Madjar, Shklar, & Moshe, 2015). Parents should avoid being overly intrusive or controlling-students report feeling less motivated to learn when they don't have enough space and autonomy to do their homework (Orkin, May, & Wolf, 2017; Patall, Cooper, & Robinson, 2008; Silinskas & Kikas, 2017). So while homework can encourage parents to be more involved with their kids, it's important to not make it a source of conflict.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Decades of research show that homework has some benefits, especially for students in middle and high school-but there are risks to assigning too much.

# data[].attributes.headline
How to Respond to an Angry Message From a Parent

# data[].attributes.subject
How to Respond to an Angry Message From a Parent

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Every teacher has been there. You check your email/voicemail once more before heading out of the classroom for the day when you get that message. You know, it's the angry (and often rude) message from a parent accusing you of treating their child unfairly, not explaining a project clearly, taking another student's side in a disagreement, or any number of a million other situations. Bottom line-they're angry at you and now you have to figure out how to handle it. While resolving the problem is the most important thing to do in these situations, a few simple actions on your part can help you turn this angry parent into an ally.

1. Keep Your Cool

Perhaps the most important thing to do when responding to an angry parent/guardian is to stay calm. It can be hard to do when you feel attacked, especially if you feel the parent is in the wrong, but firing off a snarky response email or angrily telling a parent you don't appreciate their tone will only make things worse. If you need to, wait a bit (even five minutes can be enough) until you can respond calmly. Take a breath and remember that even if they are the rudest parent on the planet, in their mind, they're just a worried mom or dad trying to look out for their child.

2. Remember Your Manners

One of the fastest ways to deescalate an angry parent is to acknowledge their concerns and assure them that you will work with them to find a solution. Regardless of whether your think the parent is right or wrong, thank them for bringing the issue to your attention, assure them that you hear their concern, and state that you are absolutely committed to working together to find a solution. Sometimes, validating someone's feelings is all the person needs to take a breath and calm down.

3. Admit Your Mistakes

None of us are perfect. If, after listening to the parent, you realize that the mistake was your fault (or partially your fault), don't be afraid to admit that. Most parents will be satisfied with a sincere apology and a discussion on how you will solve the problem rather than a teacher who refuses to admit they were wrong.

4. Hold Your Ground

That being said, if the student isn't being honest or if you genuinely believe you were right in your actions, don't back down simply because the parent/guardian is angry. We are professionals for a reason. We have received the training and education to know what we are doing and why our choices are the educationally best practices in each given situation. Acknowledge that the parent and/or student is upset, express understanding about why the situation is frustrating, but assert that as the classroom teacher, you feel that the reasoning behind your choice is sound. You will have to be prepared to explain why you made the choices you did, but often when a parent hears the sound reasoning behind the actions, they will understand them.

5. Make the Parent Your Teammate

This step is the crucial one. Regardless of who was at fault, inform the parent that you want to move forward from this point as a team. State that you believe firmly that their son or daughter will learn and grow only if you, the student, and the parent(s) work together. If you feel the student is being dishonest about what is going on in class to their parent, tell the parent that you and they must communicate more often so that the student can't play you against each other. If you feel that the student or parent is blaming you for things that are their responsibility, let them know that you will do your part to communicate what your role is as teacher so that they can do their job as student and as parent. If the student and parent feel you are being unfair, tell them that open communication about why you are making the choices you are making will help them see that you treat all your students fairly and that you are deeply committed to their student's individual success.

Finally, the best way to avoid an angry parent altogether is to turn them into an ally before they ever become angry. Reach out to parents early in the year. Introduce yourself via email during the first week of school. Let them know that you're enjoying getting to know their son or daughter and that you're looking forward to working with them this year. Encourage them to contact you with any concerns or questions and let them know you'll do the same. By doing so, you're laying the groundwork for positive communication later on.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
How to Respond to an Angry Message From a Parent - WeAreTeachers

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Every teacher has been there. You check your email/voicemail once more before heading out of the classroom for the day when you get that message. You know, it's the angry (and often rude) message from a parent accusing you of treating their child unfairly, not explaining a project clearly, taking another student's side in a disagreement, or any number of a million other situations.

# data[].attributes.body
https://twitter.com/MindShiftKQED/status/939487391391342592/photo/1

# data[].attributes.headline
Ten Creative Alternatives to Showing Movies Before the Break

# data[].attributes.subject
Ten Creative Alternatives to Showing Movies Before the Break

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Don't forget to scroll down to the bottom of this post to download the Creative Ways to End the Semester Resource Pack. This is a post I first wrote a decade ago, when I was teaching middle school. Each year, I have revised it and updated it.
Let's just put it out there. December is exhausting for teachers. The days are shorter. The weather grows colder and (at least here in Oregon) wetter. Students are anxious - whether it's a buzzing excitement for vacation or a sense of dread that some kids feel in homes that are unsafe during the holidays.

And teachers are tired. They're tired of redirecting behaviors and tired of the mid-year pressure of the test and simply tired of the sheer energy it takes to be a teacher.

It's no wonder that so many teachers begin playing holiday movies around this time of year. They want to create a sense of fun and escape and enjoyment, and a motion picture promises exactly that. Maybe that's okay. Maybe that's a part of creating a culture of joy. So, please don't read this post as a slam on teachers showing movies before the break. If this is a part of a positive classroom culture, keep doing it. This isn't meant to be a guilt trip or a rant or a "you're doing this wrong" post. This is meant to be a yes/and post offering other options.

For my first few years of teaching, I showed a movie the day before the winter break. However, within minutes, kids were disengaged. They were passive. It wasn't special. My students could go home and watch a movie whenever they felt like it. It had me wondering . . . was there something that they could do in my class that they couldn't do anywhere else? Was this actually the chance to do something epic and make something memorable?

Over the years, I've learned that kids don't grow tired of learning. They grow tired of school. This is the chance to tap into wonder and curiosity and creativity.

Watch the Video

I tried something different this time and created a 22-minute video (about as long as a TV episode). I'm thinking of doing these longer videos on a regular basis as another way to access this content.

Listen to the Podcast

If you enjoy this blog but you'd like to listen to it on the go, just click on the audio below or subscribe via iTunes/Apple Podcasts (ideal for iOS users) or Google Play and Stitcher (ideal for Android users).

http://www.spencerauthor.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/End-on-Creative-Note.m4a

Twelve Creative Ways to End the Semester

Here are a few creative ways you can spend the last few weeks before the winter break. I realize that teachers have curriculum maps and expectations, so you'll notice that these ideas are all things that still include the standards and still require critical thinking. We also experience the time crunch, so I want to note that some of these are single day activities and some of these cover an entire week.

#1: Genius Hour

Time Required: 1-5 Days

Materials Required: This works best when you have devices.

Description: Genius Hour (also called 20% Time) is a chance for students to engage in an inquiry-driven, independent project. They own the entire learning process, from the concept to the questions, to the research, to the project management to the ultimate final product. Here's a quick video description of what Genius Hour looks like:

Here's a video you can use with your students. Note that you can get a free copy of both videos (in case YouTube is blocked at your school) in the Ten Creative Ways to End the Semester Resource Pack at the bottom of this post.

#2: Scratch Video Game Projects

Time Required: Full Week

Materials Required: This project works best when you have one-to-one devices

Description: If you haven't checked it out before, go take a look at Scratch. It's a way to teach logic and programming through the use of blocks that students use to manipulate objects. Students can start out small by following the directions to create a Pong game. Afterward, you can encourage them to move on to a place where they hack the game and make it their own. Then, you can have them set up their own games that they truly design.

If you're interested in launching a Scratch video game, check out the site and start with the Pong game. I also have instructions on how I taught Scratch (the three phases) with middle school as well as a list of 8 lessons I learned along the way. You can find those in the Ten Creative Ways to End the Semester Resource Pack at the bottom of this post.

#3: Design Thinking Project

Time Required: Full Week

Materials Required: Design thinking can work well with technology or with low-tech options

Description: Design thinking is a flexible process for getting the most out of the creative process. It is used in the arts, in engineering, in the corporate world, at universities, and in social and civic spaces. You can use it in every subject with every age group. It works when creating digital content or when building things with duct tape and cardboard. It can even be used in planning events or in designing services. So, the idea here is that you are providing a meaningful structure to help students design a product that they will launch to an authentic audience. The following video helps explain the process:

This is the perfect time of year to test out design thinking. While other classes are watching Frosty the Snowman, your students can engage in inquiry, research, ideating, and prototyping. They will do something creative - and they'll remember it forever. If you're interested in trying design thinking, I have included the Create a Sport Challenge and the Tiny House Project (math-related) in the Ten Creative Ways to End the Semester Resource Pack at the bottom of this post. Both projects include lesson plans, student notebooks, slideshows, and the videos.

#4: Thematic Blogs (High-Tech)

Materials Required: Blogging works best with desktops or laptops but can still be accomplished with smartphones or tablets

Description: In keeping with the theme of student ownership, thematic blogs are blogs based on a student's interests, passions, and ideas. It could be a foodie blog, a sports blog, a fashion blog, a science blog, or a history blog. They choose the topic and the audience. It's a great way for students to practice writing in different genres (persuasive, functional, informational/expository, narrative) with specific blog topics they choose. They can also add multimedia components, like slideshows, pictures, videos, and audio.

Think of all the blogs out there that people actually make outside of school. That's what you want students to create. It's their chance to participate in the global blogging community by tapping into their own expertise and interests. If you're interested in getting started, I have included things like sentence stems and other student handouts that might be helpful as you begin the process. You can find it all in the Ten Creative Ways to End the Semester Resource Pack at the bottom of this post.

#5: Video Writing Prompts (Low-Tech Alternative)

Materials Required: You can go low-tech with this and do visual writing prompts on a screen (projector or interactive whiteboard) and have students use composition books

Description: If you don't have the best technology in your classroom, but you do have a projector or interactive whiteboard, consider doing visual writing prompts with a picture or a video. The idea here is to choose high-interest ideas that get students excited about writing. I have included a free set of video prompts in the Ten Creative Ways to End the Semester Resource Pack at the bottom of this post.

Here's an example of a writing prompt you could do to get students excited about writing.

If you like that, would you consider subscribing to the channel at videoprompts.com?

#6: Sketchnote Videos

Time Required: 25 minutes (easiest version) to a full week (most challenging version)

Materials Required: This can be mostly low-tech, with paper, pencils, markers, whiteboards, etc. But the video portion will require a video camera or smartphone.

Description: I love the idea of making ideas visual and sketchnoting is one of the strategies you can use to help students take complex ideas and convey them in a way that is visual and concrete. But I also love taking it to the next level by having students craft short sketchnote videos that convey an idea, concept, or process. So, it might be something like life cycles or how a bill becomes a law. There are four layers of sketchnote videos that work well, ranging from easiest to hardest.
Level One: Flipbook Style (Very Easy)
Here, students create multiple pages with a sketch and a core idea. Afterward, one student flips the pages as another student videotapes the pages and a third student reads the script. This is essentially a picture book on video. But if you want to get more complicated and show any kind of movement, check out level two.
Level Two: Stop Motion (Fairly Easy)
This is the stop animation approach. Students sketch out their ideas and then cut them out. They can then maneuver these ideas with their hands in a video. When they go to film it, one student uses a smartphone while a second student moves the items around. A third student reads a script. Afterward, they can post it online or share it with their teacher.
Level Three: Whiteboard Videos (Moderately Difficult)
Students start out by storyboarding a concept they've learned throughout the quarter. They then record one member of their group sketching out the ideas in an RSA Animate style with the whiteboard. Next, they speed up the whiteboard drawing, edit out any mistakes, and add an audio layer that they record in iMovie or Movie Maker. It doesn't require a ton of technology, but it does require some creative risk-taking. What I love about this is that you can have multiple students making the videos in small groups and then rotate who edits it on the computer. So, if you have limited student computers, it can still work.
Level Four: Animated Videos (Very Difficult)
These are the types of videos I enjoy making. They can take hours to make and they require Photoshop. If you're interested in the process, here's a detailed description in a blog post I created after my son spent a full day making his video. This is the video he created. I think it's pretty awesome. Then again, I'm his dad, so that's par for the course, right?

If you're interested in doing sketchnote videos, you can find more detailed instructions in the Ten Creative Ways to End the Semester Resource Pack at the bottom of this post.

#7: Maker Projects

Time Required: One class period

Materials Required: Maker projects can work well with technology or with low-tech options. Note that the two examples I am giving are both low-tech.

Description: There are a few ways to approach maker projects. The first uses design thinking to go through the entire design process (see the design thinking option listed in #3. The second involves less research and planning and gets students into rapid prototyping as soon as possible. The idea here is that students make something with physical products that they are upcycling - often duct tape, cardboard, and plastic. Here's one that's a little more math and science-related:

If you're interested in doing a maker project, you can find a free maker project in the Ten Creative Ways to End the Semester Resource Pack at the bottom of this post.

#8: Divergent Thinking Challenge

Time Required: 40-90 minutes

Materials Required: You can determine your own materials but it helps to keep it low-tech and to limit it to 2-5 items that are seemingly unrelated. The more unrelated they are, the better!

Description: Divergent thinking challenges are a simple way to move into rapid prototyping while inspiring divergent thinking. Here's the basic premise of it.

#7: Wonder Day / Wonder Week

Time Required: Single Day or Full Week

Materials Required: This project works best when they can do online research.

Description: This is a fun, easy way to get students engaged in non-fiction reading. I use it as a high-interest way to help students learn the research process. Students begin with the sentence stem, "I'm wondering why/what would/how/if __________" and from there they ask tons of questions. This ultimately leads to research and finally a place where they share what they learned.

For more ideas on how to bring wonder back into the classroom, check out this post.

If you're interested in doing a Wonder Day project, you can find more detailed instructions in the Ten Creative Ways to End the Semester Resource Pack at the bottom of this post. I also include a video showing a simple approach to teaching students how to engage in media literacy.

#8: Hands-On Simulations

Time Required: Single Class Period

Materials Required: Simulations work really well when they are low-tech

Description: Simulations are a powerful way to push critical thinking. You don't need a maker space or fancy gadgets or anything like that.

They work with any subject where you are trying to get students to think about a complex, abstract idea or system. Simulations bridge the abstract and the concrete. They are fully immersive. You are moving around, physically maneuvering your environment to make sense of the information. In the process, the information sticks after a simulation. Simulations become mental models that students go back to in order to make sense out of what they have learned.

Student engagement skyrockets. Most simulations have a goal in mind and students are actively making decisions that allow them to process the information in real-time. They go beyond what Schlecty calls "strategic compliance" (high attention but low commitment) and into a place where they have full buy-in. Moreover, students at any ability level can access the information in a simulation. It is not necessarily reading-dependent or writing-dependent.

Note that simulations work best when dealing with abstract ideas and complex systems. A predator and prey version of tag can help students think about the food chain, but a simulation showing how stanzas work will tank. A simulation factory is a great way to make sense out of the industrial revolution but it's probably not the best way to show how phonics work.

With students feeling antsy, these hands-on, movement-oriented simulations can provide the perfect outlet while also reinforcing concepts they have been learning in any subject. I have a quick guide for designing simulations inside the Ten Creative Ways to End the Semester Resource Pack at the bottom of this post.

#9: Podcasts

Time Required: Single Day (or Multiple Days)

Materials Required: Smartphones or microphones, and computers (optional)

Description: I love having students create videos. However, videos can take time and it's more of a challenge to deal with props, lighting, staging, etc. This is why I love podcasts. They can work individually, with partners, or in small groups. It can be more scripted or more open. If you want, you can have students edit the podcasts and add music by using Garage Band or Audacity. But you can also do a simple recording with smartphones.

If this seems interesting to you, I created a quick sheet called 20 Ideas for Student Podcasting that you can find in the Ten Creative Ways to End the Semester Resource Pack at the bottom of this post.

#10: History Mystery

Time Required: 1-2 Days

Materials Required: This can be low-tech or high-tech

Description: This is a way to get students to create a theory about why something exists within history. For example, why are there ships buried under the city of San Francisco? You start with the key question (often a visual to go with it) and then you ask students to formulate a hypothesis and defend it. They then form groups and agree on a key idea. Afterward, the whole class debates the core reason. Then, you introduce them to an informational text about it. I have a specific lesson on this connected to a great episode of the 99% Invisible podcast. You can find the slideshow for the lesson in the Ten Creative Ways to End the Semester Resource Pack at the bottom of this post.

These last few weeks before the quarter are a chance to be different. They are an opportunity to innovate and try something new. It might not work. Mistakes are bound to happen - and that can feel daunting when you're already exhausted. But I've found that piloting something new is often the very thing I get re-energized and to increase student engagement. Ultimately, this is a chance to make something meaningful - something that your students will remember forever.

So, if you are thinking about doing something creative or innovative, please leave a comment below sharing what creative thing you plan to pilot in the upcoming weeks. Also, you might want to check out the free resource below.

Please leave your first name and email address below and click the yellow submit button to receive the free resource. I will also send you a weekly email with free, members-only access to my latest blog posts, videos, podcasts and resources to help you boost creativity and spark innovation in your classroom.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Twelve Creative Alternatives to Showing Movies Before the Break

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Don't forget to scroll down to the bottom of this post to download the Creative Ways to End the Semester Resource Pack. This is a post I first wrote a decade ago, when I was teaching middle school. Each year, I have revised it and updated it. Let's just put it out there.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.provider_name
AMLE - Association for Middle Level Education

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
We are a middle school, not a junior version of high school. To be effective in our teaching, we are developmentally appropriate for young adolescents, not for 16- to 18-year-olds nor for 8- and 9-year-olds. There is an expertise to teaching middle level students that is different than that needed to teach elementary or high school students, and our classrooms reflect that specific expertise.

16 Characteristics of Successful Middle Level Classrooms

This is a special age group. Who they are as adults has its roots in what they experience right here in middle school. We're building their future, and our own, with every action. Our teaching needs to be informed, responsive, and purposeful, not haphazard or indifferent. Thankfully, we know what to do.

The Association for Middle Level Education (AMLE) is one of the best organizations to get up to date information on what works and what doesn't work in middle level classrooms. To start, let's remind ourselves of their 16 characteristics of successful middle level education, as listed on their website and in their publication, This We Believe. As we read them, let's consider what it would look like in our schools if we implemented each one with conviction:

Curriculum, Instruction, and Assessment

Educators value young adolescents and are prepared to teach them. Effective middle grades educators make a conscious choice to work with young adolescents and advocate for them. They understand the developmental uniqueness of this age group, the appropriate curriculum, effective learning and assessment strategies, and their importance as models.

Students and teachers are engaged in active, purposeful learning. Instructional practices place students at the center of the learning process. As they develop the ability to hypothesize, to organize information into useful and meaningful constructs, and to grasp long-term cause and effect relationships, students are ready and able to play a major role in their own learning and education.

Curriculum is challenging, exploratory, integrative, and relevant. Curriculum embraces every planned aspect of a school's educational program. An effective middle level curriculum is distinguished by learning activities that appeal to young adolescents, is exploratory and challenging, and incorporates student-generated questions and concerns.

Educators use multiple learning and teaching approaches. Teaching and learning approaches should accommodate the diverse skills, abilities, and prior knowledge of young adolescents; cultivate multiple intelligences; draw upon students' individual learning styles; and utilize digital tools. When learning experiences capitalize on students' cultural, experiential, and personal backgrounds, new concepts are built on knowledge students already possess.

Varied and ongoing assessments advance learning as well as measure it. Continuous, authentic, and appropriate assessment measures, including both formative and summative ones, provide evidence about every student's learning progress. Such information helps students, teachers, and family members select immediate learning goals and plan further education.

Leadership and Organization

A shared vision developed by all stakeholders guides every decision. When a shared vision and mission statement become operational, middle level educators pursue appropriate practices in developing a challenging academic program; they develop criteria to guide decisions and a process to make changes.

Leaders are committed to and knowledgeable about this age group, educational research, and best practices. Courageous, collaborative middle level leaders understand young adolescents, the society in which they live, and the theory of middle level education. Such leaders understand the nuances of teaming, student advocacy, exploration, and assessment as components of a larger program.

Leaders demonstrate courage and collaboration. Leaders understand that successful schools committed to the long-term implementation of the middle school concept must be collaborative enterprises. The principal, working collaboratively with a leadership team, focuses on building a learning community that places top priority on the education and healthy development of every student, teacher, and staff member.

Ongoing professional development reflects best educational practices. Professional development is a continuing activity in middle level schools where teachers take advantage of every opportunity to work with colleagues to improve the learning experiences for their students.

Organizational structures foster purposeful learning and meaningful relationships. The ways schools organize teachers and group and schedule students has a significant impact on the learning environment. Interdisciplinary teams, common planning time, block scheduling, and elimination of tracking are related conditions that contribute to improved achievement.

Culture and Community

The school environment is inviting, safe, inclusive, and supportive of all. A successful school for young adolescents is an inviting, supportive, and safe place, a joyful community that promotes in-depth learning and enhances students' physical and emotional wellbeing.

Every student's academic and personal development is guided by an adult advocate. Academic success and personal growth increase markedly when young adolescents' affective needs are met. Each student must have one adult to support that student's academic and personal development.

Comprehensive guidance and support services meet the needs of young adolescents. Both teachers and specialized professionals are readily available to offer the assistance many students need in negotiating their lives in and out of school.

Health and wellness are supported in curricula, school-wide programs, and related policies. Abundant opportunities are available for students to develop and maintain healthy minds and bodies and to understand their personal growth through health-related programs, policies, and curricula.

The school actively involves families in the education of their children. Schools and families must work together to provide the best possible learning for every young adolescent. Schools take the initiative in involving and educating families.

The school includes community and business partners. Genuine community involvement is a fundamental component of successful schools for young adolescents. Such schools seek appropriate partnerships with businesses, social service agencies, and other organizations whose purposes are consistent with the school's mission.

Extending Our Effort

The era of treating middle schoolers as older elementary children or early high school students is long over. We've seen repeatedly how success in the middle years yields direct and positive results in high school and life.

Rick Wormeli is a long-time classroom teacher turned writer and education consultant. He is the author of several books, including The Collected Writings (So Far) of Rick Wormeli: Crazy Good Stuff I Learned about Teaching Along the Way (AMLE). He lives in Herndon, Virginia, and is working on a new book on homework.
rwormeli@cox.net
@rickwormeli2
www.rickwormeli.com Published inAMLE Magazine, January 2016.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
We are a middle school, not a junior version of high school. To be effective in our teaching, we are developmentally appropriate for young adolescents, not for 16- to 18-year-olds nor for 8- and 9-year-olds. There is an expertise to teaching middle level students that is different than that needed to teach elementary or high school students, and our classrooms reflect that specific expertise.

# data[].attributes.body
Diana Laufenberg

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Get a daily email featuring the latest talk, plus a quick mix of trending content.

By subscribing, you understand and agree that we will store, process and manage your personal information according to our Privacy Policy

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Diana Laufenberg: How to learn? From mistakes

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Diana Laufenberg shares three surprising things she has learned about teaching -- including a key insight about learning from mistakes.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
October 2017 | Volume 59 | Number 10
10 Ways to Get Your Mojo Back

Sarah McKibben

"October is a classic down month for teachers," Mike Anderson, author of The Well-Balanced Teacher, said in a recent BAM! Radio podcast. "There's so much positive energy at the beginning of the year. Teachers are excited and fired up, and students are eager to get back to school. And then, after five or six weeks, reality starts to crash in."

Around this time, he explained, "student challenges might present themselves more prominently and the curriculum can start to feel overwhelming. I think it's typical that everybody starts to lose their mojo just a little bit."

When the October blues bear down, what can you do to keep the momentum going? We turned to the 2017 State and National Teachers of the Year, selected by the Council of Chief State School Officers, for advice.

1. Find Strength in Your Students

"By October, the kids have figured out that I really care about them," says Sia Kyriakakos, a 2017 National Teacher of the Year finalist from Maryland. "When I feel down and can't push through, they pick me up."

The high school visual arts teacher in inner-city Baltimore shares countless stories of inspiration. Just a few weeks into the school year, "my kids, being the kids that they are, figured out how to break into my classroom," she laughs. "I walked in [early one day] to find a dozen kids already drawing and giving each other feedback and helping each other."

This scene plays out almost every morning now. "Do you know how amazing that is? No matter how hard my night has been or if I feel sick or if I'm just tired, I walk in and find these kids already drawing. I'm ready to go! And you know what? I will show up for them every day," Kyriakakos promises.

"If you are not committed to loving your students, you will hit that rut and not get out."

2. Learn Something New

Teachers start the school year energized by their summer learning, having visited museums, attended conferences, traveled, or participated in other professional learning experiences, says Sydney Chaffee, the 2017 National Teacher of the Year. "We get to be learners in a way that [we often can't] during the busy school year."

"In September, we've got all these new ideas and we're ready to go," explains Chaffee, who teaches high school humanities in Boston, Massachusetts. "Then a month or so in, we start settling into our routines again. We're like, 'Oh, well, I teach this every year. I'm just going to pull out the stuff I always use.' But [it helps to] remind ourselves that there's always something new we can learn."

"It could be as simple as picking up a book or watching a documentary about the topic you're teaching," she notes. Those looking for something more formal might start a professional learning network or join a professional learning team with coworkers "to share new ideas and workshop things together," Chaffee suggests.

"Let your peers push you to learn and incorporate new stuff."

3. Pull Out All the Instructional Stops

"If the school year is becoming tiring for teachers, chances are students are fighting the same fatigue," says Darbie Valenti, the 2017 Missouri Teacher of the Year. "By anticipating road bumps, we can strategically plan for our most captivating lessons."

Besides October, spring can also be a particularly rough time in the classroom, she observes. "Algebra is the last thing my 5th graders are interested in. So instead of math lectures and PowerPoints, we complete inquiry-based lessons centered on golf. Students learn patterns and relationships of numbers by pitching a promotional idea to our local club pro from the golf course in town. They become so invested that they create extra promotional sales and graphs to analyze which sale would be better for the golf course. Students get excited about math, and I feed off their energy. These lessons turn the climate of our classroom back in the right direction."

Whatever the time of year, creating engaging and offbeat lessons can reinvigorate your students-and you.

4. Battle Your Boredom

Whoever said, "only boring people get bored," apparently never taught the discovery of America. In her Justice and Injustice course, Chaffee hit a curricular wall: "For seven years, I taught the same three big units: Christopher Columbus (relearning his encounter with indigenous people), the Haitian Revolution, and apartheid. I was bored. Kids were coming to me having already had the story of Columbus problematized in middle school, and I was starting to feel like this isn't novel anymore."

Chaffee asked her principal if she could shorten Columbus from two-and-a-half months to three weeks and use the extra time to build a new unit.

"I know not all teachers have that freedom," Chaffee admits, but she encourages teachers to consider ways to play with timing. "Can I give myself an extra day or two to put in something new or [lead] an interactive experience or a class debate? If there's something about it that's not firing me up, I'm not going to be able to excite kids, so how do I rediscover my passion around it?"

Chaffee also designed a new final project that asked students to complete a "source dissection" of a historical document (detecting bias and subjectivity). The process was exciting, she recalls, "because I got to learn, innovate, and experiment."

5. Find Your Tribe

"As a new year starts, I'm ready to tackle anything that comes my way," says Shelly Vroegh, the 2017 Iowa Teacher of the Year. "But then November hits: parent-teacher conferences, endless nights of planning and grading, and the holidays quickly approaching. That energy and pizzazz I had in August are nowhere in sight."

That's when Vroegh suggests teaming up. "The best thing to do in this situation is to find that one colleague who can pick you up when you're feeling overwhelmed-that person who sees the bright side in any situation, who listens, gives advice, or shares ideas for lessons. Even after 20 years of teaching, when I feel like I just can't face one more paper or teach that lesson on fractions one more time, I turn to a trusted colleague for ideas and inspiration."

"Find your tribe," advises Wendy Turner, the 2017 Delaware Teacher of the Year. "When you are frustrated by student behavior, difficult parents, new curriculum, or paperwork, make sure you find someone to talk to, whether that's someone on your team, in your building or district, or a supportive network on social media."

Just make sure it's a "positive source of comfort and support," says Turner. "Stay away from negative hotspots in your building and those people who constantly complain or spin everything with a negative view. A great supporter will allow you to vent frustrations, affirm them, and offer advice for moving forward."

6. Hit Pause and Reflect

How often have you received a meaningful note only to toss it out? Dustin Weaver, the 2017 Ohio Teacher of the Year, recommends hanging on to anything sentimental. He keeps a "treasure chest" of items-like thank-you notes, emails, and artwork-he has collected from students, parents, and community members over the years. "Whenever I receive something expressing gratitude," Weaver says, "I store it in my treasure chest. Reading these notes of appreciation provides a vast amount of energy and inspiration!"

Set aside time for the 30,000-foot view, as well, says Megan Gross, a 2017 National Teacher of the Year finalist from California. "Take a step back and reflect on all that you've accomplished. Look back on where you started in August and how you've developed these relationships with kids, and celebrate the tiny successes that are going to lead up to where you want to be in May or June."

7. Never Let Your Flame Go Out

Chris Gleason, a music educator in Wisconsin and another 2017 National Teacher of the Year finalist, recalls the advice he once received: "A week before starting my first teaching job, my principal called me into his office and said, 'Get ready son ... this career is going to challenge you in every way possible. It is in the struggle that you will find joy. Never let your flame go out.'"

Those words still resonate with Gleason 20 years later. "It is easy to get bogged down in procedures, paperwork, curriculum revisions, and other necessary but exhausting work. So how do we keep our flame burning brightly not just for the year, but for our entire career?" Through intrinsic motivation, he affirms.

"In Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us, author Dan Pink suggests three things that create intrinsic motivation: autonomy, mastery, and purpose. Autonomy is our desire to be self-directed. Mastery is the urge to improve skills, while purpose is the desire to do meaningful and important work. I believe that teachers, like students, will be more productive and engaged if all three of these needs are met."

Intrinsic motivation pushes the veteran educator to hone his craft. For example, Gleason recently videotaped several lessons, noting his "pacing and communication." He found areas that needed to be addressed, observed master educators, and practiced applying new skills.

"I wasn't doing it because it was required or worth 'points' on Danielson's Framework," notes Gleason. "I did it because I felt it would help me to get better at something I love. A fire was burning inside me."

8. Take a Hike

At times, even the most passionate pedagogues will feel their energy depleting. "Make sure you engage in something to provide stress relief," suggests Turner. Take a five-minute walk during lunch or planning periods, do breathing exercises, or just sing in the car. "Find what works for you."

"Self-care is a must for me, so I build in time early in the morning (between 5:00 and 6:00 a.m.) for quiet reflection and exercise," says Turner. "After that critical investment in myself and my day, I feel like I can tackle anything and really be there for my students, families, colleagues-and then my own family at the end of the day."

Getting fresh air can help, too. "I try to find a weekend where I have downtime," explains Gross, who teaches special education. "[That means] being more intentional about taking my kids to the beach or going for a hike-just something to clear my head-and then mentally making a plan for how I want the next three months to look."

9. Have Coffee with a Mentor

For new teachers, the October blues can hit especially hard. "I remember feeling so overwhelmed, like nothing I did was ever enough," says Gross. "I could have worked at school 24 hours a day and still had piles [of paper] on my desk."

Her mentors pulled her through the slump. "We met for breakfast every Thursday before going to school. I would listen to these veteran teachers' stories and hear their struggles and successes," Gross shares. "And I received support, as well. Those coffee dates were crucial to my mental health and professional development."

10. Resist the Isolation

"Sometimes new teachers don't have the perspective of knowing that this is normal; we go through this," says Chaffee. They're equally unprepared for the dip that can happen in February or March, or as she calls those months-the "dark days."

"I always tell my student teachers, 'Listen, the dark days are coming, but it's going to be OK. We're going to come out of it on the other side.'"

No matter when your mojo takes a hit, "know that whatever you're experiencing as a teacher is probably not that unique," relates Chaffee. "There may be many other people in your building feeling that way. So just resist the isolation and reach out to your colleagues. It doesn't mean that you're a bad teacher if you're having a hard time in October or if you're feeling like you're missing some of that spark."

"Reach out to people you trust in your building. Invite them into your classroom and go into theirs-it can inspire you and [serve as a] reminder that you're not doing this work alone. There's a community here and you can talk about what's going on."

Sarah McKibben (@editorbytrade) is the managing editor of Education Update.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Education Update:10 Ways to Get Your Mojo Back:10 Ways to Get Your Mojo Back

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
October 2017 | Volume 59 | Number 10 10 Ways to Get Your Mojo Back Sarah McKibben "October is a classic down month for teachers," Mike Anderson, author of The Well-Balanced Teacher, said in a recent BAM! Radio podcast. "There's so much positive energy at the beginning of the year.

# data[].attributes.body
Designed to explore the quirky and sometimes surprising aspects of how our minds work.

# data[].attributes.headline
A Double Fortnight's Summer Reading from Independent School’s Books Columnist

# data[].attributes.subject
A Double Fortnight's Summer Reading from Independent School’s Books Columnist

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
I imagine all of us are looking forward to the end of an exceptionally tumultuous school year, easily the most unsettling since the one that began in September 2001. Summer gives us a chance for a more reflective look at these times, comparison to other eras, and escape from our immediate concerns into wider, deeper, or simply different contexts and perspectives. This list was carefully chosen to provide escape, but not escapism.

Required Reading

Maria Popova, "Brain Pickings: Weekly Newsletter" (www.brainpickings.org)
No, it's not a book (nor a typical blog) but an inspiring "long read" selection of great writings on universal concerns. Some random samples: Alan Turing on love and loss, Karl Popper on truth vs. certainty, Hannah Arendt on how tyrants use loneliness as a weapon of oppression. Popova, a Bulgarian immigrant once denied a U.S. visa, offers consolation, inspiration, and explanation at a time when all are sorely needed.

Rebecca Solnit,Hope in the Dark; Men Explain Things to Me; A Paradise Built in Hell
Solnit may well be the most influential essayist writing today. While Thomas Hardy said a way to the better "exacts a full look at the worst," Solnit has a gift for observing the better within the worst, even after taking the full look.

Writing about community resilience during natural disaster inA Paradise, balancing paired essays on "When We Lost" and "What We Won," in Hope in the Dark, or explicating Virginia Woolf's paradoxical World War I observation, "The future is dark, which is the best thing the future can be, I think" in Men Explain, Solnit argues that "we can change the world, because we have many times before." Simply reading Hope in the Dark, which was written more than 10 years ago and recently updated, is an antidote to easy despair.

Fiction

Julian Barnes,The Noise of Time
Barnes's novel opens with Dmitri Shostakovich waiting by the elevator outside his apartment so he won't disturb his family when the NKVD come to take him away. The novel depicts the years of external, and imagined internal, struggles, and occasional victories, of Shostakovich under the omnipresent oversight of Stalinism. The composer's continued presence in concert halls throughout the world today affirms Barnes's assertion that "Art is the whisper of history, heard above the noise of time. "

Louis de Bernieres,The Dust That Falls from Dreams
Renowned forCorelli's Mandolin and well-known for works set in Latin America, Turkey, and Australia, de Bernieres recently began writing about English life. As he put it, "I realized that I had set so many of my novels and stories abroad, because custom had prevented me from seeing how exotic my own country is. Britain really is an immense lunatic asylum." This alternately somber, lyrical, and funny story of English life in the early 20th century goes well beyond his grim description.

Chad Harbach,The Art of Fielding
Summer still means baseball, and baseball, for many, means reading as much as watching. FromThe Natural to Shoeless Joe (aka Field of Dreams) to The Summer Game to Why Time Begins on Opening Day, baseball seems to bring out the best in writers. Harbach's is one of the more recent examples, an amalgam about academia, imagination, love, and most of all the impossible yet imperative quest for perfection. The novel, in fact, inverts Roger Angell's words about the art of hitting: "Since baseball time is measured only in outs, all you have to do is succeed utterly; keep fielding, hold the rally off, and you have defeated time."

Amor Towles, A Gentleman in Moscow
Is there something about this moment that has piqued our interest in the history of 20th century Russia? The gentleman, Count Alexander Rostov, is not merely in Moscow, but confined for life to the Metropole Hotel in 1922, on penalty of death, as a counter-revolutionary. Over more than three decades he constructs a meaningful and sometimes pleasant life under the nose of the bureaucracy. In the end, he exemplifies Faulkner's hope that mankind will not only endure, but prevail.

Colson Whitehead,The Underground Railroad
Begin on a Georgia plantation with all the cruelties one imagines there. Then jump on a literal Underground Railroad with a fleeing woman, to observe, in several real, Southern states, with familiar names but imagined societies, the many ways the United States has brutalized African-Americans over the centuries. Whitehead combines his own version of magical realism with a modern allegory that could stand besideGulliver's Travels.

History and Current Events

Katherine Boo,Behind the Beautiful Forevers
This story of a Muslim family trapped in poverty, prejudice, and police corruption in a Mumbai slum delves as deeply into its characters and their experiences as any third-world novel, yet is based on exhaustive and documented research. As the powerless and the slightly more powerful turn on each other, the advance of globalization, in the literal form of bulldozers, wipes their meager hopes away with the indifference of a tsunami.

Ibram X. Kendi,Stamped from the Beginning
Using four exemplary figures (Cotton Mather, Jefferson, Garrison, Douglass, W.E.B. DuBois, and Angela Davis) from American history, Kendi argues that racism has always presented two faces: one, that people of color are inherently and permanently inferior, and the other, which often infects even anti-racist views, that this inferiority is real, but can gradually be eliminated by environmental and cultural shifts toward "whiteness." Real anti-racism requires scrapping both notions, along with "any concept that regards one racial group as inferior or superior to another racial group in any way."

Russell Shorto,The Island at the Center of the World
Drawing on long-ignored documents of the New Amsterdam colony, Shorto argues that many entrepreneurial, individualistic, cosmopolitan, and tolerant characteristics of American and other modern cultures derive from the Stuyvesants, Minuits, and others who, in only 20 years of rule, left behind far more than the Dutch names for three of New York's five boroughs. Nicely paired with his earlierAmsterdam: A History of the World's Most Liberal City.

Memoir and Biography

Ben Macintyre,Agent Zigzag
Yes, one more true story of daring and ingenuity from the espionage fields of World War II, but this one is different. Our "hero," an unscrupulous English bigamist and petty criminal becomes first a prisoner of the German forces occupying the Channel Islands, then their lead actor in the campaign to infiltrate and undermine Great Britain. The question: How many spots can a leopard change, and how many times?

Sylvie Simmons,I'm Your Man: The Life of Leonard Cohen
There's a church in Denver called The Church of All Saints and Sinners. If anyone deserves dual canonization there, it's Leonard Cohen, whose passing was eulogized by Buddhist monks, rabbis, Jewish intellectual Leon Wieseltier, and an Italian-Catholic cardinal. Simmons chronicles the often terrible, frequently admirable, and always fascinating life of the poet-musician, to just before his death. Almost as good as hearing his songs of five decades.

J.D. Vance,Hillbilly Elegy and James Rebanks, The Shepherd's Life
Vance and Rebanks could hardly be more similar, or more different. Both are rurally born, highly educated observers of their home cultures: Appalachia and the English Lake District. But where Vance ambiguously elegizes a culture in crisis, in which work and will have vanished, Rebanks lauds a proud society resistant to the lures of modernity, dependent on a skilled profession that brings honor and community, if not wealth.

Mystery

P.L. Gaus, The Amish Mysteries
In a New York Times book review recently, Chelsea Clinton said she read few mysteries, but could be persuaded to live in Louise Penny's Quebec Village of Three Pines, if it existed. Gaus's Amish country does exist, in central Ohio, and his locally set novels combine the spiritual values of these pacific people with the world's intrusions that sometimes require the help of more secular folks, including a college professor, a carpenter-preacher, and a world-weary sheriff.

Peter May,Entry Island; The Blackhouse
May is fascinated with offshore islands where unique peoples hold to ancient traditions and old grudges. From the Gulf of St. Lawrence to the Hebrides, May depicts geography, geology, and social mores with erudition and insight. By the time you've finished, your vocabulary will have expanded beyond the familiar "loch" to such words as "machair," "guga," and "galloch," and your perspective will have broadened similarly.

Nature and Art

Andrew Dickson,Worlds Elsewhere
Not planning to go to any of the several Stratfords this year? You needn't leave Shakespeare behind. Dickson's examination of Shakespearian transmutations from Weimar to Shanghai, Cape Town to Kolkata, shows that the Bard has put a girdle 'round the earth, though it may lie under a sari, dashiki, or kung fu suit.

Sy Montgomery,The Soul of An Octopus
Ever wonder what that eight-legged creature is thinking as it stares back at you through the glass of its aquarium tank? Plenty, it seems. Montgomery delights with tales of daring octopus escapes, and their judgments of us, expressed in tender touches or sudden drenchings. After reading this you may confine your summer dining to mollusks and crustaceans, avoiding the brainy cephalopod.

Crispin Sartwell,Six Names of Beauty
We know that beauty is in the eye of the beholder, and that notions of beauty differ from culture to culture, age to age. ButSix Names shows us how even the words for beauty denote different realms of experience. I had always wondered, for example, why the Navajo people chanted "It is finished in beauty" at someone's deathbed, until Sartwell explained that the Navajo hozho means beauty as harmony, coherence. From English to Japanese, and back in time to Greek and Sanskrit, the names of beauty, like the names of God in many religions, are all different, and all true.

Words and Pictures

Richard McGuire,Here
A simple title for a complex, mostly visual experience. Nearly 600 subtly colored pictures, many overlaid on a single page, cover 110 years in the life of a house, as seen from the same angle in its living room, plus occasional detours into earlier centuries, prehistoric time, and the near and distant future. Death, birth, and violence, but primarily ordinary life events, which sometimes seem to re-echo. Is there a theme? Many? Pop songs provide an occasional clue, but you could spend days trying to connect all the pieces of this "graphic novel," "mash-up," "short story," "photo album" - it's been called all of these. All I can say is, "You have to be there."

Rebecca Solnit et. al., The Atlas Series (Nonstop Metropolis, Infinite City, Unfathomable City)
Guidebooks are hybrids of usually pedestrian cartography and occasionally lively writing, but Rebecca Solnit - yes, her again - and a community of contemporary writers and mapmakers have created a whole new creature: the beautiful, eccentric, and literate coffee tablevade mecum to (so far) New York, San Francisco, and New Orleans. The New York volume alone covers 26 Gothams, from Melville's historic haunts to hoopsters and hip-hop. But you have to read them at home or do some heavy lifting: They are, quite rightly, not available on Kindle.

Brandon Stanton,Humans of New York, and Little Humans
Stanton's ongoing photo collections, taken over the past decade or so, have been made possible by an unerring eye, combined an emotional intelligence that connects him to his willing subjects. Whether accompanied by his commentary ("For one fleeting moment, this kid may have been the happiest person in the world") or his subject's words ("I'm training myself to lucid dream"), these pictures are building a Human Comedy to rival Balzac's - and maybe Dante's.

ALSO SEE: NAIS President Donna Orem's summer reading recommendations.

About The Blog

Independent Ideas: The Independent School Magazine Blog explores the issues and trends that matter most in education now. As a professional learning community, it features a diversity of voices and solution-oriented perspectives.
Read More

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
A Double Fortnight's Summer Reading from Independent School's Books Columnist

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
I imagine all of us are looking forward to the end of an exceptionally tumultuous school year, easily the most unsettling since the one that began in September 2001. Summer gives us a chance for a more reflective look at these times, comparison to other eras, and escape from our immediate concerns into wider, deeper, or simply different contexts and perspectives.

# data[].attributes.body
Ken Robinson

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Get a daily email featuring the latest talk, plus a quick mix of trending content.

By subscribing, you understand and agree that we will store, process and manage your personal information according to our Privacy Policy

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Sir Ken Robinson: Changing education paradigms

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
In this talk from RSA Animate, Sir Ken Robinson lays out the link between 3 troubling trends: rising drop-out rates, schools' dwindling stake in the arts, and ADHD. An important, timely talk for parents and teachers.

# data[].attributes.headline
Print Custom Sticky Notes with Google Slides

# data[].attributes.subject
Print Custom Sticky Notes with Google Slides

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Post-it and other brands of sticky notes are put to good use everyday by teachers and students. The Post-it website has a page filled with resources for teachers, and they have a really cool iOS app for digitizing, sorting, and sharing square sticky notes.

Those small pieces of paper that can be attached, easily removed, and repositioned can be even more useful when you print on them. While there is a printer designed to print sticky notes, you can send sticky notes through the printer you already have. You'll need a template for printing, and I just so happen to have one for you. Skip ahead to see loads of ideas for printed sticky notes.

The template is in Google Slides. Why Google Slides? It's one of my favorite design tools, and does not have to be limited to slideshows. The template has a custom page setup of 8.5 by 11 inches to match standard printer paper. I'm sharing the file in a way that forces you to make your own copy. You can edit your copy and use Google Slides' design tools to print your personalized design.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Print Custom Sticky Notes with Google Slides - Learning in Hand with Tony Vincent

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Post-it and other brands of sticky notes are put to good use everyday by teachers and students. The Post-it website has a page filled with resources for teachers, and they have a really cool iOS app for digitizing, sorting, and sharing square sticky notes.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Assumptions. We all have them. We carry them into the car, into the classroom, into work.

Some assumptions operate to save cognitive space: We plan for a working LCD projector, for example, or we assume the copy machine will work. (Not always, to be sure, but in general we expect them to be reliable.)

In working with teachers, both new and veteran, I have also found that some assumptions-particularly those that pertain to ourselves and to our students-can cause frustration, leading to burnout. Beliefs we have about how we should operate or how students should behave can sometimes cloud our vision, preventing us from seeing who stands before us.

Luckily, if we're aware of these assumptions, we can work to counteract them.

Three Assumptions That Can Lead to Frustration

1. I should know this. No matter how well the lesson is planned, no matter how many times you've taught it already, the class in front of you is a new group. Their needs are different from those of the last class. So every year involves some relearning how to teach them. Their culture changes, their lives and families change, and you change, too. Demographics change, standards change.

Stasis is not the norm. Knowing your content is not the same as understanding your new students. In other words, knowledge is not insight. Both are essential for effective and compassionate teaching.

You might also find that you do need to relearn the content. You've taught the Fall of Rome before, for example, and your unit is laid out, ready to go in Google Drive. But you find, as you begin preparation or instruction, that you must study the causes again, that some of the anecdotes you told are forgotten. The facts are rusty, but the details return as the lesson unfolds.

Let me tell you something: The teaching mind is full, a Ferris wheel of moving parts that rise and fall, come and go. That you have forgotten some details is a sure sign of efficiency, that the carnival ride attendant is alive and well. A way around this? Preview the unit, keep summary notes, and trust that once you dive back into teaching it, the "aha!" of recognition will return.

2. The kids should know this. Dr. Anita Archercalls this " committing assumicide." An example: You've just rolled out a lab that involves measurement, and it's suddenly become evident that students don't know how to use rulers. Students can't distinguish the increments and lines, and the lab is taking an unwelcome turn.

It's common at this point-and I say this with empathy and self-recognition-to shift blame onto prior teachers, to blame the students, to point at poverty, culture, the state of education funding. Our sense of being overwhelmed becomes a frustrated arrow back onto the world.

But the point, the heart of this, is really: What will you do? To pause and teach ruler use at this moment would be a strength, not a failure. Set aside the pacing guide and see what students need, at this moment, here and now. Reality and the present moment are your friends, and along with support and conscientious practice, they will help you and your students grow.

3. I should be better/do better. The impulse to grow and better serve students is a worthy one, yet the road to effective teaching is not a straight line. At some point we take stock of where we've traveled and realize how far we have yet to go. Like the poet Gary Snyder on top of the mountain, we're "looking down for miles."

This pause, if we can really pause, offers an opportunity to note our progress, our current state, and plan next steps. And it's important to temper this reflective state with self-compassion, noting honestly where we've stumbled. In David and Goliath, Malcolm Gladwell considers how even repeated failures may be an essential part of growth. Errors are where we develop stamina and where we practice choosing to begin again.

A Few More Ideas

If you find yourself in the land of these assumptions, here are a few ways to exit:

Find time to reflect: Talk, write, read, slow down.

Ask questions: Who are my students? What kind of teacher do they need me to be? Shifting the focus from ourselves to our students can better inform our next steps.

Practice self-compassion: Even slow learning is learning. Your pace is yours. Practice mindful breathing and kind self-talk-they will help you see what's in front of you and make more effective choices.

Enlist help: Call a friend, talk to a colleague, seek the help of a coach or trusted peer.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
3 Assumptions Teachers Should Avoid | Edutopia

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Assumptions. We all have them. We carry them into the car, into the classroom, into work. Some assumptions operate to save cognitive space: We plan for a working LCD projector, for example, or we assume the copy machine will work. (Not always, to be sure, but in general we expect them to be reliable.)

# data[].attributes.headline
Curiosity: The Force Within a Hungry Mind

# data[].attributes.subject
Curiosity: The Force Within a Hungry Mind

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Edutopia is a free source of information, inspiration, and practical strategies for learning and teaching in preK-12 education. We are published by the George Lucas Educational Foundation, a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization.

# data[].attributes.body
Tell us your birthday, and we’ll show you how the world has changed during your lifetime.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
How Will History Remember Your Lifetime?

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
The Atlantic covers news and analysis on politics, business, culture, technology, national, international and life on the official site of The Atlantic Magazine.

# data[].attributes.headline
Royce Mann 2 new slam poems ("All Lives Matter, But..." and "Rise Up")

# data[].attributes.subject
Royce Mann 2 new slam poems ("All Lives Matter, But..." and "Rise Up")

# data[].attributes.headline
Virtual Tour of the National Museum of African American History and Culture

# data[].attributes.subject
Virtual Tour of the National Museum of African American History and Culture

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
What to expect when you visit the Smithsonian's newest museum

The anticipation is palpable, as the opening of the National Museum of African American History and Culture approaches. When the museum released 28,500 timed-entry passes for the opening weekend, they were gone within an hour.

Museum officials expect to use the free timed-entry passes well into 2017, so potential visitors should plan on scheduling far ahead of time. More information on the passes is available at nmaahc.si.edu.

The museum and its 35,000 treasured artifacts are telling a new story about America. In what will likely be the last new building on the National Mall, the museum represents a once-in-a-generation opportunity to reintroduce important ideas and themes to an eager public.

As museum director Lonnie Bunch wrote in his essay for Smithsonian:

I think the museum needs to be a place that finds the right tension between moments of pain and stories of resiliency and uplift. There will be moments where visitors could cry as they ponder the pains of the past, but they will also find much of the joy and hope that have been a cornerstone of the African-American experience. Ultimately, I trust that our visitors will draw sustenance, inspiration and a commitment from the lessons of history to make America better. At this time in our country, there is a great need for contextualization and the clarity that comes from understanding one's history. I hope that the museum can play a small part in helping our nation grapple with its tortured racial past. And maybe even help us find a bit of reconciliation.

These principles guided designer David Adjaye and architect Philip Freelon as they planned this new museum. The soon-to-be iconic three-tiered design of the building was modeled on a sculpture by a Yoruban artist and its intricate exterior brass work honors the unheralded craftsmen of the American South.

This interactive highlights these features, as well as many other aspects of the museum that visitors will encounter in their experience. Important features about the building are highlighted in blue while some of the signature artifacts are highlighted in orange.

To view all four sides of the building, click on the spiraled arrow on the right. To explore the building, roll over and click on the graphic callouts.

As you make your virtual journey through the interactive, and then hopefully see the stunning exhibits and architecture for yourself on the National Mall, experience the building that director Lonnie Bunch says will "Sing for all of us." - Beth Py-Lieberman

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.authors[].name
Katie Nodjimbadem, Brian Wolly, Beth Py-Lieberman, 5W Infographics, Sean Henderson, Jason Flakes, Shaylyn Esposito, Todd Stowell, NMAAHC

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Take an Interactive Tour of the National Museum of African American History and Culture

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
The anticipation is palpable, as the opening of the National Museum of African American History and Culture approaches. When the museum released 28,500 timed-entry passes for the opening weekend, they were gone within an hour. Museum officials expect to use the free timed-entry passes well into 2017, so potential visitors should plan on scheduling far ahead of time.

# data[].attributes.body
Donovan Livingston student speaker at Harvard Graduate School of Education's 2016 Convocation exercises

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
The remarks of Donovan Livingston, Ed.M.'16, student speaker at HGSE's 2016 Convocation exercises.

"Education then, beyond all other devices of human origin,
Is a great equalizer of the conditions of men." - Horace Mann, 1848.
At the time of his remarks I couldn't read - couldn't write.
Any attempt to do so, punishable by death.
For generations we have known of knowledge's infinite power.
Yet somehow, we've never questioned the keeper of the keys -
The guardians of information.

Unfortunately, I've seen more dividing and conquering
In this order of operations - a heinous miscalculation of reality.
For some, the only difference between a classroom and a plantation is time.
How many times must we be made to feel like quotas -
Like tokens in coined phrases? -
"Diversity. Inclusion"
There are days I feel like one, like only -
A lonely blossom in a briar patch of broken promises.
But I've always been a thorn in the side of injustice.

Disruptive. Talkative. A distraction.
With a passion that transcends the confines of my consciousness -
Beyond your curriculum, beyond your standards.
I stand here, a manifestation of love and pain,
With veins pumping revolution.
I am the strange fruit that grew too ripe for the poplar tree.
I am a DREAM Act, Dream Deferred incarnate.
I am a movement - an amalgam of memories America would care to forget
My past, alone won't allow me to sit still.
So my body, like the mind
Cannot be contained.

As educators, rather than raising your voices
Over the rustling of our chains,
Take them off. Un-cuff us.
Unencumbered by the lumbering weight
Of poverty and privilege,
Policy and ignorance.

I was in the 7th grade, when Ms. Parker told me,
"Donovan, we can put your excess energy to good use!"
And she introduced me to the sound of my own voice.
She gave me a stage. A platform.
She told me that our stories are ladders
That make it easier for us to touch the stars.
So climb and grab them.
Keep climbing. Grab them.
Spill your emotions in the big dipper and pour out your soul.
Light up the world with your luminous allure.

To educate requires Galileo-like patience.
Today, when I look my students in the eyes, all I see are constellations.
If you take the time to connect the dots,
You can plot the true shape of their genius -
Shining in their darkest hour.

I look each of my students in the eyes,
And see the same light that aligned Orion's Belt
And the pyramids of Giza.
I see the same twinkle
That guided Harriet to freedom.
I see them. Beneath their masks and mischief,
Exists an authentic frustration;
An enslavement to your standardized assessments.

At the core, none of us were meant to be common.
We were born to be comets,
Darting across space and time -
Leaving our mark as we crash into everything.
A crater is a reminder that something amazing happened here -
An indelible impact that shook up the world.
Are we not astronomers - looking for the next shooting star?
I teach in hopes of turning content, into rocket ships -
Tribulations into telescopes,
So a child can see their potential from right where they stand.
An injustice is telling them they are stars
Without acknowledging night that surrounds them.
Injustice is telling them education is the key
While you continue to change the locks.

Education is no equalizer -
Rather, it is the sleep that precedes the American Dream.
So wake up - wake up! Lift your voices
Until you've patched every hole in a child's broken sky.
Wake up every child so they know of their celestial potential.
I've been a Black hole in the classroom for far too long;
Absorbing everything, without allowing my light escape.
But those days are done. I belong among the stars.
And so do you. And so do they.
Together, we can inspire galaxies of greatness
For generations to come.
No, sky is not the limit. It is only the beginning.
Lift off.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
The remarks of Donovan Livingston, Ed.M.'16, student speaker at HGSE's 2016 Convocation exercises. "Education then, beyond all other devices of human origin,Is a great equalizer of the conditions of men."

# data[].attributes.body
Bomba Estéreo

# data[].attributes.body
Taylor Mali

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
What Teachers Make by Taylor Mali - Classroom Friendly

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Pre-order Taylor Mali's "What Teachers Make" at http://www.goo.gl/4L8xe The release of this video comes at the tail end of Taylor Mali's Quest for a Thousand Teachers, a goal set in 2000 to inspire 1,000 people to become teachers through "poetry, persuasion, and perseverance."

# data[].attributes.body
Taylor Mali

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Cybrary Man's Educational Web Sites The internet catalogue for students, teachers, administrators & parents. Over 20,000 relevant links personally selected by an educator/author with over 30 years of experience.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
A recent Los Angeles Times' article reveals that teachers across America must compete with students' phones for attention. Matt Miles, a high school teacher from Fairfax County, Virginia, says the problem is getting worse: "Whereas 5 years ago, I could quietly ask the one rebellious student to put his or her phone away with no real interruption to class, doing that today would require multiple conversations with a majority of my class."

The push for students to use phones while at school, and even during class, comes from this generation of preteens and teens who -- as illustrated by the recent documentary Screenagers -- struggle to stop playing with their phones. Adding fuel to the fire are tech pundits who claim that smartphones provide learning opportunities for children. Parents, too, may want to communicate by phone with their kids throughout the school day.

But new research is questioning the wisdom of allowing phones in school, as studies reveal this practice is putting students' learning and safety at risk.
Distracted Learning
There's no doubt that smartphones have remarkable capabilities which, in theory, could promote student learning. But the truth is that kids -- in spite of the best efforts of parents and teachers -- use their phones primarily to access digital amusements. A Kaiser Family Foundation report says: "The transformation of the cell phone into a media content delivery platform [has]... facilitated an explosion in [entertainment] media consumption among American youth," including TV and video games.

It's therefore not surprising that a recent London School of Economics study found that schools which ban the use of phones experienced a substantial improvement in student test scores, with the researchers concluding that phones "can have a negative impact on productivity through distraction." Researchers found that phones hurt vulnerable students the most. Study co-author Dr. Richard Murphy, an assistant professor of economics at the University of Texas, reports: "Allowing phones into schools would be the most damaging to low-achieving and low-income students, exacerbating any existing learning inequalities."

Research on college students (average age 18) in a simulated classroom reveals how phones hurt learning, as students who did not use their phones "wrote down 62 percent more information in their notes, took more detailed notes, were able to recall more detailed information from the lecture, and scored a full letter grade and a half higher on a multiple choice test than those students who were actively using their mobile phones."
The Illusion of Safety
Understandably, some may believe that children's safety is improved if parents and children can reach one another by phone during the school day. However, in order to get a message from their parents, students must constantly monitor their phones, even during class. This constant phone and online use is now recognized as posing risks for children. Why? Because research is revealing that kids who spend more time online are more likely to be involved in cyberbullying than kids who spend less.

Schools therefore inadvertently increase the chances that kids will be cyberbullied at school through open phone policies. Marc Vincenti, a retired English teacher from Gunn High School in Palo Alto, California, witnessed how students using phones during school increases their risks of being victimized. Vincenti asked one of his students, who appeared troubled, if she was okay. She responded, "I'm so sorry, but on my way to your class I got a text six pages long from my boyfriend's old girlfriend saying what a slut I am."

We should be doing everything we can to limit cyberbullying, especially during school hours, as research shows that it increases the danger that kids will skip school or consider suicide. Schools will protect students' safety by having them keep their phones off in backpacks from morning bell to last. If parents or children need to reach one another, the school office can be used -- a policy that has worked well for decades.
The Need for Leadership
Schools will clearly promote their students' academic success and safety by limiting the use of student phones during school hours. Presently, most schools leave it to teachers to manage phone distractions in their own classrooms. But this piecemeal approach has left teachers with inadequate support to confront the difficult and potentially unsafe task of limiting disruptive phone use by defiant students. In a recent New York Times' article, teacher Ed Boland acknowledges, "I just wish somebody told me how to get a cellphone out of a kid's hand."

School leaders and teachers therefore need to work together to help students and parents recognize the substantial benefits of keeping phones off during school. Such teacher-leader cooperation will also ensure that phone limits extend to lunch and passing periods to protect students.

Principal Anita Berger of Banneker High School, a Washington, DC magnet school, is providing strong leadership on student phones, particularly considering the challenges faced by her students. Banneker's student body is 85 percent black, a group of teens who -- according to a recent Common Sense Media report -- nationally spend almost twice the amount of time each day using phones when compared with white children (4 hours, 11 minutes to 2 hours, 12 minutes). Black students also tend to score lower academically than white children. So, Banneker's students would especially benefit from school phone limits which, according to the London School of Economics phone study, particularly help lower achieving students.

Principal Berger and Banneker have done just that, with a rule that students don't use phones during the school day. This has helped Banneker students excel, as the school ranks in the top 2 percent on The Washington Post's list of America's most challenging high schools, and nearly 100 percent of its graduates are accepted into post-secondary institutions. "Although we know there are many benefits to mobile technology," Berger says, "the distractions outweigh the benefits."

Banneker's phone limits also promote a supportive and engaging school community. "We do not have social media drama, and students actually interact with one another during lunch," Principal Berger adds. Schools across America can learn a lot from Banneker.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
A recent Los Angeles Times' article reveals that teachers across America must compete with students' phones for attention. Matt Miles, a high school teacher from Fairfax County, Virginia, says the problem is getting worse: "Whereas 5 years ago, I could quietly ask the one rebellious student to put his or her phone away with no real interruption to class, doing that today would require multiple conversations with a majority of my class."

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Mary Morris - “Snow” an Adele "Hello" Parody (OFFICIAL MUSIC VIDEO)

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Landfill Harmonic   Amazing and Inspirational

# data[].attributes.headline
Michelle Obama Just Dropped A Rap Video About College

# data[].attributes.subject
Michelle Obama Just Dropped A Rap Video About College

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
As if we didn't already think Michelle Obama was the chillest FLOTUS yet, her new rap video will make you love her even more (and want to go to college).

The first lady teamed up with "Saturday Night Live" comedian Jay Pharoah to drop a beat about the benefits of higher education.

"If you wanna fight crime, you should go to college/If you wanna write rhymes fill your head with knowledge/If you wanna stare at grass don't go to college, but for everything else you should go to college," Obama expertly raps alongside Pharoah, from a recording studio that appears to be inside the White House.

The video, fittingly produced by College Humor, is for Obama's " Better Make Room " campaign that aims to inspire teens aged 14 to 19 to go to college.

Only question is, what do Sasha and Malia think about this one?

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Michelle Obama Just Dropped A Rap Video About College

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
As if we didn't already think Michelle Obama was the chillest FLOTUS yet, her new rap video will make you love her even more (and want to go to college). The first lady teamed up with "Saturday Night Live" comedian Jay Pharoah to drop a beat about the benefits of higher education.

# data[].attributes.headline
Kid President's 25 Reasons to Be Thankful

# data[].attributes.subject
Kid President's 25 Reasons to Be Thankful

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Kid President’s 25 Reasons To Be Thankful!

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Information on Hole-in-the-Wall Education Ltd. and the solutions offered by the company in the areas of elementary education, life skills and computer literacy.

# data[].attributes.body
Simon Sinek

# data[].attributes.body
From Wicked

# data[].attributes.headline
Dress Code Drama: What's A Principal To Do?

# data[].attributes.subject
Dress Code Drama: What's A Principal To Do?

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Imagine you're a principal, walking through the crowded halls of your school. You're on your way to 11th grade chemistry, to watch a science lab. They're expecting you in two minutes.

It already feels like a long day and it's not even lunchtime. You're nearly there, 30 seconds to spare, but then - out of the corner of your eye - you see a student wearing cutoff shorts. And they're really, really short.

What should you do?

Stopping to have a disciplinary chat is probably the last thing you want to do. But, rules are rules, right?

"We don't get into the line of business that we are in because we enjoy enforcing rules," says Erik Burmeister, an assistant superintendent with the Menlo Park school district near San Francisco and a former principal himself.

"The challenge of any administrator is the urgent displacing the important," Burmeister adds. And questions about what students can and can't wear have definitely become urgent.

One big reason: A growing number of students and parents feel that dress codes are biased toward female students. And that has led to complaints and protests around the country.

Among the recent headlines: A high school in North Dakota, where female students complained that changes to the dress code were unfair to girls. Students in Maine wore "crop tops" and other off-limits clothing to protest what they said is a sexist policy.

At Pasadena High School in Southern California, one student summed up the concerns of many: "I'm against the way they presented it to us," sophomore Sophie Manoukian told local television station CBS2. "It's like girls should be ashamed of their bodies. And even though they presented it like it was about equal opportunity for education, it was about how girls can be distracting and pulled out of class to change."

How should these issues be approached? Can they be avoided altogether?

Here are some recommendations from a few administrators I spoke with:
Make Dress Codes Gender-Neutral
Increasingly, the words "gender-neutral dress code" are popping up on school board agendas and at PTA meetings.

"It's a phrase I'm learning about," says Michael Allison, president of the National Association of Secondary School Principals. "I think we'll be seeing a lot of changes at schools around the country in the next few years."

The dress code Burmeister created a few years ago, when he was a principal, was gender-neutral. It listed five simple "norms" for students, starting with the most important: "All students must be covered from mid-thigh to top of chest in non-see-through materials."

The response was positive, he says. And it shifted the discussion from conflict to cooperation. "As a society changes, our schools need to change as well, but that conversation doesn't need to be parents and students pitted against schools."

Debbie Brockett, the principal of Las Vegas High School in Nevada, says she doesn't believe any rule should be enforced unless it can be applied to the guys as well as the girls.

"One of our guys showed up to school with a really deep V-neck shirt, and I asked him to change. I wouldn't have let a girl get away with it, so I won't let him get away with it."

Another reason for a gender-neutral approach, she adds: It avoids embarrassment for transgender students. "Not one person gives them a hard time."
Ask Yourself: Why Does That Rule Exist?
"There was a rule in place, for whatever reason, that girls couldn't wear leggings," Brockett recalls. "We found ourselves fighting the leggings without any of us knowing why."

She didn't see how leggings would keep a student from learning. So, with the agreement of her school board, she got rid of the rule.

That point, about learning, came up when Burmeister fought the leggings battle, too. "We need to have dress code rules that actually have relevance," he says. "We didn't see an inability to focus because we said students could now wear leggings."
Involve The Students
"One of the things I advocate for the most is respecting student voice and getting students involved in decision-making," says Allison of the NASSP. "I want to encourage all principals to have an active dialogue with their student body."

What does that "active dialogue" look like?

For Marilyn Boerke it involved the leggings issue, in reverse.

She's the principal of Liberty Middle School in Camas, Wash. Her students were upset they couldn't wear ripped jeans. So she invited some students to her office and they reached a compromise: If the students wore leggings underneath, they could wear jeans with as many rips as they wanted.

The solution may seem obvious or simplistic, she says, but the students were excited that their voices had been heard.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Dress Code Drama: What's A Principal To Do?

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Imagine you're a principal, walking through the crowded halls of your school. You're on your way to 11th grade chemistry, to watch a science lab. They're expecting you in two minutes. It already feels like a long day and it's not even lunchtime.

# data[].attributes.body
The educator version

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Flash Mob "One Day More" (Les Mis...with CC subtitles)  - West Des Moines Schools - Welcome Back