I've always been a teacher that likes to make my classroom a bit more homey than most. Even in my first year of teaching, I wanted to add lamps, a couch, and a papasan chair to my room to give it that little something extra. Well, my first year was 20 years ago, and there… Continue reading My Flexible Seating Journey in the Secondary Classroom
Category: student needs
Hygge Classroom Challenge- Make Your Classroom Warm and Inviting the Danish Way!
In case you've never heard of hygge (pronounced hue-gah), according to Google dictionary it is the quality of coziness and comfortable conviviality that engenders a feeling of contentment or well-being (regarded as a defining characteristic of Danish culture). My understanding is that, during the long, dark, Danish winters, they practice hygge as a way to… Continue reading Hygge Classroom Challenge- Make Your Classroom Warm and Inviting the Danish Way!
Literature Circles in the Secondary Classroom: Student-Choice Novels Made Easier
Have you ever wanted to let students choose their own novel to read, but you couldn't figure out the best way to assess all those books? Don't want to write 20 tests? Tried to find literature circle materials that weren't for elementary kids? Well I might be able to help! How This All Started Originally… Continue reading Literature Circles in the Secondary Classroom: Student-Choice Novels Made Easier
Seeing Red: Teaching Symbolism by Close Reading Text and Film
Last week I got to do one of my very favorite lessons of all time. Don't you love those days? You can go to school knowing that you're going to get to teach something way cool that you feel good about all day long. In my case, I got to teach it for two days… Continue reading Seeing Red: Teaching Symbolism by Close Reading Text and Film
Yeah, I Saw That: The Crazy Stuff I’ve Seen Teachers Do
Teachers are insane. Factor in the public scrutiny, the low pay, the extra hours, the grading, and the enslavement to standardized testing, and you have to ask yourself what college-educated professional would sign up for that? Crazy ones, that's who. You would not believe some of the things I have seen teachers do in the… Continue reading Yeah, I Saw That: The Crazy Stuff I’ve Seen Teachers Do