0 The School Year Ahead

In order to enjoy the holiday, I have to put school to rest, and in order to put school to rest, I need to chart the course ahead. Having a good map makes...

0 The Best Teachers

A number of Thanksgiving Day cards reminded me of what the best teachers do.The best teachers devote themselves to children in the following ways:Thoughtful...

0 WE HAVE MOVED!!

This blog has migrated over here.  It joins The EduOptimists new website, which includes a wide variety of our writing and news, and information...

0 December Recipe

After Thanksgiving there are three weeks of school and many goals to meet.The first priority is the Culture Celebration.  Every child will share...

1 First Green Screen Production: Echo and Narcissus

The students act with a child's 8.5 X 11 drawing servingas the backdropLast year, with a few left over dollars in the year's materials' budget, the principal allowed us to order some new and different...

0 Visualizing A Busy Pre-Holiday Learning Day

I've used the metaphor of a Broadway show when I talk about the school day, but today seems more like a sports game. It's the holidays and children will...

0 Happy Thanksgiving 2013

What will Thanksgiving 2013 bring? As our family grows, the holidays take new shape. I started the celebration today by sending my son a care basket because he won't be able to make it home this year....

0 MTA 2013 Unconference Notes

MTA invited all members to attend their unconference at Microsoft in Cambridge today. I attended with a couple of lifelong friends, teachers from Worcester....

0 Content Focus: MTA's Unconference

Today I'll attend our union's unconference. Using an edcamp style, the Massachusetts Teachers Association (MTA)  is sponsoring this event at the...

0 NCTE Conference: Today's Focus and Agenda

Today at the NCTE Conference I'll have my eye on the future with regard to teaching children well.I'll first focus on digital literacy and multimedia composition as I lead round table discussions and...

0 A Year of Revision

As we employ multiple new tools, strategies, and programs, the year has been in a constant state of revision. The basic schedule has been altered multiple...

0 Teachers Want to Do the Right Thing

As school systems deal with multiple new initiatives and goals how do they relay that information, and motivate the learning community to embrace, engage,...

0 We've Always Done It This Way

How many actions in your personal and professional life are done because you've always done it that way? Do you take the time to think about those annual,...

0 Lots of Traffic on the Teaching Road

There's lots of traffic on the teaching road these days. New teacher evaluation systems, standards-based report cards, new standards, RTI, PLCs, new tech...

0 Error and Balance

Sometimes when we try to do too much, we err, and those errors point us back to the direction of greater balance, precision, and care.If our efforts are...

0 Creative Catch-Up

Students have been reading, writing, and creating at an amazing speed. They, like me, have had a taste of the endless learning possible with both yesterday's...

0 The Sea of Standards

Multiple standards fill the year's menu--same standards for a variety of learners--some ready, and some not so ready for this sea of standards. You can't...

0 Strategies that Support Team

As we continue to move from more individual planning and teaching to greater collaborative work to serve children well, a focus on team is critical.What...

0 Crowd Control or Teaching?

Sometimes it feels like crowd control trumps true teaching in a class of many children. That's why it's so important to institute rituals, a sense of...

0 Macrosphere:Microsphere: A Teacher's Week

A weekend of big ideas, the macrosphere, leads to a week of focused work, the microsphere.  The weekend provides time for research, big idea plans,...

0 Join Me at NCTE

Many think of a multimedia literacy studio as one where children are glued to computers, however the truth is that tech devices are used strategically to inform and develop learning in a well orchestrated...

0 Extraordinary Coaching: Positive Change

Last night I had the chance to witness an extraordinary event. It was the Division One Massachusetts Volleyball Championship Game. My niece is a member of the team.Yes, this was an amazing event because...

0 Strategizing Math/Reading Open Response Efforts

Mnemonic for Math Open Response Problem SolvingNow that we're moving into the year with more deliberate effort and greater stamina, I will focus more on open response work in both math and reading. As...

0 Withstanding Pushback Related to New Ideas

It's natural for new ideas to be met with pushback, in a sense it's a natural process of editing, revision, and contradiction that occurs--a process that...

0 Building Learning Communities: Powerful #satchat

This morning's #satchat initially focused on the faculty meeting, but quickly turned into a powerful discussion about learning communities. I want to...

0 The Fourth Grade Journey Continues

Multiple/Factor Card ActivityToday we turned the curriculum page as we culminated our place value and persuasive writing units. We cleaned the room, sent home unit assessments, and had some time to learn...

0 Caring for a Creative Community

Angela's amazing cartoon--humorous and informative at the same time. My class is a creative community, and it is my job to care for them.During tech workshop yesterday children were completing comics,...

0 What Matters: Scores?

In many respects it feels like scores take top priority in schools today?What is your score as a teacher?What is your score as a student?If scores are...

0 What do you notice? Prepping for Math Talk

I've started using Google conversation/writing threads to foster community, develop writing skill, and share ideas. I post a thread or presentation and invite all the students in.  Each child adds...

0 Asking Questions

Many don't like questions, and I ask a lot of them.Recently I received a host of answers for questions I was wondering about.  The answers served...

0 SRSD: Writing Well

We've adopted SRSD: Self-Regulated Strategy Development as part of our writing program. Essentially, I see SRSD as a "coach yourself" model of learning,...

0 Learning Paths Model: How Do You Depict Learning Today?

We know that learning is a life-long endeavor.We understand that we travel multiple learning paths, and on each path we find ourselves in different positions. For some paths we excel and move quickly,...

0 Caring Commitment: Big Sister Association Celebration

"We are what we do for each other."- Elizabeth WarrenLast night I had the chance to attend a celebration of the Big Sister Organization of Boston. It was a wonderful event held at Boston's magnificent...