When I was a working school superintendent, I would rise in the dark on mornings when significant snowfall was predicted and drive the back roads to discern if school buses would be able to drive their morning routes. My priority … Continue reading
Snow days are a tough call
In the Politics of Education, Self-Interest Rules
Never bet against self-interest. Simple enough, but what does this statement mean? In any human interaction, each individual will have a set of intrinsic needs that will bias and shape the manner in which they act in any and every … Continue reading
Teaching to the Right Objective
We learned these things when we were children in school. Carson City is the state capital of Nevada. Carson City is named after Kit Carson, scout and trail leader for John C. Fremont’s expedition to California in the 1840s. Fremont … Continue reading
Vocabulary Powers the Future
Annie Savoy provided us with an educationally sound closing line for many arguments. “…it’s a fact. You could look it up.” (Bull Durham) We have danced around the proposition that a college degree is the goal of American public education … Continue reading
Unforeseen
What should you do when you reach a decision and the decision stinks? You’ve done it and so have I. We know how it feels and as uncomfortable as it is, we usually understand that we have few options for … Continue reading
Build Background Knowledge for Children Without
When I say these words to an adult, “… there is a way of walking with crutches so that your arms hold your weight and not your shoulders,” I can quickly separate those who have experience with walking with crutches … Continue reading
Messing Around with Teaching
At some time in a teaching career, a veteran mentor says something that causes you to pause, think, smile and remember. It happens many times, but each time is a new experience because each time gives you a new pearl … Continue reading
Daily Conversation – Prosper with it or decay without it
School talk. With whom do you talk to share your school doings and air your thoughts? You know – the things that raise your ire or get under your skin and nag on you until you can release their toxin … Continue reading
Bad Behavior – What is this about?
When school became parentis in absentia, educators co-opted the need to understand and respond to student behavior. School was no longer just about reading, writing and arithmetic. Quickly, we learned that when “Johnny was good, he could be oh so … Continue reading
Brief – Practice Paves the Road to Learning
When I pick up Izzy, a Kindergarten granddaughter, at her school to take her home and she is buckled in, I begin. “What is the letter of the week, Izz?” Yesterday she said, “P, Gramps.” “Izz, please tell me five … Continue reading