"Maybe you should go talk to the teacher across the hall; she knows how to motivate her students to do their work." I will never forget his words as long as I live. I was just six weeks into a career as an English teacher; a career that I loved but felt utterly and completely unqualified to begin. I felt fraudulent; despite leaving hours after every other teacher. I felt like a Continue Reading
Lesson Plan Ideas: Sensory Language through a sensory experience
I forgot the peaceful silence of early morning December moonlight. Everything is still. No one is stirring. This morning, I took a moment to enjoy the clear of daybreak; the chill of the air whistling at my face, gently waking me up. My breath was warm from a few morning miles on the pavement. I enjoy running, but I much prefer the moment the run is finished. My ears are acutely aware of the Continue Reading
Putting all the race cards on the table…
My day started quite unexpectedly at 1 a.m., as my little bear growled for the better part of an hour and a half. I had already planned a morning run with a new friend at 5:30 a.m., so this particular post is fueled by very little sleep, a fair amount of caffeine, and an early morning runner's high. Normally, my new friend and I chat about long runs, life with a baby (and all that entails), Continue Reading
To the opponents of common core standards…
Election day is upon us...and primetime TV has been invaded by political ads, rife with hyperbole and loose rhetoric. Every time I watch advertisements from both sides of the political circus, I wonder if people are actually buying any bit of what these rhetoricians are selling. Each of the political parties are selling snake oil; playing dangerously with semantics and on the overwhelming Continue Reading
A teacher walks into a bar, asks ‘can I have a beer,’ bartender says, ‘IDK, CAN you?’ (Two-cent Teacher Tuesday)
It's no secret that teachers get into education because they want to make a difference. Or at least, that's why I decided I wanted to become a teacher. It was the beginning of 2009 (perhaps my defining year) and I accepted a position as a secretary for an Atlanta real estate company. I remember the interview vividly as the president furrowed his brow and said, "Are you sure you'd be ok Continue Reading
Post Grammatic Stress Disorder (Finding Work in Education Part V)THE INTERVIEW
So, you've followed my four step program and you've landed an interview...or you landed an interview on your own. Congratulations! You are well on your way to finding a job. Here are a few pointers for the interview. I've had quite a few, so I'm basically an expert. 1. Don't read into your interviewers' body language. I'm not kidding when I tell you that during about eighty percent Continue Reading
Post Grammatic Stress Disorder (Finding work in education Part IV): 3 reasons to meet with your principal
It was late April 2011. I had just completed my internship and I was celebrating, as every newly licensed teacher should. I had a long summer full of graduate classes ahead of me: the last of my graduate program. Honestly, I was looking forward to a wedding in late May and a honeymoon to follow. Life was good; I had everything I had ever wanted. Everything, that is, except for a job. I Continue Reading
An Anomaly: Christian Rapper Makes it to #1 on Billboard 200
Last August, Smashing Pumpkins lead singer, Billy Corgan, raised an eyebrow or two and ruffled a few feathers during a CNN interview when he said: (A Popular American Magazine asked) What's the future of rock?" And my answer was, "God". And they said, "What do you mean?" And I said, "Well, God's the third rail of -" What is it? "Social security is the third rail of politics in America". Well, Continue Reading
Post grammatic stress disorder (finding work in education after student-teaching) part III (TTT)
If you missed part I or part II of post-grammatic stress disorder (finding work in education after student-teaching) you can find all parts of this series here. Have you ever attempted to run as fast as you can in a set of four-inch heels? I have; a gal will do anything for a job. No, no, no. Not that kind of job. I'm talking about a job in education. So there I was, in the dead Continue Reading
Sorry Michael, it does matter if you’re black or white (TTT)
I am taking a break this week from my six-week series "how to find a job in education," in order to address something that has been weighing heavily on my heart. This past Friday, the high school in which I was previously employed played their heated rival under the Friday night lights. I always enjoy going to this particular match-up as it brings out pageantry and pride as both teams fight Continue Reading
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