Hot Tip Tuesday Each week I bring to you helpful tips to become a more effective educator on the Always A Lesson fan page on Facebook. (Give it a quick like by clicking here!) I decided to start grouping my social media posts into a blog post in case you didn’t catch it in your feed. (Want…

  When did the term “active learner” develop a negative connotation? A zest for learning, whether it be focused or energetic, is what matters. Somewhere in our nation’s educational history, learning equated to sitting still for hours on end in perfect desk formation. The reality is that whenever we learn something in life it is because we…

I recently attended the Happy Go Teach conference by Jen Jones of Hello Literacy and Kayla Delzer of Top Dog Teaching. (See my conference insights and take-aways here.) This conference is so engaging, I didn’t even have time to take notes! But, I did manage to write down two words in my notes app on my phone that…

I recently participated in a #podcastPd chat on the topic of ‘Elevate Your Teaching and Avoid Burnout.’ Although I think this topic is worthy of discussing with you, I have mentioned several posts prior on the topic: Blog- Stressed Out? You Must Be a Teacher Podcast- Making Time for All the Parts of You Podcast- Keep Healthy…

   I recently attended the NCAEE conference in Concord, NC. I had a great time presenting and meeting new faces, but this post is not all about that. I want to spend time enlightening you with 4 key take-aways from my run-in with a man who changes lives for a living. Meet Dr. John Hodge (@drhodge1906):…

As the holidays approach, excitement brews in and around the school. Students show signs of frequent distraction, off-task behaviors and increased energy levels. Teachers are excited too but oftentimes their holiday spirit takes a hit as they try to calm the chaos brewing in their classrooms. Stop swimming against the current. There is a way to…

Teachers should model a growth mindset for students on a daily basis so that they are continuously open to suggestions for improvement as they set personal goals. The consistency of daily growth is key to acquiring improved skill because learning is an ongoing process, not just a single event. It’s a simple equation: Lack of…

I recently had a guest on the podcast named Bill Cecil [check out the episode here], who inspired me to write a few more podcast episodes and this blog post specifically. Bill was talking about the dangers of allowing others in the profession to cloud your judgment. He referred to this unfortunate circumstance as ‘secondhand…

‘Code Switching’ refers to the act of changing the way you behave due to the rules, or code, of the current environment. Being a student is hard. But, being a student learning from multiple teachers is even harder.  For every teacher’s classroom that a student enters, they must swap out their current code of operation before entering the new…