Educational Blog

I was recently invited to speak on a 5-member panel to encourage future teachers to achieve their dream of becoming an educator through an alternate route program. There were two representatives from the RALC (Regional Alternate Licensing Center), one from Teach for America, one from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte Pathway to Teaching master’s…

I know I have posted about this topic before, but I truly feel this mindset shift can change education as we know it. Professional development is a lot of talking AT teachers. Even when a teacher gets support from a coach or mentor it is often by more telling. Rarely do teachers have time to practice…

So I had a few questions about how to interact on Twitter, especially through chats. So in addition to my first post about Twitter chats thats full of other helpful links, I decided to write more of a how-to post to help some of the educators out there take a risk and try something new.…

(Confession: I originally titled this post: “Building A Better Teacher” Book Review. However, I feel its important to get this book in the hands of many, and I know my thoughts below might persuade a few people to do so if only I had an interesting title to catch their eye.) Recently, I stocked up…

I recently read a book called “Building a Better Teacher” by Elizabeth Green. She journaled about the journey of the U.S. educational system. It was extremely thought provoking but infuriated me at the same time. I am thankful for how far our educational system has come, the funding and support behind quality teaching, and all…

I’ve been reading a lot about how to mentor teachers and train them effectively, but what bothers me is that teachers deserve better. Why do they have to be trained after receiving a college degree in education? Why do they need to be coached in subjects in which they hold a master’s degree? How is it…

    Guess what?! I just published my very first book! In college, I had an interest in writing children’s books and even went through a few courses during my free time. I enjoyed it and knew I would write a book at some point. Although, I didn’t get around to publishing any of the…

My summer has been very busy with lots of reading! [See my previous post on “Real Talk for Real Teachers” by Rafe Esquith] Yesterday I finished this great book: “The Smartest Kids in the World” by Amanda Ripley. It caught my attention in the “education” section of a local bookstore because of my current work…

At the end of last school year, after testing had finished and the final projects had been turned in, I knew we had a few moments for some free writes. Nothing makes my students happier than having a chance to write their opinion on varying topics; after all, your opinion can’t be “wrong” and that…

Have you heard of a fabulous teacher named Rafe Esquith? He is not only a talented teacher, but a writer as well. You might have heard of his book “Teach like your Hair’s on Fire,” which is helpful, entertaining, accurate, and extremely successful. As if that was not enough of an accomplishment, Rafe has seemingly…