Yesterday we had our open house for our new group of sixth grade students. Open house is always such an exciting time. I love meeting my new kids, but even more, I love meeting their families. It’s a great reminder to me that I teach a child who is very precious to a mom and… Continue reading Open House: Looking Forward, Looking Back
Reflecting: What is this blog about?
The Two Classroom Problem
First of all, I know that many of you reading this post will wish you had my two classroom problem. It’s not a huge issue – it’s more about the best use of space. Here’s some background on the problem. Last year, my school split in two. We went from having over 2,700 students to… Continue reading The Two Classroom Problem
Establishing a Culture of Inquiry during the First Days of School
I am trying to reinvent my class for next year – especially the first week of school. Here is an outline of what I did last year on the first five days of school: Day 1 – Classroom expectations, basic overview of what is covered in the course Day 2 – Lesson on observations, inferences,… Continue reading Establishing a Culture of Inquiry during the First Days of School
The Carefree Days of Summer
I love summer break. (I am not so big on the summer heat, though!) My days are relatively carefree compared to the school year, and I feel like I can totally re-invent my classroom for the following year. I love to change things up, and my classroom is never the same from year to year.… Continue reading The Carefree Days of Summer
Incorporating Web Based Portfolios
This year I was part of a small volunteer group of teachers who met monthly to discuss technology issues and ideas that work in the classroom. Towards the end of the year, we brainstormed ways to make this an ongoing effort next school year doing something we could then share with the remainder of the… Continue reading Incorporating Web Based Portfolios
Twitter #Scichat – Discussing Science Education
If you are a science teacher and use Twitter at all, you really need to see if you can find time to join a #scichat discussion. #Scichat is similar to #edchat – a discussion about education related topics for one hour every Tuesday evening at 7 pm EDT. However, #scichat focuses on science education. The… Continue reading Twitter #Scichat – Discussing Science Education