We’ve been seeing it for the last year or so: the education pendulum on the verge of swinging. Standardized testing, … More
Category: Teaching Strategies
Act Aloud Plays
That you’re visiting my blog tells me you’re most likely already a fan of reader’s theater, so I needn’t tell … More
How to Host an “Old School” Writers’ Festival
When seven-year-old Kelsey Drake stepped to the microphone, she hesitated. Perhaps she felt nervous about presenting her writing before such … More
Desk Rent is Due Friday!
No doubt you’ve had kids ask, “Why do we need to know this stuff?” In my classroom, we spend a … More
What’s Hindering Your Low Readers?
Perhaps many of you have figured this stuff out long ago. Me, after nearly 25 years of teaching, I recently … More
A Good Time to Say Thanks
This week I just want to say THANK YOU to all you FANTASTIC teachers who have used Read Aloud Plays … More
You Fancy Me Mad?
Fairies waving candied wands… Goblins drooling chocolate malt… Halloween has such a bizarre place in our classrooms. In my school … More
Grades: Who Needs ’em?
How do you grade a play? I read an article recently about the merits of “gradelessness” in the classroom. It … More
Prevent Zombies: Teach the Arts!
In my school we’ve taken to referring to our state-of-the-art music room as the “Musicless Room.” Oh, it still says … More
Why You Should End the Year with Algebra
I think much of what I know about teaching, about kids, about life itself, I learned from Spanky and Our … More