Category Archives: Miscellaneous

For the #edublogclub year-long challenge to blog on education. While the official club has ended, they have shared posts to continue the journey through 2017. This week’s prompt was to create a list of prompts like Edublogs did for the #edublogsclub.

Here are my thoughts on what I’d like to see from fellow educators including my librarian colleagues.

1. Behavior and consequences— How have you dealt with difficult students? How do you feel about discipline in your building and in schools in general?
2. Wardrobe– What do you wear everyday?
3. Most creative thing you’ve done– What creative activity are you most proud of?
4. Profile a student– Was there one student who won you over? A student that you’d like to see run the world one day? A student that you’ll always remember?
5. What you do on holidays and breaks– Is this your time to decompress and unwind? Do you pack it with activities that you’re not doing while in school-mode?
6. Encouraging memes, quotations, videos, or music– We all need a pick me up and there’s a reason I have a Pinterest board called “For One of Those Days”, so what meme, quote, video, or music do you use to encourage you on one of “those days”?
7. Share a lesson or activity– Do you have a particularly awesome activity or lesson you’ve done with students that you’d like to share?
8. Summer— Just like what what you do on holidays and breaks, how do you spend your summer?
9. Gift-giving or gift-receiving— We share gifts with our mail people and neighbors, but what’s the best gift you’ve given or received during your time in education?
10. Bulletin board or display— We don’t have to be Picasso’s to whip up (or steal) a great bulletin board or display, share the picture and the reason for the display!

Phewf! That was exhausting, how did Edublogs do that for a whole year? I’m sure a fabulous collaborative team, but I am only one person and ten was all I could handle. Any other ideas that you’d like to see?

As part of the #edublogclub year-long challenge to blog on education. While the official club has ended, they have shared posts to continue the journey through 2017. I’m combining the next two prompts about teaching handwriting and embedding a poll.

Good handwriting means something, like being well-dressed. It’s a skill and should be seen as such. Maybe I’m biased because I am often complimented on mine. But, I also appreciate it in others and can count on one hand colleagues and friends whose handwriting I admire.

With that out there, yes, I do believe teaching handwriting including cursive should be required, if for nothing else than knowing what’s out there and picking what’s best for you. Don’t tell me you’re a cicerone, but have only tasted a handful of beer. So, how would you know if cursive is your handwriting style of choice if you haven’t learned it? To quote Nike, “just do it”.

Yet I am only one person. What do you think?

As part of the #edublogclub year-long challenge to blog on education. While the official club has ended, they have shared posts to continue the journey through 2017. This week’s prompt was about a podcasts.

Rather than talk about how I used podcasts professionally or personally, I’ll admit that I’ve tried listening to podcasts and right now, it’s just not the thing that works for me. I’d rather read a blog post about a topic than listen to people talk about it just like I’d rather read a book than listen to the audio version.

The only time I have been remotely captivated by a podcast was This American Life’s Serial series seasons one and two because the topics were interesting and others had recommended I listen to it because I’m a fan of true crime. I listened to them mostly when walking the dog (I need music when I’m exercising) or doing the housework, but just like listening to an audiobook while driving, I’m often distracted and then realize I’ve missed a chunk of the clip and need to go back.

That’s not to say I won’t go back and try podcasts at another time, like I did with Twitter when it first came out, but for now, it doesn’t fit my needs and lifestyle. Sorry to disappoint but you won’t find the next great recommendation for a podcast here because I’ve deleted Stitcher from my phone and haven’t listened to one since Fall 2014 when I still wasn’t sure whether Adnan Syed killed his teen girlfriend or not.

As part of the #edublogclub year-long challenge to blog on education. While the official club has ended, they have still shared posts to continue the journey through 2017. This week’s prompt was about a hobby or interest. 

Every now and then I’ll post to Instagram a food and book picture, in part to share what I’m reading, but also seasonal foods, delicious dishes, or a snapshot of my culinary diet because I like to eat. But if I was to focus on a hobby, it would be baking– usually if a friend is visiting, it’s a colleague’s birthday, or to say thank you. And what usually comes from the baking is a picture of the finished product. I certainly don’t go all-out in posing the food, but sometimes it feels right. Plus, there’s no pressure because I don’t have a baking blog where they’re meticulously posting step-by-step directions and the final product for comparison. So here are a few:

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And just like pictures bring you back to a moment or a smell reminds you of someone specific, I can tell you for each baked item, why it was baked. My own version of Like Water for Chocolate. Next, if I get super ambitious, I should take inspiration from books and bake a companion to it. Wouldn’t that be sweet?

As part of the #edublogclub year-long challenge to blog on education, this week’s topic focuses on a one-hundred word challenge using this image:

There is a beauty and a magic in the outdoors. Growing up in the country allows you to appreciate the magic of nature be it stars, trees, thunderstorms, or high winds whipping against the house. There is something equally as beautiful about winter mornings with newly fallen snow or the hot sun beaming on your nose in summer. Whether you’re five or ninety-five, there is no greater awesomeness than Earth and its wonders. Have you experienced the Serengeti in Africa? Mount Everest? The rain forests of South America? It’s just as well to sit outside pointing to a rainbow smiling.

As part of the #edublogclub year-long challenge to blog on education, this week’s topic focuses on recommendations for first-year educators.

In addition to blogging, obviously I follow plenty of blogs myself and sometimes they’re not always education-based though provide just as much insight. Seth Godin is one of those people for me. I have four of his posts cut out and placed on my work computer. So if I was going to share a thought, it would be in relation to Godin’s post Who are you playing tennis with? I’ll wait here while you read it.

My suggestion is to find your tribe of colleagues that inspire and engage you, challenge you, and most importantly keep you happy and sane. Over ten years, I have had the colleagues who slog through each day and I have the colleagues who come to work ready to do the work and stay positive even when it’s hard.

And the best part is that these colleagues don’t have to be in your content area. Maybe they share the same lunch and would rather walk the school than sit and complain, maybe it’s the Spanish teacher that bakes and you have a sweet tooth. Of course, it could be the maintenance worker (Ah, those were the days: my FIRST first year teaching ELA and I would arrive with the first maintenance staff member. I would be walking down the hallway literally as the lights warmed up while we talked about life at 6AM).

Therefore, talk to everyone. You’ll be able to determine pretty quickly who your people will be. When you’re down, they’re the ones offering chocolate. When you’re angry, they’re the ones telling you to wait twenty-four hours before sending that email. When you’re happy, they’re the ones share in your excitement. And when you need a good book to read, they’re the ones pulling one off their own bookshelf to lend. You get the point. Find those people.