Endings Help to Create Beautiful Beginnings
By: Zakiyyah Omar, NBCT – North Carolina "Sunsets are proof that endings can be beautiful." This quote by Beau Taplin resonates deeply with me as a National Board Certified school counselor. It is a constant reminder to approach the end of every counseling relationship, group session, and social-emotional lesson with intentionality and grace. As school…
Neurospicy: A Seasoning for the Soul
By Mechelle Gilford, Ed.S., NBCT https://www.nbpts.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/Gilford-Neurospicy-Article-for-National-Board.mp3 Let’s face it: being a neurodivergent teacher in a neurotypical world sometimes feels like navigating a grocery store with a map to the moon—a bit of a wild goose chase, but hey, at least it’s an adventure! Think of neurodiversity as the secret ingredient that makes the…
Art Therapy with a Dash of AI for Our Visually Spectacular Students
By Mechelle Gilford, NBCT – South Bend, Indiana Ah, the magic of our classrooms! Where curious minds explore, imaginations take flight, and sometimes the most significant challenges morph into shimmering opportunities. Today, we’ll delve into the world of art therapy for our visually spectacular students – those brilliant young minds navigating the world with a…
Coming Full Circle: My journey to achieving National Board Certification
By: Janice Avellana, NBCT – Honolulu, Hawaii I graduated in 2000 with my Master’s of Education in Teaching and began my first year as a fourth-grade teacher at a Title 1 school. After a tumultuous start, I finished out the year and got bumped out to another school. That second year was better, but I…
The National Board keeps growing in Texas
By: Magdalena Mata, NBCT – San Antonio, Texas Texas is heating up its National Board status! Since 2019, with the establishment of the Texas National Board Coalition for Teaching (TXNBCT) Network, Texas has grown the number of candidates each year. In 2019, the Texas legislature passed House Bill 3 that included the Texas Incentive Allotment…
Life. Teaching. Mauna Loa.
BREAKING NEWS FLASH-At approximately 11:30 p.m. HST November 27, lava broke to the surface within Moku‘āweoweo, the summit caldera on Mauna Loa, for the first time in 38 years. (Mauna Loa USGS) The eruption became a viral topic, caused trepidation to many, and brought a notion that the end was near. Who would not be…
Why do I Still Choose to Teach?
By: Noraa Ransey, NBCT My why is simple: the kids of Kentucky deserve a voice! “A child’s life is like a piece of paper on which every person leaves a mark.” This Chinese proverb was most apparent during the pandemic. We became all hands on deck, and every stakeholder stepped up to do what it…
I Believe in Water
By: Jonathon Medeiros, NBCT I believe in water. I believe in surfing the wave I am on, not the wave I wish I were on. I believe in building, learning by trying, and in observing my failures. I believe in being curious, celebrating with purpose, building empathy, in questioning. Everything about learning in my classes…
