Honest Reflection: A Necessary First Step in Doing No Harm
“I don’t wear a cape. I teach.” “Teaching is my superpower, what’s yours?” I had been enticed to become a teacher nearly two decades ago with inspiring slogans such as these. I was totally committed to teaching my heart out and helping children be their best and brightest selves. I pledged with all my heart to…
There’s No Substitute for Authentic Human Connection
The following column is courtesy of the Alabama Best Practices Center in Montgomery. Movement restrictions aimed to slow down the spread of COVID19 have brought about a time of connectedness and isolation for many people. As days have turned into weeks and weeks into months, it’s clear that people have experienced similar yet different problems and challenges.…
Building Cultural Proficiency Into My Classroom and Yours
The landscape in the United States is heavy with turmoil and change. We live in a national education climate that has changed, whether it is acknowledged or not because COVID-19 is changing the way students learn. Adding to the complexity is the Black Lives Matter Movement, which has opened a discussion about how Black people,…
Introducing Magic Into Distance Learning
Kudos to all of the teachers who have kept their students engaged during our time away from school. When presented with the challenges of distance learning, I asked myself, how will I manage to get my students excited about learning at home? I knew it wasn’t going to be an easy task! The first thing…
Building Community: One at a Time
Yesterday a local farmer stopped me. “COLLEEEEEENNNN” his voice boomed from his truck across the yard, “I GOT A QUESTION FOR YA’, are teachers still gettin’ their full salary?” With schools still shuttered, students and teachers working from home, the budget vote just behind us, and mail-in ballots still waiting to be counted, this taxpayer…
Embracing the social in Social Distancing
It’s the first day of summer! This is the time of year children look forward to all year long; however, due to the COVID -19 pandemic, this year may not be what children imagined. Instead of playing Tag, Musical Chairs, or Red Rover, children are now being forced to play Simon Says… and Simon says:…
Prioritizing Self Care in Times of Crises
Co-authored by Tonia Holmes-Sutton, Ed.D., NBCT & Brittany Holmes-Sutton It has been nearly three months since schools closed. The shutdown impacted education in unanticipated ways as schools transitioned to distance learning overnight – with many teachers unprepared to engage and teach their students through digital platforms. The digital divide made visible inequities that persisted prior…
Being a Black teacher in America today
I am a Black woman in America. I am a Board-Certified teacher in America. I am fighting for America. Like many Black Americans, I have experienced racism my entire life. I have been followed while casually browsing in stores. My brothers have been thrown to the ground by police and by white neighbors. I have…
When Human Life is Quiet, We Can Hear What’s Important
I listen to NPR frequently in the mornings (self-confession of a middle-aged woman). One story in particular this week pointed out something I have been noticing lately—it sounds like my neighborhood birds have multiplied and found microphones. During the past eight (gulp) weeks of hunkering down at home, the songbirds in my small Massachusetts town…
Growing Your Own Practice & Putting Students First
I think most educators have a natural inclination to grow our own practice. We have the inner drive to learn more and become better at our craft. It is easy to lose that drive, however. In current times of high stakes testing teachers face the pressure for kids to look good on paper, which in…
