HELP FOR TEACHERS WHO ARE JUST STARTING OUT OR WHO HAVE RUN INTO A SITUATION THEY HAVE NEVER ENCOUNTERED BEFORE.

WE ALL NEED HELP!

I taught full time for fifteen years and am now subbing so that I can finish my novel. I don't have all the answers. None of us do. In fact, even if something works great for me, there is no guarantee it will work for you.
I hope that we will give each other suggestions. I went to all the trainings I could get my principal to approve when I taught full-time. I talked to a lot of teachers. AND I just kept trying things until I found something that worked FOR ME. We can not go against our own nature. Kids can sense that and will test us.
So, don't give up. Keep on trying new things and always know that there is a place to go where you can be anonymous and speak freely.
Best of Luck to all of you. Our children deserve the best that we can offer.

Monday, March 30, 2009

Teachers and Students Speak

Teachers & Students speak (1:32)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A_Hakrq3nT0

LA Times Article:
http://i39.tinypic.com/2i1kyro.jpg

Coach Sherrie says: You will probably have to copy and paste these into your browser, but I think it is worth the time.

Wednesday, March 25, 2009

Flip NCLB

Ed Secretary Duncan Wants to 'Flip' NCLB, Vows to Scale Up What Works
Instead of punishing students and districts that fail, Duncan suggests that NCLB provide clear guidance on what works. T.H.E. Journal, March 2009

Saturday, March 14, 2009

The Education Budget

Many of us are worried about the education budget and the future of education in CA. CA already has the largest class sizes in the country and they're talking about making them bigger!
What I want to know is what happened to all the money from the hey day when they were building all over the state and getting a windfall of taxes. Also what happened to the lottery? They got it voted in by saying it was going to support education in the state. Have the schools ever seen a dime of it? If not, can we rescind the right to gamble?
There are many questions to be answered.

Saturday, March 7, 2009

Teaching Students to Teach

They say the best way to learn something (as in putting it into log term memory) is to teach it so . . .

The hoennycenter.org has some interesting ideas on teaching students to teach each other.

Learning Styles Inventory

The Learning Styles Inventory advertised here costs but sounds like an excellent one to use with students. In case the ad is removed, here is the website:
www.PlsWeb.com
Let me know if you try it.

Thursday, March 5, 2009

It All Begins with Hope

It All Begins with Hope

"You know, you have to start with hope…you don't get anywhere in this country without hope. So it's a necessity. What Barack says is that people have to understand hope isn't just blind optimism. It isn’t passive. It isn't just sitting there waiting for things to get better. Hope is the vision that you have to have. It's the inspiration that moves people into action…There are more people engaged in this political process in this year than we've seen in my lifetime. And it is all because of hope because people believe in the possibility of something unseen."

Source: Interview with Katie Couric, CBS News

Coach Sherrie says:
I love this quote because it makes me think of why I became a teacher. I think teachers have so much hope for the future when we first get into the field. I HOPE that we will find ways to rejuvinate and reinvigorate ourselves so that we begin each new school year with that same HOPE.

A Quote from My Newest Hero(ine)

The Courage to Pursue a Dream

"[W]hen Barack first told me he was thinking about running for President, I had mixed feelings. I worried about my girls and what a campaign might do to their lives. I wanted the best life possible for them, and a presidential campaign wasn’t part of that equation. But then I thought about it. And the world I want for them is a world where they’re paid fairly and equally for their work; where they don’t have to choose between kids and careers; where they can dream without limits without a glass ceiling standing in their way. And I realized that if that’s the world I want for them, then I had to do my part to elect someone like my husband."

Michelle Obama

Wednesday, March 4, 2009

Learning Styles

I use to give my freshmen the learnign styles test and then have them divide up a circle into their different size pieces to show them they are 100% smart. It took a while to complete and some students worked faster than others, but I felt it was worth the time and effort.
This one is for older students and adults (I just took it - not too many surprises).

The site is:
http://www.engr.ncsu.edu/learningstyles/ilsweb.html

Tuesday, March 3, 2009

About the Video Bar

I just typed "teaching" and these videos came up. I haven't finished watching them all yet, but they are quite interesting and remind me of some of the best trainings I've been too.
If you have any comments on these, please post them.
If you have any suggestions for other videos, please let me know.
Thanks!