Why More High Schools Should Have a Block Schedule
When I started teaching in 1995 at an alternative high school in Chicago (a school that gave dropouts a second chance at a diploma), we were on a block schedule. I saw students every other day for about 90 minutes a class. I hated it. As a new teacher then, I found it difficult to…
Renewing my certification was meaningful to me, important to my students
This week 3,384 National Board Certified Teachers learned that they renewed their certification. I want to offer my congratulations to those educators for their notable achievement. They teach to high standards, they are committed to continually improving their teaching practice and, perhaps above all, they are committed to students and their learning. This is the…
“Ms. Robinson, why do we need to know this?”
How many teachers hear this phrase on a day-to-day basis? When I first started teaching, I was thrown into a classroom with little more than a pacing guide and a projector to keep my head afloat. I was 23, a neophyte, and barely able to stay ahead of my students during instruction. I found that…
Amp up your Classroom: Collaborate with your School Librarian
We’re all better when we work together. I’m lucky as a school librarian because my job is all about collaborating with the other adults in my building; my program depends on it. I’m lucky to be in a building that values and fosters collaboration among adults; we already have built in curriculum meetings for teachers…
Benefits of Project-Based Learning
Over the years there have been many changes in the way instruction is delivered to students in public education. Gaining popularity in recent years, one of the most promising models of instruction is project-based learning (PBL). In PBL, students gain knowledge and skills by working for an extended period of time to investigate and respond…
Know Your Students
As a science teacher, I send a safety contract home with all the other beginning-of-the-year paperwork for my students and a parent, guardian, or other family member to read together and sign. Their signatures indicate that that they read and understand the course information and syllabus, the school’s electronics policy, the Student Rights and Responsibilities…
Why Do I Fly?
It’s not quite 5 AM and I’m sitting on another plane, returning from another trip. Today is flight number 105 so far this year. It’s dark and cold up here at 33,000 feet. I miss my husband, my colleagues, heck I even miss my coffee mug…but I’m filled with anticipation and know that the time…
National Board Candidacy: A Personal and District Priority
In 19 years of teaching, I have sought out, chosen and participated in more than 500 hours of professional development. As I think about all of those decisions, the choice to pursue National Board Certification was the most important. Now, 12 years after my initial certification, it continues to have the greatest impact above all…
Teaching Students How to be Informed Members of Their Community
In a previous blog post, “Engaging students to create social change,” I shared how to prepare students to go beyond critical thinking and discussion, to take action to better their communities and the world. The post included some new learning from the Teaching & Learning Conference, and later in the year, I decided to implement…
Broadening Perspectives: Integrating Lessons in Multiculturalism
Editor’s Note: The following blog is from Amanda Zullo, an NBCT and a Hope Street Group 2016 National Teacher Fellow. This post was also published on the Hope Street Group blog and is reprinted with permission from the author. The original post can be found here. This past March at an education conference, I…
