Happy Holidays everyone! I was up early this morning, browsing through my reader and stumbling upon posts that have a common theme: it’s no surprise that this year, many people are eager to give gifts that cost little in terms of cash they may not have or trash that clutters up the planet. I’m thinking about the slew of new possibilities available to all of us, thanks to the web, and I spent yesterday sharing some of these…
I’m grateful for so many things today: my husband and my children and our collective health. I’m grateful for our sunny little home and our friends, who fill our lives with laughter and a deep sense of belonging. I’m grateful for the work that I’ve been able to do this year and the teachers and administrators that I’ve come to know in the process. I’m also grateful for the friends and colleagues who make up my…
I spent yesterday with the high school English Department at Depew Union Free School District. These folks invited me in to help them approach formative assessment as a process that leads to instructional improvement rather than a product that leads to grades. They’ve begun exploring the 6+1 Traits of Writing, considering what their middle school colleagues have been up to, and looking to new tools for support. Wordle was a big hit yesterday. I introduced…
Several weeks ago, I was chatting with an acquaintance about school. Our school. The one our children attend classes in each day. Our district, like all others, has a plan for the future, and everyone is adjusting to change. Sometimes, it’s hard to know how to help. It’s hard to know how to ask difficult questions, and it’s hard to know how to get good answers. There isn’t enough time and there isn’t enough space,…
Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won’t feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people…
I observed an *amazing* lesson today. Lisa Hoeflich, a middle school teacher that I’ve become acquainted with this year, pushed into a sixth grade classroom to help students build background knowledge of paleontology and identify main ideas in different text types. She led with a think aloud, targeting key words in a piece of poetry to expand upon her understanding of what a paleontologist did. I loved the fact that she focused on the words that…
Last night, we shared a dinner table with a diverse group of incredibly nice folks. Compass House, our local Safe Place, was hosting their annual dinner and my family had a wonderful time hanging out with some of the incredible people behind this organization. We’ve made a few friends there this year, and last night, we became acquainted with some of their friends. Anyway. One of the gentlemen at our table struck up a conversation…
There are a lot of difficult conversations going on around me lately, in every school that I am working in. Everyone is calling for meaningful change, which is never an easy call to answer, and as we begin treading those very deep waters, the threat of drowning in an ocean of need becomes very real. This week, I’m appreciating the fact that the work I’m involved with has been guided by a clear purpose. Much thought went into defining what teachers…
Two days ago, I had the opportunity to reteach the concepts introduced in this lesson in Barbette DeMarco’s sixth grade class. I made use of the suggestions that readers gave me in order to improve my instruction and the assessment that drove it. Providing students even more time to talk and giving them the chance to discuss how THEY identified main idea seemed to enhance engagement and student understanding. It also helped me better identify their confusions…
The feedback that I received yesterday and the reflection I’ve been doing in response to that have inspired the following question: we spend so much time planning as educators, but how often do we attend to reflective practice and how often do we formally assess our own work? There has been so much talk about formative assessment lately that I guess it’s only natural for me to wonder how often any of us ask our…