HOPE TO LEARN

Russell Report no. 4

2011-04-02T18:38:00.001-06:00

Russell Report no. 4

Russell Report no. 3

2011-01-16T22:18:00.002-06:00

Russell Report no. 3

Russell Report no. 2

2010-10-11T10:48:00.001-06:00

Russell Report no. 2

Teaching is the profession that makes all other professions possible.

2010-09-10T20:52:00.001-06:00

"He who has a library and a garden, wants for nothing." - Cicero

2010-09-08T18:55:00.000-06:00

Russell Report no. 1

2010-09-06T17:14:00.004-06:00

Russell Report no. 1

"The greatest things ever done on Earth have been done little by little." - William Jennings Bryan

2010-07-28T20:11:00.001-06:00

"The young do not know enough to be prudent, and therefore they attempt the impossible -- and achieve it, generation after generation." - Pearl Buck

2010-07-27T20:44:00.002-06:00

"I long to accomplish a great and noble task, but it is my chief duty to accomplish small tasks as if they were great and noble." - Helen Keller

2010-07-25T06:47:00.002-06:00

5 common-sense steps to improving achievement

2010-07-13T08:05:00.000-06:00

Five school systems across the country, with differences in location, funding and demographics, all have raised achievement notably using five common-sense steps.

1.) Develop a challenging, clear and specific curriculum.
2.) Set long-term strategic goals, and use them to drive practices in every school.
3.) Develop smart strategies to attract and retain effective teachers, support them and cultivate a collaborative working environment.
4.) Ask staff to evaluate regularly whether each approach or program is improving achievement. The key to this strategy: data.
5.) Build relationships with parents, community organizations, area businesses and others who have a stake in student success.

Click here to read more.

"Fear paralyzes; curiosity empowers. Be more interested than afraid." - Patricia Alexander, American educational psychologist

2010-07-13T07:19:00.001-06:00

Dallas has a lot to learn from NYC's charter school experiment

2010-07-12T12:29:00.001-06:00

Something unusual is happening in New York's inner-city schools. Where once there was one school, now there are two. One is a regular public school that uses the standard teaching methods that have helped dig many campuses nationwide into a deep academic hole. The other, usually on a separate floor, is a charter school that invariably tinkers with every possible facet of a student's life – parenting, posture, reading habits, observation skills, behavior, self-esteem, nutrition, you name it. Two schools, one building.

The two-in-one experiment has boosted New York into a completely different category from other major cities where charter schools are gaining popularity. In Dallas, for example, charter schools tend to find homes in the cheapest venues possible, like abandoned shopping centers and disused office complexes. They're tucked away, hard to find and largely out of the public's mind. We know they're there, but do we really know what they do?

Click here to read more.

Source: Dallas Morning News

"It is not beyond our power to create a world in which all children have access to a good education. Those who do not believe this have...

2010-07-12T00:13:00.000-06:00

... small imaginations." - Nelson Mandela

"What you get by reaching your destination is not nearly as important as what you will become by reaching your destination." - Zig Ziglar

2010-07-11T10:43:00.003-06:00

"Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has." - Margaret Mead

2010-07-10T08:38:00.002-06:00

"Health is so necessary to all the duties, as well as the pleasures of life, that the crime of squandering it is equal to the folly." - Samuel Johnson

2010-07-09T11:28:00.001-06:00

"Life is too short to be little." - Benjamin Disraeli

2010-07-06T13:19:00.001-06:00

"Practice does not make perfect. Only perfect practice makes perfect." - Vince Lombardi

2010-06-22T23:55:00.002-06:00

Optimist: A person who while falling from Eiffel Tower says midway "See I am not injured yet."

2010-06-22T09:19:00.002-06:00

Who is your Morrie?

2010-06-19T02:09:00.001-06:00

Do you have someone in your life that you can approach with the tough questions? Questions about faith, family, and the future? Someone that has lived life on mountain tops and valleys low? As the ancient proverb reads, "Plans fail for lack of counsel, but with many advisers they succeed." I encourage you to surround yourself with the wisdom of the wise. Nurture your friendships with the elderly among you. Mitch Albom in his popular book, Tuesdays with Morrie, chronicles his relationship with an old college professor. Their relationship centers around life conversations. They discuss love, happiness, and culture, to name a few. A seasoned life-veteran coaches an up-and-coming. It is important for us to live life with our peers, but let us not neglect our relationships with our seniors.

"Here is a basic truth: To do anything, we must first believe it can be done. Believing something can be done sets the mind in motion to find...

2010-06-17T12:41:00.001-06:00

... a way to do it." - David Schwartz

"Where success is concerned, people are not measured in inches or pounds or college degrees, or family background; they are measured by the size...

2010-06-17T01:11:00.002-06:00

... of their thinking. How big we think determines the size of our accomplishments." - David Schwartz

Lessons from Noah's Ark... Great Stuff!

2010-06-15T13:26:00.000-06:00

Plan ahead... It wasn't raining when Noah built the ark.

Stay fit. When you're 600 years old, someone might ask you to do something REALLY big.

Don't listen to critics- do what has to be done.

Build on high ground.

For safety's sake, travel in pairs.

Two heads are better than one.

Speed isn't always an advantage. The cheetahs were on board but... so were the snails.

If you can't fight or flee---float!!

Take care of your animals as if they were the last ones on Earth.

Don't forget that we're all in the same boat.

When things get really deep, don't sit there and complain-- shovel!!!

Stay below deck during the storm.

Remember that the ark was built by amateurs and the Titanic was built by professionals.

If you have to start over, have a friend by your side.

Remember that the woodpeckers INSIDE are often a bigger threat than the storm outside.

Don't miss the boat.

No matter how bleak it looks, there's always a rainbow on the horizon.

Source: arcamax.com

Mandela and His Garden: What is your garden?

2010-06-15T11:13:00.001-06:00

While Nelson Mandela was in prison he found renewal in tending his garden. It was a place apart where he could relax and nurture his soul.

Samuel Johnson once said there was nothing more relaxing than concentrating on a pleasant task that engages the mind but does not tax it too much. For Johnson, that was a chemistry set; for Mandela, it was a garden. For the rest of us, it might be something else entirely. The main thing is that each of us needs something away from the world that gives us pleasure and satisfaction, a place apart.

As Mandela once said, “You must find your own garden.”

What is your garden? Please share with us.

Learn more about Nelson Mandela in the newly released "Mandela’s Way" by Richard Stengel.

Teachers: We have one of the world’s most stressful careers...

2010-06-14T08:56:00.003-06:00

"If you don’t have time to do it right, when will you have time to do it over?" - John Wooden

2010-06-14T08:26:00.001-06:00

"Good timber does not grow under comfortable circumstances, the stronger the wind, the stronger the tree." - J. Willard Marriott

2010-06-09T02:16:00.001-06:00

"We should not be speaking to, but with" - Noam Chomsky

2010-06-08T12:16:00.000-06:00

Your friendly reminder to stop complaining...

2010-06-08T10:47:00.003-06:00

Source: alltop.com

"Things turn out best for the people who make the best of the way things turn out." - John Wooden

2010-06-08T10:28:00.001-06:00

10 Mindsets of Great Mentors

2010-06-08T07:49:00.002-06:00

1. You really care about the person you're mentoring. You want them to succeed.
2. You're curious and intensely interested in them as a person
3. You're not competing with them
4. You don't have all the answers and know you don't need to
5. They can solve many of their own issues
6. Your the facilitator, not the expert
7. In most cases there's no single right answer
8. It's better to engage in dialogue than lecture
9. A good question is often better than a good answer
10. Trust is essential. It takes time and effort to build and can evaporate in an instance. TRUST = (credibility + reliability + intimacy) / self interest

Source: http://www.anecdote.com.au/archives/2010/06/10_mindsets_of.html

"We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.” - Aristotle

2010-06-08T00:55:00.002-06:00

"Blessed are those who can give without remembering and take without forgetting." - Elizabeth Bibesco, British writer

2010-06-05T12:18:00.001-06:00

If The Earth Were a Small Village

2010-06-05T09:58:00.000-06:00

If we could shrink the earth's population to a village of 100 people, with everything else remaining the same, it would look like this:

There would be:

* 57 Asians
* 21 Europeans
* 14 from the Western Hemisphere,
* 8 Africans,

* 52 would be female
* 48 would be male

* 70 would be non-white
* 30 would be white

* 70 would be non-Christian
* 30 would be Christian

* 95 would be heterosexual
* 5 would be homosexual

* 6 people would own 59% of the world's wealth, and all 6 would be from the United States

* 80 would live in substandard housing

* 70 would be unable to read

* 50 would suffer from malnutrition

* 1 would be near death
* 1 would be near birth

* 1 would have a college education

* 1 would own a computer

* 0 would play oboe

Source: http://www.arcamax.com/jokes/s-75580-659306?source=1930

2010-06-01T15:42:00.001-06:00

Don't let ideas escape. When you get an idea, write it down. D.J.S.

2010-06-01T13:15:00.003-06:00

rm........ I like, instructional collaborator. I collaborate with teachers to meet the needs of our students. It is going to be a splendid year.

2010-06-01T13:15:00.001-06:00

I have been reflecting a lot on my new job for next year while hanging out in airports these past few days. I'll be an instructional coach, or another te

"Don't tell me how hard you work. Tell me how much you get done." - James Ling, American businessman

2010-06-01T11:28:00.003-06:00

No More One-Size-Fits-All PD « Whole Child Blog - Whole Child Education

2010-05-28T12:14:00.000-06:00

No More One-Size-Fits-All PD « Whole Child Blog - Whole Child Education

Some Thoughts on Instructional Coaching

2010-05-28T09:45:00.001-06:00

My #1 goal: To make you [teachers] stronger.

More thoughts to follow.

"Nothing in the world can take the place of persistence...Persistence and determination alone are omnipotent." - Calvin Coolidge

2010-05-28T08:55:00.002-06:00

"The greater danger for most of us is not that our aim is too high and we miss it, but that it is too low and we reach it." - Michelangelo

2010-05-27T21:22:00.002-06:00

"What kind of man would live where there is no daring? I don't believe in taking foolish chances, but nothing can be accomplished without...

2010-05-24T08:09:00.000-06:00

... taking any chance at all." - Charles A. Lindbergh, American aviator

Clear your mind of can't!

2010-05-19T17:06:00.001-06:00

"If you can't change your fate, change your attitude." - Amy Tan, American author

2010-05-19T11:50:00.002-06:00

Scholar Ladies (Get An "A" On It)

2010-05-19T11:22:00.003-06:00

Think Big!

2010-05-18T19:34:00.000-06:00

The difference between try and triumph is just a little umph!

2010-05-15T05:58:00.001-06:00

Individuality

2010-05-14T17:38:00.001-06:00

Accentuate the Positive

2010-05-13T19:49:00.001-06:00

Effective teachers have a gift for noticing—what one researcher calls “withitness.”

2010-04-30T19:35:00.003-06:00

Source: The New Yorker

"Find a job you like and you add five days to every week." - H. Jackson Brown Jr., American author

2010-04-26T20:07:00.002-06:00

America's future will be determined by the home and the school. The child becomes largely what he is taught; hence we must watch what we teach, and...

2010-04-25T12:56:00.003-06:00

... how we live." - Jane Addams, founder of the U.S. settlement house movement

"Notice that the stiffest tree is most easily cracked, while the bamboo or willow survives by bending with the wind."

2010-03-30T20:09:00.002-06:00

- Bruce Lee, martial artist and actor

Try Trying Poster

2010-03-20T19:17:00.000-06:00

Teachers: “Tell me and I'll forget; show me and I may remember; involve me and I'll understand.” – Chinese Proverb

2010-02-27T15:16:00.001-06:00

"A great secret of success is to go through life as a man who never gets used up." - Albert Schweitzer

2010-02-26T21:39:00.001-06:00

“If you are planning for a year, sow rice; if you are planning for a decade, plant trees; if you are planning for a lifetime, educate people.”

2010-02-21T21:07:00.003-06:00

- Chinese Proverb

"We must welcome the future, remembering that soon it will be the past; and we must respect the past, remembering that it was once all that was...

2010-02-20T16:36:00.002-06:00

... humanly possible." - George Santayana, philosopher, poet

"Call it a clan, call it a network, call it a tribe, call it a family. Whatever you call it, whoever you are, you need one."

2010-02-19T15:23:00.001-06:00

- Jane Howard, British actress, model and novelist

“Fear less, hope more; Eat less, chew more; Whine less, breathe more; Talk less, say more; Love more, and all good things will be yours.”

2010-02-17T18:13:00.000-06:00

– Swedish Proverb

"You've got to think about big things while you're doing small things, so that all the small things go in the right direction." - Alvin Toffler

2010-02-14T21:29:00.001-06:00

"When one door closes, another opens; but we often look so long and so regretfully upon the closed door that we do not see the one which has opened."

2010-02-13T21:13:00.002-06:00

- Alexander Graham Bell, American inventor

"So often we think we have got to make a difference and be a big dog. Let us just try to be little fleas biting. Enough fleas biting strategically...

2010-02-11T19:55:00.002-06:00

... can make a big dog very uncomfortable." - Marian Wright Edelman, founder of the Children's Defense Fund

"Employ thy time well if thou meanest to gain leisure." -- Benjamin Franklin, inventor, statesman

2010-02-11T19:53:00.001-06:00

"The difference between getting somewhere and nowhere is the courage to make an early start. The fellow who sits still and does just what he is...

2010-02-07T18:46:00.002-06:00

... told will never be told to do big things." - Charles Schwab, entrepreneur

"Health is worth more than learning." Read my comments regarding this quote. What are your thoughts?

2010-01-22T20:22:00.003-06:00

Thomas Jefferson, 3rd American President, once said, “Health is worth more than learning.” I have to agree. You need to be healthy in order to learn at high levels. Your body, mind, and spirit must be in a healthy state in order for you to truly soak in new knowledge and skills.

After reflecting on this quote, I also had the following thought, “Health is worth more than teaching.” Yes, as an educator I believe that teaching (good teaching) is of critical importance to the growth and development of a child. Teachers matter! But, if we don’t take care of ourselves… if you run ourselves into the ground… who are we hurting? Ourselves and our students. We cannot offer our students a worn out, run down, tired, sick teacher. We deserve better. They deserve better.

“That which we persist in doing becomes easier–not that the nature of the task has changed, but our ability to do has increased.” –Ralph Waldo Emerson

2010-01-02T09:31:00.003-06:00

"Education is the most powerful weapon, which you can use to change the world." - Nelson Mandela

2010-01-01T21:26:00.002-06:00

Left and Right Brain Poster

2009-12-28T22:19:00.000-06:00

"Opportunity is missed by most people because it is dressed in overalls and looks like work." - Thomas Edison, American inventor

2009-12-28T20:38:00.003-06:00

We are E.A.G.L.E.S. - Educators Affecting Growth and Learning for Every Student

2009-12-27T16:07:00.001-06:00

Be More Than A School Administrator...Be An Innovation Coach

2009-12-25T13:48:00.000-06:00

I have an idea…
"It will never work."
"We don’t have the budget to do it."
"It will take to much time and we just don’t have any to waste."
"The district won’t like it."
"Teachers won’t want to do that."
"That isn’t the way we do things at this school."
"What does that have to do with test scores?"

These are just a sample of the typical answers we in education hear when we have an idea. Don’t scoff to easily, think about it a second. After a few perfunctory, “That’s great” or “Sounds interesting” we generally work our way to some of those responses.

What we need is some principals, directors, managers, and superintendents who encourage and support innovation. If change or improvement is what we seek, then changing what we do or how we do it should be encouraged not discouraged.

Rather, when we hear an idea, answer…

* "That sounds interesting. Can you tell me more?"
* "What excites you the most about this idea?"
* "What is the essence of your idea - the core principle?"
* "How do you imagine your idea will benefit others?"
* "In what ways does your idea fit with our strategic vision?"
* "What information do you still need?"
* "Who are your likely collaborators?"
* "Is there anything similar to your idea on the market?
* "What support do you need from me?"
* "What is your next step?"

Click here to read entire article.

A Letter to New Teachers

2009-12-23T16:50:00.000-06:00

Although the first part of the school year is over, reading this letter may refresh, inspire, or motivate you for the next semester.

Dear New Teachers,

Congratulations! You have survived the monotonous resume-writing and job application process, the nerve-wracking interviews, the reference and background checks, and the signing of a multitude of forms and papers. Now, you officially are a teacher! It is your dream come true. So what are you going to do to start off on the right foot and have a successful first year at your new school? Here is my top 10 list of ways to get you started toward a successful first year.

1. Learn as much about your new school and the community as possible. Search the internet, read local newspapers, and talk with people working in the area. Understand the needs, issues, problems, and strengths of the community. (Actually, you should have done this prior to interviewing, but if not, get going!)

2. Ask your principal or another administrator for a tour of the school. Don't be shy; ask questions. Then, spend some time alone in your new classroom. Just sit for a while and look around. Take pictures of the walls, furniture, technology, closets, shelves, and anything else you see. After a while, force yourself to go home. You can only spend so much time staring at blank walls and empty desks.

3. Start a list of questions, organized by the person who can best answer them (principal, mentor, teammate, department chair, secretary, custodian, etc.). Continue to add to the list and check off when you get answers.

4. Now start thinking of how you want to set up the room. Where will your desk go? How should the students' desks be arranged to best meet your style of teaching and the needs of the grade level? What should go on the walls - Teacher created stuff and/or student created stuff? Once you are back in the room, play around with the furniture and try different configurations (just don't scratch the newly waxed floors, it makes the custodians angry). Picture yourself teaching from different areas of the room. Envision students sitting in their desks. Where are they looking and what can they see? Ask yourself, "Is the room designed for teacher-centered instruction or for student-centered learning?"

5. In my opinion, you must have the classroom set up before you can focus on the lesson planning. Once the room is ready, a big weight will be lifted from your shoulders. Then, it will be time to dig into the curriculum. Start by collecting as many teaching materials and curriculum guides as you can find. Also, try to meet with one or all of your new teammates or your assigned mentor. Ask them questions related to teaching, but don't focus only on you. Get to know them personally as well as professionally. Meeting for coffee or lunch is a great way to get started.

6. For new elementary teachers, acquire a class list as soon as possible, and learn as much as possible about all of them before school starts. Find out who are on IEPs or 504s, who are in a gifted program, who are dealing with difficult issues at home, who are talented in activities outside of school and so on. Read through the cumulative files, old report cards, portfolios of work, and speak with other staff members. Most schools have some type of directory that lists the classes from the year before. Find out who your students' teachers were last year. Then, before the start of school, make a personal contact with each student. Either call them all or send a personal note in the mail. Don't send a form letter, make it personal in some way. Communicate with their parents, too!

7. For middle school or high school teachers, you probably will not be able to make a personal contact with each student, but you certainly can learn about them in the same manner as the elementary teachers.

8. As you start to plan for the first week of school, remember that your most important job is to establish effective routines and procedures in your classroom. The routines you set at the very beginning may stay all year, and negative or bad habits are very hard to change after the first few weeks of school. Clearly articulate what you expect from your students regarding their behavior, effort, work, and attitudes. Never assume that the children know how to be respectful and behave in your class. Teach them exactly what you expect, and then reteach and model it often, just like you would with an important curricular concept.

9. As you plan specific lessons, don't attempt to plan too far ahead until you really know your students and the curriculum. There will be a lot of adjusting and readjusting of lessons at first, so it is OK to plan one day at a time for a while. You still need to see into the future, and have goals for what you want to accomplish, but take the lesson planning slowly. Make your lessons very detailed and specific, and clearly spell out your objectives, guided and independent activities, and assessments just like you did in college. Eventually, you will be able to write shorter plans and still know exactly what you need to do, but it will take time and experience to get to that point. Finally, it never hurts to over-plan. Be prepared in case the lesson goes faster than you expected, or you need some back-up activities.

10. Finally - HAVE FUN! Be yourself, and let your students see you as a real person. Share some personal experiences you have had, and let your students into certain areas of your life that you are comfortable sharing with them (e.g. pets, family, hobbies, etc.). They will respect and appreciate you more, and they will be more willing to share themselves with you. Effective teaching is all about relationships. Build positive ones with your students.

Teachers, be ready for the realization that your first year of teaching (or the first year in a new school) will be nothing like your student teaching experiences. Accept that, be ready for successes and failures, and continue to learn along with your students every day. Remember, teaching is about "The Will and the Skill." Retain the will to be the best you can be and work hard to develop the skills necessary to be successful in the most important of professions.

Have a great school year!

Sincerely,

Dave Sherman

What Makes a Principal Great?

2009-12-23T16:42:00.001-06:00

Source: edweek.org

The following are listed as the "Principles of Great Principals."

- The school is a family.

- Teachers are treated as professionals.

- Instruction in the school is data-driven.

- They are student-centered.

- They reach out to families.

- They have great reservoirs of energy.

- They promote school spirit and teamwork.

- They develop leaders.

- They have good help.

Click here to read entire article.

Don't eat the marshmallow yet

2009-12-22T11:57:00.003-06:00

Follow your dreams – except for that one where you fly. That never ends well.

2009-12-20T16:55:00.001-06:00

10 Facts on Women and Water

2009-12-20T11:37:00.001-06:00

Source: waterfortheages.org

1. Women and children fetch the majority of water for household uses in rural areas. Often this keeps them from attending school or working at a job.

2. The average distance that women and children walk for water in Africa and Asia is six kilometers (3.7 miles).

3. Women carry heavy loads of water (about 20 liters) on their heads in some locations in the world. This causes severe damage to the neck and spine over time.

4. Women make most household water and sanitation decisions, but they are rarely invited to be involved in planning or management of water and sanitation systems.

5. Water projects that involve women in planning and management are proven more likely to succeed.

6. In many places in the world, women’s land rights are not recognized, and they are unable to access water for agricultural uses.

7. On average, women work twice as long as men for unpaid work (housework, cleaning, cooking, washing, etc.) than men.

8. Women are primary caretakers of the millions of children that fall ill each year from water-related illnesses. This reduces time spent working or on education.

9. For mothers and pregnant women, an improved water supply and proper water storage is essential to protect lives and ensure good health.

10. Women are under-represented in water and sanitation sector jobs with men having most jobs in this field.

I'm a weapon of mass instruction a.k.a. teacher

2009-12-19T20:08:00.000-06:00

A BLOOMing Orange

2009-11-25T20:53:00.000-06:00

Don't bankrupt your students!

2009-11-25T19:41:00.000-06:00

"When you're a kid, school is your career. And if you go out of business in school, if your business goes bankrupt, if you're not having any success, you're left with almost nothing. You are poverty-stricken. Where do you go from there?" - Dr. Mel Levine

The Economic Benefits of Reducing Dallas-Ft. Worth-Arlington’s Dropout Rate

2009-11-25T10:50:00.002-06:00

A new report out on the ecomonic benefits of reducing dropout rates in 50 U.S. cities.

Here is DFW's report: http://www.all4ed.org/files/DallasFtWorthArlington.pdf

What have you done today to make you feel proud?

2009-11-25T10:19:00.000-06:00

“We Learn...

2009-11-23T11:03:00.001-06:00

10% of what we read
20% of what we hear
30% of what we see
50% of what we see and hear
70% of what we discuss
80% of what we experience
95% of what we teach others.

- William Glasser

Positive Discipline

2009-11-23T10:21:00.000-06:00

"We can't make children DO better by making them FEEL worse." - Dr. Jane Nelsen

Don't EVER give up!

2009-11-22T09:50:00.000-06:00

Attitude

2009-11-22T09:42:00.002-06:00

“The longer I live, the more I realize the impact of attitude on life. Attitude, to me, is more important than facts. It is more important than the past, the education, the money, than circumstances, than failure, than successes, than what other people think or say or do. It is more important than appearance, giftedness or skill. It will make or break a company... a church... a home. The remarkable thing is we have a choice everyday regarding the attitude we will embrace for that day. We cannot change our past... we cannot change the fact that people will act in a certain way. We cannot change the inevitable. The only thing we can do is play on the one string we have, and that is our attitude. I am convinced that life is 10% what happens to me and 90% of how I react to it. And so it is with you... we are in charge of our Attitudes.” – Charles Swindoll

Are you making a difference?

2009-08-29T11:08:00.002-06:00

Be inspired by this video: The Simlpe Truth of Service - Inspired by Johnny the Bagger.

http://www.stservicemovie.com/

Hope is a renewable option:

2009-08-15T08:39:00.001-06:00

If you run out of it at the end of the day, you get to start over in the morning.

- Barbara Kingsolver

Many Dallas-Fort Worth graduates struggle in college

2009-08-10T18:42:00.000-06:00

Source: The Dallas Morning News

They passed their TAKS exit exams and collected their high school diplomas – yet a troubling number of Texas students struggle their first year in college.
At some North Texas high schools, half or more of graduates who go to college earn less than a C average their first year, based on a Dallas Morning News analysis of state data.

And college students who stumble in their freshman year are more likely to call it quits.

Continue reading.

“Hope costs nothing.” - Colette

2009-08-09T20:21:00.002-06:00

I found this short snippet on hope while paging through The Daily Book of Positive Quotations at a local bookseller.

The last thing we should ever lose is hope, even in the face of the impossible. It costs nothing to hope. And without hope we are certain to fail.

Without hope we can’t move. We sit and wait for what we believe is inevitable. We may never know for sure whether we could have changed things; all we know is that we didn’t even try.

You may be teaching a president

2009-08-08T06:55:00.000-06:00

What on earth am I here for?

2009-08-07T18:05:00.002-06:00

"You are not here merely to make a living. You are here in order to enable the world to live more amply, with greater vision, with a finer spirit of hope and achievement. You are here to enrich the world, and you impoverish yourself if you forget the errand." - Woodrow Wilson

Poem for Principals

2009-08-05T21:30:00.000-06:00

writingfix.com

2009-08-05T13:31:00.003-06:00

If I was still teaching K-6 writing, I would definitely use this website to generate daily writing prompts. Have fun exploring.

writingfix.com

Whose Problem Is Poverty?

2009-08-04T14:16:00.000-06:00

By Brian Crosby

“It’s no cop-out to acknowledge the effects of socioeconomic disparities on student learning. Rather, it’s a vital step to closing the achievement gap.”

So begins the article on the ASCD web site: Whose Problem Is Poverty? by Richard Rothstein This might be a “must read” for teachers in Title 1 schools. Mr. Rothstein explains why students from low socio-economic groups have lower average achievement:

“Because low-income children often have no health insurance and therefore no routine preventive medical and dental care, leading to more school absences as a result of illness. Children in low-income families are more prone to asthma, resulting in more sleeplessness, irritability, and lack of exercise. They experience lower birth weight as well as more lead poisoning and iron-deficiency anemia, each of which leads to diminished cognitive ability and more behavior problems. Their families frequently fall behind in rent and move, so children switch schools more often, losing continuity of instruction.

Poor children are, in general, not read to aloud as often or exposed to complex language and large vocabularies. Their parents have low-wage jobs and are more frequently laid off, causing family stress and more arbitrary discipline. The neighborhoods through which these children walk to school and in which they play have more crime and drugs and fewer adult role models with professional careers. Such children are more often in single-parent families and so get less adult attention. They have fewer cross-country trips, visits to museums and zoos, music or dance lessons, and organized sports leagues to develop their ambition, cultural awareness, and self-confidence.

Each of these disadvantages makes only a small contribution to the achievement gap, but cumulatively, they explain a lot.”

One quote I especially liked was this one:

“Some critics cite schools that enroll disadvantaged students but still get high standardized test scores as proof that greater socioeconomic equality is not essential for closing achievement gaps—because good schools have shown they can do it on their own. And some critics are so single-mindedly committed to a schools-only approach that they can’t believe anyone could seriously advocate pursuing both school and socioeconomic improvement simultaneously.”

And this one:

”And yes, we should also call on housing, health, and antipoverty advocates to take a broader view that integrates school improvement into their advocacy of greater economic and social equality. Instead, however, critical voices for reform have been silenced, told they should stick to their knitting, fearing an accusation that denouncing inequality is tantamount to “making excuses.”"

There is much more … follow the link.

Poverty Is Poison

2009-08-04T14:06:00.000-06:00

Source: nytimes.com

“Poverty in early childhood poisons the brain.” That was the opening of an article in Saturday’s Financial Times, summarizing research presented last week at the American Association for the Advancement of Science.

As the article explained, neuroscientists have found that “many children growing up in very poor families with low social status experience unhealthy levels of stress hormones, which impair their neural development.” The effect is to impair language development and memory — and hence the ability to escape poverty — for the rest of the child’s life.

Click here to continue reading.

Do you believe in me?

2009-08-03T20:59:00.000-06:00

7 Things Teachers Wish Parents Knew

2009-08-02T15:56:00.001-06:00

1. Don't be a stranger.

2. Learning doesn't stop at 3:15.

3. Keep your child organized.

4. Let your child make mistakes.

5. If the teacher deserves a good grade, give him/her one.

6. Stay involved — even when you don't know the material.

7. The teacher's on your side — give him/her the benefit of the doubt.

Click here to read more.

The Importance of a Classroom Library

2009-07-27T12:22:00.003-06:00

Source: edutopia.org

I believe a classroom library is the heartbeat of a teacher's environment. It is the window into an educator's own personality, and it reflects the importance of literacy in the classroom. I believe every teacher -- no matter what subject he or she teaches -- should have one.

We should provide access to books in our classes with the same differentiated approach we bring to any other lesson, assessment, or activity because there are, I believe, four categories of students who pursue books.

The Book Hunter: These are students who will seek out the book they want, regardless of locale. They get a mere whiff of a good book in the air, and they pursue it. They understand how to choose books and seek out advice when they need it.

The Library Literate: These are students who won't or can't go to a store, but who are comfortable enough to go to the local library, perhaps seeking advice from the friendly face on the other side of the desk.

The Lunchtime Lurker: These are the students who may be comfortable only at the school library. This may also be the only place where they feel safe. Perhaps they escape lunchtime trauma by diving into the dark corners of the library's stacks, surrounded by countless books and those "READ" posters.

The Reluctant Phobe: And then there are students who are so frightened of books, of literacy, and of choice that they feel comfortable only in their classroom library, reaching for books they know exactly where to find, and trusting you, who understands their fears and reading insecurities.

And it's up to us -- the classroom teachers -- to attract all these students, like moths to a flame.

Click here to continue reading.