Where Are My Villagers?

You know the saying. It takes a village to raise a child. If that’s true, and I believe it is, then why do I feel like a single parent raising 36 unruly children? Where the *&^% are my villagers?

I’ll tell you where they are. They’re busy with their own lives, completely unaware that their talents could be of use in their local schools. Why? Because no one invited them into the classroom.

Speak Honestly

Too often teachers barricade themselves in their classrooms. They shut themselves off from their peers, avoid their administrators, and try to teach their students the best way they can. Understandable, but are we really doing ourselves any favors?

Teachers need to communicate, need to learn from others. I value the experience and education of my peers but there never seems to be enough time to discuss all the ins and outs of effective teaching. If only there was some easy, magical way for teachers to keep in touch.

Bringing Joy Back to Teaching

As Common Core Standards roll into our classrooms next year, a lot will change. That’s a good thing, trust me.

For the past few years, our California education system has been focused on trying to cram a ton of information into kids. Much of the information has been presented long before the child is capable of understanding the complex concepts being taught. To make matters worse, the state standards have forced teachers to move much too quickly through concepts, resulting in frustration for everyone. But that’s all about to change!

Goal of Education – A Holistic Approach in a Non-Holistic Society

knowledge gained through exploration and discovery + relevant societal application = love of learning?

As a teacher, I often wonder why I teach. I spend several hours each day teaching lessons in reading, grammar, writing, math, social studies, and science, but are my students truly learning? What is the goal of education?

I subscribe to the Holistic Education approach to learning. In short, it’s all about teaching to the whole child. Teachers are there to assist students as they develop emotionally, socially, intellectually, physically, artistically, and spiritually. Students move at their own pace and enjoy flexible, multi-age class groupings. Subject matters are integrated together in a thematic way and students follow their interests as they explore their world. Oh, yeah, and grades are non-existent and unnecessary.

Why I Assign Book Reports

We all know kids need to read more.  Frequent reading and analysis is how we improve our reading comprehension. But what do you do when your students have finished reading their books? Do you require them to write a summary? Take a quiz? What about assigning a book report?