Years ago, I was told about a PD that was happening around a book called Notice and Note; the authors, Bob Probst and Kylene Beers, were in the area, and it came recommended. I had not heard of them or their work before this, but I figured I should give it a shot. I know it is probably cliché to say. Still, that session and the friendship that I later developed with them both have changed me as an educator, and their impact on my classroom will very likely continue in some form or another until

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The words we write for ourselves are always so much better than the words we write for others. -William Forrester The other day, we were watching Finding Forrester in my 30-2 English class. William's words above made me think about writing instruction and our work. I started writing this post a few days ago with the idea that I would mostly drag the standardized writing exam my students have to do this year, but with a few days between now and then, I am shifting my focus. I want to celebrate m

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"Create space for genius, and genius will emerge." I lost a little faith that the genius would emerge this term. Students proved me wrong.

I don't know if I dislike many phrases in education more than "they can't read." More often than not, the person saying it means something more specific. Perhaps it is that students can't decode, stru...

Well, it is New Year's Eve. I have written a Festivus grievance post for many years, but this year, it slipped my mind. I think I have felt so busy that I sort of just shut down the moment the Christmas break started. I don't feel like the job of teaching has been substantially harder this year. Student apathy is undoubtedly continuing to rise, but it hasn't made the job feel harder. It has just forced me to rethink how much I can care. I can't pull anyone across the finish line, but I can keep