A teacher resume, like any other resume, is the critical ingredient that may help you find your perfect job. A winning resume will move you along the process to an interview; a poorly written resume will do the opposite. The resume communicates to the potential employer if the person has the skills needed for the job. It is the first impression they receive from you. It’s your advertisement to tell them that you are the right person for the job […]
Category: PD
Adding EdTech to Your Classroom? 3 Non-Negotiable “Old School” Components to Include in Every Lesson
Educational technology: it’s the hottest movement out there in education, and has been for some time. In fact, there seems to be a rather non-discriminating admiration for anything edtech among many teachers today. You can’t open an educational journal, print or online, without being bombarded with ads and articles extolling the virtues of the “latest and greatest” technological tool for the classroom. And many of these tools are great, but we have to be careful anytime we decide to add […]
Leading In And From the Classroom
The role of a creative leader is not to have all the ideas; it’s to create a culture where everyone can have ideas and feel they’re valued. ~Sir Ken Robinson I am a middle child and relished the role of “leading” my younger brother. He, however, wasn’t a very cooperative follower. :) While I was somewhat shy as a child, I could organize my group of friends at recess like it was my job. I lived in the country without […]
Ultimate Project Based Learning – How Student Teamwork Built a World Championship Car
Every year for the past twenty the Saint Thomas Academy Experimental Vehicle Team (STA EVT) has built a new vehicle from the ground up to give our students the best engineering experience a high-schooler can get. The internationally recognized program started in 1997. My fellow moderator Mark Westlake and I believe in the importance of learning from mistakes. That the most important life lessons come from experience, that science is not always easy and that the answers are not always […]
EdTech Comfort Zones – From G Suite to Office 365
What is your preferred platform for regular digital work? What makes it your favorite? I learned how to use Microsoft Word and Appleworks (yes, I’m old) in high school. I continued to use those tools for basic word processing tasks through my first few years of teaching. At some point, Appleworks went away. Not a big deal. As a second-grade teacher with just a few old iMacs in my classroom for kids to play games on, I didn’t need very […]
Utilize Your Students and Surveys to Measure Your Teaching Effectiveness
A teacher’s stakeholders’ satisfaction with their course is an important measure of instructional effectiveness that is too often overlooked or outright ignored. Of course, it’s absurd to hope to satisfy every young adult’s needs and wants equally throughout an academic year, but to endeavor to do so seems a requisite to respecting student voice in the classroom. We educators all know sometimes young adults simply don’t know what they need as well as we often do—our experience, credentials, and wisdom […]
Get on the Bus of Learning! A Creative Approach to Weekly Staff Professional Development
As educators, we know it is imperative that we are always learning. We strive to find the best techniques, the helpful tools, the lesson plan ideas, and the ways in which we can become stronger together. Learning is not just for students, it is for adults too. The adults should always be modeling learning for their students, showing they are the lifelong learners they strive to model for their students. We would never go to a doctor that used techniques […]
Feeding the Fire: Finding The Key To PD and Your Passion
What sets your soul on fire? What are you so passionate about that people can tell by the look on your face and the sound of your voice when you are talking about it? Professionally, my short answer is education. Of course, there are many layers within that topic, and areas that excite me more than others. Overall, I believe in the power of relationships within the educational realm and the impact transformative instructional practices make on the world. My […]
Field Days Are One of the Best Parts of School! Here’s How You Can Plan One to Remember!
Think back on your field day from your school days. What do you remember? Was it the heat? Was it the humidity? Was it the bugs and bees? Was it the competition? Or was it the general notion of fun and having all your friends and classmates with you at the same time? Think on this for a second because it is important. My guess is you probably remember how much fun you had and the games you did. My […]
We are Pleased to Announce the Launch of the WorldSTEM Challenge!
We are pleased to announce the launch of the World STEM Challenge! Website: worldstem.co Twitter: @WorldSTEMedu The concept is to ‘crowdsource’ a video bank of quality STEM lessons and ideas for teachers around the world. The idea is simple: Ask teachers who are making great STEM lessons to share their ideas in a short video, around 2 minutes long. We will create a bank of these videos for teachers to easily navigate. Teachers from around the world will be able […]
Striving to be a Strong Digital Leader
—Every day, I want to grow and become better. Through every task and experience, I am pushed as a leader. How will this decision affect kids? What impact will this have on our school? What is our next step to make the most of what we do to help our students be successful? How do we prepare our teachers and our students for the world in which we live and the world of tomorrow? As a principal of an elementary […]
3 Key Characteristics of Successful School Leaders [Infographic]
It’s no secret that it’s tough at the top. As a leader, it can be difficult to gain respect, make changes and deliver results (and I don’t mean academic results). However, in a minimum of 21 days, new habits can form, so grit your teeth, think of the three P’s, and you’ll be well on your way to being a dynamic school leader! Ask yourself: Am I acting in a principled manner? Is my decision going to be the best […]
Blogging Matters: Reap the Rewards of Starting Your Own Blog
I took a break from my blog in the recent past. I told myself I didn’t have enough time. I thought I didn’t have anything to share. I pulled together every excuse in the book and took a break from writing and blogging—it was not a healthy choice. Now, I’m getting back into the swing of things and it feels great. Blogging is a choice, and to me, it is a positive one that has helped me grow professionally and […]
The Innovator’s Mindset—A Blockbuster Lesson from George Couros
Let me begin by making three confessions: 1. I think this is a very clever title … read on to find out why. 2. I thought this review would never be written; indeed, I’ve taken nearly twelve months to do so… 3. I believe I might have a form of hypergraphia. This too is highly relevant… read on to find out why. (Or, just to find out what it is.) __________________________________ Canadian based and internationally known educator George Couros is […]
The Carrot and The Stick: Are American Schools Actually Teaching Us?
When I was seven-years-old we moved from the United States to Switzerland because of my father’s job. I was born in Brazil, but having left it just two years old, I didn’t really know anything other than the U.S. I didn’t even realize I was Italian, not American. From the moment we stepped off that massive airliner in the dark on that freezing winter’s morning, I thought I had arrived in a fairytale. The mountains and the lake snugly nestled […]
Discipline Outdoes Talent—Here’s How
F. One simple letter. The grade we never want to have to give. Are some students simply doomed to low marks forever? Can their brains only struggle to deliver D-level work? Why do some students sail through courses, while others struggle? While elements such as intelligence, aptitude, and memory play a role, surprisingly, something else is a greater indicator of the success of students. “In…studies of both secondary school and university students, self-discipline has surpassed intelligence test scores to better […]
Is Your Child Having Friendship Problems?
At some point throughout their schooling years, children will experience problems with their school friends. Have we not all been there? Because of this, it is important to differentiate “normal” childhood conflicts and bullying. Normal childhood conflict is characterized by both children having equal power where neither one is seeking control. They just happen to disagree. For example, when two siblings share a bedroom and do not agree on what color to paint the walls or when children bicker over […]
3 Superpowers of the Principal: E.V.E
As a Principal you are plopped down into a building tasked with one of two scenarios: maintain the status quo or upset that status quo. In order to accomplish your own goals within one of those two frameworks you must be able to influence your staff. From the very beginning of your tenure you must interweave at least three types of power to set your agenda. 1. Entry As a principal you have an easy entry point to your central […]
Teachers—Don’t be a Joke
I recently came across this joke on Pinterest. I like a good joke as much as the next person, but being an educator, my first instinct was to be offended. My second inclination was to look at it from a different perspective. This riddle can definitely be true to life. I have had teachers like that. I have sat in class, completely disinterested, for the entire period while listening to the teacher lecture. I don’t think I can ever say […]
3 Key Characteristics of Successful School Leaders
We are living in an age of educational cynicism. It is becoming increasingly difficult to lead in these times. In order to cultivate success as a Principal you must first acknowledge that it isn’t all about you. Success is contingent on the relationship between you and the school staff. They have to agree, through their actions, to follow you. It’s one thing for them to say it and nod their heads during a building staff meeting. It’s much more important […]