Since June, here is what I have seen in my dining room: (To the left in this frame, you will notice the sewing machine I took out thinking I would “remember” how to sew and make masks. Since June, I
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A Different Journey
Aside from our flawless taste in beauty products, and our affinity for yellow diamonds, famed lyricist Rihanna and I have one more thing in common: “We found love in a hopeless place.” Anyone reading this blog needs no exposition nor
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Promises to My Students
The start of this school year marks a new beginning for me. I have left my previous district and moved on to one where I can not only teach freshmen physics, something I’m passionate about, but work as a team
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The Best Tools
Throughout my years in education, I’ve created a well-developed teacher toolbox. This toolbox included methods and tricks I’ve learned along the way, as well as some tangible items. When I wanted to wow and engage learners (adults or kids) I
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Have You Thanked Your Tech Team Today?
I have worked harder in the past five months than I thought imaginable. I have asked those around me to do the same. It has been five months since the first time we were told we would need to close
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A Bird’s Eye View of Virtual Learning
8:27 a.m. Mrs. Gawlowski enters an empty classroom, frantically running to her computer. Her mask is falling off her face, and her glasses are foggy. Her hands are full of junk she insists on bringing with her every day, although
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Back to School 2020–It’s a Hot Mess
I love the anticipation of a new school year! It’s like preparing for a big holiday gathering. I get to see and visit with students and colleagues I haven’t seen in a few months. There’s new hair cuts, new clothes,
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Simply Put: This is Hard
For the last three years, I have had the honor of blogging for the AZK12 Center’s Stories from Schools AZ. Each month I love having an outlet to pour my thoughts and ideas into. Each month it was easy to
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“We Are All First-Year Teachers Again”
When I reflect on my first year of teaching, I often joke that I wish I could go back to those students and apologize to them. Looking back, I didn’t know what I was doing. I probably used many instructional
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