Since Arizona closed schools March 16, like my Stories from School colleagues and many other people around the world, I have experienced alternating episodes of hope, tears, escapism, distress, mental dispersal, zen, joy,
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No Goodbyes
Last Monday, Diana did not show up to school. After I take attendance, I habitually ask the class for confirmation of who is missing, just to keep me on my toes. “So, Diana’s absent?” “Yes.” “Se fue a Mexico.” “She
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How I Connect With Families
How often have you lost precious planning time because you were busy communicating with parents? How about getting so caught up in lesson planing that you completely forget to get back to parents? Too many teachers face this problem daily, and I
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Happy Classroom Community
Having my daughter in fifth-grade last year changed the way I look at my classroom. Her school day started in my partner teacher’s homeroom for math and science and her afternoons were spent in my room for Reading, Writing, and
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Henry Ford and Ed Policy
“I’d like to observe your 90-minute reading block if that works for you,” says my principal as we are setting a date for my formal observation. “Well, we’ll be using literacy skills to close read and annotate a piece of
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