This past month our teachers visited two schools, and we have had several visitors at our school lately as well. We have found that much of our questions and discussions during these visits revolve around the school schedule. How...

I recently talked to a teacher from another school about a sad situation that had happened with some of her students. Evidently, one of the “cool” girls wrote a nasty comment to one of the not-so-cool girls, and in the process,...

As the first few weeks of school have passed, our school culture is becoming more settled and we as a staff are noticing areas that we would like to improve. At our morning staff meetings or after school, we discuss these as a...

Many years ago I was visiting another school and classroom when I heard the teacher refer to “fix-ups.” I had never heard the term before and was a bit perplexed, so I asked her about it and she explained. Fix-ups is the term...

In these last fleeting weeks of summer before school starts, besides moving to a new building (wonderful, but lots of work), I am doing everything I possibly can to make my school year more efficient and orderly. Getting a few...

In this presentation, Jeff and Deana Swanson focus on their journey and innovative approaches to education, particularly within a Mennonite homeschooling and teaching context. The key points are: Creative, passionate teaching...

When I first taught in a small parochial school several years ago, I found myself wishing that I could teach in a big school. It just seemed like it would be more exciting and academic. The building and classrooms were larger....

I splurged last Christmas and got my students three gifts. One was free—a collection of about twelve different kinds of seashells and a shell identification guide. I collected those all myself during a rare vacation weekend to...

I carefully observed a few of my students this year in an attempt to understand how their brains work and how they learn so that I can help them do better in school. And that’s a wonderful thing to do—adapt your teaching to help...

doldrums: a state or period of inactivity, stagnation, or slump (Merriam-Webster) January and February are often the toughest months to be a teacher or a student. I recently had a few teachers ask me how we get everything at our...

Last spring I had asked one of my high school students about her summer job at an orchard. She invited me to stop by and see where she worked, which I had, but she wasn’t available at that time. She mentioned it again this fall...

Writing. Vocabulary. Grammar. Literature. Speech. English teachers have more work to do and less time to do it than any other teacher in any other subject. Every day, we are expected to cover three to four of these areas in one...

Classroom culture is created, nurtured, and maintained by the teacher. Your classroom is your realm, and you, as the teacher, are the king or queen of it. You have an incredible amount of influence over the happenings, attitudes,...

The first week of school is always a whirlwind of activity—a new schedule, new students, new books, and new teachers (sometimes). Once the dust has settled and we’ve made it through the first few days or weeks of school, it is...

Our classroom chalkboards or whiteboards are amazing tools that we teachers can use to demonstrate and emphasize whatever concepts we are presenting to the students. Here are a few tips on how to use our boards more effectively....