Plug can mean a few different things. For some reason, I immediately think of a hair plug. No, I don’t have any—it’s just my slightly off-center sense of humor! The big ole plug I’m making today is filled with fantastic opportunities for teachers. For example, $750 worth of classroom cash (yes, you read that right!)…
science
Apples Aplenty!
Look around your classroom. I bet there is at least one apple-themed tchotchki sitting somewhere. If not, maybe you have an apple-themed poster on the wall or…wait, are you wearing an apple appliqueé on your shirt? You see, I know you. I, too, have numerous apple paperweights and necklaces and sweaters. An apple is a…
Are You Blinding Them with Science?
Life’s a funny thing. When we asked our Facebook followers when they knew they wanted to be teachers, an astonishing number responded that they knew quite early, when they were young children. When I was a young child, I wanted to be a firefighter, mainly because of my love for dalmatians. I’ve wanted to be…
Got Ideas?
So I need some activities on Simple Machines. And here’s the kicker- the activities need to be appropriate for preschoolers. I know, I know. Couldn’t I ask you for something easier – like a unicorn that blows rainbow bubbles or a cheesecake that doesn’t have any calories? No. It has to be Simple Machines for…
Gooey Gray Mud
If you had told me that walking knee-deep through the gooey gray mud of a tidal basin during a cold New England April would be one of the highlights of my high school years, I might have laughed. Right in your face, in fact. That’s if I had been paying attention. (I was not…
History Without Standards
I went looking for a different kind of standard. We have the Common Core State Standards, which cover mathematics and language arts. We also have the Next Generation Science Standards, already adopted by six states. But what about history standards? (And the arts? And civics? And common sense?) What I found was the National Center…
A School Year in Review
Let’s review, shall we? During the last school year, I touched on a wide range of subjects, both serious and not-so-much. On a few of them, I received many comments. On many of them, I received none. Good or bad, I think some of them are worth revisiting. And the passage of time may mean…
To Code or Not to Code
One of the most beautiful things in the world is the IBM Selectric typewriter. It looks like a work of Mondrian, sounds like a tango, smells like the future, and responds like a thoroughbred beneath one’s fingertips. (That covers four out of five senses. I’ve never tasted a Selectric.) When I was quite young, I…
Questions About Curriculum
Curriculum – noun – 1. The courses offered by an educational institution 2. A set of courses constituting an area of specialization. Cross – adjective – 1. Involving mutual interchange 2. Extending over or treating several groups, conditions, or classes. Maybe it’s because I’m an education nerd, or maybe it’s just because I think it’s…
Girls and Boys and Math and Science
Stepping into Mrs. G.’s classroom was like stepping into another dimension for me. By merely walking through our adjoining closet, I could appear at the front of her room and quickly get questions answered or share important news. Mrs. G. taught math. I taught language arts. Our classrooms connected. Our subject matter? Not so much….