Tag: Thoughts
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Historical Thinking Skills: Chronological Thinking
The exploration of historical thinking skills continues with chronological thinking
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The Sentiment That Ruined Public Education
There is a phrase commonly used that has over the past few decades ruined public education
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Article Reaction: Are Good Principals Necessary?
Good principals are necessary but they require amazing leadership skills
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What Do You Wish More People Knew About Being A Teacher: The Serious
What do you wish more people knew about being a teacher
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Avoid the Phrase “from around the world” if you only include things from Europe
From around the world? A rant.
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Women in History: Changing Our Perspectives
Women in history have always had the wrong narrative. It is time to change it.
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Debate Topics for High School Social Studies
Do not focus entirely on national issues – discuss local!
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Homework is Busy Work. Stop the Busy Work.
Ban homework. Still reading? Ban homework. Do an honest assessment? Are your homework assignments leftover classroom work? Are your homework assignments worksheets or textbook questions? Are your homework assignments designed to give them more grades? Are your homework assignments designed to justify yourself to administration? Are your homework assignments designed for parental involvement? If you […]
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My TpT Journey: My First Products
When you post your first products on TpT you need at least one free product. This is how people get a glimpse of your work product. This is very important because there are a lot of products that just don’t mesh with all personalities and styles even if it is a great product. Don’t be […]
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My TpT Journey: Goal Setting
I first learned about Teachers Pay Teachers when I was still teaching in 2012. I had visited TpT many times to check out teacher stores and products. I thought about my products for a long time. I actually created a whole new product just for practice. That product then was the victim of the annual […]
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My TpT Journey: Why I Got Started
Staying at home, raising kids, has always been my dream. If we are being honest, I don’t like working. I don’t like working because I have never had an employer that I thought had any loyalty to me. The relationship has always been one sided. I have to show up on time, work eight hours, […]
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Filing Taxes Should Never Be Taught In School
“Why don’t schools teach kids useful stuff. Like how to file taxes.” They do. It’s called reading and math. Rather than complain about what your teachers did not teach you, try remembering what they did teach you. Because if you are reading this, you owe them a lot. Still, a lot of people are frustrated […]
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Teaching Movies Portray Teachers Poorly
No teacher is without their go-to, feel-good teaching movie. They are the movies we watch to motivate us or to remind us why we teach. I personally love To Sir With Love, Mr. Holland’s Opus, and The Paper Chase. (The Paper Chase is about a man’s first year in law school but I love the […]
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Textbook Design and the Digital Textbook
I enjoy reading. I never did until after I had my first child and I was at home all day. Daytime television is horrible and how many times can I watch rich women argue with each other about the appropriate way to greet someone at a dinner party? I began my adult reading life with […]
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Integrating History and Government
Short and sweet but no less accurate. Why is American democracy an amazing thing? A history full of psychos, sociopaths, and morons who exercised absolute power is the answer. When a country was fortunate to get a good leader, things were good. Government ran well, the people prospered, and there was peace. Absolute power does […]
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Article Reactions, Volume 2
MindShift published an article on August 7 called, How a School Ditched Awards and Assemblies to Refocus on Kids and Learning. The article focused on school’s attempts at removing all awards and focusing on what each student does well rather than creating a competitive environment. My first thought was that the article was a bit […]
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Time as a Commodity
For many teachers around the country, today is the first student day of school. A new school year, a new opportunity for teachers to shine. The school district that we live in begins on Thursday while today is the teachers first day back. Most schools in Pennsylvania only have three days to prepare for a […]
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Music in the Classroom: Working Around the Myth
Listening to classical music, specifically Mozart, does NOT make you smarter. I’m not sure where the myth came from but I had always heard of other benefits of listening to classical music many of which are beneficial for students. Lower blood pressure. All the problems associated with high pressure are devastating so why not aim […]
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Inflating Grades
How many grades do you need? Does the amount of points make a difference? The easiest, simplest answer to the first question is, “Whatever your administration says.” I was told students need ample opportunities to earn good grades and this message is probably repeated in most American schools. Although, I have to admit, that I […]
Integrated Social Studies 