The following came to me in an email from Cynthia Bahler, a colleague of mine at ESU 15. I appreciated the message and asked if she would allow me to share it with the readers of my blog. She graciously said yes. Her words are below.
“I was taking a moment in my day to inhale a cold lunch when I peered up
and read this amazing poster on the wall of the teacher’s lounge:
Coming to school every day can become a hopeless task for some children
unless they succeed at what they do. We teachers are the sentries against
that hopelessness.
In this month of expressing love and appreciation, I too wanted to thank
you for going the extra mile for kids! It hardly seems possible, but we
are into 2010 and new changes and challenges await for us around the
corner- whether we are ready or not. I don’t know how you feel about
resolutions or even what your success rate is on keeping them. Incase you
are up to it, take on a new challenge to grow as a professional. Now, if
you are knee deep in coursework for your own degree advancement then
ignore this. If not, try finding various resources at your fingertips.
Right here on our very own ESU #15 Website we have a teachers blog where
you can talk to various teachers- ask questions, leave tips and more. In
my profession things are constantly changing. I can’t even claim to
remember half of what is thrown my way, but the stuff I do remember is the
stuff I shared with someone else and actually put into action. About
every 5th article I stumble on I heed it’s advice, attempt it’s
suggestion, share it’s finding. I find myself constantly open to new
ideas and seeking them as well. Perhaps you have an email junkie friend.
Ask them to surf for you and email sites. Check out the NE Dept. of
Education website, a journal for psychology or ask your principal to
suggest one. As always, your librarian would be happy to recommend a
magazine or two to you.
So, with love, I have something for each of you. It is not chocolate to
go to your hips, pop to rot your teeth, flowers to die or money-I’m a
teacher, you know I don’t have money:)
Instead I thought I would share a few great websites with you. ENJOY!
www.behavioradvisor.com
www.quia.com
The ubiquitous cell phone has become the bane of many teachers and administrators. You know the scenario– students with their hands hidden in their laps or pockets, staring straight ahead, while still managing to send and receive text messages from friends in the classroom, or a classroom down the hall, or even beyond the confines of the building. In some districts, this usually leads to seizure of the offending phones or at least a few admonitions.




Early in my teaching career I had the problem of several students wanting help at the same time. Students would sit at their desks with raised hands or stand in line at my desk. Students wasted a lot of time waiting for help. To address this problem, I used a “Take A Number” strategy. I made a set of laminated cards individually numbered from 1-20. The cards rested in a little box on my desk in numerical order with the number 1 card on top. Rather than standing in line or raising a hand, students took a number and then went back to their seats. Once they returned to their seats they were expected to work on any other tasks they understood until their numbers were called for help. It worked great for me! Do any of you have other strategies for this type of problem?
I had the good fortune of hearing