Classrooms are orderly because chaos does awful things to students. Everything is coming at them at once, and they can’t sort it or make sense of it. They don’t know what to do next. Bombarded by what feels random and confusing, they become… Read more
When schools shut their doors this past March, teachers world wide headed home to begin teaching online, and we began searching for ways to help them do the job that they love to do. Knowing teachers new to the world of online instruction needed resources… Read more
I’m noticing a new language trend lately that is, admittedly, driving me slightly batty: use of the word “issues” as a substitute for the word disorder or disability – as in, “reading issues” or “language issues” or “attention issues.” Hello…these are not ISSUES!… Read more
Sitting on an airplane, there’s little to do other than reflect on where you are going or where you just came from. In this case, I am heading home from working with a school in Michigan that kicked off an EmPOWER training for their elementary and middle school teachers this year. I’m struck by two lingering images… Read more
This past weekend, I had the honor of officiating the wedding of two of my dearest friends, Chris and Andrea. It was a thrilling experience for a whole host of reasons, but one of them continues to resonate with me days later. It has to do with language (one of my favorite subjects)… Read more