Classic Chatty Kathy :)

The people: Kathy, my former student who is now in 10th grade. I taught her 6, 7, & 8th grade. Ms. H, my mentor teacher who has been a part of my team for the past 7 years. Me, the soon-to-be principal The setting: on the phone–3way conversation Ms. H: So say hello to Ms. [...]

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The Juggling Act

School Work Family Church/Neighborhood We’re tugged in all directions to accomplish certain tasks and build relationships that are meaningful and rewarding for us.  Yet often, there is too much to be done, and not nearly enough time to accomplish it all. One principal I’ve worked for has kicked teachers out of the building at 3:30pm, [...]

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You have to stand for something or you’ll fall for anything!

Savannah Red gave me this wise counsel in the last post, and I’ve been thinking about it quite a bit. Where is the line with differentiation? How much is too much? I can’t say that I know the answer just yet.  I watched a mother with her daughter today as we went to the district [...]

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From teacher to administrator: A vast divide

Over the past three weeks, I’ve been trying to integrate into my new school and create routines for myself to accomplish my assignments, grad school, and still have time for my family.  It’s been a tough line to walk, but I feel like I am effectively managing my time. The hardest part of this transition [...]

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I remember. . .

It was 6 years ago, and only my 4th day teaching in the South Bronx.  There wasn’t a single working TV anywhere in the school, so we glued ourselves to the radio, trying to piece together what happened. My students and I stared at each other, trying to piece together the horror that was unfolding [...]

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A few statistics from Day 2

38: # of kindergarten and 2nd grade students who did not show for school yet this year 35: # of no-show students who had disconnected phone numbers listed _________________________________________ 2: # of teachers hit by a CTT student today 1: # of  administrators attacked by a middle school student today 3: # of parent altercations [...]

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Day 1

Kids came, and most of them left. Overall not a bad day, but I’m so exhausted I’ll post more tomorrow or the next day. Look forward to a post on creating a new school and another on hiring new teachers from alternative cert programs (Teaching Fellows, TFA, etc).

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Consistency amidst Change

Anyone that has followed educational trends in major cities knows that New York City is continually changing. Ever since Mayor Bloomberg was elected Mayor, the school system has been in continual flux. Although if you look deeper at the situation, NYC has had 12 Chancellors of the School System since 1978. At that rate, change [...]

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The Entry Experience

Growing up as a military brat, I went to 14 schools before 6th grade. Change comes naturally for me.  I’ve learned the art of adaptation: fitting into my surroundings, and thriving in this environment.  So far, this experience has been no different from those in my past, although I must admit that it is different [...]

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Lessons learned during PD this week

People can only focus on one thing at a time. Handing out Handbooks, schedules, and class lists while presenters are still conducting a workshop does not facilitate focus.  Sometimes this happened during explicit instruction; other times it happened during groupwork.  How is a group supposed to concentrate on progress monitoring, incorporating data into instruction, and [...]

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