The Sunrise Story

In just two days, I'll be flying south to Houston, TX to attend my fifth NCTE conference. This is the first time I'll be presenting. I just reread some posts from previous NCTE visits and I'm more excited than ever to be in this space with educators and authors. My post from NCTE 2016 includes a bunch of collected quotes from brilliant authors and it turns out I get to present WITH one of these writers this time around: Amy Ludwig Vanderwater ! Amy, Linda Urban and I are sharing our passion for notebooks. Together on Saturday, we are presenting, with my brilliant colleague, Jen Cherry , moderating the panel. I'm so excited and unbelievably nervous!! Will anyone show up? Will they like what we have to share? These are the thoughts that plague me! After my presentation on Saturday, #TeachWrite is hosting a notebook exchange and meet-up at 4:30. I can't wait to get to meet my writing friends in real life...and get a new notebook! On Sunday, TeachW...

We are experiencing the final week of the quarter this week. It can be a stressful time...finishing assignments and grades. In room 734, we are reflecting. Yesterday I asked the students how many of them take selfies- ALL the hands went up (well, most of the hands). We talked about selfies and why people take them and share them. "So people can see how good you look!" "So you can see how you look, like a mirror." "For memories, to see where you've been and what you've done." "To see how you've changed over time." YES! And that's why we reflect...to see how we look today and how we've changed and grown over time and to share that with others for feedback.  From there I gave the class a list of questions as a guide for their reflection and they were off. Some created flipgrid videos, others wrote letters, and a few even shared their reflections in notebook pages.  Reflecting is a tough process for anyone and even toughe...

Today is an exciting day. After school, I am sharing a presentation with the staff at my school. They have five or six choices and I'm offering one of them. The exciting part is this...my co-presenters. I am presenting with seven of my seventh-grade students.  A couple of weeks ago, a colleague of mine, the brilliant Mrs. Jenny Miller,  came into my communications classes to teach the students skills that will help them become skilled interviewers and presenters. The kids loved it. I saw their eyes light up. They came alive!  It turned out that I had been invited to present today. It seemed like a quick turn-around, but I asked for volunteers. In one class, eight students asked to do this with me. We met and they brainstormed ideas. They created the promo video to get the audience to pick our presentation! I showed them how I plan out my presentations and they watched carefully. We decided on the message and the things we wanted the participants to do during...

This school year is a different one for me. I am purely a teacher of elective classes. The majority of my day is spent working with my seventh-grade communications students. In my county, it's the first opportunity that students get a say in their learning. Their choices include a foreign language high-school level class, coding, and my class. Last year, I taught communications and English. My communications classes totaled seventeen students at the beginning of last year. This year, I started with 72 and I'm already over 80 since the year began.  We create in our class! Right now they are finishing up photography portfolios. We collaborate on projects. Our next project is to create student presentations. We learn and practice communication skills. We struggle through critical thinking and problem solving and we contribute to the class, the school, and the world around us.  My friends, those of you who teach core content classes...did you know how different it is...

Questions. I have questions bouncing around my head. Questions mean wonder and curiosity. Questions are good. I don't have answers, so instead, I'm going to pose my questions... School?   How can I make it better?   What is my role as a teacher? Classroom organization? What's the best way to work with other teachers? How do I connect with students? What do grades really mean? How do I get better and meet their needs? How can school look different? Why do I do what I'm doing in the classroom? How do I balance technology and analog learning? Are tests necessary? Why? What is their purpose? How do they make us better learners? How can students demonstrate their learning in a meaningful way? How do I help them grow and learn? How can I find a way to better organize their notebooks? What books will help them fall in love with reading? What will make a difference to my students? Why? I'm not looking for answers. (And most ...

Life seems to be moving at hyperspeed. There are days when it's hard to stop and catch my breath. I'm working on practicing gratitude during these times. Here are some things which bring me joy and for which I'm thankful... 1. Students who challenge me and make me laugh. 2. Acts of kindness. 3. Laughing (and crying) with friends who see me and love me. 4. Phone calls and FaceTime with family. 5. Time spent in the pages of my notebook where I feel safe and free. 6. Walks and cuddles with Bella. 7. A school where I feel heard and valued. 8. The taste of my coffee in the morning. 9. Spending time making and creating 10. Long drives where I belt out my favorite tunes. 11. Making lists. 12. Cozy blankets and pillows. 13. My favorite blue ice cube trays that make my tiny ice cubes. 14. Making plans to attend & present at NCTE. 15. Pausing and listening. Just sitting down and jotting this list has helped me on this gloomy and rainy morning...

I haven't posted in a couple of weeks. I've been thinking for the past couple of days about this post...but I can't think of anything to write. Frozen in my failure, I want to quit, but I push through and show up here...even though it seems pointless. Who wants to read a blog post about nothing?  I begin to panic a bit...Have I "lost it"? My passion for blogging? My ability to blog? Why can't I think of something clever? What do I have to say that anyone will want to read? (By the way, I'd have all of these answers if it was you asking the questions!) Should I quit? Give up? Accept defeat? NO.  Instead, I show up.  Instead, I remember the words I said yesterday to my seventh-graders,  "Show up. It gets easier." Instead, I write and show grace to myself. Instead, I remember that blogging is a muscle that I haven't stretched in a while and I need to warm up, I need to take some deep breaths. Here I am. Showing up to the page. I'...