Category: Teaching
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U is for Unhappy? Not Anymore…
I recently attended a book launch open house where my friend Rob Dunlop celebrated the culmination of four years of work on his book STRIVE for Happiness in Education. Rob is totally on the right track with this book. In a time of such significant upheaval on multiple fronts, his book serves as a balm.…
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T is for Teaching & Time
As a student, I loved learning about everything. I read voraciously which allowed me to see places and meet people I wouldn’t ever be exposed to in real life. I saw patterns and madeconnections across subjects and disciplines which then drove me to learn more. It sparked a curiosity in me about the world which…
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S is for System
“talking about divergent topics in other classes would encourage students to see the interconnectedness of our world”
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R is for Reflection
Mirror, mirror, on the wall… Usually, when we talk about reflection in education we are referring to assessment and evaluation. We evaluate through reflecting, that is, thoughtful consideration (#7) or meditation (#6) on something. Both of these qualify as the action we take as educators to assess and evaluate whether it be our students or…
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Q is for Questions and Not Getting Caught in the Quagmire
A teacher’s job is full of questions; that’s what we do really, live in questions. Answering, asking, composing, rephrasing — all those questions fill our day. And then we ask some more questions — questions that we hope will challenge our students, push them deeper, and foster critical thinking. We perfect our questioning skills to…
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P is for Patience
“If we want to live wider and deeper lives, not just faster ones, we have to practice patience — patience with ourselves, with other people, and with the big and small circumstances of life itself.” M. J. Ryan Have you ever felt frustrated? Exasperated? I think those are pretty natural feelings to experience occasionally but…
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O is for Outside the Box
“Once you stop learning, you start dying.” Albert Einstein We hear the phrase “outside the box” a lot and it can get tedious through overuse. It can also be scary to people who feel they aren’t that creative or who don’t want to be WAY out there. The thing is I don’t mean outside the…
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Empowerment and Star Trek
Today I want to tell you about Sarah. Sarah is a student in my grade 10 academic English class. I don’t have to engage Sarah. She came engaged and ready to learn because she has goals, big goals, laudable goals. But, Sarah struggles in my class sometimes. She has a hard time keeping up with the readings. Sarah has…
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M is for Mindset
There is a lot of talk about mindset in education today, and I agree, it is important; I just think that we put too much emphasis on only one type of mindset and we need to broaden our scope. I see mindset on three levels that are interdependent, picture three concentric circles if you will.…
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L is for Light
The darkest hour is just before the dawn. Let there be light. (A teacher’s life) Dawn Illuminate, elucidate, fill with curiosity and wonder. Morning Bring to light. Use a light touch. Trip the light fantastic. midday Light bulb moment. Brilliance, radiance. Afternoon See the light. Blaze, glare, dazzle. Understanding, enlightenment. Sunset See things in a different light.…
