Gradual Gratitude – Emerging from Post-Election Trauma
I couldn’t sleep. I couldn’t eat. I couldn’t think. I hurt, all over. I couldn’t put two words together and the idea of ever being able to write about it seemed impossible. I eventually realized that what I am feeling is indeed grief. I am mourning the loss of the idealistic image I had of our country, of what it could have been, what it should have been, and I am reeling from the injustice of it all.
The elephant and donkey in the room
By Julie Rine, Minerva Local Education Association One of them is a football player for a small college, a former student of mine who sends me a Facebook message when he’s going to be home for a weekend to see …
We can use this election to inspire our students
Gina Daniels H.S. Social Studies Teacher Blacklick, Ohio Donald Trump proclaims that he is qualified to serve in the highest executive position in the land. But in this election season we have heard Trump refer to women as “fat pigs” …
State Superintendent DeMaria responds to a teacher’s letter
Dear Julie: Thanks so much for your message. First, let me say, I hear you! I sympathize with your frustration and am deeply saddened that we find ourselves in a state where teachers are demoralized and feeling demeaned. Your third …
They Weren’t Here When the World Stopped Turning
The events of September 11th can easily be used to teach many common core standards, at least at the high school level. But that’s not why I teach it. For the freshmen who were in my class that day, I am a part of their memories of September 11th, as they are of mine. But the freshmen who are in my classes today have no memory of 9/11; they were not even born yet. We can’t teach our students to feel what we feel when we remember that day, but we can teach them about the beauty of the flags flying on nearly every house for weeks afterward.
How I wound up in Prison and what I did when I got there
Charles Steinbower Library Media Specialist Department of Rehabilitation and Corrections I never intended to wind up as a Library Media Specialist in a Prison Library, but I’ve been working within the Ohio Department of Youth Services for three decades now. …
A Teacher's Open Letter to Ohio's New State Superintendent
Dear Mr. DeMaria, In your summer email to Ohio’s teachers, you noted that you find this to be an exciting time for public education in Ohio. “Exciting” is not the word I would use. “Frustrating” comes to mind as a …
The 8 Olympic Events of Teaching
Clearing the Hurdles: Within weeks, our version of the Olympic games begins: the 2016-2017 school year. The events are numerous and varied, and after a well-deserved break, it’s time to get back in shape for our Games.
Freedom to teach
About five years ago, the superintendent approached me about starting a program to help students to be prepared for the diverse workforce of the 21st century. So I created a class called the Global Leadership Project. It allows students to examine how Fortune 500 companies in Ohio use diversity to outperform their competitors. My approach, as a lifelong educator, is to create and deliver lessons based on real-life experiences that can change lives.
Lockdown for safety
“This would be the perfect day for a school shooting.” My colleague whispered those words to me during AIR testing week, and followed it up with the equally chilling statement, “I have that thought sometimes. I hate it.” She felt that way because we were all out of our routine in classrooms that were not our own, monitoring tests with kids who were not our own students. If anyone had really had the evil inclination to inflict violence upon those at our school, the controlled chaos already in place due to testing could have made us an easier target.
