After An Educator's Journey
Out of the classroom & into the universe
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Once upon a time, I taught 2nd, 3rd, and 4th graders. Now I’m retired and working on new ventures.
Author: amybisson
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About 3 years ago now I spent a winter-spring weeding and reorganizing the library in my classroom. Lots of people have lots of ways to do this — and lots of reasons for what they do. The first thing I did was to throw/recycle or donate books – relentlessly and without much sentiment. I teach…
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A while ago, our Literacy Coach began talking to us about revisiting notebooks as a means to developing writers and authors. I’m possibly the last person in education to discover Aimee Buckner and Notebook Know-How, but I am so glad I have made that connection. Not being a writer myself or at least not a…
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Often I excuse my compulsive need to read and research all things educational with “I don’t have a life.” It is true that my child has long grown past needing me as a parent – I no longer do homework or nag to complete projects or carpool to sports. So I don’t have obligations or…
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At our faculty meeting this afternoon, we spent some time trying to break down what are the essential characteristics for teachers in this small urban, multi-cultural environment. For most of those around me, with whom I could turn and talk, skill at curriculum was not an over-arching factor. Most of the teachers around me mentioned…
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There are no brackets. There are only anxious and tense teachers and students. Stressed to the maximum. And the cracks are starting to show. We are in the middle of our test marathons. Last week it was MEPA – Massachusetts English Proficiency Assessent, given to 15 out of my 22 children to assess their growth…
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I was sucked in almost the very minute we – Adrien and I – went to a talk at the New England Genealogy and History Society’s Library on Newbury Street in Boston. For a while, I would go in to Boston almost weekly and, while Adrien poured over the Drouin Index for his French Canadian…
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In the past week I’ve received two unsolicited email messages “signed” by Michelle Rhee on behalf of some group called “Students First”. You know Michelle Rhee of “Waiting for superman…”, former chancellor of the DC schools. Queen of soundbites. I’ll leave the blow-by-blow rebuttal of her craptastic plans for “improving” education (just send me $10…
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It’s tax time and time for the annual review, in our house at least, of where we spent our monies last year. I usually provide our accountant with a spreadsheet of anything that we can clearly deduct which includes the amount of money I spend on school. Some years that is a painful profess. I…
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Sometimes, though not that often lately, we have fun. Lots of schools mark Dr. Seuss’ birthday with Read Across America celebrations. Even though it was low key, we did too! Our special visitor and guest reader was my husband, Adrien. We dug up a book that loosely connects to his career as a photographer, Snowflake Bentley. Bentley…
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It caught my eye immediately as I was scanning yesterday’s Globe: Dr. Jack Shonkoff’s interview. Dr. Shonkoff is the Director of the Center on the Developing Child at Harvard University. So what is toxic stress and why be concerned. Well, as I’ve recently learned, there impact of cortisol, the brain’s response to stress, cannot be…
After An Educator's Journey 