After An Educator's Journey

Out of the classroom & into the universe

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about

Once upon a time, I taught 2nd, 3rd, and 4th graders. Now I’m retired and working on new ventures.
I taught second, third and fourth graders. Teaching was my passion and joy for 30 years. And it didn’t hurt that they called me “mom” sometimes.

Author: amybisson

  • Homeless children and faces of poverty

    In case you missed it, here is a link to Scott Pelley’s outstanding and heartbreaking story about the effects of homelessness on our children. As a teacher in a high poverty urban public school, I know what he is reporting is true. At least two of my students began the year in hotels; in previous…

  • The Vilification of a Once Respected Profession

    Is there anyone else who is sick of being told they are a money-sucking, taxpayer-draining leech?  The amount of misinformation that pops up in comments on newspaper websites, in the press in general, in conversation is head-shaking to me. After reading Joanna Weiss’s op-ed column in today’s Globe, I decided it would be worth sending…

  • Teaching Report Writing

    Too often, I find the curriculum focus in writing is disconnected and segmented from the rest of the curriculum. Perhaps that is a hazard of attempting to cram in so many genres of writing – all urgently needed – into one school year. Is it any wonder that, from time to time, a genre of…

  • The Elephant in the Classroom

    Things are not always dire or bleak, but looking for a positive after yesterday’s Parent Teacher conferences is fairly challenging. I have 22 students. Ten parents made appointments for a conference period yesterday; the conferences were held between 3 and 5 pm as an alternative to the 6 to 8 pm conferences held in the…

  • Hello, Noah

    I realize that this reference to a classic Bill Cosby routine makes me one big, giant fossil, but I can’t resist making a connection after this week. First of all, is should we all be building arks here in New England? Around my house we have 7 foot snowbanks created after the nonstop deluge of…

  • Snow Days # 6 and #7

    I may have been born in Buffalo, but I hate snow. Hate it and despise it. Since January 3 when we resumed school after the holiday break, we have had 7 snow days. On January 3, our end of school date was June 10. As of this morning, it is June 21. I don’t fault…

  • Circle and Stars

    I don’t remember when I first came across this game — I suspect it was during a Math Solutions Summer workshop week. For certain, it is included in several of the multiplication resources Math Solutions publishes, including the Third Grade Month-by-Month resource. It is empowering to find a game that children can just pick up…

  • More faces, more poverty

    First of all, I want to be clear that I understand poverty crosses over into many, many lives.  I live in an affluent town. A town with a food pantry that is routinely emptied.  People in this town are foreclosed upon, bankrupt, lose homes to tax liens. But what I know is the environment in…

  • Faces of Poverty

    If you look, if you don’t avert your eyes, you can see the effects of poverty and trauma on a person. One of “my” parents happened to come to the classroom this week so I could confirm she was indeed the parent of one of my students. This was so that the student could be…

  • It’s the Vocabulary, Part 2

    I marvel at the quickness with which second language learners pick up on the structure of English. Most of my kids give new constructs a try without too much fear of seeming like they don’t know what they’re doing.  As an aside — and as an Italian/French language” studier”, I wish I could be more…