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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Okay, while I don’t like to have to make them up, we needed this snow day. Every school year needs one. And this one is a lollapolloza. The weather dudes predicted it way in advance. And while no one believed them (the last 2 snowstorms were duds), they stuck to their forecasts. Our current superintendent…
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They make me laugh some times. In all seriousness, one of my students asked me “Mrs. Bisson, is a hellno bad?” What? And my little friend repeated the question patiently. Now this student who came to us last year from Gambia, speaks with a heavily African influenced accent. Perhaps I’m not hearing her? So I…
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One of my New Year’s Resolutions – the list is really long! – is to try not to be such a control freak about what we do in the classroom. I’m letting go of the idea that I need to be at school before 6:30 am (our school begins at 8:30) and that I can’t…
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It came to me as a sleep-filled message. One of my current charges is a real behavioral headache. This child has witnessed more trauma than anyone should, let alone anyone who is just 9 years old. And, as you might expect, the child has many behavioral tics that get in the way of his —…
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I am not a big fan of New Year’s resolutions. In fact, most years, I just blow them off — why does one day signify the starting point for change more than any other? During this vacation – yet another perk of working in a school system is the week off between Christmas and New…
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It happened that I was sitting at my desk during my lunch, reading the local newspaper, when I spotted an article about new ethics requirements for teachers who receive gifts from students. How ironic that this discovery was on the day before our Holiday break — and that 5 students had given me a Christmas…
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This morning’s Boston Globe contained an article about a (former) software engineer who had recently turned teaching yoga full-time. Struck by similarities to our circumstances, got me thinking about my own career. It is not a secret that recent developments in the field of education are not all that enjoyable for practitioners. We worry if…
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Junia Yearwood is quickly becoming one of my favorite Boston Globe reads. The article, “If Only Visitors Could See My Students“, provides insight into an urban classroom — and warns of the dangers of believing what one reads or learns via the fifth estate. So, here is what visitors might miss in my classroom. The…
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It is my — and their — nemesis: 3.N.8 Select and use appropriate operations (addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division) to solve problems, including those involving money. My students can perform computation into the thousands. We are pretty darn good at it. But toss a word/story problem in their direction and everything falls apart. Why can’t…
After An Educator's Journey 