Categories
Random Thoughts

The View From Here

Much like my friend here, I feel as though I’m poking my head out of the den after a long period of hibernation. I had intended to write more and make more additions to the website over the past year, but then I discovered that I actually enjoyed being retired. Most people who know me […]

Categories
Gratitude

Nina Fohner

“Unthankfulness is theft” – Martin Luther A few years ago I blogged about some of the remarkable influences in my life. With my teaching career in the rear-view mirror, I thought that I would return to that thread – focusing on gratitude. I attended West Hillsborough Elementary School in the San Francisco Bay Area. One […]

Categories
Random Thoughts

Sunrise

Early in my teaching career, I did a lot of cycling in the countryside. Though I have always been physically active, the cycling eventually took a backseat to work and parenthood. I have been fortunate to retire with my health intact, and one of the things I am doing is returning to that love of […]

Categories
Teaching

So, You Want a Website?

One of the questions that I most frequently field from fellow teachers is, “How do I go about creating a website like yours?” In fact, I’ve spent so much time responding to this question over the years that I’ve decided to post a response to the question here I won’t waste your time with a […]

Categories
Teaching

Beware the Iceberg

Teachers and students – beware of the iceberg. You just said “yes” to another request for your time and expertise. Do you know what you really agreed to? The image of an iceberg has been beaten to death as a metaphor for everything from “Motivation” to “Socio-Emotional Wellness”. Bear with me as I add to […]

Categories
Teaching

Ladder Safety

If “Ladder Safety” seems like a strange topic for a teaching blog, I must say that I concur. Several years ago, my school district began providing some required inservice training through an online video format. Topics included important subjects like mandated reporting of abuse, blood borne pathogens, and harassment in the workplace. In the Fall […]

Categories
Teaching

The Harvest Gold Fridge

When I transferred to El Diamante High School is 2003, I moved into a science room that had not been used, because the school had just opened the previous year. Each science room had its own prep room (wasteful) with its own fume hood (wasteful) and its own refrigerator bay (heaven!). This post is a […]

Categories
Teaching

Retirement

June of 2019 brought retirement after thirty-three years in Visalia classrooms, and a total of thirty-eight years of educating teenagers. The decision did not come easily, but I am certain that it was the right decision. I won’t burden the reader with my thought process – it was highly personal. It is enough to say […]

Categories
Teaching

Instructional Acceleration

Acceleration is the rate of change in the rate of change. This entire school year has been a year for embracing change. Anyone in this profession for the long-haul had better get used to change, and to an ever increasing rate of change in the rate of change. Prepare for instructional acceleration. During this school […]

Categories
Teaching

First, Do No Harm

Another school year already brings us another notable classroom chemistry accident. Once again, “the Rainbow Experiment” has claimed victims, this time at a high school in Virginia. After 30 years of teaching science, including 28 years of teaching chemistry, I am done “playing nice” on the subject of safety. Let me start by saying that the […]