Education
Design Thinking Could Be a Game Changer for Students
9shares Facebook Twitter Google+ Pinterest LinkedIn Once in a while, I hear something that stops me in my tracks. I recognize I’ve just heard a life-changing idea. One of them surfaced this year. During a recent Twitter chat I participated in, one of the educator participants asked a question: “Have you heard of design thinking?”…
Continue ReadingFive Ways to Manage Disrespect from Students Today
42shares Facebook Twitter Google+ Pinterest LinkedIn During the 2017-2018 school year, more educators asked me for ideas about managing disrespectful students than any year in my memory. One teacher told me a student in her class was slouching and drifting off to sleep. She walked over to him and requested he sit up straight and…
Continue ReadingA Letter to My Kids’ Teachers at Midterms
13shares Facebook Twitter Google+ Pinterest LinkedIn The fall semester is halfway done, and students are entering midterm exams. Ahhh—there’s nothing like the fall, with high pressure fronts coming in with colder weather, in addition to high pressure expectations among our students. I also believe this time of year is a perfect period to evaluate our…
Continue ReadingLet’s Make Common Sense Common Again
32shares Facebook Twitter Google+ Pinterest LinkedIn Sometimes, I don’t know whether to laugh or to cry when I read some news stories today. Our world is more educated, more sophisticated, more modernized and more industrialized than ever before—but in our race to make progress, we often leave one important quality behind: common sense. Webster defines common…
Continue ReadingThe Nobility of Working with Students
10shares Facebook Twitter Google+ Pinterest LinkedIn I recently led a workshop for administrators at a university. Attendees were college deans, vice presidents, heads of schools and high school principals. When I placed them in small discussion groups and posed the question, “What changes do you plan to make this year?” I overheard one administrator say…
Continue ReadingOne Cause of Entitled and Fragile Adults
36shares Facebook Twitter Google+ Pinterest LinkedIn A news story broke recently that made its away across the country. At first glance, I couldn’t believe it. My guess is—many of you heard about it. A Florida teacher was fired for refusing to comply with the school’s “No Zero” policy. This means, the school administration has created…
Continue ReadingParents Say the Darndest Things to Educators
5shares Facebook Twitter Google+ Pinterest LinkedIn Most teachers would say they collaborate well with their student’s parents. Every year, however, teachers report some of the craziest requests parents make on behalf of their kid. Some of these true stories include the following: “I had a parent (and her son) who refused to sign my rules…
Continue ReadingThe One Soft Skill That Can Make or Break a Person
19shares Facebook Twitter Google+ Pinterest LinkedIn A new survey was taken among both educators and parents—which revealed that each has different perspectives when it comes to our kids. We gain a fresh perspective when we see life from the classroom as well as the family room. Both teachers and parents, however, agree on one thing…
Continue ReadingFour Discoveries Students Should Make in Health Class
1shares Facebook Twitter Google+ Pinterest LinkedIn Do you remember health class back in middle school and high school? I recall taking the class back in the 1970s—and it was a period different from all the others. Unlike my other classes such as Algebra, English, History or Social Studies, it was a 55-minute period that allowed…
Continue ReadingFive Steps to Ensure a Positive Mood
15shares Facebook Twitter Google+ Pinterest LinkedIn The one thing I hated most about my leadership in my early career was the unpredictability of my moods. I don’t think I was unusually moody, but I was aware that my disposition—sometimes volatile—affected the team I led. No doubt, they often wondered: Is this a good day to…
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