Inside Bell's Brain

If you know me well, then you know that one of my best (or perhaps worst , depending upon your perspective) qualities is my insatiability for knowledge .  I believe in striving for continuous improvement in all areas of my life, though - admittedly - I am more successful in some areas than others.  But ultimately, I couldn't agree more with John Cotton Dana's quote... That innate push for improvement that compels me to keep going , work harder , do more , and so on, and so on, is what made me perk up when I saw this month's 2getherwearebetter linky theme: Room to Improve .  We're doing a little introspection on our last academic year to decide... (1) What area of your classroom or of your teaching would you like to change or improve in the upcoming school year? (2) What are your plans for changing it ? (3) Seeking blogger and peer input on others' experiences, advice, and feedback to help us in the process. Immediately, I knew what my pos...

I've had many conversations about Common Core State Standards (CCSS) with fellow teachers, concerned parents, and curious friends.  Throughout these conversations, several things kept coming to my mind, so I've had this blog post in my heart for quite some time. With that said, I want to establish that this post is NOT with any single person or conversation in mind .  It is simply a list of ideas that I think should be clearly explained when it comes to Common Core.  Everyone is entitled to his or her own opinions, but I think being able to intelligently discuss issues and explain ourselves is part of what learning and growing is all about.  So here it goes... Establishing a Context In this blog post, I am just talking about the standards themselves.  Historically, states and educational institutions have often received funding or been encouraged to receive funding for this or that initiative.  Many people focus on this funding issue, but my primary co...

Good.  It's such a simple word...one that we probably use 100 times in a single day.  "Be a good girl."  "You're a good boy."  "Do a good job."  "Did you have a good day?"  "This food is good."  When there are seemingly an infinite number of adjectives we could choose, we stick with the word "good."  It's a word I've been trying to eliminate from my vocabulary for quite some time, but probably not for the reason that you think.   I see so many signs, products, and instructional tools that talk about "good" readers and writers.  I think so many of them are wonderful products and great resources for our classes, so I don't want my message to be misconstrued.  But if we tell students that there are "good" readers and writers, what is the implication?  That there are also BAD readers and writers.  That's what concerns me the most.   Some students, and some teachers alike, struggle w...