Picture it: period 1 in our school. I bet it’s earlier than yours – we’re talking 7:08am. Bleary-eyed but excited by possibility,…

It has been said that “competition makes us faster, but collaboration makes us better.” In a field in which we easily interact…

My 9th grade English teacher had us write letters to ourselves. Who we were at that moment, what we liked, what we…

Like you, I’m a New Yorker, only a New Yorker from a different time.

I’ve been doing a lot of thinking lately. Unfortunately, not a lot of writing.

Aesthetic Force, defined: quite literally, the power of art to move you.

It occurred to me that I should / could now – finally – envision my way to the end of the semester…

It’s 6:02am and I’ve been awake since 4:30. Maybe you are, too. I’m guessing you’re with me, if not physically, then likely…

My classroom is an extension of my heart. Everything I have put into it: the furniture, the background music, the posters on…

In my last blog post, Part I, I shared student thoughts and sentiments that they produced in a letter-writing activity for a…

So, NYSEC colleagues, here are unedited excerpts of what our charges have on their minds, courtesy of my high school group who…

This year I decided that my personal professional learning and development was going to focus on writing: teaching writing, being a writer,…

A few weeks ago I got into a conversation about YA books with a dear friend who’s a mom to two young…

Last Thursday I skipped class with three of my English teachers. We did not sleep in, have cocktails with lunch, or squeeze…

March is a month of change. It is a month of winds blowing – some bringing snow and ice, some sleet and…

In my previous post – Part I of this two-part blog – I wrote about how my teaching has evolved over the…

With all the hoopla around renewals, revisions, and resolutions, I found myself looking back over my newest journal begun a few months…

Sometimes, the hardest thing to do is to take a first step. First serious interview, first day of a new workout, first…

If you’re anything like me, you’re a tad overwhelmed at a conference. Some or all of these questions might race through your…

Regardless of your personal perspective on who is or is not truthful, how we present ourselves for public consumption is part of…

I am lucky that I live only 1.9 miles from the school where I teach. I mean, who can beat that commute,…

Teachers look forward to summer for many reasons: a time to reflect and rejuvenate, a time to spend with family, a time…

I have never broken a leg. When one of my students walks into my classroom on crutches, I do not know the…

I remember going off to college and looking for posters to hang in my dorm room, and when I came across All…