I teach 5th and 6th grade STEM in the lovely Pacific Northwest in a small, rural town called Chimacum. My goal is to help students discover that all learning is life-long and that 21st century tools can be used for work as well as fun.
Mar 06
Why collaborate? That is the question. Let me focus in a bit on a more specific question. If you, in a middle and a high school, were given the opportunity to meet regularly with your peers why would you want to? What could all the Science teachers in grades 6 through 12 meet about if …
Permanent link to this article: https://educatoral.com/wordpress/2012/03/06/why-collaborate/
Feb 26
I’ve written some posts about awards not being very useful when used as reward and punishment. I’ve written some posts about grades not being very useful when used as reward and punishment. I try to create an environment in my classroom where kids aren’t competing for points or an A but are instead learning and …
Permanent link to this article: https://educatoral.com/wordpress/2012/02/26/not-against-competition/
Feb 25
It was about this time last year that I wrote a blog on some lessons I was learning from my students with regards to blogging and their blogs. I was getting the clue that assigning blog assignments as homework didn’t work. Merely having a tech component wasn’t enticing enough for kids to do school work …
Permanent link to this article: https://educatoral.com/wordpress/2012/02/25/lessons-from-student-bloggers/
Permanent link to this article: https://educatoral.com/wordpress/2012/02/16/awards-as-a-habit/
Feb 14
How cool to get interviewed! Laurie Hansen contacted me for an interview about our WA STEM grant project. It was such a cool experience. Check it out at her blog, Vicariosity. 🙂 Thanks again, Laurie!
Permanent link to this article: https://educatoral.com/wordpress/2012/02/14/interviewed/
Feb 13
Public schools exist to ensure that everyone has an opportunity for an education. An education is supposed to be the equalizer that prepares everyone to achieve their American Dream. Whether your dream is to open your own business, be a doctor, a lawyer, a football star, a baseball star, an actor, a famous musician, or …
Permanent link to this article: https://educatoral.com/wordpress/2012/02/13/school-accountability/
Jan 30
It all started when I read on Twitter about Dan Pink’s Fedex Day post for fostering innovation. This sparked something in many educators. Josh Stumpenhorst initiated an innovation day at his school after another teacher, Matt Langes, tried it. Josh’s innovation day even hit the news and Dan Pink himself contacted Josh! The idea of …
Permanent link to this article: https://educatoral.com/wordpress/2012/01/30/innovation-passion-engagement/
Jan 09
Our WA STEM grant work is coming to an end. My Math and Science middle and high school PLC team has been immersing themselves in the world of social networking by blogging and tweeting for the past year. For some it’s been toe dipping that is becoming a walk up to the hip while other …
Permanent link to this article: https://educatoral.com/wordpress/2012/01/09/blogging-tweeting-wa-stem/
Jan 08
Sometimes, when faced with a tough decision, I choose one that leaves me feeling bad for a long time. I can justify the decision and do so over and over. The reason I have to justify my decision is because it’s one where kids miss out. Every year for the past ten years I’ve been …
Permanent link to this article: https://educatoral.com/wordpress/2012/01/08/tough-decisions/
Jan 06
As teachers, we hope to do more than just teach kids information they need to pass tests and score well on end-of-grade exams. We hope to teach information such that the kids remember it five, ten, and even twenty years later. We hope to imbue students with useful facts and figures and to teach critical …
Permanent link to this article: https://educatoral.com/wordpress/2012/01/06/guest-post-science-that-sticks/
I'm a Curipod Ambassador! :)
I've presented at NCCE
2016, 2017, 2019, 2022,
2023, 2024, and 2025!
I presented at WSTA 2015!
