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.
Apr 07
May 5 is the midterm and June 18 is the last day of school. By midterm and by the end of the term students and parents will get a progress report like I always provide. I can print out paper copies for families that don’t have Internet at home but remember that I publish my …
Permanent link to this article: https://educatoral.com/wordpress/2010/04/07/midterm-and-end-of-term/
Mar 20
Monday, March 22, 2010, students were given copies of their final grades for the 2nd trimester. Students received a progress report along with a letter for parents. I drafted that letter after an earlier blog post I wrote about grades. I’ve come to the decision that grading my students is doing harm. Based on conversations …
Permanent link to this article: https://educatoral.com/wordpress/2010/03/20/change-in-grading-policy-for-mr-gs-science/
Permanent link to this article: https://educatoral.com/wordpress/2010/03/16/mr-gs-glog/
Mar 06
An Open Letter to Educators (check it out): If you thought that was good this response is also pretty darn good!
Permanent link to this article: https://educatoral.com/wordpress/2010/03/06/worth-the-watch/
Mar 06
I came across this great publication called Reversing Readicide. It’s a must read for educators who see their students turned off to reading. It’s also a must read for parents who are noticing their children getting turned off to reading. The article lists four factors that cause readicide in our students and gives ideas to …
Permanent link to this article: https://educatoral.com/wordpress/2010/03/06/read-this-about-readicide/
Mar 06
As our 2nd trimester comes to an end and I prepare final grades I’m left wondering if grades and marks like grades help or hinder learning. I began to wonder about grades and homework after reading some articles written by Alfie Kohn. After reading, Changing the Homework Default I bought Kohn’s book, The Homework Myth …
Permanent link to this article: https://educatoral.com/wordpress/2010/03/06/do-grades-help-or-hinder-learning/
Feb 21
When teachers use Twitter they form Professional Learning Networks or PLNs with hundreds and sometimes thousands of other teachers. What an incredible way to share resources and discuss current topics facing educators. A quick Google search defines a PLN as “a vibrant, ever-changing group of connections to which teachers go to both share and learn.” …
Permanent link to this article: https://educatoral.com/wordpress/2010/02/21/plns-and-plcs/
Feb 15
Thanks to @web20classroom, @ShellTerrell, and @tomwhitby for hosting a great session this morning with Alfie Kohn, @alfiekohn (with backchanneling still going on at #kohnlive), where we got to ask questions about grades, homework, standardized testing, the state of education and reform, and teacher preparation. For those of you who are wondering what the @ symbols …
Permanent link to this article: https://educatoral.com/wordpress/2010/02/15/how-to-motivate-students/
Feb 15
I took this from an email message I shared with teachers. I’ve been dealing with the opposite problem in my classroom as I learn about new web 2.0 tools and can’t use them because they are blocked by our filter. Our tech guy came to my room to help me have access just in my …
Permanent link to this article: https://educatoral.com/wordpress/2010/02/15/to-block-or-not-to-block/
Feb 04
To view the show use the play arrow/triangle at the bottom of the Prezi. Advance from section to section at your speed until you reach the end. It’s pretty cool! Leave me a comment letting me know what you think about Prezi. Mr. G’s Classes on Prezi
Permanent link to this article: https://educatoral.com/wordpress/2010/02/04/my-prezi/
I'm a Curipod Ambassador! :)
I've presented at NCCE
2016, 2017, 2019, 2022,
2023, 2024, and 2025!
I presented at WSTA 2015!
