Every summer break I had great plans. I was going to work out every day, paint my condo, read all those teaching books I meant to read, travel to new places, plan the first month of the school year. Oh yeah, and sleep. When summer […]
When I was teaching, my goal was to only have 2 crying kids per semester. I’m a sympathetic crier, so it gets awkward real quick. 😭 But when I started teaching seniors, the number of cryers increased. I needed more tissues. The stakes were high […]
My mom grew up in Chicago, IL. It’s not called the “Windy City” for nothing. Located right off of Lake Michigan, the wind blew coal dust and dirt into her family’s house all winter long. She remembers having to spring clean the house from top […]
I hate being late. For anything. A party, an appointment, a TV show, class. (Don’t even get me started on how to switch classrooms, use the bathroom, and prep my new classroom for class all in 7 minutes.) I love being on time and always […]
“Um, why are you taking out your cell phone in class? You know it’s against the rules.” “Yeah, but I want to take a picture of the homework you wrote on the board. I won’t be able to write it down before class ends and […]
A few years ago, I asked for a Fitbit for my birthday. I’d stopped exercising during a particularly stressful year. And, no surprise, I gained weight and my stress level rose. So, I decided to change my habits. I started tracking my steps with the […]
New Year = New You! You know you’re going to see that phrase all over the TV, your Instagram feed, and from well-meaning people in the next few weeks. As if the calendar changes and a new person comes to take your place. While you […]
Every year I was in college, William & Mary (Go Tribe!) gave us students a giant desk calendar. “Thanks for all the tuition money. Here is a calendar worth $2.54.” For most people, it went on their desk and was promptly forgotten. However, I didn’t […]
When I first got my own place, I had no money. (Spoiler alert: New teachers don’t make much money.) Consequently, much of my furniture came second-hand or from Ikea. One of the reasons I love Ikea, other than price, is its size. I lived in […]
For two years, I taught in four (yes, four) different classrooms. The school was overcapacity. As a new teacher at the school (and lowest on the totem pole) I had to move from room to room. After 12 years of always teaching in my own […]
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