Tag: education

• To the Beat of the Hallways

  Feb 18

  Working at a school—regardless of your position—comes with its own brand of daily adventure.  Teachers plan lessons. Counselors balance emotions. Secretaries manage the pulse of the front office. Custodians keep… more ›

• Like Molding Clay, But With Words Instead

  Feb 5

  When I first started my blog, I had a very clear vision for it. It was going to be my place to offer observations, rapid reactions to issues in education,… more ›

• Too Deep for a Tuesday

  Feb 4

  I am not a philosophical person—though I do seem to spend a fair amount of time thinking on a philosophical level, which feels like a technicality philosophers would absolutely argue… more ›

• The Art of School Discipline

  Jan 30

  (Or: Why Your Kid Probably Isn’t a Villain, But Also Isn’t Perfect Either) There’s a part of me that’s always been a storyteller. I’ve spent years watching the chaos of… more ›

• The Noise of Learning

  Jan 29

  I used to think learning was supposed to be quiet.Neat. Orderly. Predictable. But in my world, it never sounded that way. It sounded like pencil scratches in the margins of… more ›

• Several Hundred Words Later

  Jan 27

  We’ve all been there. Not as heroes, not as villains—just as silent witnesses to someone else’s emotional eruption. That strange moment when you realize you’re no longer part of a… more ›

• The Algorithm on Main Street

  Jan 23

  In Calexico, stories used to travel slowly. They moved on bicycles and sneakers, through chain-link fences and across dusty backyards. They passed through kitchens where tortillas puffed on comales and… more ›

• Standards, Grades, and Other Things We Pretend We All Agree On

  Jan 15

  I sat through an administrator’s “clinic” the other day—one of those gatherings where the coffee is strong, the chairs are unforgiving, and the words learning standards are spoken with near-religious… more ›

• Coffee First. Then People.

  Jan 9

  Coffee first. Then people. This isn’t a lifestyle choice. It’s a safety protocol.  Somewhere between waking up, getting ready for work, unlocking the classroom door, and logging into email, caffeine… more ›

• The Hierarchy of Everyday Life (According to an Overcaffeinated Educator)

  Nov 13

  Or: A Day in the Life of Someone Who Wakes Up Already Tired Let’s be honest: adulthood is basically a group project where nobody knows what’s going on, and the… more ›

• Why We’re Holding the Line on Phones and Dress Code

  Sep 12

  As both a parent and a school administrator, I often stand at the intersection of two worlds. At home, I want my own kids to laugh with their friends, make… more ›

• First Days Without Cell Phones in School

  Aug 19

  Over the past few years, it’s become obvious: our students were living in two worlds at once—the real world, and the endless scroll. Heads down, thumbs flying, eyes glued to… more ›

• The Glorious Absurdity of the First Day

  Aug 13

  Ahhhh… the first day of school. The crown jewel of the academic year. And this time, it comes after professional learning. Two glorious, soul-crushing days where you learned… well, you’re… more ›

• “What’s in a Name?” A Late Show Monologue for the Mispronounced, the Well-Meaning, and the Forever Traviesos

  Aug 2

  You ever notice how the first day of school feels like the opening scene of a courtroom drama? The teacher walks in with the roster, everyone’s watching, and the tension… more ›

• Year 26

  Jul 31

  25 years as an educator—and at least a dozen more before that coaching, mentoring, running camps, leading arts programs, and engaging in general kid-centered monkey business (some of which may… more ›