Augmentative and Alternative Communication is Giving Non-Verbal Students a Voice in Mainstream Classrooms

Dear Novice Teacher: An Open Letter About What You Really Need To Know For a Successful Teaching Career

Road sign with three arrows and Decisions Ahead

Dear Novice Teacher, New Teacher, Seasoned Teacher, or Teacher Considering Leaving the Profession; We need you. Don’t go. You are here for a reason. We are in a profession where things go wrong, things seems too tough, we see things that break our hearts. We ache alongside those who are grievously wronged. We cry with…

I Never Forgot What It Felt Like to Struggle in School… So I Decided to Become the Teacher I Always Wished I Had

During my K-12 years I had one simple career goal. Anytime anyone would ask me that age-old question that adults always feel compelled to ask young ones, my answer came reflexively: a lawyer. Probably not what you were expecting me to say, huh? Even though learning was challenging for me, the dream pushed me. The…

The Issue of Bullying Students with Disabilities Hits Particularly Close to Home for Me

There comes a time in the life of every person when we have to make a decision: accept what is wrong or change what is wrong. If we choose the latter, we may choose to stand alone in our efforts. If we choose the former, we might just be contributing to the perpetuation of a…

Is Becoming a Principal Really All It’s Cracked Up to Be?

Assuming you already have your bachelor’s degree in education, a teaching license and have spent a handful of years teaching in the classroom, you can start taking the steps it takes to become a principal. The next step is to start earning an advanced degree in school administration, pass your state’s credentialing exam and obtain…

Prom Night for Our Special Needs Students – How We Brought a Little Magic to a Difficult School Year

When we were at the early heights of the pandemic, I was granted a transfer from my long-held elementary special education gig to one at my district’s high school. I would go from working with students who were, for the most part, in need of significant academic support to working with kids in need of…

As We Begin Year Two of the Pandemic, It’s Time to Talk About the Mental Health of Our Students and Teachers

Last week my school’s second semester began. My paraprofessional and I were talking about how time flies when I said, “I feel like we’re all doing okay. Everyone’s working their guts out, but we’re halfway to summer vacation. Dang, we’re good.” She just stared at me. The pregnant pause was just too much. “Are you…

Rising Above the Pandemic to Make the Rest of the School Year Great for the Students We Teach

Winter break is finally here and I’m exhausted. My colleagues are worn out. My administrators are ready for a rest. We’re pooped. But we feel a sense of satisfaction that in a year that will go on record as the ultimate crapfest, we’ve done our best to make it as great as we possibly can…

Giving Teachers the Tools and Training They Need to Better Support Behavior Management Efforts In the Classroom

A friend and I were enjoying one of our occasional FaceTime chats. We are both special education teachers and we are both from Michigan. She had called me to tell me she’d recently read about a decision made by the Sixth District Court of Appeals regarding a school district in west Michigan. In the…

Returning to School in the Midst of a Pandemic: One Teacher’s Perspective

The inevitable is upon us. After months and months of rising and falling data about the ill, the potentially ill, and the dead… being quarantined and wearing masks is still, advisably, the best option for prevention. So it would make sense, then, that we’re heading back to school. Oh, wait... I have my opinion on…