Text Coding for Struggling Readers

By: Michelle Areaux | Aug 24, 2016

All educators are thrown different reading strategies that are supposed to close the gap with our reluctant and struggling readers. Every year it seems a new and powerful method is developed that will be the saving grace all teachers dream for. As wonderful as that sounds, many of us understand ...
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5 Trends in Professional Development We Must Think About

By: Jon Konen | Aug 23, 2016

We know that professional development of a teaching staff is the number one strategy to increase student achievement. In fact, I believe in it so much that I devote over 1/3 of my budget on professional development. Looking at the ways in which teachers like to receive the professional development ...
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The Power Of Positive Thought

By: Maury Cook | Aug 22, 2016

Michael Jordan was cut from his basketball team around his sophomore year of high school. Imagine if he had listened to the person who told him he was not good enough and decided to play baseball instead. What would the outcome have been? Would Air Jordan exist? I wonder…. As ...
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212 Degrees of Customer Service in Education

By: Jon Konen | Aug 17, 2016

Dr. Bill Daggett preaches, “Culture trumps strategy!” How do we get our whole school to focus on culture? Let’s take the school’s temperature…If 100 degree is warm, than 212 degrees is boiling! Customer service in education may not seem foreign to many educators, but this is what we do every ...
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5 Strategies to Teach Children Patience That My Dad Taught Me

By: Jon Konen | Aug 8, 2016

Can you teach patience? I think you can! Having an amazing dad that is the epitome of patience has taught me a lot. Staff members wonder why I don’t get rattled when a kid yells, screams, or even tries to throw stuff at me when they are frustrated. It goes ...
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A New Normal – Explaining Loss to Child with Special Needs

By: Mary McLaughlin | Aug 1, 2016

Last week I enjoyed the best kind (in my mind) of vacation:  a beach vacation. The opportunity to sit and watch the waves crash to shore in a pulsing, cacophonous, capacious rhythm which makes my heart happy, my mind relax, and my body become serenely placid. Ahh…the joys of getting ...
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Being a Team Player

By: Tricia Koechig | Jul 29, 2016

We have all heard it said, “There is no I in team.” Football, basketball, soccer, and hockey are just a few sports that you simply can’t play alone. Even “solo” sports have more than just one person involved. Most people involved in solo sports have a coach. Similarly, the teaching ...
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Not 400:1, But 400 1:1s – 21 Tips to Form Strong Kid Relationships

By: Jon Konen | Jul 29, 2016

Ratios can be valuable pieces of data, if used correctly. Math gets in our way sometimes of seeing what truly is meaningful in education. We track assessment data, individual education plans, and even formative data on how students respond in science classes.  The data we can’t track are the intangibles, ...
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Caring Communication

By: Tricia Koechig | Jul 8, 2016

Communication has been defined as “the act or process of using words, sounds, signs, or behaviors to express or exchange information or to express your ideas, thoughts, feelings, etc. to someone else (Merriam-Webster).”  Communication takes place from the time of your birth and throughout your entire life. There are many ...
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Professional Development: How Sweet It Is

By: Mary McLaughlin | Jul 7, 2016

I am a professional development junkie. I love it. It’s like a pan of homemade Rice Krispie treats for me…I don’t get to have it often enough and oh! That deliciously rice flavor. When it’s done well, I can’t wait for more because of its sweetness and a wonderful, lingering ...
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