“I won’t bullshit you and tell you this stuff is essential to your futures.”

Somewhere Between: Blog Post to Twitter Thread

1)Sometimes I worry, if there is such a place, and the ed fundamentalists have their way, I am probably going to Teacher Hell. 2)And while my sins have added up over the years (especially lately), they’ve always been from a place of good intentions.

And I had those same good intentions in mind yesterday as I sat down to begin brokering a deal with the devil between two of my students and me.

Quit the stick...
1) I am of the firm belief that we do not need to stress kids out with our policies. Our policies. As teachers we decide what’s possible and what’s impossible. So, whenever I can, I choose possible. And though I know some would argue that I am not preparing 2) kids for the “real world,” I am not inclined to subscribe to that line of thinking. In fact, it has been my experience that most deadlines, including tax deadlines, can be negotiated, can be extended. Teachers negotiate their evaluation/observation deadlines with principals

1)On learning. For 23 years I’ve taught a lot. That I know. But whether that meant my kids learned a lot...I don’t know that. Well, at least not with the certainty I’d like. If I teach, does that mean they learn? I’m not so sure. Recently, on a date with my wife, the art teacher 2)I found myself at the pottery wheel. The goal: learn to throw a piece of pottery. I had patient, expert instruction. The instructor, not my wife, modeled for us in a step-by-step process, pausing to check for understanding, fielding questions, giving tips, etc. Once we

1) Ate--choked on--some humble pie today. Long story, but stumbled upon a recent comment from a former student (13 years ago) on Facebook, who remarked that she found it funny that so many regarded me so highly when she thought I was a bully who made fun of her. Bully. Me? 2)The notion that I had hurt a young lady hit me hard. It hit me harder that I had no idea. No idea. That's terrifying. As I thought back on our experience, what I thought was banter, she thought was bullying. It hit me hardest that she had been living with that all this time.

Long Thread🤷‍♂️1) There is no one way in education. Of that, I am certain. For 23 years I have been looking for it, but in my search, all that I have found is a way, which becomes my way, until I find a better way, which then steps aside for the next way. There is no WAY. 2) Today, we see more ways than ever because of the work we share, ranging from the conventional to the crazy. And platforms like Twitter have revealed this in ways unthought of when I began my career in the fall of ‘96. Then, “ways” were found in books and PD pushed and

Meg fell asleep in class yesterday. I let her. I didn't take it personally. She has zero-hour math, farm-girl chores, state-qualifying 4X400 fatigue, adolescent angst, and various other things to deal with. My class is only a part of her life, not her life. No, she did not use her time wisely in class yesterday. She didn't get her essay turned in. She knew that. I knew that, but I didn't beat her up about it. Didn't have to. She emailed it to me last night at 9:00 PM. On her own. I know we all somewhat subscribe to this notion that there's a right way