Empowerment

The American Dream. The daily grind. Bringing home the bacon. No matter what you want to call it, it’s what inspires us to pursue an education, pushes us to work, and motivates us to make our dreams a reality. I was influenced by…

Let’s face it: school can be hard. Material can get complicated even for first graders (English spelling rules, anyone?) and technology entering the classroom doesn’t always make it easier. For many students, schoolwork is an uphill climb that never seems to stop and,…

A few weeks ago, my family and I spent an afternoon at the lake. It was a hot day, and the fresh water was the perfect refuge from the sunbeams beating down on us. At one point, I took out a small kayak…

Between birthdays, holidays, hand-me-downs, and allowance splurges, there’s nothing kids cycle through faster than toys. (Except clothes. Maybe.) While I don’t have kids of my own, I distinctly remember every Christmas from my childhood—including the incredible boredom I’d feel halfway through Christmas break.…

Part of helping our children grow up to be well-balanced, contributing members of society is helping them understand what is going on in the world around them. And helping them understand that they can always help make the world a better place. Of…

It’s scary being a kid. Growing up in a world as warm and colorful as our own is exciting, but all that excitement can get overwhelming, especially when trying new things. And when kids get overwhelmed, they cry. It’s natural for children to…

Poetry: you either love it or hate it. Personally, I love it—and my first grade students did too. Every Monday for an hour, our classroom turned into a Writer's Workshop. My students spent the first bit writing their own original poetry, after which…