I got to walk in the parade for Abigail Spanberger’s inauguration today with other members of the Virginia Education Association. It was a thrill to be a part of the inauguration of the fist female governor of Virginia.

My school district is adopting new math resources. Our core curriculum will be one of the following: STEMscopes, Kiddom, or Bridges. Anyone have thoughts on those? I believe we will also choose one digital resource: ST Math, IXL, Magma, or DreamBox.

I love a two week break for the winter but that first morning back I do struggle to remember some students’ names.

This short thread is fascinating. I think it well lays out the possible paths for both parties and I'm in full agreement with the end (if deeply concerned about whether or not we can get there).

@triangleman.bsky.social @tracyzager.bsky.social @kassiaowedekind.bsky.social And any other fabulous math people, any good resources on this for upper elementary? Thank you!

In a math meeting with my team of fourth grade teachers discussing our upcoming geometry unit. This is my 28th year of teaching and I still do not feel confident in my understanding of rays, lines, line segments, and such. For better or worse, I am not alone.

I've said it before and I will likely say it again and again, listen to Shana, people.

For the record, I’m not suggesting that teachers aren’t connecting as humans with their students. They are. But the system is making that harder and harder to do.

I’m at @vatll.bsky.social’s annual conference listening to Jody Carrington. She has me realizing that our systemic focus on data has pushed us to focus on teachers as instruction deliverers and assessors and lost them as people who connect with their students.

My new book is now available for preorder and I’m pretty psyched. Writing this book has been a passion project and a joy (and how lucky am I to be able to say that). It’s not due out until late spring/summer but seeing it online is really exciting for me.

This year, in my 28th year of elementary teaching, I am compartmentalized. I teach two groups of fourth graders math and science. My teammates teaches them language arts and social studies. I have fought being in this position for a long time. Now that I'm here, I can't imagine being happier. 1/

In helping a fourth grader with multiplication I reminded him that he could count by 5s to do 9 X 5. That didn’t seem to help so I held up 9 fingers. He gasped with recognition and then said, “I didn’t know I had 9 fingers.”

My fourth graders have learned several of the games from @gfletchy.bsky.social and @tracyzager.bsky.social's Fact Fluency kit for multiplication and division and I love listening in as they play. They love the games and they're skills are growing. The talk as they play is a bonus!

Latest ❤️

I shouldn’t be able to be surprised by anything from this administration, but this story shocked me. Hegseth’s attitudes & plans towards scouts feel like someone who didn’t get to be a part of a group. His response seems like he’s been hurt & he’s lashing out. Military kids need scouts as an option.

My fourth graders are researching planets. They have access to several online sites (Brain Pop, PebbleGo, Britannica School). We checked out a bunch of books from our school library as well. They cheered when I brought out the books. Way to make me love my job, kiddos.

Thank you @triangleman.bsky.social for this short thread and for the work. Ignoring that this is happening may be easy but it leads to a terrifying future.

I love this thread. The power of writing positive notes to others is fantastic. Not for them (although it can be for them) but for the one writing the notes. I write one note to a colleague and two postcards per class (I have two classes) each week. It helps me so much.

Yes, yes, yes. We spend so much time at work with people who may be fine (or may not be) but most of them aren't actual friends. What a gift it is when it happens.

I'm a bit hesitant to share this because there are so many great books here I'd love to win, but I want as many people to donate as possible! This is such a wonderfully generous, thoughtful idea and action.

I am thrilled by Spanberger’s win (and so many wins across Virginia). I am also grateful for this reminder. We have so much work to do.

For two days we've used Slow Reveal Graphs as my fourth graders explore line graphs. As I click to each new image there are loud gasps. It makes my day.

I came across this in this article, which has a link to the study.

I just can't with what education is to so many people currently. Students don't test as well when it is hot? So time tests when the temperatures are cooler and invest in HVAC systems. Seriously? Maybe we could, instead, consider placing less emphasis on tests that can be impacted by temperature.

That’s the kind of kneejerk dismissive advice that makes me violent. Telling people to just grow their own food is tantamount to telling them to eat cake.

Please! Come on, professionals!

On my way to San Francisco to see my sister for a long weekend and that brings me so much joy. All my travel taking place during the No Kings rallies and missing them on both coasts makes me sad. Thank you all for sharing signs and stories and for being out there and standing up!

This is a fabulous thread giving some really important context to go beyond the hype that is everywhere.

I will miss her. I've listened to NPR for a significant majority of my life and her voice and stories are treasures.

We are in the 8th week of school and I finally have a system for all of my stuff that means my “desk” can be clear! (Desk is a bit of a misnomer because it serves that purpose and it’s also a place I use to meet with small groups.)

why are we pretending that race shouldn't be predominant when remedying racism? it's the same problem I've always had with affirmative action being about "diversity" rather than quotas. AFFIRMATIVE ACTION SHOULD BE ABOUT QUOTAS. REMEDYING RACISM IN VOTING SHOULD CONSIDER RACE PREDOMINANTLY.

30 years ago I worked on a cruise ship and got to travel more than I’d ever dreamed possible. I can still remember the feeling entering cities like Istanbul where armed military personnel were noticeable. It was disconcerting. Seeing the same in US cities now (we saw this in DC last week) is scary.

It is done and seems to be working fine.

We have needed to replace the light/fan in our bedroom for quite some time. (They stopped working by remote so we pulled the chains. The fan stopped working so I use a floor fan. The chain on the light broke so now it's just art hanging from our ceiling.) This will be a test of our marriage.

This is an important question and I feel like Shana usually gets responses so that makes me think there haven't been any noticeable protests. Can anyone shed light?

I am struggling with this. 1. I still cut out the paper crossword puzzles and mail them to my 98 year old grandmother. 2. I want investigative reporting to still exist. Who do I send my money to these days? (NPR is still on my list. I may go back to the Atlantic and Mother Jones.)

If I never hear another thing about 99 Nights in the Forest I will still have heard about three lifetimes too much.

I'm realizing that a big part of starting every school year is deciding what hill I'm going to die on at any given moment in my classroom. (Not the big, ongoing hills, the little, daily ones.) Right now it's pushing in our chairs. I am bruised from tripping over stools & chairs out in walkways.

I can't get over how much better my life is because I made a change that makes me happier. I am able to eat healthier, be more focused, and be more present. Not being happy (to small extents and, of course, even more to large extents) can make everything else harder.

I changed schools and districts this year. I nearly doubled my commute. I am happier than I have been in years. Sometimes you need a change. That can make all the difference. Now I can take action in ways I couldn't when I wasn't happy. I didn't have the energy or space in my brain.

My fourth grade team compartmentalizes so I teach two groups of students math and science. My teammate teaches those kiddos language arts and social studies. Said teammate had a birthday yesterday. Mine is tomorrow. I am still, even before tomorrow, more than twice her age.

Listening to @mrchase.bsky.social and @clehmann.bsky.social discuss their book, School 2.0, on it's 10th anniversary is giving me life. That sounds hyperbolic, I know. And maybe it is. But also, these podcast episodes are keeping me moving forward. (When I get more organized I'll link to it. Sigh.)

My 22 year old is doing her student teaching in a high school theatre classroom in a school that bans phones. She is relieved both as a teacher and as a person. She’s on her phone less. She’s more present. She’s spending lunch reading. It’s beautiful.

At Open House today I got to meet many of my fourth graders. One brought me flowers and chocolate and another brought an About Me page they’d completed. I am so psyched about this year. (Students have never brought me anything at Open House so this is exciting.)

The only thing that compares to this is the lists of things you "need" when you're having a baby. It is absurd what people register for and buy that they never end up using because they're told how critical it is.

Possibly unpopular opinion: I think the laser focus on data in education has contributed to deprofessionalizing teachers. I’m not completely anti-data. I am concerned that teachers are not trusted unless they have numbers to prove what they know.

I don’t always find Audrey’s writing easy to read because she is brutally honest about the realities with technology. That’s also why I find her writing so critical to read. It’s important to know.

Our kids are 21 and 18. Yesterday we drove up to NYC, saw three Broadway shows, got up this morning to meet friends for brunch, hit an art museum, and see one more Broadway show. We’re almost home again. These moments are precious as I know they won’t last forever.

This thread feels far too familiar to me. This fall, as I begin my 28th year of elementary classroom teaching, I will be teaching science and math to two groups of fourth graders. I can’t do what we are being told to do in literacy instruction anymore.

I am heading home from the ISTE+ASCD conference in San Antonio and I have mixed feelings. I spent time with amazing people and have a lot to think about. As one who has attended both ISTE and ASCd previously, I’m not sure yet how I feel about the joint conference.