Published inTeachers on Fire Magazine·Dec 1Member-onlyAre You Finding Joy At Work?I had a disagreement with my colleague. “You’re wrong,” I said. “Well, let’s see. You go in THAT door, and I’ll go in THIS one. We’ll see which one is faster!” she replied. We had just come from our lunch, and we were returning to our middle school building on…Teaching2 min readTeaching2 min read
Published inTeachers on Fire Magazine·Oct 11Member-onlyForget Jury Duty-What About “School Duty”?Last week, I was chatting with some friends. Because some of us are teachers, the topic turned to education. And then towards society’s current lack of understanding of how schools work and what many teachers face. One of my friends said, “We don’t just need jury duty. …Teachers3 min readTeachers3 min read
Published inILLUMINATION·Oct 7Member-onlyHow Long Will It Take?Creating A Course Creating a course can be both exciting and overwhelming. You are energized by the ideas, but when you start to sit down and actually plan, you might ask yourself- “How long is this going to take me?!” My short answer is-that depends. Just to give you an…Solopreneur3 min readSolopreneur3 min read
Published inTeachers on Fire Magazine·Oct 5Member-onlyHave You Tried Gamma?I track hurricanes in social studies. We use it to practice latitude and longitude skills each fall during the Atlantic hurricane season. Every single year, students ask me the same question. “Ms. Smith, what happens if two hurricanes collide?” I never took the time to really research the idea because…Teaching2 min readTeaching2 min read
Published inILLUMINATION·Sep 24Member-onlyMy Favorite Tools for Course CreationI have been creating courses for decades, and I have used a lot of different tools in the process. Teaching virtually really expanded my horizons when it comes to new tech tools. I am always open to trying a new tool as long as it suits my needs. So, when…Solopreneur3 min readSolopreneur3 min read
Published inILLUMINATION·Sep 19Member-onlyAre You Webbing?A Great Tool for Course Creation — I love using webs. Some people call them Mind Maps. I’m sure you used on in elementary school. Maybe you used a web to write personal characteristics of a book character. Or, maybe you used one to start the writing process. …Course2 min readCourse2 min read
Published inTeachers on Fire Magazine·Sep 16Member-onlyWhat Task Did AI Fail?Our second week of school is all hustle and bustle. We establish routines. We get to know our students. We have back to school fever. Unfortunately, I had another fever, and it came with pneumonia. I was out of school for over a week trying to recuperate. …AI2 min readAI2 min read
Published inTeachers on Fire Magazine·Sep 5Member-onlyMy Favorite AI Teacher ToolAI is exploding. So many tools are popping up seemingly out of nowhere. If you have been exploring AI, like I have, you may be overwhelmed with all of the different platforms now available. One of my favorites for teachers is MagicSchoolAI. A platform created by educators for educators, MagicSchoolAI…AI3 min readAI3 min read
Published inILLUMINATION·Sep 2Member-onlyAre You Lost in the Weeds?You are an expert. You have spent decades working in your field. You know your topic inside and out. Now, you want to instruct others and share your knowledge. You know you have a lot to offer and really want to dive into all of the concepts, details, and minutiae. …Solopreneur3 min readSolopreneur3 min read
Published inTeachers on Fire Magazine·Aug 27Member-onlyAre You Using AI to Start the New Year?I’ve been playing around with AI for over a year. I recognize its potential to cut through menial tasks in our daily lives. I also have a lot of questions about its impacts based on our use. I do not use AI regularly for my work. Now that many creators…Education4 min readEducation4 min read
