MzTeachuh: Mother to Son

MzTeachuh: Mother to Son: Mother to Son By Langston Hughes Well, son, I’ll tell you: Life for me ain’t been no crystal stair. It’s had ta...

Mother to Son

By Langston Hughes

Well, son, I’ll tell you:

Life for me ain’t been no crystal stair.

It’s had tacks in it,

And splinters,

And boards torn up,

And places with no carpet on the floor—

Bare.

But all the time

I’se been a-climbin’ on,

And reachin’ landin’s,

And turnin’ corners,

And sometimes goin’ in the dark

Where there ain’t been no light.

So boy, don’t you turn back.

Don’t you set down on the steps

’Cause you finds it’s kinder hard.

Don’t you fall now—

For I’se still goin’, honey,

I’se still climbin’,

And life for me ain’t been no crystal stair.

MzTeachuh: Kids Give Their Opinions Tweets of the Day 5/11/13...

MzTeachuh: Kids Give Their Opinions Tweets of the Day 5/11/13...: 1. "School Time" in New Zealand http://www.edutopia.org/blog/school-time-in-new-zealand-adam-provost   2. The Michael Moo...

Kids Give Their Opinions Tweets of the Day 5/11/13

1. "School Time" in New Zealand

http://www.edutopia.org/blog/school-time-in-new-zealand-adam-provost 

2. The Michael Moore of the Grade-School Lunchroom

http://cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/05/09/the-michael-moore-of-the-grade-school-lunchroom/?smid=fb-share 

3. Executive Function and School Performance: A 21st Century Challenge

http://www.ncld.org/types-learning-disabilities/executive-function-disorders/executive-functioning-strategies-success-teaching-students 

4. The Bullied Teacher

 http://theeducatorsroom.com/2013/05/the-bullied-teacher/

5. Eighth grader: What bothered me most about new Common Core test

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/answer-sheet/wp/2013/05/08/eighth-grader-what-bothered-me-most-about-new-common-core-test/ 

6. Arne Duncan's AERA Speech: Standardized Test Criticism 'Is Merited' 

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/05/02/arne-duncan-aera-speech-standardized-tests_n_3196437.html?utm_hp_ref=fb&src=sp&comm_ref=false 

7. Books by Theme

May Changes

http://www.readingrockets.org/articles/books/c1301/?utm_source=Twitter&utm_medium=Hootsuite&utm_campaign=RRSocialMedia 

 

 

 

MzTeachuh: MzTeachuh's Top Posts of the Week 5/10/13

MzTeachuh: MzTeachuh's Top Posts of the Week 5/10/13: David Mobley Interview with David Mobley, Principal of Desert Trails ES (Trigger School)  http://mzteachuh.blogspot.com/2013/05/inter...

MzTeachuh's Top Posts of the Week 5/10/13

David Mobley

Interview with David Mobley, Principal of Desert Trails ES (Trigger School) 

http://mzteachuh.blogspot.com/2013/05/interview-with-david-mobley-principal.html 

Cinco de Mayo and other Tweets of the Day 5/4/13 

http://mzteachuh.blogspot.com/2013/05/cinco-de-mayo-and-other-tweets-of-day.html 

Kids Developing Skills Tweets of the Day 5/6/13 

http://mzteachuh.blogspot.com/2013/05/kids-developing-skills-tweets-of-day.html

Classroom Adjustments Tweets of the Day 5/5/13 

http://mzteachuh.blogspot.com/2013/05/classroom-adjustments-tweets-of-day-5513.html 

Interacting with Kids Tweets of the Day 5/7/13 

http://mzteachuh.blogspot.com/2013/05/interacting-with-kids-tweets-of-day-5713.html?spref=bl 

Stick ball=physics?

Let's See What We Can Do Tweets of the Day 5/8/13 

http://mzteachuh.blogspot.com/2013/05/lets-see-what-we-can-do-tweets-of-day.html?spref=bl 

 

Teaching, Reading, Living the Positive Tweets of the Day 5/10/13 

Jack and Carrie

http://mzteachuh.blogspot.com/2013/05/teaching-reading-living-positive-tweets.html 

 

MzTeachuh: Teaching, Reading, Living the Positive Tweets of t...

MzTeachuh: Teaching, Reading, Living the Positive Tweets of t...: Jack and Carrie Cariello. Carrie is the author of the book "What Color Is Monday: How Autism Changed One Family for The Better" ...

Teaching, Reading, Living the Positive Tweets of the Day 5/10/13

Jack and Carrie Cariello. Carrie is the author of the book "What Color Is Monday: How Autism Changed One Family for The Better"

1. Kaboom! 

http://www.autismspeaks.org/blog/2013/05/09/kaboom?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+AutismSpeaksBlog+%28Autism+Speaks+|+Official+Blog%29&utm_content=My+Yahoo

2. The Stories for All Project: Latina Author Guadalupe Garcia McCall on Books as Hope

http://blog.firstbook.org/2013/05/08/stories-for-all-project-guadalupe-garcia-mccall/ 

3. Restoring the Soul and Skill of Educators Through Engaged Teaching

http://www.edutopia.org/blog/soul-skill-restoring-engaged-teaching-sel-maurice-elias?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+EdutopiaNewContent+%28Edutopia%29&utm_content=Google+Feedfetcher 

4. Gender Differences Take Center Stage at Autism Conference 

http://www.specialneedsdigest.com/2013/05/gender-differences-take-center-stage-at.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+blogspot%2FLUdSt+%28Special+Needs+Digest%29&utm_content=Google+Feedfetcher 

5. Positive, Not Punitive, Classroom Management Tips

http://www.edutopia.org/blog/positive-not-punitive-part-1-larry-ferlazzo 

6. Examining Blended Learning Models: Student To Community Interaction

http://www.teachthought.com/trends/flipped-classroom-trends/examining-blended-learning-models-student-to-community-interaction/ 

7. Celebrate Children's Book Week 

http://www.teachhub.com/celebrate-childrens-book-week 

Okay, get in the car, we're going to the library!

 

 

 

MzTeachuh: Improved Communication and a Fairy Garden Tweets o...

MzTeachuh: Improved Communication and a Fairy Garden Tweets o...: 1. Can You Read This? http://theeducatorsroom.com/2013/05/can-you-read-this/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign...

Improved Communication and a Fairy Garden Tweets of the Day 5/9/13

1. Can You Read This?

http://theeducatorsroom.com/2013/05/can-you-read-this/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+theeducatorsroom%2FvPKE+%28EducatorsRoom%29&utm_content=Google+Feedfetcher 

2. The Future of Tablets in Education: Potential Vs. Reality of Consuming Media

http://blogs.kqed.org/mindshift/2013/05/the-future-of-tablets-in-education-potential-vs-reality/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+kqed%2FnHAK+%28MindShift%29&utm_content=Google+Feedfetcher 

3. What Happens When Asperger's No Longer Exists? 

http://www.specialneedsdigest.com/2013/05/what-happens-when-aspergers-no-longer.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+blogspot%2FLUdSt+%28Special+Needs+Digest%29&utm_content=Google+Feedfetcher 

4. How to Rejuvenate Yourself and Your Students After Testing

http://www.edutopia.org/blog/how-to-rejuvenate-yourself-students-after-testing-elena-aguilar?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+EdutopiaNewContent+%28Edutopia%29&utm_content=Google+Feedfetcher 

5. Kids in the Garden: How to Make a Fairy Garden

http://childhood101.com/2013/05/how-to-make-a-fairy-garden/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+Childhood101+%28Childhood+101%29&utm_content=My+Yahoo 

6. 10 Brilliant Examples Of Sketch Notes: Notetaking For The 21st Century

http://www.teachthought.com/technology/10-brilliant-examples-of-sketch-notes-notaking-for-the-21st-century/ 

7. May is Better Hearing & Speech Month!

http://special-ism.com/may-is-better-hearing-speech-month/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+Special-ism+%28Special-ism%29&utm_content=Google+Feedfetcher 

 

 

MzTeachuh: Let's See What We Can Do Tweets of the Day 5/8/13

MzTeachuh: Let's See What We Can Do Tweets of the Day 5/8/13:   Stick ball--physics lesson? 1. 5 Less Formal Alternatives To Homework Over Summer Break http://www.teachthought.com/teaching/5-le...

Let's See What We Can Do Tweets of the Day 5/8/13

 

Stick ball--physics lesson?

1. 5 Less Formal Alternatives To Homework Over Summer Break

http://www.teachthought.com/teaching/5-less-formal-alternatives-to-homework-over-summer-break/ 

2. Adult Autism: An Open Letter to the (U.S. House) Committee on Oversight & Government Reform 

http://www.specialneedsdigest.com/2013/05/adult-autism-open-letter-to-us-house.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+blogspot%2FLUdSt+%28Special+Needs+Digest%29&utm_content=Google+Feedfetcher 

3. Sesame Street Meets the App Age: How to Nurture Creative Learning

http://blogs.kqed.org/mindshift/2013/05/sesame-street-meets-the-app-age-how-to-nurture-creative-learning/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+kqed%2FnHAK+%28MindShift%29&utm_content=Google+Feedfetcher 

4. Celebrating My First Teacher: My Mom

https://www.teachingchannel.org/blog/2013/05/06/celebrating-my-first-teacher/ 

5. Failed Promises For Early Education Programs

http://www.npr.org/2013/05/06/181601022/failed-promises-for-early-education-programs?ft=1&f=1013 

6. Meeting the Needs of Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders

http://www.autismspeaks.org/blog/2013/05/06/meeting-needs-children-autism-spectrum-disorders?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+AutismSpeaksBlog+%28Autism+Speaks+|+Official+Blog%29&utm_content=My+Yahoo 

7. A Note from George Lucas: Celebrating Unsung Heroes in Education

http://www.edutopia.org/blog/celebrating-unsung-heroes-george-lucas 

Are you someone's Miss (or Mr.) Jones?

 

 

 

 

 

MzTeachuh: Interview with David Mobley, Principal of Desert T...

MzTeachuh: Interview with David Mobley, Principal of Desert T...: David Mobley, Principal of Desert Trails David Mobley is the current principal of Desert Trails Elementary School, the famous Califor...

Interview with David Mobley, Principal of Desert Trails ES (Trigger School)

David Mobley, Principal of Desert Trails

David Mobley is the current principal of Desert Trails Elementary School, the famous California Trigger School. I interviewed Mr. Mobley about Desert Trails and the events for the school this last schoolyear.

Mr. Mobley was tapped 18 months ago by the Adelanto School District to take over Desert Trails Elementary School during a turbulent time. He was at the District level with Apple Valley Unified School District, having served as principal for many years. He began Vanguard Preparatory Academy, a magnet school several years ago for all students--even behavior problems--with admission based on application order rather than an elite system. Vanguard received a California 'School to Watch' designation this year.

After the 2010 Parent Empowerment Law passed in California, Parent Revolution (a community organizing team funded by Gates Foundation) began working with Adelanto parents to use the Trigger Law for Desert Trails. Mr. Mobley said when he came on staff, parents and teachers were not on the same page.

I asked him how he evaluated the situation. He said first he wished to be transparent, and bring 'common ground' for teachers and parents, reminding them they are 'shooting for the same goal.' Among the splintered staff, there were rumors that caused anxiety. He was as candid as possible about developing moves from the School Board and District as he was informed. During that time, weekly meetings included ones with Parent Revolution.

Because of past low academic performance, Desert Trails needed to develop a plan for school improvement. There was certain money allocated for academic programs. Mr. Mobley said, "We began to dive into it--to find a comprehensive group, not limiting our choices because of money." He worked with the teachers evaluating forty different programs  Finally, Success for All was chosen for Desert Trails this year, as Mr. Mobley told me, because "Of all national studies, Success For All was shown be first and second in quality." The Success For All organization also had funding to compensate for the money needed.

"The students have shown growth with Success for All," Mr. Mobley told me. The program includes evaluating students every six weeks, and placing them at the reading level appropriate for their growth. The teachers also receive frequent observation and pointers from the Success for All team. I have taught the Success for All system--it is very thorough and rigorous. The results from the California Star testing assessments won't be known until August.

Desert Trails School in the High Desert of California

During this schoolyear, there have been bitter court battles concerning the future of Desert Trails while Mr. Mobley and the staff at Desert Trails worked the Success for All program.

The final decision is that the school will be turned to a charter school, beginning August schoolyear 2013-14. Desert Trails will cease to exist June 24, 2013. Desert Trails teachers will be relocated to other schools in the District and several have been let go.

LaVerne Elementary Preparatory School is the Charter that will take over the facilities at Desert Trails. It is sponsored by La Verne University. This group has excellent State testing performance and options for students that include foreign language, music, and sports. Mr. Mobley said at this time, "about 300 students have applied from Desert Trails to attend the charter next year." That's out of 600 Desert Trail students. Students outside the District can also apply, so Desert Trails will not be a neighborhood school anymore.

Next year for David Mobley? He told me he would like to remain in the Adelanto District and "continue to help the teachers, parents and students."

What is he most proud of this year at Desert Trails?  "The students know they have the ability to learn." This comment goes along with his professional and pleasant demeanor that relates a genuine care for teachers, parents and kids.

MzTeachuh: Interacting with Kids Tweets of the Day 5/7/13

MzTeachuh: Interacting with Kids Tweets of the Day 5/7/13:   1. Digital Crossword Puzzles Foster Collaborative Learning http://www.edtechmagazine.com/k12/article/2013/05/digital-crossword-puz...

Interacting with Kids Tweets of the Day 5/7/13

 

1. Digital Crossword Puzzles Foster Collaborative Learning

http://www.edtechmagazine.com/k12/article/2013/05/digital-crossword-puzzles-foster-collaborative-learning?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+EdTechK12+%28EdTech+Magazine%3A+Focus+on+K-12%29&utm_content=Google+Feedfetcher 

2. Thank You, Pseudonymous Bosch! 

http://www.teachhub.com/thank-you-pseudonymous-bosch 

3. Brain's Language Response Predicts Cognitive Ability in Autism 

http://www.specialneedsdigest.com/2013/05/brains-language-response-predicts.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+blogspot%2FLUdSt+%28Special+Needs+Digest%29&utm_content=Google+Feedfetcher 

4. Parents May Devote More Teaching Time to Girls Than to Boys

http://blogs.kqed.org/mindshift/2013/05/parents-may-devote-more-teaching-time-to-girls-than-to-boys/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+kqed%2FnHAK+%28MindShift%29&utm_content=Google+Feedfetcher

5. How To Expand a Successful School Model

 http://www.edutopia.org/stw-global-competence-adminstrator-tips?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+EdutopiaNewContent+%28Edutopia%29&utm_content=Google+Feedfetcher

6. The Epidemic Of Media Multitasking While Learning

http://anniemurphypaul.com/2013/05/the-epidemic-of-media-multitasking-while-learning/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=the-epidemic-of-media-multitasking-while-learning 

7.  Why parents should leave their kids alone

http://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandstyle/2013/may/04/leave-them-kids-alone-griffiths 

My world, my way.

 

 

 

MzTeachuh: Kids Developing Skills Tweets of the Day 5/6/13

MzTeachuh: Kids Developing Skills Tweets of the Day 5/6/13:   1. Using American Sign Language in a MultiSensory Approach to Speech Therapy http://special-ism.com/interested-in-american-sign-lan...

Kids Developing Skills Tweets of the Day 5/6/13

 

1. Using American Sign Language in a MultiSensory Approach to Speech Therapy

http://special-ism.com/interested-in-american-sign-language-for-communication/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+Special-ism+%28Special-ism%29&utm_content=My+Yahoo 

2. Learning Relationships: “Kid’s Can’t Learn From Teachers They Don’t Like”

http://www.teachthought.com/teaching/learning-relationships-kids-cant-learn-from-teachers-they-dont-like/  

3. Is ADHD Actually Undertreated?

http://www.specialneedsdigest.com/2013/05/is-adhd-actually-undertreated.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+blogspot%2FLUdSt+%28Special+Needs+Digest%29&utm_content=Google+Feedfetcher 

4. 5 Must-Have Elements for Every Online Class 

http://www.edtechmagazine.com/k12/article/2013/05/5-must-have-elements-every-online-class?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+EdTechK12+%28EdTech+Magazine%3A+Focus+on+K-12%29&utm_content=Google+Feedfetcher

5. The 7 Most (And Least) Effective Ways To Improve Student Achievement

http://edudemic.com/2013/05/ways-to-improve-student-achievement/ 

6.  My Child Is Struggling with Learning

http://www.ncld.org/stage-related-content/child-struggling-ld 

7. Helping Struggling Readers

http://www.readingrockets.org/helping/ 

 

 

 

 

 

 

MzTeachuh: Best Articles for Educators Week of 5/5/13

MzTeachuh: Best Articles for Educators Week of 5/5/13:   1. Does Class Size Count? http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/05/04/does-class-size-count/ 2. 14 Educational Websites Studen...

Best Articles for Educators Week of 5/5/13

 

1. Does Class Size Count?

http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/05/04/does-class-size-count/

2. 14 Educational Websites Students Will Want to Visit 

http://www.teachhub.com/14-educational-websites-students-will-want-visit?utm_source=bm23&utm_medium=email&utm_term=14+Education+Websites+Students+Will+Actually+Want+to+Visit&utm_content=mzteachuh%40yahoo.com&utm_campaign=Newsletter+5-3 

3. A New Role for Avatars: Learning Languages

http://blogs.kqed.org/mindshift/2013/05/a-new-role-for-avatars-learning-languages/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+kqed%2FnHAK+%28MindShift%29&utm_content=Google+Feedfetcher  

4. The Innate Ability To Learn

http://anniemurphypaul.com/2013/04/the-innate-ability-to-learn/ 

5. MOOCs for Teachers: Coursera Offers Online Teacher Training Program

http://blogs.kqed.org/mindshift/2013/04/new-online-teacher-training-program-joins-mooc-madness/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+kqed%2FnHAK+%28MindShift%29&utm_content=Google+Feedfetcher

 6. Melanie Link Taylor: Have You Talked to Your Kid Today? 

http://melanielinktaylor.blogspot.com/2013/03/have-you-talked-to-your-kid-today.html?spref=bl

7. What are you willing to tolerate?

http://dangerouslyirrelevant.org/2013/04/what-are-you-willing-to-tolerate.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+dangerouslyirrelevant+%28Dangerously+Irrelevant%29&utm_content=My+Yahoo

 

MzTeachuh: Classroom Adjustments Tweets of the Day 5/5/13

MzTeachuh: Classroom Adjustments Tweets of the Day 5/5/13: 1. Does Class Size Count? http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/05/04/does-class-size-count/   2. 4 Keys to Building Students’ Re...

Classroom Adjustments Tweets of the Day 5/5/13

1. Does Class Size Count?

http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/05/04/does-class-size-count/ 

2. 4 Keys to Building Students’ Reading Lives

https://www.teachingchannel.org/blog/2013/05/01/4-keys-to-building-students-reading-lives/ 

3. Unstoppable Learning

http://www.npr.org/2013/04/25/179010396/unstoppable-learning 

Here's the news on adorableness.

4. Dissolving Barriers To Adopting Technology In The Classroom

http://www.teachthought.com/technology/dissolving-barriers-to-adopting-technology-in-the-classroom/

  

5. Checking in with a Community Grant Recipient

http://www.autismspeaks.org/blog/2013/04/30/checking-community-grant-recipient?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feedutm_campaign=Feed%3A+AutismSpeaksBlog+%28Autism+Speaks+|+Official+Blog%29&utm_content=My+Yahoo

  

6. The Absent Teacher

 http://theeducatorsroom.com/2013/05/the-absent-teacher/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed

utm_campaign=Feed%3A+theeducatorsroom%2FvPKE+%28EducatorsRoom%29&utm_content=My+Yahoo

7.How to Avoid Testing Burnout

http://www.edutopia.org/blog/how-to-avoid-testing-burnout-ben-johnson 

 

Found in a taco shell in the cafeteria.