• #ETCoaches Blog Challenge #4 – Blogging – Why and Who?

    Blogging is something that I have aimed to do more of since I was in college. My roommates and I tried to start a sports-themed blog run solely out of our apartment (I like to think we were too ahead of the times for getting that site off the ground). Blogging has been around and…


  • Framing Conversations with Colleagues: TPACK & SAMR

    As someone that is new to a district, it has been essential that I begin the school year by building relationships and finding those that what to be coached when using technology. I have only now begun to start to have the pedagogical conversations that I need to have to help change mindsets to those…


  • #ETCoaches Blog Challenge #3 – Tools and Tricks

    I love my job. It is challenging but rewarding. It is different every day. It is something that continues to evolve. I really love my job. There are things that I use and do to make some aspects of my job more manageable. For starters, I have recently started using MailChimp to email out weekly…


  • #ETCoaches Blog Challenge Post #2 – Perspective Is My Key!

    The #ETCoaches Blog Challenge is a lot of fun. I truly appreciate the encouragement from the community as we are growing. I am very sorry about being late for the second week in a role! I am going to try to be on time for the third one! I started a new job this fall…


  • Introductions – #ETCoaches Blog Challenge Post #1

    Well, I think I am a little slow on the draw for the #ETCoachesBlogChallenge, but here is my site. I do not have a very clever name like many of you, just using my name. This site started while I was a classroom teacher and served as a quasi-learning management system for my students. I…


  • Transitional Music in the Classroom

    Talking with a new colleague earlier this week, he asked if there was an easy way to place sounds into a Google Slide. Specifically, he was looking for transitions to move from one topic to the next in the class. While Google Slides does not (yet?) support adding sounds to the slides, you can easily…


  • Research v. Anecdotal – Their Value in Education

    This post is a discussion that has been happening in my head for the last few months. I recently purchased and read Teach Like a PIRATE by Dave Burgess. I found the book to be useful and had some practical ideas within it, especially the little ways for me to incorporate PIRATE into my classroom.…


  • Starting Something New – Change, Mentoring, and Some Tips for Coaching

    Starting something new is always difficult. Change is hard. Often times, doing both is a requirement. This fall, I am doing something that I never thought I would do. Something that I was sure was not going to happen when I entered my classroom for the first time (a book storage room with desks). And…


  • The Gold Standard of Project-based Learning

    Project-based Learning is awesome for students, but only if we truly understand what it is. Here is the Buck Institute for Education’s “Gold Standard” of Project-based Learning and how it can be used in the classroom.


  • What Project-based Learning is and Is Not

    Project-based Learning is a big part of my educational background. I remember my government and law classes in high school being heavily influenced by the Project-based Learning methodology, as my instructor allowed all students to have a say and control their own path. It was fascinating and likely one of the reasons that I am…