Note: Understandings of and expectations for student safety will vary by community. Some of the activities and policies recommended in this post may not be advisable in your school setting. In the last few decades, school safety...

When I first heard other teachers talking about using a token economy system in their classroom, I thought it sounded far too complicated. I was fine with simpler methods of management, and a token system just sounded like more...

How was your school year? Do you feel exhausted but exhilarated, like a mountain climber who has just reached the summit? Or maybe you feel energized, already excited as you look ahead at another school year. Perhaps you feel...

Photo by Priscilla Du Preez on Unsplash “If only we didn’t have to fight for souls!” This was the lamentation of a teacher friend of mine a number of years ago after a conversation on the difficulties we were facing with some of...

In his classic memoir of school teaching, The Thread That Runs So True, Jesse Stuart tells this little story: “At the noon hour of my first day at Landsburgh High School, I noticed a last year’s sign beside the walk that read:...

The holiday season with its flurry of excitement is past. Gone are the days of Christmas program practice, class parties, and Christmas break. Here instead are midwinter days filled with the daily grind. You get up on another...

I find personality tests intriguing. Enneagram, Myers-Briggs, DISC, and other frameworks for explaining the way human beings operate have helped me to understand myself and other people in new ways. I had studied many of these in...

I have to wonder at what point in history the raising of hands for permission to speak became such a ubiquitous part of the classroom. It’s really a bit odd when you think of it, yet it is a helpful signal that can serve us well...

Poetry is a wonderful addition to any classroom. Children are naturally drawn to rhyme and rhythm, and poetry has an inherent sticking power. It fosters enjoyment of language, it builds vocabulary, and it can help children to...

Photo by Elisa Michelet on Unsplash “My lunch is better than yours!” “I don’t like my drawing. Johnny can draw much nicer than I can.” “It’s not fair that math is harder for me than it is for Katie!” We elementary teachers often...

The Word of God is living, powerful, and precious. Because of this, it is of inestimable value to have God’s Word become deeply ingrained in the hearts and minds of our children from a very young age. But while we may all agree...

“How do you keep teaching year after year without burning out?” Occasionally I hear this question from friends and colleagues. My reply varies somewhat depending on the listener. To be honest, I have often asked myself the same...