Thanks so much to the SO many of you who reached out to wish me luck on my upcoming transition. I can’t quite believe I’m leaving the classroom, but the past few years have brought a lot of things none of us could have anticipated. Many of you have asked me what’s next for me. A lot of my future is still uncertain, but I have some thoughts. And, as usual, if I get my way, I’ll have a full plate with lots of diverse experiences. Here are some of the possibilities. Copywriting I shared a while ago that in September I started graduate school for a master’s in strategic communications. Though work ..read more

Growth and transformation abound and changes are afoot. What follows is the story I told my students last week, which is an extension of the rainbow bridge story I told them before first grade. Once upon a time, there was a beautiful, shining ship. It had golden sails topped with high-flying multi-colored pennants. The rich burgundy wood of the deck was so polished it glimmered in the sun. But this wasn’t just any ship. This ship held the magical powers of transformation. When everyone on board worked hard and shared a common vision, the ship could become whatever they needed, allowing them to ..read more

Some of you may know that I went back to school at the beginning of this school year to get my master’s degree in Strategic Communication. I’ve been loving it — enjoying being in school again, mostly — and I’ve been interacting with lots of people who work out there in the real world. (Shall we call them muggles?) Every time my fellow classmates and I talk about our work, I remember that one of the things I love most about being a Waldorf teacher is that it is a profession that is dedicated to the growth of the human being. I love that my workplace is an institution that is committed to facili ..read more

When I first started teaching, classroom management was by far my greatest challenge. When I reflect on those days it is remarkably easy for me to get back in that frame of mind and remember the exact thought processes that made things so hard. Amazing Waldorf Students First off, I was in complete awe of my students. I had so much reverence and respect for the individuals they were. I looked at their confidence, the compassionate way they interacted with each other, their enthusiasm for the work, and I compared them to myself at their age. I’m afraid I woefully paled in comparison. But that’s ..read more

There’s no doubt that middle schoolers thrive when social interaction is a big part of their learning. They’re truly in their element and most engaged with their learning when they’re doing it in a social setting. I can think of so many times with my last class when I presented the class with a challenge, matched them up in groups, and let them start figuring things out. The productive hum that fell over the class told me that there was some good working and thinking going on. Most teachers have some of those positive experiences of middle school group work and many of us are looking for ways ..read more

Now that we’re all back together in person, the fifth graders and I have been diving into some pretty meaty content. And I have to say, it’s really been floating my boat. A sample main lesson page from our recent Botany block. We’re keeping up with our usual rhythm of dictations, compositions, guided drawings, and other fun activities peppered in, but for the past week we’ve been taking a close look at diagramming sentences. At the risk of revealing myself to be a complete grammar nerd, I have to confess — I LOVE diagramming sentences. I’ve been using a number of online resources to help make ..read more

Well, we just finished the second week of school, which is about the time when summer starts feeling like a distant memory. But it’s all good. We’re in that rosy time when it feels SO good to be back in the classroom and things are going pretty darn well. Starting the Year Off Right I always give a lot of thought to which block will be the first of the year. I’ve started things off different ways in the now four(!) times I’ve taught fifth grade. Starting with Botany A couple of times I have started the year off with a Botany block. I was somewhat inclined to do that again this time but I chang ..read more

When I first started teaching I was blown away by the magic of the Waldorf curriculum. And it’s true. This developmental curriculum is spot on and I’m continually astounded by how inspiring these 100-year-old indications are. I was so blown away by it, and so excited to fill in the gaps of my own education, that I spent almost all of my time working on the imaginative content. That first year of teaching (it was a 5th grade) I savored every story and lived into the images so strongly that they ignited my own imagination. Of course, the enthusiasm that those stories ignited came through in my r ..read more

This is an episode all about the idea of “wonder” and how it is important in the classroom. Below are the notes that guided my own little monologue in the episode. Wish Wish is pretty clear. When I taught 7th grade, the students and I talked about the difference between a wish, a hope and a dream. And we talked about how these words take on a different meaning when your wish, hope or dream is for someone else, or when it’s for the world. Surprise Surprise is also fairly clear. It’s that feeling when you’re confronted with something so unexpected that it takes you off-guard. It’s easy to confus ..read more

Now that we’ve rounded the bend into August, it’s starting to feel like those leisurely summer days are waning. I don’t know about you, but it makes me more determined than ever to make the most of the weeks I have left! The current view from my Lake Tahoe vacation. Here are some of my best tips for doing summer right. Travel I am a true homebody at heart. I’ve worked pretty hard to make my home a place that I love and it can take some serious prodding to get me to leave it. But every time I do I remember how revitalizing and nurturing travel can be. There is nothing like exploring a new place ..read more