September 20, 2023

I was asked yesterday by a teacher how I am still going strong after 38 years in education (30 as a classroom teacher). Her school starts later than mine and she took time to visit one of my classes in order to see how I build a culture of learning. She specifically wanted to know what I did with students to prepare them for success in a flipped classroom, but our conversation took a different direction. 

When she asked the question: How are you still teaching? Initially, I didn’t know how to respond—but then as we talked further—she actually answered the question herself. 

But before I tell you what she said, take a glimpse into what she had just seen in my classroom.  My 80-minute block had four phases: 

• Question of the Day: A three-minute bonding activity; our question of the day. This doubles as attendance.  Yesterday’s question was:  What was your favorite cartoon character as a child? I bantered with the students as they mentioned cartoon characters that I was completely unfamiliar with. I had only seen these students four times and already the conversation was relaxed and fun. I informed my students that…