This morning on the news they mentioned that Applebee’s is going to place a tablet at every table so that customers can peruse the menu, order additional items and pay bills. This will not replace the server, but act as additional customer service. Of course this got me thinking about schools and our use of […]
Yesterday I taught a group of young boys and they were as energetic as one might expect. They enjoyed joking around and being silly. The question that occurred to me was: at what point does having a good time turn into being disruptive? The short answer is always: when the students are not learning any […]
The Power Your Creative Mind Campaign has finally arrived!….so what does that mean for you? It means there will be plenty of material to power your creative mind! We know that you have busy lives and finding new and thoughtful material to add to your classroom can be difficult. We are here to make it […]
“In case you missed all the hype, the flipped classroom is a form of blended learning in which students learn online at least part of the time while attending a brick-and-mortar school. Either at home or during a homework period at school, students view lessons and lectures online. Time in the classroom, previously reserved for […]
I saw this quote posted on Facebook this morning and it intrigued me. I have been researching it all morning!! Who is Diane Ravitch? What does she stand for? What else does she say about Bill Gates? I am not a fan of Mr. Gates, to say it lightly. He may know computers, but education, […]
In the last few years, I have had the privilege of getting to know many music educators. I have been constantly amazed at the continued commitment to the lives of children by people who society claims to celebrate, but cuts funding and salaries every chance they get. Throughout this Teacher Appreciation Week, Note Knacks would […]
When I was in graduate school, Whole Language was all the rage. The idea was that children needed to learn skills within a context. Teachers let go of basal readers and flash cards and dove into meaningful, thoughtful literature. It sounded perfect! Who wouldn’t rather read “The Snowy Day” by Ezra Jack Keats rather than […]
Last week I was in Hartford, CT for the Biennial North Eastern NAFME Conference. I did a session on “Engage the Special Needs Students in Your Room”. As I did the research to prepare, I noticed that a lot of what we do to help our special needs students are often good for everyone, to […]
It is hard to believe that people are capable of such acts. In the end, what has really been accomplished? Did the person or people really get what they want? I somehow doubt it. It is so senseless. Last weekend I was in Winston-Salem, NC on business. My hotel was next to a Barnes and […]
I was looking through my Google Alerts, as I do every morning, and found yet another study that shows the correlation between fine arts instruction and academic success. (It was from an article that was written by Ms. Sondra Collins in Marion County, Florida. See link below.) This is no surprise to arts educators everywhere; we have […]