Imagine you have an uninterrupted afternoon to do whatever you want. What would you do? Read a book. Garden. Catch up with friends. Take a nap. Even just the prospect of planning an afternoon of freedom can make many of us feel at ease. How often are children ever given the option to do whatever they want for a few...
August 6th, 2018 by Austin Butler
Most school mornings tend to start the same way. Students filter into the classroom. They find their seats and take out their homework. The teacher might make some announcements, and then everyone jumps right into learning. A fine way to start the day, no? Well, what if we told you that some teachers spend as much as 30 minutes with...
May 3rd, 2018 by Austin Butler
In a perfect world, every student would have two loving parents, a comfortable home in a safe neighborhood, and all their basic needs met. Unfortunately, we don’t live in a perfect world. While we may not like to think about it, many of our students encounter trauma of some sort. Trauma may stem from poverty, violence, neglect, loss, or an...
There’s a saying that has spread through the education sector in the past several years that “kindergarten is the new first grade”. With the adoption of more rigorous standards and the increasing emphasis on standardized tests, schools are eager to get students reading and writing from the first day they walk in the door. There’s one school district, though, that’s...
March 27th, 2018 by Austin Butler
Imagine trying to build muscles by going to the gym every day. But instead of lifting weights, you merely watch your personal trainer lift. Needless to say, this wouldn’t get you very far in your quest for strength. We often equate the brain to other muscles in our bodies in that the more use it gets, the stronger it will...
March 14th, 2018 by Austin Butler
Recently, I had the opportunity to meet a very impressive entrepreneur who has created an educational character that is now being viewed across the nation on Florida PBS and the Children’s Television Network which is the in-house station at children’s hospitals. The most amazing part is that the creator of this project is only 13 years old! Adam initially created...
March 13th, 2018 by Austin Butler
How many decisions do you think you make every day while teaching? While researchers have found a range of answers to this question, many agree that teachers make around 1,500 educational decisions during an average school day. Assuming about 6 hours of instructional time, that averages out to 4 decisions per minute! While some of these decisions can be planned,...
March 6th, 2018 by Austin Butler
When’s the last time you had to take a timed test at work? I'm willing to bet it’s been a while. What about the last time you had an authentic conversation where you needed to express and support your own ideas? Chances are this second activity is a more likely occurrence. Helping students learn to be conversationalists is a valuable...
February 28th, 2018 by Austin Butler
Have you ever noticed that you can gauge a person’s wisdom by how quickly they respond to questions? Sometimes you ask someone a question and without even a second of thought they’re blurting out an answer. On the other hand, there are those individuals who calmly take their time to consider a question carefully before composing a response. In most...
February 21st, 2018 by Austin Butler
In a classroom environment where students' grades often depend on obedience and towing the line... it's easy for students to develop a strong aversion to risk. But that could be detrimental to their future careers. As the saying goes, nothing ventured, nothing gained. Studies show that individuals who are willing to take risks are much more likely to get promoted,...
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