Quest ion of t he Day What is the most important piece of advice for new teachers?

“ Keep a notebook where you record the events of the day, any discipline issues, collegial conversations, and any thing that sends up a red flag. Keep copies of every personnel form sent to the main office. Keep a parent log of whom you contacted, why and when. Save all parental and professional correspondence via email. Take time to breathe. Have fun!”

— Kerry Palumbo

Do you have a favorite student? Be honest!

Definitely 72%They’re all my favorite 17%

Of course not 11%

In ThIs Issue:

• 12 Reasons Teachers Rock

• Bridging the Teacher/Admin Divide

• Question of the Day• Teacher Poll• Principal Steps Up for

Her School • Quote of the Day• Video Writing Prompts:

Beauty Before & After• Recommended Book:

What Great Teachers Do Differently By Todd Whitaker

The education community has been all gloom and doom recently, with Waiting

for Superman, protests with bad press, and more standards on top of foolish mandates coming down from every which way.

At TeachHUB, we want to remind all you teachers that we know you rock. Here are 12 reasons to prove it!

“Teachers rock because they are able to make 60 decisions a minute,

all while sipping cold coffee, helping children overcome problems in reading and subtraction with regrouping, and filling out about a million forms in triplicate. We rock!”

~ Michelle Howell-Martin

Teachers know that what they’re really teaching aren’t facts, but

rather they’re teaching children how to learn and teach themselves.

Nearly seven out of 10 teachers (68%) cite working with kids

as the reason for remaining in the profession.

Teachers can eat their lunch in 4 minutes flat at 10:30 a.m.

while keeping order in the hallway without thinking twice.

“In teaching you cannot see the fruit of a day’s work. It is invisible

and remains so, maybe for twenty years.”

~ Jacques Barzun

“If a doctor, lawyer, or dentist had 40 people in his office at one time,

all of whom had different needs, and some of whom didn’t want to be there and were causing trouble, and the doctor, lawyer, or dentist, without assistance, had to treat them all with professional excellence for nine months, then he might have some conception of the classroom teacher’s job.”

“We have the ability to hold the attention of a room full of

children for an entire day! The best performers in the world!”

~ Amy Long Holmes

Teachers inspire students to be their best. “My best moment as

a teacher was the year a great, big, strapping country boy came up to me with a college application in his hand and told me he was applying to college. He said, ‘You are the only person who ever told me I was intelligent enough to go on to college. I’m gonna try.’ He applied, was accepted, graduated, and is now pursuing a master’s degree. Definitely my best moment!”

Teachers are gymnasts and super heroes rolled into one – jumping

through hoops, walking on red tape tight ropes and leaping tall standards in a single school year.

“Teachers are there, with a listening ear, a shoulder to cry on, and

a hand to hold. Even when it feels like everyone is against them, students always know their teachers are THERE.”

~ LyzaJo Jorgensen

Teachers are “home-grown.” Six out of 10 (60 percent) of public

school teachers in 2005 got their undergraduate college education within 150 miles of where they were born, according to the 2005 Profile of US Teacher by NCEI.

When asked what gift they would most like to receive from their

students, nearly half of all teachers say a simple “thank you” will suffice, according to a recent National Education Association online poll.

12 Reasons Teachers Rock

1.

7. 10.

8.11.

9.

12.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

Too often, teachers think of administration as the “dark side,” but those same skills that

make for a good teacher should translate into supportive, encouraging educational leaders.

The question is: where does the divide between teachers and administrators begin? And more importantly, how can we fix it?

More than 58% of principals have at least 10 years of experience teaching before taking their place at the school’s helm. About 32% had 4-9 years and only 10% had less than three years in

the classroom, according to the National Center for Education Statistics 2010 report for the 07/08 school year.

By the numbers, an overwhelming majority of principals are former veteran teachers. They’ve been in teachers’ shoes and know the challenges of the profession. With that shared history, the gulf between teachers and administrators shouldn’t be too wide to bridge.

The work of an administrator is inherently different in that they don’t have a set schedule of

where they need to be and with whom, they get their own office and they’re paid more. However, having taken on some administrative duties over the years, I see more similarities than differences when it comes to instructional administrators.

1. Administrators are responsible for instructing a diverse group of learners on

how to improve their skills. Who knows how to do this better than teachers? » Continued on pg. 2

Bridging the Teacher/Admin Divideby Tim Goettelmann

© 2 0 1 2 R E A L T E A C H E R T I M E S & T E A C H H U B . C O M

What’s new, hip and noteworthy in the K-12 world

Real Teacher Times is a free K-12 education publication

brought to you by:

Principal Steps Up for Her School Teacher/Admin Divide (Continued from pg. 1)

2. Administrators have to evaluate those learners, and they have to be able to

prove that those learners are making progress. Teachers are masters of assessment and intervention strategies.

3. Administrators have to balance administrative tasks against the day-to-day interactions

with students and staff members… and a million other things. Teachers can certainly understand the pressure and stress that comes with juggling too many responsibilities.

Unfortunately, hostility breeds for administrators because many don’t do these things in the same manner in which they are telling teachers to do them for their students.

Too often, teachers feel more threatened than supported, expected to perform certain tasks without being instructed on how to do so, analogous to a pop quiz on random topics a teacher hasn’t taught yet.

It’s time to remind principals and administrators of their instructional roots. Ask for more guidance, clearly defined objectives and rubrics for observations, a differentiated approach to mentoring staff and more teacher-favorite strategies. As educators, they’ll have to see the common sense behind your request.

If not, it’s time to bring some light to the “dark side” and show them how to lead like a teacher!

Principal Michelle Miller isn’t sitting idly by as budget cuts tear into her district. She’s putting her shoes where her mouth is…

The California principal’s 350 pairs are going on the auction block to help save teachers and library resources in her school.

The shoes are up for “adoption” for $1,000 each.

Miller is getting support from across the nation, including several “shoe adoptions” from donors.

While it’s sad that the budget deficits have come to this, you can’t deny that Michelle Miller has a generous “sole.”

Choose a daily current events article and activity or search our library. All activities are aligned to the Common Core State Standards.

Assign to your entire class or just individuals based on their reading and learning levels.

Auto-grading and teacher-created feedback options are included and will cut your work-load in half!

eLearn Assignments™ is provided by the K-12 Teachers Alliance

Recommended

What Great Teachers Do DifferentlyBy Todd Whitaker

This book describes the beliefs, behaviors, attitudes, and interactions that form the fabric of life in our best classrooms and schools. It focuses on the specific things that great teachers do... that others do not.

It answers these essential questions:

‑ Is it high expectations for students that matter?

‑ How do great teachers respond when students misbehave?

‑ Do great teachers filter differently than their peers?

‑ How do the best teachers approach standardized testing?

» Find recommended books, websites & more

at TeachHUB.com

R E A L T E A C H E R T I M E S

Real Teacher Times is a free K-12 education publication

brought to you by:

Quote of t he Day

“ One neighbor asked, ‘Why did you spend all day with your son fixing that bike, when the bike shop could have fixed it in an hour?’ The neighbor replied, ‘Because I am building a son, not fixing a bike.’ ”

— Glenn R. Schiraldi

JOIN THE TEACHHUB COMMUNITY!

Visit TeachHUB.com & join the fun!• Access Printable Lessons & Video

Writing Prompts• Get Exclusive Discounts • Enter Contests & Giveaways• Share Photos, Lessons, Tips and Stories

Defining BeautyWhat do you think makes someone beautiful?

Recognizing Your ReflectionWould you recognize the girl in the beginning from the final billboard photo?

Would you ever want to change so much people didn’t recognize you? Why or why not?

Body Image IssuesIs your image of your body and your looks affected by how models and stars look? Is that a good or bad thing?

Beauty & the MediaDo you think the media should represent beauty more realistically or should they stick to these airbrushed models? What is their responsibility to the impressionable people (young or old) whom these images affect?

video: Beauty Before & After

Find video at www.TeachHUB.com

© 2 0 1 2 R E A L T E A C H E R T I M E S & T E A C H H U B . C O M

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