2020 – Let Me Reintroduce Myself
A friend told me, “You’ve changed. You’re just different than you used to be.” She said it with a smile and she tried to make it sound like a compliment,
Read MoreYear: 2019
THOSE KIDS: The Connection Makes A Difference, but Does It Make The Difference?
I recently followed a chat that started from the claim that all a student needs to be is liked. That all they need is a connection or relationship or positive
Read More
Baja Lessons…Motivation Versión en inglés y español incluida
What makes some people work harder or longer or do a better job? Why are some people okay with average and some people disappointed in greatness? What is motivation? Where
Read More
What If The Words Are Gone? Versión en inglés y español incluida
What if the words are gone? I’ve been asking myself that a lot. A lot. I spent the last year writing and expressing and opening up and being vulnerable. Writing
Read More
Baja Lessons…10 Days, 10 People, 10 Lessons Versión en inglés y español incluida
Lesson 1: Antonio He asked me questions in broken English. I answered in English and broken Spanish. It wasn’t the most profound conversation, but he was trying. That is what
Read More
THOSE KIDS: The Who Matters. The What and The Why Can Come Later
They are getting ready to walk through your door for the first time. They are waiting to see how you will greet them. They are going to judge if they
Read More
Baja Lessons…Get in the Dust Versión en inglés y español incluida
“The only way to get experience, is to get in the dust.” I knew what he meant when he said it. I knew what it meant to him. He was
Read More
Behind My Smile
It’s weird the things my mind gets stuck on sometimes. Maybe it’s my age or my hormones or my life experiences…I don’t know, but I’ve been stuck on smiling lately.
Read More
The Voices of THOSE KIDS: Below the Surface
The hardest part for me was that you didn’t realize I was one of THOSE KIDS. You saw me as a good student who was capable of making good grades
Read More
Baja Lessons…A Surfer’s Passion Versión en inglés y español incluida
We don’t talk about passion where I come from. The number of times I had talked about living a passionate life or doing what I am passionate about I could
Read MoreThe VOICES of THOSE KIDS
During preservice a few years ago, I ran into a group of new teachers at lunch. We had a brief conversation about where we worked. When they heard where I taught, a PRTF (Psychiatric Residential Treatment Facility), one of the teachers said, “Good for you. I couldn’t work with THOSE kids.” I said, “You do realize when THOSE kids leave […]
Learning is Not Closed
Changing aren’t coming. They’re here. Everything is changing. Again. Hard decisions were made in most of our communities. Precautions and restrictions and shut downs. Quarantines and capacities and illnesses. I know emotions are high and opinions are all over the place. Not everyone agrees or understands. Some will make the transition relatively easily and some it’s going to hit hard. […]