Differentiated Instruction

January 31, 2021.Reading time 1 minute.

Students have different learning styles. It’s vital that instruction meet the needs of all students. Using a one size fits all approach is not best practice. Differentiation means tailoring instruction to meet individual needs. •Research shows differentiated instruction is effective for high-ability students as well as students with mild to severe disabilities. •When students are given more options on how they […]

Early Literacy Resources

January 31, 2021.Reading time 2 minutes.

Check out this video to help your child with phonemic awareness. Many struggling readers lack knowledge of sounds (phonemic awareness). Children have better success with phonics once they have experience with phonemic awareness. Phonemic awareness may be the component that will help fill that gap. Children must be able to segment words into individual sounds […]

After The Rain

January 31, 2021.Reading time 1 minute.

There were 60mph winds and torrential rains in our little beach town. Tree limbs blocked roads, lawn chairs flew to a neighboring yard, and birds found refuge anywhere they could. I know the thirsty earth needed the rain, but it made the pandemic isolation even lonelier. Today the sun is out and the birds are […]

Living in a beach town

January 27, 2021.Reading time 1 minute.

I am one of the lucky ones who has a view of the Pacific Ocean from my living room window. Our home was purchased 22 years ago when it was doable on teacher salaries. I sit out on my upstairs deck and watch the waves curl angrily on windy days and gently on mild spring […]

Son of My Son

January 26, 2021.Reading time 2 minutes.

I had my son when I was still a teenager. I had no idea how to raise a child. I only knew that holding him was the best feeling ever. I knew that loving him would be easy. I had the luxury of staying home and caring for him while his dad went to work. […]

Reflections

January 23, 2021.Reading time 8 minutes.

The day I became a grandmother I began evaluating my life, or I should say reevaluating it. I realized that this beautiful child is not mine and I am a part of a much bigger picture, yet only a part. What part do I play? As a retired elementary teacher I know the joy of […]

Name Calling

January 23, 2021.Reading time 1 minute.

Children will own the names you call them. Choose your words carefully. This is good advice for teachers, but especially important that parents know this too. They are a child’s first teacher. Call them scholars, call them friends, call them writers, call them mathematicians, call them scientists, call them teachers, call them helpers, call them […]

This and That

January 21, 2021.Reading time 9 minutes.

My Daughter

January 17, 2021.Reading time 2 minutes.

I don’t know how many people can say that their daughter is their best friend, but I can. Katie was a quiet, loving little girl who collected rocks that caught her eye. Her bedroom closet was home to an assortment of rocks that very quickly became a quarry. I used to beg her to clean her […]

My Surf Adventure

January 14, 2021.Reading time 3 minutes.

The palm tree out my window reminds me of my trip to Hawaii almost ten years ago. Two weeks before our planned adventure my husband bought me my first surfboard and wetsuit. Being an avid surfer himself, he wanted me to know how thrilling it can be to ride the waves. He made it look […]

Loved these books

January 12, 2021.Reading time 1 minute.

These are some of my favorite books: Educated by Tara Westover. The Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett When Breath Becomes Air by Paul Kalanithi Man’s Search for Meaning by Viktor Frankl The Beauty in Breaking by Michelle Harper The Honey Bus by Meredith May The Answer Is by Alex Trebek Think Like a Monk […]

Dyslexia

January 9, 2021.Reading time 3 minutes.

http://geon.github.io/programming/2016/03/03/dsxyliea ALWAYS HIGHLIGHT WHAT THEY CAN DO. COMMON MTYHS AND MISCONCEPTIONS; People with dyslexia do not read backwards. Their spelling can look quite jumbled at times not because they read or see words backwards, but because students have trouble remembering letter symbols for sounds and letter patterns in words. Dyslexia is not a disease and, therefore, there is no […]

Resources For Early Literacy

January 4, 2021.Reading time 2 minutes.

Phonemic Awareness A child may be able to recite the alphabet, but they need to first learn SOUNDS. Most of reading problems come from a lack of phonemic awareness (knowledge of sounds). When teaching this skill you would not introduce letters yet. Sounds first! There are many ways to do that. The following items will […]

Sight Words

January 3, 2021.Reading time 1 minute.

Sight words comprise close to 70 of the words we read. For a child to be a fluent reader, it is important that sight words are stored in long term memory. That requires practice through games and engaging activities that activate various parts of the brain. Sight words are often words that cannot be sounded […]

About Me

January 3, 2021.Reading time 2 minutes.

I am a mother of three who are all grown, and a grandmother to four. As a retired elementary teacher for both general and special education, I quickly learned that sitting at home watching Dr. Phil wasn’t a good fit for me (nothing against Dr. Phil). Seeking ways I could remain connected to education, I […]

Pandemic Woes and Ways

January 2, 2021.Reading time 5 minutes.

July 21, 2020 March 15th 2020 is the day the COVID 19 pandemic turned into a lockdown. Schools closed, we sheltered in place and learned that toilet paper would be more valuable than gold. The first death in SLO county was an elderly person and it was thought that only old people would die from […]