Category: Blog

A week ago, Metro Nashville Public Schools made the call that all students will begin school in the virtual classroom – at least until Labor Day. These are not easy decisions. There are so many variables to weigh, the most important of which is the health and safety of our students and all those who…

I am grieved over the recent events, especially the unjust murders of George Floyd, Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor, and countless other Black Americans. These deaths reflect the institutionalized racism that runs deep in our country, our schools being no exception.  Centuries of inequity are made clear when considering how we label and discipline black students. Black…

By Mary Rakes, Director of EL Strategy Let’s get right down to it: Teachers of English Learners are always asking the same question: How do I know I am giving my students the right supports? In two previous posts, (part 1, and part 2,) we talked about how teachers can use class data mapping and individual student interest surveys…

By Mary Rakes, Director of EL Strategy Welcome to the second installment in our series about ways to best support your English Learners. Today, we will continue to discuss the answers to this question: How do I know I am giving my students the right supports? As I have said before, knowing your students is the first…

By Mary Matthews, Special Education Program Specialist Teachers: you’ve made it. You’ve survived those critical first weeks of the school year. At this point, you have approximately one hundred items on your to-do list, you feel like your classroom needs to be cleaned up again, you have lessons to plan for that evaluation coming up, and…

By Mary Rakes, Director of EL Strategy One of the biggest questions I get as I work with EL teachers is: How do I know I am giving my students the right supports? I love this question for so many reasons. It is honest, humble and heartfelt. Teachers of ELs often are afraid they are going to…

By Mary Rakes, Director of EL Strategy and the DLC Teacher Leader Fellowship “Thank you for providing a much needed avenue that supports us, as EE and EL teachers. We often are the overlooked or last to be thought about teachers in a building. Having the opportunity to share, learn and grow with a group…

By Justine Katzenbach, Director of Special Education Strategy Wouldn’t you rather have two teachers in the classroom than one? Co-teaching is a commonly used educational practice in which two certified teachers collaborate to jointly support a group of students receiving general, special, and/or English language educational services. But wait, not so fast! Just because you…

By Cristina Villarreal Smith, DLC Engagement Specialist As soon as you walk into Mrs. Giamanco’s room, you get the feeling that learning happens here. There are quotes from texts dissected on the walls with student thoughts scrawled on sticky notes around them. There are sentence and conversation starters posted for students to use as they…

By Cristina Villarreal Smith, DLC Engagement Specialist It is well known that the job title “special education teacher” means much more than just that. As a teacher, you may often act as a social worker, advocate, guide, and more for your students and their families. The beginning of the school year can be especially overwhelming,…