As I continue my journey as a parent consumer of public education and an educator, I am noticing that effective education is becoming increasingly more dependent on how I model my learning experiences and how I work with technology.  In fact, I believe those two areas impact how my daughter thinks about learning and the…

During the Civil War, women took on a variety of jobs that were an important part of the overall war effort. During the mid-1800s the woman was the centerpiece of the home. In addition to cooking, cleaning and raising the children, she would often help with small jobs around the home or farm. Etiquette manuals of the…

I want to know how technology can make us better environmental stewards vimeo.com/60583551 #vimeo @knovation @edsurge

— Kristen Olson (@knemzek) March 15, 2013

In times like these it is more important than ever to reach into the lives of your students and better understand where they are each day. With increasing demands on time, changing schedules, and more students on your roster than ever, finding ways to reach out and understand their mood can be a challenge. Do you have an effective way to measure your classroom temperature? Allow me to share a great idea I recently discovered.

I have always had the privilege of working with some…

When one thinks of a traditional social studies classroom, they probably think of the teacher standing in front of the room lecturing about historical facts and figures. The students are sitting quietly taking notes and are expected to recall the information for tests. Today’s classrooms are digital environments with computers, projectors, applications and in some cases mobile devices. How can we take some of the traditional ideas of a social studies classroom, combine them with technology…

New Year’s Eve is always a day to look back and reflect on the past.  As an educator, I have found this time to be critical also to reflect on the first half of the school year.  It is always good to take stock of how things are going.  It is even appropriate to journal or jot down some notes during this reflective period.  We all know that WE ACT ON THE THINGS WE WRITE DOWN.

Ask yourself these tough questions:

1)  Which students are finding great success…

What can we learn from looking in the door of the next classroom, or visiting a nearby school, or by leaving the…

In late August, I had the delightful opportunity to present to educators at Lake Superior State University during an inservice day planned by our friends at the Eastern Upper Peninsula (EUP) ISD in Michigan. After the session, a couple of new acquaintances suggested I enjoy the beautiful…