Full confession time. I spend at least an hour a day listening to podcasts. I feel like I need to join some sort of “Podcast Anonymous” meeting or something. To be honest, I listen to many different podcasts. My guilty pleasure type of podcast is anything dealing with true crime. The more mysterious the better! I love listening when I get dressed in the morning, on my drive to work and on the ... Read More about Using Podcasts in the US History Classroom
How to Engage in US History STAAR Review All Year Long
US History STAAR. Standardized tests. End of course exams. Whatever you call them, those pesky standardized tests seem to haunt us all year long! There is always a lot to teach and little time to do so. That’s why for US History STAAR review, we spend all year spiraling content.Having dedicated review time before the test is often limited these days, especially since Texas keeps moving the test ... Read More about How to Engage in US History STAAR Review All Year Long
Top Ten Formative Assessments for Social Studies
Formative assessments are so important in social studies! If you teach in a state with a standardized test, then you know formative assessments are the KEY to success! In my US History classroom, I am constantly evaluating what works best in terms of the age-old question, “Did they get it?” Formative assessments are critical and the more I embed fun ways to do it, the more ... Read More about Top Ten Formative Assessments for Social Studies
Survival Guide for Your 1st Month Teaching Secondary
The first year teaching is hard. Really hard. As a veteran teacher with 20 years under my belt teaching middle and high school, I often get assigned to become a mentor teacher. As hard as that first year is, there are things you can do and prepare ahead of time that will make it easier. If you can plan out your first month effectively, it will help you save your sanity. Here is ... Read More about Survival Guide for Your 1st Month Teaching Secondary
Playing Jenga in the Classroom
I simply love review games in my US History class! Who doesn't enjoy hearing their students reviewing content and being successful? I especially love it when I see students being competitive and being joyful at the same time. I started playing Jenga in my US History classroom many years ago. I’ve tweaked how I play it over the years and I’d like to share what works for me and why my ... Read More about Playing Jenga in the Classroom
Requesting College Recommendation Letters
One of the biggest shocks I had when I moved from teaching middle school to high school was the amount of college recommendation letters I would be asked to write. My first 2 years of teaching high school, I just dealt with the onslaught of requests. Every time I turned around, another student was requesting one. I don’t mind writing them, but they take time. Even though I have several ... Read More about Requesting College Recommendation Letters
