At Mastery, we have many mottos and mantras, but one of the all encompassing, everyday values we abide by as a “Master-ific” way of life: “Sweat the Small Stuff.” Now, in terms of Mastery’s vision of what it means to “Sweat the Small Stuff,” it may appear that we are being “strict,” “rigid,” and “controlling”…
read more »Today marks the start of our 6th week of school here at Mann, and I could not help but think, “Holy cow! We’ve been at this for 6 weeks already?! Do we have anything to show for it…?” Today seemed especially “ordinary,” “normal,” and even “average.” So, naturally, I started to think back over the…
read more »Dearest Texas high school teachers, I just had the chance to go with a couple of collegaues and 16 students to the UIL Student Activities Conference at UT-Austin. It was incredibly rad(1) and we all learned a lot about the different academic and speech events. This year as academic coordinator, I finally have coaches for…
read more »I was making copies a couple of weeks ago and one of the social studies teachers asked me: “So how does it feel to be teaching this year?” I thought this was an odd question. “Uh, same as the last two years I’ve been teaching, I guess,” I replied. “I just mean that now you…
read more »On this beautiful Fall Monday (that I am enjoying off thanks to Rosh Hashanah!), I have been thinking back to that first Fall I spent on the East Coast. At this point, five years later, I can say I have fallen in love with my current surroundings and circumstances. However, I have a confession to make: During…
read more »You may think you’ve seen ADHD in action, but you have no idea. When a child, physically, mentally, and emotionally, has no control due to the neurological functioning of his brain… When he cannot sit, or stand, or walk even, without throwing his arms up, or grabbing anything within reach, because he felt the urge…
read more »Before I say anything about this week, let me just show you how we finished last week: The “Academic Athletes” of Room #306 “I Am” Poems Let me just say: “We were first!” Last Friday, my boys “performed” their “I Am” Poems, that they worked on all week. It was the FIRST week of instruction…
read more »As we are approaching “High Five Friday!” of our first full week of school, there are a few things I need to write down and let go, and other things I need to hold on to, for the tougher days ahead. Let’s start with Monday, the first day of “official instruction.” This means, we’re supposed…
read more »First: A HUGE, GIGANTIC, THANK YOU!!! To my incredible family: AMANDA, NATHAN, HT & HADLEY I cried when I found this in my mailbox: Thanks to you guys, I can get my students more supplies that will help them be creative and, more importantly, stay organized! With that, I hereby declare Mann Elementary; Room #306 now “officially” open to…
read more »Palms sweating, tears welling, nerves? excitement? fear? too much coffee? or is this an anxiety attack? That was my emotional state as I drove to school this morning. And of course, as soon as I walk in the door, someone asks me “How are you doing?” with that sympathetic tone. I, being a model Mastery…
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