Author Archives: sutterlearn

Teaching Peace, Reaping Rewards

Posted on March 19, 2011 by sutterlearn

When we were children, my siblings and I would tease when we couldn’t locate our mother.  Before the tethered leash of cellular phones, if mom wasn’t around we would all assume she was, “off at some peacemaking conference”.  Mom may … Continue reading →

Posted in Leadership, Teachers, Technology | Leave a comment

Ram Pride

Posted on March 17, 2011 by sutterlearn

Today during the daily 10-minute snack break in the morning at our own Holt High School, as the students were gathered in the Commons, music played and the staff came from all over and joined in a dance routine for … Continue reading →

Posted in Students, Teachers | 1 Comment

The Cuts Are Unavoidable, The Targets Are

Posted on March 14, 2011 by sutterlearn

This one will be short.  I understand where our new Governor, Rick Snyder, is coming from with his recent budget proposal for Michigan.  Some decisions have to be for the long-term.  I do not understand cutting a dime for early … Continue reading →

Posted in Politics | 1 Comment

Recess Privilege

Posted on March 14, 2011 by sutterlearn

Leave it to my neighbor and friend, Mike.  He always shows an interest in education and challenges my thinking in a good way.  Tonight we chatted ever so briefly about the improving weather as I unloaded the car from work.  … Continue reading →

Posted in Students, Teachers | 3 Comments

Super-Boogeyman: Still Scary, But Nothing New

Posted on March 13, 2011 by sutterlearn

A few months ago, I wrote a piece for a different blog about the documentary “Waiting for Superman” in which I forecasted how educators should see this movie upon its release to be part of the conversation that I felt … Continue reading →

Posted in Leadership, Politics, School Reform, Students, Teachers | Leave a comment

Report Card Frenzy, Conference Expectations

Posted on March 9, 2011 by sutterlearn

I love and hate report card time.  It is forced, in-depth reflection on data that I collect and see at-a-glance on my students every day.  It is an experience of aggregation, disaggregation, strengths, weaknesses, academics, social-emotional growth (mine and my … Continue reading →

Posted in Parenting, Teachers | 3 Comments

Inputs to Outputs = Process

Posted on March 6, 2011 by sutterlearn

It is probably frivolous to create any extra ink about teachers’ rights or the plight this profession faces politically right now.  You would think there can’t be a rock large enough that someone living beneath still believes teachers make too … Continue reading →

Posted in Leadership, Politics, School Reform | Leave a comment

A Balanced Calendar

Posted on March 6, 2011 by sutterlearn

I’ve been ruminating for a while on the questionable value of a balanced Pk-12 academic calendar (in other words, year-round school).  There are good arguments on both sides of that debate, some more perfunctory than others.  FYI – The “outdated, … Continue reading →

Posted in School Reform, Students, Teachers | 8 Comments

Recruitment Efforts

Posted on February 18, 2011 by sutterlearn

This post has absolutely nothing to do with teaching, other than it goes against everything I spend my teaching life promoting…peace. I am a passionate teacher, a respectful hunter, a patriotic American, and now an angry taxpayer.  Today I was … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | 4 Comments

Team Teaching

Posted on February 18, 2011 by sutterlearn

I began researching team teaching during my first year in the classroom.  I realized immediately that with the uber-high expectations of the standards movement on teachers, it really isn’t efficient or effective for one person to teach small, active humans … Continue reading →

Posted in Teachers | 2 Comments