Unless you live under a rock, you know school districts across Indiana are closing for the Red for Ed Action Day on Tuesday, November 19, 2019, which is the same date as the start of the legislative session. That’s what I hate. Schools are closing including my sons’ school. Children should not be a bartering…
Preparing students for college is a focus of schools across America. College is one of the three options students can choose. School districts such as Indianapolis Public Schools focus on the three Es: enroll, enlist, employ. Veterans Day is a day to thank military men and women for their service, but it can also be…
“We did not disappear. We did not die out. We are survivors.” – Chief Glenna Wallace, Eastern Shawnee Tribe of Oklahoma In the Indiana State Museum, you can find the words of Chief Glenna Wallace displayed on the wall surrounded by pictures of Native Americans from present day and from the past. Present day was…
Invisible. That’s how some teachers make students feel. I thought about this after a recent episode of This is Us. The show follows the lives of Jack and Rebecca Pearson’s children who all have the same birthdate. Randall, a black boy, was born on the same day as Jack and Rebecca’s kids, Kate and Kevin,…
Listen as Educator Barnes explains why she needs people in power to do more than just listen to Black educators.
Since summer started to wrap up, Halloween displays began appearing in stores across America. Costumes of princesses, vampires, and superheroes lines the shelves. Don’t forget the section of the store filled with nothing but candy. As widely popular as Halloween is, it is still a day that some children do not participate. I remember being…
When I was in school, the same teachers at the school, when I was a kid, were still there when both of my sisters went to school after me. Some even stayed at the school until retirement. Unfortunately, school communities aren’t like this anymore. As a teacher, you can expect your grade level team or…
I know. I just spoke teacher blasphemy. Educators will tell you that any new initiative, model, or curriculum that is rolled comes with the expectation of implementing it with fidelity. In the core of my being, I am a rule follower. I don’t want to get in trouble at work, but I’m serving students not…
If you have been reading my work long enough, you know I am adamant about teachers pronouncing students’ names correctly. A student’s name is part of his or her identity. It is not a teacher’s place to complain about a student’s name or make fun of it. This should also apply when a child’s preferred…
From the moment I placed my children in the care of another adult, I have made it a priority to show up unannounced and see about my children. Since I didn’t have the luxury to be a stay at home mom when my boys were born, hire a nanny, or send them to grandparents, I…