What's the Weather?

From the desk of Leigh Ann . . . “It is my personal approach that creates the climate.  It is my daily mood that makes the weather.”  – unknown As teachers we are are tasked with building the whole child – academically, socially, and emotionally.  The climate in my classroom is instrumental to me meeting the…

Read More

Infusing Enthusiasm Into Your Teaching

 From the desk of Carol C. . . It is the supreme art of the teacher to awaken joy in creative expression and knowledge. Albert Einstein Sometimes it’s just downright hard to be enthusiastic.  Your team is losing the game.  The sermon is delivered in monotone.  The neighbor continues to drone on about something you…

Read More

Grab Their Attention

From the desk of Carol C. . . It is the supreme art of the teacher to awaken joy in creative expression and knowledge.~ Albert Einstein Sometimes it’s just downright hard to be enthusiastic.  Think about your classroom.  Do you ever feel less than enthusiastic about the lessons you will teach?  Do you sense that…

Read More

Fun Theory

From the desk of Leigh Ann . . . “Creativity is intelligence having fun.” – Albert Einstein Volkswagen has a campaign entitled The Fun Theory.  It is dedicated to the thought that “something as simple as fun is the easiest way to change people’s behavior for the better.”  One example of the theory at work shows…

Read More

Dear Teachers

From the desk of Hope… Dear Teachers, You Do Make a Difference! At times you may think the barriers are too big and the task is too large but the truth is, you have what it takes to make a difference. The size of the contribution is not what matters. We observe you daily seeking…

Read More

First Impressions

From the desk of Carol C. . . You never get a second chance to make a first impression. We’ve all heard this quote over and over, but I think of it every time I write an email to the parents of a student.  It doesn’t matter if it’s the first email I’ve written them…

Read More

Bored into Wisdom?

From the desk of Leigh Ann . . . “Those books that I have learned most from have been those which have entertained me.  No one as yet …has been bored into wisdom.”  -Erik Haugaard – author and illustrator As an early childhood teacher one of my utmost goals is to get children excited about…

Read More

Igniting the Reader Inside You

From the desk of Keela… Everyone’s book is out there somewhere. You know, the book that ignites the reader inside of you. Some discover it at a young age, others later in life, while others may never discover it. I feel one of my responsibilities, as a teacher, is to help create life-long readers by…

Read More

Enthusiasm + Passion = Energy

From the desk of Leigh Ann . . . “Passion is energy.  Feel the power that comes from focusing on what excites you.”  – Oprah Winfrey This month’s focus at ERG is Enthusiasm, so I traced the etymology of the word and found it comes from the Greek meaning “divine inspiration.”  Cool, huh?  I think one…

Read More