"Some men see things as they are and say, 'Why'? I dream of things that never were and say, 'Why not'?"

                                                                                                                         -       Robert Kennedy

Among my greatest fears as an educator in the age of a misguided, high stakes, over intrusive, external accountability system is having to look back and wonder about the “things that never were and say, Why…

October 24, 2012

Do you think you have what it takes to write the next bestseller for teens or 'tweens?  Visit my Literacy Connections blog for info on a live Writer's Digest webinar!

Happy reading,

Christine

October 23, 2012

Visit my Literacy Connections blog to see how you can be a part of an upcoming feature in Parenting magazine!

Happy reading,

Christine

Why Suburbs Need Integration Plans

Why suburban schools need a plan

We are a predominantly suburban nation, with suburbia considered the center of our society and politics for…

October 22, 2012

Coaches and athletic directors, your expertise is need for a national parenting magazine!   To be quoted in an upcoming feature in Parenting magazine, please respond to the following questions:

1) Aside from obvious athletic talent, what sort of qualities do you look for when choosing kids for a team?

2) How can parents help their children prepare for (a) Baseball, (b) track,  (c) soccer and (d) Lacrosse spring tryouts? Specific…

The following is an excerpt of One Size Does Not Fit All: A Student’s Assessment of School, by 17-year-old Nikhil Goyal, a senior at Syosset High School in Woodbury, New York.  On a personal note, I had the pleasure of meeting Nikhil at last year's Long Island Tech Summit, and look forward to reading his new book.…

According to creators, funding for the PBS literacy program, Reading Rainbow was cancelled as a result of No Child Left Behind. Now it is back as an app.  For more details, check out the video on my literacy blog, Literacy Connections.

Happy reading,

Christine

I was invited to attend the Annual Conference on Evidence-based Policy-making and Innovation sponsored by the National Association of State Boards of Education, NASBE. The conference was well planned with excellent leaders and speakers in each of the sessions. These were the very sessions the members of NASBE needed to consider the weighty decisions they need to make on policy required by their positions on their State Boards of Education. I was there as an observer and a blogger and I was…

If common core fails, then what?

By Tom Whitby on October 18th, 2012 

Smart Brief Blogs

Teachers are the key, top educators agree

Teachers are the key to education reforms and improvements.

Many countries have put a lot of effort into…

Fiction vs. nonfiction smackdown

National Teacher of the Year: Give Us a Career Path

Rebecca Mieliwocki, the 2012 National Teacher of the Year, receives congratulations from President Barack Obama during a White House ceremony in April 2012.

—Charles Dharapak/AP

Obama, Romney have different views on education

(Photo: Michael Reynolds, AFP/Getty Images)

STORY HIGHLIGHTS

• Obama…

October 18, 2012

Your middle grade and young adult students may be interested in the new book by Lemony Snicket, Who Could That Be at This Hour?  For more info on the book, the upcoming signing, or the sardonic wit of this wonderful author, visit my Literacy Connections blog.

Happy reading,

Christine