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Reflections on my first Twitter Chat: what worked well, what overwhelmed me, and some silly things I tweeted.

Today Deb Gaby and I finished leading the third day of a three-day Foundations of Writing Workshop training. At the end, we asked for reflections. Teacher after teacher commented on the impact of… Read More →

Expectations of common core, teacher evaluation, and what it means to be literate in the 21st century can sometimes pile up and overwhelm me.  There is so much new information coming at me… Read More →

This weekend I learned of a first grade club. “The teachers don’t know about it,” Sam (my first grade son) said, “So keep it quiet.” “What is it?” “It’s the Bad Word Club.… Read More →

I love this quote. It  is one of my favorites to share in a workshop. I read it today with an epic-cool group of teachers at Southbury School. (I learned epic-cool from a… Read More →

Unfortunately I don’t have a photo from one of my favorite Friday Favorites. Christy Rush-Levine and I met for a walk + dinner on Tuesday. Christy is one of those people who help… Read More →

I hesitate to write this blog post. Yet it needs written. Maybe for you or for the teacher next door. Definitely for me. This week I’ve had too many conversations with teachers who… Read More →

Rest. Why does this seem like a dirty four letter word? I’ve been doing a lot of thinking about rest. We were on fall break last week. You might think I took rest… Read More →

Rest. Why does this seem like a dirty four letter word? I’ve been doing a lot of thinking about rest. We were on fall break last week. You might think I took rest… Read More →

I’m smiling at the phrase Vintage Ayres. It’s a little bit of a smirk because, really, am I old enough to qualify as vintage? Maybe not. But definitely so in blog years. I… Read More →

One of the reasons I appreciate the opportunity to lead professional development is I get to continue pushing myself to new understandings and deeper learning. Every time I speak or work with a… Read More →

It’s one of those days. You know, where you wonder if you really want to keep doing this? It’s one of those days. You know, where you are positive you are doing exactly… Read More →

You can change your attitude, your priorities, or your thinking on any day. You just have to commit yourself to a new mindset or way of life.

The third part of the conference was led by Tammy Mulligan and Clare Landrigan. They inspired me to stick to my beliefs. One of the ideas they talked about is a Framework for… Read More →

My writing group is an important part of my life as a writer. It’s more than just accountability, but feedback and camaraderie and, well, if I’m super honest, fun. When I was a classroom teacher, I didn’t do a very good job of establishing writing groups, or crit partners, for my students. I see now they were [...]

I’ve been thinking about teachers on the tough days. You know those days. The days when you can barely lift your hand to high five kids on the way out (which may be a good thing because you don’t really want to give them high fives anyway). When you’re not sure you can make it [...]

I’ve been thinking about teachers on the tough days. You know those days. The days when you can barely lift your hand to high five kids on the way out (which may be a good thing because you don’t really want to give them high fives anyway). When you’re not sure you can make it [...]

One of the teachers I’m working alongside is really focused on honing her conferring skills. So we are hunkering down beside students and listening intently to their work. She leads the conference and… Read More →

One of the teachers I’m working alongside is really focused on honing her conferring skills. So we are hunkering down beside students and listening intently to their work. She leads the conference and… Read More →

We’ve been researching in Keith Bollman’s 5th grade class. Because Keith and I have been working together for years, I know he will let me play a little in writing workshop. I can… Read More →

Tonight’s post is just a little reminder. Your story matters. Your teaching matters. Take a minute and remember why you joined the profession in the first place. Do you remember? I do. I… Read More →

This week I had the opportunity to interview author John Claude Bemis. This is is latest book: I asked him about notebook work and his response led me to a deeper understanding of… Read More →

I think reflective practice is the heart of a growing teacher. Without reflection, we stagnate. Over time, reflection has become a state of mind for me. However, if I never write it down,… Read More →

One of the things I realized about myself when I went to the Choice Literacy writing retreat is how quickly I speed through the day. I like to pay attention to the world… Read More →

Joanne Toft has taught for more than 30 years and spent 6 years managing The Arts for Academic Achievementprogram for the Minneapolis Public Schools. Last year she returned to the classroom to teach… Read More →