In the next couple of weeks most of us who are teachers will be taking a deep breath, preparing our classrooms and syllabi, and getting ready to face a year of eager(ish) students, we hope. Several years ago Robyn started a weekly diary which provided a place for teachers at all levels to hang out and talk about issues in education.
She has moved on to other diaries, but others have picked up her mantel, and during the school year we write a saturday morning diary series under the title she started with -- "Teachers' Lounge". We have elementary teachers and high school teachers and college teachers, teachers who have turned to this career after years of doing other things, and others who have gone through from elementary school to college, to teaching, without ever having really left school themselves.
I organize the diaries, and make sure someone is writing an essay each week, and posting the diary between 10 and noon eastern time each Saturday morning. Last year the topics of the diaries included teaching science, inspiring students, scheduling the school year (including block scheduling), scaffolding, going textbookless, and lots of other things. We have a great year ahead of us, with a new president, dealing with the repercussions of the economic collapse and the changing political environment.
There are a lot of diaries on Daily Kos about teaching. I would like to invite you to participate in the Teachers' Lounge diary series, either as a writer or as a commenter. Right now I am particularly interested in encouraging you to join our crew of writers. If you are interested, please email me at: teacherslounge@live.com, and I will add you to the list of writers.
Just as the school year will be starting soon, so will the Teachers' Lounge series. The school at the end of my parents' block has a sign out front saying "First day of school August 12th. Early dismissal." And on my university's web page the alumni send off for various cities is advertised. Our freshman week starts a week from Wednesday. I will be writing the first for this year this coming Saturday.
Come join us!