FCPS Special Education Conference 2019

In case you’re interested, I’ll be presenting at the FCPS Special Education Conference at Lake Braddock Secondary School in Burke, VA next Saturday, April 6th. Among the lineup of other great topics and speakers, my presentation will cover: Executive Functioning Strategies Children and Teens Need During the Pivotal Transition Years (Session 1 from 10:10am-11:10am) For … Read more

Will letter grades survive?

“The purpose of education is not to sort kids-it’s to grow kids. Teachers need to coach and mentor, but with grades, teachers turn into judges.” That’s a quote from this Edutopia piece, which questions the value of letter grades as we look towards how we might assess students differently in the future. Although it’s unlikely … Read more

Should cell phones be banned at school?

“Put it down.”   “I’m serious, put it down or it goes away.”   “Have you been on this the whole time you’ve been up here!?” If any of these three statements ring true for you, then you’re probably in the same boat as every other parent out there: in a constant tug-of-war with your … Read more

Is technology really the problem?

Speaking of technology… When it comes to the academic success and health of our students a lot of blame gets passed around these days to smart phones, social media, and internet usage in general.  Some of that blame seems to be well-deserved. For one thing, back in our day, the potential for bullying pretty much ended when … Read more

Test Prep Timeline: March 2019

Here’s what you should be thinking about this month. Sophomores should be… You guessed it: continuing to focus on their regular schoolwork. A practice test and some periodic exercises from an SAT or ACT workbook certainly won’t hurt, but now is the time to focus on school. Juniors should be… Just about finished with their … Read more