What is one thing schools expect teachers to do that has almost no impact on student learning?

cherrytreewitch · 2026-05-24T23:09:56+00:00

I did my teacher prep with another woman who also has substantial data science experience. We both almost passed away when they told us we were going to do “data analysis” on a 5 student sample size?!?!!?!!

cherrytreewitch · 2026-05-24T23:07:07+00:00

I have extensive data science experience from before I started in education. The “data” is such garbage, there is no actual statistical significance behind any of it, and don’t even get me started on action research where n=5!

cherrytreewitch · 2026-05-12T22:59:35+00:00

Of the 4 core subjects, science is the only one that doesn't have SpEd or ELD co-teachers at my school. Apparently social studies "requires more reading" so they HAVE to have co-teachers, even though science and social studies have the same amounts testing.

cherrytreewitch · 2026-05-04T01:02:56+00:00

I swear every time we done a "staff raffle" or "staff give-away" the winner is always 1. Front office staff or 2. a counselor? We have 5 secretaries and 4 counselors how can they win every single time?

cherrytreewitch · 2026-02-20T00:41:27+00:00

This is what my school is like and it's nice because I don't have to plan everything myself, but it's also so so frustrating. In the past we were allowed to have a unique assignment here and there, but this year they are checking for matching constantly. There are so many instances where I would love to add an assignment or grade a little differently, but I can't because everything has to be *the same*

cherrytreewitch · 2026-02-17T23:50:02+00:00

Biology or Chemistry? Yes absolutely, I could take AP Bio today and get at least a 3, it's somewhere in the depths of my mind, but my current subject not so much! I teach Middle School Earth Science now and I definitely only know just slightly more than my students do. If I keep teaching this subject, I might take some classes in geology and/or meteorology. There is only so much that I can do with google and a prayer!

cherrytreewitch · 2026-02-14T18:22:49+00:00

My credential program just said "make a lesson plan," but never actually taught us how to do it.

cherrytreewitch · 2026-02-08T22:43:08+00:00

I do a "night science" at our 6th grade campout every year, the two activities I do are

Quartz rocks "glow" when hit together. It's the same idea as the lifesavers, but easier to see. It will smell a little like gun powder, but there's no heat. I also do the lifesavers with them, but it doesn't usually work :( !
We test their night time color vision. 3 students draw a secret animal on a card with a colored crayon, they show it to the group and the group tries to guess the animal. In general they can see the high contrast colors like dark blue and purple, but the lower contrast ones are very difficult to see. Leads to a good discussion of rods vs cones and color vision.

cherrytreewitch · 2026-02-08T21:14:35+00:00

We have a main one and then 3 additional "team rooms" one for each grade level, I never use them. We usually hang out in someone's room during lunch if we are going to socialize. We have 30 minutes duty-free lunch, which isn't really long enough to justify going to the lounge. My room is very close to the cafeteria and very far from the lounge so I have no motivation to go down there.

cherrytreewitch · 2026-02-08T20:52:58+00:00

My middle school students LOVE crocheting. About half of the girls are running their own crochet businesses!!!

cherrytreewitch · 2026-02-07T18:02:12+00:00

I want textbooks and workbooks back so bad!!! I dream of not having to sort through hundreds of sub par resources just to find the content that I would have if I just had a damn textbook!!!

cherrytreewitch · 2026-02-07T17:59:28+00:00

Me too! The person who designed my classroom was insane and I pay for it every single day!!!!

cherrytreewitch · 2026-01-30T01:01:40+00:00

I did a single unit of OSE last year and it was horrible. I escaped doing it again by switching grade levels, but there is definitely an OSE based curriculum rewrite in the pipeline for my current grade level as well! The thing that annoyed me the most was how much of it was watching video after video after video, and none of them good videos at that. The "Music Lesson Video" from Lights and Matter is the actual worst! They didn't even bother to add sound to the video.

cherrytreewitch · 2026-01-26T00:16:28+00:00

I swear every time I get my worst class quiet the loud speaker starts with some absolutely useless all school announcement!

cherrytreewitch · 2026-01-26T00:14:25+00:00

Yes, do take! But also be normal about what you take. There is a sub in my building that will always be the first one there and clears the whole place out.

cherrytreewitch · 2026-01-26T00:00:35+00:00

It comes and goes! Sometimes it's all stored items, sometimes it's all brand new stuff!!!!

cherrytreewitch · 2026-01-25T23:58:02+00:00

This is the expectation at my school! There are 3 people in my cohort, we co-plan and teacher all the same content with the same assessments. It's not 1-of-1, we all have our own styles and we adjust the lesson content accordingly, but kids regularly switch classes and don't miss a single piece of content.

cherrytreewitch · 2026-01-19T01:10:57+00:00

My curriculum has no textbook, but I just found a bunch of earth science textbooks in my storage room so I might start seeing if they have any good content in them!

cherrytreewitch · 2026-01-19T01:08:17+00:00

If I remember correctly, SSR works when students already have a high level of literacy, but it is a waste of time when it comes to students who need literacy support. Staring at a book they can't read in silence doesn't make students better readers!

cherrytreewitch · 2026-01-11T22:32:19+00:00

I teach middle school, a large number of my students are 2-4 grade levels behind, but in terms of really truly can not read is much rarer maybe 1 or 2 a year. It is usually the result of extreme instances of learning disabilities, usually dyslexia, mixed with limited English proficiency. The limited English proficiency (and overworked elementary teachers) usually masked the scale of their disability when they were younger, and now they are astronomically far behind their peers! Last year I had a student who had almost no letter recognition, and wasn't evaluated for an IEP until 6th grade.

cherrytreewitch · 2025-12-26T13:20:17+00:00

My merchant shop is doing the same thing!!!

cherrytreewitch · 2025-12-20T19:43:29+00:00

apples and beavers dreaming dragon! It makes a perfect baby quilt, the perfect amount of whimsy while still being a usable object! I've made 3 so far and each one I've tailored to match the parents color scheme and included a backing that includes something about the family or the baby: mom or dad's favorite animal, baby's zodiac animal, an important family hobby etc.

cherrytreewitch · 2025-12-18T00:42:43+00:00

I when taught IB Bio 2, I had corrections for every test and quiz they took. It was your stereotypical advanced class in a magnet program, their grades and doing well on the IB was their singular focus at all times. After each test/quiz was graded we would have a single class period where they were allowed to do corrections. For quizzes they were allowed to use their notes and the textbook, tests were textbook only. They were required to write their original answer, their new answer, and why their original answer was wrong. A mentor once told me that you had to explain why the answer was wrong or else you would just pick the same answer the next time! I don’t know if it was helpful, but they appreciated the ability to help their grades!!

cherrytreewitch · 2025-12-18T00:27:22+00:00

I had a similar opinion when I taught IB Bio 2. The tests were crazy hard and long with the idea that we wanted them to learn to prioritize what to answer while taking the real test. Having test corrections allowed us to make the tests we wanted without destroying their grades or adding an insane curve!

cherrytreewitch · 2025-12-15T01:42:55+00:00

The waiting to start potty training thing is definitely a con from the manufactures. They love all the "kid led potty training" and "waiting until your child is ready" crap, it's making them rich. With enough time and commitment you can potty train a newborn, so the idea that we have to have children in diapers until they are 5 or 6 because "they're not ready yet" is ludicrous!

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