Why Every Child Should Go Camping At Least Once (But Preferably All the Time)

Sometimes, I worry that today’s kids are overly connected– staring at their phones, requiring constant entertainment, especially in the city. When I ask my students what they did during the weekend, their answers usually include the words “Netflix” and “Snapchat” more often than “biking” or “play.” Last week, I took my students (city kids growing…

Read More

How Max Braverman Won Student Body President

“Some people may say having Asperger’s is bad, but I think it’s my best quality.” At KIT, we’ve written before about Parenthood, the show that taught us all about the stresses and joys of having a child with Asperger’s (among other stories within the show). I, myself, had never seen the show before, and I…

Read More

When the Teacher Takes a Page Out of the Camp Counselor’s Book

A wise mentor once told me, “Camp counselors need to learn from teachers, and teachers need to learn from camp counselors.” I got what he was saying, but I’m not sure I really got it. This week, I gave it a try. I’ve been feeling bogged down by my job. With standardized testing coming up,…

Read More

Happy Teacher Appreciation Week!

Last Fall, this video, in which Lily Eskelsen Garcia explains ALL that teachers do each day, went viral. … And it’s true! Many teachers are caregivers, primary emotional support providers, instructional experts, snack-givers, referees, relationship-builders, and much more. Teachers, thank you for all that you do to promote confidence and help students find  a sense…

Read More

When Students Admit They Need Help

We’ve all had that student. The one who pushes our extra help away because he doesn’t want his friends to know he struggles. The one who puts down teachers in front of peers to gain a few laughs. The one who acts like (and sometimes says outright) he doesn’t want to be in your class.…

Read More

A Time When High Expectations and Inclusion Weren’t Enough

Friends, This week, I’d like to share with you a story about a young man with whom I have worked this year. This year, I had my hands full with Mark. Mark transferred to our school for 8th grade, and we did not know he had an IEP until 2 weeks into the school year.…

Read More

Spotlight on Samuel

“Ms. Hopkins, you know Doctor Who?” Samuel asks me at the end of class about once per week. He always follows this question up with a conversation about a highly specific topic of the BBC show, which I admit I have not yet watched (despite much encouragement from lowed ones). Samuel is one of the most endearing…

Read More

When All Kids Get What They Need

I’m going to be really honest about my feelings about inclusion in reading class this school year… I was really nervous. I wasn’t really sure how to give kids the supports they needed to be able to actually read (as in, decode) texts in front of them, while their classmates were moving on to deeper levels…

Read More

An Open Letter to my Students

Last weekend, I had the pleasure of attending the Teach For America 25th anniversary summit in Washington, DC. The summit had over 15,000 attendees, all committed to improving the quality of education for students in low-income communities. One session that particularly moved me was titled “Fighting Like Hell for Kids: Award-Winning Teachers on Staying in…

Read More

Diversity at the Holidays

As a special education teacher who teaches in a primarily inclusive setting, I have had the pleasure of seeing inclusion in its many forms. I have seen students embrace various forms of diversity, acknowledging and celebrating many types of differences. Children are remarkable in that they are naturally curious, not judgmental, about human differences. They also…

Read More