EDUCATE TEACHERS NEWS
March 2020
"If kids come to educators and teachers from strong, healthy, functioning families, it makes our job easier. If they do not come to us from strong, healthy, functioning families, it makes our job more important."   
                                                                                                  ~Barbara Coloroso
Barbara Coloroso (1954-     )
is a speaker on topics such as parenting, teaching, conflict resolution, and school climate and discipline, as well as an author. Her books include, Bully, the Bullied, and the Not-So-Innocent Bystander, 
​​Kids are Worth It! Giving Your Child the Gift of Inner Discipline, and more.
It's Women's History Month!
​Alice B. Clement
Detective, Suffragette, Woman for the Ages
Wearing heels, feathered hats and fur coats, Alice Clement wielded a revolver and tommy gun and fought crime in the heart of Chicago over a century ago.
In one of her most famous cases, she uncovered a murder plot in which the villain used a strain of typhoid bacteria to taint the strings of the victims dulcimer. The victim often licked the tips of her fingers when strumming the strings of the instrument infecting herself and providing the villain a perfect alibi. It was true evil genius, but not genius enough to fool Detective Clement!
The case drew such a following that Agatha Christie eventually created a series based on it called The Dulcimer.
Being a detective was only part of who Alice Clement was. She was also a suffragette who fought for women's right to vote. She stood up for herself and other women when she asserted her independence and divorced her husband for desertion and intemperance (excessive boozing) in a time when divorce was virtually unheard of. 
In the spirit of being a truly strong woman, Clement helped people wherever she could. Whether it was assisting people at the scene of an accident, helping runaway girls, or aiding the poor and destitute, Clement was a force for good and she did it her own way without making apologies.
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Detective Alice Clement (1878-1926)
Celebrate Women's History Month by reading more about Alice in the links below.
Alice Clement: The Detective Wore Pearls 
The Inspire Tale of Alice Clement: Chicago's Female Sherlock Holmes
March Featured Class of the Month
Examining:
Teaching Math to 21st Century Students
(3 credit hour graduate credit or IA license renewal)
​____________
Imagine you have an average classroom size of 20-25 students. What are the odds they're all exactly at the same level in math? What are the odds they have the same learning styles and arithmetic abilities? The odds are pretty much a whopping ZERO. What can you do about it?
Examining: Teaching Math to 21st Century Students looks at the factors affecting differentiation in K-8 mathematics classrooms. Participants will examine how the shifts multiple intelligences theory, advances in the neurosciences, broader teaching variables, technology, and RTI are impacting differentiated math instruction. In addition to examining the shift factors, participants will have a number of opportunities to investigate different strategies and technologies that are part of the "New Differentiation."  ​
Explore new strategies and technologies and discover research-based strategies to differentiate your math instruction. Perfect for diverse and inclusive classrooms.

​Click here to join us for
​Examining
Teaching Math to 21st Century Students
March 18th to May 22nd
ATTN: Due to popular demand, a March session of I'm So Tired has been added!!
Express: I'm So Tired: An Educator's Guide to Self Care
(3 credit hour Iowa license renewal course)
Course 1 in the Educators' Self-Care Series
Most of the teachers who have taken our classes are passionate, talented, dedicated and hardworking. They are also stretched thin by demands of family, friends and job. Guess who gets taken care of last? They do!!!! 
 
Teaching is stressful. We watch our students struggle with poverty, abuse, learning problems and a myriad number of other difficulties.  It takes its toll on our quality of life and our performance. We need to take time for ourselves and to learn how to be healthy emotionally and physically; we need an action-plan.
I’m So Tired! An Educator’s Guide to Self-Care, provides realistic ways to become healthier and take care of ourselves. This class explains the issues, identifies the problems and helps to remediate and treat those issues that keep educators sick and stressed out. Do something for yourself! ​Get signed up early! Class starts March 18th. ​​
Click here to learn more or register for
I'm So Tired! An Educator's Guide to Self-Care
2 New Classes Coming in April!
!!!NEW!!!
​Coming in April
I'm So Stressed! Mindfulness & Meditation for Teachers & Students
(3 credit hour Iowa license renewal)
Course 2 in the Educators' Self-Care Series
Mindfulness is the ability to know what is happening inside of your brain at all times; to live in the moment. Pretty basic and unsophisticated, but there’s nothing basic or unsophisticated about this life changing concept. It’s hard to be in the moment regardless of how much we know it is right for us. We think about the past and live unhappy moments over and over again and we stress about the future thinking the worst possible scenarios. 
Anyone in education is under a huge amount of stress in their school life. Added to that, most educators have family commitments and are squeezed in the sandwich generation raising kids and dealing with aging parents. As educators, we need now, more than ever, to practice mindfulness for ourselves, our families and our students. Mindfulness is a practice that can transform us, bring us peace, heal our bodies and our minds and allow us to enjoy our lives. ​
​Express: I’m So Stressed! Mindfulness & Meditation for Teachers & Students explores the many facets of mindfulness and how to integrate it into our daily lives. It provides information for teachers, students and parents and gives examples and practices. Educators will understand the importance of mindfulness for themselves and for their students. The question is not “do we have time for mindfulness?” The question is “can we afford not to make the time for mindfulness?”
Express: I’m So Stressed! Mindfulness & Meditation for Teachers & Students is a class designed to bring into alignment the mental and physical self by promoting calm, self-discipline and patience through mindfulness practices and meditation exercises. This class will provide a look at the nature of mindfulness, the benefits of mindfulness and the how-tos of mindfulness. ​
Click here to learn more! Registration starts soon!
I'm So Stressed! Mindfulness & Meditation for Teachers & Students
!!New!!
Coming in April
Express: Beyond the Gradebook: Teachers Do a Lot More Than Teach!
(3 credit hour Iowa license renewal course)
“It’s the children the world almost breaks who grow up to save it.”
—Frank Warren
There are students in our classrooms in need of more than reading, 'riting & 'rithmatic. We've all known them. They may be struggling with abuse, neglect, homelessness, or taking on adult responsibilities too early in their young lives. Whether we know it or whether we like it or not, we are often the only safe adult relationship they have. 
​Every one of us has dealt with the effects of abuse. We may have grown up with it, or seen it in the family of a friend. We see it in some of our students. Jacob Chastain, the author of Teach Me, Teacher, shares his experiences growing up in an abusive home. He overcame the horror and “saw the light.” Why? What did he do and can we do that for ourselves and our students? Chastain celebrates good decision making, passion for teaching and being positive. He says he can’t imagine not loving what he does!
Beyond the Gradebook is a 3 credit hour Iowa license renewal course that uses Chastain’s story to remind educators that we do much more than teach. Great teachers are about more than curriculum and assignments.  Great teachers listen, understand, support and believe in their students. They provide hope and can be a lifeline. They foster seeds of potential and better tomorrows. For some students, a teacher may be the only constant, dependable adult presence in their lives. For some students, their classrooms are safe spaces they desperately need.  This course brings to light the prevalence of students in our schools and classrooms struggling with often dark and painful challenges and how educators can be a source of light and hope.
How do we become “good” teachers, how do we reach the kid who has, thus far, been unreachable and how do we make this world a better place because we care about and support kids? Chastain’s book is a powerful reminder of how important teachers are in this world and how vital it is that each child have a champion. 
Click here to learn more. Registration starts soon!
Beyond the Gradebook: Teachers Do a Lot More than Teach
Educate Teachers
​Online Professional Development Classes
February classes start on the 19th! Get the credits you need with modified, self-paced courses flexible enough to fit any teacher's busy schedule.
All courses are accredited. Choose from:
EXPRESS Courses:
6 week Iowa License Renewal Courses

Examining Courses:
​8-9 week courses that can be taken for Iowa License Renewal or EDMA Graduate Credit
​
Visit our website to learn more and register for upcoming classes
https://www.educateteachers.org/
Follow us on Facebook, Pinterest and Twitter for upcoming class information, education articles & news and creative classroom ideas & strategies!
Reader's Corner
Positive Mindset Habits
for Teachers: 
10 Steps to Reduce Stress, Increase Student Engagement and Reignite Your Passion for Teaching
​By Grace Stevens
The dream is real! You can manage your stress, get your passion for teaching back and maybe even have a little spring left in your step at the end of the school day!

Grace Stevens does a beautiful job of helping teachers walk the tight rope known as education. She provides a good look at what it means to engage students in meaningful ways while enjoying the teaching experience.

Re-invigorate your passion for your craft. In Positive Mindset Habits for Teachers, the author present 10 simple mindset steps that will have you feeling less overwhelmed in no time and that will benefit both you and your students! 
Did You Know?
Did You Know 
that Stephanie Kwolak was a famous female inventor?
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Stephanie Kwolek (1923-2014)
While working for DuPont, she created a synthetic fiber called poly-paraphenylene terephthalamide? 
What's that, you ask?
It's Kevlar!
Kevlar is light-weight, the fibers are heat  and corrosion resistant and 5x stronger than steel! Kevlar is used in the production of hundreds of items from firefighters' boots and gloves to airplane and spacecraft bodies. 
Kevlar's most well-known use is in bulletproof vests. Stephanie Kwolek's invention has saved countless police and military lives.
Celebrate Women's History Month by learning more about Kwolek's life and discoveries by clicking here and visiting the Science History Institute.
The Treasure Trove
Educator Resource of the Month
          Rejected Princesses
Find gripping stories, blog posts, myths and comics about heroic, and powerful (and sometime a little saucy and unorthodox) girls and women who didn't make the cut as Disney princesses.
Learn about woman like:

*Louisa Capetillo the Puerto Rican activist arrested for wearing pants 

*Vita Kempner a spy, saboteur against the Nazis

*Sarah Biffin who painted for kings and queens though she had no arms or legs

*Mary Patten the 1st American woman to command a ship

and more
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IA Girl Who Saved a Train Kate Shelley (1863-1912)
You'll even find a story on Iowa heroine Kate Shelley. In 1881, a 15 year old Shelley risked her life during a brutal storm to stop a passenger train before it reached a washed out bridge and killed everyone aboard. 
If you enjoy inspiring girl-power stories (and honestly who doesn't?) check out 
​Rejected Princesses
The Observation Deck
How Do Teachers Fund Their Classrooms? 
Does your classroom have everything it needs?
...Probably not.

Have you ever purchase items for your classroom with your own money?
...Of course you have!
It probably comes as no surprise that according to the Education Week article, How Do Teachers Fund Their Classrooms? 6 Takeaways, teachers are spending more of their own money and reaching out more frequently to crowdfunding sources like DonorsChoose to provide for their classrooms.
Schools and districts are also putting more restrictions on teachers' crowdfunding efforts, citing concerns that purchases don't align to standards for starters.
Besides their own pocketbooks and crowdfunding, teachers borrow from family members, ask local businesses, apply for grants, hold fundraisers and come up with countless, creative ways to go the extra mile for their classrooms and students. Sound Familiar?
Learn more about what alternative funding teachers are engaging in and what they're spending that money on. Click here to read the full article How Do Teachers Fund Their Classrooms? 6 Takeaways