Creating and running a successful yearbook program does require a lot, but it doesn’t have to be a mystery. While this post isn’t designed to promote one specific yearbook publishing company, I am happy to share some expertise from my amazing Jostens representative. With 14 years in the industry, she has seen a thing or two and knows a thing or two about yearbooks. In this interview with a yearbook representative, I am happy to introduce my long-time yearbook rep and friend: Rebecca Kilday. Below she shares peeks into the industry and her job, insightful advice, and practical tips for new and seasoned yearbook advisers.

Yearbook distribution day is both exciting and worrisome for a yearbook adviser. There are so many things that can go wrong, but they don’t have to! I don’t have it all figured out, but over the years I have developed some methods and strategies to help make the day a success. I’m sharing those Yearbook Distribution Day Tips and Best Practices here!

A second title to this blog post could have been: Benefits of Blending Google Classroom with a Traditional Classroom. To elaborate, I teach high school English in a rural school district in the south. Every student doesn’t have his/her own iPad or Chromebook, but most have smart devices, and we have department sets of Chromebooks we can check out. We also have several labs throughout the school. So, when I use Google Classroom, it’s as an extension of my own traditional, four-walls classroom. That means my students still have textbooks, but we use GC for posting video tutorials and audio links to books. I still print worksheets for grammar each week, but I can use GC to send home virtual practice quizzes. I still lecture live in class with my PPT slides and students take notes, but with GC I can post key slides for review. Presentation days are streamlined now as students turn in their projects to the Assignment tab, but I still grade using a hard-copy rubric. In that way, GC as allowed me to enhance and

Recently, we experienced a school-wide Internet outage where I teach, and being without access to the World Wide Web really threw my students and me (along with everyone else in the building) for a loop. The days we were out of Internet, I had planned for students to make presentations that were stored in Google classroom, print papers to turn in, among other things that required Internet. It’s not the first time the Internet has gone down in our rural school, but going without really kicked my Plan B mindset into gear. So, I’ve put together a list of fabulous Internet-free ideas and resources for middle-high school in any subject that can be used in a pinch – or with some planning – when Ralph, or whoever, breaks the Internet.

Finally… the moment my students and I have been wishing and waiting for – an updated movie remake of one of our favorite novels: Fahrenheit 451. We always have a little fun playing the role of director, choosing which of our favorite actors and actresses should play Montag, Beatty, Mildred, Clarisse, and all the other memorable characters. However, we do always wonder… would Bradbury actually approve of any screen adaptation of his magnum opus? I had so many questions before watching HBO’s hot, new adaptation: Who would play Montag? Would it capture the theme accurately? What would be removed or added? And most importantly… would it be a good fit for using in class? Keep reading for the answers. WARNING: There are spoilers.

The excitement is in the air, the carols are playing, the trees are going up: It’s Christmas! What a wonderful time of year for celebrations. If you are like me, though, you want to be sure that you are still keeping your class contained and working on something skills-based through the Christmas Holiday season. Here are the best Christmas holiday lesson ideas, activities, and more for middle & high school teens for all subjects.

In a study of U.S. workers, 41.4% of respondents reported experiencing psychological aggression at work in the past year representing 47 million U.S. workers. The research found that 13%, or nearly 15 million workers, reported experiencing psychological aggression on a weekly basis. That means that you – like me – have most likely experienced bullying at work. I’m not a psychologist nor do I have any answers, but I do have some real-life scenarios that I’d like to share. Breaking down professional bullying in the workplace starts with bringing it to light.

With so many books being turned into money-making movie franchises, it might be hard to get your students to read something that hasn’t been recreated on the big screen. While I’m not opposed to the book-turned-movie selections (my Netflix queue is full and waiting for me to binge a few), I’ve always sought out books for my students that weren’t as popular. I’ll chalk it up to erring on the side of wanting to be different. Either way, the five books I’ve taught below haven’t hit the box office yet, and the fact that there are titles for fiction and nonfiction on the list that leave my students begging to keep reading makes my nerdy English teacher-heart happy. So, here are five book suggestions for your middle and high school students — without movies — that they will want to read anyway!