This magazine has an Editorial Board whose members read all the submissions sent to Independent Teacher and then send me their comments so that we can decide which submissions to select for publication. Not long ago, in one of the many emails going back and forth about the submissions he was reading, one board member said, “Once again, I marvel at what folks are doing.” That offhand remark has stuck with me because it is so true. During my 12 years of editing Independent Teacher, I have thought the same thing many times. And other board members have mentioned similar sentiments. Despite all the negative press primary and secondary school teachers are getting these days, incredible teaching (and learning!) is going on in many classrooms. In this issue alone we have articles on these projects:
- The “tiny house” movement inspiring a project for an advanced drawing and design class of 10th-, 11th-, and 12th-graders
- An engineering project in which kindergartners design and create their own pair of shoes
- A between-semesters project where every classroom becomes a one-room schoolhouse, hosting children from kindergarten to grade five with a single school-wide curriculum
In previous issues, teachers have shared other activities and projects such as these:
- A middle school Holocaust project
- A high school world religions course
- A project-based learning activity about the Day of the Dead in collaboration with community organizations
Plus much more.
We are also pleased to announce that, starting next year, each spring issue of Independent Teacher will be a “themed” issue. Here are the themes for the next two years:
- Spring 2017: Wellness in Schools
- Spring 2018: Teachers Modeling Writing for Students
Independent Teacher is devoted to sharing as many of the fabulous things teachers are doing in their classrooms as possible. Tell us what’s going on in your classroom! Send submissions, queries, and comments to [email protected].