Lainie Levin

Something to Lose Sleep Over?

I was just catching up on the blogs I read and I caught an article on the Gifted Exchange: do highly gifted kids need less sleep than their other age-level peers? Check it out: http://giftedexchange.blogspot.com/2009/09/gifted-children-and-sleep.html

Where the Time Goes, Part 2

So the next day the kids are coming in, having found the areas for all rectangles with a perimeter of 56 units. They had all drawn and counted out the squares. We went through answers together, and then one student pipes up and says, “Hey. I think I found a shortcut for finding how muchContinue reading “Where the Time Goes, Part 2”

Where the Time Goes

So now that the school year has hit, my schedule and routine has slowly gotten back to its rhythm. Which means that so many of the things I made time for during the summer have just gone away. Today, I was just thinking how disappointed I was in myself. After all, over the summer IContinue reading “Where the Time Goes”

Psst! Pass it on…

Parenting is hard. It’s also incredibly amazing. I can truthfully say that at the end just about every day. Every so often, I see something that speaks to me as a teacher and a parent, and feel compelled to pass it along. So here it is, from the Zen Habits blog. Check it out: http://bit.ly/2dK6Ih

Toys

It’s a familiar sight during the holidays: wrapping paper strewn about the floor, children shouting with joy as they open each of their new presents. It’s exciting to remember what it was like to be a kid. Imagine all these new toys. What do we play with first? How can we possibly decide? How greatContinue reading “Toys”

The Most Important Thing

How often does life reward us for being the smartest one in the room? TV trivia show prizes aside, how many things in life come to us because we know more than anyone else? Will it assure us entrance into a good college? Will it find us a life partner? Will it advance our career?Continue reading “The Most Important Thing”

This is How it Should Work…

…with differentiated instruction across the board, all under one umbrella. Needs are needs, people. Whether a child requires services because he has dyslexia, anxiety disorder, intellectual gifts – you name it. It’s time for us all to look at the services we provide as schools and bring them all together. http://www.wilmette39.org/DI39/

This I Believe

At the very heart of things, I am a classroom teacher. My vision for schools is firmly rooted in my core beliefs about education. I believe in public schooling as a cornerstone of American society. I believe that teaching is the greatest job in the world, and that children are the best co-workers in theContinue reading “This I Believe”