Kristina UlmerJun 25, 20191 min$20 Challenge: We're in the news!When I started my $20 Challenge, I had no idea it was going to impact the amount of people that it did. Not only did my students spend th...
Kristina UlmerJun 10, 20192 minI Countdown to Summer and There's Nothing Wrong With ItLately, I have been seeing a troublesome trend on educational social media. (I'm paraphrasing and combining various Tweets here, but you'...
Kristina UlmerJun 5, 20192 minMy $20 Challenge: Year One ResultsWhat started as a way to honor my sister Katie, my $20 challenge has grown into something even more. Over the course of this school year,...
Kristina UlmerMay 31, 20192 minIf Words Were People: Vocabulary Social Media ScreenshotsTeaching vocabulary has been the bane of my teaching existence for the past 14 years. Anyone who knows me, knows I am anti-vocabulary boo...
Kristina UlmerMay 7, 20192 minMy $20 Challenge: A Lesson in KindnessAfter my sister died, I found some money in her wallet. I knew this money had to go to helping others, as aiding those in need was someth...
Kristina UlmerApr 12, 20193 minCharacterization Lesson: Googly-Eyed Photographs in a SuitcaseOne of my favorite literary concepts to teach is characterization. Characterization is the core of literature. Without strategically-deve...
Kristina UlmerFeb 22, 20191 minPETE & C Expo & Conference 2019: My Favorite Take-AwaysIf you're not following Weston Kieschnick or Alice Keeler, you should be. Both are prominent and important voices in education and in the...
Kristina UlmerFeb 1, 20192 minUnlock Learning Conference: Nod-My-Head & Aha MomentsLast weekend, I had the opportunity to present a session at Unlock Learning, a conference in partnership with the New Jersey Literacy Ass...
Kristina UlmerJan 7, 20192 minFlipping Content Vocabulary with Genially, My New Favorite Infographic ToolI've written before about how I love to use infographic creators to flip lessons. Because you can embed interactive content, such as vide...
Kristina UlmerOct 26, 20185 minLogos, Ethos & Pathos, Oh My!: Flipping Persuasion & Logical FallaciesIn order to develop thoughtful and analytical citizens, capable of discerning truth and forming educated opinions, I believe it is vital ...
Kristina UlmerSep 24, 20183 minClose Reading with Oreo CookiesYears ago, while scouring the internet, I came across an activity that used Oreos to introduce the concept of close reading. As one who e...
Kristina UlmerSep 3, 20183 minBeneath the Surface: Uncovering the Beauty Inside Our StudentsThis summer, I was gifted this old teak chest by my aunt and uncle who were moving and in no need of it. At first, I wasn’t sure if I wan...
Kristina UlmerJul 23, 20186 minHow to Flip Your Classroom Without Screencasting Your Face: Modification & Mash UpNOTE: This post is part of a series, How to Flip Your Classroom Without Screencasting Your Face. Please see the explanation here. Althoug...
Kristina UlmerJul 13, 20184 minHow to Flip Your Classroom Without Screencasting Your Face: Infographic Creation ToolsNOTE: This post is part of a series, How to Flip Your Classroom Without Screencasting Your Face. Please see the explanation here. While m...
Kristina UlmerJul 8, 20185 minHow to Flip Your Classroom Without Screencasting Your Face: Video Creation ToolsNOTE: This post is part of a series, How to Flip Your Classroom Without Screencasting Your Face. Please see the explanation here. So you w...
Kristina UlmerJul 8, 20183 minHow to Flip Your Classroom Without Screencasting Your FaceA few years ago, I took an online graduate course for continuing education credits on an emerging idea in education: the flipped classroo...
Kristina UlmerJun 1, 20182 minPentameter Pecan Pie & Limerick Legumes: An Introduction to Poetry Through a Poetry TastingFor my ninth grade ELA class, my last unit of the school year is poetry. While I typically introduce poetry in a fairly traditional mann...
Kristina UlmerMay 24, 20185 minLego Vocabulary & Making in the ELA Classroom: The Importance of Hands-On LearningA couple of weeks ago, my mother, mother in law, and I went to AR Workshop in Newtown, Pennsylvania, an adorable boutique DIY studio wher...
Kristina UlmerMay 1, 20185 minDeeper Learning Conference, 2018, Day Two: Diving DeeplyWhile the first day of the Deeper Learning Conference ran as a traditional conference, the second day was what they called our “Deep Dive...
Kristina UlmerApr 22, 20184 minDeeper Learning Conference 2018, Day One: PBLLast month, I had the opportunity to fly across country to sunny San Diego to attend the Deeper Learning Conference organized by High Tec...
