When I see a teacher's thick packet (especially with a nice dose of Comic Sans), I see: love
I think of the hours the teacher put in, thinking ahead to how the students will respond, searching for images, and the hardest of all, fighting the formatting tools. Then after class, editing the packet to clarify, correct typos, adding more info.
This piece hits me right in the teacher soul. You perfectly captured that quiet magic of paper. What I love most is how you show that paper isn’t nostalgia. It’s literally pedagogy. The “virtous cycle” you describe is real: feedback, movement, mastery, joy.
This gets me so excited! What advice do you have for people who want to start moving in this direction in terms of creating these packets? It feels a little overwhelming to me right now, but I really think it’s gonna be beneficial for my students.
Kristin...it really is the hard work of lesson planning and intellectual prep in my book. Many curriculums these days are coming with packets, but I would say I've conservatively spent hundreds of hours making them in my career.
That said, you can implement these techniques with any physical workbook your kids might have in front of them! And when in doubt, at least prioritize the main section of text the kids will close read that day and leave plenty of white space. Perfect is the enemy of good, and getting pencils down on texts together is very good indeed.
I teach seniors. My packets are 60 - 80 pages per unit. The students love them. They feel so organized having everything in one place. One small tweak to what you recommended, however. The first time I discovered a student forging my initials, I bought a small self-inking stamp that is impossible for a student to replicate. Even my seniors love getting a stamp on their paper! And then particularly pleasing papers get two stamps. It’s rare, but the students light up when it happens!
Agree with many other comments: this piece strikes a chord in this teacher’s soul. Thanks for so authentically communicating the experience of the tech rollout: from competing for Laptop cart signups to squirreling away reams of paper to use later in the year. I appreciate the excellent read and prompt to reflect on past and current practices.
Luke! I’m sure you know this deeply resonates with me. I can see your classroom so clearly in my mind. I love reading your writings and I am excited to see what comes next!
Ashley, this was such a kind note, and it's an honor to have you reading. What a joy it's been to "grow up" together as teachers 😜 I'm so glad you're here!
I really wish that there were more teachers like you. At my son's school, they don't even get back their math tests because it's too much work for the teacher. She just enters a grade electronically. Which clearly defeats learning...
I wrote this resource to help parents, and teachers who wish to exit the Educational Technology Complex, to speak out:
When I see a teacher's thick packet (especially with a nice dose of Comic Sans), I see: love
I think of the hours the teacher put in, thinking ahead to how the students will respond, searching for images, and the hardest of all, fighting the formatting tools. Then after class, editing the packet to clarify, correct typos, adding more info.
This piece hits me right in the teacher soul. You perfectly captured that quiet magic of paper. What I love most is how you show that paper isn’t nostalgia. It’s literally pedagogy. The “virtous cycle” you describe is real: feedback, movement, mastery, joy.
What a beautiful comment. Thanks for taking the time to read!
This gets me so excited! What advice do you have for people who want to start moving in this direction in terms of creating these packets? It feels a little overwhelming to me right now, but I really think it’s gonna be beneficial for my students.
Kristin...it really is the hard work of lesson planning and intellectual prep in my book. Many curriculums these days are coming with packets, but I would say I've conservatively spent hundreds of hours making them in my career.
That said, you can implement these techniques with any physical workbook your kids might have in front of them! And when in doubt, at least prioritize the main section of text the kids will close read that day and leave plenty of white space. Perfect is the enemy of good, and getting pencils down on texts together is very good indeed.
Good luck!
I teach seniors. My packets are 60 - 80 pages per unit. The students love them. They feel so organized having everything in one place. One small tweak to what you recommended, however. The first time I discovered a student forging my initials, I bought a small self-inking stamp that is impossible for a student to replicate. Even my seniors love getting a stamp on their paper! And then particularly pleasing papers get two stamps. It’s rare, but the students light up when it happens!
I adore this.
The double stamp! 😂 😍
Agree with many other comments: this piece strikes a chord in this teacher’s soul. Thanks for so authentically communicating the experience of the tech rollout: from competing for Laptop cart signups to squirreling away reams of paper to use later in the year. I appreciate the excellent read and prompt to reflect on past and current practices.
Thanks for reading and for the kind words 🙏🏻
I’m all in on the paper pencil approach
I would expect nothing less from Baltimore's finest
Luke! I’m sure you know this deeply resonates with me. I can see your classroom so clearly in my mind. I love reading your writings and I am excited to see what comes next!
Ashley, this was such a kind note, and it's an honor to have you reading. What a joy it's been to "grow up" together as teachers 😜 I'm so glad you're here!
I really wish that there were more teachers like you. At my son's school, they don't even get back their math tests because it's too much work for the teacher. She just enters a grade electronically. Which clearly defeats learning...
I wrote this resource to help parents, and teachers who wish to exit the Educational Technology Complex, to speak out:
https://whycantwesayno.com