As a health teacher I have become the neighborhood "go-to" for questions and conversations about difficult parenting and care-giving conversations that need to be had with tweens and teens but still remain awkward. I don't mind embracing that role. After all, I've been teaching health education for so long that I have trouble remembering just …
Continue reading Three New Sexuality Education Books for 2022
Are you ready to invest in your future self? Shannon Casson, the author of this guest post believes in your potential so much that with the help of her transformative bike retreats for women, she is committed to helping you reach it. Her website states "Leave your 9 to 5 behind as you retreat into nature …
How often do you talk to yourself? Perhaps more often than you think. I don't mean long conversations with yourself, but those short statements to yourself at times when you are feeling vulnerable. If you've ever got nervous at the thought of presenting in front of a group and said to yourself "I've got this" …
I love to read, and I want my students to experience the joy of getting lost in a book, or the aha moment that comes when you recognize yourself in a character, or when you learn from a character’s experience that you are not alone. I discovered one way to accomplish this, even with reluctant …
Continue reading Implementing Social Justice Biblioguidance in the High School Classroom
When I was a young basketball coach I was influenced by the coaches who often caught my eye in the media, and they tended to be the loud, aggressive ones. The ones who picked up the coach technicals. And picked up chairs and threw them. The ones who shouted a lot...and I thought that that …
This is the 2022 #OneWord post - the 2025 version can be found here!! As we start a new year, there's much hope and promise ahead. Regardless of how the past year panned out, there's always a sense of potential in the months that lay ahead of us, and now is a great idea to …
As a teacher with many years of experience in the classroom, I've learned the power in reflecting on my practice in order to become better at what I do. Exit-slips, student surveys, feedback from my peers, and thinking about my day during my 70 minute commute all help me analyze and evaluate my teaching, allowing …
As we look to wrap up another year in which health dominated our lives thanks to the ongoing global pandemic, here's a look at the top 5 most read #slowchathealth blog posts. #1. Choosing Your #OneWord2021 was by far the most popular post of the year, perhaps because it followed a pattern of annual posts …
I've written before about how Instagram has become a place where I find thought provoking, ideal-for-the-classroom images, and braver voices sharing their ideas in ways that aren’t possible on Twitter. Their language, their imagery and their message speaks to Millennials and Generation Z and keeps me on my toes. I am toying with the idea …
It's that time of the year when my social media feed seems to be inundated with gift guides, and so with one eyebrow raised and with my tongue-in-cheek, here's my attempt at what a #slowchathealth gift guide might look like. If you're following me on social media you'll know that I coordinate a gift giving …
Regular readers to the blog will know how much I value the incorporation of movement into my classroom, harnessing it's many benefits to increase learning. I've presented on this at conferences across the country, and have blogged about it many times. As such, I'm always looking for ways in which to authentically add movement to …
The #slowchathealth blog site has always had a healthy relationship with poetry. In 2015 I wrote Using Poetry in the Health Classroom, in which I shared how I introduce each of new group of health students to Taylor Mali's An Apple a Day is Not Enough from 2010. I described it as "...a passionate, well …
This week's blog post comes from Debbie Woodliffe, an experienced writer currently based in the UK working for Affinity Agency. She works with a range of clients such as Best Price Beds to help others learn and develop through informative content. Everybody gets stressed. It could be work-based, home-based or just feeling overwhelmed in general …
Continue reading Quick Ways You Can Manage Stress and Improve Your Wellbeing
It was fifth grade and we were in the middle of one of those infamous Chicago winters. I was wearing an ugly turtleneck sweater that I was super self-conscious about. I felt even more self-conscious about it while I was getting sick in the hallway of my elementary school. To this day, my heart goes …
Continue reading The Things I Wish My 10-Year-Old Self Knew About Her Body
At the beginning of the pandemic, my wife and I were preparing for our son Owen to have open heart surgery at Oregon Health and Science University Hospital to repair a heart defect. Owen was born in October and spent the first month of his life in the NICU after having surgery to create an …
Recently, an increased awareness among consumers surrounding the potential health and environmental impacts of “traditional” menstrual products has driven new public discourse in favor of more feasible, affordable, and sustainable alternatives. Examples of these products include reusable menstrual cups/disks, absorbent underwear/swimwear, reusable fabric pads, and disposable pads/tampons that are made with organic and ethically sourced …
Continue reading Disposable Menstrual Products: Impact and Alternatives
Regular readers of the blog will know how much I love podcasts. I've blogged about them many times, and love to create podcasts with my students whenever I can. My 70 minute commute to work is the perfect time for me to get lost in a podcast, and the return to school has given me …
The thought of returning to the classroom full time, after 18 months of remote and hybrid teaching filled me with both excitement and anxiety. I'm ALWAYS excited to return to school after a summer of family time, self-care, reading, and personal professional development. The anxiety? That was something new. Not knowing how the school community …
Like many during the pandemic school year, I found myself teaching from multiple rooms in my house and unable to visit my local gym, or generally workout freely and effectively. Also like many, I decided to take the plunge and purchase a Peloton bike, and I haven't looked back ever since. I am now more …
Continue reading 5 Reasons Why Working Out With Peloton Makes me a Better Teacher
In advance of a new school year, is your classroom environment set, with behavioral expectations and social contracts laminated and proudly displayed so that students know exactly what they need to do in order to meet your pre-set expectations? Has your 'classroom cathedral' already been built, ready for new inhabitants? No, mine neither. I don't …
Continue reading The Importance of Creating a Full Value Contract with Your Students
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