Mr. Balcom's Page

Defining Homosapien-Tattalous



Since the beginning of civilization, human beings have felt the need to get each other in trouble. It seems to be the life-long ambition of some individuals to make others miserable in-order-to feel a little better about there own small lives. I am of course speaking of homosapien-tattalous (the tattletale). This species of human is unfortunately not rare and is commonly found on school play yards and in elementary school classrooms (though they… Continue

Spelling Lists: An Antiquated Waste of Instructional Time.



I must begin this conversation by saying of course DON’T PANIC. I do believe that spelling should be addressed in schools. I must also disclose that in my first year of teaching (admittedly a short time ago) I too thought the students must memorize spelling words each week. What I discovered that year and through subsequent research (including the article No More Friday Spelling Tests? by Kelly A. Loeffler) was that I… Continue