Name? Josh Morton
Current position? Middle school language arts teacher
How long have you been in education? 14 years
What’s a little known fact about you? I have two writing projects I would love to complete. But when there are roadblocks, it’s tough to fight through them because I’m too busy teaching and grading papers 🙂
When does your job feel the hardest? The job is hardest when hoop jumping must ensue to make our government (who is furthest away from understanding education) happy.
What helps you get through those hard days? When I have the kids in my classroom, nothing else matters. It’s my opportunity to inspire and make a difference for them for one hour a day.
What makes your heart sing as a teacher? When I see students I taught over the last 14 years (though I forget most of their names) and they tell me I made a difference or that I will always be their favorite teacher.
Can you describe a recent day or moment like that? I ran into a student who was working at Little Cesar’s Pizza and was finishing up her senior year. She said, “Can I have a hug? You are my favorite teacher.”
Who was your favorite teacher and why? Carmella Phillips, who taught history at Walla Walla High School, is the most influential educator in my lifetime. Words can’t describe how brilliant she was with me and her students.
Five items you can’t teach without? White board, Expo marker, technology, Springboard curriculum, positive attitude.
Three books you would recommend to a fellow teacher? Making Thinking Visible: How to Promote Engagement, Understanding, and Independence for All Learners by Ron Ritchhart, Mark Church and Karin Morrison, How to Grade for Learning, K-12 by Ken B. O’Connor and Classroom Instruction That Works: Research-Based Strategies for Increasing Student Achievement by Robert J. Marzano and Debra J. Pickering.
What are 2-3 sites that you use to support your teaching? What is your favorite app you use as a teacher? Honestly, there isn’t one site I use. I simply Google stuff and sift through it all.
Best teaching advice you ever got? Control only the things you can control. You can’t control where the students come from. You can’t control where they go. You can control how they think and engage with learning when you have them in class.
Advice you would give to a new teacher or something you learned that you wished had known earlier in your career? You can read education books until you are blue in the face, it will mold how you teach approaches and content, but it won’t change who you are as a teacher. Your personality is your beacon. Connecting with kids and making learning relevant, along with great classroom management skills, will enable you to go beyond where you think you can take kids.
What do you do to recharge? I’m just like my students. Netflix, Facebook, online games, and hanging out with my family. Weekends are just long enough to feel great every Monday.
Poem or quote that you love? “As a single footstep will not make a path on the earth, so a single thought will not make a pathway in the mind. To make a deep physical path, we walk again and again. To make a deep mental path, we must think over and over the kind of thoughts we wish to dominate our lives.”— Thoreau
Thanks Josh!
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