A lot of it was just going back to the basics of what good teaching looks like.

I?m about to retire, been teaching for 34 years and have faithfully made contributions to the required retirement fund and I?m hoping when I finish my years of teaching that there will be money in the retirement fund for me.

The hardest part of raising a child is teaching them to ride bicycles. A shaky child on a bicycle for the first time needs both support and freedom. The realization that this is what the child will always need can hit hard.

It's really unfair to our young teachers and discouraging them from entering the profession, particularly in the most challenging teaching environments where they're most needed.

One of the floods we had washed the bridge out. It can be almost dry as a bone or it can be impossible to cross.

I sense a difference at both schools. There's an atmosphere that learning is the most important thing.