I want my students to seek perfection with their capitalization, spelling, and punctuation. They need to be meticulous with conventions. I want my students to seek imperfection with ideas. They need space to write a few terrible drafts—and orient their thinking.

New vocabulary word.

The American education system is fixated on finding the latest method or system to get students reading and writing. Unfortunately, no hack exists. Reading is sometimes dull. Writing is often hard. You can’t entertain yourself to an education.

10-Sentence Writing Challenge: School Mystery Edition! Link: briantolentino.com/10-sentence-wr…

Many of the greatest teachers will never win prestigious awards, amass wealth, or become famous. They simply show up every day, ignite minds, and change lives—one lesson at a time. Their impact is quiet, but profound.

Many teachers feel overstimulated. I know I do. Let's help each other out. Teacher Question: How do you manage feelings of overstimulation during the school day? What strategies work for you?

Here’s a professional development idea: Skip the trendy trainings, new methods, and complex systems. Instead, take your existing lessons and focus on one thing—making them clearer and simpler. Mastery isn’t about adding more; it’s about refining what works.

Testing trains students to read quickly. But in life, the real skill is reading slowly. Learn to absorb, question, and reflect on what you read.

Educational jargon stifles creative thinking.

Classroom management is about “pause moments” (just like a timeout in sports). When things go awry, don’t panic. Pause. Reset the class with an attention-getter. Address the problem. Begin again. Then repeat when necessary.

10-Sentence Story Challenge (Beginner) Link: briantolentino.com/10-sentence-st…

Focused Silence By Brian Tolentino Link to classroom resources on FOCUSED SILENCE here: docs.google.com/document/d/11C…

Unpopular opinion: In our effort to be compassionate and inclusive of neurodivergence, we’ve sometimes lowered expectations—when what many students actually need are high expectations paired with support. Compassion doesn’t mean coddling.

Sometimes the most caring thing a teacher can do… is fail the student.

Teachers are trained to blend in— to use the same jargon, follow the same trends. But this signals to students that learning is robotic. The best teachers don’t blend in. They’re genuinely, enthusiastically themselves. And students are drawn to it.

Dear School Year: A 10-Sentence Letter Challenge! Link: briantolentino.com/dear-school-ye…

I’ve seen many teachers who had it all: -Deep knowledge -Passion -Strong relational skills But they left the profession too soon. They just needed more classroom management reps and more support.