Laura Klein began to teach at I.S. 217, Rafael Hernandez School of Performing Arts in the Bronx in 2008. This year, she received tenure at the same school. Originally from Pittsburgh, Laura Klein graduated from Northwestern University in 2007 with a degree in political science. After spending a year on the recruitment team for Teach For America, she was assigned to I.S. 217 as a teacher. She has been blogging since her first week of teaching, and will be sharing her experiences in public education on Schoolbook. Catch more of her work on her blog, www.prelifenyc.blogspot.com.
Laura Klein appears in the following:
The Special Education Problems We Aren't Solving
Monday, July 23, 2012
In her latest blog about teaching in a Bronx middle school, Laura Klein writes: "There’s a lot to criticize about the way special education works in this enormous system. It is cloudy...
In Praise of Paraprofessionals
Monday, July 09, 2012
A Bronx middle-school teacher writes: "Because of their impermanence, people often think of paraprofessionals as replaceable -- one may be substituted for another from day to day. But...
In Student Awards Season, Thinking About the Ones We Don't Give
Monday, June 25, 2012
A middle school teacher in the Bronx writes: What about the awards we don't hand out to students? "How about an award for my student who isn’t the best or the fastest, but who always...
Too Poor for Their Own Graduation
Monday, June 18, 2012
A Bronx middle-school teacher who blogs about her experiences writes: "My students don’t have it easy. But every year I go to prom, and I see them at graduation. They are happy, look...
The Student Who Made Me a Better Teacher
Monday, May 14, 2012
Laura Klein, a middle school teacher and blogger, writes: "Perhaps all teachers have one student for whom they are teaching. Sedina was that student for me. Even now, when I am no l...
Life Lessons, Taught the Hard Way
Monday, April 30, 2012
In her latest blog post about teaching at a South Bronx middle school, Laura Klein writes about visiting a student at an in-patient psychiatric facility. As a teacher, she writes, it'...
Gearing Up for Test Day. And Then What?
Monday, April 16, 2012
Laura Klein, a middle-school teacher in the Bronx, writes that test prep is in full swing at her school -- as it must be, given all that rides on the results. But the problem is not i...
At a Bronx Middle School, Reflections on Trayvon and Lost Dreams
Monday, April 02, 2012
Laura Klein, who teaches at a Bronx middle school, says she has had a tough time getting her students interested in current events. But the Trayvon Martin case practically walked into...
Still in Middle School at 17, and Out of Hope
Monday, March 19, 2012
For Laura Klein, a middle-school teacher and regular SchoolBook contributor, the tragedy of Kiara was not just that she was 17 and still in the eighth grade. The tragedy was that she ...
The 'Magic' of Student-Teacher Relationships
Monday, March 05, 2012
A teacher who blogs about her experiences teaching in a Bronx middle school writes: Often teachers who pull the best out of a troubled student are considered to be transforming -- eve...
High School Matches That End in Just 'O.K.'
Wednesday, February 29, 2012
Eighth-grade public school students will learn their high school assignments on Thursday, and SchoolBook's teacher-blogger writes that many of her students have already forgotten whic...
Everyday Failures, but a Narrative of Success
Monday, February 06, 2012
A middle school teacher writes: 'In order to maintain sanity you have to accept the feeling of not being done at the end of the day. You have to grow accustomed to the to-do list tha...
Bullying Changes a School, One Child at a Time
Monday, January 23, 2012
A middle school teacher writes about one of her students: 'The true danger of bullying is the way that it changes kids. After weeks of feeling defensive and guarded, Rocky began to h...
Sometimes You Have to Settle for Just Being There
Monday, January 02, 2012
In her latest blog post, Laura Klein writes: In the past, I dreamed of plucking my students from their miserable homes and finding solutions to their problems. I felt powerful and cap...
'No Excuses' Is Not Just for Teachers
Monday, December 19, 2011
A Bronx middle school teacher says: We want to be understanding, and we don’t want to be the one who cuts off students' opportunities. But do excuses really provide support? At what...
Finding the Child in the Behavior
Wednesday, December 07, 2011
Children's misbehavior and the use of suspensions can leave adults in particularly tricky territory.
Unearthing the Surprises Within a Child's Mind
Monday, November 21, 2011
A middle-school teacher writes: Often I read a child’s paper, or talk to him or her, and am startled at the interpretation of events in his or her life. It is as though no one has ex...
You Call This Choice?
Wednesday, October 26, 2011
The mother had spent her summer dragging herself from one office to another, speaking in broken English, begging that her daughter be allowed to change high schools. She was sent away...
Parents Don't Change, but Children Do
Monday, October 10, 2011
After four years, a teacher has learned that the parents who are there at the beginning are still there at the end, and the parents who did not give their phone numbers in sixth grade...
Teacher's Diary: Every September, I Know Why I’m There
Tuesday, September 06, 2011
A fourth-year teacher in the Bronx writes about what draws her back to school each year. It's the list, she says. 'I have no control over who is on that list. Sometimes you get kids w...
