Kristina McDonald

Chem teacher 👩🏻‍🔬, #AACT regional rep, gardener🥕, lover of food/cooking/baking 👩🏻‍🍳and the simple life. 🙂🇨🇦

[Kristina McDonald @ksmcd74]

@kat_shauna Arden is the most boring. And Nicholson Smith is a very close second. Painful to watch on tv.

[Kristina McDonald @ksmcd74]

@seyirnotlari Orville

[Kristina McDonald @ksmcd74]

@Matt_Pinner All 20.

[Kristina McDonald @ksmcd74]

@JeffreyLuscombe Don’t use the word ‘free’. I think you are more intelligent than that. Over simplifying this system is dangerous.

[Dr. Bryan Pearlman #MaslowBeforeBloom @DrP_Principal]

10 Things Educators Need During a School Break and Why

1. Sleep without an alarm
Your nervous system has been living on adrenaline and cortisol. Deep rest helps reset the brain restore emotional regulation and improve memory mood and immune function.

2. Silence and nothingness
The brain needs quiet to downshift from constant decision making. Mental stillness reduces cognitive overload and allows the prefrontal cortex to come back online.

3. A non rushed bathroom visit
Having to suppress basic bodily needs keeps the brain in a low level stress state. Unrushed bathroom access restores a sense of safety dignity and control which directly calms the nervous system.

4. Laughter that makes your stomach hurt
Laughter releases endorphins and dopamine which naturally reduce stress and anxiety. It also reminds your brain and body that joy still exists outside of survival mode.

5. Connection with people who do not need anything from you
Educators give all day long. Low demand relationships restore emotional energy and protect against compassion fatigue.

6. A slow bath or shower in the morning
Warm water activates the parasympathetic nervous system lowering cortisol and muscle tension. A slow start to the day tells the brain you are safe and not in crisis mode.

7. Food that is eaten slowly and actually enjoyed
Mindful eating supports digestion stabilizes blood sugar and calms the nervous system. Your body deserves nourishment not rushed fuel.

8. Time without solving problems
Constant problem solving keeps the brain in threat detection mode. Breaks from decision making allow the nervous system to recalibrate and reduce mental exhaustion.

9. Reminders that you are more than your job
Identity overload increases burnout risk. Engaging in hobbies or creativity activates different neural pathways and restores a sense of wholeness.

10. A true break with compassion for yourself
Compassion fatigue is real. Prolonged caring without recovery depletes emotional reserves. Rest and self kindness rebuild resilience empathy and long term sustainability.

Final Thought
School breaks are not a luxury. They are neurological and emotional repair time. Rest is not quitting. Rest is what allows educators to return regulated connected and able to keep doing the work that matters so deeply.

[Kristina McDonald @ksmcd74]

@simonmontefiore Unbelievable bravery

[Jonathan Haidt @JonHaidt]

To be clear, about ed tech:

--I think teachers should have a computer in the classroom and way to show images and videos, if they choose to.

--I think @khanacademy has proven its worth, abundantly. I wish it could be offered on a dedicated device, with no distractions.

--In my several posts about ed tech, teachers often add comments. They rarely praise or defend ed tech.

--I think schools should have a computer room (as at the Waldorf schools that some tech execs seek out for the low-tech classrooms). Students need to learn to use computers and the internet.

--The most damaging mistake seems to have been the 1:1 devices -- putting a Chromebook or tablet on each student's desk. As a UNESCO report said in 2023, the distraction effects seem to exceed whatever benefits a few of the apps might have:
https://t.co/79LBBfxZen

--I don't doubt that some apps which gamify learning have been proven to produce faster or better learning than older methods. BUT: if you gamify a third of the school day, the dopamine effects would cause the other 2/3 to seem more boring. So the net effect in a real classroom may be negative even if some apps showed consistent benefits in controlled tests.

--The big question we need answered is: does giving each student their own device, to use during much of the school day, end up promoting or interfering with education over the course of a year? Horvath's graph suggests that in real classrooms, it interferes.

--Putting devices on every student's desk seems to be the second giant uncontrolled experiment that the tech giants ran on our children, without our informed consent. (Smartphones and social media was the first.) They are already starting up the next one: chatbots for kids, and these will be pushed into schools too despite the already obvious harms.

--We are gathering research on ed tech at https://t.co/0gyIphz5m7. Here is a link to all of our posts about "What Schools and Educators Can Do Now."
https://t.co/R7A6HFXetO
See especially this one, by Mark West:
https://t.co/AOjJ196POs

We will have more to say in future posts.

[Kristina McDonald @ksmcd74]

@HamikChem @OPS_Burke I need this shirt. I cringe too many times throughout the school year when I see this molecule drawn 🤦🏻‍♀️😞

[Kristina McDonald @ksmcd74]

@XpatEducator I use mine all of the time. Perfect way to do quick review of a previous lesson. Kids love them too. Some have said it’s the best part of the class!

[Kathryn @kadamssl]

🚨 Friends, this is important in a stop what you’re doing and sign right now kind of way.

The Canadian Aerosol Coalition has created a petition in support of implementing CSA mask standards in Canadian healthcare settings.

We’re talking about nearly universal respirators‼️

🧵

[Kristina McDonald @ksmcd74]

@ChemNHS I hear but I hate all the plastic waste. We can ‘recycle’ the markers but I’m very suspicious as to what actually happens to them.

[Kristina McDonald @ksmcd74]

@teacher2teacher I’ve been in Greece for 11 days 🇬🇷💙

[Kristina McDonald @ksmcd74]

@educator4ever36 Yes- I totally could. I did it for years and had great engagement. Teaching chemistry is easily done with a board, some student notes and lab activities

[Kristina McDonald @ksmcd74]

@ChemNHS The good old days! 😆

[Kristina McDonald @ksmcd74]

@FixingEducation Tools in the toolbox

[Kristina McDonald @ksmcd74]

@mrspotassium Did you make up questions to go with all the boxes in the game board?

[Kristina McDonald @ksmcd74]

@czavacki Are you arranging these around the periodic table? I'm not sure how you are using these or are there Subtitles that I'm missing?

[Kristina McDonald @ksmcd74]

@SciLitSandra @staoapso @LionelSandner @PembrokePublish @ELANontario @ELCOntario @NSTA @rftloi @ILAToday @TheMentoree It was a great session. Thank you!

[Martin Palermo, PhD @Mrpchemistry]

If you aren’t a member of @AACTconnect, from now until Friday 9/6 at 7pm ET the website is unlocked so you can explore all the resources that come with a membership. If you have any questions, don’t hesitate to reach out. #iteachchemistry

[Kristina McDonald @ksmcd74]

@RyTriGuy @AF_Academy @USAFAPrepSchool Hi Ryan. Would you be willing to share a copy of this lab project?