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Day 1, Bloom's Taxonomy Therefore let us move beyond the elementary teachings about Christ and be taken forward to maturity. Hebrews 6:1a (ESV) Mr. N. was my sixth-grade math teacher. He came into class every morning and sat in his rolling chair behind his desk. After arranging his gradebook and finding the page to assign in his teacher’s edition, he rolled his chair to the side of his desk and leaned his body forward over the trashcan. Then he pulled a comb o

This week we will take a deep dive into these six levels of content mastery, but for today, I want to finish our lesson with taking a look at how Bloom’s Taxonomy connects to our walk with Christ. I’ve often wondered how a person can come to church every Sunday for twenty years but never grow in their walk with Christ. In my opinion, they are stuck at the bottom level of Bloom’s taxonomy.

Our motives are the foundation for everything we do. Just like the foundation of our house, we need to pay careful attention to the whys behind our actions. Our whys dictate where we work, serve, live, and travel. They also affect relationships, friends, coworkers, and enemies. Our whys dictate how we navigate our mental, emotional, physical, and spiritual selves too. If our why is off, then nothing we do from that position will be right.

Day 4, Motives Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall. Proverbs 16:18 (ESV) No one could tell me anything. I was eighteen and had the world in front of me. I rolled down the windows of my Geo Metro, cranked up Lenny Kravitz, and screamed the lyrics, “I want to get away, I want to fly away.” I couldn’t wait to finish my two years of community college and get out of the suffocating, small-minded, town of Madison. It’s funny looking back. Pride has a

We see two different kinds of people in this story. One is greedy and selfish while the other is penny pinching but easily swayed. Money can be a good thing or it can destroy people. Are you a wise manager of your funds or are you reckless like Blake? Do you live within your means or do you ride the high horse too often?

Day 2, Motives Each one must give as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. 2 Corinthians 9:7 (ESV) I grew up in a traditional Southern Baptist church, and my parents were heavily involved in many roles. We attended every time the doors were open: Sunday morning, Sunday night, and Wednesday night. We sang in the choir, played in the orchestra, did all the events. There was no excuse for missing unless we were really

People pleasing is a dangerous trap that kept me in bondage to other people; and those people never knew how much control they had over me. My internal need for their approval drove so much of what I did for way too many years. Learning to check my motivation for doing things has been a game changer. I am me, take it or leave it.

When our foundation is anything other than Jesus, we become selfishly motivated and “attaboy” driven. My actions can be exactly the same as the next person, but if I’m doing it from the wrong heart, what is produced in my life and heart won’t be Holy Spirit fruit. Motives matter. Our foundation matters. Just like the houses at the coast that were swept away by the hurricanes, so will we be swept away if we continue going through the motions of life without examining our hea

Day 5, Anchors of Truth God’s Omniscience (All-knowing) Great is our Lord, and abundant in power; his understanding is beyond measure. Psalm 147:5 (ESV) Many nights as a kid I cried myself to sleep. I believed in God and trusted him in the best way possible, but I didn’t always understand. How long was eternity? Would there be baseball in heaven? Were my pets coming with me to heaven? My mom comforted me in the best way she could, but even her finite human br

Day 4, Anchors of Truth Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave it to the wrath of God, for it is written, “Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord.” Romans 12:19 (ESV) I looked over my class list for the new year and saw a name I recognized. Their family was very involved, and I knew one of this child’s older relatives loved me dearly from the time I was a kid, so this was bound to be a great year. We were reacquainted at open house and the year wa

Day 3, Anchors of Truth The Lord is gracious and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love. Psalm 14:8 (ESV) We aren’t always good humans. Sometimes our selfishness and flesh get the best of us. During these times, we can still look like we have the world by the tail, but hidden deep inside is a secret. It’s a darkness; a sinful activity that grows the more we keep it hidden. And eventually it consumes everything that was once considered good. Unle

Day 2, Anchors of Truth If we are faithless, he remains faithful— for he cannot deny himself. 2 Timothy 2:13 (ESV) I graduated from high school convinced I wanted to be in full-time ministry as an overseas missionary, but I struggled finding a degree to pursue. Most women either worked with children or taught English classes in other countries, and I wasn’t sure I wanted to do either one of those. The following summer, I went on a mission trip to China

Day 1, Anchors of Truth The Lord is good, a stronghold in the day of trouble; and He knows those who trust in Him. Nahum 1:7 (NKJV) Confession. Bedtime prayers with my kids have never been a thing. I hug and tuck them in but remembering to pray has always slipped my mind. So, after many months of self-imposed mom guilt, I decided to create our own special prayer time on the way to school in the mornings. One particular morning, it was my then five-year-old’s turn to pray. Hyp

Anchors of Truth/Anchor Charts Open with Prayer: Opening Story : Teaching vocabulary and root words has always been a favorite part of being in the classroom. Diagrams, charts, and other graphics lined my classroom walls. If it wasn’t a positive message of encouragement, it was a core concept that needed to be remembered. I’ll never forget the day we were learning about homophones. For those out there who teach other grade levels, homo

I’m so thankful Jesus doesn’t withhold his forgiveness. Part of our identity in Christ is that we are forgiven. This isn’t because of anything we have done, but because of Jesus’ great love for us. Even if we can’t forgive ourselves, Christ still forgives us. Amen and amen!

The New Testament mentions freedom often and this freedom only comes through faith in Christ Jesus. It’s a freedom that results from Jesus taking our place on the cross. He died for our sins so we can live freely. The guilt is gone; so is the shame. Fear is cast aside and newness of life overflows into every area of our hearts. This freedom is found only in Christ alone.

Through Christ, we are not just overcomers, we are more than conquerors. Man, that gets me excited. Nothing can separate us from Christ and his love. Through him we are granted victory over death and sin. We are promised eternity with him. And we can trust him to help us have the victory in our classroom.

One of the most hopeful marks of a believer is the freedom we experience as a result of healing. He heals our trauma, sins, mindset, past, and brokenness. He heals our hidden wounds as well as the visible. He is the Great Physician of our soul and what a privilege to be able to share this healing with our precious students.

Like Jan, we only have one body. If we have given our lives to Jesus as Savior, asked him to forgive our sins, and turned from the old way of living, then our body is also a temple of the Holy Spirit. When Jesus ascended into heaven after he rose from the dead, he gave his followers the gift of the Spirit to live inside them.

So, I stopped trying to fit the mold. I researched the standards and pacing guide. And I found ways to meet the criteria the school expected while utilizing creative methods.