Word Love

08/30/2026

Registration is open for the fall Word Love Literacy Labs—and our first session, Matters of Morphology, is coming up on September 24!

Ready to make literacy instruction more explicit, engaging, and effective? Join us live on Zoom from 11:00 a.m.–2:00 p.m. Eastern for research-informed, practical learning you can use right away—whether you’re a teacher, coach, specialist, or school leader, and regardless of the curriculum you use.

Here’s what’s coming this fall:

• September 24: Matters of Morphology
• October 22: Grammar from the Get-Go
• November 19: Vocabulary for Knowledge
• December 10: Make Learning Stick

Each session is designed to help you strengthen instruction, deepen student learning, and leave with strategies you can bring directly to your classroom, coaching, or schoolwide work.

Registration is $149 for an individual seat or $595 for a school team of up to five. Schools needing an invoice, purchase order, larger-group pricing, or a dedicated session can submit a request through the link in my bio.

First up is Matters of Morphology on September 24. Swipe through the fall lineup, then use the link in my bio to register or request school pricing.

08/28/2026

New teachers receive plenty of advice. Some of it makes more sense down the line.

My own first year teaching in the MS Delta taught me an impressive number of things the hard way.

23 years later, I wrote down twelve things I wish someone had told me.

I still need these reminders myself!

Read or listen at the link in my bio.

08/28/2026

My first year teaching in the Mississippi Delta was the hardest work I have ever done. It also taught me an impressive number of lessons the hard way.

Twenty-three years later, I wrote a letter to a new teacher with twelve things I wish someone had told me plainly. Veteran teachers may recognize a few of them, too. I still have to remind myself of several.

Read or listen here: https://wordlovedispatch.substack.com/p/a-letter-to-a-new-teacher?r=7wxs3&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=true

07/08/2026

I wrote about a tiny phrase in education that drives me bonkers.

The bad news: once you notice it, you will start seeing it everywhere.

The worse news: you probably use it all the time. I know I do.

The good news: fixing it makes our teaching language clearer, sharper, and a little more beautiful.

New Substack: Why You Should Never “Have Students” Do Anything

Read or listen here: https://open.substack.com/pub/wordlovedispatch/p/why-you-should-never-have-students?r=7wxs3&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=true

06/25/2026

I wrote a short summer piece about marveling.

That sounds grand, but I mean something simple. Notice something each day. The air before a thunderstorm. A kid learning to swim. A good sentence. Fireflies. A ripe peach. A comeback in the ninth inning.

Teachers and students are tired by the time summer arrives. Some people need rest. Some people need useful work. Most of us probably need a little of both.

But I don’t want summer to become dull. I don’t want to drift through it or grind through it.

So here’s the question I’m keeping with me:

“What did I marvel at today?”

Read or listen here: https://open.substack.com/pub/wordlovedispatch/p/dont-let-summer-make-you-duller?r=7wxs3&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=true

06/09/2026

I wrote this after leading a workshop on AI in the classroom for Nassau BOCES.

The teachers in the room were curious and concerned. They were asking the right questions:
-How do we help students use AI without letting it do the work for them?
-How do we protect original thinking?
-How do we know when a student has actually read, written, revised, or understood?

By the end of the day, I found myself thinking that the deepest issue is not just technical. It is moral. Maybe even spiritual, though not necessarily in a religious sense.

AI did not invent the temptation to take the easy way out. It has made that temptation faster, cleaner, and easier to hide.

This piece also includes a story about my father deleting all the music he had downloaded during the Napster/LimeWire era because he decided it wasn’t right to keep it. At the time, I thought he was crazy. Now I understand his decision much better.

New essay:

The Spirit of the Shortcut
How AI Makes an Old Temptation Faster, Cleaner, and Easier to Hide

Read or listen here: https://open.substack.com/pub/wordlovedispatch/p/the-spirit-of-the-shortcut?r=7wxs3&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=true

05/13/2026

Proud of my daughter, Lily, whose self portrait was selected for the 2nd Annual District 13 Art Scene exhibition.

05/11/2026

“Mitochondria is the powerhouse of the cell.”

It’s funny because so many of us remember it from school, even if we remember almost nothing else about the cell.

But that may be the point.

Maybe those little phrases, definitions, and half-remembered facts are not as useless as we sometimes think. Maybe they help us follow conversations, recognize ideas, ask better questions, and connect new learning to old memories.

My latest piece is about shallow knowledge, cultural vocabulary, and why remembering something small is still better than remembering nothing.

Read or listen: https://open.substack.com/pub/wordlovedispatch/p/shallow-knowledge-is-better-than?r=7wxs3&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=true

04/21/2026

Quick question:

How do you decide which words to teach?

I get this one all the time—and the truth is, most vocabulary lists don’t lead to much real use. Kids recognize the words, but they don’t use them.

I wrote up the process I use to build word banks that actually show up in student talk and writing.

It’s simple, but it’s deliberate.

Take a look: https://open.substack.com/pub/wordlovedispatch/p/where-do-you-get-your-words?r=7wxs3&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=true

04/16/2026

I’m working on narrowing K–2 Word Love math vocabulary down to a small, core set—about 12–15 words per grade.

Most lists get long fast. I’m trying to figure out which words actually matter and are worth revisiting all year.

If you teach or support K–2, I’d appreciate your input.

Kindergarten: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSelH1oxzA7H70ZncAal4GdOECYNQj6ka8QwSC6k-LkZskCk6Q/viewform?usp=header
1st Grade: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScgtY-qDnd1PefiXz9OPy2zAcEjmeffNvDAQ5-4-FYX61S7TQ/viewform?usp=header
2nd Grade: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScKZY3CjZ8DS-MV-DxqJjnDSgKgKr2pTe5FSrLA2MlzPSO7EA/viewform?usp=header

I’m narrowing this to a small set of core 2nd grade math words. Which of these are truly worth teaching and revisiting all year? Assume only 12–15 words will make the final list.