I came across a great teachable moment last night on Instagram, but this moment I woke up and felt that I needed to share it a little more widely… Templates on Instagram – are the innocent, or something more? Firstly, here’s the post: krystalgagen Can we talk about these templates for a minute? I’ve been noticing…
Author: Krystal Gagen-Spriggs
Teacher Librarian, avid reader, educator, technology enthusiastic, gym owner, powerlifter, life long learner.
Self-reflection is a powerful tool
All throughout university I found myself having to do reflective writing as part of my assessment. When doing my Bachelor of Music Studies at the Queensland Conservatorium I was expected to reflect on my voice lessons and progress. When doing my Post Graduate Diploma in Education at Griffith University, I had to reflect on group…
Hearts on the line everyday
Disclaimer: the following is a brief discussion about mental health for teachers. Teachers. We put our hearts on the line every day. When Jane is in your office telling you that her parents are divorcing and they don’t have time for her and she’s failed her math exam but can’t tell her parents because they’ll…
Role Models: Part Two
In Role Models: Part One I wrote about the importance of Fictional Role Models. In Role Models: Part Two, I will discuss the importance of Real-Life Role Models and how everyone is a role model to someone in some way. You may not realise it, but someone in your life might be looking to you for…
Nyxia – Reintgen
I recently read a book that made me realise just how much I appreciate a really good SciFi, and very real male protagonist: Nyxia by Scott Reintgen. A colleague who doesn’t usually read SciFi recommended this to me and it did not disappoint – so much so that I even went and bought my own…
Role Models: Part One
Over the past two weeks I have spent some time at home recovering from an ankle reconstruction and I often found myself thinking about roles models. This came about because of the type of books I’ve been reading, the TV shows I’ve been watching, some of my interactions with our gym members, and what I wanted…
Bouncing back from injury
Injuries – we’ve all been there one way or another. But how we bounce back is everything, and how we prepare to ensure we don’t end up with a reoccurence is even more important. When I was first taught how to lift I was taught the basic movements and told to practice that until it…
My version of flipped learning
I recently discovered Flipped Learning. I know that a lot of you are probably all over this already, but it was new to me and I fell in love with the idea of saving time in the classroom. At the moment, I teach three year 9 geography classes. I see them all twice a week…
Finding your “people” in training
What many people don’t understand is who you train with can (and will) make or break your session. I want to share with you something that I only just realised for myself this year. If you want to succeed at training, and if you want to give yourself a reason to turn up to the…
Strength Sports: In it for the “long haul”
As I was going through my rehab for a torn ligament in my ankle the other day, I got to thinking about how long I had been powerlifting for and what my future in this sport might look like. I’ve been lifting for almost 6 years now, but it hasn’t been without its ups and…
The Lifting Librarian 