iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Ben Fisher-Rodriguez @mrfishersays.bsky.social · 09/10/2026

Thanks, Denise! All better at this point. And today will be easy - letting the kids finish up a movie they started. But I agree: next week we start back up with content, and I’m already anticipating the flood of grading that will hit me…

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Ben Fisher-Rodriguez @mrfishersays.bsky.social · 08/10/2026

I am more caught up on grading than I ever have been in my LIFE, and all it took was (checks notes) being home sick for six straight school days

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Ben Fisher-Rodriguez @mrfishersays.bsky.social · 07/10/2026

I've been sick this week and going stir crazy - so I put on an assignment: "(optional) Tell Herr Fisher-Rodriguez something good going on in your life lately!" I'm exactly two responses in and already beaming. How lucky, that we get to play a part in young people's development!

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Ben Fisher-Rodriguez @mrfishersays.bsky.social · 07/10/2026

Teaching can be so draining because we often end up absorbing the emotions of our young people, and any negatives can build up like a clog in our own emotional plumbing. At the same time, we can experience the doubling of joy that comes with sharing, which can knock all the gunk loose.

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Ben Fisher-Rodriguez @mrfishersays.bsky.social · 07/10/2026

Yes! The routines and expectations have settled a bit so you don't have to teach those as hard anymore (still need touch ups and refreshers) and can go hard on content, but the energetic sparkle of the beginning of the year has faded. More people are getting sick, pulled out of class for stuff...

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Ben Fisher-Rodriguez @mrfishersays.bsky.social · 07/10/2026

Uh oh, not JKR doing PR before the series drops and hopefully flops...

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Ben Fisher-Rodriguez @mrfishersays.bsky.social · 06/10/2026

Oh hiiiii! Guess who's presenting at the fall @wafltwa.bsky.social conference in Yakima? I'll see y'all there for two sessions!

Information about Ben's presentation, including the title "Maintaining Momentum in Language Classes"

Information about Ben's presentation, including the title "What is Comprehensible Input?"

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Ben Fisher-Rodriguez @mrfishersays.bsky.social · 06/10/2026

A weird positive to having been stuck at home, sick, is that I’ve been missing my students. And it’s making me be like…woah, my work is cool. I like my kids. I like my job.

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Ben Fisher-Rodriguez @mrfishersays.bsky.social · 06/10/2026

Day 4 of being home sick. I’m about to hit the Panic Button and assign a movie for my sub to show all my classes…running out of stuff for students to do more or less independently that’s unit content-related

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Reposted by Ben Fisher-Rodriguez

Marcus Luther @marcusluther.bsky.social · 06/10/2026

"It’s easy to tell a simple story. Schools made a change, and we should go back. Nostalgia is a tempting narrative." I really really really wish the nuance/wisdom in this post was more of the norm in education discourse. fivetwelvethirteen.substack.com/p/dont-fall-...

fivetwelvethirteen.substack.com

Don’t Fall for a Simple Story

Sold a Story season two is coming

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Ben Fisher-Rodriguez @mrfishersays.bsky.social · 05/10/2026

Cheerful counterpoint: me riding Falcor?

Ben sits on the original Falcor puppet from Neverending Story

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Reposted by Ben Fisher-Rodriguez

Edutopia @edutopia.org · 04/10/2026

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Ben Fisher-Rodriguez @mrfishersays.bsky.social · 04/10/2026

I’m sick right now and this just punched me right in the jealousy muscle

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Reposted by Ben Fisher-Rodriguez

Marcus Luther @marcusluther.bsky.social · 30/09/2026

One mistake I made early on in teaching: relying 100% on the showing and not nearly enough on the telling, especially when it came to my own perspective. So a boring answer but important, I've found: I tell them. I'm intentional in sharing w/ them how much I love teaching, the purpose I see, etc.

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Ben Fisher-Rodriguez @mrfishersays.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

My brain computed this as a challenge. There goes my planning period!

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Ben Fisher-Rodriguez @mrfishersays.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

I went with my husband to the Paramount Theater in Seattle last night to watch the movie "Metropolis" (1927) because my ASL teacher colleague was interpreting the opening and closing remarks and 1) that movie is just Right Now, except a hundred years ago and 2) ASL interpreters are SO RAD!!

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Ben Fisher-Rodriguez @mrfishersays.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

My last name used to be pretty nice in a signature, but now that it is just "the same thing plus nine more letters" I just do FR for everything lol

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Reposted by Ben Fisher-Rodriguez

Marcus Luther @marcusluther.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

Okay, well ⓵ I did way better than I thought I would and ⓶ definitely learned a few terms I had never heard of before! Anyone think they can beat 77% on this @edutopia.org quiz? www.edutopia.org/quiz/quiz-wh...

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Ben Fisher-Rodriguez @mrfishersays.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

This was a cool one! Also learned some new terms (brain spindles??)

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Ben Fisher-Rodriguez @mrfishersays.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

Our suburban school district just announced the same due to "big price hikes" by Zoom... and now we all suffer!!

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Reposted by Ben Fisher-Rodriguez

The 74 @the74.bsky.social · 28/09/2026

The Department of Education on Monday officially rescinded the Biden-era Title IX rule, which extended protections to LGBTQ students. The move, Education Secretary Linda McMahon said, will give parents “greater comfort” www.the74million.org/article/educ...

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Ben Fisher-Rodriguez @mrfishersays.bsky.social · 26/09/2026

Yes, absolutely! I’ll consult my notes to refresh the gems and reflections I had while reading and write a review soon.

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Ben Fisher-Rodriguez @mrfishersays.bsky.social · 25/09/2026

I've been playing this game with my classes and it is a BANGER. Write statements using target vocabulary & kids from class. Have class guess if they're true/false. Ask the kids. +1 point per correct guess. Then PQA the hell out of it. SO COOL todallycomprehensiblelatin.blogspot.com/2026/09/true...

todallycomprehensiblelatin.blogspot.com

True/False PQAs using "Has"

At this past summer's CI Summit in Cincinnati , I had the privilege of watching Bryan Kandel demo a very simple, true/false purposefully com...

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Ben Fisher-Rodriguez @mrfishersays.bsky.social · 25/09/2026

On today, the day after Back to School Night, we will be reflectionmaxxing, in-class gamemaxxing, Herr Fisher-Rodriguez sittingmaxxing -

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Ben Fisher-Rodriguez @mrfishersays.bsky.social · 23/09/2026

Gave a survey to my level 3 and 4 students and on average, they want to read about 40 minutes a week in German...yes...yes...all according to my plan...

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Ben Fisher-Rodriguez @mrfishersays.bsky.social · 23/09/2026

My classes are trained to say that I live in the classroom because teachers live at school...though they are high schoolers...

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Ben Fisher-Rodriguez @mrfishersays.bsky.social · 23/09/2026

I NEVER regret giving students a survey asking how things are going in class, what they need, what they want to learn. I always learn so much, and it becomes a great puzzle-like challenge for me as a teacher to put together all the needs and wants.

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Ben Fisher-Rodriguez @mrfishersays.bsky.social · 22/09/2026

Dang, the beginning of the year crud has struck. Lots of missing kids in each class. Doing salt water rinses, drinking vitamin C, and washing my hands obsessively from now until forever

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Ben Fisher-Rodriguez @mrfishersays.bsky.social · 21/09/2026

I really enjoyed this book! Chapters are short and to-the-point, and what I learned was easy to apply to my own content area. Recommend!

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Ben Fisher-Rodriguez @mrfishersays.bsky.social · 21/09/2026

She's finding savasana and letting your name right out of her consciousness

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Ben Fisher-Rodriguez @mrfishersays.bsky.social · 19/09/2026

Fun fact: my classroom actually has 38 chairs in it, so I have had to also use bar stools that I usually reserve for acting out readings or student interviews as daily seating! The kids who sit there are chill because I told them they can stand, stretch, pace in place, etc. But WHEW it's a barn

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Ben Fisher-Rodriguez @mrfishersays.bsky.social · 19/09/2026

I need to stop hanging out with my PLC, they got me acting wild and crazy and (checks notes) submitting spontaneous session proposals to my state conference!

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Ben Fisher-Rodriguez @mrfishersays.bsky.social · 19/09/2026

Goosifer says hello to his new-old cousin! (He took a break from reading his favorite book, "Feminist Literature.")

A goose figurine, wearing a matching tie and hat, stands on a teacher's desk. He also has a tote bag and a book titled "Feminist Literature."

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Ben Fisher-Rodriguez @mrfishersays.bsky.social · 19/09/2026

Dil is so cute! With your permission, I'm adopting Dil as a cousin to my Elegant Desk Goose, Goosifer. (I also have a poop emoji daughter named Pooptina but she ran away from home)

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Ben Fisher-Rodriguez @mrfishersays.bsky.social · 19/09/2026

1) it is perfect 2) does it have a name

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Ben Fisher-Rodriguez @mrfishersays.bsky.social · 19/09/2026

HAHA logistically improbable, poetically hilarious

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Ben Fisher-Rodriguez @mrfishersays.bsky.social · 19/09/2026

I think the idea came from somewhere on social media, but it's so stupid it just might work... Seriously considering getting cookies, "party favors," etc.

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Ben Fisher-Rodriguez @mrfishersays.bsky.social · 19/09/2026

I've been toying with this idea for a while, and on Monday, I'm finally going to do it: We're going to have a gender reveal party, but for German nouns.

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Ben Fisher-Rodriguez @mrfishersays.bsky.social · 19/09/2026

What if grades were just based on vibes??? Please I'm buried under a stack of compositions!!!

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Ben Fisher-Rodriguez @mrfishersays.bsky.social · 19/09/2026

Me to class of 39: "Sorry I haven't got your compositions back to you, I accidentally scheduled it for the same day 2 of my other classes wrote compositions & I haven't had time to catch up." Student: "But, hear me out, if you didn't EVER assign anything...then you wouldn't have anything to grade!"

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Reposted by Ben Fisher-Rodriguez

Marcus Luther @marcusluther.bsky.social · 18/09/2026

“In my class of 39” shouldn’t be allowed to be something teachers say

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Ben Fisher-Rodriguez @mrfishersays.bsky.social · 18/09/2026

I loved it, too! The kids got really serious about it. Very focused in their rereading...!

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Ben Fisher-Rodriguez @mrfishersays.bsky.social · 17/09/2026

Did a Condensing Content activity today: students took a reading, copied the 5 sentences they thought summarized the story best, and then had to come to a consensus with a partner about 5 sentences. Rereading, speaking the sentences aloud, listening, reasoning, building writing muscles...

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Ben Fisher-Rodriguez @mrfishersays.bsky.social · 17/09/2026

Just walked into my ASL teacher colleague's classroom, and two former students (brothers!) had come just to chat it up with him in ASL. Warmed my lil heart!! Kids notice the love we put into our work!!!!

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Ben Fisher-Rodriguez @mrfishersays.bsky.social · 17/09/2026

Yeah in my class of 39, I am really struggling to have any little rapport-building conversations during work times. So many needs, so much energy to manage.

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