gifted education – Soapbox: The Way I see Things

Slice of Life Tuesday: Writing Group!

Last Thursday, I got to host an online writing group with some of my students. I’m still smiling.

Slice of Life Tuesday: Getting Brave

A notebook that reads "Ridiculously Good Ideas"

I did it! I finally crafted a work of allegorical fiction. I’ve published the first excerpt this week, and I’ll publish the next part of the story on Slice of Life Tuesdays.

Poetry Month Day 9: Depending on When You Met Me

Today’s #Verselove poetry challenge is to compose a “depending on when you met me” poem. It’s a good way to think about all of the “me’s” I’ve been over the years, and to whom.

Slice of Life Day 21: Coming Together

A collage of squirrels looking at a tree

It wasn’t expressly planned, but it was a very happy coincidence that the days before spring break turned out to be the days my fourth graders and I constructed the artwork for our Leo Leonni anthology. We’re still a work in progress (I mean, aren’t we all?) but I thought I’d share the latest.

Slice of Life Day 20: Ask and You Shall Receive

Today, I asked my fifth-grade students for advice on how to move forward with my story. Boy, did they deliver!

Slice of Life Day 16: Infinite Pedantry*

Pedantry is the quality of being too interested in formal rules and small details that are not important. Given the grudge I’ve held against my math teacher for almost forty years, that might describe me…

Slice of Life Day 13: I Didn’t Think

I didn’t think this post would come together, but here it is…

Slice of Life Day 14: On Being Smart

My second graders are learning about children all around the world. We’re using materials based on the UNICEF work from the Conventions on the Rights of the Child. Right now, we’re learning about at what every kid has a right to, including the right to be healthy, to play, to have an identity, to food,Continue reading “Slice of Life Day 14: On Being Smart”

Slice of Life Day 13: The Light Dawns

Some folks out there know all about my recent foray into crowdsourcing. It’s been a game-changer for my fourth-graders, and it’s been fun to share our discoveries. We’ve also been working on the importance of using the language of craft no matter what the medium: arts, sports, literature… So. Today. I had my kids doContinue reading “Slice of Life Day 13: The Light Dawns”

Slice of Life Day 12: Prithee

Today is one of those days where I have the delightful problem of having too many things I want to post about. So today, I think I will share my fifth graders’ work with Shakespeare. They spent last week learning about the guy and all of his weirdness, even coming up with their own favoriteContinue reading “Slice of Life Day 12: Prithee”