Today is National Weed Your Garden Day. When I was young, my parents had an extensive garden, and we were always plucking weeds that had sprouted up between the rows. It was not my favorite chore. (Today as close as I get to having a garden is a pot with a tomato plant.) We know…
This Friday, June 10, is Maurice Sendak’s birthday. He’s of course known best for his picture book, Where the Wild Things Are, and other books for children. But his experiences were wide and varied, including designing sets and costumes for both ballets and operas, producing animated specials for children, and advising the Children’s Television Workshop…
It’s Memorial Day, teacher friends—a day of remembrance for those who have lost their lives in the United States military. With its placement at the end of May, many of us feel that Memorial Day is the unofficial beginning of summer. It’s nice to look forward to summer plans when many of you are trying…
If I see a turtle attempting to cross the road, I will pull my car over, pick it up, and give it an express trip to its destination. So that was my goal the other day when I was zooming down a four lane highway and I spied a turtle sitting on the edge of…
I lingered over the tomato plants during a recent trip to a well-known home improvement store. I love fresh tomatoes, but I don’t have a green thumb. If I don’t kill the plant myself then I suspect my harvest will be picked off by local squirrels and groundhogs. Soon it will be time for me…
Today is my birthday, and it’s a big one. Let’s just say that my cake would have many, many candles…but that’s okay! I actually really enjoy birthdays. I believe that getting older is a privilege, and honestly, the older I get the more I really know who I am and feel good about myself. Plus,…
Some of you may know that in addition to writing blogs for The Mailbox, I also do Facebook and other social media channels. Last week I put up the following question on The Mailbox Facebook page: What do you wish your school would do for Teacher Appreciation Week? I suspected you would have opinions…and I…
Life is pretty expensive right now. I’m fortunate in that I work from home and don’t pay a lot for gas but there’s still the cost of groceries and utilities. It makes me think about my needs versus my wants and how easy it is to blur the line between those two categories. I may…
This Thursday, April 21, is Big Word Day! Yes, it’s one of those non-holidays…but this one sounds pretty entertaining to me, simply because you can make it a fun day in your classroom. Try out some of these engaging activities with your students: Challenge students to seek out and learn a big word, use it…
I live down the road from an exit to a major highway, and whenever I drive that way I’m appalled at the amount of trash people have thrown out of their car windows. To me, throwing litter into a trash can is really just the bare minimum people can do to help the planet. Clearly,…