What’s Mike Mulligan Got to Do With It?

In the small town where I grew up in central Connecticut, in the era of avocado-colored kitchen appliances and a national reliance on wide collars and polyester fabrics, there were five elementary schools. One of these had already closed by the time I reached kindergarten and one was brand new. My hometown has grown over…

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An Extended Fish Analogy

Let’s say you catch a fish. We’ll designate this particular fish as being a westslope cutthroat trout (as seen in the photo) because I am a trout fanatic and they are beautiful fish, but it really doesn’t matter what kind of fish you’re seeing in your head. You’ve caught it. It’s a mature fish. It’s…

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857 Is 857 Too Many

One topic that elementary school teachers don’t have to contend with is dropouts. Either a child is getting to school or she isn’t. By and large, the same goes for middle school. Elementary and middle school students are not legally allowed to make their own decisions about their schooling. Parents and guardians do that. I…

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