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“Those aren’t real LEGO minifigs!” my son said, as he watched a commercial for the new LEGO Friends line. “What do you mean?” I asked. “They aren’t real minifigures. That’s not what LEGOs look like!” His brother shook his head in literal disbelief as he watched. “I know a lot of girls who [...] “What is the big deal about blocks?” Melitsa Aliva asked me this question earlier this week. We were recording a podcast for her show, Raising Playful Tots , based in the UK. Blocks have been a longtime favorite of mine, and I have been advocating even more for block play as the pushy digital world [...] Drawing hearts is important work for many young children. Hearts aren’t too easy to draw, either. It takes practice to draw a passable, if not perfect heart, but the motivation is often high. I have watched the scenario unfold time and again in the early childhood classroom. One child (often a girl with an [...] The other day my family and I were lucky enough to spend time swimming in a lovely pond. Our friends have a small kayak that was the perfect size for my seven year old sons to try out. It was magnificent – watching as they each took a turn paddling about the pond. After just [...]
My head is still spinning. On Sunday evening I returned from Washington, DC and the Save Our Schools Rally. More than just a rally, it was four days of connecting with other educators, parents, students and activists who are ready to take a giant step towards reclaiming the [...] “We are doing earlier and earlier to children what we shouldn’t do later.” These words of wisdom were offered by Lilian Katz – in reference to the current trend of aligning curriculum and programs in an effort to prepare children for the next step in their education. I had to applaud. In that one sentence, [...] Wow! There is busy . . . and then there is BUSY! This has been a BUSY few weeks. Wonderful, though. Beginning with the powerful Rally to Save Public Education in Cambridge, MA (see previous post); continuing with a wonderful visit to my former school, Mission Hill School in Roxbury, MA; then a quick [...] We were sitting around our campfire Saturday evening when my son said, “I’m glad we did this instead of watching TV.” I smiled and added, “Me, too.” It was our first campfire in many months, and we had a great time talking, laughing, watching the beautiful blaze, and toasting a few marshmallows. The lure of [...] Is it just me or does the iPad seem to be on everyone’s mind these days? This morning on NPR’s Morning Edition, the iPad was described as “widely popular”. Yesterday in the NY Times, the article Math that Moves: Schools Embrace the iPad, looked at the advantages of using iPads in the classroom. It [...] The other night I was with a great group of teachers for our local “National Writing Project” Early Literacy Study Group. Each month we start our meeting with a writing prompt. This one was so much fun, I thought I’d share it: “Draw a map of a childhood place where you liked to play. Label [...] |
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