January 31, 2019
Sara and I are very proud of our new PD book From Striving to Thriving Writers: Strategies That Jump-Start Writing. And, we are more than humbled that one of our biggest influences on our teaching styles, Stephanie Harvey, has made significant contributions to the book. We feel that our philosophies meld nicely. I have attended […]
January 21, 2019
Poets have always been trouble makers – in many places they have been arrested for stirring the pot a little too vigorously – or in the “wrong” direction. But – even poets can be guilty of staying inside their safe boxes. Whether that box be the safety of tenured academia or a local “scene” […]
January 19, 2019
12 years – that’s how long Sara and I have been coming to Eastern Middle School in Greenwich, CT. We love this little public school with its art covered walls and rambling old building and we really do have friends here. Eastern used to be traditionally our last school of the year but overseas scheduling […]
December 2, 2018
Alternative title: Being Crackpot Poets for Fun and Profit Sara and I sort of made up our jobs. Twenty years ago, I didn’t even know that what I am doing for a living now was even an option. In fact – according to recent research by Dell and the Institute For The Future 85% of […]
November 21, 2018
My favorite sport is reading. Sara and I love going to the National Council of Teachers of English conference. We’ve been going to NCTE for a couple decades and each one has been an opportunity to connect with friends new and old and to learn and grow. This year’s iteration was especially fulfilling. We have […]
November 8, 2018
And the winner in our acronym competition is… East Central Ohio Educational Service Center, New Philadelphia, Ohio supports teachers and students in – surprise, East Central Ohio. We’ve worked with their teachers and students the last couple years. As much as we enjoy our international travel we love working with our fellow buckeyes any chance […]
October 20, 2018
“You didn’t mention the ceviche.” I quipped – “No, I didn’t” said our sardonic waiter in a deadpan as heavy as the woodwork in the Tudor steakhouse where Sara and I dined with editor Carolyn Yoder after Sara’s receipt of the Jane Addams Peace Award for children’s books in the shadow of the UN building […]
October 19, 2018
Ever have the feeling that you’ve been somewhere before? The Bahrain Bayan School was the very first international school we ever visited over 14 years ago! It was great to complete this big crazy circle with friends old and new. Our host with the most on this iteration was a force we met in Cairo […]
October 18, 2018
Some wilt in the heat some thrive. Universal American School in Dubai can be grouped with the latter as can their vivacious and voraciously read librarian Rhonda. Juggler of competing schedules between the lower and upper school, feeder of visiting crackpot poets – enthusiastic student advocate and literacy pusher Rhonda kept us on track from […]
October 16, 2018
Abu Dhabi Doo! It’s been nine years since our last visit to Abu Dhabi Community school and while we encountered some new faces we also ran into some old friends. This young lady had her picture taken with Sara back in 2009 and again this visit. Thank you to Mary and Julie – librarians extraordinaire […]
