594. Norks and Noogly

When I was busy in my teaching career, I told myself and others that I would be more attentive, sensitive, and all that if I just had more time. I’d pay more attention to the little things that mean so much. Sometimes I got skeptical looks; people thought my career was just an alibi. So…

Do you remember the moment in Animal Farm when Napoleon (the Lenin pig) ordered the dogs to drive Snowball (the Trotsky pig) out of Animal Farm? Napoleon had taken charge of the education of the pups, and they had grown up loyal to Napoleon. I read the book in high school, and though I had…

Most teachers, especially primary teachers, spend time teaching children about feelings. It is altogether fitting and proper that we should do this. But, in a larger sense, (Thank you, Abe Lincoln, for finding the right words) who are we to teach children about feelings? They haven’t had as much time to unlearn the important part…

The English language, more than most languages, is full of words. Perhaps that’s partly because of the various people who have invaded England and partly because of the various people England has invaded. There are words that come from all over the place. English is supposed to be a basically Germanic language, but knowledge of…

In 1973, the principal of the school in which I taught came to my classroom to demonstrate for me the “correct” way to teach handwriting. She felt that handwriting was being given too little emphasis in my class. Back then, I was a young, inexperienced teacher who didn’t think teachers should be so obsessed with…

I was going to write an article about the joy children feel when they get to be in a play. I was all set to write it. Then the anxious faces of several children appeared in my mind, and these children seemed to be asking me to write, first, about the joy of not having…