by Todd R. Nelson One summer, just before the start of school, I heard an Ohio Amish farmer quoted on National Public Radio: “A farming community is only as good as its soil,” he said. And a farm makes an apt metaphor for the community of teaching, learning, and parenting we find in schools, though … Continue reading →

By Todd R. Nelson I got married wearing a kilt. It was made in the Gunn tartan: green, blue, black and a blood red pinstripe. Gunn may not sound too Scottish, because the Nelsons apparently descended from Norse people, perhaps Viking invaders many eons ago. I am also a member of a clan of a … Continue reading →

As I was young and easy, my childhood was ruined by beautiful writing and high-minded values and verbal expression, and I blame it all on poetry. For years, my parents left this dangerous, unstable writing lying around the house in plain sight. It was, alas, the era before parent advisory labels. Mom and dad left … Continue reading →

It’s a good title for a children’s story, don’t you think?  It would go something like this… One morning at school, the art teacher passed the word: “The dragon just might be ready by this afternoon.” As every good school knows, dragon parade opportunities come but once a year: Chinese New Year in February. It’s … Continue reading →

  When he was poet laureate, Billy Collins created “Poetry 180: A Turning Back to Poetry.” It’s an anthology of “contemporary poems,” enough for one on each school day (with a few to spare, in our case). His goal was to freshen up the perception of poetry by collecting new voices and varied topics, have … Continue reading →

…as Discussed in 8th Grade ELA after an example by John McPhee “You see, even if you don’t like to write you have a handy topic: writer’s block itself. You could start out with a letter, like John McPhee advises. ‘Dear Mr. Nelson,’ you might say, ‘I do not like to write! I have such … Continue reading →

I can still recall it with clarity and joy: the sunny day in May of seventh grade that altered my life. Personal history for me is divided between Before or After Green Man Day—the day when Jimmy Butler and I painted our faces green at the 7th grade Arts festival. What were we thinking? What … Continue reading →