I Want to Paint My Bathroom Blue by Ruth Krauss (illustrations by Maurice Sendak) tells the story of a young boy who dreams of painting his bathroom blue, kitchen yellow, ceilings green, etc. He imagines what his ideal home would look like, all in the context of being informed by his father that he can’t … I Want To Paint My Bathroom Blue
So far it’s been a beautiful September here in the Pacific Northwest. School has started, and I’ll be back in both an elementary school and a university classroom next week. I’ve been working away on my book this summer, and hope to have it finished this year and published in 2012. The past few weeks … A new school year
There is now an email list affiliated with PLATO. This is an open discussion list for exchange among those with interests in the development and practice of pre-college philosophy, with particular emphasis on developing this field in the United States. To join the list, subscribe at: http://lists.futurenode.com/mailman/listinfo/plato-apa_lists.futurenode.com/
I’ve been re-reading the short book The Universe and Dr. Einstein, originally written in 1948 by Lincoln Barnett. I first read and was inspired by this book when I was 17. An engrossing account, written for the general public, of the theories of relativity and quantum mechanics, this is an accessible and effective resource for … The Universe and Dr. Einstein
The Rainbow Fish by Marcus Pfister is a picture book that parents seem either to love or to hate. It is the story of a fish, described as “the most beautiful fish in the entire ocean,” with rainbow-colored, iridescent scales. The other fish call him “Rainbow Fish,” and invite him to play with them, but … The Rainbow Fish
Mem Fox’s picture book Wilfrid Gordon McDonald Partridge is the story of a young boy, Wilfrid Gordon, whose “house was next door to an old people’s home and [who] knew all the people who lived there.” His favorite person at the home is Miss Nancy, and Wilfrid Gordon’s father tells him that, at 96, she … Wilfrid Gordon McDonald Partridge
On Thursday I read a chapter of E.B. White’s Stuart Littlewith the 4th grade students at John Muir Elementary. The chapter describes Stuart’s one-day experience acting as a substitute teacher. One of the first things Stuart asks his students is whether they know what’s important. The students in the story give various responses, including “a … What is most important in life?
Last week I had a conversation with fourth grade students at John Muir Elementary about the story Albert’s Toothache by Barbara Williams, one of my favorite picture books. In the story, Albert, a turtle, complains that he has a toothache. His family points out that he has no teeth, and so he cannot have a … The experience of childhood
I’ve been re-reading Vivian Paley’s book You Can’t Say You Can’t Play. The book describes Paley’s observation of what she calls the “habit of rejection” year after year in her kindergarten class, in which certain children (the “ruling class,” as she calls them) decide which children will be accepted and which will be excluded, setting the … You Can’t Say You Can’t Play
The 2010 film Inception is a philosophically provocative film that’s been very popular with teenagers. The film is about an “extractor,” Dom Cobb (Leonardo DiCaprio), someone who is able to take ideas out of people’s minds when they are dreaming and at their most vulnerable. On the run from the authorities, Cobb is hired by … Inception
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