All posts in Nettelhorst

Personification

The first step to building empathy is putting ourselves in the experiences of another, especially if that other can’t speak. The 7th graders of Nettlehorst asked themselves what inanimate objects, animals, or fictional characters […]

“Poetry is many things that inspire people…”

To bring our terrific 6-week poetry residency with 2nd graders to a close, we talked about (1) things that poetry is: “many things that inspire people;” “imaginative;” “an art;” “its own world;” “art & […]

I am…

Metaphors allow us to transform ourselves, if just for a moment. The 7th graders of Nettelhorst asked themselves what they could become after we read “The Delight Song of Tsoai-talee” by N. Scott Momaday. […]

Sounds We Hate, Sounds We Love

We all have sounds we adore and sounds that make us cringe. The 7th graders of Nettelhorst asked themselves what these sounds were for them before we read “Sweet Like a Crow” by Michael […]

Haikus and Emotional Creatures

Last week a student expressed interest in writing haiku, so I offered Nettelhorst 2nd grade teachers the option of working on haikus or emotional creatures this week. Students in Ms. Rodriguez’s and Mrs. Barbeau’s […]

Food Memories

Many of our 5 senses are deeply connected to memory. This week the 7th graders of Nettelhorst reflected on their favorite foods and the people, places, and things connected to them. After reading “The […]

“Our Ideas of a World”

For our 4th sessions, I asked Nettelhorst 2nd graders to think about the kind of world they want for themselves and others. We talked about serious hopes – such as safety for all children […]

2nd graders invite you to see…

After questioning in our first sessions and comparing in our second sessions, it was time for Nettelhorst 2nd graders to get down to the business of seeing for our third sessions. We talked about […]

Where We’re From

Where we’re from is never just the geographic place we call home. This week, the 7th graders of Nettelhorst explored how place impacts their sense of self. After reading George Ella Lyon’s “Where I’m […]

I’ll have two scoops of vanilla clouds, please!

The day of our second sessions was “Wacky Wig Wednesday” and some teachers surprised their students – and me – by showing up with zany tresses!😁 Nettelhorst 2nd graders got down to the business […]

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I’M FROM THE CITY LIGHTS / STREAMING OUT IN THE NIGHT / AND HUGE SKYSCRAPERS / TOWERING OVER THE LAKE – MELISSA E., 7TH GRADE POET