The Beginning

The Beginning

After the birth of my third child, Alexander, my perspective on life changed.  He has Wolf Hirschhorn Syndrome and has taught me many life lessons.  When I returned to teaching, I was looking for a way to connect to my students.  I started writing letters.  3 years later - and hundreds of letters later - students now stop in to see the letters.  With a lot of prompting, I decided to post some.  I hope you enjoy.

Some questions I am frequently asked:

Do you discuss your letters in class? No
Do students talk about your letters in class? They discuss them with each other. Or will drop something from the letter during class. 
How do you come up with the ideas for the letters? Personal experience usually.  I think about what is on my mind or heart and write about that.
When do you write the letters? In the morning. On the way to school or once at school before students come to class.
Do you still feel they are important? Yes.  I think building connections - that aren't assigned - with students is a big key to teaching.  Getting to know your students is always a good thing.
Why do you write them? Just to talk to your students? No.  I believe that education is more than a test.  More than state standards.  More than traditional English and math.  I believe the purpose of school should be to teach students how to learn... and not only how to learn, but how to love learning.  If a person loves to learn new things, they are the people we want in our workforce.  In positions of power. In our society.  These letters teach, but not traditional things.  They teach the students how to think about topics and formulate opinions.

Happy reading.  What questions do you have about the letters?