You might not be familiar with a certain gastronomic website, The Passionate Foodie. If you do know it, you probably go to it for excellent advice about food and drink, as well as interesting articles about the history of food… Read More ›
Weston
Weston pix?
Apparently my phone has a mind of its own. For some reason it just decided to show me these two Weston photos from the past: One is from about 10–12 years ago (I’d guess), the other somewhat older. Can you… Read More ›
What are we? “Jewish Americans” or “American Jews”?
The excellent PBS documentary from 2008, The Jewish Americans, is an in-depth account of three hundred years of American Jews. I have no idea why it took me 14 years to watch it! The mix of presenters includes public figures,… Read More ›
Parachutes, by Kelly Yang
Helicopter parents. Tiger moms. Parachutes. What do all these metaphors have in common? If you’ve taught in a suburb like Weston—or in an elite private school—you may know the answer. I certainly knew about helicopter parents, having experienced altogether too… Read More ›
Zoe Rosenthal is not Lawful Good, by Nancy Werlin
A shout-out to Aaron Gacs for teaching me what a character alignment chart is! That was four or five years ago. If he hadn’t done that, I would never have understood the title of this captivating novel. If, as the… Read More ›
No, it’s not Lupin. It’s Hannah LeBaron’s Adventure Cats!
Some say you can’t train a cat. My former student Hannah LeBaron and her cat Lily beg to differ. Go read the interview with them on the Community Cats podcast! Apparently Hannah is now an influencer on social media—or so… Read More ›
Should “exam schools” exist?
Boston Latin School. Stuyvesant High School. Two of the very finest public schools in the nation. Should they exist? 50 years ago I would have been taken aback by the very question. Of course they should exist! Who would doubt… Read More ›
Punching down or punching up?
“Why do we have to have a Black History Month?” whined one of my less favorite Weston students in February of 2016. “Why don’t we have a White History Month?” “Because,” I replied without taking time to think, “every month… Read More ›
A Cat
Why had I never heard of this book before? Well, at least I’m not alone. A Cat is a little-known 1995 work written by Leonard Michaels and illustrated by Frances Lerner. I read the 2018 Tin House hardcover version, which I… Read More ›
Stuck in the past
You say you didn’t learn cryptography in high school or college? And you didn’t learn it on your own, as some of us did? It isn’t too late! In that case you’ve probably never heard of the Vigenère Cipher, so… Read More ›
Learning Strategies 