Bird Droppings February 18, 2026The Power of Example goes beyond the curriculum and the classroom. “We taught our children by both example and instruction, but with an emphasis on example, because all learning is a dead language to one who gets it second hand.” Kent Nerburn, The Wisdom of the Native Americans For nearly twenty-five…

Bird Droppings February 17, 2026A series of paradoxes and bewilderment I received the following in an email a few days ago; a friend of mine sent it out, and as I read it the first time, it was humorous. However, as I pondered then as a teacher, I read deeper into what was being said.…

Bird Droppings February 10, 2026Why do we have public education? So we can educate all our Children and seek a Democracy. For all teachers, today is a day of action. Stand up for what you believe in. I read an article yesterday that referred to children simply as ‘others’. The way a profiteer looks at…

Bird Droppings February 9, 2026 A confession of sorts, some will understand. Doing what you love is not work, even if you are tired at the end of the day. “To love what you do and feel it matters, how could anything be more fun?” Katharine Graham I learn something daily as I wander the…

Bird Droppings March 7, 2025Quietly listening to Bob Dylan and pondering the word inspiration. My mind wandered back fifteen years or more to a county-wide teacher kick-off meeting. I thought back to another time, 2020, when many teachers were still monitoring lessons from computers, not in the classroom. Many communities banned gatherings of fifty or…

Bird Droppings January 14, 2026Learning and teaching are not the same, yet they intertwine. “In the case of good books, the point is not to see how many of them you can get through, but how many can get through to you.” Dr. Mortimer J. Adler Dr. Adler founded the Center for the Study of…

Bird Droppings January 5, 2025Passion for learning: Can it be rekindled? April 4, 1968, I was a freshman at West Chester State, now University. I was not seriously politically active, and I would say naïve. I do recall the news stories and the tension that followed. I grew up in a town where the people…

Bird Droppings July 15, 2025 Quietly listening to Hot Tuna and pondering the word inspiration. Over twenty years ago, at a county-wide teacher kick-off meeting, it was traditionally a packaged inspirational meeting and welcome before state and federal budget cuts. This was the startup for the new school year led by a brought-in speaker. They…