Essays 1-20

To some children, winning games is very important, and they’ll do whatever they need to do to make sure they win. I used to think that parents were always to blame for that – that some parents stress winning too much. And some parents are and do. I also blamed society as a whole. Society…

I’ve recently made a new friend: sadness. I’ve known sadness for a long time, and it’s been hanging around with me even longer, but I’ve only recently made friends with it. I used to pretend it wasn’t there, bar the door when I saw it coming, and look for a way to get rid of…

Children have a variety of ways to tell us that they don’t think they’re able to do what we think they’re able to do. Some come right out and tell us. That makes our job easier. But some pout, and obsess on issues that may have nothing to do with the real problem. Some get…

I’d like to add a verb to the English language: “sible.” There already is “sibling,” which can easily be used as the present participial form of the verb and still be used as a noun when necessary. “Parent,” after all, became a verb during my lifetime, so there’s a precedent. And I’m not seriously worried…

Some parents have a quick explanation of the phenomenon I described in my last article: children feel comfortable and safe at home – comfortable and safe enough to let out the demons they keep locked up while they’re in school. Since they’re more uncomfortable and insecure in school, their teachers happily do not get to…

In 1974, I applied for teaching positions in the Boston area. I was hoping to teach in Boston, and help right the wrongs Kozol wrote about. That year, for reasons I support, Boston was looking for teachers who would help make the Boston Public Schools more racially balanced. My racial characteristics were pretty much like…