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Royal Fork Buffet was my first "official" job when I was sixteen. Jerry Caven started the chain in 1967 in Idaho, and they had several locations in the Denver metro area. There were two in Lakewood—one on West Colfax and one on Alameda. I worked Read more
Allen Elementary was a small school in San Bruno, California. I wasn’t there for very long, but a couple of experiences deeply impacted me and set the tone for my education moving forward. It’s often the little things that stick with kids the most, shaping Read more
Pitching pennies has been a childhood pastime for generations. The rules are simple: whoever lands their penny closest to the wall—or even better, gets a "leaner"—wins. A group of kids would play, and the winner took all the pennies. It seemed like just another harmless Read more
When I started teaching, I had the misconception that my point of view was the most important thing in the classroom. But the longer I taught, the more I realized that my perspective was just one part of the classroom culture—not the driving force. The Read more
Conflict is inevitable in a classroom. It’s a small space with 30 students and a teacher trying to teach while maintaining order. Sometimes, students will get on the teacher’s bad side over minor things. I found myself in one of these conflicts back in junior Read more
We moved a lot when I was a kid. Because of that, I made a conscious decision that when I had children, they wouldn’t have to move if I could help it. My daughter lived in an apartment for five years and then in the Read more
Living in a small town has its perks, but there are definitely some drawbacks. Take my time in Lewistown, Montana, for example. I went through my first divorce there, and since Montana is a no-fault state, as long as everything was worked out, signed, and Read more
I never imagined the storm that one simple phrase and action would cause in a small town. Open Sundays—those two words opened a can of worms in Lewistown, Montana, in the mid-80s. Suddenly, I found the Board of Directors of the Chamber of Commerce at Read more
At every staff development day in my thirty years of teaching, we were asked to connect the curriculum to the students or the real world. Over the last few years, however, I believe we have lost focus and forcefully removed the backbone of these ideas, Read more
Many people from my age group had off-the-books jobs before they turned 16. When I was thirteen, I worked at a rental store cleaning equipment as it was returned. My father worked there as a mechanic, and the owners were good family friends. My job Read more
In the 1970s, Target Stores had automotive service departments. I was a young college student looking for summer work. I must have looked like a mechanic because they placed me in the service department. I learned to put on new tires, balance them, and occasionally Read more
As technology becomes more ubiquitous in our world, I think back to my humble beginnings. When I was teaching Technology at Montview, I was sometimes limited by the classroom teachers' expectations. While I wanted to give the kids all they could handle, the teachers often Read more