Choice Lit Topic: Big Fresh Archives
Here is where you can find all the Big Fresh enewsletters from the past six years archived, with the most recent issues on top. If you haven’t already, sign up for the Big Fresh! It’s been the go-to resource for tens of thousands of teachers around the globe for over 12 years. We never send subscribers anything but the weekly newsletter, and we absolutely never share your email address with anyone else.
Results
March 8, 2019 With Students in Mind
At its best, schooling can be about how to make a life, which is quite different from how to make a living. Neil Postman My son’s Go Kit was...
March 1, 2019 Joy and Ambition
Joy is not made to be a crumb. Mary Oliver Did you happen to catch the video of gymnast Katelyn Ohashi from UCLA performing a flawless and exuberant floor...
February 22, 2019 What’s Your Catchphrase?
Love in the rain is better than hate in the sunshine. Matshona Dhliwayo There are the inevitable hard days, and we all have them. There are hard days at school...
February 15, 2019 Abandoned Canoes
As one goes through life, one learns if you don’t paddle your own canoe you don’t move. Katharine Hepburn Sometimes when my husband and I are out on the...
February 8, 2019 The Community Potato
If you’re poor, potato chips are the food of life for you. It’s the caviar. Sandra Cisneros Picture this. It’s the holiday week between Christmas and New Year’s, but...
February 1, 2019 Pick a Lane
I was driving through western Massachusetts recently when this billboard caught my eye. Maybe you don’t think the sign is funny, but it cracked me up and broke up the...
January 25, 2019 Peach Pit
When I have to come with ideas, especially in a pinch, I need to create the conditions for creativity. Piera Gelardi Standards, parameters, boundaries. School is all about confined...
January 18, 2019 Wins and Losses
The thing about football—the important thing about football—is that it is not just about football. Terry Pratchett There was a recent thread on social media in which high school...
January 11, 2019 Stand Next to Me
Nine of us got together for our family girls’ weekend last fall. “Paint and Sip” is an activity all of us enjoyed, even though we range in age from teens...
January 4, 2019 Reset
Be mindful. Be grateful. Be positive. Be true. Be kind. Roy Bennett Our instructional coach was standing by my door as I came back after a round of classroom...
December 28, 2018 Celebrations
The most beautiful things are not associated with money—they are memories and moments. If you don’t celebrate those, they can pass you by. Alek Wek When I left my...
November 17, 2018 Heat Maps
Gatherings that are willing to be alienating—which is different from being alienating—have a better chance to dazzle. Priya Parker In her new book The Art of Gathering: How We Meet...
The Big Fresh November 10, 2018 Just Keep Pedaling
Life is like riding a bicycle. In order to keep your balance, you must keep moving. Albert Einstein I’m trying to get back into the rhythms of riding. Last...
The Big Fresh November 3, 2018 The Second Choice
Having a sense of security in one realm gives us the freedom to be original in another. Adam Grant What’s your dream project? The one at the top of your...
The Big Fresh October 27, 2018 Stretching
A mind that is stretched by experience can never go back to its comfortable old dimensions. Oliver Wendell Holmes When to stretch? If you work out, you know there...
The Big Fresh October 20, 2018 Crayons
History written in pencil is easily erased, but crayon is forever. Emilie Autumn This fall I’m immersed in a redesign of the Choice Literacy website. One thing the designer...
The Big Fresh October 13, 2018 Raccoon
The raccoon problem is under control. They have their part of town and we have ours. Leslie Knope (in Parks and Recreation) The last thing one expects to see when...
The Big Fresh October 6, 2018 Get Under the Ball
Concentration comes out of a combination of confidence and hunger. Arnold Palmer This weekend we went to watch our youngest daughter’s team play in a volleyball tournament, hosted in our...
The Big Fresh September 29, 2018 The “One Thing” Mindset
This year has been a good one for me, and a bad one for a few of my closest friends and family members. They are dealing with serious illness themselves,...
The Big Fresh September 22, 2018 Sometimes We Should Just Clap
There is no wine in the world as heady as applause; and it has the same effect. It temporarily subdues anxiety and restores confidence. Khushwant Singh The circle created by...
The Big Fresh September 15, 2018 Inviting the Stranger In
Good things happen when you meet strangers. Yo-Yo Ma In her new book The Art of Gathering: How We Meet and Why It Matters, Priya Parker writes about the...
