Gaetan Pappalardo grew up on KISS, street hockey, and Transformers. He teaches third grade in West Deptford, N.J. and is a fellow of the Pennsylvania Writing and Literature Project. Gaetan provides professional development for teachers on how to inspire young writers to find their own voice and is a site coordinator/teacher for Young Readers/Young Writers: a summer youth enrichment camp presented by West Chester University in Pennsylvania.
He’s been playing guitar for eighteen years and seamlessly incorporates music into the curriculum on a daily basis. He has written and recorded many full-length records with his students.
His first children's book, Louie Licks and the Wicked Snakes:Battleaxe, will be released summer/fall 2011. Join the buzz here: http://www.facebook.com/LouieLicksandtheWickedSnakes?ref=ts
Blog Posts
So, I'm sitting in a workshop on vocabulary development listening to a bunch of research as to why kids lack the language to effectively comprehend and communicate. The largest factor (found by this specific research) that determines a child's vocabulary cache is . . . (Drum roll) . . . In-...
Read More.Be not simply good - be good for something.
Henry David Thoreau
"Valentine's Day is for suckers." I usually get a nasty look when I exercise my freedom of speech on heart day. Don't get me wrong, I'm romantic and sensitive -- I am a writer, remember? I just feel that a...
Read More.Editor's Note: Today, Gaetan has given his pen to guest blogger Judy Jester. Judy has taught eighth grade English in suburban Philadelphia for 23 years; she also co-directs the Pennsylvania Writing and Literature Project at West Chester University.
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"It's nice to be considered" encapsulates the philosophy of The Center for Teaching and Learning (CTL), a K-8 school in Edgecomb, ME. Those exact words, spoken by CTL teacher Ted Demille, still reverberate within my psyche weeks after my visit; I don't...
Read More."With what are you struggling?" I ask.
"I think I need some more direction on the little decisions like what do you do when a student complains about a stomach ache right before a lesson," replies student teacher.
Read More.I had a student ask me for a month straight, almost every day, if it was okay to write a story about Transformers. At the beginning of each writing workshop, he would stroll up to me and ask the same question.
"Yes, you can write a story with Transformers in it." I thought I sounded...
Read More.There were really no wrong answers: just answers. I guess that's why I became an elementary school teacher: to look at the day's offerings with brand new eyes. How about you? Don't you long for those days, too? I hope you remember what it's like to be a kid because I think that's just what...
Read More.I want you to reach up and feel the bumps on your head. Let your fingers run along the hills and crevices of your dome; examine the terrain. End your exploration by palming your entire head like a basketball. Now I want you to unzip your skull. I can hear the slow clicking of each metal tooth...
Read More.I often get a look of confusion when I tell my students to, "Go mess up, will ya'." Their eyes widen and they turn to a neighbor for a lifejacket because I just threw them in the deep end of technology. Come on, it's only a computer. Using tech in the classroom requires trust. Are they going...
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