top of page
Wonder File
Compelling Stories for Curious People


Claiming Cultural Identity: Not only what your are not, but what you are...
Though I knew Indigenous identity was more than stereotypes, I struggled to see what else it could be. And I struggled to see if that identity fit me. Maybe, I thought, I really was less Wampanoag because I didn’t speak our language or know how to hunt.
Jul 55 min read
I'm right-handed. That's a privilege.
Learning about the concept of privilege is not an inherent skill. It comes from interacting with others, with empathy. This article is a...
Jun 238 min read


English: My greatest privilege, bar none.
What does "speaking a foreign language" really mean? I am not sure I know. Having notions of, conversant, fluent, fully bilingual, are...
Sep 26, 20241 min read


Fighting over Spelling
I don't want to see neighbor spelled the American way in the same essay as aluminium spelled the British way.
Jul 15, 20242 min read


How Nikita Khrushchev Turned Berlin into a Happening Art Scene
Almost immediately people in West Berlin started surreptitiously painting slogans on the rough concrete blocks which made up the Wall,
Jun 30, 20248 min read


What is the difference between "dementia" and "Alzheimers"?
Dementia is a description of a way of being, a condition, like a broken arm is a condition, or itchy skin is a condition.
Jun 29, 20242 min read


Where do you get your news?
I try to cast a wider net, and tap into news sources that are perhaps not the first ones we think of.
Jun 23, 20243 min read


Humble Pie and Buying Gas
I needed to face this humiliation like an adult, be the grown-up competent independent American woman that I was.
Jun 6, 20244 min read


Heartbreaking, and Apt.
Almost every Stolperstein ends with the word Ermordet. Murdered.
But not all.
Sep 8, 20222 min read


The Big Five Personality Traits
How schools contribute to personality development. A conventional tool psychologists and economists use to look at basic personality...
Aug 30, 20224 min read


Keep on Learning...
Intercultural competence is acquired, again and again, on an ascending helix.
Aug 15, 20221 min read


Teaching Critical Thinking with an Old TV Show
What’s My Line? provides an authentic lesson in history. How interesting it is to see the fashions of the 50’s, 60’s and 70’s.
Aug 13, 20225 min read


Pas de problème, Madame.
The next day, I go out to see how it is going to go, to watch my brilliant idea in action...
Aug 13, 20224 min read


Learning to Learn
Education isn't teaching "a thing." Education is helping kids be powerful.
Aug 12, 20221 min read


I, Thou, and It
An excellent teacher is constantly assessing the interplay of I,Thou and It, and making adjustments to honor each of them.
Jul 13, 20222 min read


The Butter Lesson
“A stick of butter” is a really useful way to communicate with people you live with.
But out of context, it is useless.
Jul 13, 20224 min read
bottom of page