Forts, Focus Groups, and Gift cards

Tomorrow is the Teacher Focus Group meeting! I'm excited! I know that at least 3 teachers are coming.

In addition, student permission slips and interest forms have started flowing in. I'm ecstatic about the support!

I just read a fascinating book by David Sobel called Children's Special Places: Exploring the Role of Forts, Dens, and Bush Houses in Middle Childhood. It talks about the importance of self-made places, specifically those outside that adults don't enter, in the creation of identity and participation in community and the foundation for a land ethic...

It made me think about forts and such I had as a child. I've noticed that on some, more highly read blogs, bloggers post an answer to a question and then their readers do to. I'm going to try that.

The question: Did you have a childhood fort? Describe it or when you went to it or who you went to it with.

Fort #1: The cherry trees at my grandmas house

Description: 2 cherry blossom trees near the road in front of my grandparents house
When we went to it: whenever the extended family was over, sometimes by myself to climb, sometimes to read
Who I went with: my big sister, little brother, and cousins. The older cousins got the better tree, with easily accessible branches. I was the fourth oldest, so I got the other tree. We had to use a stool to climb it. We had elaborate ritual to decide who got to come in. We always climbed up to our assigned branches in a specific order to avoid stepping on each other.

Now, I'm off to Starbucks to purchase gift cards for teachers at the meeting tomorrow.

Happy Wednesday!