Another cold snap in north Florida brings my memory back to December 1955, on the roadside near the New York State Ranger School in Wanakena. We would be waiting for the 8:00 AM arrival of the bus that would take us to the Central School in Star Lake. The cold was miserable, but as I reported in Star Lake (available from Lighthall Books), the school bus was one of the happiest memories of those days. We got to know all the children in Wanakena within the first few days and weeks. Better yet, we sixth- and seventh-graders got to rub elbows with Juniors and Seniors and began to look forward to one day being as trendy and sophisticated as they were.
In a column (http://www.nytimes.com/2011/01/18/opinion/18brooks.html?_r=1&ref=global) in today's International Herald Tribune, David Brooks opined that Amy Chu is a wimp. Chu, author of a much-discussed recent book, tells of the extremely strict ways in which she brought up her daughters in order to make them excel in academic and musical pursuits. Brooks observed that sitting at a piano for hours learning to play a piece to perfection is much easier than learning how to get along with one's peers and ultimately to gain the interpersonal skills needed for creativity and leadership.
I was reminded of my post on the school bus; maybe I enjoyed riding on the bus so much because it was an extraordinary and satisfying learning experience.
In a column (http://www.nytimes.com/2011/01/18/opinion/18brooks.html?_r=1&ref=global) in today's International Herald Tribune, David Brooks opined that Amy Chu is a wimp. Chu, author of a much-discussed recent book, tells of the extremely strict ways in which she brought up her daughters in order to make them excel in academic and musical pursuits. Brooks observed that sitting at a piano for hours learning to play a piece to perfection is much easier than learning how to get along with one's peers and ultimately to gain the interpersonal skills needed for creativity and leadership.
ReplyDeleteI was reminded of my post on the school bus; maybe I enjoyed riding on the bus so much because it was an extraordinary and satisfying learning experience.