In memory of Corion, a favorite SideWalk Chalk student who passed away July 10, 2011,
and for all of the kids who still get to be a part of our lives today.

The second time SideWalk went into a 4th grade classroom to lead a writing workshop we were early. The guidance counselor was reading a story to the kids, all crowded on the reading carpet in the front of the room. Our six volunteers sat with them. The story was about a young boy, his mother, and younger sister who were moving to a motel to escape an abusive father. None of the children were shocked.
“What should the mother do?” the guidance counselor asked.
The girl …

The first twenty minutes hadn’t been great. I stood in front of the 5th-grade class, most of them looking bored, and tried my best to make pre-writing fun. Pre-writing isn’t fun. Graphic organizers are boring.  Webs with bubbles and phrases like “How did it feel?” and “What could I hear?” and “”What did I see?” are the worst part of writing. Most writers I know skip pre-writing altogether, but 5th-graders aren’t most writers. They’re eleven-year-olds with a standardized test coming up in two weeks.
“Close your eyes,” I said. “Go to …

The second time SideWalk went into a 4th grade classroom to lead a writing workshop we were early. The guidance counselor was reading a story to the kids, all crowded on the reading carpet in the front of the room. Our six volunteers sat with them. The story was about a young boy, his mother, and younger sister who were moving to a motel to escape an abusive father. None of the children were shocked.
“What should the mother do?” the guidance counselor asked.
The girl …

“His mom walked out a year ago,” the principal told me. “Went to Atlanta. She’s back now, but things aren’t good.” We were walking to the first grade classroom. “He’s the brightest first grader we have, but he’s a big discipline problem. Everything ends in a fight. He won’t focus on anything.” I learned that lately he’s taken to shutting himself in the bathroom and urinating on the floor.
I’ve never hung out with a six year old other than my nephews, but every Thursday from 12:30 -2:00 I go to …