The unique blog 4007

I grew up in a place where the flag hung on the wall not as décor, but as a reminder. My grandfather folded his with slow, deliberate hands during neighborhood …

On a Tuesday morning in late September, I sat in the back of a fourth grade classroom while the teacher guided the group through a short routine. Hands on heart…

The bell had barely stopped ringing when the first flag came out of a backpack, a small nylon triangle on a plastic dowel. A handful of kids cheered, a handful …

A few Septembers ago, a high school administrator in a midwestern district asked for help with what sounded like a small thing. A student had started wearing a …

A few years ago, I visited a public high school on the edge of a midwestern city. The building dated to the 1970s, all brick and square angles, with a new glass…

On the first day of my student teaching, I walked into a fourth grade classroom before daylight. The room felt like a freshly set stage, bulletin boards papered…

Walk into ten public schools and you'll see ten specific relationships with the flag. In one, the Stars and Stripes hangs at the back of a whiteboard, somewhat …

A few years ago I sat in a crowded gym on a Friday night while a high school football team took the field. The announcer asked for a “moment,” and the place fel…