Author name: MARTINRAYVAUGHAN

Journal: ‘Grounded’

Parenting / By

Bella was grounded today. Yesterday she had let her frustrations get the best of her – right at bed time. When we got home we had our snack, made our beds, and cleaned rooms. Bella got a few minutes on the Hogg’s trampoline but soon after I came to retrieve her, and we go to work on the backyard. Fall leaves were in full force. I wondered why city folk didn’t burn leaves, and decided to light a small fire in our fire pit as we began raking. Bella had taken her punishment with grace and was in a good mood

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Keeneland Morning

Memoir / By

Posted in the Herald Leader Long before “Breakfast with the Works” at Keeneland, my father would take me out to the track on early Saturday mornings to watch the horses work out. We would head out from the South Lexington suburbs well before the sun was up; the city still asleep and dreaming. Pre-dawn has half of the fun for me. The quiet hours felt like our own little secret. Dad and I would share quiet conversations blanketed by the magic of morning. He with his coffee while I sipped hot chocolate. The grounds at Keeneland began stirring long before

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Planning Units: A quick thought.

Education / By

The core of the ELA learning experience breaks down into two hemispheres: improving communicative skills and exploring the world around us. These two inextricable realities can be occurring at the same time, and should be. We explore our environment and we communicate our thoughts on what we see – what conclusions we’ve drawn from our observations. The DNA of this whole experience is inquiry. Without that, the system won’t work. So I start with that. Constructing the wire frame of a lesson or unit is best done in community. I’ve done it on my own and I’ve done it with

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tort

A Quiet Morning in 2026

Parenting / By

The quiet morning is unstirred as I walk around the house, making sure to step where no loose baseboard might find me out. The girls are snuggled in, Tasha and Cocoa too. I’ll try my hand at a strawberry galette while no one is looking. I am having my Sumatra roast coffee and tying up loose ends. Reviewing to-do lists, and checking the kitchen supplies for today’s culinary adventures. Bella turns 12 today. Where did 12 years go? Time slips through the sieve, pouring out, and though in my consciousness I hold each moment precious, still it seems I can’t

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