“Good morning, Ms. Bentivoglio!”
It’s Wednesday night, the last night in February, and I’m looking forward to an early morning meeting with Catherine Bentivoglio, a teacher at Academie de la Moraine in Toronto. We first met over a year ago, at EarthRangers, when I was touring with my first book, Flight or Fight, and her enthusiastic students had me signing everything from bookmarks to books to the t-shirts on their backs.
This unusual teacher kept in touch with me throughout the year. First contact was through a student named Jonathan, who sent a letter to me via my publisher — my first-ever letter from a reader. From there, Catherine emailed to let me know she was using Flight or Fight in the classroom … and building a curriculum unit around it!
By the time I was writing Crow Medicine, she was sending me sheaves of letters from her students, as well as the lesson plans she’d created based on my book. They were incredible — writing exercises, question-and-answer, even theatrical improv and video-making! With her permission, those plans will appear on this site in future for other educators to use.
A big HELLO to the students in Ms. Bentivoglio’s class! I look forward to seeing you in the morning.