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In the highly unlikely possibility that anyone is interested in reading what I’ve been doing since I retired from classroom teaching this past summer, I thought I’d write this post 🙂

The big education project that I’ve done is, with Katie Hull, completed the manuscript for The Better Teacher’s Toolbox.  I think it’s pretty good, and that all teachers might find it useful.  Look for it next summer!

In addition, I’m spending about two-or-three hours a day on education-related reading and writing – here on this blog and on my Education Week column.

I also recently co-hosted a webinar with Seidlitz Education and will likely be doing one of those each quarter going forward.

Another ed-related (and family-related) activity I’m doing is a  weekly reading session with two granddaughters on opposite coasts with the Readeo application. I did weekly face-to-face tutoring sessions for an older granddaughter who lived in our same town, but I guess I’ll have to settle for online versions for this generation.

I’ve also begun volunteering as a tutor at our local Juvenile Hall, and will soon be doing the same thing at a local school.  There, I’ll be tutoring elementary ELL Newcomers – a different age group than I’m used to teaching, and that should make it more interesting!

The Better Teacher’s Toolbox is likely to be my last education book.  One of the main reasons our books have been successful is because they’ve been written by practitioners, and I’m no longer one.

But I haven’t given up book-writing!  I’ve begun work on a novel taking place during the Mexican-American War and will keep you posted on its progress!

I’m also being physically active – Pickleball in the mornings, basketball a couple of nights each week, long daily dog walks, and Pilates training at the YMCA.  One of those basketball-playing nights is with guys who are a lot younger than me. I have my moments, but, as a friend told me, you know you’re old when you’re the first person to start a fast break but you’re the last player to arrive on the other end of the court!

Apart from writing critically about Trump administration policies, and attending “No Kings” demonstrations, I haven’t been as active as I should be in public life.  But I hope to change that in 2026.

I’m also keeping up with friends and family, and catching up with Netflix,  so, as you can see, it’s a rough life!