fourth grade scribes

I spent most of today hanging out with fourth graders, talking about writing, about how to make your world into words and why the heck that's worth doing. Their teachers won a grant to provide each of them with an iPad to inspire even more connections to writing and creative thinking.Here's what I learned today:-I need to travel more. That was the number one question: "Have you been to [country name here]?" China, Japan, Spain, and Rio (thanks Blue Sky Studios). There's a lot of world to see, folks. Better keep moving.-I am old, and fourth graders are much cooler than me. These kids are writing on iPads. They're carrying around their school issued tablets and snapping photos of toads and classmates and school lunches. All the sudden I feel like donning my Sean Connery voice and distiguished swagger, muttering, "I prefer my pen and paper." The kids are about to start blogging, and I figure there's not going to be another voice quite like theirs anywhere in the world.-Everyone's got a story to tell. Sounds like a tag line for a Meg Ryan movie. But it's true. I've been able to share the view from my 1x1 square of the world, and these kids and every kid in Texas, Mongolia, Somalia, Armenia, they've all got this incredible thing to say about what it's like to be them. I can't help but cheer for teachers who give whatever tools they can to get kids to speak up and share that bit of gold that's right there inside them. And you can bet when they get their blog up, I'll be reading.