I met Gandhi and Cleopatra (and 17 other famous people yesterday)...

That's right, yesterday I not only met them but I learned about the bravery of Ruby Bridges, I mingled with Eleanor Roosevelt. I heard about the daring life of Amelia Earhart. Met sports greats like Derek Jeter and Jackie Robinson. Learned what made John Lennon and Paul McCartney's music so good. Listened with much intent as Anne Frank, Helen Keller and Florence Nightingale told me their stories of bravery and wisdom. I asked Walt Disney how he became so famous and questioned Alexander Graham Bell about his inventions. I listened to Suzuki. Did some art with Georgia O'Keefe. And finally, King Tut and Homer dropped by to tell us about their famous lives.

Yesterday at LGA, I had the extreme pleasure of attending the 2nd annual 3rd grade Biography Fair. Words can't describe the excitement that was in the building yesterday morning for these 19 students. Our 3rd grade students led by their amazing teacher, Julie, prepared a world-class learning experience for our students integrating almost many different core curriculum areas for our students.

The most gratifying part for me as head of school was that it was so much more than this one brief morning for the students. This was truly a culmination of months of work for our students. Students each started by selecting a person that they wanted to learn about or admired, they then with the help of their teacher found an age-appropriate biography, wrote and rewrote their own biography, thought about how they wanted to present their "characters", researched and planned out their own costumes, rehearsed public speaking and reading out loud to one another, finally the big day came and they each transformed into their new persona.

Wow! That is all I have to say. Our students were lively, fun, engaging, engaged, and overall impressive with their knowledge. The fact that each student could research someone that meant something to them and piqued their interest somehow just shows the high level of engagement that our teachers have with our students. The creativity that our school shows with this type of project-based learning is what makes LGA such a special place.

Who knows who I'll meet next year?!?