Callie Feyen

We sit on a creaky pew, my grandmother and I. My grandfather is at the pulpit. It is summer in the Finger Lakes region of New York: sticky in the rolling hills that are scattered with ice-cream stands, bed and breakfasts, and vineyards. My grandfather blesses everyone and encourages the congregation to pass the peace to those around us. I… View Post

Around here we’re taking our third ballet class of the year and getting ready for the spring performance where we get to wear a purple leotard with tulle. It’s somebody’s dream come true. Harper’s, too. Around here we’re back to playing soccer, and we’re giving goalie another shot.  Look at that posing.  “Oh no you DON’T,” is what she’s saying…. View Post

How about some poetry for National Poetry Month? For You: Make sure you get the edition with excerpts from her notebooks.  “A poem has to be pinned to the world with something specific, something ugly. Life holds on to suffering. Otherwise, a poem would disappear, life would fly away.” Or, “My hand craves writing like the woodcutter’s hand craves an… View Post

Love me some Mad Men quotations. Especially when they’re said by women. And why wouldn’t I cut them out and stick them in my journal with washi tape?  I’m sure Joan and Peggy would do the same thing. This week, one of my students said, “I didn’t even know about washi tape until I met you, Mrs. Feyen.” Clearly, I’m… View Post

Since we’re in the beginning of National Poetry Month, I thought I’d share an activity I led my students in after we read the scene where Mercutio and Tybalt die. This idea comes from Shakespeare Set Free from the Folger Library, edited by Peggy O’Brien.  I highly recommend it if you have to teach Romeo and Juliet, Macbeth, or A Midsummer Night’s Dream. We… View Post