Big Reveal: Giving Thanks for Community
A crisp nip in the air, leaves dancing from green to yellow to orange, the scratch of claw on earth as squirrels dig hiding places for acorns—this can only mean one thing: Thanksgiving fast approaches! If you ask me what…
Start the New Year with Pages
January 2026 is right around the corner! Pages classes are designed to foster competence, creativity, and confidence in students as they press into the important work of becoming literate. Being able to communicate an original, BIG idea is the ultimate…
How to Find What you Need
Alphabetical Annotations are HERE! A is for About Authors All About Blog Categories – You are HERE! Announcing – Click through to find out what’s new and happening at Blackbird & Company. Arts Guild – All things visual and musical…
Print Shop Coming Soon!
Come January, Blackbird & Company will be launching Print Shop! Our awesome collection of downloadable Discovery activities are designed to engage students, Kindergarten through 8th Grade, in focused, independent work pinpointed on specific academic skills with opportunities to build…
Read a Book / Solve a Problem
“Mom, I sat by myself today at the park. Nobody was playing anything I was interested in. I tried to talk to Luis but he never listens; the game always has to go his way. Mom, Tommy says he has…
The Art of Integrating Literacy
Blackbird & Company Discovery Literature & Writing Guides are designed to integrate the skills of reading and writing. Over time, the curriculum will enable your children to develop the tools necessary to independently analyze and respond to great stories.…
A Reason for Handwriting
About a dozen years ago, a friend shared with me that she decided to bypass teaching her children the art of penmanship. Her children would jump straight to keyboarding: “This is the computer age. Cursive handwriting is archaic. Why do…
Stitching Picasso
Stitchery builds cognitive plasticity. Embroidery is a practice that will empower students to be aware of fine motor potential, overcome the short attention span, and to have a growth mindset. The nervous system controls all of the body functions. But…
Imagine a Big Idea: A State Quilt
The big idea was to study our state in detail for one full school year, learning its basic geography and all the state symbols. There was no pattern. We just designed it the way we wanted it as we journeyed…
Moving BEYOND the Topic Sentence
Squirrels are everywhere. That’s for sure! Most young writers have had a squirrel encounter or two. Tapping into a rich storehouse of knowledge is a great place to learn to craft a HOOK—not a topic sentence, a HOOK! The best…