Mini Cardboard Dubrovnik

So cute! Tiny, tiny Croatian flags fly over the walled
city of Dubrovnik

That's a skeleton dunking a ball in the

center of the tie dye!

I had a good run, and I'm proud of myself. It seems that my teaching days are, if not over, then coming to a close. My favorite time of year would HAVE to be June, because observations are over and creativity can return. This year, my school decided on a world theme, and each academy got a continent. My academy got Europe, and I chose Croatia. It was the run-up to the World Cup, and
Croatia has been my soccer team since 1998, when I thought they looked like the 1996 Olympic Lithuanian basketball team, sponsored by Jerry Garcia. Those Croatian

Dubrovnik in place in front of my classroom celebrating all
9 of Croatia's global contributions to society.

uniforms had to be donated by some third-rate graphic design team of the fledgling nation. Or, as it turns out, not. Those checkerboards were the heraldic symbol of Croatia, believe it or not! I love an underdog, so I was rooting for the new Lithuania: Croatia!

In any case, I chose Croatia, and we had so much fun. Thanks to the Croatian superstar, Luka Modric, my students recognized the flag (it features the checkerboard, so the branding works), and the centerpiece of our homage, a miniature Dubrovnik, was truly a group project. I gave the kids creative license to make a building, giving them an approximate size, and they went to town. We had painting and folding and sharpie-ing assembly lines, and I think the final product turned out amazing.

I will miss this type of thing. There is a lot that I will miss. There is also a lot I will not miss. But, now that I'm not in the trenches, I can forget about the pain and agony that went into my labor of love, and focus on the times that made me glad I tried my hand at teaching.