Some people say teachers have it easy because they get the summers off. Don't you believe that! Teachers use the summers to enhance their skill set so they bring new ideas and information to their students when the fall arrives. The knifemaker's aunt teaches middle school gifted thinkers, several quite gifted. Every semester as they work on a research project [read that to mean research, not retrieval], the knifemaker's aunt works on one too as a model. The students' topics are all individual, unique, and in many cases present compelling data to back up their conclusions.
Each summer, the knifemaker's aunt explores a new learning experience that adds to the conversation when everyone convenes again in the fall. This year, metalworking will be the example at the beginning of the fall semester until the students choose their own topics for their projects.
