Teachers have this network thing going on. Most of our social circles include other teachers (yeah, we like to hang out with ourselves), where we get to talk about our practice and share ideas. We have countless message boards, blogs and websites to hover around. Basically, we can't stop searching for something ‘new’ to bring to our classrooms.

This summer I spent a week in Nantucket with an eclectic group of friends, none of whom were teachers. But like any addict, I needed my fix, and so between vicious games of Hearts or Scrabble, beach trips, bike rides or eating (oh my, the eating!), I managed to lure almost everyone into a chat or two about their child’s education.