Tomorrow morning I leave for the CODA (Craft Organization Development Association) meeting in Little Rock where I'll be a co-moderator in a peer session on Friday and make an hour long presentation on the Wisdom of the Hands on Saturday. I am always nervous when I have to present in a large group, and like most craftsmen, I feel far more comfortable making things with the wood and tools in my shop than I do in public. But I also know from my own craftsmanship, that you do get better with experience and fine tuning the message is essential. It is just like sanding.

The CODA conference will have representatives from a large number of craft schools and organizations, and my hope is that by sharing an understanding of the essential role of the hands in shaping intelligence, I can help others to reach a common vision through which the role of the hands can be restored to American education. Like woodworkers, those deeply involved in crafts education are the prime market for understanding the hands, and as from a pebble dropped in a pool a ripple spreads.

I will try to post from the hotel in Little Rock and keep my faithful readers informed.