Dear Readers,
You’ll find books you love. You’ll find authors you’ll love. Throughout your life you’ll read every new book that writer writes. And then those books will introduce you to new books.
You’ll read because you want to learn about the world. You’ll read because you love the way that writers use language. You’ll read because you’re a reader and readers gotta read. Soon all of these books will become a part of your life and make it a bit richer.
Sincerely,
Mr. Heimbuck
Dear Strategists,
Have an idea of what your next two moves are going to be. Think about what your opponent is going to do and think about what your opponent thinks you think you’re going to do. Do this in games and do this in life. If you don’t, you’ll get beat like a rented mule.
Even if you lose, it’s better to lose with a strategy. Then, a loss can teach you something.
Sincerely,
Mr. Heimbuck
Dear Knowers,
People may tell you that you don’t need to know facts when you can search on Google or ask Siri. They might tell you you’re “wasting bandwidth” on knowing all the state capitals.
But I think it’s better to know something than to not know something.
Big ideas emerge out of lots of pieces of knowledge put together. Either you can make your own big ideas with your own knowledge, or you can just believe someone else’s big ideas.
I know what I’d prefer.
Sincerely,
Mr. Heimbuck
Dear Makers,
Just make something. Make it just the way you want it, and make it just for yourself. Make it just to see if you can make it.
Worry only about the process of making it, and don’t worry about the end result. Don’t worry about how it will be received. People will love it. Or they won’t.
Make it to make yourself happy. Make it knowing it’s only the first of many.
Sincerely,
Mr. Heimbuck
Dear Dreamers,
When an ant carries a rock to the anthill, it will never see and enjoy the anthill for itself. When people have big visions for the future, they won’t live to see them realized. But we have to have faith that our work will benefit future generations. And we have to keep the vision that we can make the world a much better place for everybody.
Rockets explode, buildings collapse, and new technologies fizzle out. But we have to stay true to our vision that we can make the world better, even if it we’re not around to see it.
Sincerely,
Mr. Heimbuck
Dear Time Travelers,
In high school we read the poem “My Last Duchess.” The poem is old, uses a lot of tough language, makes reference to a history I didn’t know very well, and I didn’t get it at all. And because I didn’t understand it, I didn’t think it mattered.
But my teacher showed me how wrong I was.
He walked us through the poem and, and I found it darkly funny, subversive, and really, really smart. I was astounded that a human could create something so true and that it could still ring true 150 years later. It seemed like the poet wrote that poem just to entertain me!
Just because something’s old, doesn’t mean it doesn’t matter. Just because something’s tough, doesn’t mean it can’t speak to us.
Sincerely,
Mr. Heimbuck
Dear Readers,
Books are magical things. I’m reading a novel about a black girl who grew up in Brooklyn in the 1970s. And even though I’m a white guy who grew up in a tiny town in Wyoming in the 1990s, I feel like I am in the book.
That’s what books do. They allow you to empathize with and understand people, places, and times that you never could have imagined. And in all of your travels through books, you usually find that one spark that unites people everywhere.
So as you read today, look for that spark.
Sincerely,
Mr. Heimbuck
Dear Coloradoans,
It’s important to know about the place around you. Know its history, its geography, its people, and its culture. These things give a place its flavor and these things matter. They help the people in a place determine what makes up “the good life.” And that’s a question that each of you has to answer everyday.
So we’ll get to know Colorado’s geography, history, and culture. We’ll talk about what people in Colorado think is important, we’ll sing songs about Colorado’s beauty, and we’ll read stories that tell about its fascinating history. And in learning all of this, we’ll better understand what’s happening right now.
Sincerely,
Mr. Heimbuck
Dear Students,
You might hear messages from society that you’re not good enough.You might hear that you can’t succeed in school because you’re a girl (or because your a boy), because your parents don’t drive a fancy car (or because they do), because of where you or your parents were born, or because of the color of your skin.
These are all lies.
And it’s important that you do not believe them. Because they’re the types of lies that we hear so often, it’s easy to believe they’re true.
Each of you is good enough to succeed in school and life.
Sincerely,
Mr. Heimbuck
Dear Mathematicians,
Today we’re going to talk about those special numbers that only have one factor pair–prime numbers. We found quite a few of them between 1 and 36 yesterday, and today we’re going to look at them a little bit closer. You probably noticed some similarities about them and maybe you think you noticed some patterns.
I love prime numbers. There’s just something about them that makes me feel alive. When I think about them, it’s as if the universe is whispering its secrets into my ear. That’s what doing math is all about.
Sincerely,
Mr. Heimbuck
letters to my class 