Homesick

Throughout all the Superbowl frenzy and the inevitable Sunday afternoon laundry, I was able to read a book this afternoon.  Kate Klise's book Homesick kept me needing to turn the page.  I was anxious to begin reading it because the setting of her book is not too far from where I live and it's always fun to read an author's interpretation of where you live.  I feel that she captures a small town in the Ozarks fairly accurately.  

The main character in the book, Benny, lives in a small town.  He faces challenges just like all young people face, in his case, the impending divorce of his parents.  His mother leaves him with his father to strike out on her own, promising to come get him when she gets settled.  His dad goes a little crazy and switches from being a collector to an all out hoarder.  This causes concern for the townspeople.  The plot that continues follows all those challenges that young people will face when this type of dishevelment strikes a family.  The ending to this book is realistic and really captures what this area faced during a specific, memorable time in it's history. 

This book is also a good read-aloud and I plan on beginning it this week with my 3rd through 5th grade classes.  I know they will enjoy it as much as I did!  

"Bag Clean-out" Day

This morning I embarked on a ritual that takes place two times each year.  Once at the beginning of Fall Semester and once at the beginning of Spring Semester.  To what am I referring ... "bag clean-out."  Over the course of the semester I accumulate stuff.  Lots of Stuff!  This collections includes random magazines, books I have grabbed off the shelf from school, pictures that kids have colored for me and miscellaneous cute office supplies that I have picked up at random stores and put in my bag to take to school.  This morning I reduced the items from five bags down to two.  That's pretty good.  I have organized where things go.  Some books go back to school; some books go downstairs to the basement (they're mine).  Pictures from children get filed in my keepsake notebook and the odd office supplies get put in a gallon size baggie to take to school.  I always enjoy doing this because I find really neat stuff that I forgot I had.  It's like opening a gift that you weren't expecting.  Oh, and another benefit,  that corner of our bedroom is less cluttered, for a while anyway.

Happy Spring Semester!

Revisiting Old Friends... Library Style

There has been a resurrection of interest in a set of books in our school library.  That series is the Magic Treehouse books by Mary Pope Osbourne.  I've learned that there are definitely trends in the library, just like fashion, home decorating, etc. everything that comes around, goes around and then comes around again.  Mary Pope Osbourne has been writing these books for about 20 years and at last count I had there are 52 of them.  I can say that because I just finished ordering the ones our library didn't have so that we would have all of them.  I have read a few of them, but I'm going to read them again and my goal is to read them in order.  Some kids say that makes a difference.  Some kids say it doesn't matter.  I'm on a quest to decide for myself.  So Dinosaurs in the Dark... Here I come!  



And, I'm not stopping until I get to Soccer on Sunday!




Enjoy this interview with Mary Pope Osbourne.

Veterans Day

Veterans Day





Sacrifice.  That's the word that comes to mind when I think about Veterans day.  I think about the sacrifice of time away from family and the sacrifice of the family.  I wonder if people who are not personally connected to a Veteran ever think about the sacrifice given for our freedom.  One of my "go to" things to tell myself when I'm having a rough day is, "Well... you could be in __________"  and fill in the blank with a country where I know they don't enjoy the freedom I do.  And, that's because a Veteran has sacrificed their time and sometimes their life so I can do what I love in a country that I love.

I have family members who are Veterans.  My uncles Bill, JD and Doc served our country during the Korean conflict.  My cousins Brett and Bruce have served recently.  I was very proud and humbled to see their pictures at our Veterans day assembly slideshow today.  This past year four of my son's 29 classmates committed to serve in the military.  That's a fairly high percentage.  I am very grateful for the sacrifice that they and their families will make so that I can continue to enjoy my freedoms.

The CNN student newscast today focused on Veterans and the theme it focused on was "homecomings."  It showed several Veterans returning home to surprise loved ones at  things like class parties and graduations.  My Freshman are a pretty rowdy crew, but the room was very quiet while we watched this newscast.

http://www.cnn.com/studentnews/


I learned something new today from the speaker at our assembly.  He pointed out that the flag on the sleeve of his uniform may look like it is facing backward.  It is put on that way on purpose, because that's the way it would look going into battle.  American armed forces don't run from battle, they always push ahead.

May God Bless our Troops and their Families!

Whirlwind...whew...puff

The past month has been a whirlwind of activity.  My husband and I finished our kitchen remodel.  Our middle child started college and our oldest child is preparing to get married, soon.  School has been very busy also.  Along with all the things that librarians have to do there are new kindles to check out to students, as well as Chromebooks and the coordination of three computer labs.  I'm teaching one high school class this year and since I haven't taught high school in 4 years, I feel like a new teacher and believe me when I tell you, I'm making some of the same mistakes I did 21 years ago.  Much thoughtful reflection has taken place this weekend.  I think I have a plan.

I love my crazy life.  However, I look forward to long winter evenings, hot chocolate and a good book.

May I sharpen my pencil, please?

May I sharpen my pencil, please?

Everything that we do at school seems to be immersed in technology.   I understand the definition of immersion and I feel I am using it correctly.  Here’s the thing I think about… When students are working on a written assignment and they break a pencil lead, they simply sharpen the pencil.  If students are working on an assignment online, and the computer crashes, it is a crisis.  If students can’t log on to their computers or to a specific program, they become frustrated. As with anything we have to model to students ways to balance all things that come with learning technology.

I love all the new technology my school district has invested in. How wonderful to give students and teachers the opportunity to use the best of what's available now. Technology management seems to be taking a lot of my time and that's okay. Transitioning to a technology rich environment definitely involves a paradigm shift in education.  As someone who has taught for 20 years, I sometimes feel unprepared to make this shift.  Even though I have gone to a technology conference, viewed webinars and have tried to learn everything I can about the technology I must use while teaching, I still feel unsure and maybe even a little afraid of all that's out there.  Maybe you do too.

Part of the conference that I attended this summer focused on the role teachers will play in the lives of students who are, as coined by the keynote speaker Marc Prensky, digital natives.  He says that teachers have to be able to let students be the experts and that we don’t have to understand or even know how to use all the technology that they will be using.  This is the paradigm shift I wrote of in the previous paragraph.  I’m the teacher, I’m supposed to be the expert in the classroom.  Oh, I understand that it’s okay to say to students, “I don’t know.”  And, I have said that to students.  But, if I’m the expert on content, I probably should not say that very often. How often will I find myself saying that related to technology? I wish I knew the answer to that question.

I titled this blog post, “May I sharpen my pencil please.”  Do I want to go back to a time when there was no technology to aide in teaching?  I really don’t.  Honestly,  I’m not sure my arthritic fingers could write all that I want to share.  It’s so much easier to type my message.  It seems I must put aside my longing for the days when I could simply say, “Yes, you may go sharpen your pencil.”  

The link below is an interview of Marc Prensky. Enjoy!

Marc Prensky and the role of teachers 

One week in...How do you feel?

Most of the teachers in my area have had students back for one week.  By this point, a teacher can sort of size up the classroom dynamics and see what needs tweeking and the direction that will need to be followed for a successful year.  As a teacher was picking up her class from the library the other day she asked, "how did it go?"  My answer was,  "I learned lots of things today, so it was a good day."  As teachers, or in my case librarians, we must take opportunities to learn; and not just from a professional development standpoint.  We must be willing to let learning happen in the most basic of ways... one on one.   In order to make my classes better, I must use what happens and build on that for the next time.    I can't go back and change what didn't go well.  But, I can do my best to make sure that what I do in the future uses what I learned to move forward in the most positive manner possible.