Tag Archives: teachers live at school

The Second in the series: Awareness Encores

Posted on by
1

This post originally aired about one year ago. Since then, the magic number of prevalence has become 1 in 67, up from 1 in 88.

It’s April, again. Autism Awareness Month. Now that autism numbers are estimated at 1 in 88, shouldn’t we already be aware? Shouldn’t we as a society be moving on?

Moving on beyond awareness means learning about each other, neurotypical or on the autism spectrum. Even under the old numbers of 1 in 166, the estimates indicated so many children and adults with autism that “normal” needed redefinition.

Awareness, people, is not enough. Awareness is a low form of knowledge, and knowledge itself sits down low at the base of the learning pyramid. Awareness means knowing that the student sitting next to your child in class might have autism. Knowledge and understanding come around when that child responds to gestures of friendship, perhaps awkwardly, yet making a step toward joining the social peer group in some way.

Awareness? Awareness means slapping a multi-colored puzzle-design ribbon magnet on the back of the family minivan. Understanding means that when the minivan next to yours at the red light is moving back and forth propelled by the rocking of the teenager in the front seat, you notice but don’t judge. You might offer an understanding smile to the driver if the opportunity comes up. By refraining from negative comments, a parent provides a role model for the rest of the minivan passengers.

The “R” word is also still active, unfortunately. The word Retarded hasn’t been in active use for educational professionals in decades, but it still turns up in verbal put-downs. Awareness means knowing the label Retarded is unacceptable. Knowledge and comprehension would show that anyone with limitations in learning faces enough challenges without getting their diagnosis tossed around as a playground insult.

I wore my “R” Word t-shirt on the appropriate day. That’s my awareness activity. To bring it to a higher level, I vow to stop and comment when I hear the word used: stop and educate those who would otherwise redefine a person in narrow boxes.

Now it’s time to take Autism Awareness to a higher level, too.

 

Share and Enjoy !

Shares

Reviving Poetry

Posted on by
Reply

I added a few Book Spine Poems to A Mother’s Garden of Verses. I contributed a post to my corporate employer’s national blog. In that contribution, I created examples of my own and recruited a student to contribute another.

Meanwhile, I read posts and editorials and commentary about Autism Awareness month. Awareness Months bug me. The concept of raising awareness, of shouting “We are here! We are here!” just doesn’t cut it any more.

Instead of posting for Autism Awareness Month, I’ll stick to celebrating poetry.

Most of my examples were winter poems because I wrote them for a lesson I taught at the end of March. The month of March in Wisconsin managed to come in and go out like a lion this year with cold, colder, and coldest followed by snow mixed with rain and sleet. We were still wearing our fingerless gloves and pulling out our cubicle blankets on windy days. When the social media folks wondered why the sample poems were all about winter, I reminded them that we had just exited (and might still see signs) a long, long season.

The student had offered ideas in class, so I asked her to revisit that poem and complete it for me. My favorite part comes in the last two line. What do you think?

Enter a world full of everlasting snow

Freezing the water, when you try to row

Giant blizzards coming, though very rare

Hills of snow beyond compare

Ice falls in mounds at my feet

Jabbing at my body, the cold stings my cheek

Knowing how endless we may seek

Lies spring around the corner, waiting to astonish me?

May the snow melt soon, much to my glee

Nevermore, calls Mother Nature

O’er the hills and through the forest in her nurture

 

Me? I know she’s brilliant. Maybe we’ll see her work published some day.

Share and Enjoy !

Shares

Book Title Poetry

Posted on by
Reply

Call it Title Poems or call it Book Binding Poetry, and you’ll still have fun, whatever you call it. The result won’t be a run-on sentence like mine, either.

My dear darling husband and Public Radio junkie heard the concept on the show “Away With Words.” He walked over to my dresser and saw these three titles.

Almost Haiku

Almost Haiku!

You can guess what happened next. Some attempts were more, shall we say, poetic than others.

You'll have to insert the punctuation.

You’ll have to insert the punctuation.

Can you see the last one?

Can you see the last one? The light wasn’t the best.

 

My favorite so far

My favorite so far.

I have a sneaking suspicion this poetry genre will happen again in and around my shelves. Readers, which book binding poem strikes you today?

Share and Enjoy !

Shares

One Child A Year

Posted on by
3

This post and the philosophy it describes came to mind recently. It came up in the context of a team meeting, and then it came to mind again when I was choosing writing samples for my Amtrak Residency application. I settled on two posts: Death and Drama, the day the sirens stopped outside our office windows, and a post with a more positive outlook, One Child a Year. Here’s the post, updated slightly to have the correct number of years teaching. Enjoy.

Beginning teachers want to change the world, put their hearts into their work, matter to someone, somehow. I have come to realize that there are limits, big limits, to the good I do through my teaching. And when it comes down to changing a life, having an impact on a child’s future, a wise co-worker told me to expect to make a difference once a year. One child a year.
At first it sounds callous, minimizing. Realize, however, that we’re not talking about everyday teaching. I teach the entire class to read, to write, to handle long division. But a life-changing impact? An impact that changes the route students will take, puts them on a path to success — or not — doesn’t happen nearly as often as idealists think.
Now, in my nineteenth year of teaching, I wonder who those children are and were. I may never know. A few may touch base with me again. Most won’t or can’t. Many don’t even realize that a teacher, any teacher, turned them around and set them in the right direction.
The victim of bullying who learned to take control might join the list. Then there’s the slacker with a high IQ who earned his first D or F and finally learned study skills. The late bloomer who discovered her favorite book ever on my shelves and realized she loved to read may feel that connection as well. But those are the easy ones.
The child whose family was evicted from their apartment, the family I helped find services for the homeless, won’t ever know that I made a difference. Her parents are too busy keeping a roof over their heads and feeding the kids to think about teachers, and that’s exactly where their priorities belong. The depressed tweens that I referred for help? The counselor made a bigger difference than I did, and again that’s just as it should be. The student who struggled with math and finally, finally “got” fractions under my watch, may be the one child for that year. Or not. It might have been the quiet student, the one who sat in the back and listened intently, absorbing everything he heard, but never saying a word.
So I keep on plugging, planning for class, differentiating for those who need it, and hoping. I hope as well that maybe, just maybe, I made a difference for someone, somehow, each year.

Share and Enjoy !

Shares

It’s all political.

Posted on by
2

Last month, my school district sent a referendum to its voters. The voters responded by saying, “Yes! We’re willing to pay in a little bit more to support our schools.” I did my part by posting a sign.

A campaign sign is a visible, tangible symbol of support. Mine was more tangible than visible because we were hit with (yet another) snowstorm just before the election.

Really. There's a sign here.

Really. There’s a sign here.

When the snow melts enough, I’ll pull it out and reuse the stand somewhere in the garden. Reusing and repurposing political signs is just another way to make a statement: the statement that my convictions last beyond election day.

Share and Enjoy !

Shares

Week Six, and back to work!

Posted on by
1

Timing is everything, isn’t it? I planned my surgery for the last week in January to avoid the Super Bowl (wishful thinking on the part of this Packer fan) and to finish my first semester report cards before letting a long term sub take over, along with the reasoning of Get This Over With Now because I’m So Done With These Symptoms Already!

I managed to be in the hospital overnight during one of the coldest, most frigid stretches of the winter. In this case, I was lucky. I had as many blankets as I wanted, decent heat, a view (6th floor room!), and oatmeal for breakfast.  Unrelated as those might seem, all are important when the air outside is so crystal clear that boiling water tossed out a window will freeze in mid-air.

The real advantage of having surgery as the polar vortex arrived was the aspect of sick leave. My six weeks of medical leave landed me on a couch with blankets and fresh coffee while my dear darling coworkers were wrapped in sweaters, thick tights, blankets, and fingerless gloves just to survive the drafts that kept sneaking into the office environment. They sent me nice emails saying things like, “Stay home and stay warm!” “You planned this perfectly!” and “Don’t even consider coming back early!”

So I didn’t. Even though it crossed my mind during weeks Four and Five, I held onto my patience and stuck it out. Now it’s Week Six, the End of the Rest and Recovery Period, and I’m ready to go back and retake my cubicle.

I have questions, though. As usual, I have questions.

  • Are they still making coffee in the closet? Or do I need to bring my own?
  • Is my blanket still tucked in the cupboard with the science and social studies teachers’ manuals? Will I need it?
  • Should I take the stairs or ease into it by taking the elevator for a few days?
  • Will anyone bring donuts? Or bagels? To welcome me back, or maybe just because? Or will they expect me to bake something to celebrate my own return?
  • Do I already have enough lessons planned? I know I sketched out the semester’s units in January. Am I ready for Monday, or should I spend some of Friday looking over my calendar and files?
  • It’ll be mid March when I return. Will I need my fingerless gloves?

Readers, do you have advice for me?

Share and Enjoy !

Shares

Read Across America

Posted on by
3

Malala books are powerful

(as seen on Facebook)

In my life, I’d use a different turn of phrase. I’d most likely substitute tools for weapons. But in Malala’s life, the act of seeking an education was radical and law breaking. She saw books and learning as tools, but also as weapons: weapons to fight the good fight, tools to achieve great things.

The pen is mightier than the sword- and so is the desktop publisher. What remains is the reader. If the reader is taught to think and analyze, to seek understanding, then the book itself can be powerful.

 

Share and Enjoy !

Shares

Making the Book List – grades 7 and 8

Posted on by
3

I started reading suggested books for grades 7 and 8 feeling somewhat embarrassed at how many I hadn’t read, I attacked one I had on my Kindle: The Wonderful Wizard of Oz. The first of L. Frank Baum’s Wizard of Oz collection, it was an easy read. The language of the early 20th century (the book was published in 1900) might make today’s readers giggle a little and some weak readers might misunderstand parts of the plot. Those who grew up watching the 1939 movie might wonder why there are differences. Students lucky enough to know the stage show, which premiered on Broadway in 1902, will recognize parts of the show that do not show up in the book, such as the Tin Woodman’s back story.

I liked the book well enough. In the big picture, the Wizard’s collection has grown in ways Baum couldn’t have predicted. Judy Garland’s fame, the 1939 movie production in color, and a century later, the phenomenon of the book Wicked and its Broadway version.

Baum also has a note in the preface cautioning readers not to think too much while they read. He states that he wrote the book collection for entertainment, and entertainment only. Truth or little white lie, I don’t know. I remember a high school history teacher talking about symbolism in the collection, such as the Scarecrow representing the farmers and the Tin Man in the place of the Industrial Revolution.

I wish I knew a little more about the middle school English Language Arts curriculum. When I reviewed the freshman book list a few years ago, I had at least a general idea of a theme: “the concept of the individual as well as interpersonal relationships.” For grades 7 and 8, the administrators did not provide that information. They only provided a list of books.

Knowing the reasoning behind the choices makes a big difference. In fact, whether the Wizard was meant to entertain or to symbolize makes less of a difference than why students will read it. When I taught 6th grade, our goals included both learning to read and reading to learn. We didn’t have an overarching theme, but we had a goal: that our students would learn to read, think, analyze, compare, and understand at high levels. We chose books according to the students’ reading levels.

In conclusion, The Wonderful Wizard of Oz is a nice piece of Americana, a classic story that grew into much more. I enjoyed it. I’m keeping it on my Kindle and reading the other parts of L. Frank Baum’s original later – when I can get it away from Chuck’s fascination with Kindle’s word games.

 

Share and Enjoy !

Shares

Making the list – the book list

Posted on by
2

Two years ago – February of 2012, in fact – I posted this picture.

A new table has turned up in our hallway. I happened to be in the building for a different reason (I’m on sick leave recovering from surgery, remember?) so my chauffeur (Petunia) and I stopped by the table to pick up lists. I do have time for reading as I heal, so I might look into getting a few of the titles I haven’t yet read.

But wow. There are a lot of books that I haven’t read on the list . On the list for grades 7-8, I’ve read five out of the ten titles. In those for grade 9 and 10, I’ve read one, exactly one, out of the suggested sixteen. In fact, I read it and reviewed it and found it fascinating. Life as We Knew It by Susan Beth Pfeffer — here’s the review.

None of the previously listed books are here, so I’m guessing those already approved might remain part of the curriculum. I’ll start with those I know, and then see what I can find on Paperback Swap and at the downtown library.

The Wonderful Wizard of Oz is on my Kindle. Now I have motivation to read it.

Where the Red Fern Grows by Wilson Rawls is a classic piece of literature in many categories. I remember a gifted sixth grade reader asking to borrow it from my shelf, and then asking a friend to reminisce. “Remember when we were in third grade and Mrs. Sippi couldn’t finish reading this aloud because she cried?” Red Fern belongs on the “Read it with a box of tissues” shelf with Stone Fox and Walk Two Moons. The story is wonderful, and the setting is just foreign enough to my local kiddos that it will keep their attention.

The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins is a popular favorite. Personally, I might leave this out of books to read in class because so many young people are picking up the trilogy and seeing the movies.

Hoot by Carl Hiaasen and Holes by Louis Sachar have been “listed” for years. Both are excellent, and fairly easy reads for grades 7 and 8. Hoot shows a typical Hiaasen environmental bias and is a lot of fun to follow. I’ve read this aloud to fourth graders (who hadn’t seen the movie) and it was a hit. Holes? Brilliant. Louis Sachar braids present with historical and a hint of supernatural and somehow it all comes together seamlessly in the end. Fans of Holes might also enjoy Small Steps, also by Sachar, which follows two of the inmates from Holes into their life after Camp Green Lake. I read Small Steps to my 6th graders, most of whom knew Holes, and they took to it like shovels to snow. Um, poor analogy there, sorry.

Lemony Snicket’s opening salvo in his Series of Unfortunate Events also appears here, and my reaction is similar to The Hunger Games in that so many students have already read this and its many sequels. Lemony Snicket has a lot of fun with language, and that leads to a humorous telling of otherwise disastrous tales. The Bad Beginning is short and the plot is simple, leading to a quick and relatively easy read. Since this is the first in a lengthy series, it offers a chance to get readers interested in the characters and the story structure and read more of the same. That would be the strongest reason for me to assign The Bad Beginning for students to read.

Now I’ll dive into the rest of the list and see what I can swap, download, or check out for the remainder of my sick leave. Readers, let me know. Leave a comment. Have you read any of those I discussed or any of the rest of the list here?

Between Shades of Gray by Ruta Sepetys

The Boy in Striped Pajamas by John Boyne

The Boy on the Wooden Box by Leon Leyson

Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card

Four Perfect Pebbles: A Holocaust Story by Lila & Lazan Pearl and Marion Blumenthal

The Invention of Hugo Cabret by Brian Selznick

Stormbreaker by Anthony Horowitz

The Thief Lord by Cornelia Funke and Christian Birmingham

That’s the list for grades 7 & 8. I’ll share the rest with you later.

Share and Enjoy !

Shares

And the weather!

Posted on by
1

As seen on social media –

  • Free snowman, some assembly required, you haul…..
  • Beginning to think we may not have mail service today.
  • Snowing like crazy and whiteout conditions! Already have 6 inches and more to come!
  • It’s coming down and supposed to get heavier as the day goes on. I am currently doing the snow day happy dance.
  • Snow is on the way. When do we get out of this pattern?
  • Snow scatter is pretty.

Are you getting the idea yet? I hear you thinking: Daisy, you live in NE Wisconsin. You are a fan of the NFL’s venue nicknamed the Frozen Tundra. Why would you post crazy snowstorm highlights?

9 inches and falling

 

kitchen window

 

Folks, this is not my yard. And this is not my truck, either.

truck frontI give in. Much of the land is experiencing wild weather, and much of that stormy weather is in areas that aren’t used to being pounded and pummeled like we are in the upper Midwest. They get snow, but not piles like ours. Here’s the weather map. Please think warm thoughts and send good vibes toward my friends in Kansas.

KS Weather Map

 

 

Share and Enjoy !

Shares