What I'm Reading

Peter Pan- I'm only on the third or fourth chapter, but that book is deliciously messed up. It is absolutely not a children's book. It is a young adult book. It's one of the books my students are reading for their classics units and I am having a blast talking about it with them. The highlight of my week was when one of my0 students read aloud to me the scene where Tink encourages the Lost Boys to shoot Wendy. I'll include that excerpt at the end of this post. I also love the part where Peter thinks a kiss is a thimble. "Peter thimbled her..." I fell over laughing, literally, when another of my students read it to me!

I'm also reading an awesome teaching book. Only read this if you are a reading/writing teacher (of any grade). It is a fabulous framework for the teaching of reading and writing in a nurturing way. It's called The Complete 4 for Literacy because author Pam Allyn advocates a balance of focus on genre, conventions, process, and strategy. I have the privilege of being on a team that's writing units for my district, as we are switching from the model where the whole class reads one book together to a model where the kids are reading books (or any text) at their just right level. We are using this book, which gives great advice for how to write units of study with very focused objectives but lots of time for kids to read and write at their independent level. I love that it builds in time for conferencing with students as well as small group instruction. It's just a good, healthy model.

I am also reading Mary Poppins, which, like Peter Pan, is also not really a young kid's book! Mary Poppins is actually super mean- the opposite of the sweet character Julie Andrews plays in the movie. "I hate her!" one of my students said yesterday as we looked at a part where she threatens the kids, or tells them to be quiet, or mocks them.... which she does constantly! I absolutely love how mean she is, but my students don't see how it's funny. Oh well. She's like, viciously mean and shows the kids no kindness. It's insane.

A couple of New York Times articles that I've read over the last couple of weeks have stuck with me.

One I won't link to because it's about the Cheshire CT triple murder case of a woman and her two daughters, and it is very, very disturbing. Don't read about it. It's awful. The dad survived the attack and recently one of the killers was sentenced to die. The article I found interesting was about how the jury, after they delivered the verdict, asked the judge if they could speak privately to the father. They all cried and hugged him. Many other lines in the article stuck with me. One jury member told the reporter that although he did not believe in the death penalty, he felt that if any case necessitated one, this was it, and so he applied the law. Another one said she wished she could take away the pain and fear that the daughters had to go through in their last hours. They were very human comments, not clinical legal ones. These jurors felt how I would feel, and we don't always get that inside window on a trial.
The article really showed how the people seemed to connect and care for each other both during and after the trial. After the verdict, the judge thanked the jury for their service and said they'd seen things that no person should ever have to see. He didn't have to say that, and that to me shows a degree of care. The reporter ended the article with the comment that clearly amazed him the most. When the jurors met with the dad and family, the grandma told the jury she was sorry they'd had to put them through that. This reporter was clearly struck by the people in this case, and his article got that across to me.

On a lighter note, I enjoyed the article about the Chilean miner who ran the New York City marathon after being stuck underground for 10 weeks. I'll link to that.

Here's the part from Chapter 5 of Peter Pan where Tink encourages the boys to shoot Wendy. The dialogue is ridiculous. I have always loved the absurd.

Now Nibs rose from the ground, and the others thought that his staring eyes still saw the wolves. But it was not wolves he saw.

"I have seen a wonderfuller thing," he cried, as they gathered round him eagerly. "A great white bird. It is flying this way."

"What kind of a bird, do you think?"

"I don't know," Nibs said, awestruck, "but it looks so weary, and as it flies it moans, `Poor Wendy,'"

"Poor Wendy?"

"I remember," said Slightly instantly, "there are birds called Wendies."

"See, it comes!" cried Curly, pointing to Wendy in the heavens.

Wendy was now almost overhead, and they could hear her plaintive cry. But more distinct came the shrill voice of Tinker Bell. The jealous fairy had now cast off all disguise of friendship, and was darting at her victim from every direction, pinching savagely each time she touched.

"Hullo, Tink," cried the wondering boys.

Tink's reply rang out: "Peter wants you to shoot the Wendy."

It was not in their nature to question when Peter ordered. "Let us do what Peter wishes!" cried the simple boys. "Quick, bows and arrows!"

All but Tootles popped down their trees. He had a bow and arrow with him, and Tink noted it, and rubbed her little hands.

"Quick, Tootles, quick," she screamed. "Peter will be so pleased."

Tootles excitedly fitted the arrow to his bow. "Out of the way, Tink," he shouted, and then he fired, and Wendy fluttered to the ground with an arrow in her breast.

And the chapter ends right there. Hilarious! Insane! How on earth is this a children's book???

Here's a link to Chapter 6, and you can read the whole book online if you want. Click here to read full entry.

My Age

Me to kid who has bossed a classmate around: "Do not boss him around. When you're 35 like me, then you can tell an 11 year old what to do."

Murmurs of shock and horror flow throughout the room. "Thirty-five? Oh my gosh."

A few of them murmur kindly, "You don't look thirty-five," and then, because I'm totally ignoring their comments and moving on, one of my most helpful students shouts, "You don't look your age!" just so he can make sure I'm not offended.

I brush my hair back from my face and say, "I know."

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Candy Life

My sister showed me that by early August, stores already carry those candy pumpkins!
I'm somewhat horrified and offended that sugar is rushing the end of summer, but I do appreciate the cuteness of candy that relates to the seasons. It feels, y'know, very cyclical and holidayish and traditionish. I suppose we could mark the passing of seasons with something a little healthier like apple or pumpkin pie, but I guess this is the easier option.
Now, when do my pumpkin spice lattes come out?


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Parents, Sports Crushes

I just got this cryptic email from my Dad:

tonite on abc at 9pm shaq and dale jr

I dunno, sounds pretty interesting. If you've been following this blog for a while, you know that Dale Earnhardt Jr is one of my celebrity crushes.

It's my parents 42nd wedding anniversary today! Happy Anniversary, Mom and Dad!

Here's info on the Shaq/Dale show. Click here to read full entry.

World's Fanciest Playground?

I guess this new-fangled playground opened at South Street Seaport (NYC) today.

Listen to this:
The playground has been five years in the making, a result of tons of research in progressive learning theory and child-development research, as well as $7.4 million in financing. In smaller, portable versions, it has been tested and tweaked after trial tours all over the city.
Instead of monkey bars and jungle gyms, there are fountains with canals of cascading water that can be dammed in infinite ways, or transformed into a network of rivers. There is an engaging set of lifts and pulleys. Play is proctored and interaction fostered by a staff of city workers trained as “play associates.”

I'm hoping to go check the playground out as soon as possible- rather, as soon as Q's Aunt Katie, who lives and works in the city, has some time to see us! Click here to read full entry.

My Blue and Yellow Nursery!

Well, it's not MINE, exactly, but I'd love a nursery like this if I were having a girl. I have posted before about yellow nurseries, so to find a bright one like I was imagining sort of took my breath away.


This is a nursery for a boy since they didn't know what they were having. I love that I could easily (well, sorta easily) just change Q's nursery to look like this since we already have an aqua blue wall in the room. If I don't have any more kids, or a baby girl, I'll just have to make an office for myself that looks like this!

Thanks to Ohdeedoh for the awesome nursery pics.

See my decor tab to see other nurseries I've written about. Really, is anything cuter than a nursery? Gosh, I should probably start thinking about Q's "big boy room" or whatever. I'm dying to get him out of the crib and into a regular bed, but we shall see.

Hmmm that white crib looks so nice. I sort of wish we'd gotten one, but I do think Q's natural crib looks good with our orange and blue theme. I'll try to get a decent pic of it soon. Click here to read full entry.

Saying Things Once

A couple months ago, I realized I was repeating my requests to my baby at least two times and often three. I know repetition is important for learning, but I was repeating things I knew he understood just because he wasn't doing them right away. (Like, "Go get your sippy cup." I figured he was going to start expecting everything repeated, so I started trying to only say things TWICE. This allowed me to be more patient and wait longer after my first request to see if he was going to complete it, then if not, I'd repeat it again. I tell you, it makes me feel more sane.

("Sit down in the chair!" is a popular request around here. Or at the beach, which is where the photo above was taken, hence the wicker, wood paneling, and cooler.)

I think that if I weren't a teacher, I might not be aware of this. Any teacher will tell you how maddening it is to give a couple directions, then say, "OK, any questions? Great, go ahead and begin!" and then have three kids say, "Wait, what do we do?" Of course, you have to check that you yourself have made directions clear, but if you know you have, then what you have is a case of "I've learned I don't have to listen carefully, because I know you'll do the work for me by repeating it for me personally later."

I noticed this a lot when I came back from my maternity leave. I very quickly taught them I was not going to repeat myself. I often had to explicitly say, "I am not going to repeat myself. I am only saying this once, so listen up." I would see them perk up and focus, which told me that indeed, they hadn't been focused before. (Hey, I understand- sometimes I'd a really bad listener.) After I had their attention, I'd give the directions, keeping it as simple and clear as possible, then ask if there were any questions, then answer the questions, and tell the kids to begin... and there would often be a kid who'd then come up to me and ask what to do. I used my judgment on whether or not the kid needed it repeated. If it was a student who I knew was confused, I'd re-explain. If it was a kid who I knew was just insecure that he or she was doing things right, I'd say, "No, you know what to do." Or I'd say, "Go ask someone at your table," because that way they'd know it was OK to ask for help, but that I wasn't going to re-explain, because I'd just said I wasn't going to re-explain. (You might think I was sending conflicting messages by only repeating it for certain kids, but the students understand that learners are different, and I explain from the very beginning of the year that we all have strengths and weaknesses as learners.)

Anyway, what I'm saying is, it's important to keep track of how you talk to kids. You want to be clear, but you also don't want to be a sucker and do all the work for them.

I also think it's kind of a life lesson: "Oh, you are confused? Well, you better figure it out yourself, whether that means trying to do it to the best of what you remember of the directions, or to ask for help wherever you can." But not from the person who just said, "Do not ask me."

If it looks like the students it stressed or upset, I'll help them- I'm not mean.

Oh, and in case you were wondering, if my kid doesn't do what I want him to do after the second request, I'll say it a different way, then just do it myself, or do it with him- whatever makes the most sense for the situation. Click here to read full entry.

Montessori Blog

I just discovered a great blog: MariaMontessori.com.

I have been interested in Montessori ever since my friend Laura sent me the Michael Olaf Montessori materials catalogue, which you can easily view online (I'll post link later-Q sleeping on me right now- see photo).

So much of the Montessori ideas make sense: a floor bed, a low shelf for toys, teaching life skills, letting kids choose what to learn, etc. The blog I just found via Mighty Marce is a quick way to learn about some Montessori ideas.

Try as I might to incorporate Montessori ideas into my public school classroom, it's really hard without spending a ton of time thinking about how. Actually, it's pretty Montessori of me to let my students choose their writing topics, and choose their own books, but... much of what I do is NOT Montessori. It's going to take time to research, and I just do not have tons of time for that while working and having a toddler.

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Imagination

In a few hours I get to meet my new nephews and I have some funny images of what I could do. My mom made a foam board welcome poster, so one image has me holding the poster and throwing handfuls of confetti in the air when my sister comes out of the international arrivals area. The other image has me crashing through the poster, breaking it in half, and running to her. I will, of course, do neither of those things, because they would scare six month old twins, but I like to imagine stuff.


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Reminder to Husband

This is what I want for my birthday!!!

I suppose I should check more carefully what it's made of... since I prefer the rubbery grips as opposed to smooth... but c'mon, this is adorable! Click here to read full entry.