Thankful - Day 25

Today was the last day of our holiday break; back to school tomorrow.
I spent lots of time with my family, got together with some good friends, and truly relaxed.
While I did, I frequently checked in on email to see which students were reaching out for help with their essays. Every time I flip open my laptop, I end up checking in on Facebook to play my move in Words with Friends and see what interesting ideas are being posted. All this week, I have read post after post of thankfulness and descriptions of joyful family gatherings.

I am thankful that so many people around me are blessed with love. What a wonderful world it is.

Thankful - Day 23 & 24

I am thankful for holiday traditions.

For the past few years, the girls and Greg have taken some time the day after Thanksgiving to begin putting up the outdoor Christmas lights. They look forward to it, despite the headache of testing the lights, finding strings that only half light, and making two trips to the local hardware store for more. They make a great team.


Saturday, the girls and I have tickets to an area performance of the Nutcracker. For the past few years, we have attended the Commonwealth Ballet's production, presented at an area high school.

We have lots of family traditions, both with Greg's family and mine, but these two days belong to just our little family. The two days after Thanksgiving are relaxing for us, with lots of time for reading, conversation, and leftovers. I am thankful for these days.

Thankful - Day 22

Thanksgiving Day. My belly is full, as is my heart.

We added a new tradition to our holiday this year. Since Thea plays with the marching band, the four of us attended the town's Thanksgiving Day football game this morning. Westford lost by one point, but the band played well.

As we have done just about every year since we got married, we went to Greg's parents house for dinner, then to my family's house for dessert. But this year, I had no parents to visit. 

I've been sad all week, thinking about my Mom. I made the mistake of writing some memories in my office before class yesterday and had to run to the ladies room to hide my tears. So, I've been bracing myself for a tough day; and it was tough. But, I made it to the end of the day with no tears. Perhaps it was the distraction of the football game, or my in-laws delicious meal, or the comfort of being with my sisters later in the day; perhaps it was just the loving touch of my worried husband - I don't know what held away my tears. But, I'm glad for it. 

I know to welcome tears when they need to be shed, but I appreciated the relative calm today. I know the tears will return. I miss my parents, and this first round of holidays without Mom is not easy. But, remembering her love, with and without tears, is an important part of my holiday.

I was blessed with wonderful parents. They were the perfect parents for me; I am always thankful for that. Today, as I leaned against my husband and felt his concerned gaze fall upon me, I couldn't help but think of the amazing love my parents had for each other. I am so thankful for the model of love they gave me. They loved each other completely, and I was blessed to have been a witness to it. 

Happy Thanksgiving.

Thankful - Day 21

Today I am thankful for students who surprise.

This semester, there was one student who frustrated me fairly consistently. I referred to him at home as Mr. Annoy. His gave off an incredibly arrogant attitude, as if the class were completely beneath him and a waste of his time. He often missed assignments, and a few times, when he did one, he added comments that made it clear he did not like what he was doing. He waited to hand in a major essay until the very last day before he would get a zero grade.

He was mostly annoying because he is so bright. This kid has writing skills and an analytical mind. He needed little guidance to dig deep into content, though we're still working on why you would want to analyze an author's writing strategy choices. He's smart, and he has it in him to do really creative work. He's the sort of person you would want to have lengthy conversation with.

During our writing conference today, I braced myself for push back about my comments. But, in a surprise move, he agreed and elaborated on each comment I made; and when he didn't, explained his choices carefully and listened as I offered tips on how to make his points more clear.  He even thanked me for catching some comma mistakes.

I left the office for the day with a humble reminder that, though they look grown up, my college freshmen are still young and finding their way. I'm thankful that we had this time for a one to one conference so he could remind me that people are complex, and sometimes come across publicly in ways that do not reflect their true selves. This conference gave a more clear picture into how his writing mind works and how much thought he really puts into assignments. I'm thankful that he took the time to have this conversation with me to guide me through the gruff exterior to his intellectual best self.

Thankful - Day 20

I am thankful to be planning for 2nd grade writers.

My shift back to elementary school is now less than a month away. And, while I just spent a satisfying day reviewing essays with college students, I have spent much of this week mentally planning to work with elementary students. Readers' Workshop, writers' workshop, Social Studies . . . I can't wait.

Today, on my reading list is the outline of how my district is implementing the Common Core standards in English Language Arts. After that, I'll review the WIDA materials for my English Language Learners. Since I left this school district, only a year and a half ago, there have been a lot of curriculum changes so I'll have a lot of catch up work to do. I'm looking forward to all of it.

But truthfully, what excites me the most is Writers' Workshop. I love to write, and I love to work with young writers. Later today I'm taking my Staples coupon to the store to purchase notebooks for my students. I want to make sure they have a place to draft and make lists and explore ideas. I'll probably pick up a few colored pens as well, because sometimes all the writing inspiration you need is purple ink. 

I got to peek into what will be my classroom for only a few minutes last week, but immediately I began planning. Given the unfortunate turnover of temporary teachers and substitutes they have been through this year, there is no clear design to the room; there is too much of what looks like "teacher space" and not enough that clearly belongs to the students. The teachers who have been in there are doing the best that they can - and doing, I should say, some amazing work with these kids - but, since no one has felt that this was their room, they haven't made changes. I'm looking forward to working with the kids to identify the design we need to make the room the best possible learning space.

To that end, I have been collecting. So far, I have two canvas bags perfect for holding special book collections, my mother's old bingo bag that will house craft supplies, rolls of adding machine tape that once belonged to my sister, and a dozen magnifying glasses saved from my old classroom. Once I know what we need and want for our room, I'll put the call out to my family and friends who have always filled my classrooms with treasures. I am blessed with a generous and crafty family, many of whom inherited our grandmother's tendency to hold on to things because "you may find a use for them." 

I am thankful to be planning for these 2nd grade writers.

What are you doing today? Join the Two Writing Teachers Slice of Life challenge every Tuesday.

Thankful - Day 19

I smiled after almost every one of the student conferences on Monday. When I asked at the start what they think they need to focus on during the revision process, almost everyone wanted to discuss the same issues I had listed in my notes.
I read a few dozen essays over the weekend. This assignment asks students to analyze and synthesize a variety of sources on a topic. It's their biggest challenge of the semester and everyone was struggling with some aspect of the assignment - locating suitable sources, interpreting difficult texts, comparing opposing viewpoints, incorporating another's ideas into their own writing, and so on. I asked them to re-read their own work over the weekend, and come to the conference ready to discuss their revision plans. I love to see their metacognition at work. Most students read their essays with a critical eye and thought about ways to improve, or at least were able to ask for direct advice.
I am grateful for a generation of thoughtful learners, despite what we always say about "kids these days".

Thankful - Day 18

Today, simply thankful to be at the end of the pile of student essays.

My wrist is so sore from writing comments that I cannot write more than that.

Lesson in procrastination well learned (until next time).