SUMMER FUN

It's finally here.  Summer.  I'm free as a bird for a precious cluster of weeks and I don't want to waste a minute.

First, I tackled the to-do list, starting with the windows inside and out, upstairs and down.  My husband and I chuckled over our choice of bonding time as we shouted and pantomimed directions through the brightening panes.  Somehow he thought he could get by without the aids (hearing) that day, sort of like one of my students showing up for a field trip without the meds.  I forgave him when the sunshine practically burned a hole in my spotless windows much like horseradish kickstarts a stuffy nose.

Next it was the floors.  Down on all fours Cinderella style until the original colors began to emerge.  Out out, "darn" spots, I commanded. Lady MacBeth couldn't have washed away the sins of the year any better, and Anne Lamott would have been proud of my tile-by-tile technique which reaped some fertile plot points and colorful character ideas as my mind drifted way beyond the floor.

Don't get me wrong.  My idea of summer doesn't translate into a self-imposed hard-labor camp.  It's just that teachers and writers both tend to let things really pile up during school and writing projects, and it makes us feel extremely efficient, well-organized and productive to stir up a bunch of dust once a year (maybe twice) before settling into the fun stuff.

And what about that fun stuff?  First I took one giant leap for woman-kind (at least for this kind of woman) and invested in a smart phone.  I began to experience the length and breadth of my leap when I ran into one of my sixth-grade students at the phone store who escorted me around the displays with sales tips that put the customer service rep (and me) to shame.  This is supposed to be fun?  I secretly vowed to go home and cram like a freshman before finals lest my smart phone outsmarts me.

But the fun event that tops all so far this summer is the resurrection of two nostalgic 3-speed bikes:  my husband's 1966 Rudge and my 1972 Raleigh.  This culminates several years of debate about whether or not anyone could even work on such antiques, and assuming they could, how cost-effective it would be compared to buying new bikes.  It turns out the process was much easier and less expensive than buying a smart phone, and the learning curve just a matter of practice and review.

                                                                 1973 - Queens, NY

                                                                    2011 - Charlotte, NC

Now if I can just stay upright and use the GPS on my Droid to find my way home, I can truly say I am at least as smart as a sixth grader!

NOSE IN A BOOK

I've not had a spare minute to blog the past month because I've had my nose in a book.  The one I just finished writing, that is.  It's my second novel and I've been on a self-imposed fast track, staying up late and getting up early and all of this during the last frantic six weeks of the school year.  Why?  It has to do with trying to get pregnant.  No, wait.  I'd better back up and explain.

We've all probably heard about women who try and try to get pregnant and eventually give up.  They then try adoption, and within a short period of time, they finally get pregnant.  Suddenly they have more of a blessing than they bargained for, but that's a whole other story.  Well, my first novel has been out there seven months now, trying and trying to get published to no avail.  That's with the help of a beloved agent doing her level best to push it.  So I decided to throw all my energy into cranking out a second book, with the hopes that that will somehow magically increase my chances of getting the first one published, or maybe even both. 

I know the metaphor is a stretch, but I can't help it.  Writing books makes you weird like that.

So I decided to give myself a day off, get completely away from it, do something normal for a change.  Here's how it went.

An authentic voice told me to go shopping because the mood in our fridge was empty.  That set  up an inner conflict due to the absence of a theme for dinner.  After a dialogue with my husband I was able to weave several strands together, nicely layered, that set the tone for the entire week.  The plot thickened when the setting on our street became snarled with traffic, and two shallow characters held us all up with an outer conflict, commonly called a fender bender.  My journey ended with a climax when the grocery clerk overcharged me and I had to query her about the validity of her facts.  When I said her numbers weren't right for my list, she lost it, and I fled the scene.  My synopsis of the afternoon didn't hold my husband's interest.

Maybe I should just get started on that third book........

POETRY IN MOTION

Our first grandson is due any day now, and I can't help but reminisce about his father, our son, and speculate about who this precious little boy will become in life. 

The memories.  I still chuckle when I think of some of the antics of Thomas and his twin brother, Jonathan.  Sometimes, quite honestly, I'm embarrassed to admit how they got the best of me, or how inept I was at parenting.  The day one of the parishioners (they are PK's) shook her head in distress and asked if they were "normal."  Another day, waiting my turn in line at the bank, the teller shuffled the requested cash and muttered tersely, "do they ever shut up?"

In spite of my parenting foibles, I am proud to announce how wonderfully they have turned out.  And ironically, they both put those talkative tendencies to great use.  Tom is an inspiring and eloquent Bible teacher, and Jon is a prolific and creative composer and songwriter.

Now bring on my first grandson!  As my husband always said during the most boisterous times, "be glad they are not dull." 

In honor of poetry month, and the inventive possibilities that lead to an adventurous and inquisitive life, I offer this poem I wrote some years back for my science students.

BLAST OFF

Mrs. Quiggly, how fast will my rocket soar---?

Not now, Robert, we're on our way out the door.

            Line up, class, with rockets in hand

            Launch day is here, it will surely be grand.

Mrs. Quiggly, if I choose an elliptical path---?

Robert, when you interrupt, you inspire my wrath.

            Now class, listen carefully and follow directions

            Take just a minute for final inspections.

Mrs. Quiggly, do you think Newton made a mistake---?

Robert, Robert, what on earth will it take?

            Gantry over here and fuel over there

            In a matter of minutes, we'll conquer the air.

Mrs. Quiggly, I've got it, I figured it out---

Robert, that’s enough, without a doubt.

HAVE A SEAT BY THAT TREE

AND WAIT QUIETLY FOR ME.

            Now then, class, to the launch pad

            If you've not paid attention, you'll wish you had.

VAROOOOOOOOOOOOM   CABOOOOOOOOOOOOOM

YEAOOOOOOOOOOOOOW   CAPOOOOOOOOOOOOOW

            Mrs. Quiggly, Mrs. Quiggly, come qui, qui, quickly

            Robert's upside down in the tree,

            and he's looking awfully funny to me.

MAKING GOOD CHOICES

One of the favorite catch phrases of any good teacher or parent is "make the right choice." It's always a triumphant moment when our children or students make a wise decision independently, but more often than not, a teachable moment or a gentle review of the options enhances the learning experience. 

Co-authors Leah Butler and Trudy Peters have joined forces to launch a series of picture books with the decision-making acumen of six through ten-year-olds in mind.  Leah and Trudy, former magazine publishers, didn't let moving to separate cities stop them from their shared goal of writing for children.  They have co-founded Spencers Mill Press with the ambitious goal of creating a 26-book series much like a set of encyclopedias, with one book for each letter of the alphabet.  Each story deals with a different moral, ethical, or personal dilemma that children in this age group face on a daily basis. 

 

To date, two books have been completed; Andre's Choice: In a Land of Opportunity, and Owen's Choice: The Night of the Halloween Vandals.  With the help of beautiful illustrations and a firefly named T. Winkie O'Toole, the protagonists are thrown into ethical dilemmas such as vandalism, bullying, cheating, changing schools and telling the truth.  Through an interactive format the reader has the opportunity to choose how the book will end and consider the consequences of that choice through a set of follow-up questions.

In an era when too many books blur the borders between right and wrong, who can argue against teaching the right choice at an early age? 

Leah spends time reading in various schools around Charlotte, and can be contacted through their website http://spencersmillpress.com/aboutus.htm.  

 

SERIOUS ABOUT A DOG NAMED SIRIUS

My four sixth-grade reading comprehension classes recently read Joan Hiatt Harlow's historical novel, Star in the Storm, set in Newfoundland in 1912.

A slobbery, lovable "Newfie" dog named Sirius stole the show and the hearts of my students when he became the key player in the rescue of over 100 people from a sinking steamer off the coast of Newfoundland.  The rescue is based on a real event that happened not long after the Titanic sank in nearby waters.  The author did a grand job of keeping the reader on the edge of his seat, wondering if Sirius's owners would find a way around a new law that would ban all non-sheepherding dogs from the island. Twelve-year-old Maggie did everything in her power to hide her dog, unaware that it was her father's bold attempt to break away from greedy Howard Rand's fishing monopoly that drove the campaign against Sirius.  When Rand's own daughter and grandson were among the rescued, he used his influence to assure Sirius a safe haven with the family and community who loved him.

After the students finished reading the book and discussing it and its colloquial vocabulary at length, each class was assigned the task of collaborating to write three or four chapters in play form.  This involved brainstorming the main characters, events, setting, dialogue and action for an assigned section of the book.  It was not as easy as it looked, especially considering that we have a shortage of girls in our school.  

As the students began reading their parts in a readers theatre format, they created simple props and stage design.  By sheer coincidence, we were scheduled to visit a very serious play about Anne Frank this same week, which ironically had a few actors playing more than one part with very simple stage design.  It was exactly what we needed to see to tie up the loose ends on our production.

After a week of rehearsing separately, the four classes came together for the first and only performance, and it went off without a hitch!  Thank you, Joan Hiatt Harlow, for writing such an endearing story, and thank you, students, for putting such heart and soul into a fun learning experience.

SCIENTIFIC NOTATIONS

A couple of good friends publish a newsletter full of everything literary, and this week they really struck a chord with me when they featured an array of appealing science books for kids.  As a sixth grade science teacher, I know my students could easily get engrossed in Sylvia Branzei's book Grossology.  I mean, who wouldn't want to know that the Latin word for a zit actually means "fat maggot" because early doctors thought zits were really homes for maggots under the skin?  And I can't think of a single student who wouldn't eat up (maybe that's not the right phraseology) gobs of scientific trivia about everyday secretions, scabs, smells, barfs, burps, and well, there's more......

If you are a parent or teacher looking for ways to spark scientific interest, check out Carol Baldwin's and Joyce Hostetter's web site, Talking Story. 

Along the way, I've done my part to write some pretty bad poetry (I'll try anything once) to liven things up in my science classes.  One year I gave the following poem to the students at the beginning of the year without the science terms underlined, and if they could underline and define them all by the end of the year (and catch the play on words), they would have completed "the circuit" to everybody's satisfaction! 

 SCIENTIFIC  NOTATIONS

Welcome to Ms. Quiggly's class

Where "pun" ishment is for you,

Only if you fail to see

The scientific point of view.

Now here's the year, at a glance

A "sci" nopsis if you will.

Pull in your chair, take in some air,

Science IS a thrill.

First of  all, don't cell yourself short,

(There's  not a fungus among us).

Careful now, don't protist too much

Lest all the monerans run for the bus.

We deal in classified information here

But the rules of the kingdom are free.

Always line up in single phylum  and

In this class, keep your eyes on me.

In order to make this year go well

And be part of the family,

You don't have to be a gen(i)us

Just a species, like you and me.

During the year, without a doubt

You'll find out what the matter is.

Clearly, these will be lessons of substance

Worth  atomic weight on the quiz.

We'll get reactions both physical and "com"ical;

Test the law of "conversation"of mass.

I'll learn your properties, as you will mine,

You'll know the state of your fate, fast.

You'll find an element of surprise (or 111 of them)

Laid out on the table for free.

Periodically, the atmosphere will be positively charged

With nary an electron cloud to see.

Ionically, you'll win some and lose some

But  I'll  not compound your troubles.

Instead, we'll find a formula for success

A solution, saturated with results, (or maybe bubbles).

Within the space of a few weeks

Your knowledge will increase astronomically.

You'll meet red giants and white dwarfs

An expert of  the universe you'll be.

.

You'll  get a big bang out of this class

Your pulsar just might get too quick.

No falling into black holes, if you please

Avoid becoming a lunar-tic.

Develop good study habitats.

You'll stay off my endangered species list.

I prey that you will find your niche

Of course, in this community, I insist.

I promise to conduct an electrifying class

Well insulated from all static distractions.

You must, however, do watt-ever you can

To complete the circuit to my satisfaction.

FROM CHAOS TO CALM

I recently attended a wonderful lecture at the Rankin Institute, the outreach component of The Fletcher School where I teach.  Granted it was a school night and had the importance of attendance not been impressed upon the faculty, I may have passed.  But five minutes into Behavioral Consultant Sharon Weiss's presentation on her book, Chaos to Calm:  Structuring for Success at Home, I found myself wishing I'd had access to such advice in the middle of the terrible two's with our twin boys many years ago.

While Ms. Weiss's message was geared towards parents of children with learning disabilities and/or ADHD, she leveled the playing field with this golden nugget of advice for all parents.  "If you treat the ADHD child as if he does not have ADHD, it can be a disaster.  If you treat the child who does not have ADHD as if he had ADHD, it can be nothing but beneficial."

With that said, she went on to emphasize the obvious, but perhaps not the easiest points for parents to absorb or accept

• behavior in a child starts with you (the parent)
• focus on the here and now, realizing that progress is an incremental process
• if your child truly does have a disability, keep a disability perspective, recognizing that the behavior is often part of the disability
• be proactive:  teach to a behavior before you need it 
• provide increased structure and predictability

Concerning structure and predictability, Ms. Weiss advised parents (or teachers) to ask themselves three important questions:  1)what do I want the child to do instead of what he's doing 2) how can I put it in a visual format so he doesn't rely on my telling him what to do, and 3) what will make it worth his while? I loved the practical application of checklists, schedules, timers, calendars, clocks, and charts.  She gave wonderful examples of students, most likely the older ones, learning how to negotiate "earned" minutes towards a reward, a favorite being time with anything that has a screen these days.  To be most effective, the child should have input on the designated reinforcer and it should not be available at any other time or for any other reason than to reinforce the behavior.

Whether we are parents or teachers of children with or without learning disabilities, we've probably all obstructed a child's transformation at one time or another by taking on the child's responsibility, setting unrealistic expectations, being inconsistent,  or relying on punishment or too many rules.  These pitfalls lead to power struggles, and power struggles are no-win situations.

As a teacher and a parent, I know that success at home usually leads to success at school and a healthy and happy child.  I strongly recommend this book to any parent or teacher who is experiencing more chaos than calm in his or her current setting.