My Encounter With a Raccoon (SOL Day 16)

This morning my alarm woke me at 5:00 a.m.  It was time to get up and head out to the gym.  Only having had 4 hours of sleep, I was a bit startled by the beeping.  I've been trying to adjust to the time change, but my attempts have not been successful.   Every night I vow to get to bed earlier, but my body doesn't want to cooperate.  As sleepy as I was I got dressed, grabbed my keys and water bottle, then headed out the door.  As I drove down the street the usual cautiousness started to settle in.

It was really dark, and I drove slowly as my headlights illuminated the road ahead of me.  As I approached a wooded area near the end of my street, I began to look to my left and my right in case a deer or two decided to dash out of the woods and across the road.  Nervously, I proceeded without a deer in sight.  But, then I saw it…
a rather robust raccoon!  I was so startled, I screamed.  I was only seconds away from running the little guy over.  As it continued to scurry across the road, I let out a sigh of relief.  No deer in sight, but now I'm going to add pesky, robust raccoons to my lists of things I don't want to run over...or run into.

After that, I wasn't at all sleepy anymore.

I See… (SOL Day 15)

Photo was taken today at Bell Isle State Park

I see remnants of winter's ice and snow.
I see rays of sun shimmering across the river.
I see tall majestic trees along winding paths.
I see newly paved roads wide and smooth.
I see unobstructed views of the Detroit River.
I see Canadian commerce on the other side.
I see the Ambassador Bridge Looming in the distance.
I see dog walkers, hand holders, and seagull feeders.
I see summer pleasures poised for their return.

I'm holding my breath until summer.

The above photo is of Belle Isle in Detroit, Michigan.  It's an Island within the city with views of the Detroit River and Canada.  In previous years it's endured a lot of wear and tear and was in many ways neglected.  However, it was recently taken over by the state and is now a State Park.  Belle Isle State Park has many amenities including a beach, zoo, green houses, gardens, aquarium, golf course, picnic areas, a giant slide, and tennis courts to name a few.  For the past two years it has undergone a transformation of sorts as it's restored to its former glory.

Saturdays, Sushi and Writing (SOL Day 14)

On Saturdays I love spending time with my daughter, Rachel.  Today we went to one of or favorite spots for lunch to enjoy a little sushi.  After we settled in at one of the tables, Rachel looks and me and asks, "So what's happening in Valerie's world?"  I love how considerate Rachel is.  She didn't start the conversation by telling me what was on her mind or asking me for a bit of advice.  She wanted to hear about what her mom had been up to this week.

Life gets super busy.  Even though Rachel is in college, she still lives at home and commutes to a local University.  Our paths cross briefly during the week.  She spends a lot of time on campus and when she's home she's usually studying.  I'm equally busy, spending a lot of time at school either doing things in my classroom or attending various after school meetings.

In response to Rachel's question, I immediately told her about the writing samples that I had looked over this morning and how I'm a much better writing teacher than I was earlier in my teaching career.  It's the subject that I consider to be the most difficult and time consuming to teach.  I always feel like I wish I were two people during writing time in my classroom.  However, I've worked hard to improve my teaching practices around writing.  I work with a range of writers in my first grade classroom and working with early writers can be quite challenging.

One of the things that I love about the Slice of Life Story Challenge is that it gives me an appreciation for what I put my students through.  It causes me to reflect on my teaching practices in writing.  I'm reminded of the following things:

• Writers need writing ideas and inspiration.
• Sometimes there are dry writing days and some days the writing flows like a river.
• Writers need time to think.  When the writer is not putting pen (or pencil) to paper it doesn't mean  they are being defiant, they may simply be in the prewriting stage.
• When writers have an audience it motivates them to write and may also improve their craft.
• Writers need a writing space.  Sometime a change of venue may be needed.

Rachel, sat there listening intently as I talked about my early writers.  She is used to my students being the topic of most of my conversations.  The sushi has come and our conversations turns to food and things in Rachel's world.  I love this time we spend together.  Quality time with my 20 year old daughter, who just happens to be…a writer.  Rachel is majoring in Creative Writing with a minor in Graphic Design.

Just For You! (SOL 13)

I remember when I was in my late twenties and starting to get very depressed.  I was at that age where you start to wonder if you'll ever get married.  I think this is a girl thing because I've known other women who have felt the same way.  Yet, when it comes to boys, I don't think they feel the same pressure.  I was praying and complaining to God about how I would ever meet someone.  After all, I worked in a company that was predominantly run by females.  Males in this company were few and far between.  (I was a Director at a vocational school before I started teaching.)  I wasn't a party girl who frequented clubs on the weekends.  I wasn't in school or taking classes at the time so that was not an option in terms of somewhere I might have met someone.  I did attend church regularly, but, my church is a huge church with over 2,000 members at the time.  Meeting someone at church simply wasn't a possibility.

One evening, I was interviewing candidates for a teaching position that was available at the school.  I was notified that interviewee was waiting in the lobby and completing his application.  I decided to leave my office to pick up some materials before the interview began.  To my surprise, the person waiting was a very attractive man around my age.  Instantly, I became nervous.  I hurried back to my office to catch my breath.  How could I interview this person and maintain my composure?  I took a deep breath, and went back to the lobby to escort the candidate back to my office for the interview.  The interview went well, and I got through it without a problem.  I think I was more nervous than he was but I don't think he noticed.

That evening as I drove home.  The lord spoke to my spirit.  This is what I heard him say.  I CAN SEND ANYONE, FROM ANYWHERE, JUST FOR YOU.

That was all I needed to hear.  God had not forgotten about me.  He was working on my behalf.  All I had to do was be patient and rest in the knowledge that he really does answer prayers.

If you would like to read the story about how I met my husband, you can read it here.  By the way, it wasn't the guy I interviewed.  I did hire him to teach a class at the school though.  He was qualified and he turned out to be a really good teacher.  That fact that he was nice-looking was just a perk.

Making Your Own Choice Isn't Always Easy

Today's slice is a free verse poem that speaks to making your own choices and not allowing others to be the boss of you.

Stickers

Stuck on cheeks, foreheads, and hands.

     Today's color is blue.

A small recognition for making your own choice... 

     even if its not a popular one.

Lots of cheering on one side of the room, 

from those reveling in an unnecessary victory.

     Four disappointed faces on the opposite side of the room, 

Wondering if they made the best choice.

     Sixteen votes for Chester by Melanie Watt.

     Four votes for the Invisible Boy by Trudy Ludwig.

One huge compliment from the teacher.

It's not easy having an opinion that's not popular.

Even opinions about books.

Thank you

for making

your own

Choice.

I give my first grade students cougar paw stickers when they do an act of kindness, make good choices, stay focused on their activity when other are not, and for compliments.  It's a small token but my first graders love them.  We are not allowed to give out candy because of our nutrition policy.  Our school mascot is a cougar and that's why I use paw print stickers.  I have them in various colors; blue, yellow, orange, purple, and rainbow.  These Cougar Paws represent more than a piece of candy ever could.

The Case of the Missing Brownie

We solved a mystery today in my first grade classroom.  For the last few weeks, items have gone missing from some of my students' lunch boxes.  Every day I was made aware of a new incident.  This morning another teacher was subbing in my classroom while I attended an IEP meeting for one of my students.  I returned from my meeting during our snack and story time only to witness two students arguing over a brownie.  

It seems that one of my first graders brought a brownie in their lunch.  This child's mom had cut the brownie in half so that she could enjoy half of the brownie during snack time and the other half at lunch.  This student showed the brownie to one of her first grade friends and now it was missing.  When I questioned the other child she denied it although I could see traces of chocolate around her mouth.  She insisted that she had not taken the brownie and was only eating her own snack.  "What did you have for your snack?" I questioned.  "I don't know what it was but it was something brown." she whispered reluctantly.  This was really starting to sound suspicious.  "You ate something brown but you don't know what it was?" I repeated back.  "Well, I think I'll call your mom and ask her about the "brown" thing she packed for your snack." I said sternly.  (If it was not something brown I would have the proof I needed.)

I took this child aside to privately discuss the situation further.  First she asked if she could go to the bathroom, I think this was avoidance, but I allowed her to do so.  When she returned, I told her that it was important to tell the truth.  I went on to say that I would find out the truth sooner or later but It would be better if she told me right now.  She paused for and moment...  

"Yes, I took it." she sobbed.  

I'm thankful that she finally admitted what she had done.  It took a lot of investigating, questioning, and observing to get to the truth.  I wonder if she went to the bathroom to get up the nerve to admit what she had done?  Did she think I would believe her story without investigating?  What motivated her to finally tell the truth?  Was it because I mentioned calling her mom to ask what snack she had prepared for her?  

Our brownie biter did apologize to the other child.  I also called her mom to share the situation with her.  I'm not sure how this played out when she got home today, but I'm sure she learned an important lesson.

Does your school have a character development program?  Do you use teachable moments for character development in your classroom?  Maybe its one or the other, or a bit of both.

I'm Missing

Today I was thinking about all the things and people I miss.

I'm missing...
Ice cream cones and frozen yogurt on a warm summer's night.  I know I could go to Cold Stone Creamery and grab a cone but I don't enjoy them as much on cold nights.

I'm missing...
Wearing flip flops and sandals with freshly polished toes.  Yes, I still get pedicures in the winter but I don't get to show them off!

I'm missing...
My little sister who lives in Texas.  It's been 2 years since our last face-to-face.  We talk on the phone all the time but we love spending time together.  We have so much fun staying up late and sharing memories, dancing and acting silly, cooking together, and shopping, shopping, and more shopping.

I'm missing...
My father, who passed away during my second year of college.  I would love to give him a hug and have a conversation with him.  He never got to meet my husband and our daughter and I'm sure he would love them both.

I'm missing...
My older brother, who passed away much too young for his years.  He was fun to spend time with and he never got around to teaching me to play chess.

I'm missing...
Running on the trail and surprising my daughter at how well I can keep up with her.  Those early morning in the gym are really paying off!  P.S.  I'm a warm weather girl...I Don't Run When It's Cold Out.

I am NOT missing...
Having a cold or the flu.  I haven't been sick all winter!  Last winter I spent the holidays in bed with the flu.  I guess that flu shot really did the trick this year.

Who or What are you missing today?