Early Morning Workout: SOLSC #7

The alarm goes off, it's 5:00 a.m.
    Already, feels like I just went to bed.

 Wearily, I slip out of bed and tip-toe into the bathroom.
     Okay, I just need to open my eyes.


I change into my workout clothes, grab my bag, and head out the door.
     This isn't so bad,

The roads are quiet, the traffic is light.
     I should be there in 10 minutes.


I park, walk in and up the stairs.
     Wow, I like this.  There's barely anyone here.


I sign-in, put away my coat and bag.
     Where should I start first?


I hop on the treadmill, lift a few weights, and I'm done.
     I need some water.


I grab my coat and purse.
     What time is it?


Out the door I go.
     I should be home in 10 minutes.


It's 6:30 a.m. and I'm home again...ready to begin the rest of my day.
     Yay!

Wait Your Turn! (SOLSC 6 of 31)

My sister, Kathy is two years younger than myself, but in many ways she has been like an older sister to me.  I make this claim, because she often experiences things before I do.  There have been times when I've wanted to just say, "WAIT YOUR TURN!" 

When we were children, my family attended church faithfully.  We went to a church in our town where my uncle was the minister.  Everyone in my family had a job in the church.  My sister and I sang in the choir.  My father was a deacon, and my mother did all the things that needed to be done behind the scenes.  For several weeks, I had been trying to get up the nerve to get baptised.  One Sunday, as I was contemplating what to do, Kathy walked past me and headed to the alter.  I couldn't believe it!  Instead of saying, "Wait Your Turn!" I marched right down the aisle behind her.  I wasn't going to let my little sister get baptised before I did.  Needless to say, we were both baptised a few weeks later. 

Many years later, when we became young adults, Kathy announced that she was getting married.  My family liked the guy she had been dating, but even I didn't realize that things had gotten so serious, and in my opinion a bit too quickly.  Can you guess what I was thinking?  Well this time I said it to her directly, "WAIT YOUR TURN!"  "Don't you know the older sister is supposed to marry before the younger one does?" .... and her response was, "I can't wait for you."  What could I say to that.  She was right.  How could she wait for me?  I had no desire to marry in the near future and who knew when I would be ready.

Happily, Kathy did marry the following year.  A few months after that she relocated to another state because of her husband's job.  My sister and my best friend ended up living a thousand miles away.  A year or so later they had their first child, my niece.  What about me you ask?  It would be seven years later until I married.  By that time, Kathy would be pregnant with their second child, my nephew.  As it turns out, I would have my only daughter, a couple of years after that. 

Yes, Kathy is my sister, but she is also my friend.  She prayed with me when I finally decided I was ready to meet someone and get married.  She encouraged me when I thought I would never meet that special guy.  After I had my daughter, she advised me when I didn't no what to do.  Although she is my younger sister, she tends to experience milestones before I do.  I cherish her wisdom and her advice.  I no longer needed to say "Wait Your Turn!" but instead she would often reassure me that everything was going to be okay, by reminding me, "Now It's Your Turn."  I love Kathy.  She is my sister, she is my prayer partner, and she is my friend.

Drive-In Delight-Slice 2012: 5 of 31

I spent most of the weekend watching The Godfather Saga on cable.  I must have seen those movies a thousand times.  None the less, whenever I catch it on again, I'm captivated.  I love the story telling and the dialogue.  It's funny how people, including me, quote their favorite lines from the movie.  You have to be a Godfather buff to "get it" when a quote or line from the movie is used.  Some of my favorite lines are, "Going to the mattresses" and "He sleeps with the fishes" and of course, "I'll make him an offer he can't refuse".  That line always comes with a change in voice that's low and scratchy.

As a result of all of my "Godfather" watching, I started thinking about Drive-In movies.  When I was little, about 9 or 10 years old, my parents would take my younger sister and I to a Drive-In movie, on a Saturday evening.  Mom, would pop a container of popcorn.  No microwave stuff either, she popped it on top of the stove, in a large pot.  Oh, how I enjoyed watching those kernels explode, puffing up and leaving the lid slightly ajar.  We would load into the car with our pillows, popcorn, and favorite cans of pop.

I'm a huge movie buff.  I really love a good movie.  My favorite thing to do is read a great book and see it translated on the big screen.  Some of my favorites have been, Water For Elephants, The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo, and of course, The Tale of Despereaux.  I'm anxiously awaiting, The Hunger Games.  After reading all three in the series, I can hardly contain my excitement.

My love for books (and movies) are among the things that give me pleasure.  There is nothing like getting lost in a good book.  I love when I continue to think about the characters, long after finishing the book.  This is how I felt about each book in the Hunger Games series. After I finished the first book, I couldn't wait to get to the bookstore to purchase the next.  I read lots of children's books too.  One of my favorites to read aloud is The Tale of Despereaux.  I love changing my voice to fit the characters, like for Despereaux's mother, Antoinette, who is a French mouse.  I really get into the characters. I secretly want to be an actress when I grow up.  I know when my students are hooked on the books I'm reading aloud because, on library day, there's a mad rush to check-out a extra copies.  I want my students to find pleasure and joy in reading too...to find that one book that "Hooks" them to the point of no return.  That's the moment when you know you are a reader and there is nothing that will separate you from a good book.

I've already shared my favorite quotes from, The Godfather.  Below are some quotes from some famous people you may know:

• There is more treasure in books than in all the pirate's loot on Treasure Island. -Walt Disney
• Not all readers are leaders, but all leaders are readers. -Harry S. Truman
• A book is the most effective weapon against intolerance and ignorance. -Lyndon Baines Johnson
• The whole world opened up to me when I learned to read. -Mary McLeod Bethune
• The more you read, the more things you will know.  The more that you learn, the more places you'll go. -Dr. Seuss

Holding Hands

When my husband and I first met we held hands a lot.  When my daughter came along we both held her hands, with her in the middle of the two of us.  I still enjoy those moments when we're walking side by side and he slips his hand in mine.  So subtly, so gently, and so unexpectedly.

When my daughter was learning to walk we held her hands to support those first steps.  Later, we would hold her hands to reassure her and ourselves that she was safe.  Even though she's a teenager, we often hold hands in the car.  She IS after all, my Best Big Girl.  Believe me, you won't see this happen in public.  Just between you and me, I don't think she wants anyone to know. 

When I'm walking with my students in the hallway, a little hand often slips in mine.  This is usually the little one in the front of the line.  Then another decides they want in on the action, and sometimes another.  Once I had a whole group trying to hold my hand at one time.

When my first graders are learning to read, I hold their hands through the process and then I gently let go.  I let go to allow them to try the strategies on their own.  When I read aloud to my students, I'm holding their hands as I model what fluent reading sounds like.  Holding their hands through the reading process is not a crutch, it's a support.

When my students are working on their writing, they hold the hands of other writers through the mentor texts that we use to inspire our writing.  The writers of these texts model organizational choices, inspire ideas, and demonstrate craft moves that we attempt in our own writing.  These writers hold our hands through their books.  It's not a crutch, it's a support. 

Holding hands is such an important gesture.  It provides a scaffold for life and learning.  It's not a crutch, It's a support.  It's often done subtly, gently, and unexpectedly.  How many hands did you hold today?

Gum Balls and Candy Necklaces: Triggering Memories From Childhood

It looks like there's hundreds of them.  Pretty little prizes in cute, little, clear containers. I put in my quarter, and down one goes.  I open the slot and take out my prize.  I start ripping it open, I can hardly wait to see what's inside. I hope it's a ring, I hope, I hope, I hope.   Yes! It's a beautiful, shiny ring.  Just what I was hoping for.

Remember those gumball and prize machines from our childhood?  I remember asking my mom for quarters to get a prize and the thrill of finding  a ring inside of the tiny plastic container.  You would have thought those rings were valuable jewels. So funny... childhood memories.  I wrote this for my Facebook status this morning.  My phone was handy and my computer was at home.  My plan was to use this as the theme for my Slice Of Life Story.

A friend commented, "We won't talk about the candy rings and the candy necklaces..."

My response was, " I loved those candy necklaces!"

A second friend commented, "I remember wearing my candy necklace to bed and waking up with it stuck to me and having candy bead stains all around my neck!"

A third friend commented, "Those machines are how I convinced my daughter that she really should actually do her 3rd grade MEAP tests.  After 1 day of her sitting and not picking up a pencil for 45 minutes and then going home "sick", I told her I'd give her lots of quarters and  drive her around to her favorite "machines" to buy prizes if she actually did the rest of the MEAP tests.  She loved those valuable jewels too, Val!  I was grateful for those machines during her MEAP weeks  that year!"

My response was, "That would have motivated me too.  Ha ha.  We should get Chris (Chris is a teacher in our building who buys pencil machines loaded with holiday pencils that the kiddos love to purchase.) to buy some prize machines for the school.  Our students would love it!"

My daughter loves to hear stories about my childhood.  Sometimes new ones are difficult to conjure up.  Usually, something else triggers one of these stories.  She had asked me about the first boy I liked.  I told her he was in my 3rd grade classroom and had given me one of those rings you get from a gum ball machine.  That's all it took to trigger those childhood memories of those amazingly enticing machines.

I'm starting to get a sense of how difficult it is for my students to conjure up ideas for new stories.  Perhaps they need a trigger too.  We've been using our Topic Grids to effectively come up with new stories.  Yet, it's amazing how one story often triggers another, and another.  Providing students with the opportunity to share their stories with peers is a vital component of our writing community and one I will not take for granted.

Today's Highs and Lows of Teaching

Today I struggled with what to write about for my Slice of Life story.  As I reflected on the day, it occurred to me that I had two stand-out moments that I could write about.  I'm calling them "stand-out" moments because they are the two most memorable moments of my day.

The first moment occurred during math workshop.  I was working with a small group of students on the floor, and periodically checking-in on the other three rotation groups.  Suddenly I hear, "Mrs. Ruckes, you're a good teacher."  Wow! That really made my heart smile.  It was so unexpected, and it came out of nowhere.  It's moments like this that make teaching so wonderful.

The second moment wasn't as pleasant.  It involves making a phone call to a parent regarding a behavior issue.  This is my least favorite thing to do, but also very necessary.  In my building, we have a school wide behavior program.  Students are allowed three reminders in the morning, and three reminders in the afternoon.  With the fourth reminder, they are given a Student Learning Form which is sent home to inform parents of the behavior.  Once a student gets four Student Learning Forms, the teacher is required to make a phone call to the child's home to discuss the situation with the parents.  I dread making these calls.  I  struggle with the fact that too often a parent is called regarding negative behavior, yet are seldom called regarding positive behavior.  Needless to say, I made the call and stated the facts.  The parent was understanding and supportive, yet it's not an enjoyable thing to have to do.

So my Slice of Life is reflecting on Today's Highs and Lows.  I suppose it goes with the territory.  Teaching is a combination of lots of highs and a fair share of lows.

Today I...

Today I…

Today I hugged my teenage daughter before she left for school.

Today I prayed.

Today I laughed with colleagues.

Today I taught children.

Today I tried to make copies in a hurry- which never happens.

Today I was gifted with a bowl of homemade soup for lunch.

Today I was surprised with a kiss on the cheek by one of my first graders.

Today I danced with my kiddos for a brain break.

Today I listened to my daughter share her day.

Today I carried-out dinner without feeling guilty.

Today I hope to get to bed early.

Blessings!

Val