Sibling Assignment #171: Autumn in Kellogg: A Teacher's Magical Approach to Learning.

Sister Carol gave the sibling assignment for this week:  "Write about a memory or memories of the autumn season growing up in Kellogg, sometime before you graduated from Kellogg High School."

I will link my siblings' posts when completed.

I began my elementary school years at Silver King School. In first grade I was almost across the hall from my mother's classroom. She taught second grade. We attended school with her so we didn't have to walk a long ways to our neighborhood school. I suppose it was helpful also that we were there with her before and after school.

Before second grade we moved 516 W. Cameron in Kellogg and Mom decided we would go to the school in our neighborhood. We walked each day to Sunnyside School. From the first day of school there I have vivid memories, but today I am going to write about autumn in second grade. 

My teacher was Mrs. Meyer and I felt a bit special because my great-uncle's wife was her sister. I guess I thought we were related. She was bigger than life in her instruction, her manner, her talents , and her activities. It seems very unlikely that 2nd graders at Sunnyside School would ever be allowed to leave the classroom and walk off the playground during a school day. Not when Mrs. Meyer was your teacher. One glorious, sunny autumn afternoon we went on a walking field trip.

We were studying Neighborhoods in social studies and I can still remember to this day the blocks we strolled through as a well-mannered group and how she taught us how the even and odd house numbers worked. She also pointed out how you count by twos on addresses.  I guess she tied a bit of math in there also. From that day forward I always felt smug because I knew why the houses had certain numbers. I am sure we then learned about our own addresses.

The next learning adventure on this walking field trip was a science lesson. Mrs. Meyer taught us how to observe nature by studying leaves. The sidewalks that day were covered with leaves. She let us pick them up, throw them in the air, and study them. When we were done we brought our favorites back to the classroom. 

Then the teacher performed magic. She showed us how to lay the leaves on wax paper and preserve them between two sheets by having her iron them. I loved observing all those preserved leaves in the huge classroom window that autumn. More then fifty years later I can still remember the neighborhood we walked, what the house numbers meant, the smell of the leaves, the feel of the leaves, and how important I felt being able to walk with my class away from school for a learning experience.

Mrs. Meyer was a magical teacher every day I had her in class. Whether it was poetry she recited, reading exercises about Dick and Jane and their friends, or learning to do paper mache.... it was magical. I will never forget her.

Sibling Assignment #162: Creating Emmy Lou

Sister Carol gave the assignment this week: " Think back to something that happened when you were a student at Sunnyside Elementary, and why you think that incident has stuck in your memory after all of these years.". You can fine hers here and brother Bill's here soon.

I could write twenty sibling assignments on this topic, but today I will focus on art. Down in the basement at Sunnyside School is where the lunchroom was located. The smells from the homemade cooking rose up the steps and down the halls every morning. Those smells included homemake bread, cinnamon rolls, baked chicken, and other delicious meals the cooks were preparing.

 We had assigned seats in the lunchroom and we had to eat quietly. If we drank our milk too fast some teachers would put it in the window sill so could have it at the end of meal...I guess they didn't want us to get full on milk. If we didn't sit up straight one teacher came along and told us we would be hunchbacks or old ladies or something to that effect. If we hated something like peas, teachers made us eat the number of our age. If you were nine, you ate nine peas.. 

What I remember most about the lunchroom was the artwork. Each month a teacher was chosen to display student artwork on the walls. The best artwork done by the students was posted. I loved studying that student artwork while I sat up straight, didn't drink my milk too fast, and ate at least nine peas. I always wanted mine on display. The art project that always stuck in my mind was the project Mrs. Tregoning, the sixth grade teacher displayed. She had students create comic strip characters using drawing and watercolor. I was always intrigued by that project each year. Popeye, Olive Oyl, Lulu, and Charlie Brown looked so real. I wanted to try that project. 

I did get Mrs. Tregoning as a sixth grade teacher. I couldn't wait for the time we did that project. She had examples of all different comic characters for us to study. She demonstrated how to sketch them, then how to use watercolors with thin brushes, less water, and precision to create the character. 

I chose Emmy Lou because she drew me in. Now that I have researched her a bit more, I understand. She represented teenage angst at that time, before I knew what angst was. Her comic strip spoke to me. Her character was perfect for me to create. I will have to dig through my archives and Mom's archives to see if I still that piece of art. I just remember her long skinny legs, her determined stance, and her spunk.

During my sixth grade year I began to fell that I had artistic  talent.  I did this watercolor picture, I won a prize in an art contest doing pencil shading still life, I learned to appreciate reciting poetry, loved picture study, and other creative activites we did.  After thirty seven years of teaching, I still want my students to capture that same feeling as we do creative activities. Maybe we should do cartoon characters this week after six hours of required testing.

Breaking Hibernation

Winter break is coming to a close. My first week was spent cooking, talking, reading, movie watching, solitaire playing, crossword puzzle helping, lots of listening, napping, shopping, toasting, eating, and eating some more. I was at my mother's house in Kellogg celebrating Christmas with family.

My second week was spent in hibernation. I understand that whole mama bear thing in winter. I would love to wait to come out again in spring, but without the cubs and the extra bulk. My hibernation has included attempting to master Candy Crush Saga, reading, watching movies, taking down the Christmas and putting up the winter decor, writing, a bit of cleaning, organizing, and binge Law and Order watching. I enjoyed quiet time with Everett, the dogs, and the cats. I never left the house except to fill bird feeders, take photos, and do garden walks. Anne Morrow Lindbergh and I were on the same page on this one.

"Perhaps I am a bear, or some hibernating animal underneath, for the instinct to be half asleep all winter is so strong in me"  Anne Morrow Lindbergh

Being greeted by students tomorrow morning will break that hibernation just like that. I may need some extra coffee and a nap at lunchtime, but I will survive.

The Original Common Core: Old School

 A couple of weeks ago we sat in the beautiful gardens at the home of Joy P. The group included my mom, a retired school teacher, myself and Joy with lots of years of teaching experience between the two of us, and my sister that works with students in the Gear UP program.

We were talking about the changes happening in schools and education in general. The instruction of math came up because is seems like the Common Core standards are moving teachers and students to a different way of teaching and learning math. The conversation moved to the arts and  how elementary art and opportunities for students to be creative is moving to the back burner. Joy then commented that the way we learned and the way Mom taught was good teaching. She inquired, "What was wrong with that kind of teaching?"

Today people call it "old school". Is it so old school?As I reflected on our summer school session with students from grades two through nine, I thought about "old school " teaching vs. Common Core.
We taught our program using a one-room schoolhouse model from the 1900s. It was exciting seeing older students teaching younger students or assisting and reading to them. I think the younger students taught the older students a thing or two also.

Students were allowed freedom to read what they wanted. They found books they were excited about reading that "weren't allowed" sometimes because they were too hard or too easy. They discovered books on tape. They loved being read to. They were reminded how much they loved poetry. Teachers don't have time to fit some of these parts of reading in to instruction anymore. Old school? Perhaps, but it worked for us.

Students were motivated and without much reminding they ate their breakfast each day in the cafeteria and hustled to the library to enjoy reading. They were thrilled when the Book Mobile came and they could pick books. They sat intently listening to Sarah, the library lady read Grimms Fairy Tales to them. She connected them to the current animated movies they watch, but I still think they would have loved them.

Yes, we answered questions about reading and practiced math with time tests and games. We were aware of the Common Core standards and worked at weaving them into our teaching. Students excelled by reading, thinking, writing, and performing math tasks.

The days were even more enriching because we allowed them to be creative in art. They drew sketches, painted, created designs, painted, used yarn, colored with Sharpies, and found their muses. Our students just don't get enough opportunities to do this anymore.

When more than thirty students showed up each day during the hot summer, this illustrated to me that old school learning can work. I think of my mom and what made her such a successful teacher. She knew each student personally and cared about them inside and outside of the classroom. She pushed her students to excel and believed they could do it. She was patient and tried new ways of teaching when students didn't " get it".  She found things that students were interested in and brought those things into the classroom. She had art projects, a Valentine post office, guppies, and tadpoles. She read books and encourages them to read books. Old school? Perhaps.

Thanks Joy for reminding me that Old School can work. As I start another school year in a few weeks, I plan to revisit those things that make teaching successful. I think those important strategies will be in place before Common Core.

National Poetry Month #17: To Say Nothing But Thank You

 When I watched my students work hard to make Earth Day a success I say thank you. When I return home tired and sore and see my gardens awakening to spring I also say thank you. When I soak in the tub to remove the Earth Day covering of garbage smells I again say thank you. 

To Say Nothing But Thank You

by JEANNE LOHMANN

JEANNE LOHMANNhas published eight collections of poetry and two books of prose, including Dancing in the Kitchen: A Prose Collection (Fithian Press) and Calls from a Lighted House: Poems(Daniel & Daniel Publishers). At nearly eighty-six, she relishes walks through her Olympia, Washington, neighborhood and remains active in the local poetry community.

All day I try to say nothing but thank you, 
breathe the syllables in and out with every step I 
take through the rooms of my house and outside into 
a profusion of shaggy-headed dandelions in the garden
where the tulips’ black stamens shake in their crimson cups.
 
I am saying thank you, yes, to this burgeoning spring 
and to the cold wind of its changes. Gratitude comes easy
after a hot shower, when my loosened muscles work, 
when eyes and mind begin to clear and even unruly 
hair combs into place.
 
Dialogue with the invisible can go on every minute, 
and with surprising gaiety I am saying thank you as I 
remember who I am, a woman learning to praise 
something as small as dandelion petals floating on the
steaming surface of this bowl of vegetable soup, 
my happy, savoring tongue.

National Poetry Month #15: From Triumph to Grief

When a student overcomes obstacles we celebrate! We cheered J.S. on as she was escorted to graduation last spring by her beautiful child.  Today we cried for her. Today our school was filled with sadness. Yesterday she lost that beautiful child in a tragic car accident.  We pray for strength for her family, our school family, and especially for  J.S. 

"Though her smile is gone forever

And her hand we cannot touch

Still we had so many memories,

Of the one we loved so much,

Her memory is our keepsake,

With which we’ll never part;

God has her in His keeping,

We have her in our heart."
Anon.

Teacher, Student, Parent

We all read headlines about what is right and wrong with  education, hear sound bites about education, and are bombarded by people outside the field wondering what is happening in our classrooms today.

It is tough to be a teacher today. One reason it is tough is because high stakes testing take precedence in our classrooms and schools.

It is tough to be a student today because there is reading at home, homework, sports, family time, and other activities to squeeze into a time called life.

It is tough to be a parent today because when trying to work, provide, be there , help with homework, cheer on the sports, create family time, and add on other activites.. it is tough.

There are no clear answers. We all just keep plugging along doing the best we can. Teachers, students, and parents. 

Kindness and Compassion

Today a presenter from Rachel's Challenge came to visit our school. Rachel was the first student killed outside the school building at Columbine High School in 1999. Her challenge was explained to us today.
What I loved about the lessons learned today is that it is about moving toward the light, not focusing on the darkness. She felt that if all students and staff and community members of a school would move toward the light and focus on kindness and compassion we may start a chain reaction.

It made sense to me. Before I had even thought about Rachel's Challenge I had a sign up at the front of my room that says "Be Kind". It is a simple rule that carries a big message. Every day my responsibility is to demonstrate kindness and compassion. Some days it is hard. Some days I go overboard and show too much compassion. Other days kindness erupts from every corner of the classroom. The chain reaction is recognizing those acts of kindness. I try to model that, but I want my students to recognize it in others also. That will be part of our challenge.

Rachel admired and respected Martin Luther King Jr. One quote that was written in one of her journals and shared today was this: “Darkness cannot drive out darkness: only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate: only love can do that.” ― Martin Luther King Jr., A Testament of Hope: The Essential Writings and Speeches

These are words I will remember and repeat over and over.
Kindness, compassion, light, love.

Celebration Night!

I can't even begin to count all the students I have had in my career. Each group I have taught has had something unique they brought into my classroom. Tonight we honored our 8th grade class and I have so enjoyed teaching them for the last three years. Above are some images of the evening.

Faceless St. Patrick's Day Photos

As I captured the wearing of the green today with my camera, not too many students even wanted to show their faces. It made the pictures much more interesting as I focused on the wearing of the green.

In A Word: Busy

 There are days in my teaching life that I don't get much of a breather. The school day begins with early arriving students, a quick cup of coffee, admit slips from sick kids, an unexpected visitor, an accidental water spill, a lost notebook, important phone call, teaching, learning, papers piling on the desk, sad news about a former student, preparing kids for conferences, early release, quick lunch, then student-led conferences. Whew! At some point in the day my desk looked like this:

 I was glad we held the conferences in a classroom in the other building that was more organized than mine! Tomorrow we will have conferences again. I love the opportunity to visit with families about student progress.

Sibling Assignment #137: Friday Afternoon Art Projects at Sunnyside Elementary

I gave the sibling assignment this week. "Think of a Christmas memory tied to a school experience and why it has stayed with you." You will find Silver Valley Girl's memories of Chrsitmas programs here and Raymond Pert's will be posted when he finds time after making the Brett Favre scrapbook for his new grandson.

When I attended Sunnyside Elementary School in Kellogg teachers were known for the art projects they did in their classrooms. Whether the class projects were in the display case by the office, around the lunchroom, or hanging up in the classroom you had something to look forward to during December. I have mentioned many times that I was blessed with many talented and creative teachers in my elementary years. It was a tradition that we had art Friday afternoons after recess.  I am thinking teachers must have squeezed in more art time during the month of December.

Whether we sat for hours and rolled little balls out of crepe paper to make a tree, or used a paper punch to make white holes for a snowman... it was an art project that was memorable. Many of the ornaments we made are still part of the Christmas archives at Mom's house. If a creation made it home in one piece it was added to a collection of projects that grew as we moved through the grades. I also think Mom was inspired by our teachers' projects at Sunnyside and carried them to Silver King for her students to create.

The creation that always sticks in my mind is the paper mache ornament I made in Mrs. Meyer's room. I was in second grade. She led a project all by herself that involved blowing up balloons, using a hot plate to heat glue, cutting newspaper strips, tempera paint, glitter, and at least twenty-five second graders. She magically made it work. I don't remember anybody getting sent to Mr. Koepl's office for eating the hot paste, or for throwing glitter in another kid's eye.

This is what I do remember. With our own hands we covered a balloon with warm,wet newspaper strips that created a shell hard enough to make an ornament. They were big ornaments also. We were given the freedom to chose colors we wanted to use. We were also allowed to design our ornament how we wanted. Then we had the gift of glitter. Somehow also she helped us put yarn on it so it could hang on the tree.

The creativity of Mrs. Meyer has stayed with me. We carried that same project into Easter and made bunnies. She had us paint the United States flag, we cut out characters from are Scott Foresman basal and made a winter scene, and we tied poetry into art with our jars of canned goods made from paper and Handi Wrap.

I don't know how that classroom Christmas tree held all those ornaments, but each unique ornament was on that tree. She honored our creativity and uniqueness back in the day when art projects may have involved a pattern, some scissors, and twenty-five all looked alike.
I carried lessons learned in that second grade class to the many classrooms in my career. I never made paper mache ornaments, but I have worked to let the unique qualities of each student shine.

You can read a different slant on this same sibling assignment posted last year here.

November 15th: Today I Am Thankful For Math

 I have a secret that I have not told too many people in recent years. For a long time I didn't really understand math. I haven't had to teach it much the last fifteen years, so perhaps I got a bit rusty at understanding it also. I can balance my checkbook, I can tell you a discount if it is 50%, and I know the difference between the commutative and associative properties.
This school year I decided to relearn math.  I realized I remembered and knew more than I thought. I also realized that the students I am helping had many misconceptions about math that got in the way of learning. We undid some of those misconceptions together. I also found out that it can be fun. I just finished a math inservice today and feel like I can move into some harder material now. I am thankful that I am slowly overcoming my math phobia and feeling good about numbers! Does this mean algebra might make sense to me?

November 10th: Today I Am Thankful for Patriotism

 I got to sing "The Star Spangled Banner", see lots of red, white, and blue, hear children singing "You're a Grand Old Flag", and honor our veterans today at school. I feel a sense of patriotism when school employee veterans bring in the flag, when a local veteran that is 94 gets up to speak about World War 2, and when we play a slideshow of all the veterans in our community.

 A group of young students handed out roses to all the veterans. A few got to keep one for themselves.

 I felt proud to wear the red, white, and blue today.

A Math Problem of the Day

Here is my math problem for the day:
What do you get when you take one sick day, one day to catch up, five spirit days, one homecoming game, one powderpuff football game, one lost cell phone ( not mine), four "lost" assignments, six eager junior high football players, two uncooperative computers, and one exploding pen?

Twenty-three reasons why I am ready for a peaceful week-end.

Teacher or Learner?

 a view from my classroom door

Do I teach more or learn more in my profession? Each day as I learn more about my students and how they view the world I realize you never stop learning.  Even though I have students two or three years  I continue to learn more about them each year. I realize part of that is because I am their writing teacher and students often share more of their inner thoughts and events of life through writing.

Just today I was reminded how death has recently touched numerous students in ways I never realized. I  learned that one student that appears tough on the outside was a bit scared when we did some research on the beginnings of some popular urban legends today. I also learned that a new student I just met is a pow wow dancer and travels all over the northwest performing with her family in pow wows and has lots to teach me.
How much do I really teach? I often see myself more as a coach or guide than a teacher. I don't teach them to read words or write the alphabet. I do coach them as to how to think deeper and respond more fully. I also guide them in how to take risks. I also learn how to become a better reader and writer right along with them.
Yes, I am more of a learner than a teacher. Perhaps that is why I stay in teaching. I reread a short story today that I have probably taught six times and learned more. I am challenging myself to become a better mathematician this year to assist students that struggle with math in a learning lab. I struggle with math so I am working side by side with these students so we can think and problem solve together. That will be a huge learning curve for me during this school year. I was really nervous as I took the pre-assessment today along with my students. Perhaps it is a good idea for them to see us out of our comfort zone.

I will continue to explore this idea of teaching and learning this year while I am relearning how to do geometry!

Thank You Walt Whitman

 traveling north on Highway 395 at sunset

 "This is what you shall do: Love the earth and sun and the animals, despise riches, give alms to everyone that asks, stand up for the stupid and crazy, devote your income and labor to others, hate tyrants, argue not concerning God, have patience and indulgence toward the people, take off your hat to nothing known or unknown or to any man or number of men, go freely with powerful uneducated persons and with the young and with the mothers of families, read these leaves in the open air every season of every year of your life, re-examine all you have been told at school or church or in any book, dismiss whatever insults your own soul; and your very flesh shall be a great poem, and have the richest fluency not only in its words but in the silent lines of its lips and face and between the lashes of your eyes and in every motion and joint of your body." Walt Whitman

Leaves of Grass

Page preface, first edition

Published in 1855 

I have thought much about this quote over the summer.  I want it visible in order to reflect on it as I move toward another season of life. It will be reminder of what I shall attempt to do. 

I also think I will read Leaves of Grass.

Tire Woes, Dancing in Class, and the Bluebird of Happiness

Sometimes weeks can go by, life is uneventful, and I plod along counting my blessings. Other times there are so many events that the week is all a blur. As  I began to teach today I asked, "Is it really Friday?"

We had one of those weeks at our house. Strange noises from the back tires while I was in Spokane  last week didn't just mean the tires needed balancing. It involved a whole brake system. Whole brake systems mean more than a little change out of the pocket.

JEJ discovered the poison oak on our hillside is definitely alive and well. The cats carry the oil in their fur, the oil is in the smoke when burning brush on the hillside, and it stays on everything it touches. When people are sensitive to poison oak it makes for a miserable time. JEJ is one of those people. After doing many loads of wash, finding effective remedies, and learning everything I ever wanted to know about poison oak online I am just thankful I am not as sensitive to it. JEJ is on the mend.

The school week was not uneventful either. A student is struggling with her mother's diagnosis of cancer, we all said good-bye to a seventh grader that moved today, another girl had just written a beautiful tribute to her dog, but then arrived to class in tears trying to tell me she lost her beloved dog. It was a week full of tears, words of encouragement, pain, and sadness.

Then it snowed a few inches, the pond froze again,the Zags lost the championship game, I sequestered myself in my study for a day to work on my National Board portfolio due in nineteen days, I had my own health issues, and I had to remind students gummy bears are for eating, not throwing.

Then there were times I counted my blessings. I danced in front of my class with our departing student and didn't break a bone or sprain an ankle and have a video to prove it, I baked brownies, I listened to excited students reading comments received on our class blog. I enjoyed a blissful nap today, my dear cousin is out of the hospital and on the mend at home, my brother is finding more energy every day to catch up with his student work (which means he is getting stronger), and I saw a bluebird this morning as I stepped out of my car at school.

I think the rest of the week can only get better!

Tied to Rest

Our school district scheduled a mid-winter break day which is tomorrow. I have much to do the next three days, but this evening I have devoted to just resting. I read a magazine, checked email, will watch the Zags, and read a book before bed. It is such a treat to be able to rest. Ahhhhhh!

Tied to Red

Today is National Wear Red Day.  Each year, the "Go Red for Women" campaign asks people to don that color in support of heart health, especially for women.This is just one of many ways to support American Heart Month throughout February.

We lost a woman in our community a few years ago to an unexpected heart attack. It is a tradition that we encourage everyone in our school to wear red on this day in her honor.  It was beautiful to walk into the school building today and see so many people showing off bright red sweaters, shoes, a  scarf, or a Gonzaga sweatshirt.

In the  close-knit community where I teach a special event like this ties everyone together. Remember... during American Heart Month to love your heart!