SOL 7: A letter to my Oldest Son.

This post is part of the 9th Annual Slice of Life Writing Challenge.  Thanks to Two Writing Teachers for their hospitality and support!  Join Us!

Dear Big A,

11 years?!?!  How did that happen?  I love having a front row seat to your life right now.

You are an awesome big brother.  You know that Li'l T adores you, and you are really good at not taking advantage of that.  (Even on the days I know you want to...)

I love being able to see you at school everyday.  So does my class.  Thanks for letting them hug you.  :)

Speaking of school, I love watching you learn and grow!  Life skills for 5th/6th graders?  Yes please.  Thanks for making this lunch for us the other day.  I'm looking forward to having it for dinner this week.  Most of all, I'm looking forward to you branching out and trying some things in the kitchen.

The other day when you gave me a book recommendation, I thought my heart was going to explode.  I've been waiting for that for a couple of years now!  I love being able to share books with you and to see what you are reading.  The February Reading Frenzy!?!?!  One of the best things to happen to our family.  Let's read all the minutes together!  

You have such a reflective spirit about basketball.  Our family loves to watch, re-watch and watch the game again.  I love your good sportsmanship and your willingness to learn the game.  "I'm your biggest fan!"  (Thanks for smiling every time I yelled that at a basketball game.)

You are an authentic kid of faith.  When your teacher told me you set a friend straight about gender expectations regarding "boy colors" and "girl colors", again, I thought my heart was going to explode!  We were made to love, and you do that with an open heart.  

I love you bunches.  I'm so proud to be your Mama.  

Joy!

Big A's Mama.  (Kendra)

SOL 6: Big Fat Scary Running Goals

This post is part of the 9th Annual Slice of Life Writing Challenge.  Thanks to Two Writing Teachers for their hospitality and support!  Join Us!





Last night, I was soaking in all the basketball.  (Panthers, Tar Heels, Jayhawks, Hawkeyes...all the teams...) As I was scrolling through Twitter, I ran across this post from Nancy Barlow, @TheTeacherGeek.

Now, I'm thinking about my Running Juju.  (See Day 1's post...)

So without further delay, here are my Big Fat Scary Running Goals for the rest of the year.

1.  Start Running.  Move Everyday.  Come back from the time off.

2.  Because I'm reliant on muscle memory, I'm toying with the idea of running Dam to Dam, a local race in June.  We'll be out of school, and I would have time to finish training and taper without also managing the end of a school year.  It has hills, and I cried the first time I ran it.  I'm tossing around if I even run this half for time, or if I just run it to finish it and get back in the saddle again.  (I sang that as I typed it.)

3.  Last year my son encouraged us all to organize a 5K through our church called the Sock Scamper.  We collected socks and donated them a homeless shelter in town that reserves part of its space for homeless veterans, something my now 11 year old is passionate about advocating for.  We are on pace to having this again this year.

4.  Run in the summer.  Cross train too.  Get stronger.  Don't get tired.  Get tired.  Keep going.

5.  Our great city of Des Moines runs (pun intended) an awesome half and full marathon in the fall.  Run this.  Run this for time?  One step further:  Could I get strong enough this summer to run this in under 2:00?

6. http://www.fitnesssports.com/November_races/LivHistFarms/lhf_index.html  In the fall, this is a must to celebrate all the running!  Off roading?  Yes please.  Homemade beef stew at the end?  Of course.  Frolicking and shenanigans?  Indeed.   Sometimes it is a beautiful fall morning, this past year there was 8 inches of snow.  (We didn't make this past year.  11 year old making a traveling basketball debut.  I would have ran in the 8 inches of snow.)

Okay @TheTeacherGeek, you inspired me to put those goals out there.
(Frantically puts on shoes and runs away from computer...)

What do you think friends?  Maybe it's not running, but is there anything you are mapping out right now as goals?

Joy!
Kendra

SOL 5: And A Celebration Too! 5 (or 6) Thoughts on Teaching my Own Son.

This post is part of the 9th Annual Slice of Life Writing Challenge.  Thanks to Two Writing Teachers for their hospitality and support!  Join Us!



Also Friends, You can celebrate too!  Link up at www.ruthayres.com.  I thank Ruth for sharing her space with us. 



This year, you know, because of the new job, there has been one piece of the puzzle that I just wasn't prepared for.

I'm now charged with educating my own son.  There was only 1 section of first grade where I was at.  It was part of the deal if we were all going to trek across town.

Before we get to the good stuff, I need to share how much this terrified me all summer long.  I never set out in my educational career to educate my own sons.  I adore being a mom of two boys.  (The oldest will get his own celebration tomorrow...hang tight.)  I also adore being able to compartmentalize and walk away from things from time to time.  There are no compartments anymore when it comes to my youngest son, we'll call him Li'l T.

If I'm being completely honest, there are days I want to hold up in my bedroom with all the coffee/snacks/beer and not be around any of what he needs.  It can be overwhelming to be raising him up in all aspects of his life right now.  Sometimes, I don't want to follow up at home because it's been so hard at school.  I don't want to follow up with his backpack at home, because I've already done that.  When he is sassy at school, it stirs up embarrassment and frustration as a staff member.  Yet, at those moments, as hi mom, sometimes I want to scoop him right up because I know exactly what he is feeling.

But like everything else this year, it's been so hard and so awesome in ways I couldn't imagine.  So let's get to that good stuff shall we?

1.  I love watching him write.  He writes about everything!  Let's take a look, shall we?

He's not afraid to take risks, he will try writing about anything.  He will stick with a story for days.  Yesterday, he started writing a story about a hippo and a rhino who are friends.  He will take risks, keep going, and loves to back and fancy up his writing when it's appropriate.  He asks to write when he thinks it might be a choice.  I never would have seen this about him had I not had a front row seat.  

2.  He's a reader too.  What I've loved being able to do is watch him transition from reading at school to reading at home.  Having that Teacher-Parent-Child relationship has made the conversation about reading authentic.  I always worried, because he wasn't picking up books at home.  I knew he was learning to read, and that was fine.  But this year, we've been able to explore libraries more authentically together.  We can automatically connect to school and home and home and school.  (He LOVES to read about animals by the way...)  

3.  The conversation about school has definitely changed at home.  When adventures like a visiting artist occur, I have the blessing of being able to have a front row seat and getting to see his reaction to the awesome work that is being planned every day.  

4.  

Sometimes, at the end of the day, we just crash out together.  I'm learning about those compartments again, learning how to just snuggle up on the couch and let the day go.  

5.    

Did I mention he loves animals?  When our friend Willie comes to visit, he can hardly contain himself.  I think Willie likes him too.  

6.  There's not a picture to really show this next thought, but being in a Faith-Based School, it's been amazing to watch him become bold in what he believes.  I hope to get there someday.  

Joy!

Kendra  

SOL: Day 4. Currently

This post is part of the 9th Annual Slice of Life Writing Challenge.  Thanks to Two Writing Teachers for their hospitality and support!  Join Us!




What a week.  Did anyone see this on Instagram from Doug the Pug?  He speaks some truth here.

For my Friday post, I offer a Currently Status:  (Thank you Pinterest Blogging ideas...)

Currently I'm:

Listening:  To the clock tick in the dining room.
Eating:  Like a college student?  Tonight I had mini breakfast pizzas, chips, and ice cream for dinner.  I'm sorry pant size...
Drinking:  A&W Root Beer.  Just a lot of cravings tonight.  Followed by Chamomile tea to settle it all down.
Wearing:  Fuzzy Pink Cheetah pajama pants and a hoodie sweater with polka dot slippers.  Thank you elastic.
Feeling:  A little tired/worn out?  (But I'm not hungry anymore!) :)  Hopeful.  It's my favorite part of March.  The hope that spring brings.
Weather:  Blah.  31 and Overcast.  At least it is dry where I'm at.
Wanting:  A day to go at my own pace.
Needing:  A day to go at my own pace.
Thinking:  Running, writing, Fish Fry
Enjoying:  Flexibility in my work, time along to write.

What are you up to on this Late Thursday/Early Friday?

Joy!
Kendra

SOL Day 3: What about the Teacher Talk and Following the Children?

This post is the second in the 9th Annual Slice of Life Writing Challenge.  Thanks to Two Writing Teachers for their hospitality and support!  Join Us!

Yesterday I wrote about my reading corner a bit.  It began a thought process on how I'm following and observing children this year.  

To share a bit more about building my literacy block from yesterday, when it comes to implementation, I refer back to resources such as:

These two books sit on my desk quite a bit.  I pull them out often to read and refer to ideas.  

In the past years, I've really worked hard to build independence in that first 21 days of school.  Some of my reasoning was based on pacing guides that were required.  Some of my reasoning was based on reading about a sense of urgency and getting kids into reading as quickly as I could.  

Then I joined a school where I could follow the children.  And I took a moment at the beginning of the year to simply observe closely.  I decided to take more than 21 days to set up a literacy block.  I decided not to rush, but to work purposefully.  Because without giving the classroom story completely away, this is what my students needed me to do.

My biggest take away?  Waiting to teach kids about "Just Right Books" until the students were ready was an okay move.  If the students aren't ready for the meta-cognitive speak, it might not be effective for them.    

The story goes like this:  I am letting kids fill their book boxes with any books they wish from my reading corner.  At the beginning of the year, I wasn't monitoring the level of text in book boxes as much.  I was still closely observing and teaching small groups with appropriate text daily.  I was nervous.  But I was allowing them to linger in text.  I was offering guided reading books to reread, settling my mind that they had some accessible text.  I know it's important.  But I also wanted them to love reading!  All along kids were learning to read, yet it was joyful.  Relaxed.  Purposeful.  

And then it happened.  Right before Thanksgiving.  Right in the middle of "Read to Self."

"Mrs. Limback!  I can read this book!"  (And she was right.)

That very same morning, I sat down with my little class and we talked about what Little One had noticed.  That she was reading.  We looked through a basket of books.  Students picked out ones that they could read.  They sorted books out that were too difficult to access at that moment.  From that moment on, the kids were serious about finding books they could read.  

Will I do the same thing next year?  I don't know.  It will depend on the children.  

But I'm so glad I waited this year.  

How do you use teacher talk/meta-cognitive work in the classroom?  

Joy!

Kendra

SOL Day 2: Strong Readers

This post is the second in the 9th Annual Slice of Life Writing Challenge.  Thanks to Two Writing Teachers for their hospitality and support!  Join Us!

I'm in a new position this year.  I'm sure I've said that in every blog post I've written since August.  There will be a lot of reflection this month into what I'm doing in this new classroom.  Some of it is falling into places.  Other days, I absolutely feel like a first year teacher all over again.  

One of the areas that I'm watching take off is independent reading and book selection. It's one of the parts of my day I feel really confident about.   It is one of the most joyous times of day, when we are immersed in reading.  My students see themselves as readers, and they know that this is the most important work they do all day.  They love a great read aloud.  They love Elephant and Piggie.  They love Fly Guy.  They want to read all the books on puppies.  They want to read every book you read to them on their own.  They are readers.  

As I was setting up a new classroom library, I reflected on the roots of my beliefs on teaching reading.  So I went here first:

Lucy reflects on book levels and how they work in classrooms.  (pages 121-124 if you are interested.)  This section of the book was a blessing in how I approach leveled readers with my first graders.  "Find books that make you feel like a strong reader."  This has been our mantra in the classroom all year.  And it's working.  There are observations, informal and formal data to show this.  Even the most reluctant of readers are beginning to seek out "strong reader" books.  The kids will follow me around the room and ask, "Mrs. Limback!  Do you have any strong reader books for me?"  We don't ever talk about reading levels.  We don't need to.  

I was fortunate enough to capture a few images of what this looks like in my classroom as we sort, trade, discuss, and hold onto lots of books!  

This shot of Elephant and Piggie shows that we are looking at a wide variety of books.  You can see the other book boxes, yes?  This is a social activity.  Kids are recommending books to each other.  They are trading books from their boxes.  There is a lot of conversation as the day begins.  

I have about 41 smaller baskets of books. They are organized mainly by theme or commonality.   For the most part, I use the clear shoe box size baskets for the reading shelves.  As you can see, we encourage moving the baskets so you can find the book you want!  

So this friend might have "too many" books.  I encourage about 10 books a day.  My reading corner doesn't have traditional chapter books in it.  The reason?  Most of my kids this year aren't ready or interested.  And that's okay.  My friends who are looking for a challenge have adopted things such as:  Read All the Caldecott winners, reading about Manatees, and lots of choice.   All readers have choice in my room.  

The instruction piece?  We know that readers in first grade need to be supported at all levels, and we don't sit back when the kids are independently reading.

Here is some reading on that if you are interested:

My morning time is spent flowing between interventions, guided reading, and conferring.  I feel good about this part of the day, because student choice is honored here.  As I type this, I am already planning another slice about how I held off on teaching the meta-cognitive pieces to selecting books until much later this year.  (Mini lessons such as "Choose Just Right Books", "Don't Choose Books that Are Too Hard", etc.)  I'm so glad I did.  

What is your favorite part about your reading block?  What are your favorite picture books these days?

Joy!

Kendra

On A Quest for More Juju-SOL Day 1

Thank you for inspiration Two Writing Teachers!  

Two Writing Teachers are hosting the 9th Annual Slice of Life Challenge.  Join us!

A quick blog post to reflect on Juju.  You know, my magic.  We all have it.  That groove we have to get things done.   I thought mine had gone away permanently.  It's slowly returning.  After a pretty major job change, a completion of a Master's degree, and a few other things, I've been working on getting back into my groove.

Teaching Juju?  Check.  (A vision for a new classroom, a flow for the day, reflections on teaching beliefs...)

Family Juju?  Check.  Check.  (Dinner time, Talk time, Peaceful home...)

Writing Juju?  Running Juju?  (Insert sound of chirping crickets here...Anyone?  Has anyone seen the juju?)

A time change in job requirements has thrown these two activities for a loop.  I write about this because here are two activities that ground me.  Recharge me.  Allow for that time to reflect, play with ideas, and ask questions.  

I know I'm in a season of growth and change.  It's been one of the best things for our family.  

As part of this growth, I'm back to this question, "How do you get it all in?"  

I know it's not impossible.  I know it can be done.  

Some daily writing?  Thanks Slice of Life.  This challenge should blow off the dust and get me writing again!

Some daily running?  Stay tuned.  (Reward offered if you find my missing Running Juju...)  

How is your Juju?  What are you working on?  

Joy!

Kendra