C is for Coincidence

At the end of our recent poetry unit, I chose the poem Hope is the thing with Feathers, by Emily Dickinson, as the text for students to analyze by applying their newly-minted knowledge of poetic form and devices.  Once we got through the snorts and side-eyes about the poet's last name (sixth grade!), we worked through it together and the poem was on the test, too. 

Today, as they were slogging through the onerous standardized reading test we are required to administer three times a year, the one where they tell kids up front that they will probably miss 50 percent of the questions, a student turned to me with wide eyes. She gestured excitedly to the screen. "It's Hope is a thing with Feathers" she whispered.

"Nice!" I replied. 

"Did you know?" she asked.

"No," I shrugged, "but you're welcome!"

Life Lesson: The future's not ours to see. Qué será, será ~Doris Day "Qué Será, Será"

R is for Real Time Reflection

The bonus question of the day was What is something worth celebrating? In addition to the usual birthday and holiday replies, I also heard some more thoughtful answers, too. 

"My aunt just finished chemo," said one young writer.

"My friend got a good grade on a test," offered another.

"The school year is coming to an end," said a third, but then she paused. "I guess that's good? But it's sad, too. I'll really miss this class."

"Thanks," I smiled.

"But not on days like today!" she scoffed. "When we have to take standardized tests? I'm going to celebrate finishing that!"

"I'm glad you got a chance to work that out," I told her and handed over a Jolly Rancher. "Do you feel better?"

"I do," she nodded. "I really do."

Life Lesson: Bring your good times and your laughter, too. We're gonna celebrate and party with you! ~Kool and the Gang "Celebration"

T is for Tie Dye

The end-of-the-year activity for the girls' mentoring group I work with was tie-dying t-shirts yesterday. Tie-dying used to be on of our go-to summer activities when all the kids in our life were young. Over the years we dyed not only t-shirts, but also tank tops, socks and underwear, a dress, shorts, pillowcases, and almost anything else we could think of. It was always really fun!

All that experience came back to me yesterday as a dozen and a half of us sat outside in the warm sunshine and twisted up white ts, bound them with rubber bands, and squirted lots of bright dye on them. I was able to help some girls pleat hearts for their shirt centers, show others the classic spiral twist, and give some pointers on executing the bullseye, too. 

At the end, when there were extra shirts available, I leapt at the opportunity to create my own design, and there was a satisfied smile on my face as I shamelessly squirted lots of leftover dye on the sections of my neatly spun shirt. Dropping it in a plastic bag to carry home with me, I remembered one more thing about tie-dying: how hard it is to wait those 24 hours until you can see how your masterpiece turned out!

Life Lesson: The waiting is the hardest part. ~Tom Petty "The Witing is the Hardest Part"

P is for Plus That

Today was the poetry prize day and 36 out of the 112 kids participating wrote 20 times or more and so received a treat of their choice or a chance to spin the wheel of prizes. In general, everyone was pleased with what they got, but as much as I try to use the prizes to pump up and incentivize writers for the next challenge, there's always a nay-sayer.

"No offense, but the prize I got last time wasn't worth all the time I spent writing," one kid dismissed the challenge today.

I shrugged, determined not to allow his attitude to get under my skin. "Well," I replied mildly, "you got the prize and all that writing practice, Maybe it was worth more than you think."

He was unconvinced, but others had a different perspective. "I can't do the hundred days," one student shrugged, "but I'm definitely going to get the prize for this one!"

"A hundred days is hard," I nodded, "but that's why we have daily and monthly challenges, too."

"Plus all that writing," she added.

"Plus that," I agreed. "Plus that."

Life Lesson: Sometimes you're going to have to lose. ~Miley Cyrus "The Climb"

B is for Bread

I love making bread.

I was once that pandemic cliche who filled my at-home time with video workouts, rock painting, and bread baking, but as all of those other pursuits have dropped away, bread remains. It is a miracle to me that flour, water, and time are all that I, or anyone else, need to make real bread. I literally give thanks for every loaf that emerges from my oven, holding its warmth in my hands and breathing in its scent of toasted grain and leavening.

Ben Franklin is famously credited with the sentiment that beer is proof that God loves us, but bread is the staff of life for a reason. 

Life Lesson: Find a lovely melody that everyone can sing. ~Bread (of course) "Aubrey"

F is for Fall Guy

Or maybe it should be "Summer Guy"? 😉

We went to the movies this afternoon and saw the first so-called blockbuster of summer, Fall Guy with Ryan Gosling and Emily Blount, a most charming pair. The movie was silly and fun: a love letter to all movies, and action movies in particular. And there was a lot of action, but not the too explosiony, too violent, too vulgar type that a person of my demographic (or maybe just me) does not appreciate.

It was still full daylight when we walked back out into the cold rain at 6 pm, and despite the dreary weather, summer seemed right within reach.

Life Lesson:  It was rare, I was there... ~Taylor Swift "All Too Well"

E is for Early Release

If every day was like today? I could teach forever! Each class was 22 minutes-- kids were focused and productive, and almost everyone wrote at least 100 words and published it. Then they left. By 10:15, my teaching day was done.

Of course, it is 3:40 on a Friday, and I'm still at work. I think I'll have the weekend almost completely free though!

Life Lesson: When you see it, then you'll understand. ~Coldplay "Speed of Sound"