This He Believes

"Turning point!" the social studies teacher read off the slide on the screen in my room. "We should collaborate! I'm talking about turning points too, as in the Battle of Saratoga was the turning point of the Revolutionary War."

"We are talking about personal turning points," I told him, "times that changed the way the students thought."

He read some more of the slide. It had prompts to help the kids identify those moments. "Why Santa Clause?" he asked. " Is it because they didn't get what they wanted?"

"More like a time when they realized that they had been fooled and maybe there wasn't really any magic in the world," I said.

He shook his head. "See, I never believed in that stuff. I was the kid who ruined it for others from Kindergarten on."

"What do you think that says about you?" I asked him.

"More about my parents than me," he answered. "They were like, We bought you this stuff because we worked hard and earned the money."

"So it was kind of a lesson about taking care of yourself and not relying on other people to give you what you want?"

"Definitely," he said. "No imaginary fat guy in a red suit was going to get credit for that. You don't work? You don't eat."

"That shaped you, right?" I asked.

"You know it," he said.

"Well you are ready to write your essay!"

Language Barrier

One of my students stopped by this morning to ask me a question about her English grade. I was right in the middle of something and my homeroom students were coming in, so I recommended she speak to me when she came to our class later in the day.

"Ask me in English," I told her.

She looked confused and repeated her question.

"I promise I will answer you when you ask me in English," I said.

She repeated her question again.

I raised my eyebrows and looked at her. "What did I just tell you?"

"You said to ask you in English," she answered, "but I am asking in English."

It took me a minute, but then I started to laugh. "I mean English the class, not English the language!"

"Oh..." she said. "Well that makes more sense!"

My Day Today

re·treat

rəˈtrēt/

verb

verb: retreat; 3rd person present: retreats; past tense: retreated; past participle: retreated; gerund or present participle: retreating

1. 1.

   (of an army) withdraw from enemy forces as a result of their superior power or after a defeat.

   "the French retreated in disarray"

   synonyms:

   withdraw, retire, draw back, pull back/out, fall back, give way, give ground, beat a retreat, beat a hasty retreat "the army retreated"

   antonyms:

   advance

   • move back or withdraw.

     "it becomes so hot that the lizards retreat into the shade"

     synonyms:

     go out, ebb, recede, fall, go down, wane "the tide was retreating"

   • withdraw to a quiet or secluded place.

     "after the funeral he retreated to the shore"
   • change one's decisions, plans, or attitude, as a result of criticism from others.

     "his proposals were clearly unreasonable and he was soon forced to retreat"

     synonyms:

     change one's mind, change one's plans; More

   • (of shares of stock) decline in value.

     "shares retreated 32 points to 653 points"
   • CHESS

     move (a piece) back from a forward or threatened position on the board.

noun

noun: retreat; plural noun: retreats

1. 1.

   an act of moving back or withdrawing.

   "a speedy retreat"

   synonyms:

   withdrawal, pulling back "the retreat of the army"

   • an act of changing one's decisions, plans, or attitude, especially as a result of criticism from others.

     "the unions made a retreat from their earlier position"

     synonyms:

     about-face, U-turn;  informalone-eighty "the president's retreat"

   • a decline in the value of shares of stock.
2. 2.

   a signal for a military force to withdraw.

   "the bugle sounded a retreat"

   • a military musical ceremony carried out at sunset, originating in the playing of drums and bugles to tell soldiers to return to camp for the night.
3. 3.

   a quiet or secluded place in which one can rest and relax.

   "their mountain retreat in New Hampshire"

   synonyms:

   refuge, haven, sanctuary; More

   • a period of seclusion for the purposes of prayer and meditation.

     "the bishop is away on his annual retreat"

     synonyms:

     seclusion, withdrawal, retirement, solitude, isolation, sanctuary "a period of retreat from the world"

Origin

late Middle English: from Old French retret (noun), retraiter (verb), from Latin retrahere ‘pull back’ (see retract).

In Like

I wanted to love The Shape of Water, but I didn't. Since it was inconsistently touching and charming, and it had that amazing water droplet on the bus window scene, we can still be friends, as long as it leaves the rest of the cats alone.

Bone Appetit!

I was flipping through Rachel Ray's magazine the other day, when my cousin asked me a question.

"Have you tried the dog food in there?" she wondered. "It's supposed to be very healthy."

"Uh..." I hesitated, confused. "The dog food? Me? Personally?"

For a moment she was confused, too, but then she laughed. "No! Rachel has a dog food!"

"Oh!" I laughed, too. "No."

"Wow!" she said. "You must be tired!"

Budget Buster

What you get when you go to a big box warehouse store *just* to see if they have a deal on a pair of leggings:

3 English cucumbers
1 large clamshell of Campari tomatoes
1 pound of cheddar
1 pound of swiss
3 jars of tomato sauce
a rotisserie chicken
a pair of sneakers
a giant bottle of shampoo
and

3!

pairs
of
leggings

Origins

This time for my intervention period I have the advanced learners. Each morning twenty four of the brightest kids on the team pack into my room to learn about etymology. It is a much different vibe from my last two little book groups.

For example this morning they were busily creating electronic flash cards to learn some Greek and Latin roots. "Why does spir mean breathe?" one student asked. "How is that related to the word spirit?"

"Well," I answered, "it's the non-physical part of you, as insubstantial but as essential as your breath."

Her eyes widened. "Wow!" she said. "Mind. Blown. This is really cool stuff!"

I totally agree.