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Archive for March, 2012

What makes you angry?

Posted in Uncategorized on March 11, 2012| 12 Comments »


The Gospel reading in church today was the one about Jesus at the temple getting angry at the moneychangers. So the priest asked us all, “What makes you angry?” Luckily in the bulletin, the secretary had left an empty page for “Sermon Notes,” so I started scribbling…
Pet peeves: people who interrupt, grammatical errors such as alot as one word or confusing there, their, and they’re.

In Jesus’ day, he got angry at the Pharisees, the moneychangers, and even Peter. (“Get behind me, Satan.”) Should this be a comfort to us? That even Jesus got angry. What would Jesus say to all the politicians today spouting off about this or that in His name?

I try not to listen or read things that will make me angry, but today I made the mistake of reading a letter to the editor in our local paper. This letter was written by a man about women’s health issues. He said that contraception and pregnancy are not health issues. I don’t get it. If they are not health issues, then why does a woman go to a doctor when she is pregnant? Why does she go to a hospital to have the child? And why does anyone think that he should be given the right to make any decision for a woman about her health and well being. And we call this religious freedom?

In my eyes, freedom is when you are given choices to make. In the beginning, God granted us this freedom. He never said, “You can choose, but you must choose what I say you must choose.” My favorite bishop, Bishop Henton often quoted St. Augustine, “Love God, and do as you please.” So why do we follow the commandments? Because we want to. Because it is our choice. Not because we should, or have to. But just because.

What makes you angry? What can you do to make a difference?

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Reflections at the Capitol

Posted in Slice of Life, tagged , , on March 11, 2012| 1 Comment »


I spent the day at the State Museum in Baton Rouge judging the Letters about Literature contest. A dozen teachers gathered around a conference room table to talk about writing and to read student entries. This is always a treat. Students from various corners of our state wrote letters to their favorite authors. These letters should not be like a book report. The author, of course, knows what the book is about. What the LAL contest is about is synthesizing, not summarizing.

We set the criteria by looking at the Library of Congress rubric, our own LA Writes Voices, and reading again last year’s winning letters. Tough judging. But as I started reading, in my mind I was looking for the connection, the lasting impression of a reader understanding a writer. Inevitably, the letters that rise to the top make a very personal connection and express that connection in a unique voice. This is a difficult skill to teach. All we can do as teachers is model, model, model, and open the door.

Our top choice for the high school level wrote to Jane Austen. This writer even wrote like Jane Austen. She devoured her books after she first read Pride and Prejudice. But the thing that stood out was the opening line, “Jane Austen, I have a dangerous confession to make. I never liked to read until…”

Again and again, the letters confess something similar. The student learned to love reading by reading this author’s book. The top winner in the middle school level wrote about how she read prize winning books and made the A on all her book reports, but never became a part of a book until she read The True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle. In her own unique way, she gradually expressed her connection to the character.

We were all drawn to the 4th grader who read Old Yeller, and related about losing her friends when she moved after Hurricane Katrina. She wrote, “Most books take you to a new place, but your book brought me home.”

We all have books that draw us in, speak to us, and become a part of our lives. What is that book for you? Have you written to the author?

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Game Day

Posted in Slice of Life, tagged , , , on March 9, 2012| 1 Comment »

In my classroom, Friday is Game Day. I love to watch my gifted kids go after a strategic game. I encourage friendly competition and actually join in. I beat the pants off a second grader today at Mancala, but got whooped by another second grader and a third grader at Set. I thought I was the master of Mastermind until first grader Emily learned to play.

As in writing workshop when I write with my students: They see me writing. They hear my struggles. (The other day, my fifth grader told me, “Mrs. Simon, you really should add some rhyme to that poem.”
I said, “But I am no good at rhyming.”
“Just try it,” she replied.)

Playing strategic games with my students is also a way to build a community. Today, some of my students started a running chart on the board of everyone’s Mastermind scores. I was quickly at the bottom with 5 tries.

Who said learning can’t be fun? Together on game day, we play, we laugh, and we learn. I can’t wait for next Friday!

Link to my students’ Slices of today.

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Just sayin’

Posted in Slice of Life, tagged , on March 8, 2012| 4 Comments »

“You shall have joy, or you shall have power, said God; you shall not have both”
—Ralph Waldo Emerson

It was a rough morning in the school cafeteria. The first thing out of the lunch lady’s mouth was “Shut up!” and the tall 15 year-old 6th grade bully threatened a younger student. Another duty teacher greeted each child with a “Tuck in that shirt!” Later, a teacher’s aide stopped me and said, “Don’t you just hate breakfast duty? Tomorrow we need to make sure they don’t sit next to their friends.” More rules, no!

I know we have to be strong and disciplined so that absolute mayhem doesn’t break out. But, come on, friends, is all this negativity necessary? We do not know where these kids came from. Did they start the day with a hug and a smile from a loved one? Not likely.

I’m just sayin’, if we spread a little more respect and kindness, we may see a little more in return. In my classroom, I am careful to speak with respect to my students, and I expect them to return that respect to me and to each other. For the most part, it works. We all slip up every once in a while. That’s what I’m sorry is for.

Maybe if we could all practice patience and kindness, our schools and our communities would be better places to be.

Just sayin’…

Link to my students’ Slices

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After Chinese Poets

Posted in Slice of Life, tagged , , on March 7, 2012| 5 Comments »

Slice of Life Day 7
I have been writing with a small group of students after school once a week. Today I told them about the Slice of Life Challenge and said that one of them would be the guest blogger for today. But they all did a nice job with the exercise, so they will all be featured. We looked at Chinese poets for inspiration. Chinese poets observed nature and contemplated deeper meanings. Each student chose a poet to emulate. This is like an artist copying a master. What occurs is magic. Following the path of a master, the student writes about his own true place and a beautiful poem appears.

Darby’s Fisherman after Oh Yang Hsio
Sitting on the still bayou, watching
the water, observing. Waiting for the right spot
to cast your long silk thread. It appears
and you cast. You wait patiently and silently.
A gentle wind moves your thread
like a silver snake waiting for the right time
to attack. Until an unlucky fish falls
into your trap and is whisked out of the water.
Your prey has been captured.

Isabell’s A Cajun Shack after Tu Fu

A Cajun shack
along the dirty bayou water
near a rusted gate that opens
to a road full of tall grass.

Moss grows over the swamp while
he drags into his gator hunting clothes,
cypress trees sway.

The man comes up while
a gator goes back into the water.

Grace’s Gator Huntin‘ after OU Yang Hsiu

The gator shakes the line
trying to unhook itself.
In the marsh grass
where he lives. He is
invisible as he swim around
in the murky water.
He is shaking so hard he doesn’t see
Troy and Liz come upon him
with a gun ready
to turn him into a pair
of boots.

Patrick’s Nightfall after Tu Fu

Nightfall. I return from a journey
along the Pelican’s Trail. The marshes
are black. Everyone is at home
asleep. The Great Coon descends
to the swamp. Overhead the stars
are huge in the sky. When
I light the lamps, a frightened bird
cries out in the moss. I hear the
white-haired watchman on his round,
calling out the hour. Gun in hand, he
keeps guard and all is safe.

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Bumper Sticker Evangelism

Posted in Slice of Life, Uncategorized, tagged , on March 6, 2012| 4 Comments »


Slice of Life #6

On the bumper of my red Camry is a bumper sticker that reads, “Do No Harm.” I’ve had that same bumper sticker for at least 3 years. But today I had an unusual reaction to it. When I pulled into the post office after school, a woman yelled to me from her car, “Do you love the Lord?!”

I responded, “What?” Here I am just going to the post office, innocent and unsuspecting. What right did she have to interrupt my focused attention? I looked toward her car, bent down to see her in the driver’s seat opening her mail. She repeated her question.
“I saw your bumper sticker. Do no harm. You must love the Lord.”

I smiled and said, “Of course, I do. I also like the one that says Practice random acts of kindness.”

She did not want to have a conversation about bumper sticker sayings. She wanted to tell me that if you love the Lord, you will do no harm. “And those who harm others will one day get there’s.”

As I continued into the post office, I thought about how we send a message not only with our bumper stickers, but also in our response to others. At one time in my life, I probably wouldn’t have entered into a conversation with a stranger in a car yelling about loving the Lord. I have learned through experience that everyone just wants to be loved. And why not spread a little love in a parking lot. Sure beats the alternative.



Click here for today’s Slice of Life entries from my students.

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Surprised by Spring

Posted in Uncategorized on March 6, 2012| 1 Comment »


Every year it happens,
Every year I am surprised.
Every year the same,
yet every year, different.
Spring is here!
When I went to bed on Leap Day,
the air was balmy and warm,
yet on the morning of March 1
a miracle appeared…
Azaleas.
Azaleas do not bloom flower by flower.
They bloom as a whole bush.
One day green, the next a bright ball of pink fluff.
What a surprise!
How wonderful that God can do this every year,
every March, show me His glory
In a bright burst of blooms!


Click here to see my students’ Slice of Life entries for today.

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Only in New Orleans

Posted in Uncategorized on March 4, 2012| 4 Comments »

You never know what you are going to see in New Orleans. It is always an adventure to walk along in the French Quarter. My daughter Katherine lives there and works in the Central Business District “CBD” in a high rise on Poydras. She works hard at Zhender Communications, but I like to say (because I believe it) that she is having the time of her life. I asked her if she ever gets tired of living in New Orleans. Even though I knew the answer, she exclaimed, “Are you kidding me? There is always something to see and do here. It’s great!”

Yesterday, I was on a mission to deliver some droopy wigs to Fifi Mahony’s for some refurbishing. There you go, Fifi’s is a perfect example. There is never a dull moment in the prime wig shop on Royal Street. The girl sporting a red and white stocking cap, a few piercings, and blue and pink hair recognized me. I have been a patron for 4 years now. I am a Berry Queen, and I purchase my wig every year from Fifi’s partly because they are the best wig stylists around and partly because it’s such an interesting place in the heart of a wonderful city.

After the wig delivery, we walked to the Napoleon House on Chartres. We have been coming here since LSU college days when we’d pull an all nighter in The Quarter. The old establishment has a most unique atmosphere with concrete walls with peeling paint and pictures of Napoleon, male waiters dressed in black pants and white shirts, classical music blaring, and a beautiful courtyard. The food is always good, as well as the cocktails. Pim’s Cup is my favorite.

After a rather leisurely lunch (the service was slow), we were walking back to our car. One thing about The Quarter is you can never get a parking place near where you need to be. It is always best to grab one where you can and walk it. When we arrived in Jackson Square, we happened upon the second line of a wedding coming out of St. John’s. What a treat! Happy Jazz musicians danced and played the Mardi Gras Mambo, and the bride and groom joyfully followed. Only in New Orleans!

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Walk your Way

Posted in Uncategorized on March 3, 2012| 3 Comments »

Slice of Life Challenge Day 3
Words are your paintbrush, and your life is that canvas.
–Don Miguel Ruiz

I can walk. I can take a walk down my street with my dog anytime I want. I take this ability for granted. I have forgotten what a gift it is to walk.

Until today. I have a new student in my gifted class. She is a precious ten-year-old. At her young age, she already has determination and a clear goal for her future. She wants to work with disabled people, or rather with “differently-abled.” A few weeks ago, she asked if she could make a PowerPoint with her free time. I said sure, and just left her on her own. About 30 minutes later, she showed me her PowerPoint. It was about treating differently-abled people as you would anyone else. They have the same feelings as you and me. How impressive!

Brooklyn could have resented her life. She could so easily complain about having a mother who is disabled, who struggles to walk. Instead, she has an unbelievable gentleness about her. She is caring and helpful. Her only intolerance is for intolerance. Her only enemy is the unkind bully.

Yesterday, Brooklyn and her mother joined me at Walmart. We were shopping for an Easter basket raffle prize, a service project for the school to raise money for Solomon House, an outreach mission and food bank. Trisha was looking for a handicapped spot and told me a story about how she was cursed out in the parking lot once for taking a handicapped spot. From the waist up, she looks normal. However, when she gets out of her car to walk, one can see that her legs don’t work like yours and mine. They work, but differently. I’m sure she endures much staring and misunderstanding.

I am not just thinking about taking things for granted, but I am also pondering this mother and child. How their lives are actually enriched and stronger because they know a deeper truth. They know that what is on the outside has little to do with what is on the inside. They know that love is what endures and what matters, and they spread it everywhere as they stumble along together.

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Read Me a Story

Posted in Uncategorized on March 3, 2012| 6 Comments »

Read Me a Story

Happy Birthday, Dr. Seuss

I miss that special time right before bed when I would curl up with my girls and read a picture book. Today students everywhere celebrated Dr. Seuss’s birthday with remembrances of all his wonderful contributions to bedtime stories. My oldest daughter Maggie’s favorite was I Can Read with My Eyes Shut, and, believe me, after reading it night after night, we could read it with our eyes shut.

So I was brought back to those days when one of my second grade students walked into class with the book There’s a Nightmare in My Closet. (Another bedtime favorite of the Simon girls.) She read it aloud to the class and laughed at the silly monster hiding in the closet. Then she passed it on to my two first graders to read again and again. They each took an AR test and became tickled with the wrong answer, “The boy said the nightmare stunk and needed a bath.”

Oh, the joys of sharing good writing. Thank you, Mercer Mayer and Dr. Seuss, for making us laugh out loud, again and again.

Link to my students’ SLice of Life #2

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