Posted in Celebration Saturday, Poetry, Writing, tagged Bayou Teche, haiku on February 25, 2017| 10 Comments »
Find more celebration posts at Ruth’s blog.
Good Morning Haiku
1. Light streams on bayou
wake up trees to stand tall for
perfect reflection.2. Frothy milk swirling
atop French roast coffee drips,
sweet cafe au lait.3. Breezy walk with Anne-
dogs sniff, pull, and interrupt
our conversation.4. Breakfast at Victor’s,
savor sweet potato pancakes,
crispy bacon.5. A day like today,
watering is not a chore;
Praise gentle morning.–Margaret Simon
Posted in Poetry, Poetry Friday, Writing, tagged #tenfoundwords, David Bowles, Here We Go, Laura Shoven, Simile poetry on February 24, 2017| 14 Comments »
Poetry Friday is with Karen Edmisten.
As we continue our journey through Here We Go, the latest Poetry Friday Anthology book from Sylvia Vardell and Janet Wong, we encountered a totally timely poem by David Bowles, “Border Kid”.
You’re a border kid, a foot on either bank.
Your ancestors crossed this river a thousand times.
No wall, no matter how tall, can stop your heritage
From flowing forever, like the Rio Grande itself.(from Border Kid by David Bowles)
We looked at similes and played with using them in our own poems. Emily wrote this sweet poem about Home.
Home
by EmilyHome is like a safe haven
where you are watched over and protected.Home is like a nurturing mother
always taking care of you.Home is like a vault,
holding all of your secrets.Home is like a best friend
supporting you when you need it.Home is like an answer
to your echo is a lonely room.Home is like a book
with memories and stories to tell.Home is like a gentle hand
reaching out to help.Home is more that just a house.
I am learning more every day about writing poetry. As I participate in Laura Shovan’s daily challenge, I realize that poetry can be elusive. I try to follow the stream of my words, but sometimes they go astray. I am trying to be brave, write brave, and bravely post. The community is gentle and kind. Even when I bash my own poem with qualifiers like, “I am no good at rhyme,” someone finds something positive to say. I know the importance of critique groups. But when we write, especially poetry, we are vulnerable. The intentions of Laura’s challenge are different. We accept that it’s a drafting workshop. I try to apply this learning to my own classroom coaching. You are not going to hit the mark with every poem, but I encourage my students to give each exercise a shot and to post on our class blog. Writing can only get better with more writing.
I posted a poem that I wrote for #tenfoundwords to Today’s Little Ditty padlet. This month’s challenge from Jeannine Atkins is to write a personification poem about an emotion. I wrote this ditty about Mindfulness.
Mindfulness
Make an active mind, non-active
Re-awaken your innermost self.
Seek a word of peace,
Blow away resistance, fear, and dread.
Engage your attention to now,
Hold on with compassion and understanding.
The space left open is for love.
Posted in Books, Writing, tagged If You Were the Moon, Laura Purdie Salas on February 8, 2017| 10 Comments »
Before you begin to read If You Were the Moon by Laura Purdie Salas, turn this music on in the background.
Illustrated in dreamlike images by Jaime Kim, Laura takes us on a journey of discovery about the moon. In the beginning, the young girl muses on how easy the moon’s job is, but the moon explains. “If you were the moon, you would…” Along with delightful metaphor are embedded facts from how the moon was formed to Neil Armstrong’s iconic walk. Artists are inspired by the moon. Hence the musical piece, “Clair de Lune.” I remember listening to my mother play this on the grande in our living room.
A glossary and further reading section make this book teacher-friendly.
I often use picture books to lead my students to their own writing. I can imagine prompting my students with the words “If you were _________.” Students could research their favorite planet or natural disasters (my students love them!). Then they could write and illustrate their own books including interesting facts along the way. Finding a way to tie a book to writing enriches the classroom experience.
Laura sent me this amazing teacher’s guide written by Randi Miller Sonnenshine. This guide includes activities across the curriculum.
If You Were the Moon releases March 1st, 2017. Get your copy today!
Posted in Digital Learning, Teaching, Writing, tagged Tagul, vocabulary on February 5, 2017| 16 Comments »
Please use this button on your site for DigiLit Sunday posts
I hate to admit it, but I have not been the best at teaching vocabulary. I’ve tried all kinds of methods from word lists to word walls, but I am still met with groans from kids when I say Vocabulary. This year I’ve been using a workbook. This goes against my whole philosophy of teaching, so please don’t tell my students. This workbook provides an authentic text, so the words are in context. We also work with synonyms and antonyms and always a writing piece. But like most work with Vocabulary in the title, my students think drudgery.
It is time for a change. I have been intrigued by Carol Varsalona’s word clouds. I tweeted a question to her. Turns out it was our mutual friend Holly who introduced Tagul to Carol.
This leads me to an idea I will be trying this week with my students (crossing fingers the app works in our network). I took one of our vocabulary words from last week, essence, and typed it into Thesaurus.com. I opened Tagul and typed in a dozen synonyms. Then I looked for a shape that would help define the word. I chose a water droplet because water is the essence of our bodies. The image shares common synonyms as well as makes this vocabulary work more motivating.
In what ways are you digitizing vocabulary work? Share your ideas on your blog and link below.
Posted in Writing on February 3, 2017| 21 Comments »
Poetry Friday is with Penny at Penny and her Jots.
This week, I’m thinking about Naomi Shihab Nye’s bucket and how we need to share our buckets with each other. I shared her poem from Here We Go with my students.
from BLUE BUCKET
by Naomi Shihab NyeWhat if, instead of war,
we shared our buckets
of wind and worry?
Tell me the story
you carry there,
steeping in old pain
and future hope,
rich with fragrant
savory spices,
ginger, turmeric,
tarragon, find me
a spoon in one
of your pockets,
even if we don’t
speak the same language…maybe
you hold my bucket
a while, see what
the handle feels like,
and I hold yours,
and maybe both buckets
are empty and
we trade them forever…
We talked about what it means to carry someone else’s bucket. We talked about serious topics and playful ones. Then we wrote What if poems. I want to share a few with you today.
What if
the whole world
was listening, waiting
for the next word?What if
you didn’t
know what
to say
but you say
it all?What if
I speak
worldwide but
few hear me?What if
you knew
what to say,
but you didn’t
say it at all?What if
I speak
privately,
but lots of
people hear me?by Noah, 5th grade
A Bucket Of Glitter
What if,
I could carry around a
bucket of glitter?
If I found someone without glitter,
I would sprinkle some on them,
What if I could carry around a
bucket of glitter?by Lynzee, 2nd grade
What if-
I was the leader of the U.S.A
I would treat people fair
like how air lets us live,
live to spread joy and happiness.
I would give money
Maybe a little honey because it’s sweet
like people.
by Andrew, 4th grade
Today, I am wishing you a bucket of glitter to spread, a little honey to sweeten your day, and lots of poetry because poetry is where wisdom lies.
Posted in Poetry, Slice of Life, Writing, tagged Laura Shovan, Ten Found Words, Women's March on January 31, 2017| 11 Comments »
Join the Two Writing Teachers blog for the Slice of Life Challenge.
The Hallmark channel is on again. I pour a glass of wine. I search for something positive to say. I’ve always thought of myself as an optimist, but these days are dark. Winter is an apt metaphor for the state of our country. I am carrying a weight of pessimism that I find too heavy and hard.
So I turn to my passion, poetry. Poetry is like prayer for me. I go inside my thoughts and work to make some sense of them.
Laura Shovan is getting ready for her annual February poetry project. She has built a Facebook group. It’s a closed group, but if you ask, you can join. We are a bunch of liberals looking for ways to make sense of the news by taking 10 words from a current news report and writing poetry.
On Saturday, I found an empty journal on my shelf. It is quite beautiful, a gift from someone, I’m sure. The title reads, “Personal Journal with Quotes & Art by Women.” I decided to use this book to pen the poems I am writing for Laura’s challenge. On this page I share below is a sculpture called “Invocation” by Edith Schaller. I wrote a poem for the January 25th warm-up using ten words from Janet Mock’s Women’s March speech. I am not accustomed to being outspoken, political, or radical. I am uncomfortable in this position, but I find solace in poetry, in writing, in words.
I am my sister’s keeper.
I hold her body.
I am committed to this work
of loving and comforting,
feeling safe and sensitive.I refuse to crawl deeper into poverty,
refuse to give up all that we have fought for.
I will not be invisible or neglected.But his words tear at a core
I fear is weak. My liberation
is linked to my resolve
to not be moved, to hold fast.Why must I turn into a revolutionary?
I once was a peaceful woman,
teaching, learning, writing,
minding my own business.Why must I be confrontational?
Someone who has written herself
into this story of marches,
signs and petitions?Sister, help me be this new me.
–Margaret Simon
Posted in Poetry Friday, Writing, tagged collaborative poem, Donna Smith on January 27, 2017| 20 Comments »
Poetry Friday round-up is with Carol at Beyond Literacy Link
Challenges can be fun. Challenges can be…well…challenging. Donna Smith posted a challenge to write a poem using all the lines given out by the visitors to her blog. She collected the following lines:
Buffy Silverman: ferocious women who never bring you coffee
Donna Smith: always leave a wild song
Linda Baie: dreaming women do art in poetry
Buffy Silverman: where wizards and wolves rush by in a blur of green and gold and gray
Kay McGriff: ignore the awful times, and concentrate on the good ones
Linda Mitchell: waking the world to a new day
Margaret Simon: steam that climbs like smoke from a fire
Carol Varsalona: fearless women reach out, connect, and find joy in life’s intertwined moments
Tabatha Yeatts: little chest to put the Alive in
Joy Acey: wear loose clothing and a smile
Jan Godown Annino: I feel like there should be more stories out there for girls, and I try to tell them
Mary Lee Hahn: ferocious women do not exaggerate
Brenda Harsham: make a ferocious dinner that eats masks, drips truth and saves softness for dessert
Keri Lewis: radical at their core
Kiesha Shepard: ferocious women would rather drink the wind
Diane Mayr: out of endurance, exaltation
One of the rules was to break the rules, so I did. I didn’t use all the lines.
Here is my poem:
Dreaming women
wake the world
reach out
to find joy in life’s
intertwined moments.They write stories
where wizards and wolves
rush by. Their stories
sing like steam
that rises, smoke from a fire–
a wild fire!Ferocious women
never bring you coffee.
They make a ferocious dinner,
save softness for dessert
and a smile.Take advice from us:
Ignore the awful times.
Dream on.
Leave a wild song.
Drink the wind.
To see other poetic responses, go to Donna’s site for the link up.
Now for a very important announcement: The winners of Here We Go! If you see your name here and you haven’t gotten an email from me, please send me your address by email.
1. Jane Whittingham
2. Joanne Duncan
3. Leigh Anne Eck
4. Linda Mitchell
5. Kimberley Moran
Posted in Digital Learning, Gifted Education, Teaching, Writing, tagged goals, needs, writing on January 22, 2017| 6 Comments »
Please use this button on your site for DigiLit Sunday posts
The image above makes me imagine metaphorically that I am that big green rock holding in balance the different colors of my students. Teaching is a delicate balancing act. As teachers, we must set goals for our students, individually and collectively. Our job is to get on the train every morning and move down the tracks to that goal. (Excuse the mix of metaphors.)
Sometimes one student can topple the whole balancing game. We must stop whatever it is we are doing and pay attention. Focus on needs rather than goals.
This week I had to call on a colleague for help. I was not meeting a student’s need, and I wasn’t sure where to go next. I had tried many directions, but none were working very well. This is humbling. However, I found strength and comfort in the shared experience. Reaching out when you feel defeated is tough to do. I am so grateful now that I did. My student is better for it. I am better for it.
My students write every day. Writing is a brave act. So different from answering questions or working out a math problem. Writing is personal and hard.
This week one of my goals was teaching essay. The kind of essay that testing will require in which the student writes about a literary element (in this case, theme) comparing two texts. We worked with a nonfiction article and a poem.
During a conference with one of my students, I read aloud to her what she had written. “Blah, blah, blah” was her response. “I can’t stand writing essays. They’re so boring!” After our chat, she typed up her boring essay. I had to laugh when I read it. She began with, “Hey, world. Listen here!” And at a later point, she wrote, “Now that is awesome!”
My students need to be able to express themselves. Sometimes these expressions come out in loud exclamations, quiet tears, or interjections. No matter the goal, needs may throw us out of balance, or may be the very thing to keep the balance.
Please join the conversation by leaving a link below:
Posted in Celebration Saturday, Writing, tagged Japanese magnolia, list poem, Rumi on January 21, 2017| 11 Comments »
Find more celebration posts at Ruth’s blog.
“Keep knocking, and the joy inside will eventually open a window and look out to see who’s there.” Rumi The Sunrise Ruby
A celebration list:
Salads:
Monday: Manchego cheese on arugula
Wednesday: Tutu salad pepper tuna, avocado
Friday: Greek Fatouche with pita chips
Conversations:
Tables turned
daughters give advice to Mom
Poetry:
Writing, receiving
fulfilling
Students:
Projects develop
making a difference
in more ways than one
A dog
snoring happily
at my feet
His love
patient, kind
my heart is always open
and complete
Posted in Writing on January 20, 2017| 27 Comments »
Poetry Friday round-up is with Violet.
I am pinching myself today. I just got my shipment of Here We Go, Sylvia Vardell and Janet Wong’s latest Poetry Friday project. These two amazing women have been gathering poets in anthologies for years. I met them a few years ago at NCTE at the Children’s Literature Lunch. They handed me the Poetry Friday anthology for Science. This is how they are. Their goal is to get poetry in the hands of teachers who will pass them on to children.
At NCTE 2016, I saw Sylvia and Janet in a hotel restaurant. They were eating breakfast. I just walked right on up. This time they handed me You Just Wait. We took a picture with my class’s mascot, Jack. Before we said good-bye, I said, “I want to write a poem for you.”
“Well,” exclaimed Janet, “It just so happens we need one more poem for our next book coming out before the inauguration.”
“In this book, we want to empower the voices of girls. Do you think you could write a poem from the point of view of a young girl who wants to do something she’s been told she can’t do?”
“Of course I can!” I didn’t really say that. I said, “I’d like to try.”
I had no idea my poem would be next to poets like Naomi Shihab Nye and Carole Boston Weatherford. I’ve long admired Poetry Friday contributors such as Michelle Heindenrich Barnes, Kate Coombs, and Robyn Hood Black.
I absolutely love the format they have used for this book! The subtitle is “A Poetry Friday Power Book.” Included are 12 powerplay prewriting activities, 12 anchor poems, 24 new poems to join them together,12 power2you writing prompts, and 12 resource lists for young writers and activists. The poems work together to create a story of community, bias, acceptance, and activism. Each “Power Pack” can be used by an individual writer or by a teacher with her class.
Please join me in celebrating this new book by leaving a comment. Janet and Sylvia sent me 5 extra copies to give away. Leave a comment by Friday, Jan. 27th to be entered into a random drawing for a free copy.
April 1 Tabatha Yeatts at The Opposite of Indifference
April 2 Cathy Stenquist at A Little Bit of This and That
April 3 Patricia Franz at Reverie
April 4 Donna Smith at Mainely Write
April 5 Janice Scully at Salt City Verse
April 6 Denise Krebs at Dare to Care
April 7 Ruth Hersey at There is no such thing as a God-forsaken town
April 8 Rose Cappelli at Imagine the Possibilities
April 9 Margaret Simon at Reflections on the Teche
April 10 Janet Clare Fagel at Reflections on the Teche
April 11 Diane Davis at Starting Again in Poetry
April 12 Linda Baie at Teacher Dance
April 13 Linda Mitchell at Another Word Edgewise
April 14 Jone MacCulloch at Poetry Rocks
April 15 Joyce Uglow at Storied Ink
April 16 Carol Varsalona at Beyond Literacy Link
April 17 Robyn Hood Black at Life on the Deckle Edge
April 18 Michele Kogan at More Art for All
April 19 Kim Johnson at Common Threads
April 20 Buffy Silverman
April 21 Irene Latham at Live Your Poem
April 22 Karen Edmisten
April 23 Heidi Mordhorst at my juicy little universe
April 24 Mary Lee Hahn at A(nother) Year of Reading
April 25 Tanita Davis at Fiction, instead of Lies
April 26 Sharon Roy at Pedaling Poet
April 27 Tracey Kiff-Judson at Tangles and Tails
April 28
April 29
April 30
Our address on the Bayou Teche
Order on Amazon.
April 1 Linda Mitchell at A Word Edgewise
April 2 Tricia at The Miss Rumphius Effect
April 3 Robyn at Life on the Deckle Edge
April 4 Donna Smith at Mainely Write
April 5 Denise at https://mrsdkrebs.edublogs.org/
April 6 Buffy at http://www.buffysilverman.com/blog
April 7 Jone at https://www.jonerushmacculloch.com/
April 8 Janice Scully at Salt City Verse
April 9 Tabatha at https://tabathayeatts.blogspot.com/
April 10 Marcie at Marcie Flinchum Atkins
April 11 Rose at Imagine the Possibilities | Rose's Blog
April 12 Fran Haley at Lit Bits and Pieces
April 13 Cathy Stenquist
April 14 Janet Fagel at Mainly Write
April 15 Carol Varsalona at Beyond LiteracyLink
April 16 Amy Ludwig VanDerwater at The Poem Farm
April 17 Kim Johnson at Common Threads
April 18 Margaret at Reflections on the Teche
April 19 Ramona at Pleasures from the Page
April 20 Mary Lee at A(nother) Year of Reading
April 21 Tanita at TanitasDavis.com
April 22 Patricia Franz
April 23 Ruth at There's No Such Thing as a Godforsaken Town
April 24 Linda Kulp Trout at http://lindakulptrout.blogspot.com
April 25 Heidi Mordhorst at My Juicy Little Universe
April 26 Michelle Kogan at: https://moreart4all.wordpress.com/
April 27 Linda Baie at Teacher Dance
April 28 Pamela Ross at Words in Flight
April 29 Diane Davis at Starting Again in Poetry
April 30 April Halprin Wayland at Teaching Authors
Reflections on the Teche 