Reflections on the Teche

DigiLitSunday: Celebrate

December 18, 2016 by margaretsmn

Find more celebration posts at Ruth’s blog.

Please use this button on your site for DigiLit Sunday posts

Celebration time is just around the corner. It’s moving in quickly with the cold front. My dining table is full of gifts and wrapping paper. Soon the gifts will be under the tree and my dining table will be clean and ready for family to gather. How will I ever get it all done? I ask myself this question every year, and every year, I manage to be ready for the celebration.

In our classrooms, the students are anxious and antsy. They have more difficultly focusing. When my colleagues and I began planning a field trip for December 16th, I thought we were nuts to do it so close to Christmas break when the weather (literally and figuratively) changes daily. It turned out to be the perfect time.

On Friday, the weather was cool but not cold, cloudy but not raining as we set out at 6:30 AM on a charter bus heading to St. Francisville, Louisiana to the Myrtles Plantation, one of the top haunted mansions in the US. The stories of the “little spirits” both intrigued and frightened my students. I have to admit I was a little unsettled when I heard ticking coming from the old desk I was standing next to.

Our next stop was the cemetery of Grace Episcopal Church. This cemetery is a beautiful place with draping oaks and old graves. Our students made gravestone rubbings that we will later use for a research/writing project.

Gravestone rubbings at Grace Episcopal Cemetery, St. Francisville, LA.

Grace Episcopal Cemetery

Taking students outside the classroom is an effort in planning, making reservations, arranging payment, yet every time we do it, I realize how important it is to get us outside and into the world. We traveled northeast to Natchez, MS. to visit the Grand Village of the Natchez Indians, run the mounds, and learn about the ways of the original Americans. We walked the old Natchez Trace and visited an old inn.

Indian mounds at the Grand Village, Natchez, MS.

Walking the old Natchez Trace.

When we return from our winter break, we will revisit this field trip and turn our learning experience into digital posts and presentations. But, for now, I celebrate the opportunity to take students out of the classroom and into an earlier time and place to learn and play together.

I will be taking a holiday break from DigiLitSunday. Come back on January 8th.

Please add your own DigiLit posts with the link button below.

Posted in Celebration Saturday, Digital Learning, Gifted Education, Photography | Tagged field trip, Grand Village, Ms., Natchez, Natchez Trace, St. Francisville | 14 Comments »

Haiku-a-day #17

December 17, 2016 by margaretsmn

Posted in Poetry | Tagged #haikuforhealing, haiku-a-day | 2 Comments »

Poetry Friday:Haiku-a-day #16

December 16, 2016 by margaretsmn

Poetry Friday is with Tabatha at The Opposite of Indifference

Early morning dark
I, in silence with a pen,
catch haiku harmony.

–Margaret Simon

#haikuforhealing

Other December daily haiku writers:

Heidi Mordhorst at My Juicy Little Universe
Mary Lee Hahn at Poetrepository
Linda Mitchell at A Word Edgewise
Buffy Silverman at Buffy’s Blog
Jone Rush MacCulloch at DeoWriter
Diane Mayr, posted on Thursdays at Random Noodling
Julie Johnson at Raising Readers and Writers
Catherine Flynn at Reading to the Core
Carol Varsalona at Beyond LiteracyLink
Carol Wilcox at Carol’s Corner
Julianne Harmatz tweeting @jarhartz
Linda Baie at Teacher Dance
Michelle Heidenrich Barnes at Today’s Little Ditty

Posted in Poetry, Poetry Friday, Writing | Tagged #haikuforhealing, haiku-a-day | 13 Comments »

Spiritual Thursday: My 2016 Little Word

December 15, 2016 by margaretsmn

Link ups at Irene Latham’s site, Live your Poem

Being a part of an online blogging community keeps me writing and thinking and reflecting. Irene Latham asked our Spiritual Journey Thursday group to write a reflection about our One Little Words for 2016. So here I am… Present.

My OLW for 2016 was Presence. This word mantra has helped me in many ways this year. When I’ve been worried, I turned to presence. When I’ve been celebrating, I turned to presence. Being with whatever is happening in the moment is a valuable skill, and I am so glad I chose presence this year. The year I spent two weeks in Africa. The year my middle daughter got married. These experiences still live in my heart because I was fully present to them.

But everyday, I have to call myself back to presence. I take walks alone, valuing time to see things in my world, to focus on the gift of nature. Sometimes while walking I’ll take out my phone to send a message to someone who has come to mind, or to type a poem or an idea for one, or to take a picture to capture a moment.

Practicing presence fits my personality, too. I am one of those people who is always on the look out for ways to help others. While some may think this is a positive trait, it can also lead to burn-out and low self-esteem. By being present, I take care of myself. And by taking care of myself, I am better equipped to help others.

I haven’t started thinking about my word for 2017. I’m not ready to let this one go. I don’t have to, of course. I can build on Presence along with Reach of 2015 and Open of 2014. I enjoy words and playing with words, so this tradition of finding one little word to guide my year is fun and inspiring. I think deeply about what I really want and the possibilities that are open to me.

Thanks, Irene, for calling me to be reflective about my one little word.

Haiku-a-day #15

Be present today
open to whatever door
Turn the knob, enter

–Margaret Simon

From Richard Rohr’s Center for Action and Contemplation

Posted in Spiritual Growth | Tagged #haikuforhealing, One Little Word, Presence | 6 Comments »

Haiku-a-day #14

December 14, 2016 by margaretsmn

Time to burrow down
be a seed, holding life tight
deep in the dark soil

–Margaret Simon

Posted in Poetry | Tagged #haikuforhealing, haiku-a-day | 1 Comment »

Slice of Christmas Tree

December 13, 2016 by margaretsmn

Join the Two Writing Teachers blog for the Slice of Life Challenge.

Haiku #13

There, in twinkling lights
a Teddy Bear, nutcracker,
an angel watches.

The ornaments on the Christmas tree take me on a journey of memories. I am borrowing this idea from Linda Baie who wrote about her ornaments memories here.

I don’t know why, but I hesitate to unpack the ornaments each year. I don’t like doing it alone. So my daughter Maggie came over to help me, even though she now has a home of her own. I appreciated her help, but mostly I appreciated the impetus to get it done. In her words, “Let’s do this thing!” I turned on the Christmas CDs, and we dug in.

“Should we hang this one?” I asked. “The year you hated Santa Claus. Look at that face!”

Christmas ’88: Maggie 3.5 years, Katherine 8 months.

My husband, Jeff, has a special ornament we hang each year. His second grade teacher made it for him, sequins on a styrofoam ball, spelling out his name.

I never seem to remember where I packed my favorite ornament, the one my mother gave me from the National Cathedral when I only had two daughters. This is one of those breakable, precious ornaments that I wrap well and put away in its own box. But which bin did I put it in? After Maggie left and I was preparing to put the bins back into the closet, I gave it one more try, patiently opening and closing boxes, wrapping and unwrapping tissue paper. Then I found it. I hung it high on the tree, safe from little hands that we don’t really have around, and mischievous paws which are circling the tree as if it’s a new toy.

A more recent ornament was made by a local artist illustrating our church, The Church of the Epiphany. This ornament reminds me of the true meaning of Christmas. I look forward to singing in the loft (which once held slaves before the Civil War) on Christmas Eve.

What ornaments do you treasure year to year? Happy Holidays!

Posted in Poetry, Slice of Life | Tagged #haikuforhealing, Christmas, Linda Baie, ornaments | 8 Comments »

Haiku-a-day #12

December 12, 2016 by margaretsmn

Posted in Photography, Poetry | Tagged #haikuforhealing, Bayou Teche, haiku-a-day | 1 Comment »

Haiku-a-Day #11

December 11, 2016 by margaretsmn

#11
When we blink, we can’t see.
Only God sees everything.
How can we be healed?
#haikuforhealing
@MargaretGSimon

Posted in Spiritual Growth | Tagged #haikuforhealing, haiku-a-day, Jesse tree | Leave a Comment »

DigiLitSunday: Craft

December 11, 2016 by margaretsmn

Please use this button on your site for DigiLit Sunday posts

When I think of crafting in digital literacy, I think of those literary elements that make writing sing as well as design elements that give a project more meaning and audience appeal. This week we worked on both aspects.

I read aloud two of Kate Messner’s picture books, Over and Under the Snow and Up in the Garden and Down in the Dirt. Both of these books lead students on a journey of discovery about plants and animals. We learned about the subnivean layer in the snow and which animals hibernate and which ones remain active in tunnels below.

Following the reading, we read the facts about the animals in the back of the book. We also looked back at Kate’s craft moves. On a few pages the words are spread out and down the page to show action in the words themselves. She also used alliteration and imagery and figurative language. The craft moves of a real author are ours to take and play with.

My students turned to old favorite PowerPoint, while a few tried out Emaze. Madison found an Emaze background with an ocean, the ecosystem she had chosen to write about. Jacob and Noah used the drawing tools in PowerPoint to illustrate their pages. I showed them how to group the pieces together and move them with animation. So cool to watch a fish that you made out of the shape tool actually move in the water.

Emaze has a variety of backgrounds for different ecosystems.

Lynzee chose the bayou for her ecosystem to study. She didn’t know about the nutria, so we talked about them and looked up information. When I turned back to see what she had written, I was pleased to see such clever craft moves.

Nutrias scrabble, skitter, scratch away the dirt as they search for the root of a forgotten summer plant to feast on when they are rare.

Andrew’s slide features the wildebeests of the African savanna with a connection to the ancient boabab trees.

Andrew decided to research the African savanna. As he was researching, he found out about the plight of elephants from poaching. He decided he wanted to do something about it. This week he will present his findings to his classmates and try to raise funds to adopt an orphaned elephant. I suggested we make a poster out of the baby elephant picture I took this summer in Africa. He loved the idea. He will sell the poster at a profit. (Much discussion about how profit works.)

As a teacher of language arts, I feel drawn to the craft moves authors make. They become mentor texts for my students, but then my students amaze me with their own use of craft. They become authors (and difference makers) themselves in this digital world.

Join in the conversation with your link below:

Posted in Digital Learning, Gifted Education, Writing | Tagged craft moves, Emaze, Kate Messner, PowerPoint | 5 Comments »

Celebrating Main Street Magic

December 10, 2016 by margaretsmn

Find more celebration posts at Ruth’s blog.

Looking for goldfish
Main Street elves explore magic
Do good for good’s sake
#haikuforhealing

This morning I took a cold walk to downtown Main Street. I knew Callie would be there with her kids selling hot chocolate. But this was not just your everyday Christmas season hot chocolate. This cup of cocoa would help needy families celebrate Christmas, too. Callie applied for a grant from the Acadiana Do Good Project. They were given $100 that had to be used to do good. #DoGood16

Callie and her family decided their tag line would be “Borne to Do Good” because they are the Borne family. Her four children range in age from 3 to 10. I learned about her project on Facebook where she advertised a Go Fund Me page. She is not only soliciting funds, she is getting her whole family involved. Selling the hot chocolate is only one of the steps. They will then shop, wrap, and deliver.

Callie’s project touched me from the beginning because we have adopted a family for many years. My girls remember wrapping gifts and delivering them, and as adults are continuing the tradition.

Callie told me about all the donations she has received. One person gave them $20 to give free hot chocolate to all service workers, police, firefighters, etc. While I was hanging out, they waved down a police car. This cop passed the word on to his colleagues. The kids were so excited to give away their hot chocolate. Doing good passes on.

I also met Marti and her dog, Jenny. They were doing good as well. Marti has started a project called “Walking Wavers.” She explained that in working on her own health, she started walking. She realized that when she waved to drivers, she felt safer because they knew she was there. She was also passing on a smile.