March Slice Challenge #12 

Today, I have a blog post for you on nonfiction text structures. This is what we are studying now in reading workshop. Today’s text structure was chronological order. I will highlight my signal words so you can see them. I will also try to add a picture of the timeline to show you how I will organize the information. Enjoy!

Title: Today in Block 3/6

First, the wonderful students entered the room, excited about it being Friday the 13th. I noticed they were wearing Pi-Day T-shirts that looked AWESOME. Next, I took attendance and asked them to stop talking. When they quieted down, I asked them to read independently. While they read, I looked at Sophie’s book of baby pictures that she brought in. Then I laughed at how cute she was. Finally, we learned about chronological order which always fascinates me. 

 

March Slice Challenge #11

Today is March 12th. That will always be my Dad’s birthday even though he died almost 5 years ago. The last four March 12ths have felt strange to me and today is no different. I want to hug Dad and wish him a Happy Birthday first thing in the morning. I want to stress over finding him the perfect birthday card and gift, and plan dinner for him with my mom. I want to light his birthday candles and sing to him like I did for so many years.

Today is sad for those reasons because I lost a person so close to me, who knew me so well. When he died, the world felt more lonely to me without him in it. But I still have the memory of him and I still have so much to celebrate today on his birthday. I can still celebrate my Dad and spend time reflecting on everything he gave me. 

I grew up having an amazing father and for that I’m grateful. I could always count on him and he made me feel safe. I knew he loved me and he loved my family. I am grateful he cared about me enough to teach me about respect, love, and the value of hard work. He always knew how to make me laugh and smile.

Happy Birthday, Daddy! I love you. 

Here are 10 memories I have about my Dad that warm my heart today, March 12th…

1.  Dad always sang along to the car radio. I do, too.
2. Dad loved the Philadelphia Phillies, the major league baseball team.
3. Dad was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1953.
4. Dad grew up in southern New Jersey. 
5. Dad used to take me to Los Angeles to watch the Dodgers play the Phillies whenever they were in town. That was when we lived in California.
6. Dad was in the United States Marine Corps for 20 years. But like they say, Once a Marine, Always a Marine.
7. Dad took me to several stores one night when he got home from work because I was upset that I couldn’t find a nice dress for my 8th grade formal dance. 
8. Dad always helped me with my homework when I asked for it.
9. Dad loved the restaurant, SweetWater Tavern. I still order the same meal we loved whenever I go. 
10. Dad accidentally drove to work one day with our cat, Mittens, under the hood of his car. He was on the Dulles Greenway when he heard her crying loudly. He pulled over and saved her life. 

March Slice Challenge #10

Here’s a list of 10 things (in random order) you may not know about your Language Arts Teacher this year.

1. I used to live in Palmdale, California. I attended 6th, 7th, and most of 8th grade there.

2. My favorite color is green.

3. I do not like onions of any kind on my food.

4. I do not like cucumbers.

5. I struggled with math throughout school.

6. I attended Seneca Ridge Middle School from March – June of my 8th grade school year.

7. Number 6 was a difficult transition in my life because I had to leave all of my friends behind in     California.

8. I am left-handed.

9. I’m the designated picture-taker in my family. Everyone relies on me for photos of family events.

10. I wrote a letter to my favorite actor, legendary James Stewart, when I was in 6th grade. He wrote me back. Yes, I still have it.

March Slice Challenge #9

St. Patrick’s Day is one of my favorite days of the year because it’s also my birthday. It’s a day when I can celebrate my Irish heritage, too. I love when everyone wears green so they don’t get pinched. I have always liked being Irish-American and having my birthday land on St. Patty’s day.
When I was in college I attended school in Ireland for a summer course on Irish history and literature.

While I was drafting, I just found out one of my students in Block 4/8 shares my birthday. There are some celebrities who also share this birthday:
Mia Hamm, soccer player
Rob Lowe, actor
Kurt Russell, actor
Gary Sinise, actor
Nat King Cole, singer
Patrick Duffy, actor

I hope the weather is nice this year on my birthday. I never know if it will be snowing on March 17. Some years the weather has been really nice. One thing I know for sure is that I’ll be wearing green!

 

 

March Slice Challenge #8

…You have no idea what the latest trends are until your students look at you like you’re an idiot when you don’t know what a Roshe is. I thought they were talking about rashes in class when we were brainstorming writing topics yesterday. So I turned into an old, clueless grownup that I remember laughing at when I was younger, and asked, “What’s that?”

     “They’re shoes, Mrs. O’Brien!” {giggling}
“They’re awesome. Like these!” {holding both feet up in the air and almost falling out of seat}
“But aren’t they just regular Nikes?” I asked.
“NOOOOOOoooooooo!” My question was blasphemous.

So I did what any uncool adult in my position would do. I Googled roshe.
They look like ordinary Nikes to me except the bottom of the shoe looks bigger like the bottom of a boat or something. There are lots of colors and designs but I’ve seen that before with other types of shoes. So then I searched Roshe trend.
I learned some pretty interesting things. For example, the name of the shoe comes from the word for Zen Master Roshi but the designer couldn’t use the same spelling for legal reasons hence the Roshe. The shoe is supposed to emit zen-like simplicity and can be worn around town like a street shoe or to run around the track. The price point is supposed to be more affordable (if you call $70 for a pair of sneakers affordable). It is less expensive than other Nikes that typically sell for over $100, some models closer to $200.

I remember when Nike Air Jordans were the trend. Also, Vans! In middle school, I lived in Southern California and EVERYONE wore Vans. Those were expensive (to me anyway; I think mine were $32) so I only had one pair and I envied my classmates who had them in every color. Vans are still around and they always make me smile and reminisce a little.
Well, now I know what a Roshe is and maybe a little more about the background than a lot of my students. So there. =)

 

March Slice Challenge #7

 At the end of first block today, a student informed me that our clock wasn’t telling the correct time. Ah, Daylight Savings Time! Besides losing an hour of sleep, I now have to spend weeks fixing the many clocks I encounter daily.

I wanted to fix it before the next class entered the room so I grabbed a chair and tried to reach it. I still couldn’t reach because of the bookshelves underneath the clock so I grabbed my broom. I figured I’d use the handle to nudge the clock off the wall. I’ve done this before with no problem.

Well, I definitely nudged it. More than nudged it. It came flying off the wall like a U.F.O. and landed in several pieces on the floor. I knew it would take a long time to submit a work order and wait for a new clock so I placed it on a group of desks and decided my next class could form a clock-repair committee to do a little project-based learning before lunch.

Many volunteered. It felt like I was coaching a S.T.E.M. activity. I let anyone who wanted to help do so. I listened to them argue over what the different parts were.
“No, that’s the second hand because it’s red!”
“The hour hand goes on top of the minute hand!”
“The first thing we need to do guys, is put the battery back in.”
“I think the easiest thing would be to buy a new clock.”
“Here, let me see it!”

After I stepped in and reminded them to lower their voices and work together, the argument diminished.
I was happy to see a girl volunteer in a group of boys. I saw some leadership skills in certain students I don’t always observe when we’re “doing Language Arts stuff.”

I’m happy to say our clock has been put back together and we celebrated when the group finally saw the second hand begin to tick again.
I’m proud of their group work and success. Even though the clock stopped working 30 minutes later, it was a valiant effort.

 

March Slice Challenge #6

Today I went purse shopping. I had Kohl’s cash in my wallet that was about to expire. I was already at Babies R Us so I figured I’d hop on over to Kohl’s to see if anything looked promising.
I really wanted a new purse so I figured I see if they had anything that shouted, “me.” I’m picky about purses. I have to be because the wrong purse can send me into a disorganized spiral. I’m usually tempted to buy large purses that are more like totes because I tend to haul around a lot of stuff. But it’s better for me to find something medium-sized so I’m forced to simplify what I carry with me. Too many pockets = confusion for me.

I also sought something fun and spring-ish since the weather delighted me today. The snow melted into trickling streams and oblong puddles along the way to the store. Once inside, I looked at all of the springtime floral patterns first. But I couldn’t find one that spoke to me.

So I looked at darker purses – safe bets – browns and blacks and greys – because they match everything. Boring. Not inspiring on a day like today. I also wanted a purse that gave me easy access to my cell phone. And was different than purses I’ve had in the past. It seems to me that the weather definitely impacted my purse shopping today.

I finally found one that I liked. It was on sale and I would save even more money by using my Kohl’s cash. But then I started feeling guilty for spending money on myself. This happens a lot to me now that I’m a mom. I always feel like I could be spending the money on M instead. On practical items like diapers or sippy cups or picture books.

But I realized that it had been a long time since I had bought myself a new purse and I was tired of lugging M’s diaper bag around all of the time as my purse. Plus, I want to be organized and efficient and feel good about myself.  A new purse could help with that, right?

Maybe. Or maybe I should save my money. So I put it back on the shelf and walked away. I did another lap around the store but didn’t see anything else I wanted more than that purse. So I decided I’d “try the purse on” by walking around the store pretending it was already mine to see if I liked it. Then, if I bonded with it, I’d walk up to the cash register and purchase it.

That’s exactly what I did. I’m the proud owner of a new purse. It’s soft and smells like leather and I’ll probably have it for a long time. Of course I’ll still carry the diaper bag, too. =) Sometimes when the season changes, a woman just needs a new purse.

March Slice Challenge #5

“In the creative sense, showing up doesn’t just mean arriving at a place — it means being prepared to put in the work, regardless of outside factors or obstacles, including your own naysaying mind.”
~Hanna Brooks Olsen

I’ve often heard the expression that you need to “show up” regarding creativity and writing. What does that mean exactly? It means that you still sit at the white sheet of paper or blank computer screen even when you don’t think you have anything to say. I have a writer’s notebook full of inspiration but that doesn’t always help. I can flip through it and not be in the mood to write about the jots within its pages. Today I don’t feel like writing.

But sometimes you just have to show up anyway. So here I am. I was tempted to find an old piece of writing of mine to publish today but I want to show you that it’s okay to be here with nothing but you. It’s important to practice writing even when we don’t feel creative or awesome. Maybe that’s the most important time to write — when you don’t feel like writing. I don’t know. Part of me is just rambling in the hopes that I’ll think of something worthwhile to say.

A lot of you – my students – say you don’t have anything to write. You say you especially don’t have 31 things to write about in March. Well, show up anyway. Just like I am. And we’ll see what we can learn about ourselves and our writing.

March Slice Challenge #4

Yesterday I took M to get his hair cut. It was his third haircut in his entire life. The first time was last year and we went to a barber shop that had a little fire engine for him to sit in while his hair was being cut. He was very brave and only shed a few tears. He watched an episode of Thomas the Tank Engine and proudly accepted a lollipop after. I took a billion pictures, collected a little swatch of his baby hair to save, and couldn’t keep myself from rubbing his little boy head the rest of the day. He smelled like aftershave and I realized he was already starting to grow up as fast as everyone told me he would.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The second time he got his haircut it was pretty spontaneous. His hair was getting so long and always stuck up and tickled his ears. It annoyed him so while we were grabbing some slices of pizza, Mr. O’Brien and I took him to a salon next door. This time was different. It wasn’t as ceremonial either. For starters, he screamed his head off. He did not appreciate the loud clippers and two nice ladies trying to console him. He didn’t care about a lollipop…he wanted out of there.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I didn’t know how he would react for the third trip. We arrived just before dark and thankfully we didn’t have to wait long. He sat up on the barber chair on the little booster seat and they draped the cloth around him. He smiled and we pointed to the basket of “pops” (lollipops) next to the cash register. I was relieved. So far, so good.

And then the clippers started BUZZING and BUZZING and BUZZING near his little face and he screamed. With terrified eyes, he bellowed. He lunged forward out of the chair at me as hair flew everywhere! I tried to console him and showed him the “pop” he would get in a few minutes but it was no use. The barber was determined to hurry and finish; he was a little stern and probably stressed by the situation. After all, he was moving so much he was at risk of being cut or nicked by the scissors and clippers. I suggested that M may calm down if I could sit him on my lap while he finished.

We did just that. M clung to me like a cat avoiding a bath. We gave him a “pop” to suck while the clippers buzzed and hummed and vibrated for round after round. This distracted him somewhat and M settled down. He was face to face with me sitting on my lap and he was getting his hot tears all over me. I noticed his lollipop was getting little hairs all over it and it was gross but I didn’t dare take the pop away from him since he was calming down. I gave my brave boy a kiss and he offered his “pop” to me in gratitude. Toward the end of the ordeal, I noticed M looking at himself in the mirror. His eyebrows raised and he tilted his head, curious about his fresh reflection.

When we were all done, there was applause and cheers and another  “pop” to go for bravery. We paid and gave the barber an extra tip for his patience and tenacity. On the way out of the barber shop, M walked a little taller and seemed very proud of himself.

On the drive home, he turned his head left and right, left and right, left and right, against his car seat. He was experiencing the sensation of a fresh haircut, all the while smiling to himself, whispering, “Mmm…pop.” Victory tastes sweet.

March Slice Challenge #3

One of my students accidentally left her book behind one Friday. As I was cleaning up the classroom after school I checked out the cover. It looked interesting. The title, El Deafo, was curious. It had what looked like a super hero bunny on the cover. I opened it and became engrossed. I knew the student wouldn’t mind so I borrowed it over the weekend and read it in almost a single sitting. It’s a graphic novel so that’s not as difficult to do as it may be with other books, but it was entertaining. I kept reading on to see what what would happen with the young narrator who had meningitis as a 4-year-old and became profoundly deaf.
I really liked how subtle the author was with teaching the readers about what it was like for her to be deaf in a hearing world. It didn’t feel like I was reading nonfiction but in a way, it was narrative nonfiction. It is a memoir so technically it is nonfiction. I’ve never really read a book like this. The images make it funny paired with many of the jokes and comments in the speech and thought bubbles; however, the content is pretty serious and heartbreaking at times. I knew from the second page when the protagonist started vomiting and was rushed to the hospital, that this was a serious, yet funny book. By that, I mean the pictures and context of having cartoon bunnies tell the story help balance out the sadness and reality of what’s actually happening. Life can be surprising and hard but books like this are a great opportunity to explore worlds that are far different than our own…while focusing on what we have in common, too. Check this one out if you like graphic novels, but also if you like reading true stories about successful people. If you’ve read books by Tom Engleberger, you may want to read it because the narrator/author is his wife, Cece Bell and the subject is his wife’s struggles and adventures growing up.