[Mentor Texts] Leading up to Memoirs

Today we started to write memoirs. While I'm glad to share the steps leading up to these very-first-inkling drafts, I'd rather just show y'all what they came up with.

Here is the mentor text we used.  It's from Knots in My Yo-yo String by Jerry Spinelli.  We are using his memoirs as our mentor text throughout. We read a few excerpts, and then started in with this paragraph:

And here is our marked up version:

We've talked about a lot of these writer's tricks before have made symbols for some of them.  Here you see that we talked about (sort of in order as you read):

--How the author gives a location and then goes into detail using the sense of smell and sound
--The use of the hyphenated modifer high-pitched (H-M)
--The juxtaposition  of the two things we normally think of has high-pitched and hi mom's voice.  We also noticed that this puts a small piece of humor in.
--Figurative Language that extends in the next sentence (FL)
--Repetition for Effect (^^)
--An ellipse

Using this information, they started their own first paragraphs.  These are unedited paragraphs written in about 10 minutes at the end of our discussion.

 

So...  what we have here is a wide range of ability, reliance on the mentor author's words, and a HUGE range in skills. It is true, if you hold it up to what 7th and 8th graders have to do on command for assessments, it isn't going to cut it. You can take red pens to it, you can talk about how they should know how to capitalize, or how their handwriting is illegible. Technically, all of that is true.



I, however, am celebrating the fact that they are playing with words.  That they set right to work, were eager, were helping each other, and identified writer's craft with a high level of success.  that two of my kiddos with autism used figurative language successfully.  That my kiddos that read at the 3rd and 4th grade level are successfully mimicking a higher-level text.  That students with oppositional defiant disorder COMPLETED the assignment as given.  That my students who failed all of 6th and 7th grade for not turning in a single page of work, did this AND turned it in.

For my kiddos at this point in the year, I call this a win. My poodle-heads are writers. The rest will come.

[Article Review] Read This, Would Ya?

Click here for an article I want you to read.  I also want to hear what you have to say about it.  If you haven't told me yet, or chatted it to me, or commented it to me, please do so.  Send an email, an airmail, a carrier pigeon, or an unladen swallow.  I'll get the message.

[Teaching Stories] So Very Many Things

Although a short week (for me), this week held very many things to think about, deal with, look up, figure out, wonder about, come to terms with, understand, or fix.  Here is a list of things off of the top of my head.  Each of these things is directly related to one or more of the 22 students in my classes.

• How do you convince a kid that finding the Greatest Common Multiple of two numbers is actually important?
• What do you do for an 8th grader that is reading at the first grade level and on their way to high school?
• What do you do for kids that are almost certainly involved in child prostitution?
• How do you provide educational support for your students who are currently in juvenile detention?
• What do you do for a student who reports having been pregnant recently?
• How can you get enough therapy for children with emotional disturbance?
• When does Oppositional Defiant Disorder become Conduct Disorder and does it matter?
• What is the teacher's role for children who's parents do not provide doctor prescribed medication?
• When do "yo mama" and "Viagra" jokes become sexual harassment?
• How do you talk a kid into coming to school if their guardians won't make them?
• How important is it to uphold the "no gum chewing" rule?
• What do you say to a little girl who has been taken from her home the night before (for accusations of sexual abuse)?
• How do you tell a kid that his shoes smell so awful you can smell him coming down the hall?  Especially if, when you let the parent know that it was an issue, she was certain is wasn't the shoes but the fact that he is incontinent?
• How hard do you push the little girl who has been crying all morning?
• What do you do when your dog pees on the disgusting couch you have in your classroom?
• How do you get rid of a disgusting couch from your classroom?
• How do you balance the role of teacher and the role of proxy disciplinarian? proxy parent?  proxy counselor?
• At what point to stand your ground and make people do their own job--even if you know it will mean kids get less than they deserve?
• What should you do with the information that your students are STILL behind on the state standards?
• How do you get a parent signature you are required by law to have from a parent that won't respond to your calls or emails?  
• How do you react when you find out from everyone else that your school might be relocated?
• Should you let kids come in to your room during your planning time if that is what they consider a privilege? Or should you get your work done?
• What do you do when another staff-person undermines you in front of your class?  Do you show the kids how to be gracious, or how to be strong?
• Where do you draw the line when a student has been hit or beat up 9 times in 5 months by 7 different students?  
• What do you do when a child may have just faked a seizure in order to get out of detention?
• How long do you ignore the student who has clearly called you a bad name or five and has just buried the detention form in the dirt--in front of you?
• How do you respond when your male students say "oh good, the girls are gone, let's have a fart war!"

So there you have it.  As always, advice is welcome, smart-ass comments are expected.

Mini-Lesson... Maxi-Topic

In my college days a "mini-lesson" was defined to me as a part of a Writers Workshop as follows:

Mini-Lesson
The mini-lesson is part of Writers' Workshop and provides a short (5- to 10- minute), structured lesson on a topic related to writing. Topics are selected by the teacher and based on student need or curricular areas. These topics address aspects of the writing process or procedures for independent Writing Workshop time.


Even at the time I blanched a little at making a general term mean only one thing, so I have, with my super powers, expanded it to mean this:

A short lesson on a topic at the moment its need is discovered.  The topic addresses a need at the moment it is useful.  This is true even if it is only partially related to the overall unit.

With that definition in mind, let me tell you about the mini-lesson I taught this week.  I think it may be more aptly described as a maxi-lesson since it ended up taking two days to get the point across.

I will set the scene...

We are pre-reading for an article on water uses.  In it is an inset map.  The map identifies Washington, Oregon, the Canadian border, and the city of Wenatchee.  The conversation goes like so:

Me:  What do you see in this map?
Various: Washington.  Oregon.  Canada.  Wen... Wennch...
Me: Wenatchee.  Yes.  What does this map tell you about the location in this article?
Various: Washington.  Oregon.  Canada.  Weachch...
Me: (sensing lack of comprehension) What state is Wenatchee in?
Various: Oregon?  Canada?  Washington?
Me (rising horror): It's in Washington.  See the state lines here?  What two states are showing in this map?
Various: Canada?
Me (dawning horror): What country do you see here?
Various:  Washington?  Oregon?  Canada?  Wnchatcee?
Me: (nearly fully horrified, going to map of USA) Canada is at the top here, what country is right below?
Various: Washington?  Texas?  San Diego?
Me (trepidatiously): what country do we live in?
Various: San Diego?  California?  Washington?
Me:  Oh my.  Lovies... this can't be.  You can't do this any more.  It's time to know this stuff.

I gave them each a bright green super huge sticky note (thanks TM), and had them write "It's TIME" on top. We listed where they live starting with the planet and going down through the continents, the countries, the states, our county, their cities.  It took the rest of the period.  It was no longer a mini-lesson.  So, we went full-on and made "Where I Live" mobiles (pictures coming soon).

Next up... a commentary on what has happened to allow these kids to get to this point.  Not right now though.  I'm tired.

There is Too Much

It is the first weekend after the first two days of school. This caped teacher has been trying to mix in some good downtime, some quilting time, and some cleaning time in with her working time. As can be expected, though, all of my newest little cherubs are swirling around in my head. There are too many things to do, too many things to plan, and too many things to pick just one to post about.

So, I choose... to post about nothing yet. It is too much. I will not even sum up.

Professional Development

Subject line of an email I received this week:

Last Chance to register for Gang Violence

Have decided not to register for this professional development opportunity.  I feel that, perhaps, I do not need to include gang violence in my repertoire of talents. 

Je l'ai dit

Here it is, the first official Teacher Work Day of the 2010-2011 school year.  Two days until the kidlets come stompin' in the door.  How does this happen so quickly?  What happened to the Summer?  Why didn't I get all of that planning done?  And, while I'm at it, why are there no size "B" batteries, but there are many kinds of "A" batteries?

Je l'ai dit....

Summat Inspiring

I sat here, thinking it was time to write summat inspiring*.  I Googled it:

I sifted through the quotes and the cartoons and the jokes.

Now I'm depressed.

They were either sickly sweet and made me gag, or were negative and whiny.  The few that weren't were kind of stretching it. I briefly considered posting them and making fun of them, but quickly realized I would prefer not to join in the fun-poking.

So... I watched my new favorite movie again:




I'll try for inspiration again tomorrow. For now I will watch Dr. Horrible attempt to join the Evil League of Evil.


*Hagrid says "summat" instead of "something" and I tend to follow the WWHS (What Would Hagrid Say?) idealogy.  Read an article regarding Hagrid's accent here.

Lesson From My Pops

I have learned many lessons from my Pops.  I hear myself sounding like him on a daily basis in my classroom.  This morning, though, I remembered a lesson I learned while learning to drive.  Among other issues, I had a habit of forgetting to turn my headlights on as evening came on.  One day, Pops reminded me AGAIN to turn my headlights on.  I said I didn't think I needed them yet.  He thought for a minute, and then said that if I noticed two other cars with their headlights on, I would want to turn my own lights on.

I still use that rule while driving.  I was thinking this morning, though, that many cars these days have automatic lights that are on all day.  My two-cars rule might be obsolete, but I still use it when in doubt.

I would like to compare that to having a bad teaching day.  Perhaps the rule might be "if more than one student is suspended because of you, you might want to take a break."  If the thought "why are these students ALL being awful today?" goes through your head more than once, maybe there is something you are doing that is triggering it.  This is not a hard and fast rule (see future post on Rule #13: Beware the Full Moonies), but it is something to keep in mind.

Then I thought, similar to the automatic headlights on the roads today, student behaviors are also on "automatic."  It is tough to decide if the behavior is just "on automatic," or if they are caused by interactions in the classroom.  

I have no answer to this.  I was just thinking about it.  Any comments?

Is It Wrong?

Is it wrong to have all of these thoughts in one day?

"These kids are the cutest things."

"These kids need to learn how to shut their mouths."
"I love teaching.  It's my calling." 
"I hate my job."

"I never want to teach another day in my life."

"Wow, this day is going quickly!"

"OMG, when will this day be over?"

"I'm going to eat healthily today."

"Yummm... pizza and cookies for lunch."

"These people are so great."

"Everyone needs to leave me the heck alone."

"I need to go for a run after school."
"Oh look... steak and wine on sale at Von's.  Just add ice cream and we've got dinner!"

Welcome to the last 10 days of the school year.  Mania at its finest.  Any cape-wearers out there have special tricks they use to drag their rears to the last day of school?

Caped Crusader Down

This story on NPR caught my attention today and made my heart a little wobbly.  I've included the link to the story I heard, though there are many articles online.  His words and the words of his staff speak to me.  It sounds like he has left quite a legacy in education.

Remembering D.C. Educator Brian Betts by Claudio Sanchez

Coffee Talk

April 4, 2010

I am wondering if this blog appears a little... shall we say... cocky.  After all, I am calling myself a superhero on a regular basis and even put a cape on and fly around my classroom at times.  I use the terms "super teacher," "caped crusader," and "hero" quite easily.  I thought I might spend a minute to try to explain why.  

Yes, there is an amount of cockiness.  Teachers spend all day in charge.  We're bound to get a little uppity and become pretty certain we are right.  That just comes with the territory, methinks.  I also made a pact with a fellow caped teacher one day, that if we successfully earned our national teaching certification (NBPTS) we would admit to ourselves that we were, officially, "Super Teachers."  We did, we do, and we are both about to renew our Super Teacher Status. So, yeah, I'm a little cocky. 

Mostly though, I use my cape to help me stay the course.  Teaching is hard work and can grind you down over time.  Heck, it can grind you down in a moment! A school year has been compared to the running of a marathon. We start out the year with a burst of energy. We teach our tootsies off for weeks and weeks.  We get tired.  We keep teaching.  We get more tired.  We keep teaching.  That's our job.  My cape is a reminder that it is a long race but a worthy one.  When I just can’t even imagine another moment of teaching effectively, I have my capes—both real and imagined—to help get the second wind.  Or the third wind.  Or the fourth… you get the idea.

And lastly, many teachers ARE super heroes! 

su·per·hero

Pronunciation: \-ˌhir-(ˌ)ō, -ˌhē-(ˌ)rō\

Function: noun

Date: 1917

: a fictional hero having extraordinary or superhuman powers; also : an exceptionally skillful or successful person

We teach!  We perform amazing feats on a regular basis.  We leap tall buildings if necessary. We educate children while fighting the enemies of political turmoil, societal pressures and failings, large class sizes, mediocre salaries, sparse supplies, and, most recently, painful budget cuts.  Why not be clear about it?  We do extraordinary work on a daily basis. Sure, the spin in the news makes it seem as if schools are headed for doom, but isn’t that when the superheroes are most needed?  Doesn’t someone have to swoop in on a web, or in a cool car, or with… dare I say… a cape to save the day?  On another day I will wax political about what we need to do to save our schools.   Today, I will just put on my cape.

 "No matter how many times you save the world, it always manages to get back in jeopardy again. Sometimes I just want it to stay saved! You know, for a little bit? I feel like the maid; I just cleaned up this mess! Can we keep it clean for... for ten minutes!"

--Mr. Incredible, from The Incredibles

Chip-Eater

When she was told her daughter had been acting disrespectfully in school, being sassy, and not following the agreements we had made at conferences, the parent said, "Oh.  Well, you know, she HAS been eating a lot of chips lately."

This Super Teacher has no response to that.