It's a New Dawn...It's a New Day

Happy New Year! I'm not sure I've ever been so excited to see a year end and a new one begin.  2010 was certainly one of the toughest I've had to endure to date and 2011 promises to be one of surprises!  Each year I always try to make and keep a few resolutions.  Like most everyone I know I have the very best intentions but often find myself abandoning them by the second week .  So this year I decided to keep it simple.  I made one resolution and made sure it would be of great benefit for me to stick with it.  The amount of email I get in a day is outrageous but I have decided that I will not sleep until each and every email has been dealt with for the day.  There is something so gratifying about seeing your Inbox at 0!  So far...so good.  Now as each new day dawns I don't feel overwhelmed and behind from the barage of emails that never stop coming.  What are you resolved to do this year?

Thankfulness - The Blogging Challenge

This week I was reminded, yet again, that I am not actually in control of what happens in life.  Just when you think you have it all figured out fate steps in, shakes it's finger right in your face and says, "I don't think so"!  I am supremely grateful for the most wonderful and supportive school family any principal could ever be lucky enough to have.  I felt loved beyond belief this morning when I shared my gift, this "surprising"poem, with them...

My wish for you this time of year,
Are days filled with fun and holiday cheer!
Family, food and gifts galore,
You never know what the future’s got in store.

So make some time to take a rest,
And hold on to the ones you love the best,
Enjoy the moments shared with kith and kin,
Before the hustle bustle of the new year begins again.


And just in time for this special season,
Quite certainly there must be a reason-
Here’s a big dose of holidrama,
Next summer I’m gonna be a Mama!

The Blogging Challenge - My Life as a Writer

 by Olivander on flickr

I've gotten behind on the challenge, which fits perfectly with how I'd describe my life as a writer.  I also dug back into an old blog post I wrote on this very topic almost a year ago when I was struggling with the exact same things.  As I read the old post I realized that it still summizes this part of my life perfectly...

Originally posted on December 4, 2009
Growing up I NEVER thought of myself as a writer, especially not a good writer. My childhood friend Catherine was the writer - and exceptional at it! I was never confident about it and actually found it to be a painful experience. I wasn't always the best student. I was a major procrastinator and daydreamed way too much to ever actually get any thoughts down on paper.



Looking back I'm not even sure I knew how to write, at least not until high school when I landed in the classrooms of two very special English teachers, Mrs. Hedgepath's 9th grade Honors and Mrs. Gobbel's 12th grade AP. Mrs. Hedgepath taught me to write from the heart and express my feelings about the topic at hand. I loved her, her class and every writing assignment she gave me. Headed into that AP class in 12th grade I never, ever imagined I would pass the end exam - after all, you had to write a 5 paragraph essay on some obsure literary topic in 30 minutes or less. Hardly anybody ever passed the essay portion and I didn't even consider it a possibility. But, Mrs. Gobbel taught me to think critically, organize my thoughts and succinctly put it all down. She was confident in my ability, and guess what, I got the essay done and PASSED. I was one of only a few that year, out of group of peers I considered much more talented than me. It was HUGE for me.
So much of my job over the years has required me to write, a lot, and in many different ways. And even though I find myself complaining about the volume from time to time I actually really enjoy it and the thoughts and ideas flow fairly easily once I'm started. That is, until the last few weeks. I have had the worst case of writer's block EVER! I've started and stopped many blog posts, fought through the technical writing my job requires and basically avoided the creative process because it had truly become painful. It hasn't happened but a time or two in the last twenty years, and I have really resisted struggling through it this time, and it has really bothered me. Ignoring the issue was easy since everyone had very carefully avoided asking me why I wasn't writing until my mother in law, whom I adore :), asked me last week if I had just quit my weekly blog. Ugh - you gotta love those mothers in law for holding you accountable just when you need it the most.
So, I committed myself to pushing through it and getting back on the communication bandwagon again. Forgive me if its rough at first but there is a lot of stuff rattling around upstairs and it will take me some time to sort through it and get it all out. Being able to share through the written word is a huge part of who I am and I've missed the creative expression. When I'm writing I am focused and when I'm focused, I am productive. When I'm productive, WATCH OUT! Thank goodness I had two teachers along the way who brought my inner writer to life, writing has shaped who I've become, how I feel about myself and how I relate to every single part of life.

Even though this post has taken way longer than it should've, I'm already starting to feel better...

During the last three weeks I haven't exactly had writer's block but I have certainly allowed other things to distract me from putting ink to paper.  Or maybe being distracted is just an excuse for covering up writer's block - anyway.  I was forced today to write something to meet a seriously quick deadline so I put my headphones on, closed the door and got it done in record time.  It was actually pretty good and the sense of accomplishment I had at completing it and pleasing the person I was writing it for made me feel great.  I think writing for others makes the difference. So...whether it's writer's block or distraction I'm getting back on track!

The Blogging Challenge - Small Moment

In a large organization sometimes its easy to feel lost, like you are nothing more than a widget being moved or placed without thought or control.  Mandates and  missives come at you from every direction and cause you to make mistakes or miss things.  You become part of the machine.  I hate this because often my mistakes effect the very folks I'm trying so hard to protect and I never want what I do to define who I am. 

I got frustrated this week - it happens.  The good thing is that right when I felt the worst I ran across a book I've had on the corner of my desk since the summer,  The Big Moo, by Seth Godin.  The first thing to hit me was the subtitle: "Stop Trying to Be Perfect and Start Being Remarkable". Hmp! Major life reminder right smack dab on the front of the book! I flipped the book open to find these words: "Who You Are Is What You Do"; I read on to Mr. Godin's reminders that I am not a cog, but rather a valuable asset to others, capable of impact and leaving a legacy and then to his challenge - "...you're remarkable.  Now, hurry.  Don't let yourself (and the rest of us) down."

Don't worry - I don't plan to.  I'm a Purple Cow in a brown cow world...

The Blogging Challenge - What Book Made the Biggest Impact on Your Life?

Rain Makes Applesauce, by Julian Scheer, is hands down my choice for the book that has made the biggest impact on my life. I vividly remember going to the library in my small town on Saturdays with my Mama to check out picture books. We stumbled across this book on one of our trips and I'm quite certain we checked it out 10-15 times during my childhood. I can still feel the disappointment I experienced on the few weeks we wanted to check out the book only to find that someone else had beat us to it. I loved it because it made my Mama smile to read it's silly verse and we'd sit together for hours and look at the extraordinary illustrations. In looking back I know that this book is the one that "taught" me to use images to bring life to the words I read because even though the words didn't make sense the pictures created comprehension for me. As a result taking the time to create mental images and see the story as I read has became a gift (and a curse - slow reader) as I tackled the written word throughout my life. when I decided to become a teacher it is the first book I went out and bought for my classroom.

About the Book:

Rain Makes Applesauce is filled with seemingly nonsensical verse after verse of “silly talk” coupled with the repeating line “and rain makes applesauce” which at first sounds absurd but actually holds the only real truth found in the lyrical poem. The elegant and fanciful prose is perfectly suited to the equally as engaging illustrations found in this delightful book. The pictures are full of intricate detail designed to stretch the imaginations of the reader. It is only under closer observation that the reader discovers the surprising image on each page that mirrors the repeating line. In 1965 this book was chosen to receive the Caldecott Honor Medal.

Using the Book with My Faculty:

I chose Rain Makes Applesauce as our April 2008 Book of the Month because from time to time I think we all need to be reminded that it is important to look upon ideas and images with the wonderment and interest of a child. Just as a child may return to this book over and over again and each time see something new and interesting and different so must we in our work with students. We must be on the constant search for “new meanings, new images and new responses” to impact our instruction and our interactions with students. Our students are like the apple seeds in the beginning of this book. Knowledge for them must be planted carefully, cultivated and nurtured regularly. From time to time a storm will have to be weathered and understanding that even a little rain goes a long way towards producing a great result makes the journey pretty sweet in the end. Rain does indeed make applesauce and I’m not just talking silly talk!

The Blogging Challenge - My Life as a Mathematician

It's funny.  When I saw that this was one of the topics for the blogging challenge I have to admit I was dreading it, but ironically, I've ended up spending more time thinking about it than the other topics.  Growing up I never hated math and in fact when I think back I'm pretty sure my worst grades were in Reading, which was my favorite. I can vividly remember learning my times tables in the third grade by singing them.  The 6s had a country beat and the 7s were disco!  Those two were my favorites!  I could memorize the steps and I certainly could repeat them problem after problem.  However, word problems were a completely different story - yikes!  My life as a young mathematician was uneventful, just page after page of problems, and I was happy until of course, I got to the two word problems at the end of the workbook page.

My happy go lucky math life completely changed when I got to the tenth grade.  Algebra II! Binomials, conjugates and logarithms - oh my!  I had the worst experience.  I didn't get it and my teacher didn't help me - I made the first and only F ever on my report card that year. :( At the end of that year I closed the book on Math and made sure I never took another Math class until college.  I only took one then because I had to.  That professor was slightly more helpful but I really only made it through because of the outstanding tutor I found who could actually explain the concepts to me in a way I could understand.  I've worked hard as an adult to improve my mathematical skills and understanding.

As my own daughter came through elementary school completely immersed in a conceptually based math curriculum I began to realize why I did okay early on but struggled as the Math got more complex.  I had absolutely no idea what I was doing - what the Math really meant.  As long as I could memorize the facts or repeat the same steps over and over to solve the problems I had it made.  My daughter understands why the Math works and knows many ways to solve any problem she encounters.  I've learned a lot from helping her her over the years and I still learn something about why Math works with every lesson I observe.  If I had been taught the way she was there is no telling how far I would have gotten in the study of Mathematics.

I have always been able to just see patterns and sequences.  Timing, schedules and organizing data are easy for me and I use Math almost every day to do my job.  I calculate percents and averages, generate complex schedules, analyze and create data, and efficiently manage a large budget.  I view each task as a personal challenge and every time I approach a problem these days that requires me to think mathematically, I feel encouraged and accomplished.  Conquering something that hasn't always been easy makes you feel pretty great! Effort + Determination = Skill

The Blogging Challenge - Class Poll

Sometimes a blog post can be as simple as polling your class about a topic and then sharing the results.  It's fun to see what others think and discover the similarities and differences between us.  This week I polled my "class" (the teachers) to find out:

What was your favorite subject in elementary school?

Here's what the "class" had to say:

Kindergarten

Julie - Reading
Liz - Reading
Danielle - Reading
Nina - Math/Science
Laura - Math
Debby - Reading
Michelle - Reading
JJ - Reading
Vicky - Reading/Writing
Brooke - Writing

First Grade
Patricia - Math
Toni - Music
Tracy - Science
Rebecca - Reading
Maria - History
Cheryl - Math
Debbie - Reading
Lauren - Reading/Writing
dayle - Algebra/Biology (yeah, right!)

Second Grade
Rachel - Reading
Heather - Writing
Karen - Social Studies
Lori - Science
Jessica - Reading
Kathi - English
Lauren - Math
Wanda - Writing
Christina - English
Laurie - Art
Debbie - Reading/Writing
Beth - reading

Third Grade
Lynn - Reading
Lindsay - Reading
Katie - Math
Randi - Reading
Melissa - Reading
Ashley - Writing
Denise - Science
Cindy - Math
Cheryl - Math
Tammi - PE
Christy - Writing
Melonie - Social Studies/Writing

Fourth Grade
Bridget - Math
Joe - Math
Angela - Math
Rick - Math
Meli - Reading
Christine - PE

Fifth Grade
Kristin - Social Studies
Tom - Social Studies
Terri - Reading
Sherrie - Recess
Carolyn - Science
Lauren - Math

Resource
Moe - Science
Suzanne - Math
Melanie - Reading
Betsy - Reading
Jen - Art
KK - Reading
DeeDee - Language Arts
Nikki - PE
Ray - Math
Jane - Recess
Joy - Math

It was so interesting to find out how many of our teachers are actually now teaching in the exact subject areas that were their favorite as children, and how many that aren't!  Some of the responses really surprised me and then others were exactly what I thought.  And as for me...it has always been...READING!