Ten Things

Ten things I’ve enjoyed on my first day of vacation

1.      The first watermelon of the summer.

2.      Going to the doctor and not needing to write sub plans the night before.

3.      Ordering 3 professional books and knowing I’ll have time to read them right away.

4.      Anticipating Friday’s full moon without worrying about behaviors.

5.      A clean house!  OK, change that to cleaner.

6.      Waking up at my usual time and falling back to sleep.

7.      Drinking liquid anytime I want!

8.      Bed sheets hung out on the clothes line.

9.      Freshly mowed grass.

Anticipation of my first in person celebration of our granddaughter Lucy’s fourth birthday, Texas was a long way away

Changes

It’s not easy to be a teacher in Michigan.  Budget cuts and educational priorities have repeatedly blasted the teaching profession. New laws have changed what our contracts can provide.   I was hired just before the turmoil started.  I’ve been a library media specialist, a third grade teacher, laid off for a year, a long term sub in the High School, and then a kindergarten teacher, assigned to split my week between two building.  I also taught sections of Young 5’s and Kindergarten the same year.  Finally 2 years ago I was assigned a full time Young 5’s position.   I actually spent the past 4 years in the same room.    Since I entered the profession in my forties I plan to retire in the primary grades. 

That was yesterday.

Yesterday morning I arrived at work, returning from a week long business trip with my husband.  As we stood chatting in the hall I sensed awkwardness.  Finally someone told me, our incoming group’s enrollment number was drastically lower than expected.  My position has been eliminated.  I still have a teaching job, but in what building, or grade level has not been determined. 

I’m heartbroken.  I have worked so hard to be the best I can be for my high poverty students.  I’ve spent countless hours learning the needs and development of five year-olds.  Two years ago I successfully committed myself to improving my writing instruction.  Last summer I devoted myself to improving my math instruction.  I read many books and applied what I’d read to my instruction.  I can prove it!  Look at my cloth ten frames, for acting out building numbers!  See the class set of rekenreks I wrote a grant to buy those!  Watch our morning routine, my kids really get decomposition of numbers and love all things mathematical!

Look at those 350 books I purchased with my own money so my students could have high quality books for at home reading! I want my students to love books, so I have glossy high color books.  My kids may be poor but they deserve the best.   I’ve bought many pricy learning games and toys for my deprived students.  Dang, I even have two new items for free exploration time that I haven’t even had time to unpack and bring into my classroom.

My small district has 4 young 5’s teachers and 8 kindergarten teachers, and all but one have been placed or hired in the grade level after me.  I’ve mentored, shared and written curriculum.  Yet by the decision of a newly hired district administrator, my school has positions eliminated, resulting in me being displaced.  I love all the people I work with in primary, and would hate to see any of the lose their spot, but right now I’m grieving my hard work and the fruit I hoped to continue to see from my efforts.

Now what?  There is a 5^th grade position in my building, with a close staff I hate to leave.  But 5^th grade is a world away from Young 5’s and I’m not sure I can do it justice.  Or is that just grief talking?  I could move buildings to 2^nd or 3rd  grade position .  I keep hoping this is all a mistake, but as I recall denial is a part of grieving.  As I look around my classroom I realize my guestroom is going to need some new shelving!  My grandchildren are going to have some amazing toys to play with at Grandma and Grandpa’s house.  Don’t even ask how many books they will need to listen to each time they visit. 

Frozen

I don’t often see movies. It was good luck that I happened to see the movie Frozen at a friend’s house.   Many of my Young 5’s students own it and I’m glad I have an understanding of their love for all things Frozen.

A couple of days ago “Nicole” wrote in her journal that she had the movie Frozen and loved it.  She went on to tell that the movie was gone and she really missed it.  I think her mom had rented the movie and it had been returned.  Later in her writing she commented even though the movie was lost “that song is still stuck in my head.” I was scribing for her and I asked which song she still remembered.  She replied, “Let it Doh.”  I must have looked puzzled, I was unsure, I’ve only seen the DVD once.  To help me out she began to sing and I recognized the song, “Let it Go”.  She gets speech services but she still doesn’t have her ‘g” sound. 

In typical fashion I encouraged her to add more details and to color her picture.  I moved on to scribe for more students.  During playtime I recalled Nicole’s writing.  I used my  iPad and went to the iTunes store.  The song was available for 69 cents.  I bought it and plugged into the sound system in my classroom.  The delight on Nicole’s face as she heard that ‘song in her head’ come out of the speaker was worth far more than 69 cents.  As the song finished playing she asked if I’d play it again.  I put the song on repeat and she stood in front of the speaker belting out ‘Let it Doh, Let it Doh.’  She was joined by several friends and they all sang “Let it Go” together, soon Expo markers became their microphones.  By the fourth performance they were choreographing their arm and head movements

Yesterday’s story in her journal was about spending playtime singing her favorite song.  This morning Nicole came in the classroom she handed me a picture and writing.  I asked her to read it to me.  She pointed and read Teacher and Elsa.  As I looked closely she pointed to the picture of me and of Elsa, the character in Frozen.  She went on to say that she now wanted her name to be Elsa.  I’m not sure of the proper way to handle a child wanting to be called a new name, but I really didn’t want to go there.  I quickly pointed to her desk name tag, her cubbie and even her writing journal.  “I’m sorry, Nicole,” I said.  “Your real name is written on too many important things to change it.”  She looked me in the eye and said with a dejected sigh,  “O. Day.!”

A Cleaning Problem

"I put soap in the dishwasher," my husband commented as I made beef strogronoff for our dinner.
"And the extra soap things are in the new box of Cascade," he innocently added. I appreciate his help in the little things in the kitchen.  But wait! Last night was trash night. 
I gasped, "You didn't throw out the container" did you?"
 "Yes."
 "Not out by the road?" 
He shook his head.  
"Where is it? I grumbled.  I didn't sound at all grateful for his help.
"Right here in the trash," he replied as he dug through the kitchen trash can to find it. 
I sighed in relief.  "Thanks, I saw something really cool on Pinterest and I really want to make it" 
It's a true testament to our marriage and his understanding of my job, he just nodded and started to wash and dry the plastic box.
I'd pinned it months ago, days after  discarding a green topped container.  I've wanted to make that crocodile all summer and I was so afraid I'd have to wait another 90 dish washing cycles to try it.
If you listen closely tomorrow you'll hear us say Crocodile, crocodile down by lake, I'm going to reach right in and see what (letter) you ate.

One Black Ant

I woke up early this morning 5 am, sigh, will I ever relearn the skill of summer sleeping in?  I settled down with a book and a tall glass of Diet Coke on the floor beside me.  As I sipped toward the bottom I found a HUGE black ant floating in the glass.  I've been fighting them for weeks!  Last week I resorted to a poison.  The box says it gets taken back to the nest by the ants, and it promised the rest of the ants will die.  Following the directions I've stopped dashing across the floor to crush the big black ants in hope the poison will take care of the problem.  I guess the ants got the last laugh as this big guy attempted to POISON me!  As a writing teacher I thought about pairing this story with 2 Bad Ants by VanAllsburg!  If I live!!

Day Two of Vacation Planning for Next Year

I spent the second day of my summer vacation sorting and cleaning my classroom.  I’m trying to clear out clutter and make room for a loft.  Today I took a critical look at my teaching resources.  Many people have given me books as they’ve retired or moved to different positions.  I’ve sorted and read and decided to set up a table in the hall with items I no longer need.   I’ve come to realize how Pinterest and Google have made many resources unnecessary.  What other teachers don’t want I’ll recycle. 

With the encouragement of a teacher friend I’ve worked toward removing a double bookcase from my room.  I still have many books, and I think tomorrow I’ll remove student books that I don’t love.  Danny and the Dinosaur by Hoff, is up for grabs.  I keep thinking of how excited the new teacher down the hall will be to get a huge bookshelf.  Almost as excited as I’ll be to get rid of it!

Memories of my Grandmother

One of my early childhood memories is of visiting a general store in rural northern Michigan.  I think I was about 4 at the time; my sisters and I were staying with Grandma possibly when my younger brother was born.  My grandmother didn’t drive so we all went to the store together.  I remember standing at the counter watching the grocery man pull things down, with a long handled pole,  as grandma listed the things she wanted.  Things like the flour and sugar were weighed and were then bagged in paper bags.

Several weeks ago I heard an interview on NPR with Michael Moss the author of Salt Sugar Fat: How the Food Giants Hooked Us.  As I’m reading the way salt and sugar affect us and cause us to crave more, I’m amazed to think of the changes that have happened in our food delivery system in my lifetime. I'm an adult who never had an Oreo until my college roommate introduced me to them.  I’m ashamed to admit I’m making up for lost time.

This same grandmother had a wood burning cook stove in her kitchen, alongside her electric stove, except for the summer she really preferred her  big wood stove.  As an adult I visited  and noted that she'd added a microwave to her kitchen appliances, but the wood stove was still there.

I haven’t finished the book, but my eyes are certainly opened to the changes in the formulation of our foods.  I’m finding the book to be an interesting read.