Inspiration

Today, Sir Coolman showed me an image of a curly-headed boy. He was sitting on the floor, at home, a skinny picture book in his hands. He was trying, and failing, to whisper read the words in the book, which looked to be at about a second grade level.  But he was no second grade child. He was a middle school student. I could see that because he had plenty of items labeled with his school's name. 

"You see that young man, dear?"

"Yes," I told him.

"Well, there are another 30 million like him, not all in America's united states, have you; but still just as much in need."

"It's so sad."

Sir Coolman glared at me. "Well, that's a cop-out way of referring to this poor child's condition."

"What did you want me to say? At least he has cool clothes?"

Sir Coolman's emotions flared, but he quickly calmed himself. "What I expected you to say was that you wanted to help in some way."

"Of course I would like to help him, and all the others. But I'm just one person."

He smiled. "Yes, I can both count and compare values, darling. You are one person, but you have the power to reach as many struggling readers as you desire." 

"Oh? What, did you come with a wand I never noticed before?" I laughed.

"You don't need a wand, dear. You're a storyteller. And storytellers have a source of power stronger than any wand: your mind."

I was feeling goofy, so we went back and forth for a while. But I couldn't get his words out of my head. So, I decides to act.

Believe me, you'll want to check back soon.

Sharing Peace with the World: Ganga Library

I have been VERY busy.  Sir Coolman and I have not even had much face time.  When I realized that my last post here had been in May, I was floored! But I have probably the best excuse possible: God is enriching my life, and that means that there are more ways to be useful.

Of the projects I'm engaged in at the moment, one deals directly with children's literature.  I have been given the OK to begin development of a children's section of the online Ganga Library.  This multilingual, non profit organization is dedicated to providing information about Alfred Nobel and the laureates of the Peace Laureate Prize.  While still in its beginning stages, the interactive library already has dozens of biographies, video links, and organized categories to help users in finding the information they need.  The organization is headed by several notable individuals, including its director, Dr. R.V. Nagaveni M.D., M.S..  

Up until now, most of the information the library provides has been written for an audience of educated adults.  But that will change when I add a large collection of child-friendly content.  By the time I'm done, kids, teachers, and the general public will have a really great source of information that is accessible to most readers, especially the smaller ones.

Check back for updates on this awesome site!

Tomorrow's Forecast for Florida...Snow!

Tomorrow is Read for the Record, a national event that tries to break world records for the most people reading the same book at the same time every year. This program is lead by Jumpstart, an organization devoted to tackling the literacy crisis affecting our nation. This year's book is Ezra Jack Keat's The Snowy Day. This beloved children's classic shows the fun of enjoying a winter's day of snow and ice. The main character is

Anyway, I'm SO excited about tomorrows lesson...I'm leading it! I've got SOOOO many ideas. But I realize that I have to remember time constraints. Still, I have to overplan rather than not have enough planned for the kids. I can't wait to see the looks on their faces when they experience snow, some of them for the very first time!

Here's a quick list of some of the activities I've got in store for the day:

Reading - The book of the hour, The Snowy Day

Life and Social Skills - Dressing for the Weather (PDF file)

Math - Temperature; Snowflake patterns

Critical Thinking - ... I've got something for this, but I've forgotten exactly what it is!

Science - Snow Experience (PDF File)

Social Studies - Where does it snow?

Music and Creative Expression - Snowy Scene Collage (PDF File); Snowflake Picture

Wellness - Snow snack

I've got some more about the experience on my site.

Anyway, I'm off to dream of snowflakes and ice to rest up and prepare early for the day's activities. How fun!?!

A Birthday of Brilliance

Fifty years ago today, Harper Lee's To Kill a Mocking Bird was published. It has been noted as one of the most important books of the 20th century, and has long been a source of inspiration for those interested in diversity. Because of the usage of racial slurs and focus on such topics as discrimination, the book was actually banned at one time. However, it is now used as an object of enlightenment.

But, despite its greatness, I still have yet to read this phenomenal classic. I have seen parts of the motion picture. But I haven't even laid eyes on a single one of its pages. This is definitely going on my list of books to read before I die. May God bless the length of my life to include the conceptual space of this book.

Into the Book

While mining for resources to help our students to better understand the parts of speech, I happened across what I think is one of the absolute most spectacular reading comprehension sites ever. Into the Book teaches students how to understand what they read. Their Teacher Area is EXCELLENT!!!!! This is a MUST-see site.

Zillions

Since classes begin next week, I decided to check out the syllabus for each course in which the instructor had provided it online. I found that the requirement in one of my classes is to read 32 children's books. This took my mind back to the days when this kind of information would have made me ... a bit delirious. After submerging myself in Caldecott winners and Newberry Medalists, the thought of the great volume of literature I need to read causes me to envision a child with super wide eyes, protesting such a requirement. "That's like...like a zillion words!"

When I opened my drawer and took out the mirror, I was pleasantly surprised to see Sir Coolman's classic face staring back at me, so I shared with him the latest news on my schooling. I finally got to the part about the bunches of books, and shared with him the picture I saw in my mind. He smiled. "Yes. That's all too realistic. You know, the perhaps the most comical part is the fact that your thoughts are based upon yourself."

I smirked. "I love reading. Have for most of my life."

"Most of your life, yes. But by no means all." And instantly, his features transformed into a scene of a small girl sitting on the floor beside her bed, holding a book and staring off into space.

I instantly remembered the book, the outfit, the room as it once had been. From the look on my face, my mind was so far away that my mother's voice startled me as it called from downstairs. "Retinna!"

"Yes," I growled.

"Are you still reading your book?"

I remembered the thing sitting limp in my hands and looked down at the words before answering truthfully, "yes!" I tried reading a few sentences before thumbing through the book, watching the words come together into one big, gray fog. "Stupid book," I told myself. "Thing must have nearly a whole half a zillion words."

As Sir Coolman came back into view, the first thing he saw was my open mouth, laughing.

Single Ladies: A Lesson on Inference

I'm a bit nerdy. So I don't normally listen to music from popular artists. But I've started to love is Beyonce's "Single Ladies (Put A Ring On It)." It's extremely catchy, and although the video is seemingly very simple, this series of intricate dance moves shot in black and white has gained worldwide acclaim.

Perhaps my brain has been reprogrammed after this past grueling semester, but my awareness of strategies for use with reaching seemingly unmotivated kids is ever increasing. While driving around doing Christmas shopping, I realized that this song lends itself well to teaching about inference.

To infer is to come to a conclusion based on a limited amount of given information. For example, in this song, Beyonce says "if you like it, then you should have put a ring on it." She doesn't make the drawn-out statement, "Hey, previous boyfriend. If you were pleased with your experiences during our relationship, then making it permanent through marriage would have shown prudence on your part." And thank God that she doesn't say all that, honestly. But the listener is able to infer all of this meaning from the brief statement she makes.

Another aspect of inference (one that I hadn't taken time to realize before this post) is the use of both idioms and cultural traditions. Not all cultures use a wedding ring, so even with strategic questioning, a student from another culture might not be able to conclude that Beyonce was speaking to a previous love interest about marriage. And even more interesting is the use of the idiomatic phrase, "You decided to dip and now you wanna trip 'cause another brother notice me." Depending on one's exposure to popular culture, this statement might not make sense. If someone doesn't understand that "dip" is to leave and that "trip" is to act out, they could be left wondering why someone would want to fall down on their face after they decided to submerge something.

Now, I realize that the content of this song might not necessarily be well-suited for an audience composed entirely of people too young to attend PG-13 movies without an adult. I'm not actually planning on using it. But if it is possible to build a lesson around a popular song like this one, I'm pretty sure that with a little research, and a little delving into popular culture, it's possible to create other interesting lessons that gain kid's attention and teach them important concepts.