Sustain Writing #SOL19

I am participating in the Two Writing Teachers Annual March Slice of Life Story Challenge.  

The challenge has ended, and another month of writing, commenting, wishing to comment more, building community, meeting new friends and reacquainting with old friends, is complete. Thank you for those of you who read my words and graciously commented on them or connected with them in some way this month.

Throughout it all...

Sustain writing and writing sustains me.

A Burst of Spring #SOL19

I am participating in the Two Writing Teachers Annual March Slice of Life Story Challenge.  


I really don't like spring. I like knowing that winter is almost over, and summer is on the horizon. But I truly am not a spring person.

I don't like unpredictable weather.

I don't like spring tornadic storms.

I don't like being teased by warmer temperatures one day and back down in the 30's the next day.

I certainly don't like going from 50's to 80's before school is out.

Today as I was walking in the front door, I saw one sign of spring that I do love:  the blooming of the magnolia tree.

It seems like one day it is full of buds and the next day -- it's an explosion of pom pom blooms.

Welcome Spring!

A little help from our friends #SOL19

I am participating in the Two Writing Teachers Annual March Slice of Life Story Challenge.  


Sometimes we just need a little help from our friends.

Today, I was teaching parenthetical elements using commas, dashes, and parentheses. One class was just not getting it. I showed different examples from books they were reading, and I explained it more than one way. But it just wasn't clicking.

I called my assistant principal who used to be an English teacher.

"Are you in middle of something right now?"

"I'm giving an assessment, but what do you need?"

"I'm teaching parenthetical elements, and they aren't getting it."

"I'll be right down."

I knew she would jump at the chance to get back into the classroom. When she peaked her head in the door, I said, "You want to teach this?"

"Sure!"

"I'm just going to sit right over here and watch." I sat down on my conference stool and watched as she seamlessly transitioned from the role of administrator to teacher. She asked a few questions, wrote a few examples, and gave more explanation. There was an collective "Ohh..."

At lunch I sent her an email. 

Thank you!

I loved it!

I knew you would!

Yes, sometimes we just need a little help from our friends.

The Hunt #SOL19

I am participating in the Two Writing Teachers Annual March Slice of Life Story Challenge.  

"I found one!"

"Where? Lemme see."

"I can't find one."

"Will you help me?"

"I found another one."

"This one has two!?"

"Can it have two?

"Mrs. Eck, can it have two?"

"Is this one?"

"No, that's not one!"


What were we doing today?  Well, going on a semicolon hunt. That's what!

The Hand Off #SOL19

I am participating in the Two Writing Teachers Annual March Slice of Life Story Challenge.  

Sometimes when I read a book, I know just the student I am going to hand it off to. After reading The Skin I'm In last week, I could not wait until today.

During homeroom this morning when my student walked in, I told her, "I have a book I want you to read."

She rolled her eyes and gave me that look that said, "Yeah, right."

Did I mention that she doesn't like to read? And that she hasn't finished a book the entire year. But I'm not about to give up on her.

At the end of homeroom I made the hand off.

I took the book out of my and bag and said, "Here is the book. I really do think you will like it if you just give it a chance."

"Uhmm," she mumbled. I could tell she was trying her best to ignore me, but I pressed on.

"It is about a girl who gets teased and bullied because of how dark her skin is. She has very low esteem. She has a mirror that her dad gave her, which helps her to see herself in a different way."  She continued to roll her eyes. Because of her body language, I could tell she wasn't interested, so I knew I had to do something different. I followed up with, "Oh, and toward the end, she catches her classroom on fire."

That perked her up. I could tell she was warming up to the idea, so I left the book on her desk. When the bell rang for the next period, I looked at her desk.  Yes, the book was gone. That was a start.

I have this student the last period of the day. When she walked in, I asked her, "Did you start the book?"

"Yes, I did," she replied showing no emotion whatsoever.

"You think you're going to like?" I asked crossing my fingers.

"Maybe..." she says with a slight smile.

Yes! I love the hand off!

Story Equation #SOL19

I am participating in the Two Writing Teachers Annual March Slice of Life Story Challenge.  

Test Prep and Pep #SOL19

I am participating in the Two Writing Teachers Annual March Slice of Life Story Challenge.  

March seems to be that time of year when doubt begins to creep in. We begin to question whether we have done enough, been enough. Yes, it is that time when what we have done gets put under a microscope under the disguise of standardized state testing. It has become part of the educational central nervous system, a system in which many believe that all else functions.

Friday, our State Superintendent of Education puts out a weekly newsletter. In this newsletter was a video about "test prep and pep." Finding the title intriguing, I clicked on it and was quite pleased by its message.

I believe that it honestly put test prep and pep where it belongs, as a natural part of teaching and learning - not front and center. It explained how test prep and pep "places undue attention on testing and damages the cycle of teaching, learning, and assessment." They further explain how this leads to additional anxiety and stress on students and encourages schools not to do these types of activities.

I have never been a fan of test prep and pep. I believe that if I teach my students to be strong, strategic, and critical readers and writers throughout the year, then I am teaching them to be prepared for the test, any test. I try to explain to my students that I do not teach them something because it will "be on a test." I teach them something because they need these skills to be literate human beings and to be part of our society.

Now I just wish they would put out a video on how testing shouldn't be used to evaluate teachers.

Baby steps!

False Alarm #SOL19

I am participating in the Two Writing Teachers Annual March Slice of Life Story Challenge.  

Some things just spend their life doing what they are supposed to do. They don't ask questions. They don't complain. They just go about doing their business.

This week we were all standing in the kitchen while I was making dinner when all of a sudden, our smoke detector in the basement went off.

"I wonder what that's all about?" I asked my husband.

"I don't know," he answered and opened the basement door to inspect.

We have electric detectors in the living levels of our house, but we have battery operated in the basement and in the upstairs storage where we installed a separate heating and cooling unit. This detector was going off for real, and not the go-off-in-the-middle-of-the-night-because-the-batteries-are-dead-and-drive-you-crazy kind of beeping.

My husband goes down, pulls out the battery and tests it with his tongue. "Nope, batteries are good. Not sure why it went off."

I had the dryer going, and I went downstairs to check on it. As I approached it, I could tell something was not right. As I got closer, it smelled differently. Not burning, but just a stronger clean laundry smell. Then I heard something strange. I looked behind the dryer, and the hose on the vent had come off.

Ah-ha! That smoke detector didn't detect smoke, but he knew something was wrong.

Yep, just going about his business of keeping us safe.

Time #SOL19

I am participating in the Two Writing Teachers Annual March Slice of Life Story Challenge.  

My daughter, who is also a teacher, and I spent the first day of our spring break shopping in the same city where my son goes to college. She spent the afternoon trying on bridesmaids dresses and bathing suits, and I book shopped. We put an exclamation on the day by having dinner with my son...and filling his car up with gas!

I struggled with finding a story for today's slice, so I decided to write a poem instead. This is an ABC poem, which creates a mood, picture, or feeling using letters in alphabetical order.. The first four lines begin with any letters within the alphabet. The last line is a sentence beginning with any letter. I learned about ABC poems at Newtreemom's blog.


A day spent
Between the two of them
Capturing the laughter
Denying the passage of time

They may grow older, but time spent with them never does.

Creature of Habit #SOL19

I am participating in the Two Writing Teachers Annual March Slice of Life Story Challenge.  

Are you a creature of habit?

Yesterday I wrote about a morning routine. For the most part, I think I am a spontaneous person. I'm not a planner, and I typically fly by the seat of my pants. I never really considered myself to be a creature of habit.

Fellow slicer and Teach Write friend, Christie Wyman, made a comment about my use of Hershey's syrup. I began thinking How long have I been drinking that? Are there other long-standing habits or routines that I have? Do I even remember when they began?



I honestly don't remember when my breakfast became a routine, but it has always been Jiff peanut butter and Hershey's syrup. When I was in college (the first time) I lived in a sorority house, and we had a fabulous cook. French toast, pancakes, eggs, and bacon quickly pushed toast out of the line-up. So, I believe it was when I began living out on my own. That would be 33 years ago. 

Friday night is pizza night at our house. It is the night I look forward to because I know I don't have to plan or cook a meal. When other teachers talk about eating pizza during the week, it just feels wrong! I think we ate pizza on most Fridays when I was a kid, but I do know my husband and I ate it together since we began dating. That would also be 33 years ago.







I sleep holding a pillow. I cannot sleep with just one. I need one for my head and one for my arms. I have to go back pretty far on this on. I think it was when I was high school, but I know I slept with one in college 37 years ago.

I am an Oil of Olay woman. I have never been one to try different beauty products. I remember packing that little pink jar on my first day of college, and I have used it now for 37 years.

On my nightstand stands a jar of Vicks VapoRub. I put this on my lips every single night before I go to bed. When I travel, it is one of the first items in the bag. I believe this habit started in high school 37 years ago, but honestly I don't remember a time when I have not used it.

Creature of habit? Well...maybe I should reconsider that title!

Sunday Morning Newspaper #SOL19

I am participating in the Two Writing Teachers Annual March Slice of Life Story Challenge.  

"Babies are the only ones who like change." 

This quote comes from a cartoon from many years ago. A human resources manager sent it to us when the company I was working for was undergoing some drastic changes.

I was reminded of it this Sunday morning.

I woke up and wandered in to the kitchen for my usual Sunday morning routine. I fixed my typical breakfast of perfectly toasted whole wheat bread with Jiff peanut butter and poured my skim milk into a plastic cup. I squirted the Hershey's Syrup while counting to ten and stirred it up. I took my breakfast to the antique wooden dining room table and looked around.

I was missing something from my regular Sunday morning routine. Something wasn't right. My routine has been turned upside down because there was no Sunday newspaper.

It has been two weeks since we began receiving our newspaper in the mail instead of being delivered early in the morning. Didn't they know they were upsetting my Sunday morning routine? Didn't they know I enjoyed lingering over the newspaper before starting my day? What made them think this would be acceptable to any morning newspaper reader?

According to the quote, I guess I'm not a baby...although I am acting like one!

One Sentence Slice #SOL19

I am participating in the Two Writing Teachers Annual March Slice of Life Story Challenge.  

While I crawled on the interstate for three hours, 

the lives of two families were forever changed.

Today, Tomorrow #SOL19

I am participating in the Two Writing Teachers Annual March Slice of Life Story Challenge.  

Thursday night thoughts - I wrote and posted my slice later today than I typically do. I sit here at 10:00 PM and think about tomorrow's slice. I like having slices written and scheduled for 6:00 in the morning.  As I was reading Elisabeth's post at The Dirigible Plum, I found my slice for Friday. I just put a little twist on her yesterday/today format.

Today, my post was written after 6:00 PM.
Tomorrow, my post will already be written.

Today, I stayed at school until 6:30 for parent conferences. (Middle school parents never come.)
Tomorrow, I get to leave early at 1:30 and our spring break begins!

Today, I received a text message from my son, telling about the tornado warning they had.
Tomorrow, I get to see him as he comes home for his weekend laundry duty and home-cooking.

Today, my students made their book club choices.
Tomorrow, they get to find out what books clubs they are in.

Today, I tried a new editing lesson.
Tomorrow, I get to see the conversations the lesson produces.

Today, I wore school clothes.
Tomorrow, it's jean day!

Today, I am tired from the week-before-spring-break chaos.
Tomorrow, spring break begins!

Today is now yesterday!

Happy Friday!

Right #SOL19

I am participating in the Two Writing Teachers Annual March Slice of Life Story Challenge.  

Do you ever wonder if the way you hear something read aloud is the same way in which the writer intended for it to be heard?

Today after our quick write time, I had a few students who wanted their writing shared, but they did not want to read it themselves. I always offer to read their beautiful words, but I often wonder if I read them the way the "right" way.

As I read one student's words, I could tell he was watching me intently. After class, he told me that hearing me read his words created a different feeling than what he imagined as he wrote them. He said I emphasized different words, and he liked it better that way.

Another student read her own work aloud. As I was listening, I pictured this written in verse.  I asked her about it, and she said, no, it was just a paragraph. Her writing had a cadence to it that begged to written in verse. I encouraged her to revise it, and afterwards, she was beaming. She knew this piece had a much deeper meaning and a different mood after it was written in verse.  Today, I share Alice's quick write on the random word, "right."  Again, this is writing produced in six minutes with only the revision of the line breaks.

Leaving
The right thing to do, right?
Turning
Which way?
Left or right?
Right, the right way to go
Water
Shimmering in the light
What is the right thing to do?
Sink or swim?
Leap or fall?
Leaving, was it the right thing to do?
I turn back, looking toward home
I was wrong.

Getting Real #SOL19

I am participating in the Two Writing Teachers Annual March Slice of Life Story Challenge.  

As I'm working at my desk, my phone goes off. I look down and see it is from Ethan, my soon-to-be-college-graduate son. Usually during the week, our communication is via text message, so this phone call was an unexpected surprise.

"Hey, I have a question."

"Hey, I'll have an answer."

"What do I put for the salary on this application?"

My heart skips a beat.

A job application.

A "real" job application.

The real world kind of job application.

After we discuss what he should put in the blank, I ask him about the position. He tells me it is a position in a center for Autism.  My heart skips another beat.

It's getting real.

And I ask myself, "Is this Momma ready for the real world?"

Book Spine Poetry #SOL19

I am participating in the Two Writing Teachers Annual March Slice of Life Story Challenge.  

I typically spend Sunday afternoons in my classroom, finishing up last minute items on my to-do list. This past Sunday I spent some time in my classroom straightening up the classroom library. I always enjoy tucking away out-of-place books, putting them on the right gene shelf and deciding which books should face out. Many times, I know who just finished reading that book, and who wants this book next.

But working in the library and handling titles in the month of March means....

Book Spine Poetry!

a snicker of magic

a tangle of knots

woven

the entirely true story

of an unbelievable fib

life, after

autumn's kiss

frosted kisses

let's pretend we never met

over the moon

chasing space

connect the stars

hello, universe

Remember the Flowers #SOL19

I am participating in the Two Writing Teachers Annual March Slice of Life Story Challenge.  

Yesterday I spent  most of the day grading argumentative essays. As I was reading one student's paper, the tears came.

Earlier in the year I wrote this blog post on our Teach Write Chat Blog.

Back in 1978, I was an eighth grader, and the movie, Ice Castles was released.  I had this thing for Robby Benson (we share the same birthday!) so this quickly became one of my favorite movies. 

It is a story about a figure skater who becomes blind, and with the help of the character played by Benson, finds a way to skate again.  He prepares her for a big competition, but no one knows she is blind. (Suspend reality here!)  She skates a flawless routine to the theme song of the movie, "Through the Eyes of Love."

The audience gives her a standing ovation and begins to throw flowers out onto the ice.  She takes her  final lap, not knowing that the flowers are in her way.  She stumbles and falls, revealing her secret to everyone there.  Robby goes out onto the ice to help her and says, "We forgot about the flowers."

On the second day of school, I planned a "write-around" activity where I gave a starter sentence and students had to add on to the story.  Then we moved to another student's writing and added to that story. We moved four times to four different stories.  I thought this would be a great way to get kids up and moving while writing fun, silly stories.

Only I had one student who refused to participate.  I tried to coax him to write by telling him how much fun this activity could be. 

Still nothing. 

I came back to him and told him he only needed to write one sentence, just one sentence. 

Still nothing. 

So I let him be.  I later found out that he struggles with writing.  I was creating a space where he could stumble and fall, revealing his secret to everyone there, simply because I "forgot about the flowers."

The essay I read yesterday began with asking me to imagine a room filled with smoke, which led into his argument that kids should not smoke cigarettes. He told me that smoking leads to lung and heart disease, cancer, and even strokes. He gave me a statistic about how many people die from smoking and another one about deaths caused by second-hand smoke. He told me cigarettes have nicotine, and it's additive. He told me it was against the law to sell cigarettes to kids under the age of 18.  Then, he told me he had friends who smoke, and he was worried about them. He concluded with asking me to imagine a world no longer filled with smoke.

All this.

From a student who, at the beginning of the year, would not even write a single sentence.

Yes, there were tears, and if I could have, I would have thrown flowers.

Lessons from Week One #SOL19

I am participating in the Two Writing Teachers Annual March Slice of Life Story Challenge.  
This year I decided to complete my slice of life challenge through the use of quickwrites.  By doing this, I hope to explore my own writing, identify problems my students may be experiencing with these quick bursts of writing, and show them authentic revisions in the writing process.

Writers participate in this challenge for many reasons. This year I have been disappointed in my students' writing when we do quick writes. (Maybe it's because I see the work from other students, and I unfairly compare.)

Because of this disappointment, I decided to put myself in their shoes and do quick writes for my slices. Today, as we wrap up our first week, I have a better understanding of how my students feel and why I may not be seeing the work I desire.

What I learned from a week of quick writes:

1. Knowing the prompt has an advantage. For this challenge, I chose my own quick write prompts, so I knew the direction my writing was going to take me before I even began. It became much harder when the prompt was spontaneous, and I didn't know it ahead of time, as in this slice.
2. Four minutes isn't enough time. When my students do quick writes, I give them four minutes with two additional minutes for revision.  This week, I took ten minutes for each of my quick writes.  I feel this gave me enough time to develop my idea which could possibly turn into something more. Four minutes just isn't enough time.
3. Writing beside them matters. I have always known showing my students my own writing life let's them see that writing goes beyond school. This week we have written quick writes together. They saw me struggle with the anxiety of the impromptu writing from a random word. They saw how ideas can take writers in different directions. They saw that writers can overcome blank pages.

But I think the most important lesson I learned was reminded of this week was Choice Matters.  I missed looking at my day and finding slices in the moments. My daughter said something funny the other day, and I warned her that it was March and everything she says or does qualifies for a slice. 

Then, I remembered that I was using quick writes this year. 

I know the value of quick writes and why we, as teachers, use them.  But I have also learned that a steady diet of the same type of writing, whether that is quick writes, on-demand writing, writing to a prompt, daily journal writing, or many others, is not good for any writer.

You might just see something different from me in week two!

Desperate #SOL19

I am participating in the Two Writing Teachers Annual March Slice of Life Story Challenge.  
This year I decided to complete my slice of life challenge through the use of quickwrites.  By doing this, I hope to explore my own writing, identify problems my students may be experiencing with these quick bursts of writing, and show them authentic revisions in the writing process.

This week I have been writing "live" with my students and using that writing for my posts. In my ealirer quick writes, I knew the prompts. I had a little bit of time to sort through what I was going to write. When my students do quick writes, they don't get that luxury of knowing ahead of time.

Yesterday, I decided to not only write live, but write unaware of the prompt. Here is what we did.

I pulled a book from the shelf, and looked at how many pages were in it. I called on a student to give me number between one and the number of pages in the book. Then I did the same with the paragraph number and sentence number.  Finally, the word number.

And that word became our quick write.

Today's word was "desperate."  Isn't that a great word!  I wrote along with my students, and I felt that anxiety of not knowing what to write about and where this word would take me.

But today, I proudly share the writing from one of students.  This is from Raney!

Image from Pixaby

I was stranded on the streets, desperate for a home. I walked down every neighborhood just to find the right home. As I was was thinking about food, I look up to see a bright shiny gold and silver house that said, "Raney come on in." So I ran into the house to find, nothing but the streets, and flashing cars pass by me. Then I realized I knew I would never find a home. I would only live on a thick gray side walk.




This writing was done in six minutes with no time to edit or revise. This is raw. This is real. This is "desperation" at its best.

Throw the Confetti #SOL19

I am participating in the Two Writing Teachers Annual March Slice of Life Story Challenge.  
This year I decided to complete my slice of life challenge through the use of quickwrites.  By doing this, I hope to explore my own writing, identify problems my students may be experiencing with these quick bursts of writing, and show them authentic revisions in the writing process.

As I got ready to do my quick write for today, I realized that yesterday's post was my 600th post! I was so caught up in the challenge, that this milestone slipped by me.

So today I celebrate, and I give you 6 ways (one for each hundred blog posts!) blogging has changed my life as a reader, a teacher, a writer.

1. Joy. I loved writing as a child and even a teenager. But life took me in other directions, and it wasn't until six years ago when I found that joy again. I love stacking words and sharing them, but it is the personal joy of having written that keeps me going.
2. Courage. Writing publicly has given me courage to expand my audience and my writing territories. Because of blogging, I have reached out written for Nerdy Book Club, Teach Write Chat Blog, and Choice Literacy. It takes courage to reach outside your comfort zone.
3. Community.  Being part of a writing community such as the Slice of Life, Ruth Ayres' Celebration, Poetry Friday, and Teach Write, took my writing life to another level. Writing is very personal, and finding that community makes that personal space just a little bit bigger.
4. Teaching. I know I am a better teacher of writing because I write. Nothing more to say.
5. Territories. Blogging has given me new territories to explore. My blog name is a day in the life of a reader, a teacher, and a writer, and I write about all of these. Reflection is also a big part of this. Flash fiction is a new one that I want try!
6. People. This is probably the biggest gift from blogging. Blogging has allowed me to meet so many new people, not only virtually, but in real life. When I talk about my writing friends, people question me, but I cannot imagine my writing life without them. There are too many name in this post, for fear of leaving someone out.  Because the list is so long shows you how much blogging has given my opportunities to work with some amazing people and  has expanded the four walls of my daily life. 

I hope those of you who are just staring out find these same blessings from blogging. It really has changed my world.

Let's celebrate and throw the confetti!