A Moment of Clarity

My mind has been at a loss of words for my fingers to type until today.  Our school lost a student to a tragic car accident and it has been a difficult time for all of us. Last night a celebration of life service was held and I was filled with inspiration to write.
The young man was well liked and made an impact on lots of people.  That was clear to me as the gymnasium was full when I arrived and it continued to fill.  Students, teachers, community members and family filled the bleachers, seats on the floor, the balcony, the space on the wall and space in and just out of the doors.  It was an amazing showing of support for a good family.
The service proceeded as many do with pictures, music, and stories.  But the crowd there to honor a life was silent as the young man's mother took the floor.  She spoke of and thanked everyone who knew her son, and taught us a lesson to hold those close to us and love each other. She thanked everyone from friends and family for raising her son.  She said she and her husband started the job of raising him and everyone else continued that job.
It was a terrific moment of clarity as I sat there thinking about how many people we touch in a day, week, year, life.  Most of the time we don't ever think about the impact we make both positive and negative on others, nor do we acknowledge the impact others have on us until, many times, it is too late.
So, we are back to school today hopefully with a renewed mission to do what we do here and in all schools across the nation.  We are back at it to learn to hone the skills in which each of us is blessed and learn to use them to better ourselves, help others, and make a positive impact on this world.

Hype or the Real Deal

The most requested book early in the school year both by my students and through interlibrary loan is World War Z by Max Brooks. The book is on the Illinois Abe Lincoln Award book list and that is where we have the book in reserve for the launch of that reading program in our school. The requests have been so overwhelming that I am considering launching the program early. I have to admit the pages that I have browsed, the reviews I have read, and shamefully, the cover that I see, make it look like an enticing read. Also a brief scan of the
website by Randomhouse gives the book a fun interactive promotion that I am sure will make much more sense after the book is read or at least started.  I really look forward to the feedback from the students and teachers regarding this book to see if it is hype or the real deal.

Understanding Students and others?

This video by Improv Everywhere may help us to understand our students especially when we say, "you have to turn your phones off and put them away." I'm not saying there isn't time in this world for quiet undivided attention to a task or conversation, but we live in a world of electronic interconnectedness.

And, I would argue that it's not just students who feel this way. We all know many adults, some of whom are us (and there is nothing wrong with that), who are this connected. Enjoy!

Book Spine Poetry

Poetry month has come and gone, but not without some great results! One activity our junior high students did was called Book Spine Poetry. I learned about this activity from the Buchlady and her blog post "it's all in the spine!" Students collected books with titles that created a poem. Here are a couple examples.

When Jeff comes home

Al Capone does my shirts

Ask me no questions

without hats, who can tell the good guys?

Baseball

the boys of summer

the games do count

curveball

eagle in flames

ball four

a season on the brink

They all had a lot of fun pulling books off the shelf and creating short 4-8 line poems. One teacher said that it was nice to hear the students talking in the hall the rest of the day about the poems they created with book titles. Me, my aid, and a student volunteer had a lot of fun putting all the books back.

Here is an Original Poem

Rain, rain go away
the Bulls keep winning, so it's okay
the Hawks keep putting the puck in nets
I wish I would have placed some bets
if the Chicago boys of summer would start knocking in some runs
that might just bring out the sun

Happy Poetry Month from
the Cycling Librarian

Is our society asking too much of teachers?

The simple answer to the title of this post is: YES. I always try to remind my friends who work in the private sector that the product of education is the mind of a human being. And while there are a number of responsibilities that teachers must accept and hone, there are many responsibilities that teachers are expected to address that they have little or no control over. And these are things that include basic needs like sleep, security, nutrition, and basic resources. A student who comes to a classroom without these needs being met will not be as effective of a student as the student who comes rested, well fed, and from a secure home with resources. On the same note though, a student who is spoon fed, gets his or her way at home, lives without needs and gets what he or she wants regularly, this student often lacks the discipline or motivation to succeed. Teachers have no control over who walks into the classroom or what that student brings with him or herself.

I digress a bit from what my original intent was here. I want to direct my readers to an Washington Post/Answer Sheet Blog by Valerie Strauss titled "Teachers: Blame Only Where Blame is Due." In this post, Strauss identifies 16 variables that affect student achievement. When I look at these variables, I would identify only four that a teacher has direct influence. About three to four more of those are the responsibility of the school and the rest, nine variables, are up to the individuals raising the child.

I encourage you to read the link to Strauss's post to learn the 16 variables and see if you agree, but I believe that her 16 variable prove that education is not only on the shoulders of teachers. Education is a community effort. Teachers are not off the hook. They must be dedicated to their work, profession and students. Just as schools must be dedicated to their teachers, building, and community, and parents must take an interest and dedicate themselves to their students not just at home, but on the streets and at school.

Oh, what about the students? Everyone seems to forget about them in the discussion about "What's wrong with Eduction, these days?" More and more students seem to have a sense of entitlement. That it is their right to do what they please and if they want to fail, that is their right, too. Is this what we believe as Americans? I believe that should be addressed as well. Is the answer stricter discipline, harsher punishment, higher or lower expectations? I don't know. But I do know that the attitude a student brings to the classroom has a large impact on not only his or her achievement, but also those around him or her.

Teachers have a lot to manage and most do an excellent job of it. Does our society ask too much. Indeed, it does.

Poetry Month

Illini Bluffs elementary, middle and high school libraries are celebrating Poetry Month with several activities which will culminate with a large display of student work in both libraries. I am particularly excited to see how the Poetry Video turns out. Students will look at, interpret and read one line from a poem. Then when all lines from a poem are read on video, I will edit the video where the entire poem is being delivered line-by-line by a different student. Hopefully, my editing program and skills will make the poems flow, but also show the different interpretations of each line out of context. I don't know. It'll be great or not so great, but it will be fun. I will post some of the videos right here later this month.