The Dreaded Laptop

It was a nice day in first grade today, things were going well, and then it happened.

In walked the dreaded laptop.

The time had come for my next walk-thru observation and when did my principal arrive with her laptop? During a read aloud. Cool! Easy! Right? 

Well, yes. And also, no.

Normally, I have an objective for my read alouds that happen in the morning with my reading lesson. I am reading those books with the purpose of teaching a skill or practicing something we are currently working on in the lesson. The book is a mentor text or an example to be used to get my point across.

In the afternoon when I read aloud, I don't have any sort of objective except to read with my kiddos and enjoy a fun story. Today, when the laptop walked in, we were just cracking open the cover of a brand new, never been read before, just gifted to us, book. We were all excited for this one...The Smart Cookie by Jory John. 

We have read other books by Jory and have loved them all. We loved them, yes, but not because we were learning a certain objective from them, but because we were just reading for enjoyment.

My heart sank just a little when the laptop walked in. I know reading for pleasure is perfectly acceptable, but it's not something I can show a lesson plan for and I knew the laptop was looking for my objective on the board and my lesson plan to match. 

But...then...I remembered. I had swapped my read alouds today! Woohoo! I read for pleasure in the morning, and was reading with an objective when the laptop walked in. Saved by the book!

My purpose was to read today and tie it into my writing lesson tomorrow. As I read, I pointed out different things the author was doing that I knew we were going to return to tomorrow - the things I knew I would be refering back to in our writing lesson the next day.

As the laptop watched and listened, I knew she was enjoying the book right along with all my little people. She smiled and chuckled at all the right moments, and I knew she was enjoying my lesson.

The laptop finished click clacking her notes and I heard my phone ping when the email notification arrived containing her written feedback.

It would have been fine if I had been reading for enjoyment. But I'm still glad that today, by chance, I was...

the smart cookie!

Must Be Doing Something Right

It was a nice day for March 1 in Michigan and my husband’s whole family gathered in our living room to celebrate the many March family birthdays. We all enjoyed catching up, telling stories, laughing, and just having a good time together. We see each other regularly but it’s always nice to be together - everyone mostly gets along most of the time as most siblings do. 

We had a tasty lunch together, the birthday people opened their gifts, we ate a sweet treat…all the normal things a birthday celebration entails. It was a good day!

But do you know what I enjoyed the most out of all the things? It wasn’t the food I didn’t have to cook or plan. It wasn’t the happiness of those who loved their thoughtful gifts. It wasn’t even the sweet dessert options.

The best part of the whole day was after it was over! All four of my kids were hanging out together in the family room after everyone else had left. My husband and I were cleaning up the remnants of the party while we listened to them talking and laughing and just genuinely enjoying each other. While only one has moved out on her own and the other three are still at home, it’s so much fun to listen to them all getting along and enjoying their time together. It’s pretty cool to watch their relationships evolve from young siblings to half-grown teens to now starting to change from teens to young adults.There was laughter, some poking fun, some good natured joking, and more laughter. It made this Mama's heart feel pretty full.

I think we must be doing something right. We have four pretty awesome kids who, even though they sometimes argue and fight, will also stick up for each other, watchout for each other, and share laughter with a bond that only siblings can share. We can’t ask for much more than that!

It was a good day.

Playlist Ponderings

 This is my 9th year of the SOLC - although not all consecutive and not all fully completed. But, here I am! Ready for another try!

Usually I don’t mind all that much when I have to do school work at home because I know it gives me an excuse to crank up the tunes while I work. I love music - always have.

As I sat down today to enter assessment scores on the computer, I pulled up my trusty playlists and started to look over my options. I settled on my “Top Songs of 2024” list and got comfy in my desk chair. As I worked, I chuckled a little at the songs as I sang along. I have what you might call an “eclectic” kind of playlist and it really struck me this morning.

I have songs I remember and love from my childhood and songs I loved as a teenager. I have songs that were considered oldies when I was young and songs that are brand new right now, plus everything in between. I have country songs and pop songs, a capella and grunge, rock and even a few showtunes. Obviously, I know that I have a wide range of music in my favorite lists, but it just occurred to me how wide that range really is today.

In the country category, I have everything from Chris Stapleton to Keith Whitley, Tracy Lawrence to Shania, to Dan + Shay, Ronnie Milsap to Kenny Rogers and Dolly Parton…and let’s not forget Patsy Cline. There is a little bit of everything in there!

Actually, every category is similar in range. I have Journey, Neil Diamond, Meghan Trainor, REO Speedwagon, Miley Cyrus, Chicago, Shawn Mendez, Justin Bieber, Dave Fenley, George Strait, Billy Joel, Firehouse, Bruno Mars, Lionel Richie, Air Supply, Maroon 5, Sara Bareilles, CCR, Michael Bolton, AC/DC, Sam Smith, Colbie Caillet, Pink, Elvis, and Home Free. Honestly, it would be more vast than this if everything I loved to listen to was available on my streaming service.

I started thinking today, maybe I was procrastinating a little, that when I visit people’s homes, I have always enjoyed looking at their bookshelves to see what kinds of books they enjoy reading. My own bookshelf is pretty varied with everything from my own favorite Little Golden Books, my children’s favorite books from board books to paperbacks, the entire Harry Potter series, biographies, Mitch Album titles, my favorite Michigan author Viola Shipman, the Virgin River series (LOVE!), cookbooks, and even magazines. 

It made me wonder what my musical tastes say about me? If you visited my playlist, what would you learn about me or think about me? Does my musical bookshelf adequately tell a story of me? What does it say?