Mackenzie Rose

Read more Slice of Life stories at the Two Writing Teachers blog with Ruth and Stacey.

Your baby blues are innocent, sweet
Your chubby fingers hold mine tight
Your smile is like sunshine

Your baby cheeks are pudgy-round
Your feet wear my shoes
Your giggles are contagious

You were here for such a short time
You brightened our days
You will hold our hearts forever

In Loving Memory

Mackenzie Rose

12/8/98 - 8/8/00

My niece was my little princess for almost two years before she and her babysitter were lost in a car accident.  She could make you smile and lighten your heart without effort. She was our little "Rosebud." 

Love you forever, Baby girl

Children Are A Choice

I am the mother of four children ages 9, 7, 4 and 1.  I chose to be a mom.  I chose to have four kids.  Is it busy?  Of course!  Are some days better than others?  Of course!  Some days I have lots of patience.  Some days I don't.  Some days my children are full of giggles.  Some days they are not.  I also teach kindergarten full time.  I chose to be a teacher.  Am I around children all day?  Yes.  Do I love it?  Yes.  Are there good days and bad?  Of course.  Am I exhausted at the end of the day?  Yes, but it's a good kind of exhausted.  It's the kind of exhausted that feels like I did something important that day.

I am continually surprised by the number of people that know I am a teacher and then find out that I have FOUR kids at home.  That's how they say it.  "You have FOUR kids at home?"  Yes.  Yes I do.  It's a choice that I made. 

Isn't having four kids hard?  Isn't it hard after spending all day with kindergarteners?

No.

Cancer is hard.

Children are a choice.

Death is hard.

Children are a choice.

Life is like a roller coaster.  You can shut your eyes and scream for your mommy OR you can throw your hands in the air and enjoy the ride.

I choose to teach full time and I choose to have four kids.  I choose to throw my hands up in the air and enjoy the ride.  I wouldn't trade it for the world. 

Words Matter

For more Slice of Life stories head on over to the Two Writing Teachers blog hosted by Ruth & Stacey.

Yesterday I heard it.  That dreaded sound that all parents hate.  The sound that changes your life for a day, maybe more.  You know the one.  The sound of your child throwing up.  Yes, that's what I heard yesterday from my seven-year-old.  To make matters worse, I heard that sound in the van on the way to school in the morning.  Is there any worse time to hear it?  And, since my 9-7-4-1-year-olds (ok fine, I will excuse the one-year-old) don't seem to know when it is coming...well, I'll spare you the details.  Although, if anyone knows how to teach that skill to children, to know when they are going to get sick, PLEASE SHARE YOUR SECRET WITH ME!!!

Anyway, I'm getting off topic here.  "The incident," as I'm calling it, happened just around the corner from the babysitter's house.  Luckily, I was able to pull into her driveway.

Because my babysitter, B, is awesome, and by awesome I mean phenomenal, she rescued me.  She came out to the van carrying paper towels and wet wipes to clean up.  As we were cleaning, she asked me, "What does a teacher do in this situation?  I've always wondered."  

"I have no idea!" is how I actually replied.  "I guess I will be taking her home because I have no other option today."

At this point, B tells me that my daughter can stay at her house.  She can stay in her bedroom, sleep, watch a movie, color, etc. until I can take her home.  She can stay all day or part of the day or whatever I need.  (See, I told you she is awesome!)  And, here is where the real story begins.

 

B's mother-in-law just passed away last week.  She had been sick and B's family had been preparing for her move into their home so they could take care of her.  B and her husband had transformed their bedroom into a comfortable room for his mother.  They moved furniture and created a space that would work for her.  As part of the preparations, B urged her children to decorate the bedroom for their Grandma.  She bought special markers so they could write messages on the windows and mirrors for their Grandma.  She bought poster board and markers so they could write messages to hang on the walls and decorate the room.  Unfortunately, their Grandma passed away before she was able to see the bedroom and all the girl's hard work.  

 

When I walked into the bedroom to pick up my daughter yesterday, I stopped and stared.  I couldn't do anything else.  All I could see were the bible verses, prayers, uplifting messages, comforting words and pictures that were surrounding me in this room.  It is an ordinary bedroom that had been transformed with words.  Important words.  Words that uplifted my spirit.  Words that felt magical in this ordinary space.

 

I had a hard time carrying on my half of the conversation as I looked around the room. I couldn't speak around the lump that formed in my throat.  I could not tear my eyes away from the writing that was all around me.  It may have been someone else's words that the girls had written down but they had sought out and written down such perfect messages for their Grandmother that it touched my heart in a way that I can't shake.  Oh, the power of words!

 

I have found myself thinking about this hundreds of times ever since.  I can't shake the feeling I had in that room.  I can't shake the magic of their words.  The story they created for their Grandma.  B told me that the girls felt really bad that their Grandma didn't get the chance to see what they had done.  B's response?  "Maybe this was God's way of preparing you, not really for Grandma at all."  That is the response of a special lady. This is the woman who is caring for my children every day.

The world is lucky to have people like this; people who can see an opportunity for words/writing/stories and know that stories matter.  My family is lucky to have B in our lives; a person who shares her love through words and actions both.

 

And, I can't help but think of Ruth Ayres' wise words. She says, "Words matter. Story matters."  Yes, it certainly does.

Game On

Read other Slice of Life stories at the Two Writing Teachers website.

Surviving parent-teacher conference week is a badge of honor, both as a parent and a teacher.  As a parent, I get to experience the joy and satisfaction of hearing about my children through the eyes of someone else.

I am pleased to say that my two oldest children are doing very well in school.  They enjoy school, they love their teachers and they are happy.  Even more satisfying is listening to their teachers and feeling the genuine care that they feel towards my children.  It does my heart good to know that when I'm not there, my kids each have another adult with them who looks out for them, encourages and nudges them to be their best selves and who honestly cares about them.  They are both in good hands.

My two younger children are also lucky like this.  They have a wonderful daycare - a place where they look forward to going each day, a place where they don't want to leave in the evening, a place where they feel at home.  They love their sitter and she loves them.  She is calm, kind and she knows my children as well as her own.  She searches out new foods for my one-year-old who doesn't make feeding time easy.  She cares for my four-year-old's food allergies as I do myself...carefully, vigilantly, but with respect.  She always makes sure that she has a yummy alternative if there is something she can't eat like everyone else and she has searched her cookbooks for things to make that are safe for my daughter.  Needless to say, we love her.

While reflecting on these important people in my own children's lives, I started thinking about my students and their families.   As a teacher, I have always enjoyed meeting the parents of my students.  I met families this week that are strong and resilient and supportive.  They have faced adversity and challenge and haven't given up.  Instead, they have pushed on and have repeatedly sought out the best help for their children that they could.  I also met parents who don't understand or don't want to understand that their children are struggling, no matter what they see and hear.  How will I reach them?  I met families who regularly see counselors in order to deal with and manage their daily lives.  I heard stories of adoption and stories of health problems.  I heard about little problems and big problems.  I heard about success stories - babies who weren't supposed to walk or talk but who are active kindergarten students today!  I met parents who are well established and stable.  I met parents who are so young they are still learning to take care of themselves, let alone their children, and everything in between.  How will I reach them?


I've been thinking of all of these families and how I am linked to them. I keep thinking about how lucky my own children are each day to share their days with amazing people and how I hope that my students and their families feel the same way about their kindergarten experience this year. 

I have some very difficult children in my classroom this year.  I have children that try my very last nerve each and every day.  I can't help but think that these are the same children who need my love, caring and kindness more than all the rest.  I need to find a way to get through to those kids.  I know that if I can win over those children, I can win the game.  It's time to huddle up and strategize and do this!  Game on!

It's All Good

I am finding it a bit ironic that while I'm working so hard to establish writing routines in my classroom, my own have completely fallen to the wayside.  I haven't written a new post since September 11.

 It reminds me of my own children.  Each time they were learning something new, an older skill began to lag.  My one-year-old is becoming very verbal.  She is jabbering almost constantly, learning new words every day (hi, bye, mine, yeah, huh-uh, mama, dada, boo) and now she is singing!  She sings Twinkle, Twinkle so well you can tell what she's trying to say!  This is all awesome stuff, but there is a trade off to be made.  She's putting all her concentration and growth into language skills and in turn, she has started waking up in the middle of the night again and wants a bottle...just when I was thinking 2 a.m. feedings were done and maybe we should be phasing out the bottle.  I know she will settle back into her normal sleep routine again.

It's had me thinking about my students.  School is a new "skill" for many of my kindergarten kiddos.  I wonder what is falling to the wayside right now while they are learning how to "do school" and do I know them well enough yet to figure it out?  Will I be patient enough while they even back out? 

In the meantime, I'm going to continue to teach my students writing routines and do my best to be patient with my baby girl when I find myself making a bottle in the middle of the night because I know that it means growth and learning are in progress.  I'm going to be patient with my students while they even out and get the school routines under their belts.  I'm also trying to be patient with myself...I will get myself back into my writing routine when I can and until then...it's all good.  (Pete says so!) 

Find more Slice of Life stories at Ruth and Stacey's Two Writing Teachers blog.

My New Cracked Pots

I'm in the midst of the second week of school and I'm already home with a sick child today.  The upside is that I am able to post my SOL before 10 pm.  I am also cautiously optimistic that my daughter is finally on the upswing...she's been playing with her Mickey Mouse Clubhouse toys for the last hour and is thoroughly enjoying having the house and mommy to herself today.

I have been a bit absent from my writing world for the last month or so.  I've been able to sneak in a couple things but with the start of school for myself and three of my four children...well, it's been busy.  I've missed it!

I have been watching my new crop of kindergarten students closely during our time together.  I am optimistic about the year ahead with them.  I have an interesting mix of students this year that should keep me challenged, laughing and learning. ( For a little extra challenge, I also have a student teacher on board for the first semester who is awesome!)  My mix of kiddos includes everything from immature four-year-olds to mature six-year-olds and everything in between.  I have children with ADHD and those I suspect have it, children with speech and language issues, a child with a significant hearing loss, children who like to talk (with loud voices!), children who hardly talk when asked a question in a one-to-one setting, a child who struggles not to cry in the morning, a child who thinks she can walk home whenever she feels like it (and doesn't bother to let anyone know before leaving), children with severe food allergies, children who know all of the alphabet letters, children who barely know their names, children who live with two adults in a stable home, children who don't know from day to day how they are getting home, children who can count to 100 and recognize numbers and children who think numbers and letters are all the same thing.  I have a pretty typical class.  I have a class that likes to play and have fun...and they have no idea that they are learning at the same time!

I have been watching their interactions with each other.  I have been watching their smiles.  I have been watching to learn their interests.  I have been telling stories with them.  I have been reading with them.  I have been helping them make new friends and giving them the time to do it.  We had a good first week and have approached the second week with a good attitudes.

As I was reading my email recently, I came upon an email from my sister about the "Cracked Pot."  Initially, I read it as a sentiment from one sibling to another.  Then I read it as something I wanted to share with teaching friends at the beginning of a new school year.  Finally, I read it as a teacher who is getting to know her new students.  I look forward to learning more about my new "cracked pots" each day and I am trying very hard to be positive as I look for the unique flaw in the children that are harder to connect with; that unique thing that I can use as a tool to build connections. 

I tried to find an author for the story of the "Cracked Pot" but only could find that it was an anonymous source.  If anyone knows a name for the author, please let me know so I can give proper credit.  I had to share it anyway.  Enjoy and have a great school year!

An elderly Chinese woman had two large pots, each hung on the ends of a pole which she carried across her neck. One of the pots had a crack in it while the other pot was perfect and always delivered a full portion of water. At the end of the long walks from the stream to the house, the cracked pot arrived only half full.

For a full two years this went on daily, with the woman bringing home only one and a half pots of water. Of course, the perfect pot was proud of its accomplishments. 
But the poor cracked pot was ashamed of its own imperfection, and miserable that it could only do half of what it had been made to do.

After two years of what it perceived to be bitter failure, it spoke to the woman one day by the stream. 'I am ashamed of myself, because this crack in my side causes water to leak out all the way back to your house.' The old woman smiled, 'Did you notice that there are flowers on your side of the path, but not on the other pot's side?' 'That's because I have always known about your flaw, so I planted flower seeds on your side of the path, and every day while we walk back, you water them.' For two years I have been able to pick these beautiful flowers to decorate the table. Without you being just the way you are, there would not be this beauty to grace the house.'

Each of us has our own unique flaw. But it's the cracks and flaws we each have that make our lives together so very interesting and rewarding. You've just got to take each person for what they are and look for the good in them.

What a Wonderful World

I'm going to be very honest and say that the all-day early childhood professional development day planned for today, though it is something I feel very strongly about, wasn't high on my list of want-to-do's for today.  School hasn't started yet but the last two weeks have been a whirlwind of getting the classroom prepared, teaching a summer program for incoming kindergarten students and ending today with this pd opportunity.  Next week starts district pd days and open houses and preparing my own children for returning to school.  Like I said, it wasn't high on my list of wants today.  But, I went anyway like a good little soldier and I was very happy to listen to an excellent presentation.  

Linda Jordan's presentation, Neuroscience and the Preschool Child, didn't grab my attention from the title, but as soon as she opened her mouth, I was hooked.  She is a dynamic speaker, knows her material and is able to share it in a way that made me want more, more, more.

Here are just a few snippets that tickled my ears today:

• The muscles in our bodies have more memory capacity than our brains.
• As a child, I learned things in order to do things.  Today's young children do things to learn.
• Vocabulary should be taught by handling and seeing the actual objects, not by talking about them.  Not a new concept, but a good reminder.  She said she believes that each book should have a box of objects that accompany it in the classroom. 
• Teachers are brain sculptors.  We impact our students' brain growth (dendrite growth) by teaching them and then providing at least 20 minutes of actually doing/working with the skill to commit it to memory.  We are responsible for providing a safe environment so that students can learn and grow dendrites, not shut down.
• You can only talk to/teach a child for 6 minutes maximum before they need to move and you need to move, they need to talk about what they are hearing.  After that, you can begin another 6 minutes of teaching.  This includes read alouds!  Begin a story on one side of the meeting area, stop to talk and process thoughts, then continue reading on the other side of the meeting area.  Have students turn their bodies around to face you again to promote physically being in a different position and looking at different surroundings...good for the brain!

My personal favorite thought of the day: Our brains are not wired to read.  According to Jordan, reading is the single most difficult thing that our brains learn to do.  It is so difficult because we aren't wired to read. Our brains are instead wired to tell stories.  I couldn't help but connect this idea to Ruth Ayres.  I had the opportunity to see Ruth this summer at the All Write Institute and she presented about the importance of story.  Our story.  Sharing our stories with others.  Turns out, it isn't just something we think is important.  Now there is scientific proof!  Sharing our stories is good for our brains.  

Even the children who come from the worst situations at home can be positively impacted by us.  We can provide a safe environment and help them make connections in their brains while they are at school with us.  You may think that one teacher can't make enough of a difference to that child, but think about the impact of having good teachers who do this year after year in school.  That impact alone could be enough to get that child out of a bad situation.  If we teach children to think and problem solve, they will have the capability to make the kinds of choices that would remove themselves from the negative situations in their lives.

Linda ended her presentation with a photo slide presentation of kid-drawn pictures set to the song "What a Wonderful World."  Indeed it is and thank goodness we have people to teach us and remind us about what we can do for the children in our world.