Category Archives: Writing

The Big Snow – part one

Family, Life in General, teaching, Writing, , ,
Ivy looks out the front window and 'dreams'!

At this moment, it should be first period and geography class, but I am sitting in my basement writing about the past couple of days and the ‘Big Snow Day.’ It has been a very hectic couple of days and last night was the latest night I have had since Christmas Break, but I knew I was not going to need to get up in the morning and drive to school. As school was cancelled due the blizzard prediction for Tuesday and Wednesday; and it came, starting midday Tuesday and it continued until just a few moments ago. After the initial frenzy quieted down, about eight o’clock Tuesday night, I checked Facebook and a friend posted, “Due to the weather tonight, I’m cancelling bedtime.” To which I replied, “Our’s was cancelled hours ago! It is wild outside!” And, the weather and snow was wild: the winds howled, the snow fell, and it blew. Continue reading The Big Snow – part one →

Martin Luther King, Jr. Weekend

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Lafayette County Courthouse with a Confederate soldier facing south in memory of his comrades.

I am in Oxford – Oxford, Mississippi. A couple of months ago, in late November I texted my bother Warren – ‘Hey what do you think about Oxford for MLK day?’ Warren, being Warren, texted in return, ‘Wouldn’t Selma be a better choice?’ I have to admit he got my message, but he had me in the one-liner department. Continue reading Martin Luther King, Jr. Weekend →

Happy New Year 2011

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The view from the cottage across the lake is obscured by the fog hovering over the lake.

The New Year comes along just to end Christmas vacation. Today is New Year’s Eve and a reminder that getting back to school is just a few days away. What has happened to the time? I know I have spent it resting, relaxing, rejuvenating, driving, and chasing Ivy. I know the days have counted for my mental health if not for the other aspects of who I am. I have spent a bit of time (probably too much time) looking through Facebook and added several friends from my childhood home in Sugar Land. Thinking back to that time was fun and I have made a couple of connections I had been wondering about for years.  

Continue reading Happy New Year 2011 →

Day 57: The Writing Process and the week before Thanksgiving

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This is the week before Thanksgiving and the past several days have been busy – very busy. My students turned their narratives in Monday and they all look great. I did a quick scan of what was turned in and it seems my students learned from my instruction and did well with their writing. I will begin grading them this weekend with plans to return them after Thanksgiving Break. It takes time to read and respond to writing and I want to make sure I have time. This week has been too busy to even start grading. Continue reading Day 57: The Writing Process and the week before Thanksgiving →

Veterans Day and Heroes

adventure, country, Family, history, Reading, teaching, Writing, , , , , , , ,
Grandpa, Beth, Olivia, and William pose beside the island on the deck of the U.S.S. Hornet, September 2006

Veterans Day is November 11th and for most schools in Illinois it is a holiday. But, Thursday morning found me at two schools on my day off. William had an honor breakfast and I was glad to attend. He is doing very well in seventh grade as he did in sixth grade. He is a solid young man, respectful and his character shines through. His school, Hubble Middle School, rewards students who display excellent character traits through their actions with ‘Hubble Huskie Coins.’  William had earned a ‘Huskie coin’ in the first quarter of the year and was being honored with other young men and women who had done something similar. Less than hour later, I was working as a crossing guard at Olivia’s school. When I can, I volunteer to be a crossing guard at Wiesbrook. It is always fun. After my crossing guard duty, I attended the Veterans Day flag ceremony.

Continue reading Veterans Day and Heroes →

Day 53: Conclusion and my birthday, #49

adventure, Family, Hobbies and Fun, Life in General, model airplanes, model railroads, Reading, teaching, Teaching and Learning, travel, Writing, , , , , ,
The plane is pulled from Lake Michigan, read the story for more information

Today is my birthday and I had a flashback to seventh grade yesterday. Well, I have flashbacks to seventh grade every day, but this one was different. The headline for the Daily Herald was World War II-era plane recovered from Lake Michigan and I remembered my birthday gift, a plastic model kit probably a P-47 Thunderbolt or some other World War II era fighter. I remember I reading everything I could get my hands on about the WWII, War in the Pacific and Europe, and I enjoyed building plastic models of aircraft from the time period. Continue reading Day 53: Conclusion and my birthday, #49 →

Day 51: All Saints Day and the climax

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Jack O' lanterns, pumpkins, and gourd decorate our front step on Halloween

Sunday was the church observance of All Saints Day, though officially it is November 1st. It is the time in the Christian calendar to remember the saints as well as those in our lives who have passed away in the previous year. It also helps explain Halloween, which is All Hallows Eve, when the spirits of the dearly departed would come back to visit. Originally, the idea of trick or treating was that tricks were played and blamed on the spirits coming back to visit. I know that plenty of mischief has been played on Halloween and at other times including ding-dong ditching and other harmless pranks. Continue reading Day 51: All Saints Day and the climax →

Numbers and Daylight Savings Time

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The view Sunday morning into the backyard.

Saturday was over before I knew it, it counted in so many ways: thirty, two, twelve, forty-four, ten, and negative one. All of these numbers are significant because they are related to an event during the day. Yet, the most important number of the day is the rollback of Daylight Savings Time to Standard Time. It is always a sad time, yes we do gain an ‘extra hour’ of sleep Saturday night, but we lose daylight in our day. Continue reading Numbers and Daylight Savings Time →

Day 50: Rising Action

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Warren, David, and the author at the Tower of London, July 1975

I shared the introduction paragraph with my classes yesterday and most seemed interested in my story. We broke down the elements of the paragraph and they could see the flaws in their writing and made notes on their papers before I collected their work. I will make copies and pass them back today. I introduced the rising action paragraph and got them to work while I checked in with students around the room to coach, motivate, and to discuss the stories they’re writing. Continue reading Day 50: Rising Action →