This Moment

A robin flies across the yard, landing on the fence line. Its head turns one way and shifts slightly more. In a quick swoop to the ground, pluck, a worm dangles. It sits there for a moment before flying on. Makes me wonder: are there babies awaiting?

Sunshine makes the yard sparkle. Blades of grass raise their hands waving friendly salutations to each other. Dandelions annoyingly poke through but I do love that brilliant yellow.

Two kittens peak from the shed. They stealthy creep and, snap, pounce a mysterious leaf. A twig is batted and plucked as an imaginary playmate. Mama saunters over, a loving lick given and a purr at my heels. 

I stand nearby waiting and then reach to hold these bundles of joy. Blue eyes look and accept as I embrace. The sun greets me and teases a smile from my face. For a long moment I allow sunshine warmth to sweep grief to the closet.

Hello May. My focus is on you.

Kindness

Saturday I sat for an hour in a long line of traffic. Slowly, each car inched forward in hopes of receiving a kindness, me included. A local sanitation company partnered with restaurants to give away 400 gift certificates. When I read the article, I thought, “How nice. They are sharing kindness with the community.”

Afterwards, my van needed a car wash. Via social media, I had learned Clear Water was giving teachers free car washes. I pulled in line, showed my ID and said I was a teacher. The attendant said, “Thank you so much for your service. Enjoy your car wash.” That word hug embraced me.

Authors have been sharing free items online, such as Jarrett Lerner, that are helpful to teachers and kids.Lauren Tarshis, author of the I Survived series, gave a free 30 minute virtual author-visit. I loved it. You should check it out. Her kindness came from missing the school visits and meeting students.

 
A fellow teacher friend has a fourth grade son, Luke. We met through our school’s summer library program. We like Abraham Lincoln and Walt Disney. We love to talk books and just about life. His 10th birthday was last week, and I sent him a book about World War II. I was so excited for him to get the surprise and my heart was delighted upon receiving his picture. A little kindness from me.

He, his two sisters, and mom brought me a May Day hanging plant. Vibrant and beautiful. A reciprocated act of kindness I wasn’t expecting but brings joy just remembering his face and gazing at the flowers.

A friend sent me a letter. An act of kindness.

My neighbor greeted me at the fence and asked about my parents. Kindness.

 

A friend started a blog and other friends write. Their words, your words, bring kindness. Kindness. Little acts to brighten the day. What acts of kindness have you received? 

Letters

 

An Invitation To Write

Yesterday, I posted this picture to Instagram:

Loving the child and making connections goes beyond the instruction you are giving!

Letters is one way I keep that connection going.

A flood of memories came to mind. Letters are powerful. They provide a special connection between you and the recipient. It’s a life-long remembrance of feeling special, loved, invincible, cherished.

I received a letter from a student, her third, and I didn’t open it until I could savor her words. She decorated the envelope with “Surprise letter” and “I miss you so so so so so much. ❤ ❤ ❤ ” My heart swelled and my tears flowed. Years from now when she looks back to this pandemic crisis, letters of hope and cheer is one thing I want her to remember. I know I will.

Letters have become my virtual hug, my physical touch during a social-distancing pandemic. In the technological age, letters are scarce. An artistic greeting shares the personality of the writer. It’s an uninterrupted expression of one self, a voice that sends a message that can be reread many times.

With the recipient in mind, my letter is personalized and sent with encouraging goodness. It’s a platform to ask question to deepen the connection. The letter is an extension of me. It’s conferring about life and leaving each with a memento to move forward and a celebration of the present.

My smile broadens as I’m thinking of my students. I envision delight in my addressee. Just think – my letter can change the day for her, a surprise party in an envelope.

He will get excited and smile and remember his teacher still believes in him. Each will get a gift, a toast of cheer.

Nuggets

An Invitation To Write

I’ve become a collector of little moments: small sparks of brightness, wishful wants, and the ordinary. They help me process information and to cherish impressions. Consequently, I am a recovering stutter of words and brain farts, those moments when I grasp for words, maybe even visualize it, but cannot spit it out. It’s beyond being “on the tip of my tongue;” it’s embarrassing.  Fortunately, I found an app that helps with that – the memories that is, not the awkward pausing. The HighNotes App provides a platform for me to collect these nuggets of marvels.

Notebooks are great too, but I can’t upload a picture quickly onto it. Closeup nature stills are art to me. Capturing a replied text or a comment on Twitter are emotional art to me. I screenshot these and tuck them away on my digital notebook. Contemplating the importance of this app, I listed some reasons (because a list is a collection too.)

1. Visualize: The picture helps capture fleeting moments and feelings.
2. Beauty: Endorphins are released. I reread, smile and saturate myself.
3. Joy: Surrounding myself with goodness because I fight the negative in the world and the lie monster in my head that says I’m not enough.
4. Blessings: God has blessed me in so many ways. I want my hope to stay fresh and cling to His faithfulness. This focus defeats the anxiety that cleverly creeps in.
5. Laughter: It feels good to remember. It’s even better when shared.
6. Memory Igniter: Writing helps my mind process quicker. Thus, I have fewer brain farts.
7. Reflection: I remember I am capable, I have skills, I can tackle the next task. Constantly learning.
8. Lab: I try out words, rearrange and change. It’s a notebook of my private thoughts until I’m ready to share.
9. Organize: Relief. I have a place to collect my nuggets of noticings besides my photos, decluttering and making quick access.
10. Collection: Just because.

Some sampling entries:

A Blue Thumb

Flowers adorned my home growing up. The two front bay windows were flanked with beautiful color, African violets of vibrant purples, pinks, and whites. Mom pampaered them. She fed and nurtured them as prized cherubs. Mom had a green thumb.  Recollecting, my memory-picture scans the 20, no 30, probably 40 violets in those window gardens. I can visualize Mom examining each leaf, pruning when needed. Whispers of growth and good will flowed from my mother’s lips. These were her joy!

As traits go, the green thumb inhertance was not willed to me. Oh, I’ve tried. The beauty of flowers definitely invites me to try. I love the colorwheel blended in nature. I like them. I want them. I do not have the patience or persistence for them like my mom. My plant rearing skills are considered a black thumb.

Like the blue sky enveloping the Earth, I’m a blue thumb. I notice. I observe. I reflect.  Knowledge and nuggets blanket my students. Love enduring covers my family. Listening and laughter spread to my friends.

I may not grow plants, but I’m observant.  I grow minds. I grow encouragement. I grow words. These are my joy!

Unplugged

Technology is a gift to us. We learn, connect, and play. The internet provides opportunities to meet authors and explore ideas.

Steve Antony shares the goodness of technology in his book, Unplugged. It also supports balance of exploring the outdoors and the importance of friendship.

Enjoy meeting Steve Antony on this one minute video clip.

Enjoy the reading of Unplugged (4 min. video).

Savorings for reading and in writing for Unplugged:

• Technology
• Power of 3
• Friendship
• Learning
• Setting
• Pros/ Cons

Over and Under the Pond

View my blog post at The Lead Learners Blog of Over and Under the Pond by Kate Messner; illustrated by Christopher Silas Neal.

Savorings for reading and writing for Over and Under the Pond:

• metaphors – “water’s a mirror, reflecting the sky!”
• Sensory Description
• Compare/ Contrast structure
• Environmental – ecosystem, wetlands
• Author’s Note – a glimpse into how a writer gathers ideas and then creates a book

Kate’s paired text is called Over and Under the Snow.

 

The Sun is Kind of a Big Deal

Visit The Lead Learners blog for my post of The SUN is Kind of a BIG DEAL by Nick Seluk.

Savorings for reading and writing for The Sun is Kind of a Big Deal:

• Voice
• Play on Words
• Scientific modeling
• Comic strip features
• Hybrid text
• Added tidbits in the back
• Pair it with the book, My Light by Molly Bang, for further study

Solving the Puzzle Under the Sea

The ocean in its vast beauty has a world of its own. Mountains and crevices invite creatures to reside, maneuver, and blend. Snorkelers gain a glimpse of the beauty hidden from the wavy surface. Stories and movies have the ocean as its setting. Robert Burleigh brilliant biography introduces you to the beginning of oceanography in his book, Solving the Puzzle Under the Sea: Marie Tharp Maps the Ocean Floor, illustrated by Raul Colon.

Science didn’t know much about the ocean floor. It was once thought to be unmoving. Marie Tharp changed that thinking – but not without opposition. Her ideas were different, challenged, and not accepted quickly. Marie loved maps. Her father drew maps of our American landscapes from state to state. She used this passion in her job.

View the book trailer here.

Marie spent twenty years gathering data brought back from deep ocean adventures, of which she was excluded from because she was a female. (I was surprised at this.)  Marie was determined and persisted. The data proved the possible theory of the continental drift. She turned her data into a picture – a map, a map featuring changes in the oceans floor. Although many still didn’t agree, eventually, Marie’s maps, the ocean floor picture, are the foundation for the knowledge people have today.

To see actual photos of Marie Tharp and an overview of her scientific life, view this 2 min. video clip.

Dr. Nicky Howe portrays herself as Marie Tharp in 2015 Reading Slam. What a fun way for kids to get to know the character and be introduced to the ocean world.

Savorings for reading and writing for Solving the Puzzle Under the Sea:

• Rich language
• Biography
• Persistence – not giving up, working against odds
• Believing in herself
• Asking Questions
• Pursuing Dreams

Groundhog’s Dilemma

Matt Faulkner is one of my favorite illustrators. He has written/illustrated the book A Taste of Colored Water and illustrated Thank You, Sarah, among several others. His illustrations strike me with a brilliant personification and invitation into the reading. Click to read a little about Matt Faulkner’s illustrations and to see a picture of him and his wife, Kristen Remenar. (I learned something new today.)

Together they created a fun read, Groundhog’s Dilemma, that highlights a predicament kids can relate with. Half of the animals want winter to last longer and half of the animals want spring now. Each animal tries to persuade Groundhog to predicate what they desire. Groundhog agrees with everyone, because he wants them all to be his friend. In the end, Groundhog explains he just reports what he sees; he can’t change the weather. This book provides you the opportunity to talk with kids about being truthful. It touches on persuasion, pressure, and contemplation. I think you will find the book will spark some interesting conversations.

View the book here (8 min. video). It’s currently a Scholastic Book Club book.

Savorings for reading and writing for Groundhog’s Dilemma:

• Persuasion – shares thoughts on both sides; art of buttering-up someone
• Speech Bubbles
• Telling the Truth
• Internal Conflict
• Alternate Solution