The Crank

My 2nd night in a row coming home after 10 pm from the compound. This is nonsense.

My anxiety and paranoia erupted this morning as I began a day of work sessions with different grade levels, organizing common assessments for next year. I basically refused to speak to anyone and simply stared at them when they tried to make small talk. If they asked if they could help me, I said curtly, "No." I wanted everyone to know that I can dish it out as well as take it. I pulled myself together when I snapped at someone who asked a question, responding with a terse, "How many flipping times do I have to say this?"

I thought that might be crossing a line so I started acting more jovial. By the end of the school day, I was fine. And now I'm ready to call it a day.

The Work

I was at work forever tonight and that did not please me. I'm having high anxiety and paranoia. But let's try to find a shiny bright spot.

At this point in time, there's been no discernible bright spot. But this day is done and that's good news. Stick a fork in it. And jab it about a gazillion times.

The End

Little second grade talkative peep was avoiding taking a hideous reading test on a handheld wireless device. His stories were actually pretty interesting so that was part of the problem.

After I reminded him for the 5th time to get started reading he launched into a heartfelt tale of woe. "My dog died and that made me really sad. My dog died in the car. He did. He died in the car. My dog died in the car."

I feared suffocation or heat stroke, and I timidly asked, "Were the windows up?"

"No," he told me. "She was already sick in the house. It was her time to die. But my mom got her in the car to rush her super fast to the vet and she was so nervous my mom went the wrong way."

"So your dog died on the way to the vet?"

"No! She died on the opposite way to the vet."

I tried not to laugh, and mumbled out a sincere apology for his loss.

"It's okay," said Drew. "It was my dog's time to die."

It seemed fitting that in the midst of all this week's literacy testing I got to hear a great story that involved love, pain, and nuttiness.

And it's time for the end of the April literacy blogging challenge. I loved all of it. Let's do it again sometime, THANKS SO MUCH, KC, Dan, Shef, Dobby, John, Gina, Shannon, Mary, Rosalyn! AND THANKS TO ALL OF YOU WHO READ THE BLOGS AND EVEN COMMENTED. WAY TO SUPPORT! Let's bring on those May flowers.

The Lunch

Lots of literacy at lunch today. Kiddos wanted to read their poems to me and to each other. The adults wanted me to listen to their poems too and they wanted to tell me the story behind picking said poems. There was a temporary crisis when we found a poem on the ground that seemed to have been written by a sixth grader---- I hate my life and I'm going to use this knife is how it began. A teacher was harping at me, "Look what's happened because of this poem in your pocket thing! Look what I have to deal with now."

I calmly answered, "Well, I think we're learning that Poem In Your Pocket Day has a darker side. A darker side that we have to accept."

Everyone calmed down after my calming words and we went back to celebrating and appreciating the kind of literacy we call poetry.

The Roses

Feeling restless because of the downerity of the former post. Sure standardized testing sucks for kids and is damaging our educational system but is that any reason to trash literacy? Standardized testing does indeed represent how literacy can be used to oppress some and privilege others, but mostly literacy is good. And just remember when your kid or some other person's kid comes home with their super high test scores and everyone wants to do a little jig because of how fantastic it is to have high test scores, just remember that standardized tests are hideous distortions of what learning is all about. That's all I'm trying to say here.

And finally I have my poem. I've had about 10 in mind, but then I remembered that last time i took out my Audubon book to identify some birds, I noticed TD had left a stash of little bits of cut up papers with poems on them. I found several in her stash that would be good but I think I'll go with this one.

Thanks, TD. Please come home soon.

The Testing

We're having standardized testing this week. I had to give the Language Arts section to 5 fourth graders today. Peeps with some learning difficulties. It was a drag for all of us. One kiddo got so mad at me. He kept mumbling and grouching at me as I tried to help him read the inscrutable passages. "I don't know how to read this and I've told you that!" He knew there was no point in him taking that test and he did NOT want to fill in bubbles to questions he could neither read nor answer. But that's what I encouraged him to do. I hated myself for that. Literacy sucks sometimes.

The Bugs

Karla Kuskin is probably my favorite writer of poetry for kiddos. Today I brought her bug poem in to the kinders....

I am very fond

of bugs

I kiss them

and I give them hugs.

I gave the kiddos a template to write their own Kuskin style poems. Got some great ones.

I am very fond

of hats.

I wear them

and I give them pats.

I am very fond

of snakes

I kiss them

and I give them cakes.

I am very fond

of roses

I smell them

and I give them water

and seeds.

Okay, that last one is kind of weird, but kind of nice too.

2 more days to PiYP Day. The kinders are pumped.

The Law

Today I read .5 of Molly Bannaky to some third grade peeps. This perhaps truthful story about the grandmother of Benjamin Banneker begins with Molly the milkmaid spilling some milk on the job. The year's 1680 and she's charged with theft. Good news. Molly can read and the law says that she can not be executed because she can read THE BIBLE. By law, the court must provide her with THE BIBLE to prove her literacy. Literacy allows her to escape the gallows, but she's sent off to the colonies for 7 years of indentured servitude. It's like I told the thirdies today, literacy isn't a ticket to some rainbow land in the clouds where everyone has a big house and a heated swimming pool. But illiteracy is frequently a ticket to some pretty tough times.

And that's why this literacy blogging challenge is so important. So today's literacy blogging honors the literacy of Molly Bannaky and the famous grandkid she allegedly taught to read, Benjamin Banneker.

The Law

Every year schools have to update a document called the Public Law 221 Plan. A new plan is written every 3 years, but each year the document has to be revised. Today I read over our PL221 with BossLady and I think we're getting close to submitting it. After our work together I found her a good poem for PiYP Day called "If I Were the Principal." Now I'm sitting next to the NYT and yes, I'm going to start the reading ritual. Sadly, Husbandman is in Italy, so he won't be able to complete the puzzle with me. Sorry Husbandman. Too bad, so sad. You're just going to have to deal with it. Just be in Italy, why don't you?

The Storm

NYT has an interesting piece about this company called Imagine that runs charter schools. There have been some questions into their use of state $. If you're starting a charter school, you should probably avoid this company. I don't have much confidence in the way they're doing things.

Tonight I ate popcorn for dinner and read Girl with the Dragon Tattoo all evening. We're having a stormy day here and I don't mind it one bit.

The Weekend

Literacy wasn't a big focus today. Math curriculum mapping took up the entire day. I handed out a copy of this poem to celebrate our math map enterprise. I was a little nervous to pass out the poem but I think the colleagues appreciated it. They didn't say anything. Just stared blankly, or smirked a little, but I think deep down inside they were genuinely touched.

Now I'm relaxing as I always do on Friday evenings. I've read a few blogs and I read a news article about Pronto's trial. Now I'm watching Glee. Jane Lynch is making me laugh.