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I Have a Little Problem

I have a little problem that I thought I’d share here.

This problem has been in the works for several months now.

It all started when my first box of books arrived.

You see, I had been observing my students…listening to my students’ comments about the types of books they liked.

It wasn’t long before THE PROBLEM happened.

My students were reading…

Without me asking them to…

And asking for more reading time.

They were reading after the timer went off, signaling an end to independent reading time.

As the months have passed, the problem has gotten worse.

Students are reading when they are supposed to be doing bellwork.

They are reading instead of listening to my carefully-prepared lessons.

They are hiding books under the paperwork they are supposed to be completing.

They are leaning over their chairs, gripping their stomachs in feigned sickness, all the while reading the books they have crammed into their laps.

Oh, and the problem is even worse than that.

My students are talking even more in class…

About the books they are secretively reading.

They are making threats too.

Threats against me…

Threats to reveal twists in the plots of the books I am planning on reading during summer vacation.

And they are laughing in demonic voices as I implore (vocabulary word from yesterday’s reading) them to keep their secrets to themselves.

Do you want to know the VERY, VERY worst problem of all?

Instead of buying more bling for myself, I am buying the above offenders MORE books, thus encouraging the problem to continue.

The newest batch of books…newly arrived as of yesterday afternoon…

Sheesh.

Honestly, I don’t know what to do!

I guess I’ll just have to let this problem time out on its own…as in June 6th…the last day of school.

What a WONDERFUL problem to have!!!!

When a Student Breaks Up With a Book

Last week, one of my students experienced an emotionally distressing situation.

He had to break up with a book.

He had quickly fallen in love with her.

He had nurtured his love affair, meeting each daily rendezvous with anticipation.

He became more invested in the relationship with each page he turned…each word he read.

He couldn’t contain his feelings but made them known to everyone around him.

When he turned the final page and closed the back cover last Friday, it was with great sadness.

He held the book tenderly, refusing to part ways.

He wasn’t ready to say goodbye…just could not accept that the relationship had run its course.

He refused, at first, to look for a new relationship, feeling as though he would be cheating on his first true love.

I introduced him to a number of eligible partners, but he bucked.

Nobody could hold a candle to his former love.

My heart went out to him, even as I assured him that he would find love again, if only he was willing to open up his heart.

He’s giving it a valiant go, but I fear he’ll never be the same.

It is said that time heals all hurts.

We shall see.

Seeing My Way Through the Hodgepodge

It’s time for the Hodgepodge!  How I do love these questions and look forward to them every week!  A huge thanks to Joyce for hosting!

1.  What is something you’ll never forget about the age you are right now?

Let’s see…I’m 43, going on 44.  I guess the thing I’ll never forget about this age is how one child left home and began earning her own way.  Sometimes I feel too young to have grown children!

2.  What’s a household chore you’ve never done? How have you managed that???

I’ve pretty much done every household chore, from cleaning out the gutters to mowing, to unstopping clogs.  I do all of the home repairs and a lot of cleaning.  I can’t think of anything, short of reroofing the house, that I haven’t done!

3.  Does nature shape our personalities more than nurture? Explain?

This is a tough question!  While I certainly believe that nature determines our personalities, I also think that nurture has a gigantic impact on them as well.  I look at my students and can see who comes from a caring home and who doesn’t.  I know, from personal experience, how not being nurtured affected me and the person I am today.  My insecurities stem directly from a difficult childhood devoid of consistent love.  Ultimately, I think that a nurturing environment can help turn our personalities toward those that are more positive in nature.  The same can be said in reverse.

4.  Friday (February 28th) is ‘Something on a Stick Day’…funny because Zoanna over at A Penchant for Pens recently sent me an idea for a question relating to this topic. What’s your favorite food eaten on a stick?

I don’t eat food on a stick, so I really can’t answer this question.  I’m rather lame, am I not?

5.  Which of your five senses do you treasure most, and why?

I thought a lot about this, and I think I’d have to say that I treasure my sight the most.  I was very nearsighted through my 20’s…nearly legally blind in one eye…with severe astigmatisms in both eyes.  Thankfully, I was able to have corrective eye surgery performed by an excellent doctor in South Florida, and my vision was restored to 20/20.  When I sat up on the table after the laser surgery, I cried when I discovered that I could see the hands on the clock.  I couldn’t remember how to tell time at that point, mind you, because I was so emotional, but nothing was blurry.  All the way home, I read out sign names as if I’d been blind the entire duration of my life.  I even drove myself to my follow-up appointment the next day.

I guess you can see why I think vision is so important to me.  I don’t take beautiful sunsets for granted…the sight of my children…my fuzzy fur babies.  They are all beautiful and a blessing to behold.

6.  What’s the best music, theatre, or sporting venue you’ve been to? What made it great?

My favorite venue has to be Auburn’s football stadium.  The love that the fans have for all things Auburn makes the feel of the place contagious.  I love that I can be sitting next to somebody I don’t know and be exchanging email addresses by the end of the game…drawn together by a mutual love for our Auburn Tigers.

I took this picture when we got to step on the field during a tour two seasons ago.

7.  It’s the last week of the month…in five words or less bid adieu to your February.

Four weeks until Spring Break.

8.  My Random Thought

I have become addicted to buying books for my classroom.  I constantly read book reviews, am a member of a group page on Facebook where each member is trying to read 100 books in a year and post reviews of the books we’ve read, and take note of my students’ reading selections so I can purchase more that they like so they will keep reading.

My latest purchase (before the one I placed yesterday afternoon) was this bunch…

Unbroken tells the story of Louis Zamperini, a member of the Air Force, who was shot down and taken captive during WWII.  I saw his story highlighted during Olympic coverage because before entering the military, he had been in the Berlin Olympics.

I bought this book because I have a student who loves the military and books related to it.

City of Bones was a purchase I made at the request of another student.  I want to read this series and plan on collecting all of the books.  I may not get around to reading them until the summer, though.

The third book was recommended by my mentor, Cinda.  It provides suggestions on how to foster a love for reading through specific and novel (pun intended) strategies that go beyond those that are passed around among most teachers.  I can’t wait to dig into it but will wait until Spring Break or after FCAT because the print is small.  It’s a “teacher” book, that’s for sure.

 

The Wedding Dress – A Book Review

When I got home from work yesterday afternoon, I had a game plan for what I wanted to accomplish.

It wasn’t going to be grading, and it wasn’t going to be cleaning the house.

I wanted to finish reading a book I’d recently started, The Wedding Dress, by Rachel Hauck.

After reading an endless assortment of dystopian young adult books, the break from that genre was a welcome one.

This book quickly drew me in, let me tell you.

It grabbed hold of my heart, and I.

Could.

Not.

Put.

It.

Down.

It was all I could do to teach on Friday because I wanted to keep reading it!

Conveniently, my students read between 20 and 25 minutes, silently, each day.

I’m supposed to set a good example by reading too (I don’t most days because I’m busy meeting with them one-on-one).

So, like a good teacher, I read while my first and second classes read.

I read through my lunch break.

Sixth period came, and I rolled my chair to the front of the room, propped up my feet on my tall stool, and read.  I’m sure I was quite the sight…knit socks propped up.

My students, at first, giggled before settling down to their own books.

Thus, when I got home, I was two-thirds of the way through the book.

I.

Had.

To.

Finish.

I had to find out if Charlotte would come to her senses about Tim.

I had to find out if the mystery man clad in purple really was.

I was drawn in by Emily’s desire to conform to her family’s expectations yet stay true to the convictions that resided within her heart.

The addition of two other women, Hillary and Mary Grace, added even more sentimentality and heartache to the mix.

Oh word, but as I traveled back and forth between the here-and-now and 1912, I literally wanted to jump inside the book.

All of these emotions ran through me as I tried to discover the mystery of the wedding gown that linked everyone together.

It was truly a wonderful read that found me both joyful and sad when it ended.

THIS is good reading, my friends.

I’d originally spied the book on a shelf in a bookstore several months ago.

Later, I’d read a review about it somewhere online.

I finally got around to purchasing my own copy, and I am so glad!

It’s a book that I’m proud to recommend to my high school girls.

They need to know what true love looks like…how to wait for it while staying true to a moral compass.

If you haven’t read it, I strongly urge you to.  It’s a magical story that will capture your heart as it did mine.

Bruiser – A Book Review

I recently finished reading Bruiser, by Neal Shusterman.

This is the tenth book that I’ve read by Shusterman.  His books are chock-full of deep meaning and heart-wrenching themes.

Bruiser is no exception.

This book tells the story of a young man named Brewster who has a unique ability.  When a girl named Bronte befriends Brewster, strange things begin to happen.

Brewster’s relationship with Bronte and her twin brother, Tennyson, changes all of their lives in unexpected ways.

This book is told from the perspectives of each main character, as well as Brewster’s younger brother.

Oh word, but I rode a roller coaster of emotions with this book.

My heart broke for Brewster, as I saw the pain he allowed himself to go through because of his love for his brother and friends.

I grew angry at Bronte for trying to mold him into the person she wanted him to be.

Tennyson’s selfishness made me want to knock some sense into him!

What was most frustrating was Bronte and Tennyson’s inability to see what was clearly before them.  Grrrr!

As I think about how this book’s themes apply to real life, I’m surprised to find that most people are just like the twins.  We settle ourselves into our cozy lives, happy when we find things that satisfy us.

We foolishly allow ourselves to use things in our lives to mask the pain and heartache we face each day when, in reality, we need that pain to find our way through the difficult circumstances.

Ultimately, I saw a correlation between Brewster’s selfless sacrifice to that of Christ’s.  If you read the book, you’ll understand what I mean.  Shustermann never mentions Christianity, but one can’t help but think of it as this book reaches its climax.

I will probably do this book as a Read Aloud next fall.  The messages about not judging people by their reputation and not jumping on the bandwagon ‘just because” will ring true to my high school kids.

It rang true to this almost-44 year old gal, that’s for sure.

Promise to Return – A Book Review

I was excited to receive the book, Promise to Return, by Elizabeth Byler Younts, free from the publisher (shout-out to Linda for putting me in touch with the author)!

I can honestly say that I was drawn into the story from the very first page.  The story line intrigued me…an Amish couple struggling to live out their convictions regarding war, religion, and family. 

Miriam is an obedient young woman…the youngest in a large family…left to shoulder the responsibility of caring for her aging parents.  Henry, her true love, has been drafted but feels a strong leading by the Lord to take his calling to serve a bit further from his initial assignment to a Civilian Public Service camp.  His decision throws a monkey wrench into the life Miriam had planned out for the two of them, and the result is a string of events and heart introspection that changes the lives of nearly everyone in the community.

I didn’t know much about the Amish way of life and was surprised by the personal struggles the characters faced.  I don’t know why, but I always thought the Amish life was uncomplicated.  This book removed that misconception, and I have a healthy appreciation for how similar the Amish are to other groups of people.

I will eagerly await the next book in the series!

A Hodgepodge Full of Good Manners

I like Joyce’s questions this week.  They aren’t too taxing on the brain, which I really appreciate given that we are now very much into the routine at school, and I am feeling, oftentimes, overwhelmed.

Let’s cut to the chase and begin!

1.  When it comes to good manners, what two top your list of most important?

Being a Southern girl, I really like when people say “Ma’am” and “Sir.”  Teenagers, especially, melt my heart when they inject a ma’am into a conversation, and I find myself less likely to write someone up if that person has said this one simple word.

Another manner I think is important is not talking when there’s a meeting going on.  I’m shocked when people sit and have small conversations during faculty meetings!  Trying to teach in a classroom when children are talking is distracting.  Sitting in a meeting trying to hear what my administrators are saying is equally difficult.

2.  Let’s open a proverbial can of worms…Common Core.  Are you familiar with the term (talking education reform in the USA)?  If so, care to share your thoughts? In your opinion, what is one of the biggest issues schools (in your home country) face today?

Ahhh…you just had to go there, didn’t you, Joyce?  I think that the intent of Common Core is good…to toughen up the standards and make them the same across the country.  What I disagree with is the testing.  Our children are tested every time they turn around, and it’s ridiculous.  Teachers (myself included) have our instruction frequently interrupted by said tests…to the point where we can’t even teach what they are being tested on!  Do I think there should be standards and accountability?  Absolutely.  I went to school with kids who would not have graduated, and probably rightly so, if such things had been in place.  They would have been identified as having learning problems and helped, I hope.

I think our schools are facing a problem with micromanagement.  Let the teachers teach without nearly so much oversight, paperwork, and meetings.  It’s a very overwhelming job as it is.  Those things make it even harder.

3.  Name a celebrity whose fashion sense you admire and share why.

Honestly, I don’t follow celebrity fashion, so I have no answer for this one.  I wear what I want and don’t pay much attention to what others are wearing.

4.  How are you affected by the changing seasons?

I’m not really affected at all.  I layer up as it gets colder, but I’m usually wearing a sweater anyhow because I’m cold-natured, so the weather changes don’t affect me too much.  I will say that my hair is easier to straighten during the winter because a lot of the humidity is gone.

5.  Scariest book you’ve ever read?

I once tried to read Pet Cemetery, by Stephen King.  I was much younger…barely a teenager.  I don’t think I made it past the first two chapters.  I’ve never tried to read it since.

6.  What time of day are you most hungry? What’s your go-to snack?

I don’t get hungry too often.  I don’t eat breakfast nor lunch.  Food is such an inconvenience to me, and I love it when I fast.  Yes, I realize that I have food issues.

If I’m going to snack, I’d prefer to have chips and salsa.

7.  Do you lean more towards being too needy or too independent? Which do you find harder to deal with in others?

I am fiercely independent, which puts me at odds with people because I do not like to get help.  Now, I will ask for help, when I’m teaching, but really, I like to work on my own.  I think it’s my desire for full control of my life (and God laughed).

I find needy people to be extremely annoying.  I don’t mind helping, but please at least try to learn while I teach you and then let’s move on.

Yes, I’m a bit impatient too.  🙂

8.  My Random Thought

During the past seven days, I have received two new books…both third installments in their respective series.  I am one happy girl!!!!

September Musings and the HodgePodge

It’s hard to believe that it’s the second day of October!  Wow!  The temperature is starting to cool down a little, and there’s a crispness in the air when I leave each morning.  Along with the lovely weather, we have fun questions to answer on the Hodgepodge.  Join in by playing along on your own blog and linking up with Joyce!

1.  What’s one thing you learned in September?

In September, I re-learned that God’s plans are not my own.  Chicky’s knee injury was a painful reminder that God’s plans trump ours, and that we can choose to accept or resent those plans.  Fortunately, we have chosen to trust Him.

2.  Acorn squash, butternut squash, spaghetti squash, yellow squash, zucchini squash, or blech! hold the squash… what’s your favorite squash? What’s your favorite way to prepare your favorite squash?

I love squash, thanks to my country upbringing.  A few years ago, I discovered spaghetti squash, and what a delightful vegetable indeed!  I love the texture and the flavor, which is very mild.  Ultimately, though, cutting up squash, dicing an onion, and steaming the pot works fine with me.

3.  The older I get the_______________________________.

The older I get, the less patience I have for drama…especially in regard to adults.  I absolutely cannot stand to see adults engaging in drama…especially at work.  It’s so petty and undermines what we are there for.

4.  What’s your favorite television theme song ever?

I had to do a bit of googling for this one and found one I love…The Addams Family…classic!!

5.  What do you wish you’d spent more time doing five years ago?

Five years ago, I wish I’d spent more time sleeping.  This is my fourth year teaching, and I’m constantly sleep deprived in a way that no amount of sleep during the school year will replenish. It is only during the stress-free, no-lesson-planning time of summer that I feel completely refreshed.

6.  What item do you most need (or want) to add to your wardrobe this fall?

I really need some closed-toe shoes that I can wear with dress pants.  I live in flip flops and sandals most of the year, so the transition to covering up my tootsies is tough.

7.  On October 2, 1950 the Peanuts cartoon was introduced to the world. What was your favorite cartoon when you were a kid?

When I was a child, I lived for Saturday mornings and my Justice League cartoons!  I loved the Wonder Twins, Batman and Robin, and everyone else.

8.  My Random Thought

Last week, teachers in my district received lead money…money to help us purchase supplies for our classroom.

Technically, I should have paid myself back for what I’ve already purchased this year; however, since I’m not feeling the pinch anymore, I figured I would just buy more stuff.

Take a look at what’s been arriving in the mail the last few days…

I feel the need to explain that I am not stalking Neal Shusterman.  Really.  I’m not.  I just love his writing…and his creativity…and his wicked use of twisted plots.  Seriously.

I bought the following book to replace the one that someone removed without my permission last year…

Oh, how I love buying books for my students to read.  They appreciate having new, relevant books, and I love that they are begging for more time to read during class.  It’s a win-win for everyone!

Better Late than Never

Saturday evening, I completed a quest I’d been on for the last fifteen months.

I finally finished reading all of the books in the Harry Potter series.

I read the seventh book in under a week.

On Saturday, I read the final 250 pages.

I read everywhere that day…the bathroom (TMI), the car on the way to the beach, the beach, back in the car to go home, the ride back to the beach to see a movie, the way home.

This final book had so much action packed into it that I could not turn the pages fast enough!

I got mad several times as important characters died.

When you’ve invested so much time into reading these books, you develop relationships with the people in them, and your heart breaks when they don’t survive their circumstances.

I needed to find out if Harry successfully finished his quest.

It may be hard for you to believe, but I’d never watched the movies nor read the books previous to this time, so I had NO IDEA how the story would end.

I can honestly report, without spoiling the surprise for anyone, that I am happy with the ending.

This series is deep on so many levels and provides lessons that we can apply to everyday life…love overcoming evil…the ramifications of judging others based on external appearances or circumstantial evidence…loyalty…bravery…daring to go against popular opinion…believing in the underdog…untapped potential.

The characters were so unique and gifted with special talents that, when put together with the other characters’ talents, made for breathtaking scenes in the books.

Professor McGonagall is a wonderful role model for me…a blend of strictness balanced with tenderness and courage.

Mrs. Weasley reminded me of my best friend’s mom when I was growing up.  She took me under her wing, prepared my favorite food when I stayed over, and always had a warm hug ready for me.  As Harry found the unconditional love and acceptance that he had missed out on for the first eleven years of his life, my heart soared.  Throughout the books, his relationship with Mrs. Weasley evolved to the point where he was treated like a son.  This is what I think we humans are called to do…love each other with the same kind of abandon and acceptance.

I so appreciated how seemingly minor characters eventually played very important roles.

For the record, Neville Longbottom will forever be one of my favorite characters ever…such a sweet boy who only needed a bit of encouragement to blossom.

My vocabulary will never be the same.  It now includes words such as muggles, lumos, and patronus.  I am giving serious thought to teaching my students roots/prefixes/suffixes using the names of the spells cast in these books.

I would kind of like to say that I’m sad I didn’t read these books sooner; however, I don’t know that I would have fully appreciated them had I done so.

Now that I am older and a teensy bit wiser, I can see the multiple layers of storytelling that occurs in each book.

Harry, Ron, Hermione, Dumbledore, Hagrid, Sirius, and the rest of the gang will live on in the part of my heart reserved for those special characters in literature who do more than occupy pages in a book.  They will continue to challenge me to be a better friend, not take the easy way out, and not judge circumstances according to what my eyes see.

The Kill Order – Book Review

In Sunday’s wee hours of the morning, I finally finished reading The Kill Order by James Dashner.

It is billed as the prequel to the series; it was published after the other three books.  Thus, I read it last.

If you read my blog regularly, you’ll know that I have not enjoyed Dashner’s other books in this Maze Runner series.  The concept was actually quite good; however, it was not executed well, in my opinion.

Sure, there were characters that I actually liked, but they were far and few between.

In this final installment, readers learn what led to the maze being created in the first place.

I actually enjoyed this book most out of all four.  The dialogue was not as juvenile.  This could be due to one of the main characters being an older teen.

I liked the characters in this book as well and rooted for them to survive.

However, I still had trouble getting through this book simply because I had nothing pulling me back to it, unlike the scores of other Young Adult fiction books I’ve read over the last two years.

The fighting scenes in this book dragged on forever.  Perhaps young men reading these scenes will appreciate them, given the virtual reality games they like to play.

I am a female, which sounds stereotypical, but I just didn’t enjoy them.

The positives that I can say about this series is that I think it does appeal to young men who crave action when they read.  The text is not high complexity, and the chapters are short, which makes the books perfect for struggling readers who cannot seem to get past two or three pages in one sitting.

With all of that said, I am glad to have finally closed the back cover of this series.

I’m already nearly finished with a book a began immediately afterward.  I’ll be back with another review shortly!