A Little Formative Assessment ... On Myself*

I'm going to have to administer a self-assessment right now on my ability to keep up with my blog. Just as I've learned with my students to praise good points in addition to pointing out areas that can be improved, I'll have a "list" of pros and cons.

First off, the fact that I've actually been blogging is already a big step for me. As a notoriously incapable computer "techie," any extension of my Internet usage beyond checking e-mail and updating my status on Facebook is an improvement. So for stepping out of the box, I give myself an A! :-)

But then I have to think about the important characteristics that make it necessary to have a good blog. On these, I've been less than successful. For instance, I told myself I was going to keep up with this blog on a regular basis, but alas, as the school semester has progressed and I've begun adjusting  myself to married life, it seems that blogging has often found itself at the bottom of my list. Although I don't think I was necessarily incorrect in my priorities - usually paying bills, laundry and a project due the next day all fall under the category of "important" before writing something about my day for people to read for entertainment - I do think it's unfortunate that I didn't assert myself a little more. Something to work on, I suppose.

Then there's the issue of making my blog readable. What do I want to see when I read something on the Internet? Links, pictures, videos, headings - anything to break up the monotony of words streaming down the page. While there's obviously nothing that can substitute good writing, I know for a fact that my life is nowhere near the amount of exciting it would require to captivate a large audience, so I have to compensate with a little razzle dazzle! **NOTE: Although my life might not be as entertaining, I did find someone (or some animal's) that is. You. will. love. this.**

As made evident by my past few posts, I have yet to consistently incorporate little "extras" into my blog. Summer project? Yes! With the multiple "mini breaks" coming up this summer, I'm thinking we might at least see some Fun In the Sun shots coming up in the next few months! So look forward to improvement in this area!

Overall, I've had an amazing time exploring the world of blogging, and I've really enjoyed seeing what my friends have to say in their blogs, as well. I hope others keep up with their blogs as I'm planning to do with mine, and hopefully my next "assessment" will demonstrate more positive areas!

So, my personal grade for the semester in my blogging abilities would have to be a B. Average. 

I did what I needed to do for the most part, but I can definitely (and I want to) do more in the future! So this last "call to writing" is to myself. 

Alright, Margot. Ready, Set, WRITE!

Never Ceasing to Be Amazed*

It's spectacular to me that students are not only blogging, but that the things they're blogging about are remarkable and just as good as (sometimes better than) blogs written by adults. It's been a privilege getting to look at some of the things these kids are producing in their classrooms - it's also been so refreshing to see teachers using the things we've talked about in our college education classes in the "real world" of teaching.
Enjoy!

Zoo Project Idea
Trip to the Opera!
Class Project
Bullying Prevention Piece

My Life: The Musical*

I'd thought of creating this post since I began blogging, but it stayed hidden in the backlight when life sort of took over, leaving me very little free time to reminisce about my random thinkings. But this week's assignment was to write about anything we wanted, so I was left to be creative. Not a good thing. Thankfully my students, once again, saved my butt.

Last week in my classroom, my students were watching a video about Franklin Delano Roosevelt, and I mentioned to my teacher, "Talking about FDR always makes me think of 'Annie' - there's this whole song about Herbert Hoover and how his campaign promises fell through, and a whole scene with Roosevelt's cabinet ..." and then I started thinking about how helpful musicals and music in general can be in teaching students about history. And, as usual, I am now finding my silly ramblings reinforced as I sit watching 'Hairspray' on ABC Family.

Things like the cultural, political and social issues revealed through musicals like those mentioned above and others like Rent, West Side Story, In the Heights, and still countless others offer so many entertaining opportunities to educate children (some, yes, are more appropriate for younger ages than others, but I'm just making a point) - why not take more advantage of them?

I recently watched a documentary-type film discussing the failings of the American education system called Waiting for Superman (my wonderful husband was so kind to take his one free night off this week to make dinner with me and watch a documentary - that's true love). While it made some interesting points, there was one small piece of the film that I'm choosing to focus on (at least for this post - expect some more about this movie later): one of the "good teachers" presented in the film taught her children by rapping information or rewriting words to popular songs. Couldn't musical songs serve a similar purpose? I wonder ...

What's more, I began thinking about my students at my school and the things that they enjoy and relate to. I have three girls who sing and dance to the same song on the playground at least twice a week, girls who freak out at the sound of Justin Bieber, and boys who were completely shocked when I recognized the song "Black and Yellow." Could I use this as a way to breach that huge gap that I feel exists between children of that age and the adults that often tend to lecture rather than relate to them? Have them make a playlist of songs that mean something to them and  then have a piece of writing explaining its importance. That could be fun.

So I made my own soundtrack. Not representing my life necessarily, but music is so near and dear to my heart that's it's literally permeated into every aspect of my life. So I've included some of my favorites, as well as a couple of places where you might hear me "belting them out" (well, at least that's what it feels like in my head ... having the stereo volume at maximum helps drown out my sometimes less-than-worthy vocals). Enjoy!

1. "Forget You" by Cee Lo Green
          As of right now, this is my favorite driving down the road and jamming out to song. Also makes me feel like I'm a shoo-bop girl from the 50's whenever they "Woo who WHO!"

2. Anything from Legally Blonde: the Musical
          The ultimate girl-power musical. Really helps when I'm sweeping or cleaning in the kitchen. "Keep it positive ..."

3. "Sittin' On the Dock of the Bay" by Otis Redding
             This song makes me want to go to the beach, sit back and enjoy a nice, cold adult beverage ;-) Must-have summer music. Good for driving with the top down, too.

4. "You Can't Stop the Beat" from the musical Hairspray
           Great dance AND singing tune! You gotta shimmy your shoulders while you belt this one out - I think I've been caught a couple of times doing both of those things while driving down the road before. (I sing in the car A LOT. Let's face it: I sing everywhere a lot.)

5. "Orange Colored Sky"
             This song really serves as a shout out to jazz music, which I love; but I definitely sing this one in the shower all. the. time. Love it.

6. "Don't Stop Believin'" by Journey
             Obvious ultimate karaoke choice tune. Everyone knows the words whether you want to admit it or not. Only appropriate that it should be followed by ...

7. "Bohemian Rhapsody" by Queen
               Yet ANOTHER awesome karaoke/car belting tune. And whether you know the words or not, we all make them up and it's still fun.

8. "Tightrope" by Janelle Monae
                My new favorite workout song (along with "Dynamite" and "DJ Got Us Fallin' In Love Again"). It's just so much fun, and she has a fantastic voice!

9. "Wannabe" by The Spice Girls
                Can't be complete without at least one awesome 90's flashback song. Ultimate sing it with your friends anytime, anywhere song.

10. "Hallelujah" by Leonard Cohen
                 One of the most beautiful pieces of music I know! My ultimate I-love-to-both-play-and-sing-this-on-the-piano song (the chords are super repetitive).

11. "Desperado" by The Eagles
               If you're ever feeling "down" or in a mellow-type mood, this is the song for you (well, at least it is for me). Yet another gorgeous ballad that if it pops up on the radio or a Pandora station, I have to listen to the whole thing.

Okay ... this is probably getting old pretty fast for some of you, but that's okay. Music for me is something I could talk about all the time, whether anyone is actually listening or not (very similar to my husband when he talks about Family Guy episodes or the timbre of different opera singers' voices). Although I'll leave the reminiscing for later, I definitely want my students to share in my love of music (perhaps not necessarily love for the same type - I still can't bring myself to like the Jonas Brothers - but a love nonetheless) and maybe this post can be a prompt for you to see your own love of music.

This list is nowhere near completion, and I will probably be editing my selections over time, but it's a start. So, let's see what you've got. Hit me with your best shot (wow - that might be the lamest musical pun ever, but I teach 3 year-olds, so nothing's too ridiculous for me) and Ready, Set, WRITE ... and tell me some of the tunes you can't live without.

Long time, no see, everyone! *

Wow - a two week hiatus and we're back! Although I'm ashamed I didn't decide to keep up with my Internet writings, I am glad for the much needed break!
Well, after a wonderful week with my 3rd graders followed by an even more wonderful week of NO SCHOOL, it's back to business! So let's get started, shall we?

Maybe it's the fact that I've had a week off so I'm officially lazy, or maybe it's the craziness that goes along with enacting a week-long unit plan. Either way, the readings we had over the break hit very close to home in terms of teacher planning. Yes, a week is manageable. I say that, and yet I found myself making last-minute changes to each day's plans, specifying activities to work better for my students, or improvising pieces that I hadn't anticipated. It's all very exciting (especially when things go well!) ... and also somewhat chaotic!
So thinking about planning across the year - whether it be a for a multi-genre writing project or a writing workshop, or even a math unit - is extremely daunting to me.

The Allen and Swistak article mentions over and over again how the two teachers alter their plans as they go through this process. Over time, they say, they've eventually developed a plan that works well for their students. Even the chapter in our writing workshop mentions that their unit plans for upper and lower grades are just suggestions - you can and perhaps should make changes based upon your experience and what your students need. So after a few tries, I should have a nice plan ironed out.

Great. So in 4 - 5 years I might have everything sorted out. Does this learn-by-trying process intimidate anyone else?

I know it's somewhat of a negative attitude to think about the length of time it will take to feel even remotely comfortable about teaching. Even this is assuming you're in the same teaching position over the next 5 years. But I promise I'm not trying to be a downer. Just stick with me. :-)

I really enjoyed the quote at the end of the Allen article contrasting "planning" with "preparing": "Preparing is different ... In preparing we always expect diversity of outcomes. In preparing we enlarge the future in our imagination ... [and] we work to make ourselves ready."

This one quote validates everything that our education cohort is trying to accomplish in four semesters of college. At this point in the semester when I - and I'm sure other students will join in this with me - am ready to throw in the towel and be done with this whole "school thing," I'm reassured that I'm where I need to be. All this lesson planning, writing down observations, reading hundreds of pages of other teachers' observations (Thanks, Paley), and last but not least vacuuming the glitter off the carpet from where I spent hours making a poster for a guided reading lesson that will last 30 minutes - these all mean something.

It's all a part of preparing.

So now I'm a little more ready to get back into the semester. Bring on those focus lesson drafts and the reading assessments. Ask me to fill out another worksheet of things I've contributed to my mentor classroom. (Preferably not all at once, please.) While I might groan occasionally, I understand that it's all important and pertinent to what I will be doing all by myself in less than a year.

Okay ... maybe not all by myself. There will be 59 other new teachers out there going through the same thing. We can help each other. Not to mention an entire school of experienced teachers and personnel that can also help a first-time teacher. Slowly but surely we will all move from that "prep" stage to the "perform" stage.

Can't say I'm totally ready, but hey, I've got the rest of my life to learn how, right?
Whew. Okay - let's do this: ready, set, WRITE! (especially if you have any suggestions for a future teacher)

An Online Thesaurus Concept Map (aka the coolest thing I've seen this year)

"What's another word for ... ?"

How many times have I heard this question and how many times has it been my own voice ringing in my ears?

Well, no more! I have discovered via my LLED4120 class a new tool to substitute the worn out Shift+F7 function on my keyboard that I've used so many, many times for a thesaurus. 

This is Visuwords.com - it gives you synonyms and definitions via a concept map of connections with other words, uses, etc. It's AH-MA-ZING! Okay, it's amazing for dorks like me. 

Anyway, check it out. I recommend writing in "teach" and seeing what pops up - needless to say, I like it. :-)

Cut the cord already!*

Okay - so you know how there are those parents that won't let their kids do anything for themselves? "Oh, here, honey - let me tie your shoe!" and the kid's like 12 years old? Or that single bachelor with a steady job whose mom still comes over to his apartment on the weekends to straighten up, do the laundry AND restock the refrigerator? (But man, don't you want to be that guy's roommate.) 

You know ... ridiculous stuff like that.

Well, apparently teachers are having a similar "epidemic" in regards to their teaching time. Some of us find it really difficult - I'm talking emotionally and physically painful - to let go of our instruction time and let kids do something they are in charge of. I'm not talking worksheets that students solve on their own; I'm speaking of authentic student-run thinking and doing ... and in many classrooms this comes in the form of writing workshop. 

In writing workshop there is a great deal of time left for the students to be doing independent work - actually, a majority of a writing workshop should be just this! But some teachers hear the word "independent" and imagine screaming, disorganized, completely off-task paper-throwing monsters taking over their classroom. To allow students to think on their own as to what they would do could be nothing short of a small calamity, right? They have no idea how to use their time productively, right?

Let's hope both of these assumptions are wrong - otherwise the future workforce of America is in big trouble.

I liked especially what the book had to say about this: It's not that we should be concerned about what might distract students (i.e. games, being around friends, boredom), but that we should put things in place that will 

attract those students in order to prevent the prior from happening (i.e. materials to help, quiet areas, plenty of space).

Now, I'm certainly not trying to point fingers at anyone (okay ... maybe a little bit of gesturing in the direction of those parents that can't let go, but that's a whole other issue) because I'm as guilty of this "my way or the highway" as much as anyone. A great example, yet again, comes from my job as a dance teacher:

So the big end-of-the-year event at our dance studio is a dance recital put on where every class represents what they've been working on in a dance/musical theatre piece performed at the Classic Center in Athens. It's considered kind of a big deal, especially for a 3-year-old who's used to singing in the car with her mom. My students work all year to put together these pieces - usually I let them choose between a couple of songs they'd like to use, then I choreograph it, and the students perform it by themselves at the end of the year.

Well, needless to say, that "by themselves" part for the recital takes some preparation time. They have to practice remembering the steps throughout the process of learning it, and ultimately I shouldn't have to do the dance with them at all several weeks prior to the recital. But this step, which can either be a time of great excitement at showing what they know or a time of some anxiety for those who don't catch on as quickly, is a nightmare for me. I always joke, "I think I'm gonna be in this number this year," with my kids and co-workers, but in my head I'm really thinking - Could I be? Please?????

This is not that I find my students unworthy of facing this task - not at all. I'm continually impressed by what my kids bring to the table and how amazing their growth can be from September to May. There may be a little influence from my obsessive compulsive, perfectionist tendencies that makes me cringe when someone doesn't point their toe or yet again forgets the same part every time in a dance; but I've learned that if I don't let them try it on their own, that final performance can turn into catastrophe. Similar to those kids who never learn to tie their shoes. ;-) (Or in the classroom, those kids who never get to choose or have a say in what they write.)

Part of it stems from the fact that, as a performer, I just really want a chance to be onstage again and dance my 22-year-old-but-still-probably-more-like-13 heart out in a sparkly costume!

But the majority of the issue stems from me feeling that they need  me to be there as a support. Just like in the classroom, a teacher might begin to think, "These kids need me to be an example. They need me to look over their shoulder in order to succeed. They wouldn't know right from left if I wasn't there to tell them." 

Starting to sound like those crazy parents I mentioned earlier? To an extent, it is. If we can't learn to trust in these kids to think for themselves or do something independently, then they'll start to think they can't do it on their own either. But are they not the same kind of capable human beings that we are (even at a young age)? We only have one year in the classroom to influence a student for the rest of his/her life, and it's our job to help them prepare for what life will be like when the classroom is the real world and not a school building. What kind of teacher are you going to be: the kind that helps them now and ultimately harms them later, or the kind that offers direction when necessary but encourages them to figure it out for themselves? (Side note: I apologize to my 8th grade language arts teacher for putting a colon after a verb. It couldn't be helped.)

Your answer to this question might reflect a great deal on whether your writing workshop is affective or not. I hope my answer will fall close to the second kind. I hope yours does, too. So let's be brave for both ourselves and our students and "cut that cord" that ties them to needing our help every step of the way. Let's see what they have to say about things they want to talk about, not essay after essay of regurgitated facts we've handed them. 

So this week, say this to your students with little to no direction. You might be surprised what happens and the genius they come up with!

"Ready, set, WRITE!"

My Current Dilemma

So this IS supposed to be a blog about writing and teaching, but if you've been "keeping up," you'll know I'm in a bit of a rut and I've promised to write SOMETHING every day this week either here or in my writing journal for class. Well, here is the best I could come up with for today: my hair.

My hair is one of the few things that I will pay full price for and invest a lot of time in. As of late (i.e. since I started college in 2007), any time you find me at school, it will probably not be in the best of shape, however, on a normal basis I like to make it somewhat presentable (i.e. I might blow-dry it ... if I like you a whole lot). My favorite thing to do is get my hair cut or color it, or do SOMETHING different. See below for the most interesting hair cuts I've sported in my life thus far:


Not to be confused with my two GORGEOUS sisters, but I'm the one in the middle

 Above is how I've been sportin' it since last February when I got engaged. In true bride-to-be fashion, I grew my hair out (in addition to coloring it dark) so I would have something to work with on the big day!
Prior to that, I permed my hair and chopped it off for Locks of Love, giving me this sort of look:

Also pictured is the single-best drink I've ever had from the Paris Hotel in Las Vegas. Plus, it was free. Thank you, awesome business guy in Vegas who had had just enough drinks to buy 2 rounds of drinks for 5 complete strangers!



I have to give credit to my best friend for letting me totally pose on her for this one, but in my defense, I've wanted curls my entire life, and instead I ended up with ...



One of my other "besties" - this was taken at Legally Blonde in NYC!



Description: Long. Brown. and STRAIGHT.

But, undoubtedly, the best hair experience I've had - and this speaks volumes for what I like to do and how much I like to do it, was this:

Yes. Sadly, it's true. If you can't tell, I have a weave put in my hair and braids.
(I refused to do my entire head though. Way too painful.)
This was definitely not my best look, but it was for a show I was in, which, for many years, was the only time I changed my long, brown, straight look. I've dyed, cut, and now corn-rowed my hair for my love of theatre for years, and after I started seeing less of the stage, the "change your hair on a whim" bug stuck with me.

Which brings me to my current dilemma: what do I do now?
Wedding is over, I'm not in a show, and after this weekend, one of my friends will have gotten married (Congrats, Ashley and Michael) - meaning I can do whatever the heck I want with my not-so-golden locks.

Exciting, right? Well, true ...

...

But what should I do? I've done long, I've done dark, I've done blonde (both natural and dyed), and I've done "fake." My split ends are aching for a chop session with my hair stylist, but I'm drawing a complete blank. Much like my writing. Wow - my life is so fascinating.
HELP!
Here's a couple of ideas I've found that might work with my still-somewhat-permed hair, and hopefully with my crazy-lookin' face, too. :-)

So, apparently, I'm feeling the short look, considering my hair's been more than 2 feet long for the past 10 months. But all I really want is some sort of structure - and probably some sort of bangs. I'm feeling a lack of inspiration, especially considering the best hair gurus I could come up with were a ditzy pop-turned-sort-of-country singer who makes edible foaming lotion and the girl who left the family-friendly 7th Heaven show to do not-so-great movies and a less-than "family friendly" spread in a magazine. Hmm ... I need a new muse.

Therefore, I'm putting it to you who bother to read this and want to listen to my selfish rantings on hair stylings: HELP! Give me some ideas and feedback, and I'll be sure to post the "winner" and the results as my new blog pic - I know. What an honor and accomplishment. Don't get too excited.

So, people of the world, if I can write, so can you.

Ready, set, WRITE~