SOLSC Day9 - Two Very Important Words

Slice Of Life Story Challenge: Day 9 -- Two Very Important Words 


************ There is a sign that hangs on the wall of my small group room in my morning school. When I put the sign on the wall at the beginning of this school year, I really wanted it to stand out and be noticed. So I gave the sign a large bright background and “framed" it with bulletin board border. 

Why would I want this sign to stand out so much?  Because I want every student who sees it to know that they are important. Regardless of what problems they may have, regardless of their color or age or gender or religion or nationality, they matter. Sometimes children aren't confident enough in themselves to realize that they matter. Sometimes children don't feel enough love or attention from others to realize that they matter. Sometimes, for whatever reason, they just don't know. 

I want to make sure that everyone who sees this sign knows. (This applies to adults, too, who sometimes need a reminder!) Every human being on this planet is important. Every single life matters.

If you are a person who happens to be feeling down right now, or are questioning your worth, or are feeling unloved...don't let yourself believe those negative feelings! 

Always remember:

Y O U    M A T T E R.

:-)

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JudyK  March 9, 2018

SOLSC Day8 - Tug of War

Slice Of Life Story Challenge: Day 8 -- Tug of War


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The weather can be crazy in March. Is it Winter? Is it Spring? One day it's one, the next day it's the other. It can be a very confusing time of year!

I decided to express my thoughts with some haiku:

Tug of War

Winter seems to wane.

Spring creeps in; Winter returns.

The seasons battle.

They quarrel and spar.

Tugging, pushing, back and forth....

Spring will win some day.

:-)
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JudyK  March 8, 2018

SOLSC Day7 - I'd Rather Roar!

Slice Of Life Story Challenge: Day 7 -- I'd Rather Roar!

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I like to listen to local radio stations when I'm driving. The station I listen to the most is Sunny 95 (WSNY) out of Columbus, which plays adult contemporary pop "refreshing music" with some older music sprinkled in. Sunny 95 plays the music of a number of artists -- Adele, Ed Sheeran, Michael Jackson, Journey, Daughtry, Katy Perry, Taylor Swift, Adam Levine, Genesis.... I would love to listen to a few more artists that Sunny 95 doesn't play, but I find the station's playlist to be fairly satisfactory. 

A lot of the music on Sunny 95 is upbeat, which is great for driving. Slow, somber music would put me to sleep, and falling asleep while driving generally does not have good consequences, so I try to avoid that. And I don't enjoy the wild, crazy, hard rock stuff -- that kind of music just sets my nerves all a-jangle -- so I'm happy to avoid that type of music as well. Sunny 95 plays a nice mix of music which is just right for me.

Usually, that is.

There is one song that Sunny 95 plays that I despise: Katy Perry's "Teenage Dream." I hate hate hate that song. The tune is catchy, but I hate the lyrics and the message the song conveys. So much so, that if that particular song comes on, I immediately switch to a different station. Any station. Immediately. After a few minutes, when I'm sure that there's no longer any danger of hearing any of that song, I switch back to Sunny 95. 

Usually, that is.

Sometimes I enjoy the music on the other station I turned to, and just stay with that station. It's Sunny 95's loss. What else can I say? They should stop playing that song!

Now, I would like to present the lyrics to a different Katy Perry song, one that has a much better message: "Roar."

I used to bite my tongue and hold my breath
Scared to rock the boat and make a mess
So I sat quietly, agreed politely
I guess that I forgot I had a choice
I let you push me past the breaking point
I stood for nothing, so I fell for everything

You held me down, but I got up (hey!)
Already brushing off the dust
You hear my voice, your hear that sound
Like thunder, gonna shake the ground
You held me down, but I got up
Get ready 'cause I had enough
I see it all, I see it now

I got the eye of the tiger, a fighter
Dancing through the fire
'Cause I am a champion, and you're gonna hear me roar
Louder, louder than a lion
'Cause I am a champion, and you're gonna hear me roar!

Oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh
Oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh
Oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh
You're gonna hear me roar!

Now I'm floating like a butterfly
Stinging like a bee I earned my stripes
I went from zero, to my own hero

You held me down, but I got up (hey!)
Already brushing off the dust
You hear my voice, your hear that sound
Like thunder, gonna shake the ground
You held me down, but I got up
Get ready 'cause I've had enough
I see it all, I see it now

I got the eye of the tiger, a fighter
Dancing through the fire
'Cause I am a champion, and you're gonna hear me roar
Louder, louder than a lion
'Cause I am a champion, and you're gonna hear me roar!

Oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh
Oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh
Oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh
You're gonna hear me roar!

Oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh
Oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh
Oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh
You're gonna hear me roar!

Roar, roar, roar, roar, roar!

I got the eye of the tiger, a fighter
Dancing through the fire
'Cause I am a champion, and you're gonna hear me roar
Louder, louder than a lion
'Cause I am a champion, and you're gonna hear me roar!

Oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh
Oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh
Oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh
You're gonna hear me roar!

Oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh
Oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh
Oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh
You're gonna hear me roar!

I'd much rather roar!

:-)

***************
JudyK  March 7, 2018

SOLSC Day6 - On My Desk

Slice Of Life Story Challenge: Day 6 - On my desk...

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I keep a few special things on my desk at my morning school. I like to have them nearby because they remind me about some special people. When I glance at these things first thing in the morning when I arrive at school, it starts my day off right.

Here is the first item:



This little wooden box was given to me by a friend. She chose it for me because it has the little metal cut-outs of apples on top. Apples for the teacher, you know. I use this box to store practical items such as lip balm, which I use throughout the morning, and sentimental items, such as a souvenir penny from a trip to the zoo with my grandkids. This box reminds me of the many wonderful people in my life.


The second item is an old bell:



It came from a doctor's office where my mother was once secretary/office manager. This bell sat on a countertop in front of Mom's desk; if Mom was elsewhere in the office when a patient would come in, they would tap on the bell to get her attention. This bell is important to me not only because I love bells and collect them, but because it reminds me of Mom. Mom's been gone over 26 years now, and I still miss her, but I'm glad that I have her bell with me every day.

The third item that is special to me is a bouquet of paper flowers:



Two years ago I was having one of those milestone birthdays, and a few teachers/staff members made these flowers for me. Those colleagues made my day exceptionally surprising by sending one flower at a time to me, delivered by random students, throughout the day. By the end of the day, I had this fantastic bouquet. I still marvel at its simple beauty. This bouquet reminds me of those teachers, and all the teachers and staff I've worked with in many different buildings over the years. I can't help but smile when I see it.


I love the warm, happy feelings that these objects give me. They're definitely good pick-me-ups to have in the workplace every day!

:-) 

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JudyK  March 6, 2018

SOLSC Day5 - Another Lost Art?

Slice Of Life Story Challenge: Day 5 - Another lost art?

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"Mrs. K...Mrs. K?"

I turned my attention from one of my students who was seated at the table with me, to the one standing next to me. He was holding a book, and pointing to a certain spot on a page.

"Will you tell me what this says?"

Now this particular student, a 3rd grader, happens to be a very good reader. This wasn't the first time that he had asked for help, though, when reading his much beloved Diary of a Wimpy Kid books, and I knew exactly what the problem was: The Diary of a Wimpy Kid series of books occasionally has letters or notes written by adult characters and given to children characters in the books, and the notes/letters are shown in the books in cursive writing. And my student, as good a reader as he is, can't read cursive writing. None of my elementary students can read cursive writing. 

Cursive writing is no longer being taught in the schools. Technology has made it obsolete, some say. Students, as well as adults, type everything into devices. So who needs to know how to write in cursive? Nobody uses it any more. So why teach it?

They make a good point. If there is very little need to be able to read it or write it, do we really need cursive writing any more? 

I myself am hoping that cursive writing is NOT going to become a lost art! Shouldn't future generations of our nation be able to read historical documents such as the Declaration of Independence, without a typed translation?  Shouldn't kids be able to read letters from their grandparents? Do we really want that skill to disappear?

I certainly don't.

But I must admit, I've used the situation to my advantage before, more than once. When I've written a reminder note to myself, or I've written a note to another teacher, and I didn't want students to know what the notes said.... I wrote them in cursive.

Oh, the shame....


;-)

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JudyK  March 5, 2018

SOLSC Day 4 - Currently

Slice Of Life Story Challenge: Day 4 - Currently

Today's writing is inspired by many of the "Currently" Slice of Life stories that I read during the SOL Story Challenge last March. I find them to be so interesting, but never wrote one until now.

CURRENTLY

Listening: To an episode of Fixer Upper on the TV. it's an episode that recorded a few days ago. I love the work of Chip and Joanna Gaines -- such pretty homes in their final product!

Eating: Nothing at the moment. But a few hours ago I had an Apple Pecan Chicken salad from Wendy's. Oh so good!

Drinking: Water. Good old-fashioned tap water.

Wearing: A black Autism Awareness t-shirt with a bunch of colorful words (strength, hope, acceptance, love...) on the front.

Reading: Many, many Slice of Life Stories on The Two Writing Teachers website. When I have a chance, I'll get back to the book I've been reading on and off for a while now: Hidden Figures, by Margot Lee Shetterly. It was the book that inspired the movie which came out a little over a year ago.

Feeling: Excited about getting a new cell phone earlier this afternoon. It's an inexpensive one, but SO much better than my old broken one. And it works!

Wanting: An extra day for this weekend. I am not ready for Monday morning to come!

Needing: More hours in the day, to get everything done.

Thinking: About what outfit I have that's clean and weather-appropriate that I can wear to school tomorrow. Which reminds me that I need to find out what tomorrow's weather is supposed to be. (The high could be 30 or 60 around here this time of year...You never know!)

Enjoying: These last few quiet hours of Sunday.

:-)

************

JudyK  March 4, 2018

SOLSC Day3 - Today's Bits of Happiness

Slice Of Life Story Challenge: Day 3 - Today's Bits of Happiness
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There are little bits of happiness all around us every day, but life keeps us so busy that we don't always notice them.  It's so easy to get caught up in all our work, schedules, problems, activities, and deadlines, that we don't take time to smell the roses, so to speak. I think we can all feel a little better if we learn to look for the small, happy things that happen every day, and simply appreciate them!

Here are a few little bits that made me happy today:

*The luxury of sleeping late on Saturday
*Bright, glorious, spectacular-after-many-days-of-rain  S U N S H I N E
*Clear blue skies
*Leaf buds on trees
*A phone call with my sister
*Thin Mints Girl Scout cookies
*Thoughts of Spring
*A letter from an old friend
*A School Specialty catalog to browse
*Crocus and tulip leaves poking up through the ground


What little things made you happy today? 

:-)

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JudyK  March 3, 2018

SOLSC Day2 - Rusty Blogs and Tired Brains

Slice Of Life Story Challenge: Day 2 — Rusty Blogs and Tired Brains

*****

Wow, I have been realizing for the past few days just how rusty I am in remembering how to do things on this blog!  How do I insert the Slice Of Life picture onto my blog? I haven’t remembered yet. How do I find my permalink to post to The Two Writing Teachers site? I had to re-learn that yesterday, but I think I know it now. How do I do that and how do I do that? I have no idea. I’m having to re-learn e-v-e-r-y-t-h-i-n-g. I guess that’s what I get for ignoring my blog for nine months, a mistake I hope NOT to repeat.

I’ve been doing a lot of writing in the past few days, but it’s the “required for my job” kind of writing, not the “fun because I want to do it” kind of writing. IEP progress reports. Enough said.

Now it’s Friday night, and it’s been a looong week, and my brain is tired. I’m REALLY looking forward to the next two days off, when hopefully I can refresh my brain, figure out once again how my blog works, and do a little FUN writing.

Here’s hoping!
😊

*****
JudyK March 2, 2018

SOLSC Day1

2018 Slice Of Life Story Challenge: Day 1


The March Slice of Life Story Challenge, hoted by Two Writing Teachers, is back! And here I am on March 1, but I’ve got to hurry to get this posted because it’s almost midnight, which means it’s almost March 2. I can’t miss the first day of the challenge! Eeeek! March snuck up on me when I wasn’t looking!

This is my second year participating in the March challenge, and I’m hoping to have as much fun as I had last year! Last year I wrote  every single day in March, and I want to do that again.  And I’m looking forward to reading all the slices — what a great bunch of writers there were last  year! I’m betting there will be just as many this year. 😊

JudyK
March 1, 2018