Waiting waiting.

March 25, 2014


Good day in the classroom today! Figurative language unit has come together. Bringing music and lessons together visually and hands on as one was a great idea Mrs. Shuler (my co-teacher)  I so enjoyed the presentations. On the personal note, patience is not my virtue tonight. I received call earlier that I would be a grandma tonight sometime. Now just waiting for that joyous call saying everything has gone smoothly! Sleep will more likely than not be my friend.

My attempt at Haiku

March 23, 2014

The sun is shining
Overhead, bright, dazzling specter
Deceiving warmth, cold day

My attempt at Haiku for the day!

Happy Happy Friday

March 21, 2014

Happy happy Friday!! Thank goodness for the weekends. Time to recharge the batteries. At this time of the school year I look forward to weekends, breaks and sometimes even snow days as much as the kids do! But even then, I often look with teacher eyes to people places and things I encounter in hopes maybe to bring into my class that experience! So let the weekend begin!

The meaning behind the tunes.

March 20, 2014

First day of a new quarter. Time seems to be flying by this school year yet at the same time standing still. Each day brings excitement and aggravation. Welcome to middle school! I love being a teacher especially with this age group. Poetry in song lyrics, figurative language makes more sense it seems for they appeared to be working hard at "reading" , finding and explaining the alliteration, metaphors, simile, onamonapeoia and so on then explaining what they thought the meaning behind was. Time seemed to stand still for a few moments this morning.

Poetry all around

March 18, 2014


We are wrapping up poetry in our 6th grade English class. I am amazed by some of the work coming out of the kids. Some so simple others deeper. Finally they are realizing word choice!!! I think my personal favorite has been the bio poem. This would actually be a great activity for beginning of the school year in order to learn about your students. Today I learned a few things. Some from the hearts of 6th graders.

March 15,2014

Vacuum check. Laundry check, dishes check, dusting check. House work done check. Time for an outing with my husband. We try to get out at least one day on weekend to explore somewhere new or revisit an old friend. This time of the year is two fold. For fun and relaxation and to scope out new and different places for summer school field trips. Where ever I go my kids are always there. What ever I can drag back to the classroom is wonderful to me. They always enjoy whatever treasures I bring back whether river rocks from Iowa, pins from the Missouri welcome center to the airman wings from an air show. Bringing the world in so my kids who don't have the chance get to "travel" I did find some good ideas for summer school, the conservation center will be interesting as a scavenger hunt at the zoo.

A little slice of sunshine

March 14,2014
Thank goodness for Friday! Going into the weekend, I know I have papers to grade, lessons to plan but it is also a time to recharge the batteries for the upcoming week. Fun and adventure is on tap for Saturday! My husband has a friend and his wife coming up from Texas and we are meeting them in Branson. Now if you have never been to Branson it is quite the sight! Lights, action all around and traffic! On any given weekend it is an assault on the senses. I am looking forward to as I have never met these people before. Not sure what to expect.

Adding a little life to my day!

March 13, 2014

I didn't quite know how this day was going to go. This morning instead of hitting snooze on the alarm I hit the off and went back to sleep. Could have went either way at that point. I managed to wake up about 30 minutes later, not quite enough to glide through coffee with no worries but not late enough to be throwing my shoes on while dashing for the jeep. Surprisingly the morning went smooth, as did the day. When the last bell rang and I was sitting at my desk preparing to do paper work as I do every afternoon , the feeling of I really want to go home hit really hard. So much to the protest of my inner work-a-holic self, I loaded up and went home. My dogs were ecstatic! There is nothing like puppy love to greet you at the door!  I scratched ears, filled the water bowl and played a little ball with them. I even got a little work out in before the hubby got home.

March 11

Just one more snooze, just one more snooze, just one more. I did not want to get out of bed this morning. This time change is doing a number on my sleep plus the rain gushing down last night didn't help. Usually the rain lulls me to sleep so I don't know what the problem was. The lightning was putting on a pretty good show. Hopefully tomorrow it will be easier to hop out of bed. I am not sure of the purpose of daylight savings time in this day and age.

March 11

Today was a beautiful day! 6th graders are coming along with their slicing. It is always interesting reading what they have to say and listen to their line of thinking. Poetry is slowly coming along. They were a bit out of it today in that respect.

Beautiful day!

March 10, 2014

Beautiful day out today, warm for a change and more to come tomorrow. Was excited during English class today; kids excited about slicing. I find it fascinating to hear from other parts of the world other than our little spot in the sun here. We are working on poetry, which rather fits the bright day today. Haiku, Tanka and the magic numbers 5 & 7! It is amazing to see what the students can come up with when they stretch their minds and imagination. Really good work is coming out of the classroom.

A day in the sun!

Great adventure today!! And a nice 60 day for a change. My husband and I hopped into the jeep to go explore a possible place for a summer school field trip. We went to an old grist mill that is being restored out in the middle of Dade county not to far from Stockton Lake. It was interesting, the old building was looking a bit refreshed with new windows and we got out and looked around. The old cabins that were on the property also were history standing. So neat that someone took the time to start preserving them. One that we looked at was considered a "mansion" back in the day as it had two floors and a day kitchen connected by a breezeway. I will be watching the progression here, hopefully we can visit again with students. There is supposed to be Civil War reenactments the second week in June so maybe the grist mill will be up and running!

Long day March7

When I come through the door after a long day at school, bags brimming with work, the best thing in the world is to be met at the door by my dogs! They would be stunned to learn they are dogs as they are treated like the kids! The unconditional love and the fact they are always glad to see me brings a smile and the day melts away!

Another day...

March 6

Another day! It seems like the shorter the school week the longer it is. I have the feeling of so much to do I don't know where to start. Paper work is the bane of my existence! Overwhelming at times but what can you do except move ahead with a light heart and smile. It will straighten itself out and maybe there will be an extra minute or two to catch up.

March 5 Is it ever going to warm up?

I am a northern girl by birth so cold weather is nothing new. I must be getting old as the cold has just been seeping in my bones and the chill won't go away!! The best part of the day was coffee after a cold morning walk. It is rather eerie walking in the cemetery at 5 am but peaceful at the same time. The deer were out this morning, watching, statue like as I was watching them. The moon was but a sliver,almost in anticipation of day light savings. It was conserving its light.

Triggered memory

Another snow day today, getting really tired of winter! Brings back memories of the occasional snow days when I was growing up! I could count on my mom making a hot breakfast and sometimes having cookies in the oven before we even got out of bed. The aroma of coffee wafting in made me think of my mom and dad and all the mornings I could smell the coffee before hitting the floor as well as hearing the big band music on the radio. Up beat way to start the day! Looking out at the snow and ice glistening as it slowly melts away is like a patchwork of memories between when I was a kid and when my own kids were at home. Snow days are not near as much fun when you are home alone!

March 3

Oh my goodness it is cold! It actually feels like it is stealing inside with each breath you take and robbing the next one away! And bright, the snow reflecting off the snow and ice is beautiful! Glistening trees and bushes out my back window. The joy of the day is watching the sun grow brighter and the birds who are coming to my feeder. The poor robins who misjudged the weather, they look so cold. The bright red of the cardinal, the blue jays and the little wrens and sparrows. They are all hovering around the feeder, alternating between nourishment and the protection of the holly bush from the cold wind. What a beautiful day!

Day 2 It is good to be home

March 2
It is so good to be home after being away even a couple of days! Waking up in my own bed was delightful! Drinking good coffee even  more so!! I don't know what the big deal is on Starbucks, I think it tastes bitter, like a sour candy. Watching the sun come up at my kitchen table surrounded by my four legged babies this morning drinking FOLGER's. Best part of waking up. Commercial has it right.

A slice of life day 1

March 1
I am such a geek! School law fascinates me; especially special ed law. Sitting in conference session waiting for the keynote speaker to start. Looking at all the people coming in.