February 2015 TBR

February?! Weren't we just celebrating the start of January?

I didn't get as much read in January as I would have liked. I was able to finish three books and am working on both of my 2015 reading challenges.

• The Storied Life of A.J Fikry (A book a friend recommended, thanks Carol!)
• The Painted Veil (A book set in a different country and part of Reread 2015)
• Mr. Popper's Penguins  (A book that became a movie)

Looking forward to these books:

Still working on this one! I am enjoying Stephen King's writing style immensely!

 I joined a second book club with my sister and this is the current read.

My middle grade level book. I hope it is one I can share with my students.

This little gem should be in my mailbox on Monday! I can't wait! I met my workout goal last week and this is my reward. I love Sharon Creech. I better finish some other books so I can read this one!

What are you hoping to read this month? Any sappy romances to go with the holiday?

Toe Squeezing

Lunch was over, I was getting tired and my head was starting to throb. Thankfully my hangry problem had been fixed. Naturally I was not in the best of moods and it seemed as if my students weren't listening to me. Was 3:15 ever going to come?
I sat at my document camera waiting for them to finish their daily language review so we could go over it. A few of them weren't picking up on my not-so-subtle hints of getting quiet and to work. My frustration was starting to become my primary emotion when I looked over at a student who had one socked foot up on his desk.
"Benjamin, where is your shoe?"
"I took it off."
"Why?"
"I wanted to squeeze my toes to see how it felt."

What? I couldn't help but laugh. It was the most random thing that I heard all day, yet it made since for that kid. Which by the way, I changed his name to protect the innocence of the darling dear.
I was speechless.
I was in a better mood!

(Are you wondering why there is a random picture of a kitten? Let me tell you. Google search "socked feet" and "toes" Go ahead, do it. GROSS! Both searches. So in order to get the gross pictures off of my search, I typed in the first thing that came to mind just to get the gross pictures away from me. Has nothing to do with the story, but blog posts need some sort of picture right?)

SOL #4 - Random Thoughts from Today

Yay for writing! Thanks to Two Writing Teachers for giving us a place to write!

I once again sat down to write and am having a hard time finding something to write about. Then I heard my own voice telling my students to just write when they complain about not having anything to journal about. Better do as I say.

Random Thoughts from Today:

• I got a new student today. This can be such a hard thing and it does throw off the day, but one of the best parts about getting a new student is you realize how far your students have come since the beginning of the year. They know the routines and they know how things go, even when they act like they don't!
• Sharing Taco Tuesday with a friend is better than Taco Tuesday on your own.
• This week I sent home book orders and made a flippant comment (I tend to do that a lot) that if we had an order of $125 or more I got cool free books. I have a student who is a co-worker's daughter and mom can get her free books through her own book orders. So the daughter, turned in a book order with her own money to insist that I get free books. Made my *heart flutter* that she was so thoughtful.

Well, that's all I got. :0)

Happy Tuesday ya'll

Celebrating Writing

Celebrating two weeks ago was so successful, I wanted to celebrate again! Thanks Ruth Ayres for  having me!

This week I am celebrating writing. I often struggle with writing, both teaching it and doing it myself. I am constantly thinking about writing and what to do with it. On Tuesday I participated in Slice of Life and while reading other slices I came across Tammy's slice. She talked about how students just need to write. They need time to just write. I couldn't have agreed more and promptly started to apply this philosophy to my daily routine in my classroom.

On the first day we had a few extra minutes in class so I handed out their notebooks and told them to open to the next blank page. About five students asked what we were doing, three exclaimed that they needed a pencil, and the other few did what they were asked to do.

Looking at the clock I calculated how much time we had until the next class and told them that I wanted them to write until it was time to go.

"What do we write about?"
"Just write."
"Can I write a story?"
"Just write."
"Does it have to be true?"
"Just write." (by this point my voice is starting to get higher.)

They did NOT like this game. One student was almost in tears because he couldn't think of anything to write about. I gave him some ideas and walked away to his protests. They finally surrendered and just wrote.

My classroom was silent for fifteen minutes. Every student was writing and several of them asked to share theirs when time was up, including the student who threw the biggest fit!

Fast forward to day three of journal writing.

"Today's journal entry is going to be a picture prompt."

source

All the progress we had made the first day was lost.
"What do we write?"
"This is your picture prompt for your journal writing today."
"Do we describe it?"
"This is your picture prompt for your journal writing today."
"I don't get it!"
"This is your picture prompt for your journal writing today."

Finally they got the hint and began to write. Again, they were silent as they wrote and wrote and wrote. This was celebration number one. Celebration number two came when they all wanted to share their journal entries!

I LOVED what they wrote! Each student's writing was so unique and different. They were talking about their writing to each other and upset that we ran out of time to share all of them. I can't wait to hear what the others wrote and see what is to come the rest of the year.

What would you write with this picture prompt?

SOL #3 - Hands

Play along at Two Writing Teachers

 Happy Tuesday, that is disguised as a Monday! Best part is that tomorrow is Wednesday! I am back for Slice of Life with a much better attitude this week!
My school district was one of the lucky ones who got a three day weekend and I took full advantage of it! Friday night as soon as I said goodbye to my students I myself headed north west to Saratoga, WY to visit my dear friends Henry and Jane.
We had such a fun time the three days I was there. Lots of laughs are always to be had while, eating, playing dominoes, watching tv, or riding in the truck. More to possibly come on my weekend with pictures!
What I really wanted to write about today are hands. Hands that show so much love in their actions.

God has given us two hands, one to receive with and the other to give with.

Billy Graham

These two have given more than I think they could ever receive. Two of the most giving and generous people I know. Examples of the person I can only strive to be.

Hands that make one of the best cups of hot chocolate ever complete with marshmallows. That make you your favorite pie and an amazing dinner to feed a crowd.

The hands of a working man who takes the time of make breakfast and share a cup of coffee at the table. 

Have you been blessed by a pair of hands?

*Heart Flutter* Friday

Looking back at the past week and the *heart flutters* it brought.

*special deliveries*

*setting new goals*

*seeing my accomplishments*
*chili with dad*
*the change of head count in my classroom*
*breakfast burrito and orange juice special delivery*
*seeing old friends and sharing memories*
*realizing that I'm going to be ok*
*getting my purchase order approved*
*my students working on the Chrome books silently for an hour straight*
What made your *heart flutter* this week?

SOL #2 - Road Blocks

Well, it is Tuesday again and that means time for Slice of Life over at Two Writing Teachers.
I made it my goal to participate each week in SOL. I should be in bed right now, but in order to reach this goal, here I am.

Last week, I had the issue of not knowing what to write about. Here are are again. I want to reach my goal, but if I can't find anything to write about, how am I going to succeed at this? *sigh*

Just sit down and start writing. Isn't that kind of the point?

I have such a desire to become a better writer, but have so many road blocks that I have put in front of me myself. I read all these amazing blogs and I want to be like them when I grow up!

Yet I always question how does one at my stage in life become a better writer? I have been taught and now I am the teacher and a part of me now says that I have reached my learning cap and this is what I am. But I don't think that is the case, I just need to work at it.

How do you work at it? You write.

My second road block is probably my biggest road block. I get so discouraged with my blogging especially when I don't get comments (which I am calling feedback.) I want to know that people are enjoying what they are reading. They have to be because my page view counter keeps going up, so someone out there is reading it each time I post.

I just need to get over these two big blocks.

So I will continue to write, even when I can't think of anything to write.

What do you do when you can't think of anything to write about?
Any advice on how to break through my road blocks?