Celebrations!
Thank you Ruth for starting this community of celebration! It's one I treasure and I'm so grateful to be part of it.
Please join us at Ruth's Blog.
Today I am filled with gratitude and I'm ready to celebrate!
Connections: I celebrate connections. In preparing my students for their blogs, I reached out to my PLN and asked for student blogs. Margaret Simon, Julieanne Harmatz, and Erin Varley graciously agreed and shared blogs from their students. My students read and commented. It was a rousing success. My students can't wait to get their own blogs. We had such fun commenting and we got to see what good blog writing looks like. We did this on Tuesday and I noticed that some students kept returning to the blogs to read and comment some more throughout the week. (By the way, our blogs are coming very soon!)
Friendship: Being needed in times of struggle can make a friendship stronger. One of my very best friends and colleague, found herself sick this week. She needed to go to the hospital.
I dropped everything and drove her. (After a day filled with tests, she's going to be fine.) We laughed as we sat in the ER thinking about how much fun we are able to have in this scary moment. That's what real friendship is...laughing together in the ER, being there for each other when we're scared or sad. She's been there for me countless times and I'm grateful that I could help her. I celebrate friendships and the richness that my friendships bring to my life.
Heroes: I can't let today's post go by without recognizing Malala Yousafzai. I use the word hero sparingly, but she absolutely fits the bill. Yesterday, I asked my students if they are old enough to change the world. The immediately said, "YES!" (I love that!!) We watched a video of Malala and talked about who she was and what she's accomplished. The discussion was wonderful and eye opening and inspiring! One of my students had read her book and the rest of the class promptly insisted we have it, so I ordered it for our classroom library. I love this video of her from The Daily Show...
My final celebration is my writing. I have felt uninspired for the past couple of weeks, yet I continued to write. I celebrate that! YOU helped me continue. Having an audience makes a difference to me. I even started a Facebook Page for my blog. If you are on Facebook, please like my page. Thank you for reading! Have a great weekend!
Great week, MIchelle. My students love when they find comments from our "sister" classrooms. And this week they are finding some comments from a member of my PLN who read their book letters to me. They loved it!
ReplyDeleteLike you, we discussed Malala in class yesterday. My college prep literature class just finished Fahrenheit 451 and are starting to readThe Things They Carried. So we watched a New York Times video from several years ago about the area and what they went through when the Taliban took over. We talked a bit about how she has to fight so hard for her education and many in the US squander their's. Eye opening.
I just read Julieanne's post about all of the connecting. How wonderful for all of your students to read others' writing in different places. I'm glad you helped your friend, and that she's okay. And, not surprised but it was wonderful to hear about Malala and the Novel Prize. Sounds like a good week, Michelle.
ReplyDeleteI need to read more about Malala. Yay for connections and feeling inspired with your writing. I think that's why I love blogging and this community- the audience. But even if no one is reading, I find it therapeutic!
ReplyDeleteIt is great that your students are connecting with others through blogging. We both know how this can inspire writing. Malala is admirable. I read the book about her in small chunks at a time, too painful in many places. I am glad that Malala and her cause got recognition and support of the world. It gives hope.
ReplyDeleteIt's fantastic that your students are interacting with others via blogs and comments. That is such a realistic and natural way to use their skills. It sounds like a great week even with an ER trip.
ReplyDeleteI'm so glad you write!
ReplyDeleteWhat an incredible teacher and friend you are!
Such wonderful celebrations you had this week. I smiled when I thought that your students might someday have virtual real friends just like I do...Happy Week
ReplyDeleteFantastic celebrations, Michelle! Each one made me smile a little more!
ReplyDeleteI'm so grateful for you and your students! Their comments made our students' blogging real. It energized them, gave them purpose. We can't wait to read their blogs.
ReplyDeleteThey will love genius hour. They are so ready to go to this work.
Your teaching ideas always inspire me. I'm getting ready to start my students blogging. Do you have any suggestions? Could my students read your kids blogs somehow?
ReplyDeleteDo your kids only respond to things you post, or do they share their own slicing type posts?
I'd love to talk to you more about this. You can email me: jenferg11@yahoo.com