The first computer “terminal” I sat behind was literally that—something I could sit behind. It was itself a desk. It had a built-in keyboard made of keys you had to exert real effort on. I believe they were designed to survive a nuclear catastrophe (which was a real possibility in those days, kids). The monitor,…
Life Is a Bumpy, Messy Thing
When my parents came to visit over the Thanksgiving holiday, we discussed the long and expensive path I took that ended with a degree in elementary education. You see, my high school guidance counselor encouraged me to go into another area of study instead of teaching since teaching jobs in Michigan were difficult to come…
Holiday Creep
So Thanksgiving is now nipping at the heels of Black Friday for the title of Biggest Shopping Day of the Year. What a shame. Many stores were playing holiday music to lull shoppers into a gift-buying mood when they were shopping for back-to-school, which itself now seems to begin sometime in late April. And I…
When Students Are Absent
Ah-choo! It’s that time of year, or at least my nose thinks it is! Isn’t early December about the time students begin missing school due to wintertime illnesses, such as the cold and flu? No teacher wants her students to be sick—well, wait a minute, there was a student or two…:0) But seriously, an absent…
Thanksgiving Follow Up
Are you eating leftovers? Are you shopping for deals? Are you watching football? Are you putting up holiday decorations? Hmmmm, what else could you be doing? Certainly not school work (I hope)! Tell us what you like to do on a day off from teaching, and this little penguin could be headed your way. Of…
Merry “Thanksgiving-mas”!
During my morning commute, I flip between two different radio stations—back and forth and back and forth—looking for appealing music. About two weeks ago, one of “my stations” went to all Christmas music. I did a lot of grumbling and ranting and muttering about how we have to jump into every holiday way too early….
Gobbler Surprise
This grinning gobbler can hold a dinner napkin or student writing—a list of thankful thoughts, a story of thankfulness, or a Thanksgiving Day poem—to be shared at mealtime. In either case, the tiny turkey makes a supercute and thoughtful addition to a Thanksgiving Day table! Have older students measure and cut the needed paper strips…
Our Address
Coworkers and Friends?
Last weekend, I went to a three-day scrapbooking retreat with Lynn, the managing editor of The Mailbox magazine Kindergarten edition. Around six years ago, we discovered that we were both into paper crafts. Ever since, we’ve been piling ridiculous amounts of crafting stuff in either her car or my car and going to various…
When I Grow Up
If everything had gone according to plan, today I’d be a firefighting fisherman with a large and amazing pickup truck for a primary vehicle and a Formula 1 car for getting things done on the weekend. Also, I’d have a helicopter pilot’s license and live in Australia. But the best-laid plans of our childhood are…