Emergent Curriculum… In Action

Posted on October 7, 2014 by Jennie

Emergent curriculum takes some ‘bravery’ from both teachers and children.  A teacher must have the foresight to scrap all those lesson plans when a genuine, worthwhile teachable moment presents itself.  A child must have the confidence and enthusiasm about the activity at hand to want more.  One week in the Aqua Room, emergent curriculum was in action.  It happened like this:

It was Morning Meeting.  We had just finished singing the days of the week.  The Helper of the Day had counted the calendar numbers and placed the correct number of the day and the weather icon onto the calendar.  We were putting a Handwriting Without Tears song into the CD player, preparing to do a singing and movement activity.

It was only thirty seconds from calendar to singing.  In that short time, Jem began singing a song we enjoy, “Building a Better World”.  The song incorporates sign language.  As Jem sang, the other children were silent, watching and listening.  He was serious.  This was different.

Jennie: “Jem, that was wonderful.  Would you like to sit in the big rocking chair and sing for all of us?”

Jem: “Yes.”

He quietly and confidently stood up, went to the chair to sit down, and sang the song.  Now, Jem is the quiet one in the class.  And singing?  I just don’t recall a time that he was a singer, much less an enthusiastic one.

Jennie: “Let’s clap for Jem.  Would anyone else like to sing a song?”

William nearly jumped out of his skin!  He went to the big rocking chair and decided to stand instead of sit down, throwing back his shoulders and puffing out his chest.  In a big voice he sang, “Five New Engines in the Shed”.  He sang that song two more times, with the same confidence and gusto.  William is typically not a singer.

The teachers all looked at each other in unison, realizing that this was IT, one of those unpredicted moments that must be preserved and nurtured.  Obviously we had to go forward and skip the planned Morning Meeting activity.  This was the ‘really good stuff”, the moment when children seem to burst forth.

After William sang, the floodgates opened!  Meera sang “Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer”, Halle sang “Jingle Bells”, Luke sang “Blackbird” by the Beatles and our “Halloween Song”, Sydney sang the “ABC Song”, Isabelle sang “Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star”, and Shivani sang “A Garden Song”.  Each child stood proud and tall when they sang, and commanded the respect of their classmates.

When young children are given the opportunity to express themselves, and then find success, it is an important step.  Each time this happens, over and over again, the seeds of self-esteem begin to grow and multiply.  As teachers we really don’t know when these moments will present themselves.  We do know how critical it is to ‘let it happen’, so we seize these moments.  You see, self-esteem cannot be taught; it must… happen.  And it did in my classroom.

Jennie

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S.T.E.M. It’s the Buzz Word

Posted on September 28, 2014 by Jennie

Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math.  That’s what our children need to survive and succeed in today’s world.  We’re behind many other countries when it comes to successfully teaching and implementing STEM, and that means the starting point is right in my lap.  Preschoolers.  They have an insatiable appetite for anything that has real moving parts.  They want to make it work and know why.  The key word is ‘real’, because something real is always better than any toy.

How do I transfer those real experiences into STEM?  This month we have been ‘scientists’, using accurate terms like estimating, predicting, and hypothesis.  We did a classic activity of putting white carnations into colored water to see if the flowers would change colors; the difference was incorporating and learning the correct scientific language.  We have brought nature into the classroom; all the elements we discovered on the playground are on a science table, and we take time to explore, count and question everything.

Our most exciting activity was learning and demonstrating the word circumference.  We had a big apple and talked about the word circumference.  The children estimated the circumference of the apple.  Then we measured string, using a ruler.  The visual of measuring meant counting the numbers on the ruler.  We cut three different lengths of string (based on the estimations), then voted on which length, and tallied the votes.  At this point, we hadn’t measured the circumference of the apple, yet the children already had an engrossing activity of science and math.  Measuring the circumference of the apple was fun, but the ‘real deal’ was the process of learning.

Process is always better than the product.  We learn by doing.  STEM should always be about the process because learning is a hands-on journey.  It’s not about getting the right answer, it’s about understanding just how to get to the right answer.

A recent study at the University of Washington on brain activity and learning indicates that the early years are critical.  The brain has extraordinary flexibility for the first five years of children for learning about their world.  That has enormous implications and opportunities.  It reaffirms that what I do in my classroom with children has, perhaps, the biggest effect on their learning.  I have big shoes to fill every day!

Every time I read a research paper or a study on young children I say to myself, “Of course.  I already know that.”  No, I haven’t done the hard research, but I have taught and observed children for thirty years.  I like to call that ‘grass roots research’.  Thank goodness I follow my heart, my mind, and my instinct.  STEM is working in my classroom.

Jennie

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Reading to Children

Posted on September 19, 2014 by Jennie

We are reading Charlotte’s Web, our first chapter reading book of the school year. In just these first weeks of school, children are already hooked on this wonderful book. The older children laugh when the goose repeats things three times. All the children now love and know the animals in the barnyard. Imagine how exciting it will be for them when we read book after book throughout the school year. With each chapter reading book, the excitement and anticipation of ‘what will happen next’ is sometimes spellbinding. The ending of each book is so satisfying, yet sad that it is over. Then the next day, we start the wonderful roller coaster of reading again, with a new book.

Today we read a sentence in the book that said Charlotte was ‘motionless’. That’s a new vocabulary word. We always stop our reading when we encounter a new word. Jackson said, “Like when Steve went (then he went into a frozen position).” He was right! Recalling an event in a different story, and then making the same connection to language in a new story is important. Claire said, “It means like a statue”. She was right! Listening comprehension comes before reading comprehension.

Reading aloud is the gift of language, and language is the most important element in a child’s development and success in school. Wow! The number of words a child knows can be directly attributed to his or her success in school; not just in English, but in Math and Science as well. I think those words are perhaps the most important words a parent can hear.  Imagine that; read aloud to your children, and they will do better in school.

People will often ask why I chapter read. After all, many of the children in my classroom are three-years-old. When we chapter read, the children don’t have an image from a picture book. They have to make the picture in their head. That requires language development. The more they hear, the more they learn. Even the youngest children will benefit enormously. They may not ‘get’ the humor of the goose, but they are still getting a huge dose of language.

We will always read picture books, at least twice a day. That is a given! As in chapter books, we stop to ask questions when we read. That’s how we learn! Remember the five W’s? Why, what, when, where, who? Those are the most important questions, because they are the foundation for language. We stop our reading all the time to ask these questions.

The ‘must have’ standard book for parents (and teachers) on reading aloud is The Read-Aloud Handbook, a national bestseller, by Jim Trelease.  If you’re looking for statistics and hard facts on the huge difference reading aloud makes in test scores and excelling in ALL areas of learning, this is your book.  If you’re looking for stories about the differences it makes (these are my favorites), this is your book.  Check out the worst performing middle school in Massachusetts, and Cuban cigars.  If you’re looking for a book list of the really good books to read aloud to children (listed by all ages and all categories), this is your book.

Reading aloud is a strong part of my classroom curriculum, and children love it! The more you do this at home, as well, adds to your child’s development. The biggest bonus is bonding together. Nothing beats snuggling with Mom or Dad, one-on-one, reading a book. Life is good!

Jennie

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Resilient Children and Behavior

Posted on September 12, 2014 by Jennie

It never ceases to amaze me how quickly young children adapt to their environment.  School is a perfect example.  Those first days are often filled with tears, sobbing, even clutching Mom or Dad with a grip that requires the Jaws of Life to remove.  Every year I fear that I won’t be able to help these grieving, inconsolable children.  Three days go by and it’s a different world.  The tears may still be there, but the child listens to my gentle words and accepts a hand.  Six days go by and the child is playing with other children and bonding with a teacher.

Six days!  Adults would never be able to adapt so quickly to a new environment.  While we worry to death about every little quirk or insecurity with our children, they are faring far better than us.  I know this; I see and live this every day with children.  I nurture their resiliency, understand and support their differences.  Educate the heart first and the rest flows.  That should be a Golden Rule.

Every child is different.  So is every adult.  Unfortunately, some children with differences are under a microscope down the road in public school.  I attended a recent workshop with Jeanine Fitzgerald of ‘Fitz-In’.  She’s one of the few educational presenters who has ‘walked the walk’.  She has the best understanding of young children, and how we can help teach them. Consistently, she has it nailed.  I was shocked to learn that one in 68 children in America are diagnosed with autism, while other countries diagnose one in 10,000.  That’s a big red flag for us.  Too many children are on meds they don’t need or don’t match their diagnosis.  What’s the problem?  It is not the behavior of the child, it’s the environment.  Behavior is never the problem.  It’s a symptom of an unsolved problem.  That is profound.

I see classrooms that are too colorful and stimulating.  The color and stimulation needs to be in the activity, not in the surroundings.  I see classrooms without an escape for children, a place to just go and be.  Young children are in chairs far too often.  Frankly, their work should be done standing or on the floor.  And, the biggest piece that is often missing is movement.  It gets a child’s brain into clear focus, ready to learn.  Each year is different, and this year “Uncle Jesse”, a Bev Bos song, is a huge hit.  It’s up and down, spinning, and jumping.  Boy, do we move!  Then, the rest is predictable; children with eager eyes, wanting to learn.

Resiliency and behavior are interlinked.  If my classroom is designed for the child (not for the teacher), and I’m loving, attentive and fun, then children respond.  They can adapt to school.  They’re happy and engaged.  Those first six days of school are proof of that.  What about teachers with challenging children?  In the words of Jeanine Fitzgerald, it is our responsibility to not fix the child, but to alter the environment for the child.  Thank goodness I know this and implement this in my classroom.

Jennie

 

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The Things Children Say

Posted on August 31, 2014 by Jennie

Children’s comments and questions range from curious to humorous.  Young children are unbridled, and anything involved with learning and exploring has a question; that’s why the things they say are quite wonderful.  As I sorted through oodles of paperwork this month, organizing and getting ready for the new school year, I found notes I had taken on things that children said.  They are three and four years old.

Many of my notes centered on chapter reading, things we needed to stop and talk about, and eager questions about vocabulary words.  Chapter reading is different than reading a picture book, as children have to process the words and make the pictures in their head.  This is initially difficult for children, yet within a week they are ‘hooked’, glued to the story and eager to hear the next chapter.  Listening comprehension comes before reading comprehension, so all those words in chapter reading are building vocabularies, attention, and a love for reading.

Jacob loved Charlotte’s Web.  When we read about Templeton at the fair, he asked “What does ‘vanishing into the shadows’ mean?”

Collin loved Charlotte’s Web.  When we read “…into the wonderful midway where there would be no parents to guard them and guide them…” he said, “Jennie, that’s just like ‘God Bless America’.”  He was right.  He associated ‘guard them and guide them’ with the song.  Collin was processing language and using it beyond the story.

Samantha loved Little House on the Prairie.  We learned about rivers, and found the Verdigris (among others) in our big map book.  She said, “Laura and Mary crossed the Missouri”.  Yes, she remembered that from chapter reading.

Corinne loved My Father’s Dragon.  When I asked the class how the dragon will get the treasure chest out of the hole with his tail, Corinne said, “Leverage”.

Sloane loved My Father’s Dragon.  When Elmer learned the names of all the brother and sister dragons, Sloane asked “What will he call the the Mom and Dad?”  No one has asked that question in over twenty years.

Jacob got the humor in Mr. Popper’s Penguins and belly laughed when Mr. Popper was on the telephone, inquiring about getting a license for Captain Cook.   Every sentence in the chapter sparked a new round of laughter.

Children and science are intertwined.  Emma told us,”When the sun goes down it goes to another part of the the earth”.  Maggie said, “Look at the sky.  It has pink clouds and a crescent moon”.  Cameryn said, “If you see some sun and some clouds, that means partly cloudy”.  Mohin looked at a teacher’s water at lunch and asked, “How did bubbles get into your water?”

Sometimes children just say something funny, or kind, or remarkable.  James was the Helper of the Day and did a great job finding numbers on the calendar.  I said, “James, are you really in Kindergarten?”  He said, “No, I’m in Massachusetts on Birch Lane.”  Jakob said, “Jennie, I miss my mom.  Do you miss your husband?”   Collin said, “My mom’s not old.  She’s skinny.”  After playing with flour Alma said, “I just need to get this cauliflower off my head.”  Tommy looked at a star pin I was wearing and said, “You have a star like the flag of China.”  Samantha looked at newborn robins on the playground and said, “When I grow up I am going to be a veterinarian so I can help birds like these when they are sick or hurt.”  I have no doubt that she will.

My favorite quote is from Olivia, looking at a picture of the Mona Lisa when we studied art and France.  She said, “I know her!”

Jennie

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Camp Songs; Why We Love Them

Posted on August 18, 2014 by Jennie

It took me until adulthood to realize that my love for music stemmed from my childhood summers at camp.  I spent a month every summer at camp in the hills of Salt Rock, West Virginia.  A half a century has passed, and I can still sing all those camp songs.  The words are crystal clear.  Funny thing, its the songs that bring back the memories of camp.  Morning Sing and Evening Sing were a constant at camp, and that’s when we all came together as a group.  Songs and music bring people together.

Camp songs range from fun and nonsensical to serious.  When I was a child at camp, singing “I’ll Build a Bungalow” had the challenge of adding another ending to the multitude of endings of the song, beginning with “matches in a gas tank, boom boom”.  My camp cabin added, “chicken in a frying pan, slick chick”.  The former certainly dates the song, and the latter shows that the song was still a popular camp song.  Learning to sing in a round was tricky, and then there were the songs that rattled the walls, like “Slap Bang”.  We used sign language, especially with serious songs, and that was heartfelt for all campers.  We sang camp songs on hikes, at meals, walking to the showers.  Singing was everywhere.

Fast forward to today, and nothing has changed.  Thank goodness!  “Boom Chick A Boom”, “Catalina Matalina”, “Bed Bug Song” and so many more songs all have that common thread.  They’re complicated, and they often involve movements, or singing in different voices.  Camp songs aren’t easy to learn to sing, but everyone loves them.  They make a lasting impression and I think I know why.

Singing is universal; it pulls people together.  Children love singing and repetition, and camp songs are sung at least twice a day.  It’s a huge building block.  The complexity of the songs adds to the excitement, and to learning.  This is important; hearing comes first with children, and that is followed by speaking, and then reading.  So, all those songs are poured into the brain.  Camp songs are important because they are complex and make the brain work harder.  Then, when a child is ready to read, it’s easier if they have had the experience of  singing camp songs.  Reading aloud is fundamental, and singing aloud helps children learn.

I stretch the minds of children when I chapter read.  Chapter reading is not supposed to be for preschoolers, yet I do it and they love it.  Camp songs stretch the mind in the same way, with difficult verses, words and more.  Singing helps the mind retain not only words, but information.

I learned that the sun is 93 million miles away from the earth, because of singing the Kellogg’s Corn Flakes commercial.  I learned how to spell ‘encyclopedia’ because Jiminy Cricket sang it.

Singing cements language.  Music pulls it all together.

Jennie

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Two Final ‘Jennie Stories’ This Summer

Posted on August 6, 2014 by Jennie

The lazy days of summer will be ending soon, and I’ll be back to writing my reflections.  I feel like a farmer who is holding back his cows, but is still dishing out the ice cream they made.  I hope you enjoy the last of the ice cream.

The Spider Story

It happened like this… when I was first married we lived in Virginia, which is pretty far south.  The farther south you go, the bigger the bugs are.  Bugs are so much bigger in Virginia than in Massachusetts.  One evening after dinner I brought the dishes into the kitchen, and in the middle of the kitchen floor was the biggest spider I have ever seen.  We’re talking gigantic.  The spider was not moving at all.  I didn’t know what to do, so I yelled for my husband, “Steve!”  He came running into the kitchen, but when he saw the spider he froze.  I mean he totally froze.  He couldn’t even speak.  I asked him to do something, but he just stared at the spider and never moved.  The Spider didn’t move either.  I had to do something, so I opened the cabinet under the sink and got the can of Raid.  At this point in the story the children have no idea what Raid is, or why it would be under the sink.  I was so scared.  The spider still wasn’t moving.  I sprayed the Raid on the spider…. and instantly hundreds of baby spiders burst forth.  They were everywhere.  So, I used my feet and stomped all over the kitchen floor, getting the spiders.  Whew!  To this day, my husband is still frozen by spiders.

The Halloween Story

It happened like this… when I was a little girl, children went trick-or-treating all by themselves.  There were no parents trick-or-treating.  I was eight and my sister was six.  We were so excited!  I dressed up as Raggedy Ann and my sister dressed up as a scarecrow.  We had our bags ready to collect candy.  Then my Mother said, “Jennie, don’t forget to go trick-or-treating at Mrs.Crotty’s.”  Mrs. Crotty!  She was old and mean.  She never smiled.  Her house was always dark.  Even the bricks on her house were dark.  And, the bushes and trees grew all over.  I did not want to go trick-or-treating at Mrs. Crotty’s.  I didn’t say anything and my sister and I headed off all over the neighborhood.  We had so much fun and stayed out until it was very dark.  When we got home we spread our candy out.  I gave my sister the Tootsie Roll Pops and she gave me the Reese’s peanut butter cups.  We were having a great time.  Then my Mother said, “Jennie, did you go trick-or-treating at Mrs. Crotty’s house?”  I looked down and didn’t say anything.  She said, “Take your sister and go, now.”  I took my sister’s hand and we walked to the house.  By now, trick-or-treat was over, and there were no lights on at any house.  Of course Mrs. Crotty’s house was the scariest of all.  We walked up to her dark porch.  I was squeezing my sister’s hand so hard.  I told her to knock, but she said, “No, Mother told you do it.”  So, I swallowed hard, knocked on the door with my heart pounding, and then there was a creak of the door.  Just as we were ready to run away the lights came on, and Mrs. Crotty was there.  She was smiling!  She went to the kitchen and brought both of us a huge popcorn ball, warm and covered with caramel and butter.  She wasn’t even scary!

Jennie

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A Thriller Jennie Story

Posted on July 29, 2014 by Jennie

The Tree Story

“It happened like this… this is my house, and this is the Kruger’s house (I physically hold up my arm to show one and the other, side-by-side).  My house and the Kruger’s house.   In between the two houses was a huge sweet gum tree.  The tree was really big and it had round balls with pointy spikes that dropped all over the yard.  You couldn’t even walk in the yard barefoot because the pointy spikes would stick and hurt your feet.  It was awful.  I knew the tree had to come down.  Where I worked, there was a man named Ray.  Now, Ray would come and cut down your tree.  It didn’t cost anything because he kept all the wood.  So, I told Ray about my tree, and he said he would cut it down.

First thing Saturday morning Ray showed up with his two big, strong teenage sons.  They started right away, going to the top of the tree and cutting down all the branches.  Then they took a big whack to cut off the top of the tree.  As they continued down the tree, the branches were bigger, so it was slower and harder to cut.  Then it was lunch time, and Ray and his boys came down from the tree.  The wind started to pick up.  After lunch they were back at it, cutting the branches.  This job was really hard.  Ray decided that he should make the big final cut to bring down the tree since it was so windy.  When he did, the tree started creaking and groaning… toward the Kruger’s house.  This was not good!  My husband ran cross the street to our neighbor Jim, as he had the thick, orange glow-in-the-dark rope that never breaks.  Never.  Jim grabbed his rope, ran over to the tree, and wrapped it around and around.  Now, there were five strong men ready to pull that tree.  And they did.  But, the orange rope went ‘snap, snap, snap’.

This was an emergency.  The tree was falling the wrong way.  What do you do when there is an emergency?  Yes, call 911.  I did.  The Fire Chief, Mike Aimen, arrived immediately in his fire truck.  He looked over everything, then shook his head.  He said, “I cannot help you.  The only one who can help is the Tree Man”.  I called the Tree Man right away, explaining how our tree might crash onto the Kruger’s house.  He arrived in a flash, looked very serious, and didn’t say a word.  Immediately he went to work.  My husband said, “Jennie, leave.  Take the children and go.  Something terrible might happen.”  He was right.  What if the tree crashed on our house?  Or, what if it crashed on the Kruger’s house?  I took our children to McDonald’s for dinner.  When I returned it was dark.  The Tree Man was up high in a cherry picker, and the Fire Chief had his truck positioned so that the big spotlight shined on the tree.  All the neighbors stayed to watch.  It was windy, dark and very scary.  I went inside to get sleeping bags to sleep downstairs, in case the tree landed on the house.  Suddenly I felt the ground shake and heard a low rumble.  The tree had fallen into our backyard.  Whew!

The Tree Man came inside, scowled, and pointed his finger.  He said, “I didn’t think I could save the tree.  You were lucky.  Never, ever have someone cut down a tree unless they are a professional Tree Man.”  He was right.”

Children are on the edge of their seats when I add sounds and movements, such as moving my arm at the creaking of the tree in the wind, or snapping my fingers when the orange rope breaks.  I hope you are enjoying my ‘summer of storytelling’.

Jennie

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The Popular Jennie Story

Posted on July 22, 2014 by Jennie

The Bat Story

“It happened like this… when I was a little girl I loved to ride my bike.  It was red, and I rode it everywhere.  I’d pack a bologna sandwich in a paper bag and head off to ride my bike all day.  At lunch I’d stop in the Rose Garden at Ritter Park.  Then I would ride up Whitaker Hill which was very steep and curvy.  Later in the afternoon I’d ride my bike home.  Now, my mother always told me to put my bike into the garage, and to put the garage door down.  In those days, there were no garage door openers.  I had to reach up and grab the handle, and then pull the door down.  But, I had to remember to hold the garage door all the way down, or else it would bounce back up just a little.

One day I went bike riding.  It was a beautiful day.  I packed my lunch and headed off.  Ritter Park was full of roses and the ride up Whitaker Hill was a hard one.  Then I realized it was getting late and time to go home.  I rode my bike into the driveway and remembered my mother’s words, “Put your bike in the garage.”  I did that.  Then I remembered, “Put the garage door down.”  So I reached up high and pulled the garage down.  Nothing more.

I went in the house and my mother asked, ( I say her questions with a pointed finger) “Did you put your bike in the garage?”  I shook my head yes.  “Did you put the garage door down?”  I shook my head yes.  “All the way down?”  Another nodding yes.  Uh-oh.  “Wash your hands for dinner.”  We ate dinner, then I played Monopoly with my brother (he always beat me), then Go Fish.  My mother said, “Time for bed.”

I walked to the front stairway to go upstairs to bed.  Just when I was ready to step onto the first stair, I saw something black go by.  It was so fast.  I wondered what it was.  But, in a second it was gone.  So, I went upstairs to go to bed, up to the second floor, and then to the third floor.  My bedroom was on the third floor.  I brushed my teeth, washed my face, put on my nightgown, got into bed, and pulled up the covers.  I fell asleep.  It was ten o’clock, eleven o’clock, and then midnight (this is where I get nervous and worried, and children know something is about to happen).

Suddenly I heard the two sounds I hated more than anything.  One went ‘shhhoooo’.  The other went ‘flap flap flap’.  I knew it was a bat!  I yelled, “Dad!”  In a second I heard footsteps coming up the stairs.  It was my dad.  He threw open the door and jumped into the room with a tennis racquet.  He bopped the bat…. and he was wearing his underwear  (peals of laughter)!  After that, I always remembered to put the garage door all the way down.”

Even though this popular story ends in underwear (only two stories do), the language and description is important, because children are hearing the words without a visual context.  They are forced to make the picture in their heads, and therefore have to rely upon the language.  That is such a big part of reading readiness.  Tell your stories!  More Jennie stories to come.  By the way, I can barely eat a bite of my sandwich at lunchtime this summer.  Children are begging for my stories, and I know I am giving them the best dose of reading readiness.  Life is good!

Jennie

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More Jennie Stories

Posted on July 16, 2014 by Jennie

The Raccoon Story

“It happened like this… many years ago when my children were little, we lived in an old stone farm house in Ivyland, Pennsylvania. In the summer it often got very hot and we had no air conditioning.  Our house had three doors, two on the front and one on the back.  They each had a screen door, and those screens went all the way from the top to the bottom of the door.  On hot days we opened the doors wide and just used the screen doors.  One night in August it was so hot!  The doors were opened wide and the screen doors were latched.  I was upstairs in bed reading before I turned off the light to go to sleep.  Oh, no!  I could tell that I’d left the kitchen light on.  So, I climbed out of bed, went downstairs to the kitchen, and there in the middle of the kitchen floor was a raccoon!  He was huge.  The whole bottom of the screen door had been ripped open by his little paws.  And, there was our dog, frozen and staring at him.

We kept the dog food bowl by the kitchen door.  On that hot summer night the raccoon must have smelled the food and torn open the screen to get it.  I didn’t know what to do, so I yelled for my husband, “Steve!”  A few seconds later I heard his feet running down the stairs.  He ran into the kitchen, saw the raccoon, and like the others, he froze and stared.  Then he said through gritted teeth, not really moving his body, “Jennie, get me the broom.  Please.”  I did.  With fear and bravery he scooted the raccoon out the door with the broom.  Whew!

Then my husband said, “Jennie, I want to make sure the raccoon is gone.  I’ll just open the door and have a look.”  I wasn’t so sure about this.  I said, “Well, I don’t know…” but he cut me off to reassure me everything was fine.  He opened the door and looked to the left.  No raccoon.  Then he looked to the right.  No raccoon.  So he closed the door and we headed back up the stairs to bed.  Then he said, “You know, I really should make sure that old raccoon is gone.  I’ll just step outside and have a look” (this is where children’s eyes grow big and they shake their heads ‘no’).  I said, “Steve, I really don’t think this is a good idea.”  “Jennie, don’t worry”, he said.  “It will be fine.”

He opened the door and looked to the left.  No raccoon.  Then he looked to the right, and there was the raccoon!  The raccoon started to chase him.  We had a root cellar in the yard, so Steve started running around it in circles, hoping to make a dash back inside.  One, two, three times he ran around that root cellar with the raccoon chasing him, yelling, “Jennie!”  And guess what?  He was wearing his underwear!  Peals of laughter!  After that night, we made sure we never kept the dog food bowl beside the kitchen door, especially on hot summer nights.”

That story brings howls of laughter from all the children.  It is a favorite, along with “The Bat story”.  I’ll post that one next.  Then, there’s “The Bird Story”, “The Spider Story”, and at least ten more.  I’ll post as many as I can this summer.  They’re all true, and I hope they inspire you to tell your own stories.

Jennie

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