There Are Stories in Your Heart — Set Them Free.

Posted on October 24, 2018 by Jennie

Yes, tell your story! It will lift your heart, and make a big difference to others. Everybody loves hearing a story, and we all have one to tell. Thank you, Meg Dowell.

Meg Dowell Writes

Scientifically, all ideas form inside your brain. Your head is the place where dreams become goals and goals become plans. There is no doubt that the capabilities of a writer depend on their ability to both logically and abstractly use their minds to create stories.

But the most important part of storytelling — the emotions both you and your readers associate with it — forms in your heart.

OKAY, yes, I know that emotions are still exclusively a brain thing and your heart is not in control of how you feel. But in the poetic sense of the concept, the stories that stick with you most are the ones that touch your heart.

When a story calls to me — basically begging me to write it, which does happen, and it’s both awesome and terrifying — I can physically feel the pull. It starts in my chest and spreads, all…

View original post 379 more words

Posted in Uncategorized | 8 Comments

The Letter, With Love

Posted on October 22, 2018 by Jennie

           

Thank you for the lovely letter, Rowan.  Seeing your smiling face and getting a great big hug was the best.  You were proud and confident, eager to show me your letter.  I miss you, too.

Love, Jennie

Posted in Expressing words and feelings, Giving thanks, Inspiration, joy, Kindness, Love, Student alumni, Writing, young children | Tagged , , , , , , | 65 Comments

Language, Literacy, and Storytelling – Part 4

Posted on October 20, 2018 by Jennie

In Part 3, I shared proof of the powerful and positive effects of storytelling, through the story of Cuban cigars and their high quality – thanks to la lectura.  I am also happy to report that the 12th grade English teacher from my “Ravioli” post has found ‘lights out’ to be successful in his classroom reading aloud.  Currently he is reading Slaughterhouse-Five by Kurt Vonnegut to his students.  From preschool to high school, we are both doing the same thing, and it works.

Part 4
I have discovered much of my storytelling happens in the bathroom at school.  Perhaps it is the captive audience, much like a car ride with children.  Perhaps it is the rhyming, the make-believe, and including children’s names into the stories.  Perhaps it is because I’m sitting with them on the bench, not waiting in the doorway.  I simply make up words and stories.  If Emmett, Norah, and Alex are in the bathroom, I might say something like this:

“Once there was a girl who lived on the edge of the woods.  Her name was Norah.  One night she woke up and heard a sound in the distance. Her voracious appetite kept her awake.  The sound was coming from the woods!  She tip-toed downstairs, opened the back door, and there was Emmett.  He heard the same noise.  They decided to be brave together, hold hands, and walk toward the woods.  Suddenly Alex came running over…”

I will include difficult vocabulary words.  I will stop and ask questions, maybe make the sound of an animal or give clues for them to guess.  As children come and go in the bathroom, I’ll include them into the story.

I play I Spy.  I play The Animal Game, where I give clues to an animal and they guess what it is.  Then, I make up a quick rhyme about the animal.

“There once was a snake who got caught on a rake on his way to a lake.”

I then ask children to add to the rhyme.  Often they come up with excellent words, ones I never thought of.  The whole process is open ended.  So is storytelling.

So, what is really happening here in the bathroom?  Much like chapter reading, children have to carefully listen and think.  They are getting a huge dose of vocabulary words in an intimate setting.  And, much like lunchtime at school, we are sharing conversations and stories.  It’s more than the number of words a child hears; it’s humor, emotion, learning where you are with your peers – a friend, listening and learning.  It’s really a long list.

This is how important it is:  A study was done to determine if there was a common denominator among the National Merit Scholars.  Were they all class presidents?  Captains of their sport teams?  President of the Drama Club or Literary Magazine?  Were they all volunteers in their community?  Surely there had to be one thing that they all shared in common.

There was one, and only one:
Every National Merit Scholar had dinner with their family at least four times a week.

Sounds simple?  Not at all!  At the dinner table they developed language skills, thinking and reasoning, empathy, humor, patience, compassion… the list is a long one and a good one.

These are life skills, the foundation for learning.

This is what I do in my classroom at lunchtime.  I create the “dinner with the family” environment for children.  Everyone’s opinion is valued.  We are listeners, and we are storytellers.  Oh, the stories we tell!  Jennie Stories (from my childhood) are beloved.  Why?  Because through storytelling, children know that their teacher had the same fears and tears.  Every day is a Jennie story, from spiders to bats to birthday cakes to The Peanut Man…

I know the difference this makes with the children I teach.  What do I tell parents?  Have dinner together, talk, listen, tell stories.  It makes all the difference in the world.

Stay tuned for the conclusion, Part 5, and the story of a teacher who made a big difference.

Jennie

Posted in books, chapter reading, Early Education, Expressing words and feelings, Imagination, Inspiration, preschool, reading aloud, reading aloud, storytelling, Teaching young children, wonder | Tagged , , , , , , , | 52 Comments

Making Memories at School

Posted on October 18, 2018 by Jennie

There is something exciting, magical about this time of year.  When the sun goes down and children are helping their families to carve a pumpkin into a jack-o-lantern, memories are made.  Imagine being three and four years old, at school in the dark.  We gathered together in a big circle with our jack-o-lanterns.  Children were snuggled close to me, and to their families.  Now, the sky was dark.

We sang songs.  Oh, how we sang!  We waved glow sticks.  Tonight was filled with magic and memories.

Jennie

Posted in Early Education, Halloween, Imagination, jack-o-lanterns, preschool, wonder, young children | Tagged , , , , , , | 35 Comments

Meeting A Favorite Author, Kate DiCamillo

Posted on October 17, 2018 by Jennie

If I taught third grade, I’d be reading aloud to children Because of Winn-Dixie.  If I taught fourth grade, I’d be reading aloud The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane.  If I taught fifth grade I’d be reading aloud Flora and Ulysses.  The list goes on.  Every book was written by Kate DiCamillo.  She has a way with words, and a keen understanding.  No wonder children love her books.  No wonder I love her books.

Kate’s newest book is Louisanna’s Way Home.  Louisiana is one of three characters in her earlier book, Raymie Nightingale.  The book is not a sequel, but a standalone story of this girl.  In Kate’s words, “Louisiana did not go away, her story had to be told.”

Kate is from Minneapolis, so the chances of her being here are slim, yet she was here.  Oh, I signed up early.  Good that I did.  As it turned out, even the waiting list was sold out. And here is the story of what happened:

Concord, Massachusetts is steeped in history, so it comes as no surprise that their library is simply magnificent.  This is the area where Kate spoke.  Yes, wow!

Three of us traveled together to hear Kate at the library.  We walked to the front door and it was locked.  A small sign said that people who were here for the Kate DiCamillo presentation were to use the side door.  Okay.  So, we walked around to the side (no door) and then to the back (no door).  We backtracked to the front, and low and behold, there was Kate, walking along, going the wrong way, too.  I said, “Kate.”  She said, “I’m late.”  I said, “The side door is the other way.”  So we walked together.  Yes, together.  Me and Kate DiCamillo.

“Kate, I just finished reading Louisiana.  It is so good.”

“Did you like it?”

“I absolutely loved it.  Of course you have to write about Beverly Tapinski.”  (She is the third character in the book.)

“It’s so hard for children today.  Growing up is…”

We reached the door and the rest of her words were swallowed and mixed in with others, including my two friends.  As soon as we checked into the library and got settled I said to my friends, “What was the last thing Kate said?”  They said, “We couldn’t hear because she was walking with you.  We were behind.”

Good point.

If my chance meeting wasn’t enough, Kate began her presentation with a “ya’ll.” I turned to my friend who is also from West Virginia and we both smiled. Music to our ears, and a piece of home.  Because home is a central theme in Kate’s new book.  And in all her books. Finding your way, figuring out who you are and where you belong – all written with an understanding that pulls in the reader and makes one realize that ‘she knows’.

Kate read aloud the opening pages of the book.  Sigh!  She also read aloud the opening pages of her first book, the one that launched her into success, Because of Winn-Dixie.

This is what I took away from her presentation and answering so many questions from the audience:

“I didn’t read Charlotte’s Web as a child.  I had read Black Beauty And was traumatized by what happened.  So, every time I went to the library and saw the cover of the book, I wouldn’t read it.  Have you seen the expression on Wilbur’s face?  And of course you know the first sentence in the book, “Where’s Papa going with that axe?”  And then, at last, I read the book.  Charlotte’s Web is my all-time favorite.”

“I can’t do character development because they’re real.  Some characters take over the story – I never know what’s going to happen.  There are stories that need to be told.”

“My favorite books growing up include the Laura Ingalls Wilder series and the Beverly Cleary books.  I was very sick as a child, so I had plenty of time to read.  And I did!”

And my favorite words that Kate said, “There’s room for magic and humor, and it all ends with hope.”  Don’t you just love that?

Before she left the podium to get ready for book signing she said, “For all of you who are teachers and read out loud and put books in the hands of children, you have no idea how much that means.”

By the time we got to the the book signing, those words were still fresh in my mind.  Kate smiled and said, “I saw you.”  I put my hand on her arm and said “I’m the reader-aloud.  I actually read chapter books to preschoolers.”  My friend said, “We’re reading Charlotte’s Web.”  I said, “Yes, and Charlotte has just written RADIENT.”  The nearby audience loved this conversation.  So did Kate.  She beamed and said, “You have no idea how much that means.  Thank you!”

I showed her the post card she had sent me some years ago.  She loved that!

Then she signed my well loved, well worn copy of
The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane.

Thank you, Kate DiCamillo.  Keep writing, and I’ll keep reading.

Jennie

Posted in Author interview, Book Review, books, chapter reading, children's books, Early Education, Expressing words and feelings, Imagination, Inspiration, reading aloud, reading aloud, Teaching young children, Writing | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 52 Comments

Quotations on Reading

Posted on October 14, 2018 by Jennie

Three of the best quotations on reading. Thank you, Charles French.

charles french words reading and writing

WAR AND CONFLICT BOOK ERA: CIVIL WAR/BACKGROUND: SLAVERY & ABOLITIONISM

(https://en.wikipedia.org)

“Once you learn to read, you will be forever free.”

                                                                   Frederick Douglass

Eleanor_Roosevelt_in_Calgary,_Canada_-_NARA_-_196775

(https://commons.wikimedia.org)

“Feelings, too, are facts. Emotion is a fact. Human experience is a fact. It is often possible to gain more real insight into human beings and their motivation by reading great fiction than by personal acquaintance.”

                                                                  Eleanor Roosevelt

ray-28744__340 (1)

(https://pixabay.com)

“You don’t have to burn books to destroy a culture. Just get people to stop reading them.”

                                                                  Ray Bradbury

View original post

Posted in Uncategorized | 17 Comments

“Ravioli” and Goodnight Moon

Posted on October 13, 2018 by Jennie

One of our favorite times of the day at school is chapter reading.  It is intimate.  We feel snuggled together.  Much like being in sleeping bags while camping, with nothing but words to hear, we look forward to that time.

Before we begin chapter reading, we recite Goodnight Moon.  Those timeless words, soothing and rhyming, are a favorite.  Children have nearly memorized the words, and they look forward to hearing them every day.  A favorite is doing it “the silly way”, adding every child’s name into the verse.  “In the great green room there was a telephone and Mary’s red balloon, and a picture of Tommy jumping over the moon”, and so on.  Children are on the edge of their seats!

We can forget how much a child is truly absorbing, if s/he is quiet.  Often something then happens that surprises us, and we are reminded just how important those Goodnight Moon words are to children.  Delaney surprised us and made the cow jumping over the moon:

  

After listening to the words of Goodnight Moon, we are then ready to chapter read.  Our current book is Charlotte’s Web by E.B. White.  It’s one of the best, and children love it.  There are always interruptions when we chapter read.  Sometimes there are questions, sometimes we stop to talk about what happened.  Sometimes a child needs help, and sometimes children are chatty or distracted.  Early on, when there was distraction, I stopped and said, “If you want to hear the story, say ‘RAVIOLI’.”  A chorus of voices immediately yelled “RAVIOLI!”  Since then, if there is any stoppage in chapter reading, or any distraction, children take it upon themselves to say, “RAVIOLI!”  That is perhaps the best word a teacher can hear.  It really means “Please don’t stop, we want more.”

A parent of a child in my class read this story of chapter reading in the classroom.  He is a 12th grade English teacher at Lawrence Academy, a private high school in town.  His comment was,

“I wish my 12th grade students would start yelling “RAVIOLI!”

Years ago I had a long conversation with the head of the school’s English department.  She and I talked about reading aloud, and discovered we both do the same thing – turn out the lights and have children put their heads down.  From preschool to high school, it works.  I told the parent about this long-ago conversation.  He said,

“She calls it ‘lights out heads down’.  I often read aloud to my students but keep the lights on – starting Monday, I’ll put them off.”

I hope there are shouts of “RAVIOLI!” from 12th graders on Monday.

Jennie

Posted in books, chapter reading, children's books, Early Education, Imagination, Inspiration, reading, reading aloud, reading aloud, Teaching young children | Tagged , , , , , , , | 56 Comments

Language, Literacy, and Storytelling – Part 3

Posted on October 10, 2018 by Jennie

In Part 2, I shared worrisome statistics about children who enter school excited to learn to read, and the dramatic drop-off when they are not exposed to books and hearing words.  I talked about the next step, engaging children in both conversation and thinking – writing picture stories.

Part 3
There is proof in the pudding down the road.  Language, literacy and storytelling makes a difference, and not just with children.  Well, there’s more. Adults. That proof is in the high quality of Cuban cigars. It’s a great story, one of my favorites.

Reading aloud never gets old. It weathers time and generations. For adults, when we are read to, we listen, think and feel. And, we have to stretch our brain. When we only hear the words it sharpens our mind, and our performance is much better.

The Cuban cigar industry understood this. That’s why they make the finest cigars.

They have la lectura, who reads aloud for up to four hours to the factory workers, from the daily news to Shakespeare to current books. This is both brilliant and common sense; the workers are entertained, happy and productive.

Jim Trelease writes about this in his million-copy bestseller book, The Read-Aloud Handbook. He is a master writer and has it nailed on reading aloud. Here is an excerpt from the chapter about the history of reading aloud and its proof:

Then there is the history of the reader-aloud in the labor force. When the cigar industry blossomed in the mid-1800’s, supposedly the best tobacco came from Cuba (although much of the industry later moved to Tampa, Florida area). These cigars were hand-rolled by workers who became artisans in the delicate craft, producing hundreds of perfectly rolled specimens daily. Artistic as it may have been, it was still repetitious labor done in stifling factories. To break the monotony, workers hit upon the idea of having someone read aloud to them while they worked, known in the trade as ‘la lectura’.

The reader usually sat on an elevated platform or podium in the middle of the room and read aloud for four hours, covering newspapers, classics, and even Shakespeare.

As labor became more organized in the United States, the readings kept workers informed of progressive ideas throughout the world as well as entertained. When factory owners realized the enlightening impact of the readings, they tried to stop them but met stiff resistance from the workers, each of whom was paying the readers as much as twenty-five cents per week out of pocket.

The daily readings added to the workers’ intellect and general awareness while civilizing the atmosphere of the workplace. By the 1930’s, however, with cigar sales slumping due to the Great Depression and unions growing restive with mechanization on the horizon, the owners declared that the reader-aloud had to go. Protest strikes followed but to no avail, and eventually readers were replaced by radio. But not in Cuba.

The Cuban novelist Miguel Barnet reports, “Today, all over Cuba, this tradition is alive and well. Readers are in all the factories, from Santiago to Havana to Pinar del Rio. The readings have specific timetables and generally begin with the headlines of the day’s newspapers. After reading the newspaper, the readers take a break and then begin reading the unfinished book from the day before. Most are women.”

Used by permission of the author, Jim Trelease, 2013, The Read-Aloud Handbook (Penguin)

No wonder Cuban cigars are among the finest. This story is one of my favorites and illustrates the effect reading aloud has on people. Thank goodness I get to do this multiple times every day with children.

Stay tuned for Part 4.

Jennie

Posted in history, Imagination, Inspiration, Jim Trelease, reading, reading aloud, reading aloud, storytelling, Teaching young children | Tagged , , , , , | 64 Comments

George Carlin 8-23-18

Posted on October 8, 2018 by Jennie

George Carlin, who was a terrific comedian, sums up life and who we are – beautifully. Powerful words, spot on wisdom.

fiercefabulousfunny

George Carlin’s wife died early in 2008 and George followed her, dying in July 2008. It is ironic George Carlin – comedian of the 70’s and 80’s – could write something so very eloquent and so very appropriate. An observation by George Carlin:

The paradox of our time in history is that we have taller buildings but shorter tempers, wider Freeways, but narrower viewpoints. We spend more, but have less, we buy more, but enjoy less. We have bigger houses and smaller families, more conveniences, but less time. We have more degrees but less sense, more knowledge, but less judgment, more experts, yet more problems, more medicine, but less wellness.

We drink too much, smoke too much, spend too recklessly, laugh too little, drive too fast, get too angry, stay up too late, get up too tired, read too little, watch TV too much, and pray too seldom.

We have…

View original post 404 more words

Posted in Uncategorized | 28 Comments

Book Review: The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane by Kate DiCamillo #KateDiCamillo #UltimateReadingChallenge

Posted on October 6, 2018 by Jennie

Whenever someone asks me to recommend a book that is not a young children’s book, this is the one. THE ONE. I cannot tell you how many times people have found a scrap of paper or a napkin to write down the name of this book, because I was passionate, nearly frantic to tell them the book I loved the most. This review is terrific. Thank you, Mischenko.

Posted in Uncategorized | 22 Comments