Read in the Classroom

Our sixth graders' writings are always enlightening,
and this week was no exception.

One of my students had trouble writing about her topic, Hatsheput,
one of the first female pharaohs in Ancient Egypt.  

When asked (begged, really) for something important that she had learned about Hatsheput
 (who was a powerful woman known for commissioning impressive monuments, her success with trading and who mysteriously disappeared and was likely assassinated),
Lia supplied,

"She married her step-brother."

***

Budding writer, Annie, wrote an "entire" paragraph about Ramses the Great:

Ramses was one of most big builders in agent Egypt .He built the most cites  temples and tombs. .He had at least one hundred kids.Ramses was also one of the most awesome and one of most powerful .He ruled for 66 years, the second longest. All and all, he died.

Clearly, there is some work to be done on conclusions, among other things. 

What is it with kids and end punctuation these days?

***

From a journal entry about racism, 

a theme in the book Maniac McGee, which we are reading in literature class....

I don't feel that people who are a different color are different. 

They all act the same, and half of the people that are different colors are famous 

(football, baseball, basketball).

Yes, I am embarrassed, but cut her some slack; she's eleven,

and she lives in a rural, mostly-white community.

And yes, we do plan to enlighten her.

***

And finally, another journal gem, inspired by the topic, "Thank you notes".
(And no, for future reference--we do not grade these in front of the students.)

I think one lesson people should learn is to appreciate what you have. 

Big or small, a ton or a little. 

You've heard the saying, 

"One man's junk is another man's treasure!"

***

Get it? One man's "junk"? (I laughed so hard!!)


You'd think I was the one in sixth grade...

And the Winner Is......

Hooray for Rebecca and Tracie, who each won a dozen, delicious cake-pops in my Giveaway!
Congratulations, Ladies! Please send your snail-mail addresses and start drooling, because you're in for a treat!  :)

P.S. Forgive me for drawing the winners seven minutes early--I'm falling asleep here and couldn't be sure I stay awake long enough to remember to do it!

Friday Fragments: Episode #182

Got tidbits? Fragments? Miscellany? Here's you chance to unload them. I highly recommend it; fragging is good for the soul and a wonderful way to start the weekend. Thanks for stopping by. [First time fragmenting? Please click on the tab above and check out the particulars.]

***

Happy Friday! It's very happy over here, I assure you. Can't tell you why yet (I've been sworn to secrecy for another couple of weeks, and no; I'm not pregnant.) Stay tuned.

***

Kendall got her first "real" job! She going to work at Dairy Queen! Darn--another reason to go out for ice cream....

***

In case you missed it, be sure to enter my giveaway for some delicious cake pops! You can enter until midnight on Friday night.

***

Mr.4444 is a self-professed "flashlight whore." He has at least ten of them, but I'm certain he'll never buy a different one than his new favorite, which he picked up at our local Batteries Plus store:

It has 235 lumens (whatever those are), and even I can't argue with its impressiveness.  At $29.95, it's by far the "least-expensive, brightest flashlight" we've ever seen. Personally, I think it would make a fantastic Valentines Day for the man in your life. (Seriously; what man doesn't love flashlights?haha)

***

I watched the documentary, Forks Over Knives, via Netflix last week, and I'm very intrigued; I would love to try a diet free of dairy and animal products, just to see what it does for me. It's probably tough to pull off, though. What do you think? If nothing else, I recommend the movie--It's very informative.

***

Mr.4444 made a wonderful crock pot Pot Roast this week--It was a big hit all around, further reason why the previous fragment would likely be vetoed.

***

Want to know a simple way to increase your credit rating? (This tip comes from my lovely neighbor, Nancy, who is a realtor.) When you're using your debit card in a store and are given the "debit or credit?" option, choose credit. [Update: According to my friend Michelle, of Honest and Truly, this is not true! See her comment below for specifics.]

***

Kyle is still my friend on Facebook. The "rules" for this are:  I am not allowed to comment on his wall posts or Like anything before anyone else does. Okay, got it.

Alrighty then! Now it's your turn; feel free to link up and visit some of the nicest folks I know! Have a great weekend.

Who Says Cats Aren't Clean?!

With conferences and a school board meeting this week, three late nights are called for, so I don't have time to create, but I do have a minute to share.  Check out this incredible post from Terrence Lui on Google+:  How to Train Your Cat to Pee on the Toilet.

Have a beautiful day! :)

Raising Our Children, Raising Ourselves

Many years ago, when Kyle was about six years old and we lived in a culdesac, a little neighbor boy asked his mom, my next-door-neighbor,

"Mommy, how come when I get hurt, you come running outside to help, but when Kyle gets hurt, his mommy stays in the house?"

Parenting style, Kid; that's why.

Today, my Kyle is so-far doing pretty well, in spite of or due to that style.  Hey, don't get me wrong--I kissed his boo-boos and joked around to distract him from his tears, like everybody else does; but if there wasn't gushing blood or screaming, I kept watching my shows stayed calm. I just didn't freak out when my kids showed negative emotion. I had grown up being denied any expression of sadness or anger, so maybe that's why I let my kids feel.

A few weeks ago, I mentioned that I've been reading Raising Our Children, Raising Ourselves: Transforming Parent-Child Relationships from Reaction and Struggle to Freedom, Power and Joy (a book whose title couldn't be more perfect, incidentally).  I loved it from the start, and my passion has grown; this gem is now on my Top-2 books for how to raise healthy, well-adjusted kids. This is not a sponsored post of any kind; I don't actually remember how I stumbled upon this book at Amazon. I've never met or spoken with Naomi Aldort (though I would love to). I just feel like this book can change parents' and their children's lives; it's truly that good, so I want to tell you about it.

Here are some excerpts that made me nod my head and jot "Yes!" or "Wonderful!" in the margins. I've added my thoughts in brackets.:

*About kids having meltdowns...

When giving attention to a sobbing or raging child, you may feel discomfort and even panic. You may perceive the child as suffering beyond her ability to cope.  This perception, however, is really about your own discomfort.  Therefore, the rush to distract a child from her hurt or frustration, to compensate for a disappointment, or to minimize the importance of her plight is a response to your own anxiety, not the child's. [Wow! So profound and true!! Every parent can recognize this, and if you say you don't, you're probably lying.]


*Bending the world to fit a child's every whim can hinder the natural development of his emotional resilience. [Why can't parents let their kids want once in a while? (see previous)]


*The child who experiences our peaceful presence [when they're upset] is bound to conclude that going through intense emotions is a part of being human. [And maybe even grow up to go through emotions, rather than around them.]

*Loving yourself will also help you to keep your child free from the burden of providing love for you. Your child is not here to give you love and gratitude or to fulfill your dreams and aspirations. [Even great parents forget this sometimes.]

Raising Our Children, Raising Ourselves does have some touchy-feely parts that might make some parents roll their eyes, but to the greatest degree, I cannot argue with Ms. Aldort's wisdom, and I agree that reading this book and implementing the ideas in it would be a gift to yourself, as well as to your child (or grandchild), a gift that would last for generations.

Although my children are mostly grown now, I still very much enjoyed this book, which validated my parenting choices, yes, but also articulated the rationality behind them, even if I (or the neighbor kid) didn't know it at the time.

I love this book! Can you tell?

To learn more about Ms. Aldorts book, workshops, etc. click here.

To read any of my posts related to specific parenting issues, check these out: (Respect, Family Identity, Education & Limits/Boundaries, Attention, or Follow-Through.