Stories with Sophie

Join us at Two Writing Teachers for the March Slice of Life challenge. Share your stories! I looked around Checked all my piles Double checked my to-do list I looked again. Checked my lesson plans Triple checked my to do list It was 3:30 on a school day and THERE WAS NO SCHOOL WORK TO DO Really. Nothing. I have lesson plans for my classes done for the next two weeks. I have all student blog post graded, fiction pieces graded, Romeo and Juliet webquests graded. All entered into the grade book. Of course, tomorrow it will all start coming in again. But for today THIS ENGLISH TEACHER HAS NOTHING TO DO! Guess I'll go home and pack for the weekend and work on my grad class. There's always something....

Join us at Two Writing Teachers for the March Slice of Life challenge. Share your stories! Things to love about March 25th! We had school today! (No snow day) The snow we got Sunday and last night has melted a lot Even though there is snow on the ground, the weather is getting nicer. My houseplants are starting to bloom because the sun is warmer! American Idol is on TV because it's a Wednesday! So is Nashville I'm guessing, but there are about 40 days of school left (with kids) 3 days until we go to Rockin Baconfest in Spencer, Iowa I get to see the grandkids this weekend And I get to see my friends! My tulips don't look any worse for the wear because of TWO winter events Chloe and I can now walk every day after school It's almost lake time

Join us at Two Writing Teachers for the March Slice of Life challenge. Share your stories! Every year I have a day (or two or three) where I have trouble thinking of things to write. Just in case, I always have a fallback post. A listy type of post I can use. Many slicers this year have used the "Currently" post, but I used that last year. Luckily, I found a new one... Found at Wanderlust I am  really hoping we don't miss another day of school tomorrow. Right now we have freezing rain which is supposed to turn into snow.  Could be  messy morning... I keep   emails from fellow slicers that mean a lot to me. I like to go back and read them when I need a pick me up.  I have a little folder in my email so I don't accidentally trash them. I wish I could meet the slicers whose emails I keep.  One of these days I will. It's my promise to myself! I love my house. I loved it from the first day we walked into it. It was a wreck, but the sun sho

Join us at Two Writing Teachers for the March Slice of Life challenge. Share your stories! I was going to write about... SPRING My TULIPS and HYACINTHS   peeking out of the ground The GRASS turning green The SUN feels warm on the skin. My LAKE  box is filling up with all the necessities. BUT Mother Nature had other ideas. 10 inches of snow fell Sunday night into Monday morning 10 INCHES This was the most snow we had at one time all winter! So, of course, we had a  Snow Day But snow days can be blessings in disguise. I planned a few lessons, worked on my grad class, cleaned a bit and took a nap.  Spring is still coming, it's just taking its own sweet time getting here!

Join us at Two Writing Teachers for the March Slice of Life challenge. Share your stories! This weekend my husband and I took a trip to my hometown to visit my family. I fully intended to write a post yesterday, but we were simply having too much fun and enjoying the time together for me to stop and write. We watched basketball on Friday night Found a great little shop full of fun things for the house and the lake Went out to eat Had a surprise visit with my oldest son and his family Watched some more basketball Coffee and conversation, just me and my mom No school work, No internet, No disruptions of any kind And I am OK with that. Because it's all about  Balance

Join us at Two Writing Teachers for the March Slice of Life challenge. Share your stories! Words We toss them around and  take them for granted We think there are words for  every situation every feeling every moment But sometimes You find that the right words just haven't been invented yet

Join us at Two Writing Teachers for the March Slice of Life challenge. Share your stories! Wanna go for a walk? Huh? Huh? Wanna? Come on! I've been inside all day and I need to move! Look. We'll just go right down the path. We don't have to go for very long. But it's really nice out. I know it's not sunny, but it's not cold.  Come on, come on, come on!!!!!!!! How about this. I'll hold the leash and all you have to do is follow me. OK? That way you can just enjoy the walk. I'll do all the work! So. Are you with me?  We have just enough time to go before Dad gets home from work! OK. Fine. I'll come back and walk with you. But can we please go now?

Join us at Two Writing Teachers for the March Slice of Life challenge. Share your stories! He sat in my room as an 8th grader and announced he wanted to join the Air Force Actually, He wanted to go to the Air Force Academy. In my heart and head, my pacifist voice whispered        "Why would you want to do that?" In my teacher voice I spoke        "That's a great goal. Do you know what it takes to get into the Air Force Academy?" He found out. And everything he did from that point on was dedicated to that dream.       Every class       Every activity       Every choice. He sat in my room       as a freshman      as a sophomore      as a junior The dream never changed. As a senior he asked if would serve as a reference for him as he applied to         colleges with an ROTC program         West Point         The AIR FORCE ACADEMY Today he told me      He was offered an appointment to the acad

Join us at Two Writing Teachers for the March Slice of Life challenge. Share your stories! This year, as a senior, he decided to try a new event, something he hasn't done before. He wrote an Expository Address about 3D Printing. "Mrs. Day,  I was horrible. It's the worst I've done. I stumbled over words like crazy. I just know it's a two." "I'm sure it wasn't that bad. You're awfully hard on yourself." " Really. It was not good." An hour later, he received one ratings from every one of his judges. This is her second year in speech. Her second year doing Reviewing. This year she chooses to review a Korean pop album. The twist was, she didn't like the album. It was a negative review. No one ever does negative reviews. "Mrs. Day,  I was horrible. It's the worst I've done. I stumbled over words like crazy. I just know it's a two." "I'm sure it wasn

Join us at Two Writing Teachers for the March Slice of Life challenge. Share your stories! To My Speech Kids, First, I want to say, congrats to all of you, no matter the rating you received yesterday. I know it was tough for a few of you, the ratings were not what you hoped. But you smiled and congratulated those who received ones and kept your disappointment in check. I was pretty disappointed for some of you---and very happy for some of you (and I hope I am even happier for one or more of you on Monday), but it all got me thinking about the things you get from speech that don't show up in the ratings. 1.  First, you get a "family". I watched all of you throughout the day-- laughing, joking, picking on each other, having fun, all while waiting for the almighty ratings. But whether the chips were up or down, you were there for each other. And isn't that what family does--supports each other through the good times and bad?       2.

Join us at Two Writing Teachers for the March Slice of Life challenge. Share your stories! So I didn't get my slice written this morning like I planned. And normally, this isn't a problem. I simply write and post at night. Writing at night has been good for me this year.  The problem is we are heading to my mom's for the weekend. And  NO INTERNET!!! Thank heavens for my phone!   When I went to a smartphone last year I didn't realize how much I would use it (or come to depend on it). So I'll be writing today and tomorrow's post on it.  Don't expect a long one!!!

Join us at Two Writing Teachers for the March Slice of Life challenge. Share your stories! Today is my last speech competition of the year. It's 6:00am as I write this, sipping coffee, news playing quietly in the background.  I'm not going to lie to you. I'd rather be in bed.  Preferably at my son's where my husband and Chloe are sleeping. I'd wake up later. Have cuddles and cocoa with the grandkids while we talk about school. Instead, I will board a school bus at 7:15 and ride for an hour and a half to our contest site. Kids will laugh and giggle the whole way. The early performers will run through their pieces quietly, while the nerves begin to tickle the brain. I'll probably doze a bit, snapping awake as I wonder if I forgot something. And here's where the celebration comes in.... As each of my kids performs, I'll be there, proudly waiting to give them a hug or a high five, reminding them how far they have come since they began perf

Join us at Two Writing Teachers for the March Slice of Life challenge. Share your stories! I am crazed. I race around my room like a chicken with its head cut off. Are the ballots ready to go? Crate packed. Don't forget the adaptors,       the extension cord,            the projector,                 the clicker. Remember to take yearbook pics. Email A's mom with schedule. And, oh, yea. Rehearse the kids! But I needn't worry. I step out into the hall and breathe as I look around. It is my favorite night of speech, really. The night before contest. My juniors and seniors take charge. Everywhere I look (and in some places I can't see) kids are rehearsing with each other. It's loud and crazy.  They laugh over silly things and talk about what they hope for tomorrow. They critique smartly and make their friends try it again. After school today this scene will be repeated. Tomorrow morning we board the bus for our last long day. And just like that

Join us at Two Writing Teachers for the March Slice of Life challenge. Share your stories! Geoff Herbach visited my classroom today and worked with my Creative Writing students on writing with concrete details--you know--show, don't tell. The man was terrific with my group, some of whom like to write, so who only took the class to fulfill an English requirement. But he got them going. He got them writing. Best of all, he got them to share! And sharing out loud in class is NOT something this group does well. He taught, he told stories, he found something positive about everything they said. He kept the slackers somewhat engaged, put up with the gigglers in the corner, and without knowing, gave a very shy girl some much needed encouragement. During the afternoon, he met with kids in the auditorium. 9th and 10th graders one period and juniors and seniors the next. In both groups, I heard kids grumble. They didn't think they wanted to go, they thought it would

Join us at Two Writing Teachers for the March Slice of Life challenge. Share your stories! It's crazy how one little text message can change your whole outlook. How the words "I got good news..." can bring a smile to your face and tears to your eyes. Knowing that the good news they shared will make a difference in their outlook. They will face their fears, be stronger and move forward. It's still not my story to tell but the ending is looking a little better. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Somewhere around 7+ years ago, our oldest son brought us a great gift. A wonderful woman and her twins. I can't imagine life without them. Today A and B are 9 years old.  Happy Birthday to "double trouble" as Grandpa calls them. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ And the sun is shining, the birds are singing and the snow is melting. Chloe is happ

First, they eat. Several came directly from the food joints they work at, so there is LOTS of food. My room smells like a combination of A & W and Susie  Q's. They laugh, they share, they decide who will type. I project the computer screen onto the smart board so they call all see.  They decide the author test should come first. "We only have to write the first name, right?" She swears that the letter said only first names. I point out that it says to write the first name if there is more than one author. "You did memorize the first and last name. RIGHT?" says another. "Yes. I did" Every time I have done this, even though they are all supposed to know the names of the authors of the books they read, ONE student takes charge and memorizes them all. Just to be sure. Tonight, they rock the author test. They miss one, but this is so much better than last year when they only knew six. They move onto the

Join us at Two Writing Teachers for the March Slice of Life challenge. Share your stories! I coach a Battle of the Books team at our high school. This is the second year with my current team--I really wasn't going to coach a team again, but, you see, they are legacies. Several of them have older sisters that I coached years ago.  The original team Fluffy (the name is a whole other story).  As freshmen, they didn't even get all the books read before the online test. They could only name six of the authors.  I told them they didn't have a chance to move on (I think my exact words were something about a snowball's chance, but my memory is a little foggy). They scored 11th of the almost 100 teams that took the test last year. Team Fluffy: The Sequel was the only one of the 16 final teams that had not named and spelled correctly all of the authors' names. The organizers had to remind other teams and coaches that the author test is only a tie breaker.

Join us at Two Writing Teachers for the March Slice of Life challenge. Share your stories! So, Mom wrote a poem the other day about the view out her window. I thought since she's sick with a cold today and doesn't feel like writing, I'd let you in on the view out of my window. The view I get every single day. Every single day while they go off and get to do fun things and leave me home alone. Every single day. This is my favorite spot to lay during the day.  From here, I can protect my yard and my house from those pesky squirrels and neighborhood cats. It really makes me mad when I growl and bark and they don't even move. Sure wish I could open the door and go get 'em. I can also see the mailman blocks away. I start growling and barking as soon as I see him, 'cuz I don't like him and I don't want him coming anywhere near my house. I really like to watch the neighbor's house. They have two dogs that I wish I cou

Join us at Two Writing Teachers for the March Slice of Life challenge. Share your stories! Someone said to me yesterday, the first Friday of the month, that they only saw one high school student wear their #CadetNation shirt. Our district, one that is widespread and in different buildings, tries to create community by designating the first Friday of the month by all of wearing shirts that share our story.  And she was right. They didn't.  BUT many of the spent the last weekend in February cheering our six wrestlers who were competing for state titles THEN the next week, they cheered our girls basketball team as they worked their way to another state tournament.  THEN Monday night, many of them drove two hours away to cheer our boys basketball team as they tried to make the state tournament. THEN they spent this week celebrating and cheering on our girls basketball team as they played in the state tournament. They drove three hours away to fill our secti

Join us at Two Writing Teachers for the March Slice of Life challenge. Share your stories! Earlier this year, my 8th grade students and I wrote poetry that used the five themes of geography, plus photography.  We all took a picture of the scene out our windows and then wrote poetry describing the scene.  I got the idea from some great educators in Iowa who create monthly ideas for us all to try. This is the link to the directions for this activity. I found my poem today as I was going through files and thought I would share. It is almost lake time, after all

Join us at Two Writing Teachers for the March Slice of Life challenge. Share your stories! Sometimes the thing you most want to write about,  that moment  that is upper most in your mind,  you just can't write about.  It's not really your story to tell,  but it does affect you.  The words float about in your brain,  trying to come together,  trying to recreate that moment that changed your day,  changed your life.  They are trying to come together  to share a feeling,  a moment. But, they just aren't ready yet. And you have to leave them ALONE until the timing is right.

Join us at Two Writing Teachers for the March Slice of Life challenge. Share your stories! You know how it goes.... You are listening to the weather before dinner. There is a winter weather advisory listed for your town. Freezing rain, 2-4 inches of snow, 35 mile per hour winds. All the ingredients needed for a  SNOW DAY. Homework waits. You give your body and soul a much needed night off, secretly making a to-do list for tomorrow. You check your weather app before bed.  It says that the weather will start about 3:00am, with the worst weather arriving between 6:00am and noon. Another needed ingredient. You sleep.  Deeply. Dreamlessly. You sleep. The alarm goes off at 6:30am. You immediately realize there was no robo-call about school being called off--or even LATE!  You look out the window. No sleet    No snow       No freezing rain          NOTHING! All that work you put off last night!  Arrrggghhhhhhh! You shower. R

Join us at Two Writing Teachers for the March Slice of Life challenge. Share your stories! Chloe Writes... Dear Little Sparrow, I thought you wanted to PLAY When you came in and  FLEW around on our screened in deck. I was so excited that SOMEONE NEW Came to play. Someone to  BARK at and someone to play CHASE with.  It was  FUN for awhile. I didn't know I wasn't supposed to  CATCH YOU.

Join us at Two Writing Teachers for the March Slice of Life challenge. Share your stories! I settle into my seat and the humming of the tires on the road lull me into a semi-conscious state. As I listen to the buzzing of teenage voices behind me, the music an undercurrent of the anticipation, the anxiety, the nerves of the day, I am transported back to another early Saturday morning with the same soundtrack. It's all the same. Except, of course, That now I am the coach, Not the teenager. I remember vividly these early morning rides. The feeling in the pit of my stomach. Was it excitement or nerves? Probably a combination of both, and if you used it to fuel you, great things happened. But if that feeling controlled your mind, well, let's hope that didn't happen. I remember the waiting for performances and then waiting for results. I remember the friends who stood behind me, ready to congratulate me or support me, whatever the situation requi