It's hydration time, educators!

The below pasted text is from one of my favorite bloggers: http://www.loveteachblog.com/  I encourage you to read her, follow her, likey-like her on Facebook.  Her posts are witty, poignant, and spot-on.  A colleague, Amy, turned me on to her.  If I were the benevolent God of publishing, I'd publish her observations quicker than a knife fight in a phone booth.

"-Hydrate as much as I damn well please. This is one of my favorite parts of Christmas break!  My current schedule is such at school that I can't pee for about two hours in the morning, and then for about 3 and a half in the afternoon.  As you can imagine, this restricts my morning coffee and lunch time drinking pretty significantly, so during holiday breaks, I like to make up for lost time and just water, OJ, and coffee it up.  Let my bladder stretch its legs a little bit.  I don't think anybody has ever said that last sentence before."

It can also be time for PB&Jelly:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eRBOgtp0Hac

Middle Misconceptions

This post is focussed on a presentation that our new campus principal provided to a group of our <school city> Chamber of Commerce members recently.  Ms. Principal read her presentation to our staff during our Christmas PTA luncheon and I was inspired enough by it that I want to share it, with her permission, with anyone in my blog audience who has matriculated through middle school, taught/teaches middle school, and/or has a child who has or will step foot into middle school as a student.  I admit that I'm a prime target audience member for motivational speeches, books, and other media, but I hope you find it as refreshing and insightful as I did.

Side-note:  Ms. Principal, as I stated, is new to our campus and she's doing a 1000% remarkable job in leading our efforts.  I knew she would, though, before she began day one.  Her reputation in the district is sterling and, besides, she's a fellow East Texas gal...say no more.

Take a moment sometime to read this at your leisure.  The first video reference (link: Acts of Kindness Caught On Video is one you may have seen previously.  I can't personally drink in enough of images like that.  There is a second video referenced, but for student privacy I have not included it here.  Beyond that, replace the school name, district name, and any other identifiers and you have a glimpse into any middle school in America, where there are many magical - yet not headline grabbers - things developing: (pardon any wonky formatting resultant from my inept blogger formatting skills)

"Good morning!  Thank you for allowing me to share that video with you.  I love this video, and I love expecting the unexpected.  Just like a security camera catching good things instead of bad, I want to share with you this Holiday Season, the good news and glad tidings about middle school, middle school kids in CFB, and more specifically about Vivian Field Middle School.  This Christmas, let me give you one more good thing to believe in – our middle schools and the kids who go to them.

It was the most exhilarating as well as the scariest moment of my career when Dr. Burns told me that I would become the next principal at Vivian Field Middle School.  When I drove up to the school on the first day at 6am and took a good look at this beautiful building, I thought to myself, “this building is over 50 years old and yet it offers the generation that will pay for my retirement in taxes and civic duties THE education of the future.  As I started to step out of my car, and it hit me, I’ve spent 16 years in a high school loving and coaching high school kids, how in the world will I connect with 11, 12, and 13 year olds?  Most people are scared of kids, and terrified of a middle school kid.   Most parents are too. Their minds are filled with equal parts worry and nostalgia about their children’s entrance into this baffling no-man’s-land between child and teen. Most adults say the most humiliating experience of their lives took place in middle school (or junior high, as it was called then), and many parents in the cafeteria remember their own preadolescence as the worst time of their lives: The awkward changes of puberty and the obsessions that entailed. The fumbling steps toward independence. The cliques. Being too embarrassed to sneeze in public. Getting dropped off at the corner and thinking everyone else was smarter, happier, better.

What stopped me from getting out of my car on that Monday was Hollywood.  Hollywood has painted middle school as a place where bullies thrive and nice kids are either dead or home-schooled by March.  Movies and books that honor this image are, “Diary of a Wimpy Kid” and the book:  Middle School:  The Worst Years of my Life by James Patterson with the follow up by the same author titled:  Middle School:  Get Me Out of Here! All this coming from a man who writes psychological thrillers…what does that say?

Well if you knew anything about me, I am not scared of much…except negativity.  I had to see for myself if middle school was different and start work immediately on changing the public image of middle school.  So, I said a little car prayer (one of the most powerful kind, I believe)  and fortunately for me, it would be simple work because middle school is vastly different from the negative image that Hollywood portrays.  Allow me to share with you during this Holiday season some good news to BELIEVE in and some very different truths about middle school.

 You might be surprised to know that although the whole nation concerns itself with the drop out rate, we know that kids decide whether or not they will become a drop out in middle school, not high school. This is a critical age for deciding whether or not school will be for them.  The adults on this campus understand the effect a positive adult relationship has on a student leaving childhood and entering the teen years.  Each and every morning our nearly 1000 students walk toward our cafeteria door with their head up and hand extended to be greeted by me or another adult on this campus with, “welcome to school”, “thank you for being at school today”, “we are so excited to see you today” and of course always followed with “have a great day at school!”  We know that this starts the very powerful emotional contagion of positivity on our campus. 

***BELIEVE this Christmas that middle school is mission critical to student success.

You might be surprised to know that kids today LONG to belong to something, and I’m not talking about a gang – unless you consider band, choir, theatre, athletics, and orchestra to be a gang.  Vivian Field has 318 athletes, 97 Karate Kickstart members,  173 choir members, 206 orchestra members, 241 band members, and 128 thespians.  For a school of nearly 1000 that means that we have found a way to connect nearly every kid in our school to an organization and a caring adult on our campus. 

***BELIEVE this Holiday season  that kids want to be involved in organizations that  give discipline and structure because kids think discipline is the guardrail that keeps you on the road of life.

 You might be surprised that kids today make better decisions than generations before.  Our kids think that being “smart” is a good thing.  We have 107 8^th graders choosing advanced mathematics that will put them on the path to BC Calculus as a senior in high school.  Some of those 107 are labeled as gifted talented.  We have a total of 76 GT students on our campus.  We have 24 students enrolled in Advanced Placement Spanish Language, and could be eligible to test for college credit, right now, in the 8^th grade!  We have 24 yearbook students that create a collegiate level yearbook.

***BELIEVE that kids can do more, they want to achieve and become contributing members of our society.

Speaking of college, you might be surprised to know that ALL of our students aspire to do and be more than a high school graduate.  How do we know?  We asked them.  PLUS, we have 155 students enrolled in AVID (Advancement via Individual Determination).  I myself am a first generation college graduate and understand fully the struggle of applying and maneuvering my way through a system strange to both me and any member of my family.  Thanks to AVID, these 155 have actually seen a college campus and can talk with great specificity about their college hopes, goals and dreams. 

***BELIEVE that kids think and care about their future.

You might be surprised to know that Vivian Field offers a magnet program through Dual Language program where students learn in Spanish and English.  They partner with each other to learn the lessons, and test in both languages. 

***BELIEVE that kids today appreciate diversity and want to live in harmony.

You might be surprised to know that kids in middle school today truly believe that effort produces achievement and that is evidenced in the positive trendline of out student achievement data. 

***BELIEVE that kids understand the goals of their education and why it’s so important to think critically and problem solve.

You might be surprised to know that Albert Einstein was wrong, and not about E=MC2 but when he said, “I fear the day that technology will surpass our human interaction.  The world will have a generation of idiots.”  Our kids are far from idiots.  We have implemented our BYOT or Bring Your Own Technology to school and we see students using their phones to promote social interaction instead of squash it. 

***BELIEVE kids want to be engaged with other people. 

You might be surprised to know that kids today care deeply about the world in which they live in.  They spend their spare time collecting money for world organizations such as the Kony 2012, for the victims of Hurricane Sandy, and to fight to stop the shots for Diabetes.  These kids are more concerned about being next on the waiting list for our Partners Art and PE where they partner with a non verbal special needs student.  They are more concerned about  recycling and saving our planet than the brand of tennis shoe they wear. 

***BELIEVE kids are good, kind, helpful and out to save the planet!

You might NOT be surprised to know that CFB offers a comprehensive system preK-12 and we are the best at each level at our instructional practice for our students to succeed; but, you would be surprised at the level of innovation taking place at our middle schools through practices that ask students to get involved help drive their learning.

 

*** BELIEVE that we are working to meet the needs of you as future employers.

Although I shared with you that one of my greatest fears is that of negativity… you might be surprised to know that negativity is nowhere to be found in the students of VFMS.  Although 82% come from homes of poverty – defined by the government as a family of four making it on less than 18K a year, they are full of wonder, hope and positivity.  Since education is the great equalizer, our staff works hard at providing  each of our students with access to the American Dream .

The Vivian Field family spirit is undeniable.  We have many visitors to our building who are amazed at the work happening in our school and with the kids who walk through our doors.  I could go on and on…about why we should believe in our kids, our future Ambassadors, and we have so much to be proud of at Vivian Field Middle School.  But the thing I am most proud of is something that cannot be quantified.  I am most proud of the incredible culture of our school.  The students and staff truly and genuinely care about and support each other in way that I believe is unique in today’s world.  If you aren’t convinced this Holiday season to believe just yet, I decided to leave you with another bit of the unexpected.  You are about to watch a video over the culture of Vivian Field.  This video was filmed, edited and produced by future Hollywood member, ___________,, one of our current 8^th graders.  Sit back and get ready to believe in what our kids can do, for they can tell you better than I can that unlike the Hollywood image, middle school really is the good life, so I ask you to turn your attention once again to the screen.

VIDEO

I thank you for your time and the opportunity to share the great things happening in our public school. I invite you to stop by anytime to help me greet kids and see for yourself the opportunities which abound at Vivian Field Middle School."

Grown up fotos

My colleague Kelly Mangel - who moonlights as a photographer - took on me, an unlikely photo subject in Charley, Bentley (the world's most interesting dog who can't be bothered with such frivolity), and Maggie (One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest) for our first group professional photographs.  Below are our personal favorites.

If you're seeking a North Texas photographer, I highly recommend Kelly.  She's not only a dedicated educator, but is utterly pleasant to work with - especially if you're cameraphobe as is Charley (and me, secretly).

Kelly's Likable Facebook Page

Crayons On The Ground

That phrase reminds me of the "pants on the ground" diddy that ear wormed its way into our pop culture mental library a few years back.  "Crayons on the ground" has significant meaning to me ever since I dumped a Costco sized container of Crayola crayons into each classroom group station's supply basket.  If you know my tendency at work to keep a near-negative balance showing in my email inbox, as much desk surface space visible as possible in my planning area, and stay in strict accordance with the fire marshal's code of less than a particular percentage of flammable substance on the classroom walls, then you know just how absolutely bonkers this pushes me.  It's a short trip for me, but still.  But it's not merely crayons on the ground.  It's snapped, peeled, shredded, pelted, catapulted, and bombed crayons on the ground.  My classroom floor resembles a Rainbow Bright murder scene by the conclusion of each school day.

You may be thinking, "Wow, doesn't she have better classroom management than that?"  Oh, no.  Please don't fool yourselves.  Crayon Chaos ensues in the microsecond that I turn to speak with a student on the opposite side of the room, when I stop to collect a love letter (I use the phrase 'love' lightly in middle school romance), or when I, um, well, you know....TEACH.  I reached my wits end, after multiple warnings---including letting the 'crazy lady' come out, much to the enjoyment of my students---but not yet zeroing down the culprits to less than about a dozen potential suspects, when one of the sweetest female students in my charge approached me for help with a concept - totally ignorant of the fact that she had a shard of Raw Sienna stuck in her gorgeous hair.  That's it.  The Crayon War must arrive at a cease fire before someone loses an eye, kids.

Insert the magic of www.remind101.com.  Teachers, if you're not already using this delicious tool, you are missing out.  It's become an integral part of my daily routine.  Take a gander at the website if you're unfamiliar with the free and 100% private reminder program that has made my work life infinitely simpler in some ways.  Back to the Raw Sienna incident, I sent a Remind 101 notice that same day, prompting students to study for an upcoming quiz, and included in the note:  "Dear Crayon Quarterbacks, I know* who you are and I will contact your parents if it continues."  Voila!  Poof.  Eureka.  Success.  All is right with the world again.  There are no longer crayons on the ground.

*I didn't.

In high school essay news, one of my colleagues reported to me, in case any of us were unaware - sit down for this teachers, it could be the shock of your careers thus far - that she was edified by the below sentence included in an assignment that a student submitted:

"It is a little white lie when students say, 'I have it done but my USB is at home.  I can bring it tomorrow.'"

Lastly, in commerce news, one of my dear friends who works for JC Penney shared with me a discount opportunity that you may wish to take advantage of this weekend.  In her words, "share with all your friends to convince them that JCP is cool and awesome now."  The link to the Friends and Family coupon is below, but let me know if it does not generate for you and I'll happily send you the email from my friend.  I do also have to mention, based on what I've seen my friends purchase recently from their varied department store sections, JCP is cool and awesome now, and the prices are even Heather-friendly.

http://f.jcpenneyem.com/i/34/626255242/JCP_FriendsandFamily_Coupon.jpg

Corn Flake Casserole

(It's better than you'd suspect.)

Post-Thanksgiving and vacation week blur!

I enjoyed a spectacular week away from school and with loved ones.  The doggies have also been thankful for the arrival of fall weather in Texas.

My week began with a jaunt east to one of my favorite small cities - Charleston, SC.  How I adore the palmetto state!  Charley worked the Charleston Classic basketball tourney, and I played.  We spotted Bill Murray at one of the Chuck Town games, but he didn't volunteer any details of that mysterious ear whisper he gave ScarJo in Lost In Translation.  From SC, we road tripped to Savannah, GA - a MUST return-to-town on my list of get-to-know locales.  The history!  The charm!  The culture!  The food! Onward, we parked in Orlando, FL, where Charley headed up another fall tourney, The Old Spice Classic.  Though I'm American, I freely admit that I'm no fan of Orlando, and even Disney (where The Old Spice Classic is nested) being the fine institution of resort excellence that it is, I've simply never been bitten by the mouse bug.  My grandparents took me to Disney when I was a child, and while I greatly appreciated the experience they provided me, I remembered thinking, even as a 13 year old, "huh, ok."  I suppose I'm more of a Dogpatch, USA kinda gal.  Silver Dollar City, anyone?  Dollywood?  I regret that while in Orlando, Charley's three week work on the road (including a fantastically executed basketball event in Germany - think:  Air Force hangar transformed into a basketball court) extravaganza illness germs caught up with me, too, and I missed out on meeting up with the always precious A. Thomas family at Universal Studios.  Walking like a hooker in Charleston and Savannah played a toll on my near-concluding appendix removal recovery and I laid low a day or two to prevent any other organs from squirting out of my incisions.  

Despite my feelings about Orlando and Disney, I do want to take my niece there at some point to provide her with that classic childhood experience.  Speaking of that little cheddar bite, here she is doing what she does best - being utterly charming:

Back in Tejas, I spent a glorious few days in east Texas, mostly lounging around in pajamas.  Life doesn't get much better, folks.  Mudda fed us well, and we accomplished nothing other than sleep and laughs.  Bentley is still a bit unsure about my niece since he probably harbors memories of her digging tunnels through his food bowl, so there was a small scuffle between the two of them, and now Maggie is a wee bit skeptical of Grace.  My theory is that Grace's voice is even higher pitched (read:  loud) than mine, and Maggie isn't so sure that the seven year old isn't out to steal her canine soul.  Here are the two of them, both intent on sitting in my chair:

The fall in a public school that is on a semester schedule is bittersweet in some ways.  The anticipation of long breaks is so tasty and 100% warranted given the breakneck pace that is demanded during the start up months.  Yet, we educators know that with the passage of the new year, the spring semester trudges on like a line at the driver's license renewal office.  This perspective convinces me, mostly, that I'd be a prime candidate for year-round school.  I suspect the student brain would benefit, too.  Learn for a few weeks, break for a bit, repeat.  The majority of our nation isn't agrarian now, so the traditional school year schedule is not the only option any longer for many children.  In southwestern states, however, it'll likely never happen unless electricity miraculously emerges as a free commodity, though.  Texas schools in particular save, literally, millions of dollars in utility costs by being non-operative most of the summer months.

Back to Thanksgiving, though:

In homage to a season of family portraits, I give you a list of tips that a mother provided for professional photos attempted with family children:  Check your expectations at the door and go with it...

My 120 dollar lesson

To every action there is always opposed an equal reaction. ---Sir Isaac Newton

In the lead up to the most recent ma-juh test administered to my students, physics...no less, my colleagues and I - reeling from abysmal data results accumulated after the prior ma-juh test (chemistry - with which they mostly had NONE), we I concocted the <at the time> brilliantly clever idea to offer students an incentive to perform at a more successful level on the physics test.  The chemistry results were so abysmal that my lackluster goal for physics was "CAN WE JUST GET THEM TO PASS FOR THE LOVE OF GOD, MARY, AND ALL THAT'S GLUTEN-FREE?!"  So, the bar was set low and those students that met the bar were offered pizza as an incentive.  Paid for by yours truly and my two teammates.  Pizza, for adolescents, apparently, is a more effective motivator than a home alarm siren for a hamburgler.  The number of students who met our incentive was exponentially higher than we anticipated, not to mention what our pocket books predicted.  So the good news is that we helped our students achieve a taste of success and provided Pizza Patron with an order of 35 large-Marge pizzas.  

Unrelated in news, kids, is this read that is wholly suitable for our upcoming season of gifting and cooking:  (mind the language peppered throughout, and, if easily offended - DO NOT click)  The Hater's Guide to Williams Sonoma

Also, if you should find yourself with the expression shown in this photo* between now and Dec. 24, it's probably time to scale back the shopping and uncork a bottle of vino with friends and family:

*MWJ, thank you for sharing!

A rant, then a raccoon

It's utterly dumbfounding to me that many of the kids I teach are not more saddled with troubles and dysfunction than they already face.  Once I get to know some of their parents, the apple and the tree idiom cannot be more apropos.  I regret that no matter how dedicated the child's teachers are, some kids may not ever escape the lunacy they were born into.

And now, I ask you to meet Oscar, the Raccoon, and a very patient Beagle:

Click here, it's only 25 seconds

AppendixamousHalloweenous

This week, two events transpired, one of which is an annual observance that hasn't spoken to me since I was a child, and even then I only participated out of en mass prompting - Halloween, and the second event, taking place the day after Halloween, had me near giddy as to complete the process of extracting my worthless, unemployed, useless, no good for nothing, scoundrel of an appendix.  I am nicely resting at home under the watchful eye of Nurse Green and am equally thankful to my colleague Alexis for ensuring that the parade marches on in my classroom with a substitute teacher.  I've received some unsavory news from the sub teacher about conduct in a couple of my classes, including a mysterious incident involving the entrepreneurial mixing of vinegar and baking soda.  The shakedown investigation, complete with a single light bulb illuminating a metal table and my most skilled stink-eye, of that incident shall begin upon my return to work, ideally on Monday.  My abdomen is very tender and sore, but I've felt otherwise in tip top shape, despite quick to tire.  Char took me out yesterday to vote before the giant crowds balloon on Tuesday and I tuckered out after standing a bit, so my return to work will likely involve quite a bit of the ever-frowned-upon seated teacher position.

Even though Halloween doesn't set my hair afire, I do enjoy seeing photos of the little (and big) ones enjoying the ode to C₁₂H₂₂O_11.  

Here's my kindred spirit niece digging into her own pumpkin for carving:

Cousin Bekah & Chet:

Second cousins Olivia & Julia:

Sugar Apocalypse:

Canine Cousins Ellie & Lucky Luke (aka:  Rufferee):

And a few more jewels:

                                             

My favorite costumes of my childhood Halloweens were:  Pink Panther, one half of a pair of dice, the er, "character" that is seen in my blog photo, and a vampire (I already have the built in widow's peak).  All of those were compliments of a creative Mother on a strict budget.  This year was no different in years past in that I don't "do" Halloween, but I did have this multi-thousand dollar bracelet:

I spoke too soon

Surgery delayed at least one week due to unresolved inflammation of the appi.  This is my expression today:

Eviction Day

'Tis the week when my unemployed appendix shall meet the scalpel.  It's going to be a Tony The Tiger Great week!  Thursday, to be precise.

Whipped Glory

Dry skin, you say?  Ashy knees and elbows?  Feet encapsulated in cement-like layers?

Do I have the solution for you!  My dear friend whips up - literally - an amazing concoction that elicits smiles and sighs from my derm.  Here she is, below, with some of the ingredients, whipping up a new batch of lotion love.  Gather ye dollars as there will be adorably packaged quantities available for sale soon.  Optional scents include:  lavender, tea tree, almond.  Possibly chicken spaghetti scent, as well.  I mean nutmeg.  *Freudian-ish slip while eating.*



                                                       

And we have peppahs!

(plus basil, oregano, mint, and rosemary)

Mac

Wesley Emmett McNeel, otherwise known as Wes to Grandma, Dad to his children, Grandpa to myself and my cousins, and Mac to many friends, cronies, and other relatives, closed his eyes for the last time on August 16, 2012.  He is a dear soul who will be sweetly missed by all who were touched by his heart.

These are my recollections of him through grandchild eyes:

Grandpa was kind, easy going, and patient.  He was never quick to anger, if ever, and he would take as much time as necessary to teach anyone, any task, that he already knew how to perform.

You can see by the photos below that Grandpa had a ready smile and what you saw was what you got - he really was that happy and joyful, genuinely delighted to be alive.  His goofball humor and love of laughter was infectious.  It's because of him that my earliest memories of snow are coupled with a disk-like garbage can topper expedition down a slight hill, covered in snow, a la Clark "Grandpa" Griswold.

I learned most of my work ethic from my Mom, who learned her work ethic primarily from her Dad.  Grandpa was possibly the hardest working man that I've known, and he certainly was in my child's eyes throughout my maturation.  Grandpa built and repaired many things by his own shear talent, hands, and elbow grease, including a gorgeous retirement home in which I spent many entire summers.  During those summers, Grandpa and Grandma were my bosses as I learned how to labor long hours and interact with the public in their tourist town ice cream shop that served as a retirement "project."

Grandpa was a lover of information, books, and trivia.  Sharp as a whip, he spent many hours in retirement watching his "money shows" and logging data about his family's financials.  His political approach was simple:  "I have always had more money in the bank with a democrat in office."  He left everything else that politicians argue over to individuals and their own family values and decisions.

Lastly, but hardly in his entirety, he's what I term the perennial family man.  Grandpa was eternally devoted to his wife, his children, grandchildren, and extended family.  Like many in their golden years,  he merely wanted to be surrounded by loved ones, and for those loved ones to love and respect each other.  He would do anything he could to help his loved ones, even if it pained him.  I'll never forget, once, going into a tailspin upon seeing a harmless grass snake behind the house and insisting that Grandpa "kill that thing!"   I could see the regret on his face as and after he took a garden hoe to the creature after he couldn't convince my adolescent self that Sammy the Snake wanted nothing to do with us.  The takeaway from that, and many other actions he led by, for me, was do no harm, when none is warranted.

You are so missed, Grandpa, and our memories of you are 100% cherished.

Link to Grandpa's Online Tribute

 

 

This is where it began

Caption on the reverse of this photo:

"Here she is again, the world traveler."

Dear Appendix

Dear Appendix, 

I've looked your "itis" in the eye, seen darkness & now light. You are a worthless, unemployed, lacking skills organ that siphons the energy off of the other members of Organville. Thanks to talented hospital staff & many caring friends, I'm almost back to 100% strength and return to work tomorrow. Prepare, kids, and please be kind to me; for at least the first few days. 
Sincerely, Appendix Hater 
PS - appendix, we have not forgotten about you. When you're sans infection and anger, my surgeon is delivering your eviction papers. I cannot say that I'll miss you, but I bid you safe travels when you're removed & embarked upon the biohazard trail. Get along, you do-nothing-doggy.