Wind-lifted
Words soar
What’s left
is the wind
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Still Possible
A few days ago I was asked why I am worried about a Trump presidency. The asker was not an ardent supporter of Mr. Trump but believed that Mr. Trump was a better choice than Clinton. I am not an ardent Clinton supporter but believe that she would have been a better choice than Mr. Trump.
When I think of the United States, the country where I was born and raised, I think of possibilities. I believe that it is possible for people of different racial/ ethnic backgrounds, different religions (or no religion), differences of many kinds to come together for the good of the whole. I believe that it is possible to rise above tribalism to create something better than any of us could create alone, where the whole is greater than the sum of its parts. I believe that the United States of America is possible- that all are created equal.
When I hear Mr. Trump make racist comments I worry about his presidency. I worry that people who are already on the fringes of society will be further marginalized. There are many ways to be in this world. We can celebrate those ways, accept those ways, without saying “my way or the highway.” Someone’s difference is not a threat to me (although violence is a threat that needs to end) if I am secure in my identity. Maybe Trump’s comments were made in order to get elected; if so, those who support him because of those comments worry me. Do they seek to limit the identity of the United States to those who are like them? Do they seek to rid the country of difference?
When I hear Mr. Trump make sexist comments I worry about his presidency. Anyone who knows a woman worries (or should be worried) about this type of violence. Denigrating anyone is offensive. Would I want someone saying such things about my mother? My wife? My daughter? Would I want my son or my students at school to learn this behavior? If not, then it is not OK for Mr. Trump to say those things. Maybe Trump’s more recent comments were made in order to get elected; if so, I worry about those who support him because of those comments. Referring to people as objects is dehumanizing. If we are all created equal then let us raise one another up instead of pushing some down.
When I hear Mr. Trump speak against immigration I worry about his presidency. Friends of mine have been told that, “Trump will kick you out, send you back.” These friends are U.S. citizens. Students have been cornered by groups of other students who shouted, “Build the wall, build the wall.” The adopted daughter of a friend of mine asked her mom if Trump was really going to send her back to her birth country, a place she has not been since she was a few months old. Maybe Trump’s anti-immigration comments were made in order to get elected. Right now they are having an immediate effect on the lives of people who do not look white. I worry about the people who supported Trump because of these comments. This country is a country of immigrants (some of whom who added terrible violence to the lives of many of the original inhabitants of this land). My ancestors came from Ireland. The whole southwest used to be Mexico until the border crossed the people and included them in the United States after the war. To suggest that the United States is a white nation is to ignore history. We can welcome the stranger.
I believe in the possibility of the United States where we define ourselves as all of us. I believe in the freedoms, rights and responsibilities that belong to everyone in the United States. I believe in the gray areas, the messy areas, where life is not a dualistic either/ or, open/ shut, us/them. Together we can navigate the muddy waters of gray, together. Let us, then, rise above, come together to continue creating a welcoming, bountiful community where all are welcome and all is possible. Let this be a place where violence and discrimination are shunned in favor cooperation and courageous conversations.
For now, I will wait and see. I will never completely write off anyone. Because you asked, though, those are some of the reasons that I am worried about a Trump presidency.
P.S. A self-described single issue voter asked me about abortion and how I could support someone who is pro-abortion. To begin with, I do not know anyone who is pro-abortion (in the sense that a person believes everyone should go out and get one in the way someone might be pro-chocolate- I am pro-chocolate). I do know that in countries where abortions are/ were illegal they still happen in very dangerous conditions making a bad situation even worse. I also know that the number of abortions has been dropping since the early 1990’s and is down to numbers not seen since the early 1970’s. Perhaps we can continue to improve education and situations so the number of abortions continues to drop.
Strange the Change
I pencil my schedule long-range
Knowing planners, the times, they’ll exchange
So I mix a new fix
Til’ the change gets the nix
Is the un-change of change still a change?
Unfair to Learn?
Is it unfair to learn?
As I teach my classes, four sections of the same grade level content, I become a better teacher- I notice the mistakes that the previous class made; I understand their misunderstandings; I see the gaps in my teaching. I learn. That being said, class #4 receives all of my learning from the previous three classes and produces higher quality work. They may even receive, on average, higher grades (I will check to see if this last item is true).
Is this unfair for class #1? Is it unfair that the teaching they receive, because they receive it first, will always be a little less complete and polished? Is this like asking if it is unfair for the first child in a family to have to train the parents?
Now, I return to weave the threads of learning for that first class, perhaps with colors not as bright but beautiful nonetheless.
Testing
After breakfast a
tall, clear glass
of snow-white milk
rested outside.
The hot summer sun
sizzles my skin and
cooks the milk.
Thirsty, I …
Blech! Yuck! Plephtshw!
My School, My Teacher
I hate it on the playground
when someone’s on the swing.
I wait and wait and wait my turn
but hear the lunch-bell ring.
I love it, though, in springtime
and my teacher I adore
when recess isn’t over
and she gives ten minutes more.
I hate it in the classroom
when we’re sitting down to write
and Rob blames me for punching Pete.
Teach’ knows I never fight.
I love ‘em, though, the stories
of future, present, past.
I wish those times of wonder
Could last and last and last
(Ending 1)
My school is like kitchen and
my teacher’s like a mother-
serving up the Lima beans
with cookies like no other.
(Ending 2)
My school is like a woodshop and
my teacher’s like a dad-
sanding imperfections of
rough edges that I had.
Earth Alphabet
This is worth looking at- “NASA’s Earth Observatory has tracked down images resembling all 26 letters of the English alphabet using only NASA satellite imagery and astronaut photography.”
Here is the link on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/p/_5QLUVIaHq/
Here is the link to the whole alphabet: http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/Features/ABC/
Wonder at the marvels of the earth as we near the new year!
Literacy in Minnesota
If you are interested in how Reader’s and Writer’s Workshop works in one school in Minnesota, check out the site Literacy @ Riverview. The site gives an outline of expectations for reading and writing education. It is a great site for new teachers who want a window into elementary literacy or experienced teachers who want a refresher. There is also a section of resources in Spanish.
Check it out and see what you think:
https://sites.google.com/a/stpaul.k12.mn.us/riverview-literacy/
Thumb Challenge!
At La Cosecha I learned a new vocabulary-practice strategy: Thumb Challenge!
Create a game board for each pair of students. The example in the picture used two crowns from Burger King (sorry about the glare). Along each side have the same set of vocabulary words and the word start. You could attach the words with tape, velcro, sticky notes. Then:
- Have each pair of students sit knee-to-knee;
- Place their thumbs at the starting line;
- Partner A moves his/ her thumb to the first word and challenges partner B to define the word and use it in a sentence;
- If partner B is correct, partner A asks about the next word; if not partner B asks partner A about the first word;
- If neither partner can define/ use the word they need to get assistance.
Options: Use a third person to serve as the judge, deciding if the definition and usage are correct. Let students use notebooks and environmental print to aid them
Transition Words in Spanish
When writing realistic fiction (I teaching in 4th grade) there are ways to make your paragraphs flow more smoothly from one to the next. One way is to use transition words. I found and added to a list of transition words (palabras de transición).
Try them out in your Spanish writing and see how your paragraphs flow
Here they are:
Para demostrar secuencia
al principio luego antes después en seguida
Para demostrar contraste o cambio de idea:
por el contrario sin embargo al mismo tiempo en contraste por otro lado de otro modo a pesar de (que) al contrario de otra manera aunque
Para demostrar adición o complemento de una idea:
también lo siguiente seguidamente
de igual importancia de la misma manera igualmente
además / por otra par del mismo modo
Para demostrar resultado:
en consecuencia obviamente
de tal manera que en cualquier caso
por esta razón evidentemente
por consiguiente además
como resultado de de hecho
Para evidenciar tiempo:
inmediatamente después
tan pronto como a más tardar
posteriormente antes de
previamente
S. T. Fleming 