In school, we teach our students that sometimes the most important part of writing is just getting your thoughts down onto paper. Jot some stuff down, let it out and organize from there. Organization is the key...err...unless you have my mind, in which case, organization is the challenge. Last night, when I started writing, I had no idea how much stuff I actually had going on. I wrote, deleted, rewrote, erased, so on and so forth. I reread my writing over and over again. In my head, everything was in chronological order, flowing nicely from one event to the next. As soon as I started writing, I had what my 7th grade history teacher called, "bubble thoughts." (Thanks Mr. Considine.) I would write and then it would remind me of a totally separate event about which I'd need to tell...within the same sentence or paragraph. My 7th and 8th grade English teacher (Mrs. Kubler) would be mortified if she ever read it.
At the end of it all, my thoughts were just jumbled together in random paragraphs. I made myself go to bed before I started to confuse myself. When did writing down your feelings become so intricate?
Anyway, my students are currently in P.E. and I am taking at least 5 minutes of my planning period to again, jot down some thoughts. And so, here I sit, coffee in hand, contemplating life and planning what to do for the rest of the day now that GATE testing as ceased.
A few weeks ago, I started reading My Father's Dragon to my class. It is the first book of a trilogy about a boy who flies off to a fictitious land and rescues a dragon. The next book, Elmer and the Dragon tell of their adventures together after they leave Wild Island. This morning, we started Dragons of Blueland, the last of the trilogy. I have fond memories of these books. I can remember my brother and I snuggled in bed next to our mother as she read to us. It's safe to say that she read My Father's Dragon a dozen times a year for at least three years...long after we had learned to read for ourselves. There is something so comforting and relaxing about listening to another human being read a story to you. It allows your mind to flow freely, imagining Elmer and Boris fly above the clouds, escape the crocodiles, and uncover buried treasure.
Having such experiences in my childhood, makes me want to share them with my students. It gives them a chance to let their brains rest and just be kids for a moment during a rigorous academic day. They giggle at the thought of a crocodile eating a lollipop or a lion being vein. It warms my heart and fills my bucket every day.
Speaking of students....P.E. is over, and I'm out of time!
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