Monday, March 29, 2010

Book Reports and Review

Here is another blog by one of my students: Book Reports and Review. This new use of technology in my classroom is growing completely organically, and I couldn't be more excited about it. It's also giving me good ideas for next year's plans.

Friday, March 26, 2010

Get The Pencil

Get The Pencil is my student Dale's blog about writing. I am so proud of him! He started it all on his own after he saw my blog. This really speaks to the power of digital media to inspire student writing.

Sunday, March 21, 2010

Final Student Poetry Post

And here are the last of the poems I will share for this year. The reason why I wanted to share so many is one, because I'm incredibly proud of them, and two, I wanted to show the diverse breadth of their writing. In allowing choice, and letting my students write for various audiences, purposes, and about various topics, at their own pace, I have gotten real variety in their writing. I think this variety is a testament to the diversity in my classroom and the authenticity of their work.

Enjoy!

Unseen Wonder
The ocean
waves that
Make me sleep.
They hit the beach
With a fierce slam.
The wind that makes
The bright green and
Brown palm trees sway.
My thoughts drift like
Clouds in the sky.
As I lay on my Scooby-
Doo beach towel
I am acutely aware
Of the earths unseen
Wonders.
Pink sand lilies and
Green and brown palm
Trees. Silently making
Life-giving oxygen.
Insects engaged in a
Pollination dance.
Creatures unseen beneath
The wavy blue waters.
Stirring colorful corals
Dancing on soft currents.
A world hidden in plain
Sight.
-Christina
I'll Be There
I'll be there
When you wake up
And you need someone to feed you.
I'll be there
When you have a problem
And you need some one to talk to.
I'll be there
To pick you up
When you fall on that red carpet,
With your favorite Sponge Bob on it.
I'll be there
On your first birthday
When you put your face in your Sponge Bob cake
I'll be there
On that white, snowy Christmas
When you wake up and go down stairs
And ask, "Can I open it now?"
I'll be there
When you try to say your first words
Like, "Mommy, Daddy."
I'll be there
Even though my dad wasn't there for me.
I'll Be There.
-Deandre
The Beauty Pageant
My beautiful turquoise and lime green dress
That looks like the ocean and
barely touches the cold tile.
Scattered girls and reassuring mothers
Telling their little girls "You are the most beautiful girl in the room."
I'm thinking to myself, That's a lot of most beautiful girls.
As I slip on my sparkling diamond heels,
I listen to the loud hisses of hairspray going haywire
And the whimpers and groans of the younger girls
getting their hair extensions.
I examine the dressing room and look at my competition
and inhale the combined sweet smells of hairspray
and heavy perfume,
the strong smells choking me as I inhale and exhale too quickly.
High pitched giggles of my friends
and their mothers shushing them.
I observe every girl's hair color,
Honey blondes and scarlet red heads
Brunettes with very unnatural-looking blonde highlights
and jet-black hair.
Nothing the same about us
Except we all want to win.
My heart was pounding like thunder.
My stomach felt like the ocean's waves
As I stepped on the large, empty stage
Solo
Staring at the judges
I turn around gracefully
And as I step off the stage,
I trip
But I give the judges a cute wink anyway
I walk out, satisfied with my performance
This is your last beauty pageant for a while,
My nana's words echo in my mind
Giving me a harsh headache
Thinking about my favorite part of life
Being ripped away from me
If I don't win
That's it, I can't start over.
This better be good...
-Michahalia

More Interesting Poems

Brotherhood
Pitch black night green
Glows flashing through the air.
Ping, ping the sound of bb's hitting
the side of the house and pool.
Lorin calling out Medic! As Thomas crawls to her.
All the screaming all the crying it sounds like
D-Day all over again.
Hiss the sound of co2 draining.
Bang, ouch, screaming out in agony.
Josh hit another one. 7 more remain.
I feel like he has a heart beat sensor,
because he just keeps hitting them.
Shot after shot.
Cry after cry.
Person after person.
A maching gun sawing into people.
Down goes another one. Josh screamed "cover me!"
But I was too late Josh was hit.
Last man standing, only two en left.
I move to the corner and go prone.
Ping, miss Desmond gave away his position.
Bang, bang, bang, 1 man left as he crept
around the pool only to get shot.
Bang!
It all got quiet.
That night a brotherhood was born.
Finally my brother and me worked together.
This time we won.
-Jacob
Chicago...
A bright light from the sun
hitting you in summertime.
The hot sand on the beach
burns your feet.
Smack
the sound of bat hitting ball
to left field.
People cheering as loud as they can.
Chicago
is a big bowl of chocolate.
Boom
the sound of the moving truck.
My mom would say,
"Don't cry; it will be ok."
I slept on a wet pillow.
"We are moving to Louisville, Kentucky."
My mom would say.
My face was green with sickness.
As we moved away from my home.
-Jasmine
Pain
A woman crying in the dark
In the bedroom next to mine,
He told her that he hated her,
When all she needs is time;
It always seemed that everyday,
In the dark gray hall,
She is always plastering over,
The hole he punched in the wall.
When she was always working,
The rips that's in her shirt,
I cannot even tell you,
Just how much she hurt,
That's when I really lost it,
The blade placed to my wrist,
I think I took it to far,
Beyond the bloody mist.
The scars that still remind us,
That our past is real,
And there is no reason
To provoke the pain we feel.
-Stephanie
Off the Shelf
Knowledge flowing from the pages,
Images flooding my mind,
As if a play is being staged.
The rough hardback and smooth paperback
The crinkle of the pages.
The musty smell of a new book,
Pleading to be read.
So many to choose from.
Novels, biographies, large and small.
Mystery, fiction, and horror: I like them all.
Finally a book to escpae into.
Feeling the cold air as if I'm really there.
Feeling pain, sorrow, joy and anger,
As if I'm the main character.
Asking the same question over and over,
What will happen next?
Reading more and more, day by day.
Turning pages 'til I'm done.
Finishing one, starting another.
The intriguing pull to keep reading.
So much to remember,
My mind is about to burst.
-Lauren

Sunday, March 14, 2010

NCLB Overhall

Controversial changes proposed for a controversial law. See this article in today's paper. Personally, I love the idea of analyzing school achievement based on individual student development throughout the year - makes good sense to me. And the grant-writing competition for Title I money sounds interesting: it would give a whole new meaning to my blog title.

Other Interesting Pieces

What Keeps Me Alive

From day to night
I've always had my hand gripped tightly to my Sharpie,
With my sketchbook in front of me,
The sound of faded music,
Whispering softly to my ears,
I have my Sharpie in my palm now I feel warm,
I have my sketchbook now the warmth's complete
It makes the hole in my heart softly fill in
At times when I don't I have them
I start to feel the coldness crawl over me,
I'll never lose my pen and book,
Cause they're the ones who keep me alive.

-Jamie



When You Were Born

When you were born,
My heart was filled with love.
I knew I had to be a better person.

From the bright lights
To the fast beating hearts.
My daddy pacing back and forth
With sweat sliding down his head.

I sit and wait for you to come out.
Finally. "I see the head" the doctor says.

Mom holds you and
Rubs your gentle soft head
She gives you to our daddy
And you scream
With a squeaky whine.
He gives you to me.

And I touched your silky soft blanket
As I cupped you in my arms.
I knew I had to care for you
And show you the way of life.
I had to be a better person.

I love you and I always will love you
Now and forever my little brother.

-Dale


When The Last Leaf Falls

When the last leaf falls
From the old oak tree
No longer will I hear your deep voice
That gets higher when you're worried.
No longer wil you come in
From long, hard days
Spant at "Work-R's-Us"
Asking, "Where's my little girl?"
There will be no more nights
When we pretend
To go to sleep for Mama
And rush downstairs
When she's out of sight
To search for the Twinkie stash.

I will no longer breathe in
The scent of new car;
The car freshener,
From being in
Your old Cadillac
With the chameleon paint
That changes colors.
The sun will
No longer smile,
The birds will
No longer sing.
Sweet Sugar would become
Bitter Salt.

While you are still here,
I will cherish every moment,
Learn from every mistake,
And follow every dream.
I'll capture our smiles,
And our "laughing-just-to-be-laughing" moments.
All will be good as gold
Until the last leaf falls.

-Shaylyn