A Rumbling Good Time

I recently returned from the 2011 South Dakota Reading Council State Conference which was held in Sioux Falls this year. I took the trip with three colleagues and fellow Reading Council officers. It was fantastic.

One of the highlights was meeting Chris Rumble.  The first night there, I took part in a Murder Mystery (cool experience- my first time, but definitely not my last). It was called Murder in Margaritaland. The first time I met Chris, I simply knew him as Managing Mo (a manager for Sandy Beachbum, a surfer on the island). I was initially impressed by his infectious smile and his love of life.

Later I found out who he was- children’s book author, illustrator, musician, and speaker. Chris is the genuine article. I love his sense of humor and his positive, upbeat personality. He gave a wonderful presentation that included audience participation. It got both adults and kids fired up to read and write. Chris was also the keynote at the Student Award’s Ceremony.

Please check out his website at http://www.chrisrumble.com/index.htm. His video blogs are great. You’ll want to watch Episode 3: How to Wind Up Your Child’s Day with Joy and Happiness. This one had me wiping tears from my cheek at the conference. You can also hear some of his motivational songs (click Author Visits and check out the right hand sidebar). Chris has a true passion for children and spreading the love of literacy.

Two Puppets and a Cup of Enthusiasm



Ms. DiMaria and Kerby

Yummy! I just finished making Scotcheroos for our Reading Council meeting tomorrow. We’re having a salad and dessert potluck to judge entries for the local Young Illustrator’s, Young Author’s, and Poetry Cabaret competitions. As I was mixing my ingredients, I thought about the ingredients of a successful minilesson. Yes, minilessons should be short and snappy, focused and explicit, and connected to prior learning. But what else? Still thinking about yesterday’s post on enthusiasm, I pondered how enthusiasm is a key competent in any successful endeavor in the classroom.

Mrs. Kolbach and the Tooth Fairy

Writer’s Workshop has always been a favorite time of the school day for me. My enthusiasm usually spills over to the kids and they excitedly get down to the business of writing. They view themselves as authors and beg to share their pieces during our share time. Today Ms. Kolbach presented a minilesson that had two additional key ingredients- enthusiasm and novelty by way of …yes… you guessed it- puppets. Ms. Kolbach wrote a script for two puppets and together the puppets taught the kids about dental health. The student’s hung on the puppets’ every word. It was a very effective mode of delivery. Well done Ms. Kolbach!

What are some effective ways you have delivered new content to students/adults?

Enthusiasm

Educator and Puppeteer Markie Scholz

I am always energized by the many opportunities for professional development in my district. One such avenue is our local Reading Council. Last week we had the opportunity to hear educator and puppeteer Markie Scholz. We had the delightful opportunity to hear and speak about using puppetry to enhance our teaching. But wait…that wasn’t all! We also had the chance to make our very own sock puppet. This was quite the experience.

My student intern, Ms. Kolbach, wasn’t able to attend the meeting last week and missed out on all the fun. It was student intern, Ms. DiMaria, to the rescue! Luckily, Ms. DiMaria brought her own supplies and expertise to our room. Ms. DiMaria, had such a good time that she worked with Ms. Kolbach to make a puppet for her dental health unit this week.

One of the things that Markie said was that “Enthusiasm is everything.” So true! It reminded me of one of my favorite quotes by Ralph Waldo Emerson: “Nothing great was ever achieved without enthusiasm.” How has enthusiasm made a difference in your teaching?

To find out more about Markie and her puppets, visit her website at http://www.dragonsaretooseldom.com/markie.html. Check out the cool “dragon cave” (geodesic dome))where Markie lives with her husband, Dick Termes, artist and inventor of the Termesphere. Markie’s site even includes directions on how to make your own sock puppet. Trust me, it’s addicting. It’s not just for kids or educators in lower elementary. Did I mention that Ms. DiMaria is an intern in a fifth grade classroom! And while your surfing the web, be sure to visit Dick’s site at http://termespheres.com/. Be prepared to be amazed.

  

Ms. DiMaria and Ms. Hoscheid ready to embark on some fun


  

Partners necessary: Mrs. Tautkus rolling a sock on my arm


  

Mrs. Tautkus gluing away


 

Proudly showing off our creations



Reading Council and Local Children's Author Claudia Little

Halloween may be over, but I am being haunted by voices… My blog has been talking to me. It’s saying “It’s been over a month since you last spoke to me.” Scary, isn’t it? Is it because I have had nothing to blog about? Quite the contrary! Plenty of things have happened since my last entry-  from wonderful happenings in the classroom to awesome professional development experiences. If I have time, I will catch up on all these experiences.

However, for today, I would like to share about the local Reading Council meeting I attended tonight.  Local children’s author, Claudia Little, spoke to us about making connections with our students and helping students improve their writing. Claudia is a retired teacher and lives in Spearfish, South Dakota. Claudia is the author of two books, Patches, My Mustang and Mudpies. Patches began as a story growing up on a ranch. Claudia's fourth and fifth grade students became her editors. Mudpies is a beautiful rhyming book about the simple pleasures in life. Both books are illustrated by Sharon Grey, who was a former student of Claudia’s back in the third grade.  The illustrations in Patches are charcoal. The illustrations in Mudpies are gorgeous watercolor paintings with real children used as models. Check out the following website for more information on Claudia: http://www.photographs.galeymiller.org/History/Spearfish-Area-Historical/4458366_emTYG/4 Claudia also gives presentations to classrooms. Her contact information is: 605-642-4227 or clittle@spe.midco.net.

Claudia was available to sign copies of her books. I picked up copies for several of my colleagues. Don’t books make the greatest gifts? And I couldn’t resist adding Patches and Mudpies  to my own library. One can never have too many books. Just don’t ask my husband!  We were also treated to some delicious goodies. To make a good evening better, I won the door prize- a $10.00 gift card to Borders!  Did I say one can never have too many books?