Celebrating Fresh Starts

Thank you to Ruth Ayres for the opportunity to focus on celebrations every week! Please join us!

First quarter ended yesterday. I love that we get opportunities to start fresh a few times each year. We end our nine weeks of hard work with a reading celebration called the Zone Day. 

We bring lots of books to read. We stretch out on desks and pillows. We settle in and read. It's heavenly! We spent some time reading our read aloud book too.  Yesterday I read Karen Harrington's new book, Mayday. It's not released until May, but I was lucky enough to get an advanced copy. 

I gobbled it up in one day! It's full of drama...about a boy named Wayne who is struggling to figure out who he is supposed to be. This is happening as he survives a plane crash and learns to deal with his family and friends. Wayne is such a likable character! Karen Harrington, the author, writes tragedy so well. She communicates the layers of life...everything isn't all good or all bad, and she steers her characters through the messiness of life. I LOVE her books! I celebrate good authors and the chance to read their writing! Look for Mayday this spring! I celebrate trust. By the end of the first quarter, I see the trust that's been developed between me and my students. It's something I work hard at and continue to develop throughout the school year. My students continue inspire me with their willingness to take risks in their writing and to push themselves to become better readers. I celebrate life. It's messy and sad. It's beautiful and miraculous. I learn everyday that life isn't all bad or all good. I learn everyday that people aren't all bad or all good. I remind myself that everyone has a story and is doing the best they can.

Authors are my Rock Stars!

Thank you to Stacey, Betsy, Dana, Tara, Beth, & Anna for this amazing platform to write and share writing! What a wonderful community you've created! I'm honored to be part of it. Join us at Two Writing Teachers. 

This weekend I met a legend. He did not disappoint! Kwame Alexander, a Newbery Award winning author, was signing books at a local Barnes & Noble. Since The Crossover was one of our favorite read alouds this year, I shared the information with my classes. The signing was on a Saturday afternoon and many students told me that they had games or plans already. I told them that I would be there getting our classroom copy signed. Traffic was terrible. Sitting on Route 50, I was afraid I wouldn't get to see him. It was almost 11AM and the signing began at 11:00. I worried that the line would be too long and I would miss him. You see, authors are my rock stars. I'd much rather get to meet an author and talk with them than I would any other kind of celebrity. When I arrived at Barnes & Noble, there was plenty of time. I got into line and noticed the people in front of me. One was a teacher from the graduate class I taught, another was a close friend and colleague and the best...one of my students!! 

I got a chance to watch one of my students meet an author they admire. Listening to him discuss the book, with the author...the AUTHOR...the NEWBERY AWARD WINNING AUTHOR...I was speechless. We got pictures. 

When it was my turn I was nervous! I shook his hand and asked him to sign my book. Classroom books always get signed to Ms. Haseltine's Students. I was spelling my name and he stopped and said, "Michelle?" I nodded. He smiled and said, "I know you from Twitter." WOO HOO!! I got so flustered that I forgot to tell him to add "Students" to the signature. 

I blabbered on like a crazy fan for a few minutes. I don't even remember what I said. 

Oh, how I made a complete fool of myself over meeting him. His book is so wonderful and it meant so much to me and my students this year. The story could end there, but it doesn't! I was in a bookstore, so of course, I shopped. As I was looking around, I heard, "Ms. Haseltine!" Another student ran up to me and said, "I just met him!! I'm still shaking." A kindred spirit, for sure. She brought her writer's notebook for him to sign. He signed her WRITER'S NOTEBOOK. 

An author, a Newbery Award winning author, signed her notebook! She told him that she didn't used to like reading, but now she loves it. He asked her to repeat it and he videotaped her. So cool!! As I left the store with my signed books, I drove home and I started to cry. This day will be a priceless memory for years to come. This is my evaluation. This is my report card. Not some state test! Not some meaningless number! NO! These two students got their parents to drive them to a bookstore to meet an author. They lit up when they met him and talked with him. He changed them. They are readers. They are writers. He is a ROCK STAR!