Since this week also marks what would have been her 102nd  birthday, I wrote a poem to celebrate my mother, Vivian Victoria – a talented and creative seamstress, and later an inspiring elementary school teacher.Â
Category: Champions
The New B.F.G.: Benevolent Female Guide
My guidance is very quiet. It is not bold or commanding. My guidance is not step-by-step directions, rather I try to lead lightly by listening and sharing opportunities for further learning and discovery. These opportunities almost always come in the form of books.
What the World Needs Now…
This week, I’m thinking a lot about love. First, because it’s February, and Valentine’s Day leads us all to think a little more deeply about love, but also because February has a special meaning to me.Â
Writing Alongside Children
This week, I began working with two fifth grade girls on writing. I created digital notebooks so they could more easily type their thoughts and ideas. I also wrote alongside them. We talked, we shared our writing, and we laughed. My intention was to build a small community of writers...
Writing Full Circle
I have always thought of writing as connection: the writer’s connection to the readers, and readers connections to the writer’s ideas. Those ideas connect a myriad of other readers and writers, and the circle continues to expand exponentially
A Measure of Success
Since I was a child, I’ve measured my success by all the small moments I’ve had connecting to people through personal interactions and poetry. Connection to me equaled success. Oh sure, I had thoughts of fame and money but that all fell away as I matured. It’s not that I lost my ambition, it’s just … Continue reading A Measure of Success
Working in the Wonder Studio: Self-Reliance
I know people sometimes look at the things the Wonder Studio makers have created and see just a mess of paint and glue and cardboard. But I see treasure, pure childlike imaginative treasure. And in that treasure, I see creativity, determination, and resourcefulness, which will stay with them a lifetime. And that makes all the difference!
Autumn Affinity
Autumn is a season of loss. The leaves change color, dry, and fall from their branches. The trees become temporary skeletons and the sky turns smoky gray. There is a quietness that settles in like the cold. It is a time to go inward, to remember and to be grateful.
Joy-filled Reading
Learning to read is difficult work. There are 26 letters, each having one or more sounds. Reading is blending the sounds into words to make meaning. It is a long and slow process. And I recall many faces filled with joy as they read their first words and sentences It was a complete light of satisfaction upon young faces.
Reading Aloud: Creating Connection & Joy
I’m a reader. But it wasn’t always that way. Learning to read was difficult for me. I sounded out all the letters like I was taught to do, and I’d blend the sounds into words as best I could. Reading was very slow and hard work. I didn’t read fluently and beautifully for a long … Continue reading Reading Aloud: Creating Connection & Joy
Word Dancer: Literature, the Arts, & Education 