Poetry Month 2018

This year's class -- The Hahn Squad -- loves to find patterns.
They have found patterns in the date
(one of our favorites all year, a Squad Member's birthday, was 3/6/18...3x6=18),
in recurring themes in our read alouds (the desire for invisibility),
and in the lucky coincidence that there are 30 days in April and 30 students in our class.

When the 30 Days, 30 Students, 30 Poems challenge was laid at my feet by an eager and earnest Squad Member, what could I do? I had to accept.

For their part, I asked each of the 30 Squad Members to chose a quote they love. I originally intended to write a personalized Golden Shovel Poem for each student using their quote as the striking line. Although some may turn out to be specific to the student who chose the quote, most will pay tribute to some part of the 2017-2018 5th Grade Hahn Squad experience.

31 Teaching Truths

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31. Believe in magic.

Because teaching and learning are magic, aren't they? Building a classroom community from scratch every year; meeting the ever-changing, ever-shifting needs of a diverse group of learners to the very best of your ability day after day; making a kid's day; making a colleague's day; learning to be a better teacher years or decades into your career...it's all magic. And without these strong threads of magic that we weave in our classrooms, the fabric of our nation...of our democracy...would fray and shred and dissolve.

Believe in magic. Don't ever stop. So much depends on the work you do every minute of every day.

31 Teaching Truths

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30. Celebrate your spot on your district's seniority list.

When Franki texted me that we have both made it to the front page of our district's seniority list, I had to see for myself. Sure enough, there I am: out of the thousands and thousands of certified teachers in our district, I am #15. And there she is, hired just a year later, about fifteen spots below me.

Today I'm celebrating my rise from the newest hire to one of the most seasoned teachers in the district. I celebrate all the mistakes I've made, all of the successes I've had, and all the students I've taught. Hooray for a career that began with no computers and will end with...I'm not even going to attempt to predict the changes that will continue with lightning speed in the next few years. I'm glad I had a chance to be a Whole Language teacher in the 1980s. I think those years before the intense pressure of standards and testing gave me a foundation in student-centered teaching that has served me (and my students) well. I'm glad I staunchly adhered to my generalist stance all these years. Being a generalist rather than a specialist has allowed me to be a leader in the district in math, language arts, environmental science/outdoor education, and multiage/looping.

If there are thousands of teachers between you and the front page of your district's seniority list, don't despair, and don't focus on all the years it will take you to get to the front page. Take it one class at a time, one big project at a time, one new leadership opportunity at a time, one swing of the education pendulum at a time. 

31 Teaching Truths

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29.  Stick around -- things will change.

There's never a dull moment in education. Even if you're just along for the ride, you'll need to hold on at times. Public education is one of the most important rights of the citizens of a democracy. It's worth the time you spend working inside the system, and, if you are so moved, it's worth the time you spend working for the system.

31 Teaching Truths

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28.  Stay in touch with former students.

The only way we can get a long view of the work we do each year with a group of students is to watch them grow up. It's thrilling to see my former students become moms (including one who has adopted a special-needs child), teachers, professional photographers, medical students, politicians, professional cyclists, and scientists. I look at my former students and I know that my work has truly made a difference.

31 Teaching Truths

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27.  Test scores are snapshots.

A test score is a snapshot (sometimes not particularly flattering) of each of your students and of your teaching.

A test score is not an hours-long documentary that fully explores the ups and downs of the daily learning of each student and the highs and lows of your teaching over the course of a year.

Do your best to teach the learners in your class. Encourage your students to do their best on the tests. But don't forget that the results you'll get are snapshots.

31 Teaching Truths

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26. Try something new.

The only way to keep your career alive across decades will be by trying new things. Some stick and become "the way I always," but others die off because they needed a particular group of students or a unique quirk of that year's schedule to be powerful.

#classroombookaday was new to me last year, but I think this fun and powerful routine of making time each day for a no-strings-attached picture book read aloud will stick because, well, "fun and powerful" says it all.

A few years ago I started projecting my read-alouds via Kindle. Recently, I've tried to make sure we listen to an Audible production while we read along at least once a year. This year, Refugee (by Alan Gratz) was perfect for listening to professional readers with just the right accents.

My grade level has changed up the way we do Genius Hour to better meet the needs of all of our students. We have one group that committed to doing TED talks, while three groups are cycling through 6-week sessions of makers' space, creativity challenges, and coding/technology projects. I had to let go of my classroom Genius Hour, but I think my students have gotten as much or more from this new approach.

Take a risk and try something new!

31 Teaching Truths

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25. Be yourself.

I don't own any leggings and I know next to nothing about popular culture and sports, but these facts don't cause a moment's loss of sleep.

I can pair readers with the perfect books, teach writers how to craft an introduction, scaffold a hesitant math student to confidence, and tolerate the messes that come with scientific experimentation.

Be yourself and you will be the right teacher at the right time for an untold number of students who also don't "fit in" for any number of visible or invisible reasons.

31 Teaching Truths

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24. Lead.

If you've been following these 31 Teaching Truths, you might sense a progression in the last few days. #21 was Trust yourself. An important stance, but we should never forget that the smartest person in the room is all of the people in the room, so #22 was Build a PLN. The ultimate PLN is a professional organization in your content area, so #23 was Join a professional organization.

As important as it is to be a joiner, the ultimate challenge lies in being the one with the vision, the energy, and the stamina to lead. You'll never know what you're made of until you put yourself out in front and lead.

Franki is one of my leadership heroines. She has led in every building where she's served, she's led in our district, she's led professional thinking with her books (kudos also to her co-writer on many of them, Karen Szymusiak), she's led local and statewide organizations, and now she's on the brink of becoming the president of NCTE. Three cheers for Franki!

31 Teaching Truths

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23. Join a professional organization.

A professional organization for your content area is the ultimate PLN. Language Arts teachers, consider joining NCTE. Math teachers, think about joining NCTM. The publications and conferences these organizations offer (you can join the national organization or the statewide affiliate) are invaluable.

Poetry Friday -- Fable

Flickr Creative Commons Photo by James Havard

Fable
by Ralph Waldo Emerson

The mountain and the squirrel 

Had a quarrel; 

And the former called the latter ‘Little Prig.’ 

Bun replied, 

‘You are doubtless very big; 

But all sorts of things and weather 

Must be taken in together,

To make up a year 

And a sphere. 

And I think it no disgrace 

To occupy my place. 

If I’m not so large as you, 

You are not so small as I, 

And not half so spry. 

I’ll not deny you make 

A very pretty squirrel track; 

Talents differ; 

all is well and wisely put; 

If I cannot carry forests on my back, 

Neither can you crack a nut.’

Laura has the Poetry Friday Roundup this week at Writing the World for Kids.

31 Teaching Truths

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22. Build a Professional Learning Network (PLN).

Because as good as it is to trust yourself (see #21 yesterday), sometimes you need the "hive mind" to come up with the best idea for how to teach that lesson. Your PLN can be as close as your grade level or content team, or as far-flung as fellow educators on Twitter.

31 Teaching Truths

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21. Trust yourself.

Come up with your own idea about how teach that lesson. Think about the process you use to make meaning when you read, think about how you go about organizing your thinking for a writing piece. Trust yourself.

31 Teaching Truths

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20. Go ahead and cry.

Some days are hard. Sometimes the weight of everything those thirty young souls carry around while they are working to master opinion writing and division with decimals and the similarities and differences between light and sound is just to much to bear. Sometimes the weight of everything you are carrying around is too much to bear.

Then pick yourself up and get back at it.

31 Teaching Truths

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19. Be "The One Who..."

First there was CRB. She was the one who unlocked all the rooms on the second floor because she got to work insanely early. (Wait...did she unlock ALL the doors on both floors?!? I wouldn't put it beyond her.)

She retired and Coop inherited her classroom and carried on the unlocking tradition.

I'm the one who makes the candy that gets delivered after Thanksgiving break. There's the one who always organizes the fashion show for Multicultural Day, the one who cleans out the fridge in the lounge and makes the schedule for Friday treats, the one who serves on the district Leadership Academy committee, the ones who are brave enough to sing karaoke in front of all the students in the school. There used to be the one who sang "Summertime" a cappella over the PA system after the buses pulled away on the last day of school. We miss her. No one has picked up that tradition. Hard shoes to fill.

One of the things that makes our building amazing is our community, our culture. It takes everyone being willing to be "The One Who" to make that kind of community and culture happen. It starts with one and it spreads.

Are you "The One Who?" Or is it time you pitched in and became "The One Who?"

31 Teaching Truths

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18. Be prepared.

Sometimes I forget how smoothly things flow when I make extensive and detailed plans. Last week when we were ramping up our long division skills back to where 4th grade leaves off, I not only created strategically mixed-ability small groups, but I also planned out where in the classroom each group would work. Gone was the chaos of choosing a partner and finding a spot to work.

If only there were enough hours in the day to plan that way for every subject every day all week long.

31 Teaching Truths

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16. Build in choice. (they raise their own bar)

Choice is one of the most powerful teaching moves we have in our toolkit. It's one thing if you offer a list of choices for work time, but your classroom community operates at a whole new level of trust when you teach a couple of adding fractions math games and then, in making rounds and checking in with partners and groups, you find that some boys have invented their own game which requires them to practice adding fractions in a WAY more complicated (and interesting) manner than any of the games you offered. A reminder here that when you see something going on in your classroom that doesn't look like what you expected, slow down and get information before you fly off the I'm In Control Here/Do What I Say handle.

31 Teaching Truths

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16. Raise the bar.

Up the ante. Kick it up a notch. Set a deadline and stick to it. Is teaching your job, or are you a professional?

Oh. You thought I was talking about raising the bar for your students. Well, yeah, raise the bar for them, too. That's what we do all the time as we build their understanding of more and more complicated ideas and content.

But if we're going to apply this saying to the work you ask your students to do, then please remember: when you raise the bar in a game of limbo, you make it easier to get under. So every now and then, maybe you should raise the bar for the wiggle under and not the vault over.

And how about this: if we change the spelling of raise, we totally change the nature of the game: raze the bar. What would that look like in your classroom?

Poetry Friday: Saying Goodbye

Unsplash Photo by Steve Johnson

Saying Goodbye

The storage unit is pitch black. 

The boxes 

are stacked right where we left them. I kick one with my shoe 

and wonder what I’m going to do with these boxes 

once I get them home. There will be new 

piles of boxes 

in our basement. I’d rather have you 

back than all these memories stuffed into boxes.

©Mary Lee Hahn, 2018

This Golden Shovel was written for the March 2018 Ditty Challenge using part of a line of a poem by Devon Hope. I wrote it to remind myself that I can write in this form. (I wrote one last April for Malvina Reynolds.) I wrote it because of my poem-a-day challenge for April (coming up at the speed of time). When I began my "sort of a Slice of Life Challenge but not really" for March, I hadn't decided what I'd do for my Poetry Month challenge. I was talking to my students about the goals and challenges writers set for themselves and one of them laid down the gauntlet. Our classroom family has since grown from 29 to 30, so...why not. I've never in my career had 30 students (never again, please), so why not write a poem about each child? Never one to make things easy for myself, I've had each student choose a quote that resonates with him/her. 

In April, I will write a Golden Shovel for/about each of my 30 students using the quote they chose as the poem's "striking line."

(Eep!)

Linda has the Poetry Friday Roundup this week at TeacherDance.

31 Teaching Truths

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15. Notice.

Every day try to make sure you really SEE every student. Every single one. 

Especially notice the ones who work hard every single day on every single assignment. Notice the ones who are always quiet in line. Notice the ones who come right to the carpet when you invite the class to come close for a mini lesson or a read aloud. Notice the neat work. 

But also notice the head down, the clouded face, the grumpy demeanor, the short temper.

That old saw about teachers having eyes in the backs of our heads? So far from the truth. We are ALL eye, because one of the most important things we do all day long (every minute of every day, in case you were wondering why we're so exhausted when we get home) is...

...notice.

31 Teaching Truths

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14. Celebrate risk-taking.

Value the words, "I'm not sure, but..."
Cheer on the "I used to think, but now..."
Validate "Would you check this to see if I'm on the right track?"
Honor "I think I know!"

31 Teaching Truths

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13. Plural possessives will happen. But probably not on your timeline.

J. was working on his opinion piece this afternoon. I had given the class articles from ReadWorks about the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge and the Shasta Dam. Their job was to choose the most amazing of these two human-made structures and back up their choice with reasons and facts from the articles.

The article about the dam told about ways the dam was harmful to the native salmon, but also some temperature control innovations that helped the salmon. I nearly fainted from joy when J. asked, "Where do you put the apostrophe if you've got lots of salmon?" We had a quick lesson on singular and plural possessives. He was ready to learn. Even more than that, he had identified exactly what it was he needed to learn.

Today I was in the right place at the right time. When that happens, savor the moment.

31 Teaching Truths

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12. Improvise. (A mashup of yesterday's Mix It Up and The Power of Routines from the day before.)

There was an unused spot at the top of the word study section of our big language arts bulletin board last fall. On a whim, I used one 12x18 sheet of paper to write "Be" and another next to it to say, "_______". Our first word was AWESOME. We started the year being awesome.

Somewhere along the line, we decided it was time to change up the word, and at some point it was decided that would happen when we change desks/spots every two weeks. The person who chose the word gets to choose the next person.

A routine was born, not because I planned for it, but because I accidentally made the space for the class to invent it. We improvised. We made it up as we went. It's one of our favorite routines because it's 100% ours. (Bonus payoff--it keeps us looking at the word study section of our language arts bulletin board!)

So far this year we have encouraged each other to Be...

awesome
creative
respectful
cool
responsible
positive
calm
risk-takers

31 Teaching Truths

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11. Mixing it up now and then is just as powerful as solid routines.

The surprise factor. The juicy, delicious fear of not knowing what's about to happen in the lesson. The eagerness. The heightened awareness. You need all of this this just as much as your students do. Have solid and comfortable/comforting routines. And mix them up now and then.

31 Teaching Truths

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10. Routines are powerful.

Routines are like paved paths through a beautiful, well-groomed park (aka your day). They get you from point A to point B in a relatively efficient manner, everyone knows what to expect from them, the sights you see and the stops you make along the way are comfortingly familiar. After you've walked the same path for several weeks in a row, you can close your eyes and walk it in your sleep. Key words: efficient, comfortable.

If you know me, or if you read Truth #3, you know this isn't the end of this story. Stay tuned for Truth #11 tomorrow.

31 Teaching Truths

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9. Take care of yourself.

Easier said than done, right? You could work 24/7 on lessons and grading and professional development and classes for your masters degree and gathering books from the public library and buying classroom supplies with your own money...and you still would never be caught up, let alone ahead of the game. So since you can't ever get caught up (not for more than a day at a time in a good week), remember Truth #4 and let something go so that you can go out to dinner with friends, or watch Antiques Roadshow, or get that exercise routine going, or catch a couple extra hours of sleep.

If you're not a happy, healthy PERSON, how are you going to be a happy, healthy TEACHER?

Poetry Friday

The Rhinoceros

by Ogden Nash

The rhino is a homely beast,
For human eyes he's not a feast.
Farwell, farewell, you old rhinoceros,
I'll stare at something less prepoceros.

Sorry. Today's poem is just an excuse to share this darling baby rhino. I can't look at that picture without smiling.

Michelle has this week's Poetry Friday roundup at Today's Little Ditty.

31 Teaching Truths

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8. Admit when you're wrong.

Let it be no big deal that you added wrong, spelled incorrectly, or forgot someone's name momentarily. Admit your error, apologize (or laugh) and move on.

If it's less trivial -- you misinterpret a situation on the playground based on observation or assumption and when you get all the facts you realize you had it all wrong -- admit it, apologize, and move on. Or, if you realize that you didn't handle a classroom situation as well as you could have (hindsight really is 20-20), call the parent, admit you were wrong, apologize and move on.

If you are breaking the law, get out of your classroom and get help.

31 Teaching Truths

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7. Imagine your students' parents can see and hear you.

They try your patience and fray your nerves, but they are someone else's one and only sugar plum. So take a deep breath, access your last shard of patience, and treat your students with dignity and respect no matter what. Don't stoop to their level. Don't be sarcastic and rude and mean. Remember, every single student in that room is watching how you treat both the overachievers and the underachievers. They are either learning the language of power or the language of compassion -- the choice is yours.

31 Teaching Truths

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6.  There will never be another class like this one.

If you've got a tricky class, this is important to remember. You can do this! You will learn lots and become a better teacher.

If you've got a fabulous class, this is important to remember. Every single day you need to appreciate your students and let them know how thankful you are for them and for their good work.

31 Teaching Truths

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5. Read. And while you're at it, write.

Do you want every student in your class to be a voracious reader? Then you should be one, too. Do you ask your students to take risks as a writer? Then you should take those same risks, too.

Three Must-Reads!!

I read three books this week that I absolutely loved. I think these are must-reads/must-haves!

I heard about Small Things at last week's #titletalk. Penny Kittle recommended it and I ordered it immediately. I am always looking for new wordless picture books and this one is very powerful. It is definitely not one for young readers but seems perfect for middle grade and middle school. The illustrations are incredible and it tackles the subject of anxiety. Lots to talk about.

I always find a few new books when ALA Youth Media Awards are announced. This year, Macy McMillan and the Rainbow Goddess by Shari Green won the Schneider Family Book Award for middle grade. This was a book I had never heard of but am so glad I ordered it immediately. This book has a great main character, it is told in verse and has so many great talking points. And there is a thread about stories/books that I love. This is PERFECT for middle grade and middle school readers.

I lucked out and was able to borrow a copy (thanks Christina!) of the upcoming YA novel, Tradition  by Brendan Kiely. WOW! This book has had a lot of buzz and it lives up to all of it. This hits a lot of important issues and the characters are amazing. I can't wait until more people read this book. Preorder now! (I only read a few YA novels a year, so even if you are not a YA reader, make sure to read this one!)

31 Teaching Truths

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4. Do your best.

Do your best, but don't ever get lulled into believing that your best is the same on every day in every situation. Sometimes my best is a survival best, a "just get through this day" best. Other times, my best is thoughtful and research-based. I love my best the most when it sneaks up out of nowhere and surprises me with an idea so perfect I couldn't have tried to imagine it!

31 Teaching Truths

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3. Follow your students.

There are definitely times when a teacher needs to lead, but some of my most powerful teaching has been when I got out of the way, and when I followed. Or when I really listened to my students.

Early in the year, I started pointing out patterns or math equations in the date. My students see these number patterns everywhere now. And all. the. time. (I have to remind myself that I have created this "monster," so I shouldn't get annoyed.)

We have a place on a bulletin board for Homographs, Homophones and Homonyms. Noticing words has also taken off like wildfire. They know they don't have to ask permission to grab a sticky and put one up, but they still tell me when they find one. At dismissal yesterday, looking out to see if it was still raining, "Ooh! Sprinkle like what the rain does and sprinkle -- the thing on a donut!"

On Friday, we talked about how writers challenge themselves in order to become better writers. I told them about this March challenge I've given myself to warm up for the April Poem-A-Day challenge. The words were no sooner out of my mouth than the student (who earlier had pointed out that INVISIBILITY is important in our new read aloud, Walk Two Moons, just like it had been important in REFUGEE. Um...Wow...) said, "There's 30 days in April and there's 29 of us -- 30 if we count you -- so you should just write a poem a day about US!"

And you know what? I think I will.

31 Teaching Truths

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2. Indoor recess isn't always as bad as it seems. The key is having plenty of options available.

Yesterday there were two students playing chess, a future astronomer watching a YouTube channel that features easy-to-understand videos about the cosmos, a group of students playing Clue, a girl working to get her reading response assignment finished early, and a couple of girls who created the Empire State Building from wooden blocks by using a reference photo on the iPad.

Poetry Friday -- Chocolate Cake

Abecedarian Cake Love

A
birthday
cake --
decadent,
elegant,
frosting
gobbed
high --
I
justify
knifing
loose
my
notch --
objectify
perfection,
qualify
restraint,
savor
tastes
until...
voicing
with
eXuberance:
YUMMY!
amaZing!

©Mary Lee Hahn, 2014

BIRTHDAY CAKE 

Measuring Spoons 
Our advice? 
Be precise. 

Kitchen Aid 
I stand… 
I mix, blend, 
whip, stir, knead… 
at your command. 

Cake Pans 
We’re fickle. 
Three layers stick 
whenever we pick. 

Violets on the Windowsill 
We choose 
purple for our blooms. 
You make the air go blue 
because of what the pans decided to do. 

Table 
Come sit. 
Unwind. 
Write a bit. 
Find 
the humor in all of it. 
Be resigned, 
start again. Don’t quit.


© Mary Lee Hahn, 2012

Here are a couple of my chocolate cake poems from the past.

I baked Hubby's birthday cake last night. He wanted to help, so I let him prep the pans. Lesson learned: don't give away one of the key steps in the process, something that you know by feel and by experience, not by look. One layer stuck horribly. Another stuck a bit. 

I said a few choice words under my breath, but then I moved into "make lemonade" mode. I took the crumble layer, mixed it with a portion of the icing to make a globby cake-icing goo to put between the other two layers, and covered the whole thing with the rest of the icing. From the outside, it looks like my classic from-scratch chocolate cake. I'm sure it will taste just fine. I'm wondering if this wonky middle layer might become the new normal. Stay tuned. 

Moral of the story -- don't get mad...INNOVATE!

Renee has today's Poetry Friday Roundup at No Water River.

31 Teaching Truths

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1. Being a part of a supportive and collaborative team (be it grade level or subject or building) is one of the most important safety nets for the high wire balancing act that is also known as teaching.





I am not going to join the Slice of Life community because I cannot commit to being a good part of the group -- reading and commenting regularly. But I do want to try to blog daily during March so that my poem-a-day project in April won't be such a shock to my system!