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How to Make Writing Fun

How to Make Writing Fun (Part 2)

Most students feel challenged to complete their writing assignments. As an intervention elementary school teacher, I love to empower students with imaginative and engaging writing assignments. For example, my second-grade students wanted to learn more about rattlesnakes after hearing my personal story about being bitten by a rattlesnake. Here is an outline of questions they asked for our writing activity:

  1. How did I get bitten by the rattlesnake?
  2. Why do snakes bite people?
  3. Where was I when it happened?
  4. What did the bite feel like?
  5. Did I catch the snake or did it get away?
  6. What did I do after the bite?
  7. Did I phone 911?
  8. Did an ambulance transport me to the hospital?
  9. What did I do while waiting for the ambulance?
  10. What happened when I arrived at the hospital?
  11. What type of medication did the doctors use to fight a venomous snake bite?
  12. What does venomous, antivenom, and antidotes mean?
  13. How is antivenom created?
  14. What types of animals help create antivenom antidotes?
  15. How long did it take to get better?
  16. Do I still have problems with the bite?
  17. What can a person do so they do not get a snake bite?

[Read more…]

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Let’s Be Honest: Teen Sexting

Let’s Be Honest: Teen Sexting

Let’s talk about sex(ting), baby . . .

If you are around my age (early 40s) like many parents who are reading blogs like this are, that introductory sentence immediately brings you back to a time when hearing “that” song on the radio or on MTV felt salacious. Well, I think we all know that is nothing compared to what is at our kids’ fingertips at all times right now. [Read more…]

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How to Get Kids Inspired to Write (Part 1)

How to Get Kids Inspired to Write    (Part 1)

Last October I was asked to teach how to write a scary story with second grade students. First, I read a scary story to the children. Then I provided them with writing prompts and strategies on how they might create and write their own scary stories. As a personal example, I dramatized a scary story about how I was bitten by a rattlesnake and was given antibodies from a horse to fight the poison in my body. The students were captivated by my story and suggested that I write a children’s book about my experience. They also were eager to learn more about rattlesnake bites. I promised I would return at a later date for students to learn more about this adventure. [Read more…]

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The Balancing Act of Afterschool Activities 

The Balancing Act of Afterschool Activities

It is cold outside and we struggle with balancing our daily lives. How can we keep our kids active in their daily lives even in the dead of winter? Most of our kids are over scheduled with sports, homework, afterschool activities, and screen time. Other children come home to empty homes and waste away hours waiting for parents to come home from work while eating snacks and watching television or playing video games. And other children have overwhelming household responsibilities to help their family with sibling care, dinner preparation, and laundry chores. [Read more…]

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Parenting Is a Long Game

Parenting is a Long Game

I had really good parents. Thankfully, I still ‘have’ them, but I intentionally used the past tense to focus on the formative years. My parents loved me, loved each other, taught me right from wrong, and gave me trust even when I sometimes did not deserve it.

This may surprise some of you then when I share that when I left high school as an Honors Student with a full academic scholarship and a myriad of leadership accolades that I turned into, at times, a person I was not always proud of in college and even as a young professional. [Read more…]

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