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| The man who "introduced" me to good old Sheriff Andy! I miss you Pappy John, and while I wish you were here, I know you were smiling down on me today! Thank you for helping to make my lesson a success and if you see Mr. Griffith in Heaven, tell him "thanks" too! |
Well, it’s a new school year, and all I can say is that…I’m
exhausted! While last year proved
to be a thoroughly draining year of many ups and downs… I can already tell that
the exhaustion I am going to experience this year will be that of satisfaction
and not grief. If I am being
completely honest, most of my summer was spent worrying that this year might be
just as emotionally traumatic as last year was in the end. I was terrified that this year might be
like when you turn on the TV to watch your favorite show, only to find that
it’s a rerun. Even after an
AMAZING first week of school last week, I’ll be the first to admit that much of
my long weekend was spent contemplating the possibility that it might have been
a fluke, a rift in reality, an illusion.
After today however, even though it is only the second week of school, I
am certain that my outlook has changed so therefore my experience as a teacher
will change as well. Confidence is
no longer something that I feel I am reaching for in the distance, but a tool
that I will always have ready…tucked preciously right inside my pocket.
It felt great today, to be back to my creative self…as far
as teaching is concerned! I was
fearful that with the new Common Core Standards and the way that my county decided
to implement them this year, that creativity would be a thing of the past for
me, but when I saw that my ELA lesson today not only worked with Common Core,
allowed the students and I to have a little fun, and received praise from the
principal…well all I can say is that I was a happy girl! I hope this makes you smile as much as
it made the 80 5th graders and me smile!
Our first literacy unit revolves around the 5 non-fiction
text structures. Since the first
week was spent completely discussing and learning procedures and expectations
(I didn’t let the pressure I felt to “get started” last year let me neglect
this key component this year…reason 1 why this year WILL be so much better than
last), it was not until Friday that I was able to introduce the first text
structure: descriptive non-fiction.
I used the book Of Thee I Sing by President Obama to introduce
this text structure on Friday, but today, I wanted to have a uniquely engaging
activity to review the characteristics of descriptive non-fiction. While nothing pleases me more than to
be able to read aloud to the students everyday…I took a hiatus today in order
to let someone else do the sharing.
Having been "introduced" to
this person by my Pappy John (I would always go over to Pappy's house to watch TV), I have been a fan of this North
Carolinian since I was in 3rd grade, and when I was thinking of interesting examples of descriptive
non-fiction…this American sheriff came to mind!
If you haven’t guessed yet…I’m speaking of the incomparable
Andy Griffith!
Now you may be asking yourself, “How can Andy Griffith, in
any way, shape, or form, be associated with descriptive non-fiction text?”
Take a listen for yourself…and tell me if you can hear the
details…the descriptive language…the sensory illustrations…in Sheriff Taylor’s
famous interpretation of one of the most American and non-fictitious pastimes
of all time! Please take a moment
to listen and smile just like my students and I did today…
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