Thankful

It was with absolute ease that I made my way north this morning. I hit...not a speck of traffic.
For that I am thankful.

Driving North

Hats off to the two-day workweek. It began today with a sleepy Monday and finishes up tomorrow at 2:50 pm with the rush to pack up and get out of town before everybody else.

Fortunately, I only need to drive about 90 miles north. Unfortunately, a good part of the trip is traveled along the dreaded I-95. I was born in Baltimore some years ago and have never lived more than about 100 miles from my birthplace. You could say I'm pretty familiar with the ins and outs of the Baltimore/DC area. Sometimes I like the traffic for the off-route exploration opportunities it provides. Meeting up with a mass of brake lights and stopped cars sends me into explorer mode. I look for the next exit and wind my way around whatever roads I find in a quest to continue in the northerly direction, on a route that is absent of as many other drivers as possible.

If I'm lucky I'll find a new shortcut and a few photo opportunities.

Survival

We decided to send home a letter to the parents of each of the kids who were having homework problems. The letter was a heads up to parents that the team was concerned about the poor work habits of their child. It also offered suggestions for improvement. There was a tear-off portion at the bottom that was to be returned to me with a parent signature.

Twenty-five letters went out on Wednesday. Only a handful came back with signatures on Thursday. I wasn't too surprised. Sixth graders don't always consider the consequences of their actions. They live in the moment, and for many of them those moments have not included doing homework. They may have been less than honest with their parents about how well they were keeping up with their schoolwork. Delivering the letter was bound to mean trouble for some.

Two students, maybe three, decided to forge their parent's signature. I'm sure they never considered how obvious the forgery was. They were in survival mode-if their parents never got the letter they could live another day without getting yelled at, punished or lectured. Whatever the reason, I'm sure that since parents have been informed of the homework problem and the forgery there are two students who are living different moments than planned this weekend.

Meeting Edward

I have just today met a wonderful little character by the name of Edward Tulane. Our meeting was brief, as I have only read the first chapter of the book that I believe narrates a miraculous journey of his. I hope it is a miraculous journey because from what I know so far he's in need of some sort of miracle.

You see...he's a small china rabbit. I smiled when I started reading his story. I was reminded of another rabbit tale that I've always enjoyed--the story of Elwood P. Dowd and his rabbit-friend, Harvey.

I finished the first chapter feeling sorry for Edward. The poor little rabbit has a wonderful young friend, Abilene, talking to him, tucking him into bed and saying goodnight, yet he can say nothing in return. "He said nothing because, of course, he could not speak." There are times in my life when I wish I couldn't speak, but there are far more times when I'm glad I have a voice.

Even worse are Edward's eyes. They are painted on and therefore always open. How dull it must be to lay awake all night. The ennui that he experiences must be more than most can bear.

I'm hopeful things will change very soon.

Regrets

I took her phone during 6th period. I'd sent her into the team room to find the paper she was missing and finish the overdue work. When I checked in 15 minutes later she was sitting at the table with a closed binder and her cell phone in her hand. The missing work was nowhere to be found.

Sixth graders love to send text messages. The fact that it's against school rules doesn't seem to deter them. So, I confiscated the phone and told her to check in at the end of the day. At that point I wasn't sure if I would turn it in to the office or not, I felt a bit of research was in order.

She told me the phone was only out because she was checking the time. My research showed me that was probably true. But then I noted she had sent a text message to her mom at 10:45-during lunch. That was against school rules.

The text message was to her mom. "Mom, I got two C's on book sheets today. I'm kinda sad."

Torn as to what path to take I asked a colleague for advice. It was decided that the turning the phone into the office, and having her parents retrieve it, was the best course of action. I let her know when she came to see me at the end of the day.

Knowing that parents are often waiting for a phone call at the end of the day I let her make the call to her mom to let her know what had happened.

With voice quivering she relayed the information to her mom.

"Mom, I messed up today. When I texted you about the C's I shouldn't have. The teacher is taking my phone...you'll have to come and pick it up at the office."

I sat at my desk grading papers-- her mother's voice was clear.

"Honey, that's okay. I'll come by and get it in an hour or so. Are you feeling okay about the C's? It's all right sweetie, really it is. Please don't worry about all this."

She's a girl I can't quite figure out...identified as gifted but her writing doesn't show it. Just yesterday another teacher commented on the messy work that she turns in. I see her as someone whose brain is in constant motion, unfortunately it works at such a high speed that everything she knows doesn't always end up on paper.

We walked out together and talked about those two C's that she was disappointed with. She let me know about the OT services she received in elementary school to help with fine motor skills. We chatted about the possibility of typing up her next book sheets. It sounded like a good option.

She walked out the door to go home. I walked to the office with the phone in my hand, regretting my decision to turn it in.

Yowza

Monday team meetings are set aside for time with the grade level counselor. Together we discuss student concerns and come up with a plan that will, hopefully, allow any student having difficulties to get back on track. Problems can range from behavioral to academic, including chronic tardiness or other attendance problems. Today's discussion centered on the students who have consistently failed to complete homework on time. Names were brought up one at a time allowing all the teachers to weigh in. Some children were only having homework issues in one class; unfortunately a greater number of students were having homework issues across the board.

There were about 25 names. That's a quarter of the total number of students on the team.

Yowza.

Off Route

I've spent a fair amount of time driving up and down Rt. 4 in Southern Maryland. For the 4 years I was in college it was the middle leg of the trip home or back to school. It also provided miles of beautiful scenery. The road's gentle curves and dips always made for a pleasant driving experience--the farmlands scattered throughout the area only added to the picturesque route.

Today I was happy to have the opportunity to take that road once more. I left DC about 11:00 this morning to join some friends for a weekend on the bay. The ride was familiar and lovely as usual. The trees were sporting their brightest colors against a cloud-less blue sky. The one thing different about today's drive down Rt. 4 was that I didn't follow it all the way to Solomon's. Just south of Broome's Island I took a left and headed for the small town of Port Republic. What a treat. Within two minutes of turning off I was surprised to see the beauty of the Chesapeake Bay. Who knew? Yeah, I guess I should have known, but it's easy to forget what can be found off the path that's been beaten down over time.

I won't forget, I'll remember to come this way again soon and follow the path less traveled in my past.