~and if you are reading this~
As a teacher I have been most fortunate. I don't count that great fortune in dollars and cents, but since I never got into the business of education to become rich in the first place, it has worked out pretty well. Rather, my fortune has come in the experiences that I have had, the children who have called me their teacher, and the many kind people along the way who have helped me and made my job so much easier.
And if you are reading this, there's a very good chance that you are one of those kind people.
I would like to tell you about a group of such folks who are helping me with my fifth graders at Liberty Elementary this year as the writing buddies of my 20 students. They all have a personal connection to me, mostly that we all grew up or lived in the very same small town in south central Kansas. I'm blessed enough to call 3 of them my family members, and if your family is behind you, well that's pretty awesome. Another person in the group was introduced to me by a former student. I connected with two of our buddies simply because of a sweet woman named Winifred. I approached all of them early in August, asking if they would consider being matched with one of my students. The plan would be for my kids to write messages to tell a bit about the school year and how it was going. These writing buddies would then return a message back, telling the kids a little bit about how their week had been. They could ask questions about one another as well. It has worked out wonderfully, and for that I am so very grateful.
In December those writing buddies took on a different kind of project as they built stronger relationships with our class. Two "Moose on the Loose", the fraternal twins Opal and Ofelia, were sent on the start of a cross country and gazillion mile journey to the homes of those writing buddies. It wasn't what I had planned in the beginning, but the opportunity presented itself and so off they went.
(a disclaimer here-To the unbelieving, of course they are dog chew toys with their intended purpose 99% of the time to be in the slobbery mouth of your favorite canine. To the believing, to those who choose to remember the imaginations of their youth, they are characters to have fun with. I will forever belong to that group.)
They started in Hutchinson, Kansas on the day that Mike and I passed them off to a writing buddy, my sister Cindy, and her husband Ken. From there they jaunted over to St. John, Kansas to the home of another writing buddy who happens to also be named "Cindy." Those two twins were having a great time being shown so many different things. Soon they were off to Kennewick, Washington where my friend Leroy lives. Leroy is in year #2 of helping out my classes, as are both of the "Cindy's". Going from the plains of south central Kansas to the Pacific Northwest was quite a change, and my kids learned all about it. Leroy sent them off to another "LeRoy" and his wife Anne, both of them writing buddies from my class as well. For the past few days the twins were able to bask in the sunshine of Yuma, Arizona as they saw many sights most of my students are unfamiliar with. Just recently, they continued on and are making the trek to the northeast towards the home of another writing buddy, Kathy, who lives in Valparaiso, Indiana. Talk about your change of climates, that's what those "moose on the loose" will be experiencing.
The fraternal twin "Moose on the Loose", have nearly completed 4,849.2 miles of a journey as they criss-cross and zig-zag their way around America. Through the kindness of our classroom writing buddies, my students who spend their school day in Kay County, Oklahoma will get the chance to vicariously travel to places they have not yet seen but some day might. I'm hoping that they will get the chance to somehow make it to the homes of all our classroom buddies before the time is complete.
It can happen, you know?
Friends, we teachers cannot make it on our own. Only a very foolish person would tell you that they don't need help in their part of raising up students for the brief time they have them. It takes an army of folks who have a heart for kids to stand alongside educators all across the U.S. The needs of students in Ponca City, Oklahoma are no different than those kids in small towns like Haven, Kansas or in huge cities like Los Angeles.
Kids need to know that someone out there cares for them and their well-being.
And it doesn't hurt to know that you have an imagination and you are not afraid to use it.
Just ask Opal and Ofelia, the living proof of that very thing.
And if you are reading this, there's a very good chance that you are one of those kind people.
I would like to tell you about a group of such folks who are helping me with my fifth graders at Liberty Elementary this year as the writing buddies of my 20 students. They all have a personal connection to me, mostly that we all grew up or lived in the very same small town in south central Kansas. I'm blessed enough to call 3 of them my family members, and if your family is behind you, well that's pretty awesome. Another person in the group was introduced to me by a former student. I connected with two of our buddies simply because of a sweet woman named Winifred. I approached all of them early in August, asking if they would consider being matched with one of my students. The plan would be for my kids to write messages to tell a bit about the school year and how it was going. These writing buddies would then return a message back, telling the kids a little bit about how their week had been. They could ask questions about one another as well. It has worked out wonderfully, and for that I am so very grateful.
In December those writing buddies took on a different kind of project as they built stronger relationships with our class. Two "Moose on the Loose", the fraternal twins Opal and Ofelia, were sent on the start of a cross country and gazillion mile journey to the homes of those writing buddies. It wasn't what I had planned in the beginning, but the opportunity presented itself and so off they went.
(a disclaimer here-To the unbelieving, of course they are dog chew toys with their intended purpose 99% of the time to be in the slobbery mouth of your favorite canine. To the believing, to those who choose to remember the imaginations of their youth, they are characters to have fun with. I will forever belong to that group.)
They started in Hutchinson, Kansas on the day that Mike and I passed them off to a writing buddy, my sister Cindy, and her husband Ken. From there they jaunted over to St. John, Kansas to the home of another writing buddy who happens to also be named "Cindy." Those two twins were having a great time being shown so many different things. Soon they were off to Kennewick, Washington where my friend Leroy lives. Leroy is in year #2 of helping out my classes, as are both of the "Cindy's". Going from the plains of south central Kansas to the Pacific Northwest was quite a change, and my kids learned all about it. Leroy sent them off to another "LeRoy" and his wife Anne, both of them writing buddies from my class as well. For the past few days the twins were able to bask in the sunshine of Yuma, Arizona as they saw many sights most of my students are unfamiliar with. Just recently, they continued on and are making the trek to the northeast towards the home of another writing buddy, Kathy, who lives in Valparaiso, Indiana. Talk about your change of climates, that's what those "moose on the loose" will be experiencing.
The fraternal twin "Moose on the Loose", have nearly completed 4,849.2 miles of a journey as they criss-cross and zig-zag their way around America. Through the kindness of our classroom writing buddies, my students who spend their school day in Kay County, Oklahoma will get the chance to vicariously travel to places they have not yet seen but some day might. I'm hoping that they will get the chance to somehow make it to the homes of all our classroom buddies before the time is complete.
It can happen, you know?
Friends, we teachers cannot make it on our own. Only a very foolish person would tell you that they don't need help in their part of raising up students for the brief time they have them. It takes an army of folks who have a heart for kids to stand alongside educators all across the U.S. The needs of students in Ponca City, Oklahoma are no different than those kids in small towns like Haven, Kansas or in huge cities like Los Angeles.
Kids need to know that someone out there cares for them and their well-being.
And it doesn't hurt to know that you have an imagination and you are not afraid to use it.
Just ask Opal and Ofelia, the living proof of that very thing.
They looked a bit dazed as they climbed out of their box in Kennewick, Washington.
Our friend Leroy Tonn showed them the spot where Lewis & Clark came through the area.
The twins shared a date shake with our friends LeRoy and Anne.
Opal and Ofelia saw their very first date tree in sunny Yuma, Arizona.
They sampled the "good life" with Cindy and Ken in Hutchinson, Kansas,
but remembered to help out wherever they could lend a "hoof".
They were brave adventurers in Stafford County, Kansas,
and found themselves in some trouble in an old jail cell!
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