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My End-of-School “Whew!” Moment
The end of the school year is fast approaching, and many of us believe it cannot get here soon enough. Others might be graduating students this year and are hit with feelings of pride and grief. I want to share an end-of-school-year “whew!” moment that I experienced. Has this been your experience as well?
Here’s what I wrote when my daughter was finishing her junior year: (more…)
3 Types of Poems for Poetry Month
Would you like to give your students some practice in writing poetry?
With these guided prompts, your students do not have to “sit down and write a poem” but will surprise you by creating something fun and maybe even memorable. Here goes . . . (more…)
Signs of Spring
People ask me what I do in winter when there’s no baseball. I’ll tell you what I do. I stare out the window and wait for spring. ~Rogers Hornsby (former Major League baseball player)
A sure sign of spring is baseball.
No, sure signs of spring are crocuses and violets popping up. And don’t forget spring peepers and sighting the first robin.
Or how about that first (more…)
Motif: Don’t Say Goodbye to Winter Yet
Let’s celebrate one of literature’s coldest motifs: ice queens.
What is a motif?
A motif (mow TEEF) is like a symbol on steroids. It not only appears in one story but in many stories through the ages and often in stories from many countries.
A deep, dark woods is a good example of a motif. The blackened forest can be symbolic of confusion or a time of testing. What stories can you think of that include a patch of dark woods? (I’ve listed a few at the end of this prompt, but try your hand at listing some before you read mine.)
A motif can be an item (like dark woods or a magic ring), a recurring event (like being sent on a quest or conducting a contest to find a spouse), or a (more…)