Hi, How'dy, How are ya?

Welcome to "The Country Schoolmarm"! Get yourself a cup of coffee (I take mine strong with vanilla creamer), grab a seat, and chat a while! Isn't that what country friends do? Now, all we need is a porch...

Sunday, April 28, 2013

Oh! Hi!

Hello there! 

 I is cold.  It was warm and sunny, now it is not.  Mom won't close the windows.  Something about airing out the house.  I promise.  I did not do a "no-no Charlie". So, mom is busy with getting her school year done with finishing her school year (she made me fix that.  She said it didn't sound polite.  Well, then why does she keep talking about summer?), and I am taking over her blog for now. I don't know.  She had time to go to a garage sale, Shupp's Grove, out to eat, and have cake at Mom-mom's and Pop-pop's, but NOT for blogging? I think you all should be suspicious. Oops.  Here she comes.  Don't tell her I back-talked, okay? So, um, yeah.  

Do you want to go on a mini-tour with me?  Mom said to show you stuff she got when she was out "not-blogging". She said that she can't show you house changes.  May be my fault.  She puts things out.  Then, she sees I can gets it.  She has to change it again. She throws her hands in the air. I guess she is hot.  I guess that's why the windows are up.



Eating birthday cake.  Yeah.  Her birthday is tomorrow.  Oh. Oh. Yeah, wait... Mom said I could say her age, but it has to be in a math problem since she is a teacher. Pshaw.  That's lame.  How about I just barks it to you.  Okay, ten's place (See? Math.)- woof.woof.woof.  Okay, now one's place- woof.woof.woof.woof.woof.woof.woof.woof.woof.

Presents.  I got a present the other week.  I chewed it up.  Not have present anymore.

Cake.  Mom brought it home.  My sister, Bailey, is too small to reach the counter.  Mom says I may be the first dog they ever had that could grab food off of the counter.  Is that good or bad?  She put the cake up.  I am thinking not so good for me. 'Sides, see how much is left??? There were only 4 people! They ate half a cake!

This is her birthday stuff.  I like it.  Wood.  Good to chew.  Pottery- bah!

Mom says this is for posies.  Mom-mom got it for her. I eats posies.  They will never make it to this little thingy. Hah!  Shhhh.  Don't tell.

She said this is for something called a pin cushion.  I like cushions! Not so sure about pins, though.

Basket.  Primitive.  All the same- crunchy...

So get this... This is PART of a wheel (She paid $6, and she didn't even get the whole wheel).  She said she is going to hang it from the ceiling and put things on it that she doesn't want me to chew.  Bet the basket is going up there... Oh. She just yelled from the other room.  She said, "Yup." Rats...

Bobbins.  She got 2 for $5.  She likes the "beehive" bottom.  Will there be bees?  Hmmm.  I need to keep my eyes on these. They are going on the table.  She said she will share it later.


Arg.  Another crock. A man at my grandparents' church is a potter.  He sells his seconds to make money for the youth group.  Mom said that it was $8. She said, "If that is a second, what are his firsts?" I think that is a good thing. He is very talented.  God gave him talented hands and a kind heart.

Ooops.  Blurry picture.  Um. Oh! $5 at a garage sale.  Can't chew it.  Rats again.




She said she bought this box from an old lady named "Morgan". I don't think that is nice at all to say about people.  I like the box.  Wood. Crunchy.

Mom said not to show this to someone named "Granny". So, if you are "Granny", don't look.  She said it was $4 at the garage sale. 

Wicker purse- $3 at Shupp's Grove.  It is WAAAAY up high! Ya know, they lets dogs at Shupp's Grove.  Why have I not been there? I think it's a con-speer-a-see. Yup.




Okay.  So she was making these boxes.  She knocked over her bottle of "Modge Podge". She made a BIG mess. I try not to laugh.  Her one cloth placemat thingy is a little stiff.  Ha ha!

This basket is way up.  Why?

$5 at garage sale.  Getting painted black. Dad says, "Shocking." Oh, and he said, "Yes.  That is sarcasm."
Little bear. Etsy. Yum...

 Well, I gots to go now.  We is watching a movie about some guy name Ferris.  He's got a day off. Mom says it helps her to know students' tricks.  All I know is I wants a day off... Bueller... Bueller... Bueller...

Have a great day!

Love and Hugs,

Anyone? Anyone?

Charlie

P.S. Mom is going on a field trip to Longwood Gardens tomorrow. She will post pictures later...

Sunday, April 21, 2013

Life as a Country Schoolmarm... The Untold Story


Good morning!

It is an untold story because well, I haven't posted about classroom happenings for a while.  Of course there is always that untold stories should remain untold.  There is that.  Oops.  Well, you're in it now, but feel free to turn back at the happy toast dudes.  Really.  I won't be offended.  Now, okay, so here is another confession.  It is not all about school.  I may or may not have gotten sidetracked when telling my tale.  Sorry about that.  Well, okay, you go ahead and read.  I am going to stop talking now...

Chapter 1: People


This was a Medieval Assembly. I teach US History in Fifth, but hey, I'll go ahead and listen to a man in tights (yikes). See the table that is covered?  Wait for it.  Now, he starts off playing and talking about various instruments of the time period.  That time period is okay, but I always think "Black Plague" and throwing chamber pot contents into the streets.  You aren't eating dinner are you?  Sorry.  Anyhoo... The boys were bored, the girls ohhhh'ed and ahhhh'ed. Until the guy pulled back the cloth and showed swords, bows, cross bows, spears.  The boys sighed like girls watching a fashion show.  It was HILarious!

This was a science project a few weeks back- Simple Machine Rube Goldberg Machines.  Some of the designs had a lot of thought, design, worked, and were sturdy.
Others were LITERALLY held and strung and supported by string braces that at one point, they had attached to my desk and cabinet.  None of those children should EVER be allowed to do any kind of building project, home improvement projects, or allowed into any mechanical engineering program.  Truly.


Chapter 2: Plants (or another title- What-in-the-world is Spring doing?)

My Kalamancho plant that I don't water all summer break, but it always comes back.  I got this at a teacher's luncheon oh, 5 years ago? I get cuttings and propagate them for my porch at home too.

     Okay, so my little man in charge of feeding the animals fills the dishes by the sink.  Well, a bean or corn kernel must have fallen in the sink drain.  I pulled it thinking it was a piece of plastic (you never know what you are going to find.  Their poor parents' sink disposals...) Well, the seed germinated!  The plant was growing out of the drain.  It had a HUGE tap root.  So, I planted it.  I don't know that it is corn, but it looks to be some kind of monocot. Shhh.  I found another one in there the other day, just starting to germinate.  Ugh.


     Okay, well, these aren't my classroom.  But I wanted to show my clover growing... Pardon the interruption.  Oh, and my tree.  And, daffodils.  All of my daffodils are white.  The droopy ones are from the paperwhite family.  I though I'd bring some in, because they were so pretty.  I am glad that I remembered to smell them.  Paperwhites do NOT have a good smell...

Chapter 3: Oh, the places we go (AKA- my classroom.  And Roanoke.  And Jamestown).

Just laugh, don't ask.  Got it at Goodwill on the perfect day for such a book.  Leave it at that... ;)
Like my curtain?  I do NOT pull it during class.  I would like to, but that would be frowned upon. It tucks well behind my talk science cabinet.  It is for my planning period.  It helps me to focus by deadening sounds, cuts drafts, and allows me to not get distracted by the things around me.  Yes, I know, I should cover the whole desk if we are talking distractions, but truly, LOVIN' the curtain.  The Great and Powerful OZ...
Here's my desk... Same.

Our dear principal got us a Keurig at school.  A lot of coffee is consumed during the day by the staff.  It might explain the rapid talking or manic laughing.  Or that could be because we have a little over a month of school left...  I bring my own K-cups, because everyone else likes weak coffee.  I bring my Italian and French.  Just trying to be a bit multicultural.
I don't have this bulletin board the way I want it.  The students have to earn money and purchase ships, supplies, crew, and convince settlers to live in their settlements.  I think that I showed you their pizza box islands/colonies in a past post.

Hmmmmm, can you guess our topic?  One of my favorite time periods to teach!


 
     This is their pay.  Gold coins and peals.  Gold coins for doing their jobs.  Pearls are on hand for fines.  You can trade them for coins at the end of the weak.  Money is needed for your journey.  The goblet, a Goodwill find, is the "kitty" for the fines.  Trying to figure a way to use that.  The students are broken up into classes- Upper, Middle, and Lower.  They receive more money and rights according to class.  Some students really like this.  Some hate it.  Wonder who?
This book, Blood on the River, is a great book for students to get a feel for the settling of Jamestown from start to finish through the eyes of a boy their age.  It is also wonderful to watch the changes in the main character through his ordeals.  Love it! The chains are a project to make connections between different events from Roanoke to Plymouth!
Finding awesome books at Goodwill!  I am buying multiple copies because the kids started up (on their own, no prompting from me) their own book clubs. Oprah would be proud!

Epilogue: Puppies

I think someone else has been hitting the Keurig...


Caffeine Crash...
Murphy says, "Hey!"


Tried to block my drive to school, then yelled at me, and gave me the stink eye.  What turkeys...

     Charlie did not care for my Christmas issues of Country Living or Country Sampler. Marie (Old Lady Morgan) suggested others. Please pray for Marie as she has a lot going on in her life right now, as you know from following her blog.  Bailey and Charlie requested a magazine about dogs and personal grooming.  Does it have bad breath tips too? All for that...
We are such pals.  Unless food is around. Then, well, they asked me not to share... I will honor their wishes.


     Well, that's all folks!  Thanks for stopping by my house and classroom.  Charlie said he would like to do another house tour, but his schedule is booked.  He said you can just look at the other one for now.  He may be back later this Spring if his schedule opens up.  Chasing rabbits and robins just is consuming his time right now.

Blessings and hugs, dear friends!

Heather & two looney dogs