30/31 Time And Choices - Weaving More Than Yarn

Thank you to
       Stacey, Tara, Betsy, Anna, Dana and Beth for 

keeping us going, keeping writing about teaching along with your lives, slicers' lives, and all the myriad behind-the-scene details that enter into this month. Almost done, nearly there, what a journey!

Thank you to so many slicers who read my posts, who commented, and to those who wrote such words of inspiration that I had to re-read them, or copy and print them, or bookmark them for my teaching archives for future use. Your words will live on. Isn't that a wonderful thought?

I'm linking up to Two Writing Teachers for the 30th slice of 31!

Wow, next to the last day, and for one of the first times, I haven't yet linked my post. There aren't enough hours... I wove more than yarn yesterday into my life. My first day of spring break filled me up like a deep breath!

25/31 Weaving for Memories

   It's Day Twenty-Five of the Slice of Life Challenge at Two Writing Teachers!

           Tweet at #SOL14  




         I haven't mentioned all the reasons why I am so interested in the weaving I've started. Part of it is that I had my mother's loom sitting without love in a closet. But the other part is something I did with a class one year. More than one post has talked of the importance of community, and I believe it makes the year with a class smooth as smooth can be. At my school, there is a slightly different challenge in our core classes, that we keep some students and other join us each year. (I taught Advance School classes, 6th, 7th and 8th graders.) That begins the year with "experts" and "novices".  Weaving (that word again) this disparate group into a learning, fun-loving, cohesive whole takes activities, shared experiences, learning about each other, learning to love each other. It isn't now the beginning of our school year, so those activities are for another post, but this post is about weaving us together into a memory that will last. Each year, one of the things we did was travel on an extended trip together. That taught us about each other more than most things could. 

16/31 -Weft, Warp, and the Shed - Weaving Update

Visit Two Writing Teachers to read other posts this Sunday, number 16 of 31 days!

            Here's a photo of accomplishment this past week, not as much as I would like, but a lot of trial and error, passing the "shuttle" stick back and forth through the "shed" (the space between the "weft" strings). Up and down, up and down the lines go as the weaving builds and I imagine what it will become. In my mind's eye, it will not be a usual weaving of bars of color, or a pattern, but this time I am thinking of spring, and will attempt a spring picture. I can cut out the black at the bottom, but thought the picture should have a bottom starting line for the picture to sit upon. 

Weaving Update - A Bit of An Argh-h!

          Thanks to Anna, Beth, Dana, Tara, Stacey & Betsy, we have the fun of writing every day for the Slice of Life Challenge at the blog, Two Writing Teachers.

Tweet at #SOL14.

"We sleep, but the loom of life never stops. And the pattern which was weaving when the sun went down, is there when we wake up in the morning." Henry Ward Beecher  

          I started my weaving project last week. I'll show you pictures in a while, but first let me speak for my students, or ALL students. It is hard to learn something new! How many time do you say "Go read the directions, then see if you understand. Come back if you have questions."

           I read the directions, often. I took notes, many. I watched Youtube, for various things, but mostly how to warp a loom. Some of you will understand and others of you are already mystified. 

Slice Number Two - The March Weaving Saga Begins

        It's my first Sunday post in a long time, but it's March, and time to write every day!
       Come stop by the Two Writing Teachers blog to visit as many slicers as you can. Much to enjoy!  

     I'm excited to say I have four colleagues slicing with us this month. Please welcome them! 

Suparna at http://meandmysoliloquy.blogspot.com

Katie at http://prosecents.blogspot.com   Katie wrote in the first SOLC with me!

Kam at http://kamsreading.blogspot.com

Max at http://teachingfrombehind.blogspot.com     
                and Max's class at http://maxsclassreads.blogspot.com

“It is not that I'm so smart. But I stay with the questions much longer.” 

― Albert Einstein

         Yesterday I wrote about a loom from my mother that I wanted to set up to try a different kind of activity. I love reading and writing and spend a tremendous amount of time doing them, but it's good to access different kinds of creativity I think, hence this new idea of mine.  
          Since yesterday, I've found that this is going to be a bigger challenge than I imagined. I think I'll post my progress each Sunday and that will help me with deadlines. I have many other things to do including slicing, books to read for book groups, tax info to prepare, some things to write for work, my house to clean (Yes, I say to myself, I really do need to get out the vacuum and the swiffer duster.)