Learning During Covid-19: Day 2 writing prompt

Essential Question

What are the benefits of keeping a historical journal?

Background Reading:

Journaling during the pandemic, for  yourself and the historians By Matt Berg
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2020/03/22/metro/journaling-during-pandemic-yourself-historians/

Student writing prompt:

Use the 2 links and read the articles about schools

being closed in 1918 and in 2020. 

Answer these 4 questions as you read and

compare the two articles?

 D - What disturbed you?

 I  - What Interested you?

C - What confused you?

E -  What enlightened you? What entertained you?

 

https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn89052040/1918-10-10/ed-1/seq-1/

 https://www.krtv.com/news/montana-and-regional-news/bullock-directs-two-week-closure-of-public-k-12-schools-in-montana

Library Challenge:

Interview family and friends.  When they were attending

school were the schools ever closed?  Why and how long?

Learning During Covid 19

Earlier this week Justin King, Our PE and Health teacher, shared via his mom the journals his great grandfather kept during the influenza. This lead to the idea to try and collaborate on some lessons we will use with the 4th and 5th graders in Google Classroom. I am very excited at the possibilities.

I will post the information we create with the students on this blog. Holly King gave me permission to use and share the journal entries. If you try some of thee ideas please come back and share your experiences.

First lesson going out next week:

Believe in the Power of Your Own Story:  Connect Your Story to America’s Story

Earlier this year I met author, Chris Latray.  The author of a book called the
“One-Sentence Journal”.  I was captivated. I loved the simplicity and vowed to try it. 
I didn’t. Like many powerful ideas it held on to me. When school was closed because
of the Coronavirus/Covid 19 Crisis.  I again thought of the “One-Sentence Journal”.

Mr King recently shared his great grandfather’s journals with me.  Earl Henson wrote
about what he did, what he saw.  He wrote about what he experienced during the
Influenza pandemic of 1918.

How do you keep a journal?

Ideas:

Memorable moments
Thoughts and reflections
Activities
A pet
A conversation
Something funny

“Each night, I write one sentence (well, actually, usually it’s three or
four sentences, but by calling it a “one sentence journal” I keep my
expectations realistic) about what happened that day to me, the Big Man,
and the girls.”  Gretchen Rubin
https://gretchenrubin.com/2007/08/why-i-started-k/

I was reading “Create Your Own Primary Source” by Mrs Reader Pants.  Several lines
stood out to me that I want you to think about:
Primary Sources help us witness history through the eyes of people who experienced it.
I know it seems impossible, but your experiences, thoughts, and daily life

right now could be incredibly valuable to people in the future.

This may sound surprising, but you are living through an historical event!

Help those future people understand what daily life was like for someone your age
living in this time.

(Create Your Own Primary Source  https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Google-Classroom-Activity-Create-a-Primary-Source-5343870)

“My hope is that, years from now, when I’m trying to remember what life was
like at this point, I can look back at my one-sentence journal.” Gretchen Rubin

Library Challenge:

For the next two weeks keep a daily one sentence journal and
submit it to Mr King and myself in google classroom. 
Don’t turn in until we request it. It’s ok to keep a paper and pencil
draft of your one-sentence journal entries.

This is the example of a one-sentence entry. I created this on google slides.

Jigsaw Puzzles and the Little Bighorn Battle

Using primary sources as jigsaw puzzles are a fun way to closely examine a photo or painting.

https://www.jigsawplanet.com 

Here are some puzzles that Kathi Hoyt and I created to use with some poetry activities.

The first two puzzles is Ledger Art created by Daniel Long Soldier. His prints can be
ordered from Greenwich Workshop http://www.greenwichworkshop.com and  Ashley Art  https://ashleyart.com/daniel-long-soldier/ .

35 Fears Nothing


48 Buffalo Calf Road Woman



35 Battle of the Little Bighorn
https://www.jigsawplanet.com/?rc+play&pid+1b7a3d1a2001

Lump Lump and the Blanket of Dreams

A Read Your World Book Review

This book captivated me.  The written prose painted a rich tapestry of words.  The vivid illustrations are an integral part of the story. 

This paragraph is a great example of the word paintings in the book.

"Now that they had gathered the white light of morning and the red light of evening,  Mother Bear and Lump Lump had to wait until it rained so they could catch the falling rain.  But each morning when Lump Lump poked his head out of the den, the ground was spotted with early light.  And each night after Blue Bird finished telling stories and Lump Lump lay nice and snug next to Mother Bear in the den, all he heard was the click-click of the branches and the soft rustle of the autumn leaves."


I appreciated the information that the author provided about who she worked with to make this book accurate.
-     Barbara Teller Ornelas, 6th generation Navajo weaver.
-     Cathy Notarnicola, Curator Museum of Indian Arts and Culture.
-     Dr Paul Apodaca, Associate Professor of Sociology and American Studies at Chapman University
-      Darrell and Lorna Smith, longtime biologists and carnivore specialists

As a librarian I believe this book will be a favorite of my students.

Further Resources
http://gwenjacksonstories.com
htpp://navajorugweavers.com

C is For Chickasaw

January 25th was Multicultural Children's Book Day.  I received 5 books to review.  Each book will receive it's own post.   Check out books reviewed by other readers https://multiculturalchildrensbookday.com/the-mcbd2019-diverse-book-link-up-is-open-readyourworld/ 


C is for Chickasaw by Wiley Barnes   Illustrations by Aaron Long



These two companion books blew my socks off.  The first book uses the alphabet to tell the Chickasaw story, in a very concise way.  I really liked that the author not only include the "Old Time" history, but included "contemporary" history and the people involved.  The author shows that the Chickasaw culture is a living and growing culture.

Contents:

• History told via the alphabet.
• Glossary (English and Chickasaw)
• Activity and Discussion Questions.

 The companion book, is a coloring book by the same author and illustrator.  I think using the two books together will provide the reader with many opportunities to learn about the Chickasaw nation.

I wanted to also mention that there is an app available. On Google Play, Amazon, and Apple for IOS and Android devises. 

It's Snowing in Montana

Today a friend and I left Billings, MT about 6:00 am to head for Helena, MT for a conference.  
The drive is usually a 4 hour drive.  Today it took more than 6.  There were long
stretches where you couldn’t see where the road was.  We passed many semi’s that had
gone off the road. I posted this picture on facebook via my phone. It was much later when
I read the comments.

Family and friends thank you for your love and concerns. It touched me. We arrived safely.

Writing a Memory, Day 3 #SOL18

Instructions:  Think about a memory.

It was our wedding day.  I had just come out of the bathroom and he was across the
room.  I was wearing my wedding dress and a hat with a short veil.  When he saw me

I saw his eyes soften and such love.  It was also the first time he had ever

seen me in a dress.  I remember the roses I was carrying.  The stems were

covered with a beaded cylinder.  I remember feeling the hard floor as I

walked towards him.  

We went into the kitchen area. Balloons hovering, kissing the ceiling.

Strings dancing.  The whirring fan. Food ready to put out. Carol was taking

pictures.  Through the window we could see people arriving.  A white faced Dan,

asked: “Are all those people coming here?”

We walked out holding hands, our friends and family standing.  Smiling.  

I had asked Angela for a short wedding ceremony.  From the time we

walked out and said I do - 9 minutes had passed. We weren’t the only

ones that were nervous.  Angela forgot to tell the guests to sit down.  

So they stood standing throughout the wedding ceremony.

Hailey, my new granddaughter stood eyes just above the table.  Little hands

reaching for the cake.  Her brother just beside her.  I kept moving her

hands away from the cake, while we waited for the knife.

Weren't We Her Forever Home?

This last week we babysat two year old, Misty, a black Labrador.  Her
pet-parents were driving to California to watch their granddaughter’s
dance competition. this would be the first time she had been
away from her pet-parents.

Our two dogs, Baby and Tank held a diverse opinion about her early
presence in our house.  They both were convinced she was staying forever.
Baby, our 8-1/2 year old black Labrador was tolerant
but not thrilled.  Baby thought it was past time for her to leave. During the
first couple of days. Baby would come to me with her eyes and ask,
" When is Misty going home?"

Tank, our black Lab/Dane cross, loved to run and play with her.  However,
if she got too close to Dan, Baby or me he would step in front of her
and move her to a different area of the room.  Dan and I noticed that the
last couple of days Baby had started playing more with Misty.

Misty’s pet parents called and told us they would be over in about 20
minutes.  When they walked through the doors she went topsy turvy.  
She kept trying to jump on her people.  Tank began to growl
at Jim.  Tank did not like him pushing her away.  

Jim laughed and said: “You fell in love, she’s your baby. You want to protect her.”

When they left Tank looked so forlorn.  He watched out our picture
window as she walked away.  His friend had left.  

Tank finally left the window, head hanging low. He didn’t understand why his
friend had walked away. How do you comfort someone who has watched their
friend walk away?

Baby came over to me and looked really sad; as if to say: “Why
did she leave?  Aren’t we her forever home?”

Challenges, #SOL Day 1

I re-read the post on this month’s Slice-of-Life Challenge for the umpteenth time.  I have always enjoyed the writing and commenting.  So why the hesitancy?  I am juggling to many things and from time to time I hear those balls turn into water balloons and go splat as they fall to the ground.

My friends keep telling me I need to say no.  I have been responding I have been
saying “no”.

Martha said, “Ruth I want evidence of this.”

You know they don’t believe me when they say things like that.

It has been a busy year.  It has also been filled with many opportunities to learn and grow.  
Like all such opportunities it comes with setbacks, struggles, and self doubt.

I am a “History Geek”.  I have been a member of the TPS Teachers Network since 2013.  
TPS stands for teaching with primary sources.  The Network is housed and run from
Denver and is one of the Library of Congress projects.  Anyone can join you just need
to register  https://tpsteachersnetwork.org/registration .   There are a number of groups
that you can join, everything from Civil Rights to See, Think, Wonder:  Primary Sources
in Early Childhood.  The TPS Teachers Network started in 2012 and has
been steadily growing.

People post about primary sources they have found, lessons they are working on,
questions they have, things they are looking for.  It is a great place to network
and grow as a learner.  This fall I had the opportunity to go through some
training to become one of their newest Mentors.  

It was a humbling experience as I quickly learned how much I didn’t know.  

This morning someone linked a source for Elementary Lessons and Primary Sources
from Colorado https://www.cde.state.co.us/cosocialstudies/pssets

If you know of other great resources I would love to hear about them.

Puzzle Time

Some Words Come With Their Own Baggage

Back decades into the last century when I was a young Society."  I asked my older sister what the John Burch Society was?  I remember she was quiet for a long time.  Then she said: "You know how Dad is about the flag and stuff?"

"Yeh", I said.

"The John Burch Society is about 100 times more than Dad about the flag."

"OHHHHH",  I said.

Fast forward many years.  I was attending a grant writing seminar.  One of the participants was a Lakota man from South Dakota.  During a conversation I said the phrase, "They Jewed him down."

He looked at me, I saw him weighing his words before he responded.

"Where did you grow up?"

"Southern Idaho"

"Hmm"

"May I tell you a story?"

"Yes".

"Some years back I was part of a committee working on a project.  We were to receive a major grant to finish funding the project.  Three of the funders came out to our reservation to look at the paperwork and sign the final documents so we could move forward.

One of our tribal members had been working hard on the budget and many of the line items were coming in under budget.

The three visitors looked over all the papers we had submitted.  Finally one funder addressed us."

"You originally asked for X-dollars.  I notice the actual amount in this final report is much less.  How did you do that?"

My friend answered, "I jewed that company down.  Saved us a bunch of money."

The funder looked at my friend, then he looked at the other two funders.  They looked back. They put their papers back into their brief cases.  Latched them, stood up and walked out the door without saying anything.

Five million dollars walked out with them.  Three years of planning poof it was gone."

He waited patiently as I processed this story.  I am sure if I would have been drawn in a comic strip a light bulb would have been hanging above my head.

"Ohh, jewed Jewish.  Oh my lands I never made the connection".

He looked at me and said, "Every time you say it remember my story."

I worked hard to remove this epitaph from my vocabulary.  This word I had heard often from my father but never new the meaning the racial slur that it was.

There are so many of these racially deplorable words peppered in our vocabulary.  Think of the word "gyp - to cheat or swindle".  Where does it come from?

Some words come with their own baggage.

Nevertheless the People of Montana Persist.

Montana is a land of great diversity.  Mountainous western Montana is classically breath taking. Eastern Montana has a semi-arid steppe (dry grassy plain) climate.  It is rugged, it can be unforgiving.  It has strength, and endurance, it perseveres.

Place has an impact on the people who live there.  Eastern Montana has been home to Native American tribes and homesteaders.  The land is arrid.  Water is life.  Who were the people who lived and struggled here?  Tough, no nonsense, self-reliant, determined people.  Even as there was conflict between the tribes and the unwanted immigrants (homesteaders). The land fought its own battle for dominance, it demanded respect.

When the homesteaders came the grass was lush. Journals tell of grass up to a man’s knees. Everything was in bloom. They settled.  They proved up the land, a cabin, a corral, sometimes even chickens.  Four or five good years.  Then the drought came.  People couldn’t make a go of it.  Many left with just the clothes on their back.  Old timers told me of going into the abandoned cabins and dishes were still on the table.  People of Montana persisted, they persevered.

Fast forward about a 100 years.  In 2011 the rains started, the floods washed out roads. The land bloomed.  It was lush, it was seductive. The grass came up to my husband’s knees.  

Here is a type of beauty that reflects strength, endurance and persistence.  Here is where many of the Indian Wars were fought.  Here is where dinosaurs still hide waiting to be uncovered.  Here a fire can smolder for decades in an underground coal seam.

Nevertheless the people of Montana persist.

They Will Know We Persisted and Persevered

History is one of my passions.  I served 24 years in the Montana National Guard. My country and the Constitution are my passions.  I have been a librarian for over two decades.  Teaching is my passion. 

A few years ago I was asked to create a unit on Hazel Hunkins, a suffragist from Billings, Montana. As I researched I learned about the women who were part of the suffrage movement.  I learned about the marches, the pickets, the arrests, the forced feeding.  Never the less they persisted.

Many of us never heard their stories.  We didn't hear the stories of the men who supported them and helped work for the vote.  I think we need to hear their stories of perseverance.

Being part of a democracy gives us many rights.  With these rights comes responsibilities. I believe being an informed constituent is one of those responsibilities.  Most of us have many commitments and little time. I believe being informed is a critical part of democracy.  

I also believe that my elected officials have a responsibility to listen to their constituents.  Sadly in my state of Montana, Senator Daines' phones were not working well in February.  Even some of his offices were locked and constituents could not talk to him face to face.  Its hard to comprehend how this could happen.  And the stories go on and on.

Listed below are 10 current bills.  This link lets you look up bills in the House.  https://www.congress.gov/   Read them for yourself.

1.      HR 6489 – Social Security Reform Act – will cut benefits by about a third.

2.     HR 861 – Terminate the Environmental Protection Agency

3.     HR 610 – Vouchers for Public Education

4.     HR 899 – Terminate the Department of Education

5.     HJR 69 – Repeal Rule Protecting Wildlife

6.     HR 370 – Repeal Affordable Care Act

7.     HR 354 – Defund Planned Parenthood

8.     HR 785 - National Right to Work (this one ends unions)

9.     HR 83 – Mobilizing Against Sanctuary Cities Bill

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10.  HR 147 – Criminalizing Abortion (“Prenatal Nondiscrimination Act”)

Call your Representative and ask them to speak up for your rights, health & safety, and our beautiful country.   Find Your Representative  http://www.house.gov/representatives/find/ 

And maybe in the future our children's children will read our stories.  They will know we persisted and persevered.