As part of our writers’ circle, we produced a third-grade newspaper for four years, from 2014-to 2017. The papers were all published from late April to late May, towards the end of the school year. All third-grade classrooms got copies that were two-sided and contained four-page spreads. And the classroom teachers allowed them to read…
learning
The Milkweed is Up in My Wisconsin Yard
It’s time for monarch monitoring as my common milkweed stems have emerged in my yard! I’ll have to look back to be sure, but I think it’s early. Each year, since 2006, I’ve reported the emergence of the perennial milkweed in my yard to Journey North. This means I am a citizen scientist! The submission…
Owned Treasures, Recently Found
Today is Slice of Life Tuesday! Thanks go to TwoWritingTeachers.org for creating this group and hosting it each week. I have participated in this supportive writing community since February of 2017. As we continue to clean out to ready ourselves for our move next month, I am finding enjoyment in reminiscing about things I’ve found…
Slice of Life: Disappearing Post on School Board Seats
Last night I wrote a somewhat lengthy post about school board seats. It was a cohesive blog about the issues school boards are having now. I reviewed my own extensive involvement with our school district, as I served in numerous volunteer capacities over the 21 years my boys were in school here. As an active…
Spring Ephemerals
This week brought some nice changes in our weather. It began to look and feel like spring! The grass has really greened up and one variety of my daffodils has opened. The tulips are ready to bloom in our back bed facing east but still tightly closed in our gardens near the road. So far…
Wildlife Wednesday: Domestication of Wild Birds?
Today, we ran a lot of errands. My husband was having new tires put on his truck. I went out to lunch with a friend. And, when I was done he had me come and pick him up at the location the tire application was being done. While there, at Farm and Fleet in La…
Coping Skills – Some Healthy, Some Not
This week I thought about coping skills many times. At one time or another during life, you’ll need to employ some coping skills. These usually come into play when one is under stress or during a crisis situation. The last year has held both for me. My parents are showing many signs of aging. Memory…
A Change of Mind and Heart: Education is not enough
When I was in graduate school for my natural resources degree (EE/EI), one of our first assignments was to read two papers written by seminal voices in the environmental field. One was by Richard Wilke and the other was by Jo Kwong. Before I started the assignment, I was pretty sure that I felt that…
Researching
This first post today will be short. It is Thursday and that means Poetry Friday postings start as early as this afternoon to accommodate those living overseas. Although I am not hosting Poetry Friday this week, tomorrow is my turn to host the 2022 KidLit Progressive Poem, I need to have something ready to go…
Sunny Saturday
After a somewhat downtrodden post yesterday, I am upbeat and optimistic today. Many of my Poetry Friday friends offered support and understanding about my desire for real conversation. I thank all of them that responded. It got me thinking about friendship in general and how there are many types of friends and none of them…






