It's been four months since my last blog. I've decided that I can write novels, or I can blog-- I'm not very good at doing both at the same time. And I've not only fallen off the wagon this summer, I've been wallowing around on the ground having a major stress-fest.
Before the end of the school year our district cut half the librarians (4 of 8) based on longevity, and I was number 4. We lost some hardworking librarians-- some who had just finished their master's degree in library science before the rug was pulled out from underneath them in their first year of library service. I'm thankful to have a job in this economy, but I'm concerned about the quality of library services diminishing next year. Or the extreme workload could do us in physically/mentally/emotionally and force us out of the field. Three of the remaining librarians will have two libraries to manage, and since they're moving the 5th grade up to middle school, that means I will have 1800 students to provide library services for rather than 600 like I've had. I've been fretting all summer about it.
I bought a Mary Englebreit paperweight at a garage sale this past weekend, and it's my motto for this month. A cute little girl is standing there with her hands on her hips saying sternly: "SNAP OUT OF IT!" I'm trying to do just that. And I have to confess I've been doing some serious praying, too, asking God for wisdom and confidence-- His confidence; mine skipped town some time ago. And I've been quoting, "I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength," every time I think about it, which assures me I can do this when it's in HIS strength.
It was encouraging to see the parents and students rally around their librarians in Austin earlier this year when most of their jobs were going to be cut. And their efforts paid off. Most of us do our jobs and don't toot our horns about it, but that means too many people think we just check books out and shush kids-- that anyone can do the librarian's job. Did you know that to be a school librarian, it requires more than a teaching degree? That's only the starting point. Today a school librarian is a certified teacher with a minimum of two years teaching experience, and it requires a Master's Degree in library science, and 200 hours of continuing education every five years to stay certified. We do a lot more than simply check out books and shush kids.
How do those books get on the shelves? Who chooses the books for the shelves? I had the joy of opening a new school library three years ago, so I chose and ordered and placed every book in the library! Wow! That was fun. It took me a year to do the collection development for the opening collection, and that was only the beginning. Maintaining a good collection is an on-going job that requires research, matching materials up with the TEKS, curriculum, knowing staff's needs, staying current, and knowing the student population's interests in providing the kinds of books they want to read for entertainment and information.
Who maintains the circulation system and accounts for every patron record and item in the library? Who teaches information literacy more so than any other position in education in this Age of Information? The librarian. People are drowning in information, and the librarian teaches students how to navigate the sea of information, which is full of propaganda, mis-information, and rumor. An important skill everyone needs to learn is how to evaluate an information source. Can you trust it? Is it a reliable source? How can you check that source to see if it is truthful?
I would prefer a champion to come in and defend us and our jobs, but most champions are fighting other causes or battles for survival. So toot, toot! I'm going to attempt to make more people aware of the important job librarians do in preparing children for life. The library, more than any other part of the school, is the segue to life-long learning-- where information transitions from force-fed to free choice and self-fed knowledge.
Librarians, information specialists, library media center managers-- whatever you want to call us-- are so important. If the opportunity arises, please don't stand by and watch us join the ranks of the quagga or the Tasmanian tiger, both recently extinct because no one was looking out for them.
Monday, August 8, 2011
Tuesday, April 12, 2011
Us against them?
The mother was crying and screaming at me in the principal’s office. I had taken the woman's son to the office earlier for beating up on another student during my class. Thirty students witnessed the incident, but the mother still accused me of being racist and picking on her son. The fourteen-year-old sixth grader stood there smiling behind his mother, confident that she would fix things. And she did by pulling him out of school to keep the principal from disciplining him. She repeated this process every time he got in trouble, pulling him out and enrolling him in a number of other schools in nearby towns.
The next time I saw the mother was in the public library several years later after I had become the public library director. Minors in trouble with the law met with their probation officer in the libary meeting room. The woman was apologizing for her son missing his weekly meeting and the whole time she was speaking I was thinking... Do you remember me? Do you remember how we tried to teach your son the consequences of his actions back then, but you wouldn't let us? The young man had been caught and arrested for breaking into homes and stealing.
Several more years later, I picked up a bundle of papers someone had dropped behind the library, which was across the street from the courthouse. I glanced at the first page and saw a familiar name. This same young man had been indicted by a grand jury on charges of rape. He was no longer a minor, though, so his mother couldn’t fix it this time. The young man went to prison.
Teachers and school administrators tried on numerous occasions to hold this young man accountable for his actions, but the parent seemed to view the school as the enemy rather than the partners they were in helping responsibly train her son for life.
Some students view teachers with the same attitude—“they don’t like me,” “they gave me that bad grade,” “they’re out to get me,”—as if teachers and students are on opposite sides of a battle.
NEWS FLASH—teachers and students and parents are on the same team! The school and administrators’ goal, like the parents’, is to prepare children for life. It’s a three-way partnership between the parent/ guardian, the student, and the educators. If one of the trilogy isn’t contributing their part—everyone suffers, now and later. The following old saying applies: a cord of three strands is not easily broken. The three cords include:
1) the parent or guardian taking responsibility for the child’s learning and supporting both the child and the school in whatever way needed to prepare the child for life;
2) the school taking responsibility for teaching those mandated skills that, if learned, will enable the student to survive and thrive in life; and
3) the student taking responsibility for their learning and understanding that school is preparing them for life and commiting to do their best to learn those skills.
The habits students develop in school and at home are the habits they will take with them into life and the workplace. If they make it a habit to be on time to class, they’re practicing being on time for work. If they turn in assignments on time, they’re practicing making deadlines on the job. And the reverse is true. If they see the teachers as the enemy, they’ll view their bosses the same way. If they struggle getting along with other students, they’ll struggle with relationships later. If they have trouble respecting property and authority, they’ll disrespect the law later. If they get into the habit of lying to their teachers or friends or parents, they’ll continue to lie on the job or in relationships later.
Sometimes when we make it easier for our children now, we've made it harder for them later. If parents and teachers see poor habits or character developing in a student, now is the time to work together to make the effort to change them, not later when the consequences are greater.
Education is a partnership. Teachers and administrators appreciate and need the support of the parents, and with the deep cuts in education funding over the next couple of years, the load on educators will be even greater—less staff and resources for larger student populations. When it comes to preparing children for life, no one part can do it all, and the responsibility & accountability should fall equally on the shoulders of parents, educators, and students.
The next time I saw the mother was in the public library several years later after I had become the public library director. Minors in trouble with the law met with their probation officer in the libary meeting room. The woman was apologizing for her son missing his weekly meeting and the whole time she was speaking I was thinking... Do you remember me? Do you remember how we tried to teach your son the consequences of his actions back then, but you wouldn't let us? The young man had been caught and arrested for breaking into homes and stealing.
Several more years later, I picked up a bundle of papers someone had dropped behind the library, which was across the street from the courthouse. I glanced at the first page and saw a familiar name. This same young man had been indicted by a grand jury on charges of rape. He was no longer a minor, though, so his mother couldn’t fix it this time. The young man went to prison.
Teachers and school administrators tried on numerous occasions to hold this young man accountable for his actions, but the parent seemed to view the school as the enemy rather than the partners they were in helping responsibly train her son for life.
Some students view teachers with the same attitude—“they don’t like me,” “they gave me that bad grade,” “they’re out to get me,”—as if teachers and students are on opposite sides of a battle.
NEWS FLASH—teachers and students and parents are on the same team! The school and administrators’ goal, like the parents’, is to prepare children for life. It’s a three-way partnership between the parent/ guardian, the student, and the educators. If one of the trilogy isn’t contributing their part—everyone suffers, now and later. The following old saying applies: a cord of three strands is not easily broken. The three cords include:
1) the parent or guardian taking responsibility for the child’s learning and supporting both the child and the school in whatever way needed to prepare the child for life;
2) the school taking responsibility for teaching those mandated skills that, if learned, will enable the student to survive and thrive in life; and
3) the student taking responsibility for their learning and understanding that school is preparing them for life and commiting to do their best to learn those skills.
The habits students develop in school and at home are the habits they will take with them into life and the workplace. If they make it a habit to be on time to class, they’re practicing being on time for work. If they turn in assignments on time, they’re practicing making deadlines on the job. And the reverse is true. If they see the teachers as the enemy, they’ll view their bosses the same way. If they struggle getting along with other students, they’ll struggle with relationships later. If they have trouble respecting property and authority, they’ll disrespect the law later. If they get into the habit of lying to their teachers or friends or parents, they’ll continue to lie on the job or in relationships later.
Sometimes when we make it easier for our children now, we've made it harder for them later. If parents and teachers see poor habits or character developing in a student, now is the time to work together to make the effort to change them, not later when the consequences are greater.
Education is a partnership. Teachers and administrators appreciate and need the support of the parents, and with the deep cuts in education funding over the next couple of years, the load on educators will be even greater—less staff and resources for larger student populations. When it comes to preparing children for life, no one part can do it all, and the responsibility & accountability should fall equally on the shoulders of parents, educators, and students.
Monday, April 4, 2011
Diving Deeper: Who’s teaching the kids?
I’ve taught in a private school, a public school, and I’ve home-schooled, each of which has its advantages and drawbacks. But I’ve learned something valuable in each of those learning environments.
I remember feeling almost overwhelmed when I stepped off the cliff and decided to homeschool my two elementary-aged children in a time when homeschooling was almost unheard of. Only radical, crazy people did that, I heard through the grapevine. Some even considered me to be an enemy of the public school, but that wasn’t the case. I maintained relationships with public school teachers and even served as the District PTA president one year even though my children were not in public school. I knew they would go into public school eventually, and that helped with the transition. And after folks realized that we weren’t hiding our children from society and reality, and that they didn’t turn out really weird, homeschooling was accepted as another choice for parents to educate their children. I’m grateful parents have the freedom to do that in this country if they’re able to and want to.
I remember the huge weight settling on my shoulders when I realized for the first time, the responsibility for my children’s success or failure in preparing them for life was entirely up to me. I didn’t realize how much I had previously depended on the school and church to teach and raise my kids. After homeschooling three and four years respectively up to when each of my children entered public school in the 7th grade, the most important thing I learned from those years was that no matter who was teaching my children, their education or preparing them for life was still ultimately my responsibility as their parent.
That was a huge shift in my perspective. But even with this awareness, there were still some areas that I assumed somebody was teaching them. They did well academically in school, but there were deficiencies when it came to things like my daughter not recognizing that a guy was treating her disrespectfully when he was getting too physical with her at a dance. Hmmm. That wasn’t covered in the textbooks, but I assumed she would just know that instinctively somehow.
Another common assumption among us parents is that our children will somehow inherit noble traits like honesty and loyalty and compassion, but too many staff and students alike are seeing instances where students haven’t learned them. How many have had things stolen from them, have been lied to, or have witnessed the rules being ignored when others think they can get away with it? Who’s teaching the kids integrity—the difference between right and wrong?
Outside of school and her job, a good friend of mine is working with a group of twenty+ teenaged girls who have never been taught how to set a table or use basic manners. I often speak greetings to students who don’t seem to know that it’s impolite to not respond or acknowledge someone speaking to you. Who’s teaching kids basic manners and social skills?
Our custodial staff and teachers witness daily that many students haven’t learned to pick up after themselves, or have to daily be reminded to do so. I wonder if students are allowed to be as messy at home as they are in school. One of our custodians came into the library this morning looking for a student who left her breakfast remains on the table, so he made her go back and pick it up, but too often, the messes are left unaccounted for.
I see young girls dressing provocatively and wonder what they’re hoping to accomplish with the signals they are sending out. Is someone talking to them about that? Who is teaching kids about social and relationship morals, or respecting themselves? A few of our classes cover these things briefly, but when the television and movies preach another morality with few consequences and happy endings, which message is shouting to our kids and which one’s become a whisper?
The school attempts to filter obscene and inappropriate Web sites, but not every computer a child comes across in life will have those barriers. Will they have the willpower to avoid viewing overly violent content that tends to desensitize their minds towards violence? Is anybody talking to kids about why pornography is harmful and that it distorts and damages normal, healthy relationships?
I see the drugs books and books about gangs checked out regularly, so there is a lot of interest among young people about those topics. But I’m concerned that some students are checking them out thinking they are “how to” rather than “stay away from” type books. Red ribbon week—one week a year isn’t enough. Kids are looking for something to belong to; will they make the right choices? Who’s teaching them about that?
When my son came to speak to a group of high school students a few years ago, I overheard a teacher on the Hutto HS campus give him some wise advice that I’ve never forgotten and wish I’d heard when my children were young. He said, “Assume they know nothing.” I laughed, thinking he was making a joke, but he was serious. And when I heard my son asking high school students some of the most basic questions about the leadership in our country and some highly publicized current events happening in the world, I was shocked to see that they couldn’t answer them.
As someone that’s been around the pond for many seasons, I want to encourage parents to talk to their kids about everything—relationships, acceptable behavior, manners, character traits, guarding their eyes, their health—everything. Assume they know nothing until they can show or tell you otherwise.
I remember feeling almost overwhelmed when I stepped off the cliff and decided to homeschool my two elementary-aged children in a time when homeschooling was almost unheard of. Only radical, crazy people did that, I heard through the grapevine. Some even considered me to be an enemy of the public school, but that wasn’t the case. I maintained relationships with public school teachers and even served as the District PTA president one year even though my children were not in public school. I knew they would go into public school eventually, and that helped with the transition. And after folks realized that we weren’t hiding our children from society and reality, and that they didn’t turn out really weird, homeschooling was accepted as another choice for parents to educate their children. I’m grateful parents have the freedom to do that in this country if they’re able to and want to.
I remember the huge weight settling on my shoulders when I realized for the first time, the responsibility for my children’s success or failure in preparing them for life was entirely up to me. I didn’t realize how much I had previously depended on the school and church to teach and raise my kids. After homeschooling three and four years respectively up to when each of my children entered public school in the 7th grade, the most important thing I learned from those years was that no matter who was teaching my children, their education or preparing them for life was still ultimately my responsibility as their parent.
That was a huge shift in my perspective. But even with this awareness, there were still some areas that I assumed somebody was teaching them. They did well academically in school, but there were deficiencies when it came to things like my daughter not recognizing that a guy was treating her disrespectfully when he was getting too physical with her at a dance. Hmmm. That wasn’t covered in the textbooks, but I assumed she would just know that instinctively somehow.
Another common assumption among us parents is that our children will somehow inherit noble traits like honesty and loyalty and compassion, but too many staff and students alike are seeing instances where students haven’t learned them. How many have had things stolen from them, have been lied to, or have witnessed the rules being ignored when others think they can get away with it? Who’s teaching the kids integrity—the difference between right and wrong?
Outside of school and her job, a good friend of mine is working with a group of twenty+ teenaged girls who have never been taught how to set a table or use basic manners. I often speak greetings to students who don’t seem to know that it’s impolite to not respond or acknowledge someone speaking to you. Who’s teaching kids basic manners and social skills?
Our custodial staff and teachers witness daily that many students haven’t learned to pick up after themselves, or have to daily be reminded to do so. I wonder if students are allowed to be as messy at home as they are in school. One of our custodians came into the library this morning looking for a student who left her breakfast remains on the table, so he made her go back and pick it up, but too often, the messes are left unaccounted for.
I see young girls dressing provocatively and wonder what they’re hoping to accomplish with the signals they are sending out. Is someone talking to them about that? Who is teaching kids about social and relationship morals, or respecting themselves? A few of our classes cover these things briefly, but when the television and movies preach another morality with few consequences and happy endings, which message is shouting to our kids and which one’s become a whisper?
The school attempts to filter obscene and inappropriate Web sites, but not every computer a child comes across in life will have those barriers. Will they have the willpower to avoid viewing overly violent content that tends to desensitize their minds towards violence? Is anybody talking to kids about why pornography is harmful and that it distorts and damages normal, healthy relationships?
I see the drugs books and books about gangs checked out regularly, so there is a lot of interest among young people about those topics. But I’m concerned that some students are checking them out thinking they are “how to” rather than “stay away from” type books. Red ribbon week—one week a year isn’t enough. Kids are looking for something to belong to; will they make the right choices? Who’s teaching them about that?
When my son came to speak to a group of high school students a few years ago, I overheard a teacher on the Hutto HS campus give him some wise advice that I’ve never forgotten and wish I’d heard when my children were young. He said, “Assume they know nothing.” I laughed, thinking he was making a joke, but he was serious. And when I heard my son asking high school students some of the most basic questions about the leadership in our country and some highly publicized current events happening in the world, I was shocked to see that they couldn’t answer them.
As someone that’s been around the pond for many seasons, I want to encourage parents to talk to their kids about everything—relationships, acceptable behavior, manners, character traits, guarding their eyes, their health—everything. Assume they know nothing until they can show or tell you otherwise.
Wednesday, February 2, 2011
The Last Key
I'm waiting on the last proof, but this is what the book jacket will look like. I'm so excited to have received permission from the Galveston Historical Foundation to use the panoramic photo that stretches across the bottom of the entire front and back cover. It was taken from the top of the Gresham House (known today as the Bishop's Palace) facing east-southeast along Broadway Street after the devastating storm on September 8, 1900. What used to be blocks and blocks of established neighborhoods beyond the destroyed church and remaining houses on the right were swept clean by the hurricane. The debris line, created from thousands of destroyed houses and businesses and in some places thirty feet high, ran from one end of the island to the other.
But the hurricane isn't the only storm on the horizon in this story. Can't wait for you to read it!
Tuesday, December 14, 2010
The Last Key Update
I sent The Last Key manuscript to my wonderful proofreader at 3:30 a.m. one morning last week. My old dog Daisy, almost seventeen years old and blind, deaf, and a bit senile, usually gets me up two or three times a night to do her business (her appetite and digestive tract are working overtime, doggone it), so at 1:15 I decided to finish proofing the last thirty pages or so. Then CJ goes over the story with a keen eye and a fine tooth comb (oh, my... I've said that for years, but it just dawned on me... could that be a reference to head lice?), checking dates and historical details to make sure the factual parts of the story are accurate and true to the time period.
The story takes place in 1900, and most of it on Galveston Island the week before the Great Storm. I did a lot of research for this book, and I enjoyed every minute of it. I even hitched a ride with my daughter and her hubby when they attended a wedding in Galveston in May. I drove up and down the streets looking at the architecture and the beaches and the ocean to get a feel for the place. I was thrilled to attend a Basement to Attic Tour of Bishop's Palace, originally built by Walter and Josephine Gresham in the late 1800's. I felt like I'd hit the jackpot when it came to listening to great stories. The Galveston Historical Society sponsors it, and it's well worth the price. The fortress-looking house provided shelter for about 200 people during the hurricane of 1900. Some claimed it was over-designed and over-constructed by Nicholas Clayton, but he must've done something right since the house has survived every hurricane since it was built.
I think previous readers of the Taylor Family Saga will be surprised and pleased to see who the main characters are in this book. I loved writing their story. And I intertwined their story with real people and their actual experiences. I hope it will ignite further reading about this amazing city and its history-- especially how the citizens resurrected and rebuilt their community after the worst natural disaster in our country's history that took the lives of over 6,000 people. During the years following the storm, the survivors built a seawall and raised the elevation of five hundred city blocks and their buildings. That incredible story is worth reading about, too. I've included a reference list in the back of the book that shares the resources I used while writing this story.
My goal when I started this series was to publish a book a year, and I missed getting this one in 2010 by a couple of months. What I thought would take two or three months to reorganize our church's library ended up taking six months, so that put me behind on my writing. But the project needed to be done, so I'll just plan to publish two novels in 2011, and a picture book is almost ready, too.
I broke my own rule of minimal expository writing, but I really wanted readers to get an accurate glimpse of Galveston and what life was like at the turn of the century before the storm hit. There was nothing like it in Texas, or even most of the whole United States for that matter. Many of the firsts of anything in Texas happened in Galveston. Men who arrived on the island with little money turned around and made fortunes.
Some say the city's best days are behind it, but others are committed to preserving its remarkable architecture and history. And to those determined, hard-working folks, we are so grateful. I love to include Texas history in my stories, and our state has a fascinating history. But based on what I've learned about Galveston this past year, I think its story represents a culmination of the best there is to find in our state's history.
The story takes place in 1900, and most of it on Galveston Island the week before the Great Storm. I did a lot of research for this book, and I enjoyed every minute of it. I even hitched a ride with my daughter and her hubby when they attended a wedding in Galveston in May. I drove up and down the streets looking at the architecture and the beaches and the ocean to get a feel for the place. I was thrilled to attend a Basement to Attic Tour of Bishop's Palace, originally built by Walter and Josephine Gresham in the late 1800's. I felt like I'd hit the jackpot when it came to listening to great stories. The Galveston Historical Society sponsors it, and it's well worth the price. The fortress-looking house provided shelter for about 200 people during the hurricane of 1900. Some claimed it was over-designed and over-constructed by Nicholas Clayton, but he must've done something right since the house has survived every hurricane since it was built.
I think previous readers of the Taylor Family Saga will be surprised and pleased to see who the main characters are in this book. I loved writing their story. And I intertwined their story with real people and their actual experiences. I hope it will ignite further reading about this amazing city and its history-- especially how the citizens resurrected and rebuilt their community after the worst natural disaster in our country's history that took the lives of over 6,000 people. During the years following the storm, the survivors built a seawall and raised the elevation of five hundred city blocks and their buildings. That incredible story is worth reading about, too. I've included a reference list in the back of the book that shares the resources I used while writing this story.
My goal when I started this series was to publish a book a year, and I missed getting this one in 2010 by a couple of months. What I thought would take two or three months to reorganize our church's library ended up taking six months, so that put me behind on my writing. But the project needed to be done, so I'll just plan to publish two novels in 2011, and a picture book is almost ready, too.
I broke my own rule of minimal expository writing, but I really wanted readers to get an accurate glimpse of Galveston and what life was like at the turn of the century before the storm hit. There was nothing like it in Texas, or even most of the whole United States for that matter. Many of the firsts of anything in Texas happened in Galveston. Men who arrived on the island with little money turned around and made fortunes.
Some say the city's best days are behind it, but others are committed to preserving its remarkable architecture and history. And to those determined, hard-working folks, we are so grateful. I love to include Texas history in my stories, and our state has a fascinating history. But based on what I've learned about Galveston this past year, I think its story represents a culmination of the best there is to find in our state's history.
Wednesday, February 3, 2010
Triplets - From One Blog to Three!
For the four of you who occasionally follow this sporadic blog, I'm dividing it into three blogs:
- Donna Van Cleve - the blog connected to my Web site that will be related to my books and writing in general. I may put in my two cents about anything here, but the focus will be on writing: http://blog.donnavancleve.com/
- Shelf Mouse - will have library-related entries from now on. I'll start with the current display on both blogs, but will post future displays and library-related articles on Shelf Mouse: http://shelfmouse.blogspot.com/
- Sisterhood of the Comfy Socks - a blog that will eventually have postings by a group of five special gals: http://comfy-socks.blogspot.com/
The Quilt System
I brought two colorful quilts from home to use as the background and draped on a chair, as well as some quilted placemats and a table runner. I brought out all of the cloth from the supply room and filled every basket I had on hand to make it look like a sewing room.
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