In the Full Swing of Summer - The Meek Moose Makes a Monday

Aside from some required Professional development three days this week- I am actually doing NOTHING this summer.


I didn't sign up for any classes. Partly because I'm tired, and partly because I'm being rebellious, and partly because I decided to get a masters degree as a Math Specialist and it starts at the end of August and I figured that was enough.

I did not agree to take on any sort of job at all.  No tutoring, no summer school, no helping out at a friend's store.  Being a slug and a mediocre Mom is going to be amazingly consuming.  Plus, I figured I would be getting ready to teach fifth grade, and that would be sure preoccupy my thoughts that were not directed towards eating and watching the spawn of my loins.

I DID decide to go horse back riding once a week.  And I'm doing Maker Camp on-line with the kids.  And I have a pile of books that are nothing like The Hunger Games piled up near my pillow to read. I admit, a good portion of them are professional.  But I also decided to go to the library once a week to read a young adult chapter book to get ready for the move from Biscuit to big kid books. I, of course, haven't started that library pilgrimage yet.  Maybe Friday.  I'll pencil it inside my imaginary day planner right now.

I also decided I'd try to make more of a schedule for myself to blog.  I know, I know, I say this all the time. I should at least be able to stick to it for the summer.  That's a good four weeks longer than normal New Year's resolutions.  Should count for something.

Of course, to blog, I sorta have to do things and think about things other than where I can find lemon seeds to harvest on Sims4. That damn tree in Oasis Springs isn't mature!  I can't get a seed from it!  Curses!  Anyway - #geekmoment

So- I'm going to be doing some stuff I find on Pinterest for fun!

This last week I decided to try out this little ditty on my Outside Recess Board from Homegrown Friends:

I had even tweeted about the experience and heard back from Homegrown Friends on Twitter!  Super nice people!

If you click on the picture, it will take you to their blog page, as well as a video of kids doing this art so you can see the dynamics of it.

I decided I'd like to do this one because I needed some wall art for my bedroom. I got these cheap canvases from Walmart- different sizes and enough for each person in my family to make one. And I chose colors for the paint based on my bedspread and room decor.  My first thought was to do the process painting on wrapping paper, and then stamp it onto the canvas.

Ha!  So you can see the trouble we ran in to from the beginning.  The wrapping paper was too flimsy, and her legs too long to get a good swing.  We did eventually try the stamp method with this though.

But it wasn't the look I was wanting.  We relocated to the back yard to try Ye Olde Swing Set, and tried painting directly on the canvas this time.  Long legs and low swings continued to thwart us.

We decided to just sit in the swing the regular way and I'd hold the canvas like a human easel.  This worked better for us.

So I went about having each of the kids make one, and my parents, and even tried to get my dog to walk across the first little one we had tried down by the tree swing in the front yard.  And I made one of course for a total of six paintings.

We all ended up covered in paint, especially since the littlest decided that this was the perfect way to paint using karate moves.  That he has no training for, I might add.  Like I need him to be able to chop me with any precision.  Anyway- I hosed the kids off- which made them happy as clams- and all was well.  Except for the dog.  He is still most displeased.

You might be noticing that art work already up on the wall.  That's from the littlest, during his "I love Sharpies" period.  Picasso would be proud.

To get these hung up on the wall in a decent arrangement, I utilized Pinterest again- recalling an old pin from my old Pinterest account.  I found this one here today, I think the original one I was thinking of was from Martha Stewart- but this one from BHG is the same thing.

So, the basic idea is you make paper templates of the art, and then you can move them around using tape getting them just right without destroying your walls.  Mine was already destroyed of course, but moving the papers around did make things easier.  I had a bunch of very large sheets of construction paper that I used to make the templates.

 I took me three or four arrangements until I decided on this one.  And I found two other little pictures I had around the house to add to it to make it a bit more symmetrical.

Voila! Family art, bedroom wall covered, no more sharpie. Trifecta of success.

As far as getting rid of the wall paper border at the top?  That is another battle I will have to wage with  my mother.  But until I prevail- this makes for a much nicer atmosphere in my room.

Be sure to head over to Tara's page to see what everyone has made this week!

Behind the Logo ~ The Meek Moose Pretends She's Watching VH1

Question:  Does VH1 even exist anymore?

Moving forward...

So, I was playing around on Instagram today.  Like a lot of days.  But with great diligence this morning because I was supposed to be
-updating my resume
-writing a business proposal
-cleaning my room
-making math card games
-creating lesson plans worthy of being peeked at during informal observations
-and NOT EATING bread
when it just so happened that I commented on another gal's picture about an art project she was doing with her students that I love that art pack too and it was on my wish list.

It's this art pack:

Click to check this Pop Art Miracle out!

I'm actually pretty sure I have Jenny's entire store on my wishlist...let me check... yes, yes I do.

Anyway, I made this comment and then ended up chatting with Jenny through email which was unexpected and very cool.  I have to say that one thing I like about blogging, and meeting teachers through FB, Twitter, Instagram, and TpT is that it starts to feel like I know lots of celebrities.  Knowing celebrities pleases my deep seated vanity.  Yes. Yes it does.

Turns out- Jenny is hosting a linky where you explain the story behind your logo.  And she asked if I was interested in linking up since I have this curious moose fetish going on.  And let's all admit it- moose are cool.  Deadly nasty mean beasts- but cool.  We also know I love to talk nonsense about myself.  And I think we all took note of how I'm supposed to be cleaning my room.  Again.  And I'm not.  So here we go.

Word wise- I'm from Alaska, I like moose, and my last name is Meek.  So it probably began as a simple fondness for alliteration.  The Meek Moose.

I had not always planned on being a teacher.  My college degree is in Writing.  I was going to be the next great American author.  I graduated from college, had a brief desire to be an intern at Jim Henson's Muppets that I never followed up on because I didn't want to commute by the LIRR every day to the city, and then ended up working retail at a toy store and then a gift basket shop because you can't make money just wanting to be an author.

My experience at the toy store was great!  It was one of those old buildings with nooks and crannies and had been open 100 years.  My favorite thing was if they would send me next door to the storage building to find something- because that place was LOADED with memorabilia.  I love toys, in case you didn't know.  So I'm 22 and I ended up thinking then that I would like to have my own toy store.  I remember at first I wanted to call it Farley&Fiona.  But then it evolved into The Meek Moose.

Idea tabled when I went back to school to get a teaching license. You don't really make a good living working part-time retail.

Teaching teaching teaching...years go by....teaching fifth grade...not a good fit for me.  Started to dream up other professional endeavor ideas.  And then I was 30.  Ah, 30.  I thought all my dreams would come true at 30.  I decided I was going to leave teaching and open a children's bookstore.  I wanted it to have lots of natural light, and wooden floors and shelves, and a stage with red curtains for poetry night.  And we'd serve snacks like cake pops and fancy lemonade.  I'd even decided that I was going to go with a mix of clean linen and cherry blossom for the general "smell" of the store.

When The Meek Moose dreams, she dives into the details.  But only the ones that have nothing to do with what you actually have to know to run a business. Because I'm cool like that.  I had my sister draw me up a logo of a moose that was feeling meekish.  And then a guy I knew at a T-shirt screening place digitized the image and cleaned up the lines of the pencil drawing.

Anyhow, get a divorce, real estate market bottoms out, house tied up in it- blah. The Meek Moose gets shelved.  But I kept my Meek Moose logo picture in a journal and would look at it from time to time.

Then, 2012, I'm 36 and looking for some teaching inspiration one spring when I discover teacher blogs.  So I think- hey- I could do that.  Seemed like a natural choice to pull out my lovely Meek Moose art and go for it.  so I did.  A year later, my sister decided to join me in a TpT endeavor.

Now Traci, she's a costume designer / freelance mascot builder in New Zealand.  And I'm sure she'll chime in after I post this and tell me how I've not used the correct job title to describe what she does. But her company name is Meek and Wild Creations.  So I asked her to put a sweater on the moose with her MW so we were combined.

When I go my blog design updated by Barbara Leyne Designs in September, she gave my blog moose a face lift with a hipster feel that I LOVE.  And even gave me a chicken!  Love you, Barbara!

As far as my glamour shot - this was a picture taken of me when I was 32.  I was teaching a drama club at a Military School and I was waiting outside the Chapel for our Summer Parent Performance to begin.  A man asked to take my picture.  His wife was one of the administration as I remember, and he had taken my picture once before when I was at dinner with the cadets maybe a year earlier.

Generally, I don't like my picture taken.  I'm guilty of taking fifty shots before I find one that I consider OK.  She brought me the picture the next week.  I liked it.  Sometimes it's nice to think that I haven't aged much since then.  But I guess it's ok that I have. Time presses ever forward.

32

39

So- that's the story of the logo.  I'm from Alaska, I love moose, my last name is Meek, and it would be awesome if I one day become a princess.

If you would also like to avoid cleaning your room- consider telling the story of your logo and linking up with Jenny at Art with Jenny K.

I guess I have to go clean my room now...

An InLinkz Link-up

The Meek Moose Checks Out Tsu - Be Inspired Teaching Strategies Blog Hop and Giveaway

Right now- at this very moment, my children are upstairs watching Full House on NickatNite.  I confess to not watching this show as a kid, myself.  And, perhaps, had I, maybe I would have thought it was the bee's knees.  But not anymore. It's over-the-top sappiness chills this Walking-Dead-Binge-Watcher's heart to the core.  Blah.

Even more chilling- there's a new social media venue out there.

I know.  Like we needed another one.  However!  I've decided to try the puppy out.  It's like FB, but without the ads.

If you have not heard about it yet, Tsu is different than others because it lets you create your own network within the Tsu community.  I like it because as a page for The Meek Moose on Tsu, I can "be friends" with other teacher's pages and not just a follower.  I feel like it has the potential to have a more direct exchange with other teachers, whereas my FB page is sort of limited.  I plan on keeping both.  It's just another place for me to post inappropriate e-cards and pictures of Beaker from the Muppets.

Tsu requires an invite to join- and you're welcome to join through my page, or any of the other pages in this hop. Just use this link: https://www.tsu.co/themeekmoose to sign up. Free, fast, easy peasy.

I'm wondering if my school system has already blocked it? I'm not allowed on Pinterest, or FB from work. And that's probably very smart on their part.

So far, the only bit I've found hard is finding teacher buddies simply. But, the site does use a hashtag system, and if you look up #teacherfriends you can find all sorts of folks.

But let's talk about math, shall we?

I have been taking a class on Monday nights for teaching number sense in the primary grades.  And enjoying it thoroughly, I might add!  It's helped me expand my thinking on what sorts of activities my kids should really be practicing, and what can help them bridge the gaps int heir understandings.  Also, it helps me see what actually might be happening.

Here's a quick and easy game to play to help your kids learn some mathematical lingo and also develop that concept of number.  All you need is ten connecting cubes per player.

Awesome, the folks throwing the cubes around in the background, yeah?  I'm so awesome at classroom management it hurts.

I'm using a lazy susan I picked up from a thrift shop as my spinner- and all I did was tape a paper plate I marked with Scentos to it.  We've rigged up a stapler with a pipe cleaner to be our arrow.

We created the sentence stems and have them posted on a dry erase board near our work table.  If anyone gets stuck they can refer to them to complete the game.

The game is ADORED by my kids.  They love it that the winner is ultimately by chance.  But that doesn't mean that they won't be sore when Lady Luck doesn't go their way...

Baby Girl lost her cubes!

I created a quick freebie for everybody- a little game board with the sentence frames so you could play a version of it if you don't have lazy susan's readily available.  I'm also going to use this small board to send home with my kids so they can pay at home.

To go along with the blog hop, our merry bad of Tsu teachers are having a giveaway. Try your luck with the Rafflecopter below!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

An InLinkz Link-up

The Math in the Things I Don't Like to Talk About

That will most likely be the only thing funny about this post.  And it's basically because any time I get ready to talk about anything serious, in my head I hear the words "On a very special, Xena: Warrior Princess".  I tend to handle things that make me uncomfortable with humor.  But in the end- some things aren't funny.

I've been Sunday Scooping for the past few weeks- but I had told myself I was going to do a Math is Real Life post.  And I should do that before I scoop.  And I don't want to lump all of this together in one big post, because it needs to be on its own.

You ever have those dreams where your all teeth fall out?  Or you've got, like, old gum stuck in them and you keep trying to pull it out and it just keeps coming out in long never breaking strings?  Even if you haven't- it's a thing.  Apparently, according to dream psychology, it means you have something to say but you aren't saying it.  Surprising, I know, but there are some things I don't say out loud. Often.

This past Tuesday my chickens died.  I went out in the morning to check on them and found them dead.  Killed by a cat or something during the night.  I'd say my reaction was intense.  My parents worried a bit that I might have been having "an episode".  But I wasn't.  It was just a moment of terrible despair.  I had a lot of emotions wrapped up in those two girls.  I buried them yesterday. My dad helped quite a bit, and now they have a very lovely spot in the back yard.  I won't be getting any new chickens any time soon.  I suppose I will try to hatch some eggs with my class again next May, but we'll see.

 Statistically speaking, Grief happens to everyone.  People work through the stages in different ways and at various rates - all depending on the situation and background of the individual affected.

In the following two infographics, you can see how children experience grief slightly differently than adults:

Now, I am not saying that the death of my chickens is comparable to huge moments of life crisis.  But grief is wrapped up into the things I don't talk about much.

The first being autism.

My oldest son has "moderately severe" autism.  He is not in public education, but goes to a private school.  He will never be a candidate for mainstreaming.  Thus far, he is not capable of learning a trade skill either.  So the reality of my situation is that I can choose to place him a residential home, or he will live with me the rest of his life.  I'm not someone who is comfortable with a residential program.

And why would that have anything to do with grief?

Honestly, because the day they diagnosed him when he was three - the son I thought I had, died.  I had already imagined his whole life by then. I had decided what he'd look like riding a bike, and playing sports, and getting his first car, and dressing up for Senior Prom. The ideas of going to college and meeting a woman and getting married and having children of his own- all gone.  I can remember being in his bedroom watching him sleep that night that they decided.  Just watching him sleep.  Not really realizing it yet, the inevitability of it all, but sensing a great loss.

There was, of course, a period of time where not only I remained hopeful- but also received tons of encouragement from friends, family, and church people on how my son would be healed by God.  Either by miracle or scientific discovery, my son would be "free from autism" by the time he was out of elementary school (note: he's in his last year of middle school now).  I can remember doing two different 40 day prayer fastings for parents of children of autism. I can remember a few different church speakers known supposedly for great healings praying over him. I can remember being told that perhaps I wasn't faithful enough. I can remember being told that God would never help a woman like me.  I haven't taken him to church for years.  And I can't say I much care for going anymore myself.

And not because I feel like I was not faithful enough.  Or that God wouldn't help a woman like me.  I don't have an issue with God at all.  I have an issue with people that pretend God speaks to them.

The math of autism:

Click to go to website and better view of infographic

I don't talk about it because people make this weird face if I do. A mixed face of feeling bad, but happy it's not them, and not even knowing what to say.  And actually- no one has to say anything. I'd be glad if it wasn't me either.  I've actually found myself jealous of women whose children "only" have Asperger's.  But it's all perspective- because they're going through something too.

My second source of grief being wrapped up around my youngest son's father.

The relationship was abusive.  For the last five years up until this past May.  And I have struggled quite a lot in the grief aspect of the failure of that relationship - because I had wanted it to have been the real magical thing I thought it was in the beginning.  And I have a lot of anger at myself for being stupid and letting myself stay in that situation.  But that's because I never understood the math of abusive relationships myself.

Every single one.

#1, #3, #4, #5, #7, #10

This occurred in my thirties- but they say that teenagers in high school and the college years are going through this right now and their parents don't even realize.  Their parents think everything is fine.  It's worth educating yourself about if you have any contact with teens.

And the math behind why I finally got out:

Some folks think it's terrible that I don't want my son to ever see his father again.  And I agree that it's an ugly thing to do.  It causes me a lot of turmoil to have made the decision.  But in the end, I love my son too much.  I don't ever want him to change because of being exposed to domestic violence.

I'm willing to be ugly to save my son from this.

Yesterday, when I buried my chickens, I realized that in five months, I received more love from Peep and Ruby than I had in five years from this man that I lamented the loss of.  And why was I going to cry myself to sleep over someone who can't hold a candle to a chicken?  So, at the moment, I'm feeling peaceful.  Not over it, mind you.  I still have PTSD because of the relationship and will deal with that for some time- but I don't feel like I need to cry.

And why talk about any of this anyway?  Why even open my mouth since I haven't much wanted to?  I'm tired of being a prisoner, I guess.  And I also believe I'm not the only one. Teachers tend to have a nurturing personality.  We take on fixer-uppers.  We have a belief that we can help and change someone through the power of love.  So I think, yeah, there are other women out there still holding on to tomorrow- believing that he'll change, he'll see the light.  Like a child who finally makes progress in reading.  But it's not like that.  And it's not going to be like that.  And you're killing yourself waiting on tomorrow.  And you don't have to wait.  You could start healing and living today.

Teachers who aren't experiencing this- your students might be.  And it's worth researching so you can identify signs.

I didn't write this post at all for comments.  If you'd like to leave one, that is fine.  If you'd like to send me an email, that's fine too.  But I don't need an "I'm so sorry."  Really, I don't. Even though I appreciate the love and encouragement I get from so many different people.  I wrote this because I needed to. Maybe I'll be able to keep my teeth in my dreams for awhile.  And because I think there is someone who needed to read it.  And I hope it helped, whoever you might be.

The Meek Moose Blogs Twice in One Week

Stop the presses!  And I even plan on blogging again tomorrow.  AND Sunday.  So whooooooooot.

Whatever dragged me from my den of exhaustion?  A linky, obviously.  Farley's Currently.

Listening

As I worked on my laptop finishing up my interims, I decided to put on something I was so familiar with I wouldn't need to look up constantly to see what was happening.  I LOVE Chuck.  I do.  And I've watched them all, a million times.  My mother, on the other hand, has never seen an episode.  Also, you should know that she is the ultimate tv show viewer, in that she has the keenest suspension of disbelief of anyone I've eve known.  When she watches a show, she is IN THE SHOW.  Her fists sometimes come up during fight scenes and she'll punch a little bit while saying "You get 'em buddy!"  Sometimes, I find this the most irritating thing in the world.  Until I realize I can video tape her expression and post it on Youtube.  Mark this intensity!!!  She's not sure if Chuck will make it out of the Bamboo Dragon restaurant alive!

Loving

Nothing says "I am ready to do absolutely nothing this weekend!" like coming home to put on a pair of elastic waist pants. That is all I have to say about that.

Thinking

 Wanting

See what I did there? #punny

 Needing

I'm assuming that the clarity is near the bottom...

Trick or Treat

I'm going with Trick.  I apologize for the out-of-focus, but my camera man is seven, and still in training.  Still though- you'll get the idea.

Whenever I've given a number line to kids to use as a tool to help them solve math problems- they always end up counting the number they start with as part of the equation, and end up being off in their answer by one.  So I ran across this pin on having a life size number line:

And decided to make one with painter's tape on my tile floor.

My kids now have this muscle memory of standing on the starting number and not counting until they move away from it.  So when we started using paper ones, they remembered.  It also ended up being a great way to talk about equality and non-equality using the vocabulary true or not true.  No matter what the kids suggest, we test it, and decide if it was true or not true.  Then the child who made an error walks to the correct number, and everyone can make an inequality statement, while the child who made the mistake doesn't feel bad about it.  We didn't say "WRONG!" and erase it, just made the inequality sign.

They use this as one of their math workshop rotations and take turns making up equations and walking them out.  After they do the subtraction problem, they chose someone else's equation and guess at the opposing addition family fact and test their theory.  That has also helped kids learn to get the numbers in the correct places; since they've tested out their ideas before deciding on a final answer.

It is amazingly easy to do, and the kids enjoy it. Let me know if you give it a try and get more insight!