Falling into the groove

Oh my...I have been fighting a bitter battle with my internet provider to get this post published...and as the battle continues this evening, I have retreated to my phone. Our service has not been the same since our latest tornado,  but in the rare moments that frustration sets in, I remind myself how blessed we were when others lost so much. Please bear with me here and there as some posts may take longer to publish than others.

We have had a very successful second week of school.  Routines and expectations are becoming familiar and comfortable. We have been crazy, busy...but all that productive busy~ness is falling into a comfortable groove for the kiddos.

Honestly, I am not even sure where to begin with our week...I guess I will start with how the kiddos are loving book nooks. :) The always fall in love with the novelty of sitting where you want to read what you want. It takes a bit of structured practice to get them doing it productively. Well...maybe not just a bit, more like A LOT! But we practice and practice and practice some more until finally we can sit just about anywhere and actively read and respond to our reading. It may not look pretty at first, but we get there eventually.

 

In writing workshop, we have remained focused on where writers get their ideas, and we have used our writer's notebook to capture all those amazing ideas. 

We created our "Writer's Eye."  I shared my own example of my "Writer's Eye" (I) as explained by Jeff Anderson in Mechanically Inclined. (I have also seen it on Julie Ballew's amazing website A Literate Life.) This will be one more resource for the kiddos to use as they begin working towards completing their narratives. Using our writer's eye to look closely at ourselves is a perfect way to gather the ideas that just may lead to the perfect story.

Those of you that follow me and know me well just  happen to know that this is the week that I celebrate turning 29 again. ;) It's only the 14th anniversary of being 29, but who's counting? 

My sweet hubbie made a surprise visit to drop off a delicious treat for the big day. That wasn't disruptive at all. ;) Hehe...ahhhh well....the kiddos all got a kick out of seeing him, and my team and I sure enjoyed the yummies for lunch.

Sweet surprise! 

And sweet card made by one of my kiddos....love it!

In all of our hard work, we even made some time for fun outside. It was difficult to find a moment that wasn't too terribly hot for the kiddos. It seems like we spent much of the week inside, so stretching our legs outside was a treat. I must say that I did get a bit of a kick watching some of my girls give my boys a schooling on how to play some football! So funny!

 

Just hanging out with friends!
I love this picture...it says so much about this sweet group!

My amazing team took me out on the town to celebrate that anniversary of some certain birthday that I might have mentioned... they totally outdid themselves and I have some wonderful (and quite hysterical) memories! Thanks for the fun times, sweet friends!

I want to close by showing off how hard the kiddos are working on making good book recommendations. I have quite a few of my own I would love to share, but since it has now taken me three days to battle my way through poor internet connections to bring you this riviting post, I shall wait for another time. ;)

Just know that your kiddos are working hard and reading much for me! But don't let them fool you...they MUST read at home as well!

Be on the look out for kiddo book recommendations on this very blog in the very near future!

Thanks again for your patience, and most of all....thank you for sharing your most prized possession with me every day! I know how much you love them!

Happy Reading, friends!