Not much is new this week. On Friday, the writing center was supposed to come and make a presentation to my class, but they didn't show. I had to make up a lesson on the fly. I had everyone write all period while I went around and conferenced with them individually about their writing. One tough young man was working on a poem about missing someone. It was a little vague, so I gave him some examples of specifics: "Someone might compare it to a missing limb. You feel like it's still there, but you reach down, and it's gone." He started crying. Oops. I asked if he wanted to get a drink of water in the hall so he could collect himself, but he kept his head up and said, "Nah. I'm fine." Hee. You gotta love a big, tough athlete who's not afraid to cry. He told me he got my point about how much more powerful a concrete image can be.
In other news...a while back, I was browsing for art supplies, the type that might be suitable gifts for the young people in my life. I spent a while considering Aquadots, which looked cool. Now I'm so glad I didn't buy them. Good gracious. It's a toy that, if consumed, is metabolized as GHB! It's making little kids sick, and putting them in comas. You can still buy it some places. I like to think none of the younguns in my life would eat Aquadots, but I remember a time when I was little and didn't have any gum so I chewed on Silly Putty for a while. It was not my finest moment. I'm just saying...even smart kids sometimes do dumb things.Thanks, Chinese toy manufacturers. First we discovered the lead-painted toys, and now this. They were supposed to use a certain non-toxic chemical to coat the dots, but instead chose a similar, cheaper toxic chemical. Scary, scary, scary. Have fun Christmas shopping, parents out there.
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