Categories
teaching Work Writing

I wrote this!

Check it out – about a seven-year-old student – who I teach once a week! – who was published recently šŸ™‚

Cool, yes?

Have a great day yourself, dear Reader!

  • KRidwyn
Categories
momentous events teaching Work Writing

Grammar rules :)

My childhood memories are few and far between. Iā€™m not entirely sure why, just that they are. But a couple of things stand out from Primary Schooling: learning how to thread a sewing needle in Grade Four, and – even more significant – spending several weeks in Grade Five, copying down spelling rules from the board and listening intently to my teacher as she explained them, and gave us examples. I remember thinking, ā€œThis is it! The key to getting things correct from now on! This is what I need to know!ā€ I was so pleased. Iā€™d figured it all out – and I was only 10 years old.

Those lessons were so clear, so concise. ā€œI before E except after Cā€ and so on. Later, in University, when I realised Iā€™d need to teach grammar to my high school English students, oh! How I wished Iā€™d had similar instruction in grammar!

Well, wish no more. Iā€™ve found it. Short, easy, and – most excellent of all – a detailed study of the parts of speech. And the best bit? Itā€™s an online textbook which my students already have access to! So Iā€™m kinda mandated to teach from it, so the parents get their moneyā€™s worth. Cool, huh?

So here I am, week by week, learning about classifying adjectives and participles, gerunds and articles, so I can teach them with some authorityā€¦ and Iā€™m loving it! Finally, something in the world makes sense again!

Now I know youā€™re all thinking: well, sure. ā€œI comes before E except after Cā€, exceptā€¦

ā€¦ except when your foreign neighbour Keith leisurely receives eight counterfeit beige sleighs from feisty caffeinated atheist weightlifters. Weird.

ā€¦ unless the efficient concierge of the priciest Ancient Glacier Hacienda serves a society of proficient scientists studying a species with insufficient consciences leading to racier piracies. Lunacies.

ā€¦ unless you leisurely deceive eight feisty caffeinated foreign heirs to forfeit their heinous sovereign conceits, and (of course)

— unless youā€™re an eight-year-old planning a heist to seize a surveillance sleigh owned by a sheik at a reindeer farm. [@jjhartinger]

So yes, I agree: there are many exceptions to spelling rules. And little KRidwyn wasnā€™t to know that the dozen or so spelling rules I was taught in Grade Five werenā€™t the be-all and end-all to life. That disappointment came later.

So until this crushing disappointment arrived, I was happy in the knowledge that regarding the correct spelling of all words, there was boundary line there; that I knew where it was; and the learnings I’d been taught fit nicely and neatly inside that area. It was good, life was good, and the world made sense.

It was only afterwards I realised exceptions existed. “I comes before E except after C” oftenā€¦ but not always. There were limits to what I’d been taught. The learning was adequate, but it didn’t cover all possibilities, all potential situations. There was more learning there which I needed to know.

Aside: according to Kris Spisak:

At the moment, Iā€™m sitting in a similar ‘sweet spot’ regarding the online grammar program I’m teaching my students. I donā€™t yet know its limitations; it seems comprehensive enough, and thatā€™s just hunky-dory by me. If I donā€™t know it, I donā€™t miss itā€¦ until my horizons expand again, either willingly or unwillingly. But at the moment, Iā€™m happy – and thatā€™s enough for me!

Have a happy day yourself, dear Reader!

– KRidwyn

Categories
Random thoughts teaching

Leaping

This came across my Facebook feed the other day:

And when I finished laughing (gotta love those subliminal messages!) I wondered why – from a writerā€™s point of view – I found it so funny.

Iā€™ve decided itā€™s because of the leap needed on the part of the reader. The story is headed in one direction (they make each other laugh; they have a good time) but then leaps to a completely different one (Iā€™m in jail) and itā€™s the juxtaposition of these two ideas that is startling and therefore humorous. We get a clue it may happen (one was a police officer) but the brain doesā€™t immediately think ā€˜going to be arrested and therefore need bail moneyā€™ and so when it happens, itā€™s a surprise but not an out-of-the-blue one.

Which made me think of my story from a few weeksā€™ backā€¦ again, boy meets girl and mesmerises her with his eyes – but then ends up being a vampire (I tried channelling Twilight with the ā€˜mesmerisingā€™ bit). And I wonder if this ā€˜leapingā€™ idea is why Janet Reid liked my ā€˜Stillborn storyā€™ where the reader is led in one direction, but then reader understanding is needed to follow the story to the conclusion?

Anyway, just a few random thoughts this morning. Have a leap-full day yourself, dear Reader!

– KRidwyn

Categories
Scribblings teaching Work Writing

Flash fiction – 4 prompt words

Last term, I started a “Writer’s Group” at my school. Interested students – only girls so far! – meet each morning and practise various activities to improve their writing skills.

One such activity was “write a 100-word flash fiction story which must include random prompt words”. My favourite story used the words: Fate; Find; Potential; Fiendish. Below is what I came up with:

Itā€™s fate, I knew it! Jane thought. I knew Iā€™d find him – the stars aligned perfectly this month!

She stared dreamily out the window, remembering last night. Their eyes had met across the crowded bar. Excusing himself from his friends, heā€™d moved toward her, his eyes – mesmerising! – locked with hers. Other girls, appraising his potential, tried flirting as he passed; he ignored them. He only had eyes for her! And they had a tete-a-tete tonight!

Ma cherie, he murmured into her neck later that evening. Her eyes closed, she didnā€™t notice his enlarged canines behind his fiendish smile.

I quite liked writing it! Never written a vampire character before. I’m thinking it’s all the manga I’ve been reading for work this year…

Anyway, here’s wishing you a story-filled day today yourself, dear Reader!

  • KRidwyn

 

 

Categories
Random thoughts Work Writing

Reacquainting

I thought I might try this again today. Reacquaint myself with my blog, with the whole process of writing-and-sharing which hasnā€™t happened inā€¦ wellā€¦ quite some time now.

Iā€™m healthy, and have been all year. Riddled with guilt for being so healthy, when so many arenā€™t. But as a teacher, Iā€™ve been run off my feet. How much of ā€˜not bloggingā€™ is due to the former; how much to the latter? Who knows. And does it matter anyway?

Well, Iā€™m trying again. Blogging regularly. Not sure if itā€™ll be weekly or – gasp! – daily. The worst that can happen? It doesnā€™t last. My pride cops another dent. Sigh. But no real biggie. On the flip-side, perhaps I can make blogging into a habit again. I like that idea. And Iā€™ve noticed Iā€™m always happiest when Iā€™m writing.

So. Here goes. All things going well, Iā€™ll see you again soon dear Reader! Until then, keep safe and wellā€¦

– KRidwyn

Categories
#blogjune Blogging challenges teaching Work

#blogJune day14

Guess what I’ve had the pleasure of looking at all weekend…

Aren’t they beautiful!!!

Hubby knew I’d had a tough week, so brought these home for me on Friday evening.

Definitely a keeper šŸ™‚

– KRidwyn

Categories
#blogjune momentous events Work

#blogJune day13

I found this on my Facebook feed last night and reposted it.

It was exactly 12 months since the inciting incident that made my life what is is today. The impetus for the most amount of pain I’ve ever felt – but to reflect, 12 months down the track, on the fact that I’m here, on the other side? It’s joyous.

Thank you, Lord!

Here’s praying you have an overcoming day today yourself, dear Reader šŸ™‚

  • KRidwyn

PS And boy! Am I glad I’ll never have to have that anniversary again šŸ˜€ šŸ˜€ šŸ˜€

Categories
#blogjune places to visit Reading teaching Technology Work Writing

#blogJune day11

One thing I’ve noticed about me recently- my eyesight is SHOCKING! I think I’ve just been doing so much staring at computer screens, I’ve done irreversible damage. Which is sad.

On the up-side, these glasses I bought at Rainbow Beach a few years ago might look a little strange (I think the orange-and-blue colour scheme screams ‘$15 chemist-bought reading glasses) but they’re SO easy to read with and they don’t cause headaches šŸ™‚

Plus, I really rather like the colour orange!

Have a blessed day yourself, dear Reader!

– KRidwyn

Categories
#blogjune teaching Work

#blogJune day9

The first 5 weeks of this current school term was hard – but what I love about my workplace is that everyone pulls together. As in, Day 2 of ‘online learning’ we received a special delivery of hand-made and hand-decorated cookies made by the children of a school family.

And the school contributed $5 per person for whatever they wanted from a coffee/food van they organised to have on-site on a weekly basis…

Just fantastic!

But it was good when the students returned. I missed them!

I hope your day is a surprising one too, dear Reader!

  • KRidwyn
Categories
#blogjune Random thoughts teaching Work

#blogJune day 4

When I first started my current position in July 2019, I was lucky enough to inherit two and a half extra-large containers worth of LEGO. And, of course, the obligatory paraphernalia which always gets dumped in LEGO containers. You know: Connect4 counters; marbles; dinosaurs; assorted playing pieces from various board games; matchbox cars; domino tiles; the odd ear or tongue or feet from a Mr Potato Head; and so on. The containers were rarely used, because when my younger students would dig around looking for pieces they wanted, they’d give up, disappointed.

Fast forward to Term One 2020. My cherubs and I watched LEGOMasters Season One (from 2019) and seemed keen to watch Season Two. So over the Easter school holidays, I lugged home the two and a half extra-large containers, and also purchased a couple of 4-drawer wheeled trolleys, so we could start organising it all.

It took several looooong weeks! But we kept at it, and when the kids tired of sorting, I soldiered on, and finally all the LEGO was sorted. I’ll have to post the photo of the fantastic looking trolleys sometime. But the first ever LEGO photo has to be this:

because it’s something my father made when he first visited, post-COVID19. He and Master11 sat together, building and playing, and it was a lovely sight to see šŸ™‚

Anyway, that’s my LEGO story. Do you have one, dear Reader?

And that’s it from me. Have a great day, and see you tomorrow!

  • KRidwyn