Dear WinkWorld Readers,

I have been creating documents for WinkWorld for over 20 years.  First, it was a static newsletter, and then it turned into an interactive blog. All of this is available free of charge for anyone. Just go to WinkWorld News on the left or way down at the bottom on my first webpage and look for the Archive, or any of the other links which you might want. in the past I have focused on the needs of classroom teachers and teacher educators, family/community members, and most of all on what I see as the needs of students. Throughout all of this, I have tried to tell good stories about my ways of understanding teaching and learning.

However, this post is written specifically for Texas A&M former students.  At A&M, we are not alumnus/a, we are all Former Students.  This post may make no sense to others of you. However, keep in mind that the traditions of this university are rich and deep.

One of the traditions is that each graduating student buys an Aggie ring. I graduated in 1991 with my PhD, and there was so much going on for our family at that time that I just didn’t get around to getting my ring. We moved from Texas to California, and I soon became consumed with my life as a professor, a wife, a mom, and a grammie. Years passed, and I still didn’t buy the ring, even though I so wanted one.

Great news! I finally have my Aggie ring. It was an 80^th birthday gift, and I am thrilled.

This is a photo of me waiting for the FedEx truck to arrive.

We, Aggies, tend to find each other in public places by this ring, and we immediately engage in a new friendship. So now, my wish is that I will be in a public place, and some stranger will come up to me and say, ”Gig ‘em, Aggie.” I know, you really have to be an Aggie to understand how much pleasure this will give me.

Dear WinkWorld readers, 

I love the Arizona Highways magazine, and I love education, and I love education taking place in tiny schools.  Prairie pedagogy fascinates me.  We are fortune to have 4 teeny tiny schools (10 to 20 students) still operating with passion in our geographically  huge and very isolated area of the prairies of South Dakota. I was initially drawn to this area of interest by the legacy of Sister Bourne of Arizona when I learned of her during the late 70s when I was teaching at a small school in AZ. Therefore, I was very interested to read in a recent Arizona Highways the article, Reading, Writing,. . .Ranching by Kathy Montgomery, February 2024.  Such a disappointment to see that Sister Eulalia Bourne was omitted.

For me, Sister Bourne is the epitome of what it means to be a rancher and teacher simultaneously.  When I first saw her book, Ranch Schoolteacher, I thought it had been written just for me. I discovered myself as an educator in her book. From there I went right onto read her book, Nine Months Make a Year, and I learned that she had a lived my life in schools, well before I did. We always hear that kids need to find themselves in the books they read–me too. I found myself in Bourne’s book, Woman in Levis.

I never had the pleasure of meeting Sister Bourne, but I know she has many  former students on the desert, as I have met a few of them. The University of Arizona Library Special Collection section now honors her legacy by maintaining her artifacts. I’ve had the pleasure of searching through these treasures.

Coyote School News to Prairie School Post

Long before, I knew about the importance of encouraging children to write and become authors, Sister Borne and her students were creating the Coyotes School News..  The students became proud authors. Years later Atall School students on the South Dakota prairies discovered the Coyote School News and were inspired to create their own newsletter, Prairie School Post. More student authors were born.The story is posted below.

Joan Sandin, author/illustrator

No one captures of the magic of dear Sister’s work quite the way Joan Sandin does. See below to enjoy what she has put together as part of Sister’s legacy.

Joan Sandin and I in the photo.

Hi WinkWorld Readers,

It is that time of year again when more than 100,000 of my very best friends and I gather at the University of Arizona to celebrate literacy: kids, families, books, music, science projects, writers, artists, scholars on the grass mall and in many buildings. It is very much a highlight of my year.

Posted below are a few highlights from this year, and also a few links of previous years at the very bottom. We begin with a little prairie reader, as I couldn’t resist.

Highlights for me from 2024

Kate DiCamillo – she opened the world of fantasy books to me  about 10 years ago.  Until then, I just did not “get it,” although I always pretended like I did for my grands.

Abraham Vergese – The Covenant of Water and Cutting for Stone – I have not read the former, and it is time to re-read the latter.

LeUyen Pham, author and illustrator, and new for me.  I was so impressed that I bought and will read her graphic novels, which have never interested me.  We had a dinner with her at our table of 10 friends.  She sketched an image of each of us.  At her storytime the next day, she even drew the face of EACH child there. Here is the image she drew of me in about a minute.

Here LeUyen is telling a story to the children and then drawing each of their faces as her gift.

Sarah Cooper– I am still laughing. Because of her, I also learned of two other new young artists: Patti Lin and Aparna Nancheria. We will hear more about these three, for sure! This year I focused on new young writers and artists:  It was thrilling.

Of course, I always love the novels by William Kent Krueger (his latest is The River We Remember) and Luís Alberto Urrea (his latest is Good Night, Irene).  Both of these novels are on my bedside table now.

Orbus Pictus (in Latin, the visible world, thank you, Mrs. Johnson of MHS, circa 1960) Award Books for 2024

Caryl Crowell and colleagues shared several of the winners and recommended.  I have already ordered some of these amazing books, but their website went down today.  If you are interested, I am sure that the website will be back up soon.

Previous posts  on Tucson Festival of Books

We conclude with a photo of one of my  many new books, because I just couldn’t resist.

Thank you, Annie Hlavka and Susan Henley Spreitzer!

Dear WinkWorld Readers,

If you have followed our prairie pedagogy series, you will know that Missy Urbaniak is the stellar and beloved teacher at Atall (K-8) school. She just received a great award.

I hope you enjoy this short video of Missy.

Thank you to Anna Hamelin of News Center 1, 2/29/24.

Dear WinkWorld Readers,

Recently, a dear colleague/friend of many years called me spontaneously and asked if I had anything she could use about story. We had a 15 minute conversation about the value of story telling, and I shared some links with her. I thought some of you might find this information about storytelling useful also.

“Joan, why do we use stories?,” she started.

I responded: I more and more think that stories are simply a part of our DNA. We all create our own identity with stories, and others find themselves in our stories and create their own identity. We all make meaning with stories. As time marches on, we hopefully each become a story in another’s life.  For example, when I am gone, I hope I become a story in my family’s and friends’ and former students’ lives.

• All We Want is a Story

Stories are our way of making sense of the world. If we can’t make up a story about something we encounter or experience, we can’t make sense of it. . . E = MC2 makes no sense to me. I have no idea what a C is, let alone a square one.

(Frank Smith, The Power of Story, p. 55)

“Why stories, Joan?”  she asked next.

• Why Stories?

Next my friend asked about theory. I responded the theory can be embedded in story and history.

• A Little History: 100 years in a 1,000 Words

My friend continued and asked about how she should get her recipients reflecting. I responded with the following story.

I almost always use the reflective cycle or socratic circle. Here is one way to visualize it.  (Critical Pedagogy: Notes from the Real  World, 4th edition,  p. 173)

• Repeated Feature Reflective Cycle
• Overview of the Reflective Cycle

I have lots of reflective cycle materials posted on my webpages. Use the search bar on the left of first page of joanwink.com to see more examples.

Some of my favorite stories which I mentioned with my colleague/friend.

Storytelling is not something we do. Storytelling is who we are.

(Carmine Gallo, 2016, in The Power of Story, p. 43)

• Oh, Fudge
• Keep Your Eye on the Chalk
• The More, the Better

Credit:  All stories and images are in The Power of Story (2018) originally published by Libraries Unlimited, which morphed into ABC-CLIO. Presently, Bloomsbury Publishing has purchased ABC-CLIO.

Dear WinkWorld Readers,

If you are a reader of WinkWorld, you know that I love it when someone discovers their own home run reading book. This is what recently happened. In this WinkWorld, I will share three previous examples of home run reading, and I will add a new example.

What is a home run reading book?

A home run reading book is that particular book that opened up the joy of reading to you. It is the book that made you want to read another book. The idea is that none of us are readers until we find our own home run reading book. We parents, teachers, and caregivers just keep sharing books with the hope that someone else will discover their home run reading book. Thank you, Stephen Krashen, Professor Emeritus for sharing this idea with us.

A Personal Example

Some of you are aware that my home run reading book was The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett. This happened when my own two children, Dawn and Bo, didn’t want to hear me read it one more time. I remember how sad I felt. It was at this moment that I decided to read it just for myself. Eureka!  Up until that time, I read every assignment any teacher and/or prof told me to read, but I was not a reader.*

However, after The Secret Garden, all of that changed. From The Secret Garden, I went straight to a decade of reading all of Hemingway and Michener. Bo, our son, immediately went on to motor bike magazines, and from there he jumped to Stephen King. Dawn, our daughter, went on to read chapter books by the tens and tens.

A Second Example from Deb Harrison, a teacher in WY

I loved it when one of my teacher graduate students discovered her home run reading book was actually a book written by Stephen Krashen, The Power of Reading. I remember how she struggled with me so much as a professor, and I just kept handing her books to read.  After she discovered that book, she was on fire in class. Since that time, she has written and published about her home run reading.

A Third Example: Junk Literacy and Henry

I can never forget little pre-K Henry whose Mom worried that he was only reading junk. Dear little Henry developed his own literacy by reading all of that junk mail that came to them daily. For him, it was compelling.

A New Fourth Example: Emmahleigh and Meadowlark

Emmahleigh is an undergrad student. She was never a reader until she grabbed Dawn Wink’s novel, Meadowlark, about my grandmother.

Missy Urbaniak captures the experience she recently had with Emmahleigh.

Recently, a friend of mine reached out with some questions about Meadowlark. Her name is Sandy, and she had given the book to her daughter, Emmahleigh, a college sophomore at Northern State University in Aberdeen. It turns out Emmahleigh is NOT a reader, and never has been, even though mom is an avid reader and dad (Pat) is a middle-school teacher. But after reading Meadowlark, Emmahleigh texted her mom, telling her she couldn’t put the book down and that it might be the best story she’s ever read. Mom then texted me, as I had gifted her the book, and said, “She has follow-up questions.” The questions included, “How is the author related to the main character?” and, “What area did the story actually take place in?” I shared that Grace is Dawn’s great-grandmother, and that the story took place near Howes, south of Faith, SD. I added that Dawn’s parents, Dean and Joan Wink, live in Grace’s house.

Since reading Meadowlark, Emmahleigh has asked to borrow more books from Sandy, and is seeking out books similar to her home run book, Meadowlark.

Thank you, Missy, and to Annie Hlavka for their help in creating this WinkWorld.

*Fortunately, I am no longer such a compliant reader. Now, I make sure I read all the banned books and any other book I want to read….

Dear WinkWorld Readers,

Readers of WinkWorld know that I have been writing about prairie pedagogy because it fascinates me to see the powerful teaching and learning (a.k.a., pedagogy) that is going on in these tiny, tiny schools on the prairies. In addition, I want to help maintain the history of these schools. Missy, the teacher, is my second cousin, and I find her exceptional as a teacher. She pays no attention to me when I’m in the classroom which I love.

I am crazy in love with the students of this school.

However, let me be honest: The reason I am particularly motivated to finish this document is because I feared that the enrollment (seven students) was just too small, and the district might have to close the school. However, at the beginning of January 2024 we had a population explosion with five new students being enrolled.

Dare I hope? Perhaps what I feared will not happen; perhaps, the end is just a new beginning?              

In this issue of WinkWorld, I will share several news items which interest me. First, I will share two short stories of the first week of school when five new students joined the previous seven students. Next, I will share about an international teacher literacy book club. In addition, I plan to update my photo on my web page. Finally, I will share a bit of health news.

Two Short Stories about the First Week of School in January 2024

It has been cold and frosty on the kids’  playground.

During the first week of class the reading lesson was on inferences. Suddenly, one of the new students had an a-ha moment. In their family’s chicken coop, he found some broken eggs, and he inferred that they had a skunk in the area.

Two of the new students and one of the previous students were studying the American Revolution by making invisible ink quotes like the spies used during the American Revolution.

The students and I each have an amaryllis plant. We share pictures every day or two as our flowers begin to open. Missy said that when the students entered the classroom on January 3rd after a long two eek break, there were audible gasps as they saw what the amaryllis had done in their absence.

A Story about an International Teacher Literacy Book Club in Montenegro

Out of the blue I received a message from Marina Avvakumova, one of my treasured Masters’ students from years ago in Mallorca, Spain. She had a very specific question: What should be the first book which they use in an international literacy teachers book club? I have considered this question in other occasions, and I knew immediately what my answer would be.

The Power of Reading

by Stephen Krashen

I believe it relates equally well to first language acquisition and also to second, third, etc. language acquisition. Experienced and novice teachers will find it meaningful and compelling. Teachers in this group represent the following countries: US, UK, Turkey, Russia, and South Africa.

Here are a few links about this Krashen book

Deb Harrison, a teacher in WY, wrote this article telling about her experience with The Power of Reading when she was a grad student in one of my classes.

The post below is a fun Powtoons created by Deb, also.

Marina now lives and teaches in Montenegro. Where in the world is Montenegro?

Meet dear Marina

Time Marches On: A New Photo

Turns out, I no longer look exactly the way I did about 10 years ago when that previous photo was taken.

A word about health

This is the first WinkWorld I have done totally on a dictation program. The reason for this is that I have been diagnosed with essential tremors in my hands. I always sort of knew I was going to get this as it is hereditary, and I have watched several in my family who had it. It has taken my script away from me and much of my ability on the computer keyboard. This is a real bummer, but the good news is that there are no negative cognitive consequences that come with essential tremors.

Thank you to Missy Urbaniak, Marina Avvakumova, Stephen Fleming, Deb Harrison, and Dawn Wink.

Dear WinkWorld Readers,

If you are a regular reader of WinkWorld, you know that I am writing about a  tiny school, Atall, on the prairies.  You also know that I find Missy Urbaniak, to be an awesome teacher of Atall School (K-8).  In the photo above, Missy meets reknown children’s author, Jan Brett, who is autographing a book which I gifted to Missy and students of Atall.

Recently South Dakota Public Broadcasting (SDPB) did a feature on the tiny schools in our county.  We, prairie people, have enjoyed many parts of this video, but for our purposes today on WinkWorld,  I invite you to meet Missy.  Thank you to SDPB for sharing this link  publicly. The video is about 5 minutes total.  Missy first appears at about 57 seconds, and again at about 4 minutes.  She concludes the video at about 4:40  when she spontaneously says, “It’s my dream job.”

The  Rural School Traditions of Meade County, Dakota Life, SDPB

SDPB Radio | By Tim Davison
Published December 8, 2023 at 6 AM. CST

Rural schools brought people together before they were called South Dakotans. Today, those schools continue to keep strong and unique rural traditions alive for the next generation of students and teachers.

Link to article on SDPB Radio website:
https://listen.sdpb.org/rural-life-and-history/2023-12-08/the-rural-school-traditions-of-mead-county-dakota-life

Dear WinkWorld Readers,

If you are a reader of WinkWorld, you know that I am focused on pulling together prairie pedagogy stories which I have collected; this post is part of that series.

As we think about these tiny schools on the prairies, sometimes people wonder:  How do these students do when they move into town for high school and on to higher education?

Tiny Prairie School Emeriti*

As I reviewed the 10+ years of my observations, I am comfortable that these rural kids go on to thrive and make their ranch families very proud.  As I collected the 10 years of photos, it was so clear that the kids are productive, and they are great citizens.

You may see these photos in the post below.

Prairie Pedagogy: Pulling the Past 10 Years Together in One Big Story

“Hard Rules”

Recently, I noticed on social media that two of our tiny school emeratae* were talking about their self-imposed “hard rules” which guides their first year at the university.  These rules help keep them keep on track physically and emotionally.  When I  saw this, I thought: A-ha, there is a story here somewhere. So, Wynn Wink and Dawn Wink (my trusty assistants) and I checked in with them on ZOOM.

Mariah and Shaniah are twins and attended Atall School.  Jeslyn attended another tiny school, Hereford School, about 30 minutes away, mostly on gravel, which is a close neighbor for prairie people, who have to drive miles and miles for the basics of life. Mariah and Jeslyn are in their first year at the University of South Dakota, and Shaniah is ranching and driving big equipment.

On the left meet Mariah, Jeslyn, and Shaniah. On the right you see them today in their dorm room.

Above you see Jes and Mariah in high school, and on the right you can see what they look like today at the university.

When I think of Hereford School, I always think of the kids riding horseback to the first day of school.

See this previous WinkWorld.

Riding Horses to the First Day of School: Hereford (K-8) School

In addition, I have fond memories of Jes when she used to attended with her mom a grad class I was teaching at Black Hills State University. Below is Jess in that class.

A Peek Into Our Class

Shaniah, Mariah’s twin sister. is ranching and driving large equipment. See below.

Alanah, their younger sister in high school is getting her pilot’s license in her spare time. 

Respect and Collaboration

I asked the young women what part of their tiny rural school experience did they most value? They reflected that they went forward to high school and higher education with greater respect for others (including teachers and professors) and a greater ability to work with diverse groups of people on multiple projects.

Tiny school emeriti*, if you leave us with these two characteristics, respect for others and the ability to collaborate with others, our tiny prairie schools are doing fine and dandy!

*I doubt that I have ever used emeriti or emeritae in my prairie pedagogy blog  posts, but it is time.  My Mobridge High School Latin teacher would be proud.  Thank you, Hazel Grace Johnson.

It is an honorable  title awarded to a former exceptional member, professor, or student.

Emeritus – singular male

Emeriti – plural  male and female

Emerita – singular female

Emeritae – plural female

Dear WinkWorld Readers,

As I shared in the previous blog post, we are working on Prairie Pedagogy.  Our purpose is to save the stories and the history.  Missy Urbaniak, the teacher at  Atall School, has already prepared the history, and selected  sections will be each chapter.  In addition, we have more stories prepared than we can possibly use, but here is  a peak into some of the stories which might make the cut.

We appreciate the help of Wynn Wink in the preparation of the manuscript.

Below on the left is the enrollment of Atall 2012-2013, and on the right is that of 2023-2024.

2002-2014

• Prairie Pedagogy Index 2002-2014. https://www.joanwink.com/prairie-pedagogy/

2015

• March 3, 2015. Books Beget Books: Burnett Did This to Me. https://www.joanwink.com/latest/books-beget-books-burnett-did-this-to-me/
• April 21, 2015. My reading of “Book With No Pictures.” https://www.joanwink.com/latest/my-reading-of-book-with-no-pictures/
• October 22, 2015. Critters, Polacco, Novak, and Atall. https://www.joanwink.com/latest/critters-polacco-novak-atall/
• December 16, 2015. Strega Nona, Atall School, and Country Kids. https://www.joanwink.com/latest/strega-nona-atall-school-country-kids/

2016

• November 21, 2016. Flat Stanley, or Jaylee on a Journey with Joan. https://www.joanwink.com/latest/flat-stanley-or-jaylee-on-a-journey-with-joan/

2017

• May 10, 2017: Prairie Pedagogy: Paul Interviews Missy, https://www.joanwink.com/latest/prairie-pedagogy-paul-interviews-missy/
• October 7, 2017. Prairie Pedagogy: The Scientific Method. https://www.joanwink.com/latest/prairie-pedagogy-the-scientific-method/

2018

• January 15, 2018. Jack Frost or Robert Frost. https://www.joanwink.com/latest/jack-frost-or-robert-frost/
• February 22, 2018: Prairie Pedagogy: A Story about a Bromeliad and a Geranium, https://www.joanwink.com/latest/prairie-pedagogy-story-bromeliad-geranium/
• August 19, 2018. Many Ways to Begin the School Year: Annie, Missy and Tammy. https://www.joanwink.com/latest/many-ways-to-begin-the-school-year-annie-missy-and-tammy/
• August 29, 2018. Riding Horses to the First Day of School: Hereford (K-8) School. https://www.joanwink.com/latest/riding-horses-to-the-first-day-of-school-hereford-k-8-school/
• December 18, 2018. Writing Projects: 2019. https://www.joanwink.com/latest/writing-projects-2019/

2019

• February 18, 2019: Prairie Pedagogy: The Book Challenge, or Just Read, Read, Read. https://www.joanwink.com/latest/prairie-pedagogy-the-book-challenge-or-just-read-read-read/
• February 19, 2019. Research Rapture and The Din In The Head: Part Two. https://www.joanwink.com/latest/research-rapture-and-the-din-in-the-head-part-two/
• May 21, 2019: Prairie Pedagogy: A Reflection on Free-range Reading, https://www.joanwink.com/latest/prairie-pedagogy-a-reflection-on-free-range-reading/
• June 11, 2019. Beautiful Books by the Churchmans. https://www.joanwink.com/latest/beautiful-books-by-the-churchmans/
• September 27, 2019: Kids, Cows and Community: Prairie Pedagogy, https://www.joanwink.com/latest/kids-cows-and-community-prairie-pedagogy/
• October 2019. A Year at Atall. https://www.joanwink.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/Atall-SD-Mag-final.pdf
• November 2019. The Prairie School Post. https://www.joanwink.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/Prairie-School-Post-15-NOV-DEC-19.pdf
• December 5, 2019: Prairie Pedagogy: Grandparents’ Day Program at Atall School, https://www.joanwink.com/latest/kids-cows-and-community-prairie-pedagogy/
• December 21, 2019. Prairie Pedagogy: A County Christmas Celebration. https://www.joanwink.com/latest/prairie-pedagogy-a-country-christmas-celebration/

2020

• January 17, 2020. Prairie School Post (PSP): A Student Newsletter. https://www.joanwink.com/latest/prairie-school-post-psp-a-student-newsletter/

2021

• January 31, 2021. Eulalia (Sister) Bourne: Rancher Schoolteacher. https://www.joanwink.com/latest/eulalia-sister-bourne-rancher-schoolteacher/
• May 2, 2021. Free-range Reading. https://www.joanwink.com/latest/free-range-reading/

2022

• January 27, 2022. Reading a Story in a School: Imagine! https://www.joanwink.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/Atall-SD-Mag-final.pdf

2023

• January 5, 2023. Books 2023, January. https://www.joanwink.com/latest/books-2023-january/