Dear WinkWorld Readers,

There I was, minding my own business at 3 am, as I happily read during my “Winksomnia.”  Before going back to bed, I decided to take a quick look at Facebook, and that is when I discovered a lively discussion between two of my friends, Sam and Donna, on a thread I had shared re: banned books. Sam questioned the use of the word, banned, as he could buy them in any book store or order a copy at any moment.  Donna replied  that she thought it referred to books  which are banned in school libraries.

Was it a dream?

I did not give this much thought until the next night when that Facebook discussion popped into my head. I thought it had been a dream, as I know these two people do not know each other.  I checked  my Facebook thread, and sure enough, there they were.  I wrote back to Sam and Donna.*

Sam and Donna, how much do I LOVE this discussion between two of my friends, who I am sure, do not know each other. You are both my friends from totally different contexts! You two have very different lived-experiences and distinct perspectives. By the magic of social media, here you are having a meaningful discussion about something which is very important.

 

Sam, yes, banned does mean that some books are banned in some school libraries. It also refers to isolated school districts where a parent has asked (a.k.a., insisted) that a specific book be “banned” from a class or library. I have studied this a bit, and it often is a parent who has not read the book, but has a political motive.

 

I suspect that the large book stores and small independent book stores have researched each “banned” book before setting it out on that table.

 

Sam, the bottom line for me is that I am happy that each of the three of us can access any book, anytime.

 

However, that is simply not true for some students–particularly students of poverty. Libraries and schools can often be their only avenue to free-range reading. If a book is denied from even one student, I am comfortable calling it a “banned” book.

 

The research question is starting to form in my head: What criteria does Book Store A use to label a book “banned?”

 

Big Hugs to both of you. Thanks for thinking with me.

I found out recently that the superintendent from a school banned “Where the Crawdads Sing.” No explanation.

My First Experience

I remember vividly my first experience with a book banning.  It took place in the 70s, when Dawn was already an avid reader in 3rd grade.  She walked into the school library and wanted to read three books, which were placed on a shelf for 5th grade readers.  The school librarian would not allow her to check out any book, which was not on the 3rd grade shelf. The librarian’s rationale was that Dawn would have no books  to read when she got to 5th grade. 

Later in the hour, Dawn grabbed the three books from the 5th grade shelf and shoved them up under the front of her t-shirt.  Busted! The librarian saw her and gave her after-school detention, which meant Bo and I also had after-school detention, as I was her transportation back to the ranch that night.

That is the moment when I first stared to think about banning books. Who does it? Why? And, what is a 3rd-grade reading level? Who decides?

Another experience came when Bo was in 5th or 6th grade and went from reading about motor bikes to reading Stephen King novels. I remember a fleeting thought that Bo might not understand a King novel, and I am sure he didn’t, but he was captivated.

As a classroom teacher and professor, I have heard so many unsolicited examples of books being banned in various places.

WinkWorld Readers, I look forward to hearing your experiences with banned books.

*All names are fictional, but the people are very real, and they are very real friends of mine from different chapters of my long life.

Dear WinkWorld Readers,

I realize that I previously wrote that I would not mention Parkinson’s again in WinkWorld, but your many positive responses made me reconsider. The bottom line is that I am so much better than even 4 months ago, and I  credit that to a balance of meds and my daily exercises, which are  reposted at the end of this blog post.

So, now I am in a boxing class, much to my amazement.  This is not the type of boxing where I hit someone, or  someone hits me.  This is all about strength and balance in the Wellness Center in the medical facility.  A few photos follow.

I like that pix, as you can see that I actually hit the boxing bag.

This heavy bag is easier to hit, but it barely moves when I hit it.  Wink says I should “hit it like I mean it.”

We often have to get down on our tummies and get back up in very specific ways–while they time us. Please note my new red boxing gloves.

But the emphasis is always on our balance.  Here I am trying hard to stand on water without falling against that cupboard behind me.

This photo is just for your entertainment. Those gray things I am supposed to stand on are filled with water.  It is a lot like trying to maintain your balance on water-filled big balloons.

Over and out for now.

Your friend,

Slugger

The exercises which I use on all posted below from a previous WinkWorld.

Slide and Glide (or, Loud and Proud)

Dear WinkWorld Readers,

If you are a reader of WinkWorld, you know a majority of my work relates to languages and literacies with a heavy dose of Prairie Pedagogy in the last 10 to 15 years. But I always try to write about what interests me. Lately, I have been more interested in Slide and Glide or Loud and Proud. We made up those terms to describe the exercises which are very much the antithesis of what my body wants to do naturally.

As some of you know, I have a hereditary condition called Essential Tremors. I have known for years that I would get it. It does not change my life much. However, this winter I was also diagnosed with Parkinson’s. At that time, my movements had become very stiff, slow, and rigid. Then I learned about these very strange and even funky exercises which are designed primarily for Parkinson’s patients. I absolutely love doing them, and I am honestly somewhat of a convert.

I have two vices: reading and walking.

However this winter, I was not able to get out to walk. I felt like a caged lion. Now, I am up to 2 miles again. I find these exercises amazingly effective. If only one other person benefits from this post, it is worth it for me.

In this WinkWorld, I want to share some of what I have learned. I will primarily focus on the exercise websites that have been beneficial for me. So far, I have learned that I have much to learn about all of this. I know I am just at the beginning of my learning curve.

The reason I use the terms, Slide and Glide or Loud and Proud is because I do not want to infringe on any other websites’ trademark name. All of these exercises focus on large movements, not small; and fast movements, not slow; and smooth movements, not rigid; and loud voice exercises, not quiet; The exercises make my body do the opposite of what it wants to do.

Before you glance at these exercises, you might want to read this very short story from my last post on WinkWorld.

On to 100

Exercise Websites

Of course, the gold standard for all information about Parkinson’s is Michael J. Fox.

Another very good site which I use is….

Move and Shout: Power for Parkinson’s

A third site which I often use comes from Power for Parkinson’s. I find it very helpful.

Aerobic Exercises for Parkinson’s

A fourth site that I use is Aerobic Exercises for Parkinson’s.

Hand Exercises for Parkinson’s

A fifth site I use is specifically for hands, which become very rigid with Parkinson’s.

A final interesting concept I learned is the VILIM ball. It is an electronic ball that you hold in your hand to reduce the tremors.  I have two, and I love them.  I have also heard about vibrating wrist bracelets.

Dear WinkWorld Readers, I do not plan to write more about Parkinson’s. I will continue to write about what is lying around on my desk and on my computer desktop.

How do I do WinkWorld if I have Parkinson’s? Very slowly, and with the help of a dictation program and two friends: Susan Henley Spreitzer and Annie Hlavka. Thank you to both of them. How much longer can I publish WinkWorld? I don’t know.

Dear WinkWorld Readers,

A very short and personal blog post follows.

In church recently I had a very interesting conversation with a five-year-old, who was seated in the pew directly behind me. We were nose-to-nose as we whispered. He looked at me and said, “Good morning.”
“Good morning,” I replied.
“How old are you?” he seriously asked.
“80,” I quietly replied. “How old are you?”
“Five,” he told me. That was the end of the conversation, until after the church service when he came up to me again.
“You are a bunch older than I am,” he explained matter-of-factly.
“Yes,” I said.
“You are 75 years older than I am,” he clarified for me.

Remember, he is 5-years-old and not yet in kindergarten.

After church was over, he walked with me down the stairs of the basement to have cookies and treats. When we got to the bottom of the stairs, he looked up at me and said, “I think you will live until 100.”

I tell the story for two reasons: first, it is a precious story, and I want to maintain the memory. Second, I want to use it as a springboard for thanking so many of you who wrote to me and shared specific memories for my 80th birthday. You have no idea how much I enjoyed each and every memory. It took me about two months to get my thank you notes and texts written, because I focused on each of you and our shared time together. This required a lot of time, staring out the window and shedding quiet tears of happiness.

Thank you from the bottom of my heart. And thank you, Dawn, for collecting and organizing so much of this. It was the perfect gift.

And, now: On to 100.

I found this photo on the web. It is not the little guy in the story. It’s just meant to give you a smile.

I should have been a teacher…she said with tongue firmly planted in her cheek…. However, dear WinkWorld Readers, this is exactly how  I felt when leaving another wonderful visit to Atall School on a stormy, windy, wet May  5. 

The sky as I was leaving Atall.

The purpose of my trip was to help the students celebrate Cinco de Mayo. Of course, I used my Spanish and tried to make it interesting and fun for the students. Missy, the classroom teacher, and I shared stories about the geography, history, and language of Cinco de Mayo. For those of you who may be new to WinkWorld, and there are a handful of you this month, Atall is a tiny school on the very isolated prairies of South Dakota. I have been documenting my experiences there for many years, and these blog posts are all available to you by using the search bar (over on the left of my homepage) and typing in Prairie Pedagogy or Atall School.

A highlight of this day for me happened when I was putting on my jacket and preparing to leave. I felt a little hand tugging on my shirt. A little guy said to me, “You said you didn’t have to leave until 11:30, and look at the clock, it is only 11:20.”  Only one thing to do in that case: I took off my jacket and stayed 10 more minutes. Happily.

 The following photo is the entire school/K8, the teacher, Missy, and all the students with me at the table. Oh, how I love these kids.

 Each of the students had to take turns trying on the sombrero and a poncho as we celebrated.

In this photo, the boys are explaining to me one of their science projects: how to make concrete. It was fascinating.

Wouldn’t we love to hear what these two girls are sharing? However, I actually think they were talking about germinating different types of seeds, another science projects.

As most of you know, my blog is primarily focused on language acquisition and literacy ideas for teachers to take and use in their own context. My only purpose is to share materials. However, I have noticed that I’ve begun to expand my sharing on WinkWorld. I think this is what happens when one turns 80. I notice in my queue of upcoming blogs, I have draft on mentoring/Bobcats, another on a pedagogy box (I am madly searching for a former CSU teacher education student, named Heidi), and a third draft on Loud and Proud.

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.