Now that you have taken the time to go through all of your closets, and attics and basements and anywhere else you could find items for your Bio Book Bags, what does this collection say about you as a reader? As a writer?Choose one of the items from your bag and do a quick write on it...right here on the computer...right NOW!This is not something you have to draft and revise, just let your thoughts flow as you explore the corners of your mind to discover how this item influenced you and who you are today in terms of attitude, your teaching, your likes and dislikes. Have some fun with this. Here is mine as a model.
My Winnie the Pooh cookbook makes me think of my Nana. Nana was the one person in my life who really saw me as her "favorite". How do I know this? I know this because of the way I felt when I was with her. She listened to me and really heard what I was saying about what I liked and what I didn't like. Her gifts, which include this cookbook and my Raggedy Ann and Andy chalk board, were gifts that "showed" how she knew me in a way nobody else seemed to. Somehow she knew that I loved to bake and that this cookbook would be something I would always treasure. The chalkboard was something that validated my desire to one day be a teacher, but it was even more than that because at that time in my life I was an avid collector of Raggedy Ann and Andy. Anything with Raggedies on them...I HAD to have!It was not just the gifts, but the fact that she really listened to me and would take the time to hear what I had to say. This meant the world to me and now that I think about it, that is one of the things that I carry with me as an educator...a teacher...a mom. To listen, to really listen when someone is talking shows that they matter. It shows that their thinking, their thoughts, and their ideas count. Yes, that is what my Nana showed me. She showed me the power of someone hearing you out and truly listening to what is in your heart.
That is my quick write. Notice how I get "off track" a little bit. THAT is what a quick write is! Just start writing and see where it takes you. I had NO idea that was where I was going. Quick writes ask us to follow our stream of consciousness...to make connections where there might have been none. It is a way for us to discover what it is that we did not know before. I never thought about my Nana in this way before and it clarifies my great love for her!!
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When putting my biobag together, I had a difficult time finding authentic artifacts that I own because all of these things are at my dad's house in Delaware. With this being said, I raided the local library to supplement my history. As I gathered these things, I noticed that I have a lot of books to showcase, but not really a lot of things that present me as a writer. I reflected upon this, and realized that this is an accurate picture of me. I have always loved to read, but never really cared to write. When it came time to do written reports for school, it was my worst nightmare come true. Writing brings anxiety for me because I get so hung up on the process (I always try to start with an introduction, then go to the body, and then the conclusion. Instead I should just start writing and organize my thoughts after everything is down.) I can't say that I was never encouraged to write because I was. My parents always supplied me with notebooks, crayons, pencils, markers, chalkboards, chalk, etc. because I played school obsessively. In addition, they also supplied me with tons of books to read to me and for me to read on my own. After all of this, I guess the one artifact that means the most is a series of board books that my parents started collecting when they found out they were pregnant with me. Unfortunately, they were never able to find two of the books for the series, so it isn't complete. Despite this, I still treasure these books. Now that I am having a baby of my own, I am anxiously awaiting the day that I can pass them on to her. I, too, want to instill a love for reading in her because it is such a valuable passion to have.
ReplyDeleteWhen I started thinking about the types of books/ magazines I put into my biobag I started to think about how often I read a nd write about things. ( I found that it is not very often) uness it pertains to school. But I do recall my favorite book whic unfortuneatly I no longer have but it was abook called Jillian Jiggs it was about Jillian and all of the pink stuffed pigs she used to make. I wish I still had that book! I remember reading it over and over and over again at home to my mom, dad, and sister. I was so proud of the that book and the fact that I could read it!!! I used to read it in different voices, and be the different characters. I sometimes wish I still felt that way about a book when i pick it up to read it. Maybe I don't oftern feel that way anymore becuase I don't read as often as I'd like. For that matter I don't write as often as I'dlike either. I too as a child was always encouraged to read and write, with a mother that is also a teacher I was always working on something. But I never really got into just sitting and writing about somethig or writing about nothing for that matter. But I am a firm believer in taking time to read, and developing a love for reading books. I should also learn to do that myself for often.
ReplyDeletePutting together my bio bag really made me think about how I developed as a reader. I even thought of a few other books while others were sharing that I hadn’t thought about since I was a young adolescent. One book in particular, I don’t even remember the title, but I do remember that it was about a black man. I grew up in a very white area and I remember being so upset by how this man was treated and I developed a love for this character and a compassion for blacks and a distain for how they were mistreated. This is something that I carry with me today and I get very upset when I hear bigoted remarks being made from ignorance. That book really had a powerful effect on me both as a reader and as a human being. This also made me realized that I was a very random reader. If I was given a book, like the one I was talking about which was given to me by an older cousin I really looked up to, then I would read it. That was true of the Wind in the Willows, Black Beauty, and Heidi which were given to me by my Nana and Uncle Henry. That was also true of the Nancy Drew books that my mom gave me that she had read as a child. I guess this shows that I was not one to seek out reading but if presented with the opportunity, I usually enjoyed the book. Maybe this is why I feel so strongly about creating a spark in my students and finding a book that may become their hook. Even if that doesn’t carryover beyond the classroom, I think that it is a valuable experience that will help my students see themselves as readers and develop a love for reading, even if it’s not something they do all of the time. I see that I’m really off task as I was supposed to choose just one artifact but no one artifact seemed to grab me. Each had a small piece in my development as a reader. Notice I mentioned nothing about writing as that was an excruciating experience. Not something an ADHD person does well as the thoughts tend to jump out in all different directions at the same time! Kind of like this post!
ReplyDeleteThe most valuable item from my Bio Book Bag is “Bukvar”. It's a book that taught me to read in Russian when I was a kid. I remember snuggling with my mom on the couch as she was teaching me about letters, sounds, words, and sentences. It felt very tranquil. It felt good. Last summer I brought this book to the USA to teach my son to read in Russian. Very often, it's hard to find time to do it. He has a lot of homework to do, does soccer, and martial arts. When we do find time to do it, I treasure those moments...
ReplyDeleteFirst, I want to say that I really enjoyed this activity. At first, I wasn't sure what I would put in my bag but then as I started looking through my closets, etc. my bag was very full! The most important thing in my bag is the picture I included of my mother. I really feel that growing up reading was just a thing we did. When I look back, I have always seen my mother reading. I think that is important and I also think that not all kids see that in their homes. Seeing my mom read for enjoyment showed me that reading wasn't something you just did at school because you were assigned to do it. That is something that kids need to know. I am such afan of readers workshop for that reason--kids get some choice over their reading. When they get to choose, they will enjoy reading (hopefully)! The other book that really stands out to me is my memory of the book Into Thin Air and how much I didn't enjoy it. That one realization has made me reflect upon the texts I choose as a teacher. I typically haven't chosen non-fiction adn I feel I have done a disservice to past students. Last year and this year, I used more non-fiction texts and have seen more enjoyment of reading in my studetns especially the struggling boy readers. Thanks for this assignment, Tomasen!!
ReplyDeleteI approached the idea of the bio book bag with joy – I knew that the first book that went into it would have to be Mike Mulligan and his Steam Shovel. I can’t help but think of my youngest brother whenever I see that book. He and I curled up on the couch, day after day, reading that book!! He loved it! I am 3 ½ years older than Greg, so in my mind I get home from school, and there he is - waiting for me with his book. “Three corners neat and square” – it was all so predictable and everything turned out wonderfully in the end. What more could we ask for? I treasure those times with him – he was the ‘baby’ of the family and I knew that I could make his day!
ReplyDeleteThe other book choices came easily, too. I have such fond reading memories that I seemed to know right away what I needed to include in order to make it complete – or maybe it doesn’t need to be complete – maybe it needs to be a ‘work in progress’. Always reading, always changing – I like that idea!
After having shared my bio book bag I was determined to finish the 19th Wife, which was the book I was struggling through at the time. I know it's okay to abandon a book, and have even taught lessons to my students about when it is appropriate to do so, but for some reason I always feel it necessary to follow through with what I start, even when it comes to books.
ReplyDeleteUpon finishing I was rather disappointed with the way the book ended and a little annoyed with myself for having wasted my time reading it. I am happy now however, as I have just begun a new book, which I am enjoying already. As I think about this, I have come to the realization that when I read a book I immerse myself within it. I become a part of the story, almost as if I were one with the characters, and in the same respect the story becomes something that I find myself thinking about throughout the day, as I relate what I am reading to what is happening in my life. I catch myself longing to be able to discuss it with others, wondering if they are "seeing" and questioning the same things I am. I use that which I am reading to make connections with my students when we're conferring about the reading they are doing.
The books I remember most from my childhood are my Nancy Drew books and the pickles series books (Me Too Iguana!) I’ve been thinking about why these books are for most in my memory. They weren’t particularly good literature or favorite story lines- but I think it was because I owned them, and I didn’t own many books and I could read them and enjoy them easily. This makes me think how important it is to accept what kids choose to read, even when we think it’s not good literature (goosebumps, captain underpants, etc.) The point is they are reading!!! And I don’t think it is fair to say something is better than something else. Everyone experiences literature differently-we need to honor that. Of course, I don’t mean to say we shouldn’t expose them to “quality” books, but I don’t think other books should be excluded. Who decides what’s quality literature anyways? Shouldn’t it be the reader?
ReplyDeleteLike some others have said, I was also nervous about this assignment because I wasn't sure if I was going to have enough to say or to add to my bag. What it opened my eyes to was my love of reading. It had to have started when I was young. As I said in class my mother was a big reader, still is. She has a big part in the way I am as a reader today. Looking back at all the books I loved when I was little, brought on this nostalgic feeling. It brought back stories, and feelings about a particular person or time that I hadn't thought about in years. After class and hearing so many people talk about how it's hard to read during the school year, I decided that I was going to make a good effort to do that this year. I am the type of person that has a hard time letting go of a book and the time I let pass between books is usually long. So after that class, I began the next Twilight book, Eclipse. I have just started it but I am trying to read a little bit each night, because it is something that I enjoy a lot. I try to instill a love of reading with my students and I don't always practice what I preach....i'm going to try a bit harder:)
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