Christmas Card From a Student

"Dear Mrs. Nelson,
Happy Holidays!
I hope you get a lot of presents! Thank you for being so nice to me and reading my class fun stories. Thank you also for letting us get a good and fun egecation and letting us do glogs. Let angles soround you were ever you go."

Poop vs Air Freshener

At work we have a very nice bathroom that is used almost exclusively by the library staff. There is another bathroom in the main part of the library for students. Because we have our own bathroom, we are able to keep things in there, so there are some small plastic storage drawers for us to use for personal items.

On top of the drawers is a can of air freshener. Believe it or not, it took me a little while to figure out that the air freshener is meant to "clear the air" after one takes a poo.

When I first realized this, it was a relief, on some level, because sometimes I feel self conscious about pooping at work and if there is air freshener in the bathroom for covering up poop smells then I must not be the only one who does it.

But after I got past that slightly liberated feeling, I realized that I really don't like the air freshener. It claims to "neutralize" smells, but it has a very strong scent which I, personally, find to be unpleasant. If a large amount of it has been sprayed I almost don't want to breathe while I'm in the bathroom. I think I would honestly rather smell the scent of other people's poop than breathe in, what I'm sure are, toxic fumes.

And it certainly isn't subtle. You are not hiding from anyone the fact that you pooped. Maybe other people aren't as worried about pooping subtlety as I am, but I feel like the air freshener smell screams to the world, "After I was in the bathroom, the air needed freshening!"

It gets worse, though. Now that I know what the air freshener is for, I worry that others might think I am being discourteous if I leave my own poop smell rather than covering it up with the scent of fake flowers. So even though I don't like it, I use the air freshener, too. I try to spray just the littlest bit right near the toilet so it's not up in the air people breathe. I figure at least I'm on my out of the bathroom so I don't have to smell it. But if other people really want to, I won't stop them.

In The Life of Mammals, David Attenborough says that animals that live in communities develop larger brains to help them think through social issues. This is why people are so smart compared to other animals: Because we live and work together and have to think about things like whether to cover up the smell of our poop.

Something Useful

This week was somewhat long and Friday was a long day even though I only had one class. We had chapel in the morning and then a book vendor came to show books to me and my colleague. I had to eat lunch an hour later than I usually do because of this visit (thank goodness the morning sickness has passed or that wouldn't have gone well). So once I was finally fed and feeling human again it was just about time for my class.

I taught the 4th graders more about the library catalog this week. They mostly use the interface that is geared at younger kids. Very easy to use, but few features. So I showed them how, with the regular interface, they could narrow their search by clicking on "fiction" or "non-fiction" or one of the subjects or authors that came up from their search or a lot of other things. I let them play with the catalog on their lap tops. Then I showed them a map of the library and wrote down which types of call numbers correspond with which sections. J 398.2 is non fiction. J Avi is fiction. E Friend is a picture book. Etc.

As they were leaving the classroom to check out books, several of the students in Friday's class thanked me. Like, very sincerely, thanked me for teaching them something they knew would be useful. I know it is not the most exciting topic, but I tried to make it interesting and I guess, with at least a few, I got through to them. It made my week.

I Hear You

As a librarian, I often have a swarm of children following me around saying "Mrs. Nelson! Mrs. Nelson!" even when they can see that I am helping another student. Helping each of my students is important to me but I generally have to do so one at a time. I've tried telling the students yelling out my name that I am helping someone else, I'll be with them in a minute. I've tried saying "I'll be right there" or "Head in that direction and I'll catch up." But often they just go back to following me around, calling my name, and demanding immediate, undivided attention.

I have found the magic phrase: "I hear you." Not uttered in an exasperated or sarcastic way like "Of course I hear you, you have said my name ten times at the top of your voice." But just a calm, "I hear you." You do have my attention and you will get the help you need.

It is simple and beautiful and it helps me remember that these children aren't really impatient. They just want to be heard.


Copyright Science Photo Library

Future

This comic reminded me of something that happened in one of my classes last week before the snow shut down the entire state of Georgia.

I teach 3rd, 4th, and 5th grade classes when they come to the library. The 5th graders have been the most challenging to keep engaged and on task. The 4th graders are practically always angels, or at least good natured about whatever little mischief they get into. And the 3rd graders vacillate between the two.

Most days I see one to three classes that all belong to the same grade, but there is one day of the rotation that I see two 5th grade classes, followed by a 4th grade class. I really, really love this 4th grade class. At first I thought they just seemed extra great by comparison, but, no, really, they are sweet hearts.

Last week, when I had this class, however, they were being uncharacteristically difficult to teach. Silly, not bad, but it was still hard to get through the lesson. I finally told them, "Look, you are my moment of zen after those 5th grade classes!"

One of the students looked at me and said, "But we're just future 5th graders."

Say it ain't so.

Amazing Things That Happened in 2010

• I got to spend 8 months at home with my new baby!
• I got my dream job
• John and I moved into our own apartment
• I got my first paying storytelling gig
• John got a new job working from home
• Virginia turned 1

2008 and 2009 were years filled with huge changes, marriage, a move to England, a move back to the US, the birth of our first baby...

2010 actually had a slower pace than the previous years. It was a year of my life coming together. I am very happy.

Deja Vu All Over Again

When I worked for the public library several years ago I commuted for a while before getting my own apartment. One day a week I worked late and drove home in the dark. In the fall sometimes it was very windy and leaves would fly around. It was on one of those nights that a bat flew into my car. It looked like a leaf and I had no warning that it was coming. It left a tiny crack in my windshield.

A week or two later I was driving home in the dark and talking to John on the phone. It was windy and leaves were flying around. I told John I was gong to get off the phone with him because the last time there were leaves flying around a bat flew into my..."HOLY CRAP!" That's right. A bat hit my car AGAIN. This time it bounced off the side.

Fast forward to the present day.

When I get Virginia ready for a bath I strip her down, let her stand in the bathroom naked - holding onto the side of the tub, then fill her little ducky tub with water. Two baths ago, while Virginia was standing in the bathroom, she peed all over her legs, feet, and the bathroom floor.

Before her last bath time, when I took off Virginia's diaper, I noticed that it was dry. I said, "You're not going to pee on the floor again, are you?" Then I let her stand in the bathroom naked while I filled her tub.

She peed on the floor again. This time she danced around in it, or just tried to get it off her feet (picture a cat walking in snow).

So I am left wondering, am I clairvoyant or just bad at learning from my past experiences?

It's All Greek?

My fifth graders are working on book talk projects. One group made a film yesterday and wanted me to help them with a pronunciation before they started rolling.

A group member came to get me saying, "We don't know how to pronounce this word. The book has a lot of Greek in it."

The book they are book talking is part of the Percy Jackson series, so I was thinking they needed help with the name of a god or monster. You know, a word that was, as they said, Greek.



The word was "celestial."

Now, I totally get that a fifth grader might not know what this word means right off, or how to pronounce it. But their rationalization that it was hard because it was Greek, although a good guess given the context, was a little off.

(It comes from Latin.)

(Yes, I am a nerd.)

Amazing Things My Students Said

I saw two third grade classes yesterday and students said amazing things to me in both of them.

In the first class there is a boy who sometimes struggles with being on task and also struggled a little with the group work we are doing the first day we started. I talked to him and his group about everyone contributing in their own way and things got better. The last time they visited the library he did a lot of book-finding for their research. I noticed that he really knew how to find books using the call number (something that continues to be difficult for many students), and I complimented him. Yesterday he told me, "Ever since you told me I was good at finding books, I've gotten even better. I just helped four people find their books!" Then he wandered off to finally look for his own books.

Then, in the second class, one little girl told me that library is her favorite thing and she loves the research project we are doing right now, and she loves checking out books. Then she gave me a hug.

I'm a new teacher and sometimes I wonder if I'm doing all the right things with my students. Yesterday, I knew I had done something right.

Snail Hat!

For reasons unknown I suddenly decided to crochet Virginia a hat. This was a ridiculous idea because her head is growing and she probably won't be able to wear the hat again next year. Also, I hadn't crocheted in a while (years?). Also, even when I used to crochet I only did rows, no circles.

And yet, I felt the need to do this thing.

Like a good librarian I checked out a book (with pictures) from the our school library. It's a kid's crochet book, so it's easy to follow. It has a whole section on circular crochet including how to make circular pillows and hats.

After many failed starting attempts I finally got the hat underway (circular crochet requires counting stitches - not one of my strong points). I decided to crochet ear flaps and ties since Virginia is pretty good at taking hats off.

Then I decided the hat needed decoration. I used a snail pattern from the pillow section, and put the snail on the hat!

Then I added tassels.

Behold!

Found It!

A student came to me today with one of those requests that seemed impossible. He wanted a specific book. It has that thing in it from A Wrinkle in Time. Yeah, a tesseract. There are houses on the cover. No, it's not another Madeleine L'Engle book.

How many books can there be that have tesseracts in them? I looked on NoveList, which I've been encouraging the kids to do when they are wondering what to read next. If this student thought his book was like A Wrinkle in Time, maybe NoveList did, too.

And it worked. I typed in A Wrinkle in Time, looked at the "NoveList Also Recommends" section of the page. Before I could even say anything, he pointed at the screen and said, "That's it!" (When You Reach Me by Rebecca Stead - I haven't read it so please don't hold me accountable if it is not actually like A Wrinkle in Time at all.)

Then we found it in the catalog and he had the desired book in hand.

I love it when a good librarian plus good technology results in a good library experience!

Overheard

The past two days have been especially good for funny gems from my students.

Yesterday I had a third grade class I was teaching about folktales. We had already spent one lesson on folk tales and fairy tales. Yesterday we were focusing on tall tales. I read them the story "Pecos Bill," asked them what exaggerations they heard, and then let them play add-on telephone. We had played telephone at the beginning of the last class to demonstrate how folktales change with retelling (but hopefully retain some of their original message). I thought playing again would be a fun way to end class, and letting them purposely add to or change the message could let them experiment with exaggeration. The young man who went first informed us that his phrase had been "bunnies like pie." Twenty children later it turned into "fart pie on a bucking bronco."

Today I had two fifth grade classes and a fourth grade class. During book check-out time for the first fifth grade class several gentlemen were standing around a computer, performing various searches and talking to each other. A cheerleading book showed up on the screen and one young man said, "My sister's a cheerleader."

Another young man said, "Oh, your sister's a cheerleader?"

The first young man answered, "She's too old for you, son."

Book Book Book

Virginia said her first word this week! It was "book."

Very fitting, since I am a librarian and John is a lawyer. We think we may teach her to say "database" next.

But seriously, the fact that she has learned to say "book" isn't mystical at all. She plays with a book while having her diaper changed (thanks to the advice of Funky Mama Bird). Every time I change her diaper I hand her the book and say "book."

So now what has started happening is I hand her the book and she says "book!" She definitely knows the changing table book is a book, but she has commented on other books, too. So maybe she has understanding of the Aristotelian concept of book-ness.

Virginia also claps and occasionally holds her arms up over her head to indicate that she is "so big." It is very exciting to realize that she understands what we are saying to her and is able to respond.

Energy

My last class of the day was rather lively and I had to take away necklaces from two boys. The necklaces looked, to me, like bungee cords. The boys had removed them from their necks and were swatting things with them.

When the teacher came to pick up the class I simply handed the necklaces over. She said "You know these are titanium, right?"

"Nope."

"Yeah, they are supposed to give you energy."

I was shocked. I had to ask, "These kids need more energy?"

Then after thinking for a moment about how I'm having a hard time adjusting to waking up earlier I added, "Maybe I should get one."

That's when she told me, "They are expensive."

She asked one of the young men I had confiscated a necklace from how much his had been.

"$60."

How much should I be willing to pay to be able to keep up with my students?

Andre the Canadian?

As part of the first-day-of-library activities I have been having all my classes make name cards. That way I can learn their names and if I ever need to assign them seats I can do it easily. Since I saw the last of my classes today (we start the second rotation tomorrow) my speech about the name cards had gotten pretty long. I've been learning along the way.

Their names have to be big enough and dark enough for me to read them.

They have to write the name they go by in class.

They can draw pictures, but the pictures need to be school-appropriate.

The pictures should not obscure their name.

Anyway, one of my students asked me today if he could go by "Andre" (shortened from "Andrew"). I have no problem with shortened versions of their names. I was just telling them to write down what their teacher calls them to avoid things like "Scooby-Doo" and "Bat Man." I wasn't going to object, but he apparently felt he needed to explain further because he said, "It's okay for me to go by Andre because I'm half Canadian."

I love working with kids.

My People

There is a book on the summer reading list that all the fifth graders had to read. I found out right away that most of the students strongly disliked it, so I started encouraging discussion.

Now, I have not read this book. And once I realized it was going to be a discussion topic I should have at least read a good summary. But I didn't. I just kept asking the students to talk about their feelings on the book.

There have been one or two students in each class who do like it, though. And I try to get them to talk too, to get a different perspective. In one of the classes a young lady told me she liked the book because she liked reading about "her people."

This young lady has beautiful tan skin and curly black hair. Her race simply isn't obvious. I had to ask her, "What people are we talking about?"

As it turns out, we were talking about African Americans. It's a civil rights book.

Boy am I an idiot.

I have listened to another of K. L. Going's books on CD, for what it's worth.

Won't Be Worried Long

Way back when we were living in England I started my job search. I even wrote a song about it.

Then John and I moved home and I was still worried. More worried, even. I added some verses.

Well, as the song promised, I wasn't worried long. At least as far as the job search was concerned. I have recently started my new job as a private school librarian. The students came back to school this week and I taught my first classes.

As my job search went on and on I began to think I would have to settle for a job that wasn't an ideal fit. Instead I found a job that is better than I could have hoped. I am truly loving it!

Will I really stop worrying?

There is always something to worry about, and to quote my dear friend Jeff, "Telling me not to worry is like telling me not to breathe. Eventually I'll pass out and do it anyway."

Ants

I started work on Thursday. It was the first of three new faculty orientation days. Then there will be the teacher work days and school doesn't start for the students for over another week.

Anyway, on Thursday there were some ants in the library. I won't go into great detail because the school is very nice and I don't want to give the impression that there were ants because it is dirty or anything like that. These things just happen sometimes, especially when it is really hot outside and ants can't find water.

My fellow librarian put out some bait for the ants and when I returned to work yesterday they were gone (whew!). I spent the morning meeting other faculty and learning how to use the library cataloging and circulation software. In the afternoon I was in the office working on my own when the exterminator came.

We had put in a work order for someone to take care of the ants. I went out to talk to him. Told him where the ants had been and that our solution seemed to have worked. He sprayed a little bit for good measure, then wanted me to write the school address on the invoice and sign it.

I am not good at recalling things like addresses unless I make a point of remembering them. (I'm still shaky on our new home address.) I didn't know the school address. It wasn't written on anything that was lying around the circulation desk. He saw me looking around and said, "I'm stressin' you out, baby! I'm sorry."

"No, no. It's okay." I said. "I'm new, I just need to look up the address."

"You don't have any kids, do you?" He asked.

"Actually," I said, "I have an eight month old little girl"

"Oh, you a new mom. No wonder you stressed. You get away from the baby and someone come to work and stress you out."

"You're not stressing me out." I said. "I'm fine."

Then he asked. "You got some water around here?"

I looked around and frowned. "Umm."

"I'm stressin' you out again, baby. I'll go look in the office."

Here I am starting a new job, trying to exude confidence. I can teach classes. I can order books. I am awesome.

But the exterminator saw right through me.

Education

I am about halfway done with my current educational endeavor. If all goes as planned I should graduate next spring with a Specialist degree in Education for School Library Media. (Translation: I will be certified to be a media specialist in Georgia and will have slightly more education than is strictly required.)

As I have continued my education it has gotten progressively more practical. I studied Latin and English as an undergraduate -- fun! but not so much subjects that prepare you for the working world. Then I got a Masters in Library Information Studies. I did this with the aim of learning a profession and getting a job. Similarly, this Specialist degree is about the jobs I can get with it.

However, I have learned that practical degrees can still be fun. I enjoyed library school immensely and still think fondly of my Print Culture class especially. (I am fascinated by the differences between orality, literacy, print culture, 2.0 culture, etc.) And now I have started the Applied Project I have to complete for my Specialist degree. This was described by one of my professors as more than a Master's thesis but less than a Doctoral dissertation.

I am thinking about collecting jokes from my students in order to learn more about them. The first assignment I have had to complete on my Applied Project journey was an annotated bibliography. I did let it get a little down to the wire and had to put some serious last minute hours into my bibliography but -- it was fun! Have you ever read scholarly articles on jokes? Maybe not everyone's idea of a good time, but I think they are great.

I am really enjoying being in school right now and I am enjoying this project especially. It is still in the early stages, but hopefully it will continue to be a pleasant learning experience.

Thinking about jokes, I remembered that I had written up a joke experience from when I was working in Athens. I dug it out, dusted it off, and posted it here.

Reading

I read to Virginia every day. I started reading to her in the early days after she was born while she was nursing. I read novels aloud to her like The Christmas Carol (Virginia was born on December 6) and Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone. Since then I've started reading her children's novels from the library that I want to review and we no longer read every time she nurses since I've learned this is a prime time for computer work.

However, I do make time to read her picture books while we sit together on the floor. Sometime she sits in my lap. Sometimes I prop her up in front of me so she can see my face. (As a trained children's librarian I am awesome at reading upside down.) She likes to help turn pages and taste the books. When we read a board book I give it to her afterwards to properly gum.

I've started opening the board books and setting them on the floor for her to roll over to and do with as she will. This morning she rolled over to The Runaway Bunny (a gift from another children's librarian, Ms. Jackie), held it open in front of her, and babbled.

I'm so proud!