Interview with Tammy Denton

Pirates!

After spending a recent day with my youngest granddaughter visiting the new little “pirate” park off of Hinton Avenue and firing off the canon on the “pirate” ship at The Children's Museum of Wilmington, I was prompted to dig out an old “pirate” unit that I used back in 2007. When I found the “pirate” supplies in my attic, I was surprised to see that the stack of accumulated materials was almost 4 feet high. Hearing my husband's voice in my head that says “some day the attic is going to cave in on us because houses were not built to hold that amount of sh#%&,” I decided to pull out the “pirate” unit and share it.

During my years in the classroom, I always appreciated donations made by retired teachers. I especially appreciated the materials that came sorted and notated. So my goal for my “pirate' unit was to sort it, catalog it, and divide it appropriately by age level and usefulness.

As I started the process of unpacking and spreading all the materials out over two bedrooms, I was reminded how gifted our staff was, how great our resources were, and how much the children enjoyed the activities. The “pirate” unit back in 2007 was our kick-off, back-to-school theme and it carried us even to the end of the year with a field trip to that “pirate” ship at The Children's Museum of Wilmington.

Of course we didn't have a “pirate” ship at school so we built one. My husband was retired and I enlisted his help in building one. With only three refrigerator boxes and Mr. McGroovy's BOX RIVETS, anybody can have a “pirate” ship large enough to accommodate an entire class of preschoolers. The children really took ownership of the project because they helped paint it. It was so cute that WECT-TV came out and filmed the three year old class and showed them on the six o'clock news. As seen below in WILMINGTON PARENT, it was also featured in our school advertising for many years.

This unit was very amazing because it cut across so many areas of our curriculum---art center, free play, dress-up, puppets, music, circle time, bulletin boards, classroom speakers, snack time, field trips, playground, library books, etc. It was all encompassing. It was embraced by staff and children alike. Plus it was very flexible and adaptable as to age level appropriateness. Like in painting the ship, the two's could paint as long and as high as they wanted and the kindergarten could paint as long and as high as they liked. It was definitely a “one size fits all” unit.

In addition this unit was a showcase for our staff. It let the parents see how gifted, enthusiastic and resourceful the teachers could be. Our bulletin boards were amazing, all the activities were happily embraced by the children, and the parents appreciated the value on the return from their investment in our program.

I have always been a proponent of local resources like the public library, retail establishments, and parent volunteers. In 2007 the New Hanover County Public Library provided us with a “theme bag” full of “pirate” titles. Each child was sent home with a “pirate” bookmark (seen below) listing all the titles being read during the unit. Local pet stores generally are willing to allow classes to visit and often times parents are willing to bring a family pet to the classroom. Real parrots were definitely a part of this unit.

This unit allowed us to immerse the children in “pirate” music, language, songs, and finger plays. As was our custom, each art center time project was sent home with an appropriate song or finger play. The accompanying songs and finger plays informed the parents as to the correct lyrics or words being said by their children. Our music teacher did a fantastic job of providing a variety of musical experiences during her time with each age level. In addition to singing songs, the music teacher provided opportunities to listen to “pirate” musical instruments----drums, flutes, accordions, fiddles, etc. (1). She would teach them to move or dance like a pirate, act like a pirate, or even work like a pirate. Two of the favorite songs were BLOW THE MAN DOWN and MY BONNIE LIES OVER THE OCEAN.

Since the unit was a kick-off for a new school year, there were fun “pirate-like” activities to do during circle time instead of the usual, get-to-know-you activities. Since a “pirate” has to know how to use a “spyglass,” we played a form of “I Spy” during circle time. Each child got a turn with the “spyglass” to look across the circle and name the child in view. The children created “pirate” names by adding “pirate” titles to their own names. Circle time was also filled with puppets, finger plays and “pirate” vocabulary words. Talking like a parrot was fun also.

Since our playground was huge and very sandy we had plenty of opportunities to play with treasure maps and toy compasses. The children used sandbox shovels to dig up the buried treasure---jewels, rings, coins, etc.(2) The children also created their own treasure maps using the side of a brown paper bag, rubber stamps, and markers to make big X's to “mark the spots.” To give the maps a little authenticity and aged look we had the children crumple and wad up the maps after they drew them. When the maps are smoothed out, they look very old! The toy compasses were adequate enough to introduce N, S, E, and W as directions to travel (early literacy!).

We had a set of guiding principals concerning art center time at our school. Art center time occurred everyday, teachers worked one-to-one with their students, and activities were selected according to the weekly skill chart (MT---cutting, W---gluing, and THF---painting). In addition, activities for art center time were created or selected with thoughts concerning “process vs product,” unit being studied, and season (inside or outside, etc.). As a point of clarification, cutting, for example, was not strictly with scissors. Cutting could include tearing, ripping, folding, rubbing, tracing, shelling, etc. or the use of tweezers, plastic knives, sewing needles, hole punchers, etc. Gluing always centered around assembly, but painting could occur in many forms (sponge, finger, easel, stamping, printing, drizzle, etc.).

With a unit like this one, it was a challenge to find or develop correlated projects for art center time. A favorite go-to source for classroom supplies was SHAPES ETC. It is easy to take a pad of their NOTEPAD creations (large or small) and turn them into sewing cards, dioramas, puzzles, or stick puppets. Shown below are examples (with the help of lamination) how we created projects for art center time--- “pirate” sewing card, digging diorama, and stick puppet (each project went home with an accompanying “pirate” song or finger play introduced during music or circle time).

We always asked parents to save items for the classrooms. Two of our most desired items were paper towel rolls and toilet paper rolls.(3) For this unit we used construction paper wrapped paper towel rolls to make the cutest “spyglasses.” The biggest hit was when the children cut a section of paper towel roll in half and glued a large parrot to the roll. The parrot could be worn cuff style on a wrist or perched “pirate” style on a shoulder. 

 

 

Our staff was never shy about dressing up. One teacher had her own adult “pirate” costume. She was also very good at doing voices and being very dramatic while reading aloud. She treated the children to a “day-with-a-pirate!” She wore her costume to school and stayed in character as she encountered and conversed with the children. She shared a lot of “Ahoy me Hearty!,” AR, AR, AR's,” Aye Matey!,” “Yo Ho, Yo Ho!” and “Shiver me timbers!” (4)

The children also liked to dress up so we often made wearable items during art center time.(a hint concerning a project's success was always how quickly the children donned their items when their parents arrived for pick-up). The “pirate” earrings made from a rolled strip of aluminum foil and a rubber band were a hit with the boys and the girls. Three types of headgear were created during art center time----one was for cutting, one was for gluing, and one was for painting. We copied one Captain's hat from Long John Silver's restaurant chain which was done as a cutting project (this technique was often employed for cutting which called for the children to cut along a designated line). Another Captain's hat was a gluing project, but the most popular hat was the tied on scarf accompanied by an eye-patch and washable “pirate” tattoo (this project was done on a painting day).

During comprehensive units we often brought special toys into classroom centers for free play time. Special garments or objects were added to the dress-up clothes like pirate costumes, treasure chests filled with old jewelry, compasses, spyglasses, eye patches, play mops, a “pirate” Jolly Roger flag, etc. Bendable pirates were added to the block centers. Large Melissa and Doug floor puzzles and wooden table puzzles depicting “pirate” scenes were added to the puzzle collection. Some parents shared “pirate” sets from home like a “pirate-themed” Mr. Potato Head, a Fisher Price Pirate Ship and Island with accessories, a Playtown “Timbers B. Shiverin” with accessories. A large stuffed parrot and a large “pirate” puppet were added to the puppet stage. A hammock was tied between two trees on the playground so the children could sleep like “pirates.”

Eating like a “pirate” was a bit of a challenge, but zwieback or Biscotti could serve as a substitute for “hard tack.” Canned sardines might be introduced, but don't plan on much sampling!

With big kick-off units we always created “welcome” scenes for the preschoolers for the first week of school. For this unit the children were greeted by six foot tall “pirate” inflatables at each entrance. Later the inflatables were used to create a “photo booth” scene at the “pirate” ship. All the classes dressed up for picture taking sessions at the end of the unit.

1. CD: PRACTICAL POP AND BUCCANEER ROCK FOR SCALLYWAGGS OF ALL AGES
2. ORIENTAL TRADING COMPANY INC.
3. Supplies could be in jeopardy if manufacturers start producing “roll-less” products!
4. PIRATE: “Things to do and Make!” and The Great PIRATE Activity Book

275 Celebration Wilmington

I was thrilled back in 1979 when we arrived in Wilmington because I was going to be living at the beach! However, the beach has not been what has fascinated me about living in Wilmington for the last 35 years. Instead, I have grown to appreciate Wilmington's historical significance as a city/port in one of the 13 original colonies.

As a child, I always liked history. When I was in middle school, I discovered the book, JOHNNY TREMAIN by Esther Forbes. It is a children's historical novel set in Boston prior to and during the outbreak of the American Revolution.(1) At 12 years of age it was probably the longest and most exciting book that I had ever read. Having grown up learning to read with “Dick and Jane” type books, this Newbery Award winner opened up a whole new world of reading for me.

So discovering the historical significance of Wilmington was like experiencing JOHNNY TREMAIN all over again. Initially, I was just in awe of the “oldness” of everything. I also liked the Wilmington location because my “southern” experience was going to be broadened. In our last location which was in Louisiana, our “southern” experience had more to do with Huey Long (you know FDR had him shot!) and the “War of Northern Aggression.”

Right after Hurricane David we acquired a home along Masonboro Sound Road. It turned out to be a very fortuitous selection. It was this road that gave me my JOHNNY TREMAIN moment about Wilmington. One day while biking along Masonboro Sound Road, I spotted a tombstone. It caught my attention because of its location on the edge of the road instead of being in a cemetery. I stopped to get a closer look at the inscription---”Residence of William Hooper, Signer of the Declaration of Independence, New Hanover Historical Commission, J. J. Howell, E.S. Martin, James Sprunt, and W. A. McGirt ” I was thunderstruck to think that I was experiencing a view of the water just like a signer of the Declaration of Independence. It was thrilling to know that I was standing in an area that had been lived on over 200 years earlier. If Facebook had been around in 1979, I would have made a “selfie” and posted it on my page.

I carried this fascination with Wilmington being the home to William Hooper into my classroom every summer when we studied about and celebrated the Fourth of July. I've been known to take a classroom of children to the tombstone marker site so they could experience the same view of the water as William Hooper. We often would reenact the signing of the Declaration of Independence by having the children sign their names with quills, a jar of ink, and parchment paper. Sometimes the children would even go home and tell their parents what I had said about the marker. Below is a picture of students visiting the marker! (2)

My next JOHNNY TREMAIN experience with Wilmington occurred as a result of our daughter doing a project for Southern Studies at Cape Fear Academy.

The assignment called for a “family history” report. In helping our daughter gather all the information that she needed, I discovered that my husband's family had a Revolutionary War patriot on their family tree. Gutridge Garland was born in Halifax County, North Carolina in 1753 and lived in Rowan County, North Carolina. His wife's father, Andrew Hampton, was a colonel during the American Revolution. Even though Gutridge did not fight at the Moore's Creek Battlefield, it still makes living in Wilmington very special for our family. Our children and grandchildren will feel and know that their ancestors helped win the “Battle for Independence” and kept Wilmington safe for future generations.

(1) JOHNNY TREMAIN, Wikipedia

(2) Avery and Sam Theriault

New Version of Bible School

Recently I spent 5 evenings helping with Bible School at our church. This is an undertaking that I had not experienced in the last 25 years because our youngest is 36 years old. Bible School has definitely evolved even more since the days of my youth when marching around and singing ONWARD, CHRISTIAN SOLDIERS was the most active part of the morning.

I was very pleased to find that some very sound educational theories had been tapped in the preparation of the curriculum materials. The Bible School lessons were steeped in the concrete with full immersion lessons prepared to teach the concepts of the Bible stories. This particular curriculum was WILDERNESS ESCAPE: “Where God Guides and Provides!”

The children were divided by age level and assigned to one of 8 tribes (Asher, Benjamin, Gad, Joseph, Judah, Levi, Rueben, and Simeon). My tribe was Simeon which consisted of a small group of rising 2^nd graders. We had a tribal rug to sit upon. We, like the real Israelites, rolled up our rug and carried it with us as we traveled. We also traveled with a basket to carry our goods from the Market Place. We had tribal meetings and we wrote a tribal cheer to the tune of BINGO! (a little artistic license was taken to make the name fit the song, but the kids felt comfortable with it)

“There was a tribe that had a name and Simeon was its name-o!

“S-i-meon! S-i-meon! S-i-meon!”

“And Simeon was its name-o!”

The Market Place was a very “hands-on” experience for the children. It was a great improvement over the traditional approach to classroom “arts 'n crafts.” Each decorated tent in the Market Place represented some aspect of life for the Israelites (tents are pictured below). In the tent posted as daily life or chores the children washed clothes, kneaded bread, pumped water, churned butter, and crushed grapes. In the tent representing the artisans the children molded clay, sewed sandals, wove mats, braided ropes, and strung tambourines. In the tent where food was sampled the children tasted manna (cereal), hummus, figs, grapes, cheese, and sand! 

Built into the evenings were opportunities to play outside and experience some of the physical challenges that the Israelites faced in the desert. Relay races were created to simulate the problems faced by the tribal members like camel spit, long marches, melting headdresses, packing and unpacking, and physical stamina. The favorite relay was the “inflatable bounce house” obstacle course. Below are pictures to illustrate how serious the tribe members were about being fast and strong!

During the final tribal meeting of each evening, the children heard a Bible verse and were asked to report God sightings. The reported God sightings were printed on “footprint” stickers which were added to the posters illustrating Moses' trek. One little guy in our tribe was so sincere when he knew that finding his lost pig, Pork Chop, and his lost truck while on vacation were truly God sightings.

Each evening also included a visit with Moses at his tent. Moses was dressed appropriately in a period costume. Each visit with Moses told of the journey and the reactions of the Israelites. The first evening included following Moses through the parted Red Sea. (This made a real impression with the children because they repeatedly asked to go through the Red Sea as the tribe traveled together from tent to tent.) The second visit with Moses concerned “complaining people” and how God rained down quail and provided “manna.” Each tribe member roasted a “Peep” quail over the camp fire and gathered cereal “manna” off the ground. After this visit I did feel the need to bring along Egermeier's BIBLE STORY BOOK to help with a few Biblical pictures for clarification. The third visit with Moses concerned the battle with the Amalekites. The children took turns like Aaron and Hud to help Moses hold up his rod so that the Israelites could defeat the Amalekites. The fourth visit was about Passover and the visit from the Death Angel. The children smeared “blood” paint on their tent and ate unleavened “pita-style” bread. The last visit with Moses covered the meaning of each of the Ten Commandments with a reciting and discussion.

My biggest obstacle to overcome in order to help the children have a joyful experience was my lack of familiarity with the “current” music used for worship and praise. Each evening opened with musical celebration and closed with musical celebration. The new “praise” music genre is very unfamiliar to me. The first night I felt very stiff and uncomfortable with the new style of music, but by the last evening I was moving to the beat of the new rhythms and much more comfortable with the new style. I eventually felt comfortable participating in a “hora” circle dance and singing along with SHALOM at the end of each evening.

It felt strange with Bible School being in the evenings. I understand the need for adjusting the timetable in order to get the needed volunteers from among working parents. I also understand the idea of providing supper so that families could come straight to the church from work and day care. However, I still believe that the children are more receptive and attentive in the mornings. I felt that the children were a little rushed in their visits with Moses because of the tight, short time frame (5:30pm to 8:00pm). Supper time was included in that short time frame which also caused the children to be rushed while working on their crafts in the Market Place.

Overall Bible School was a nice, new experience to add to my “retirement” repertoire. I would definitely volunteer again next year!

Career Day - A Peek Into The Future

During my recent subbing stint with 6^th graders, I was left to create lesson plans for a group who only wanted school to be over. As I always do, I checked my calendar resources. Fortunately the school calendar listed a Career Day involving parent participation. I didn't know any of the parents so I was left with no choice, but to create some activities for the class!

Since the class was comfortable with “morning sheets” I created a matching sheet with job titles listed down the left side and job descriptions on the right side. (There is a sample of the matching sheet attached.) I also stirred things up by rearranging their desks into a double horseshoe so that we could have group discussions. I allowed them to refer to classroom dictionaries and to each other for matches. When they did ask for help, I tried only to give them hints about the jobs. Unfortunately all the dictionaries in the classroom were not of equal quality so a lot of sharing had to occur. When a sufficient amount of time had elapsed, a group discussion of the 24 jobs took place. I tried to get them to understand connections to real life situations. For example, during the discussion for entomologist, I asked them why it would be important to be an expert on insects----bees as pollinators for our food source, bugs as a source of food for pets, etc.

Taped up pages of want ads from the local STAR News at the front of the classroom. Asked them to think about what jobs are available and what skills were needed to perform those jobs. Left this activity up as a free choice activity during lunch and breaks. Class discussions will return to these pages later.

Next I spread out an assortment of magazines---POPULAR MECHANICS, POPULAR SCIENCE, OUR STATE, SOUTHERN LIVING. There were enough magazines so that each student could pick two. The class was given time to peruse the periodicals and look for articles about jobs that might interest them. Next each student was asked to share with the class an occupation of interest found in one of the magazines and tell what they might need to do to get that kind of job. These particular periodicals were great because they had a lot of pictures showing people doing various jobs currently or in the future. Even some of the advertising in the magazines was helpful to illustrate or prompt a student to think about a career choice.

The next activity involved information that I had found online from the Michigan Council of Women in Technology. I shared that Information Technology jobs were good jobs for the future and that not many women are presently working in this field. The premise of this type of work is that “computers are dumb, and they need humans in order to operate!” As soon as 2020, it is believed that there will be 1.4 million IT jobs available. IT jobs are considered more stable and offer better pay. At the present time only 18% of computing and IT science degrees go to women and companies are looking for women with this type expertise.(1) I also pointed out that IT companies are looking for creative people---types who think outside the box! I shared an interview technique used by many companies that tries to determine how creative a thinker an applicant is. A job interviewer will hand an applicant a ballpoint pen and ask him to name or list all the possible uses for the pen. The job interviewer is looking for creative people who are not afraid to “take the pen apart.” I shared the story of the surgeon who saved someone by using the case from a ballpoint pen during an emergency tracheotomy.

After the IT discussion I presented them with a challenge. I asked them to create something from a cardboard box, a pencil, and duct tape. I supplied boxes of various sizes and shapes, they all had pencils and I provided rolls of duct tape to be shared. Each student picked one box. They also had to name their creation and give a little spiel about it to the class. A secret ballot was held for 1^st, 2^nd, and 3^rd place and prizes (giant Tootsie Rolls from the Dollar Store) were awarded. The variety of ideas was amazing----very simple to quite complex, very quick to quite time consuming, and very typical to quite unusual. Pictures of the “challenge” creations are attached to this blog.

The last task before going home was to list an occupation of interest that could be illustrated to the class the next day by way of a demonstration, a picture, a story, a prop, etc. The list included vet, gymnast, marine biologist, singer, dancer, basketball player, travel agent, football player, skate crew, engineer, paleontologist, and “velociraptor!” The next day the students brought in basketballs, footballs, Legos, stuffed animals, choreographed skits, songs, skate boards, fossils, and a toy dinosaur robot. The presentations were spread out over the day because of other Career Day activities. The presentations were generally gender typical with the girls being the singers and the dancers and the boys being the ball players and the skate boarders.

On Career Day the 6^th graders did join the 7^th and 8^th graders to complete a packet called CAREER DAY PREPARATION ACTIVITIES from the Vermont Student Assistance Corporation. The students were also visited by a parent who owns her own recording label and performs, a parent who is a chemist and tests water, and a parent who is retired military and works as a warden. Other special activities included watching episodes of DIRTY JOBS hosted by creator, Mike Rowe---collecting alligator eggs (my husband watches SWAMP PEOPLE so I had a little background to share), collecting kelp and feeding it to abalone (I had been to a similar California pier/restaurant where the sea lions perch under the glass top tables), and creating special effects make-up.

Career Day seemed an enjoyable experience considering it was the last in-class activity before the last day of school. The remaining week included an all day Field Trip, Field Day outside, an Awards Ceremony, and Graduation.

(1) According to “How do we get girls to code? Initiatives seek answers” by Hayley Tsukayama at THE WASHINGTON POST, Google is launching an all-star group initiative aimed at getting girls excited about computer science and coding. The initiative, called “Made with Code,” will invite teenage girls to start projects in its “Blockly” visual programming editor. STAR News, Sunday, June 22, 2014

A Classroom Calendar Correlation

During my years in the classroom, I always liked to teach to the calendar-----meaning I preferred to build a unit or present a topic in a timely manner with an actual event, holiday, celebration, season, remembrance, etc. Since a feeling for history is hard to establish for young children, it makes more sense to talk about, for example, the Pilgrims at the actual time of year for harvesting and preparing for winter-----not say in May! If you want children to have an understanding for the direness and gratitude felt by the Pilgrims, then the children need to have some concrete connections to the events. Appropriate seasonal weather conditions have the power to cement concepts read about in books or heard about in stories.

Holding to my belief in following the calendar for the classroom, I used a day subbing with a group of 6^th graders after their EOG's as a way to explore three calendar events---a full moon combined with Friday the 13^th, Flag Day, and Father's Day. Using my efforts to make their time as interesting as possible while waiting for the other classes to finish the Science EOG's, I honed in on the fact that it is the 200^th Anniversary of the STAR SPANGLED BANNER. I found information and an interactive website in the June issue of the SMITHSONIAN, the magazine for smithsonian.com.

Luckily, the school is equipped with Wifi, a laptop, and a projector, so I was able to share the interactive website with the entire class. Since they have an American flag on display in their classroom I started the discussion off with having everyone stand and say the Pledge of Allegiance. Next we proceeded to read the information on the interactive website with a game that the class had taught me called “popcorn.” The students take turns reading until they are tired which then calls for the reader to say “popcorn!” Hands then go up for volunteers to be called on to continue the reading. At the end of each section of the informational reading on the website was a question to be answered before they could move on to the next section. It was amazing to see how engaged they were about getting each question correct in order to read more about the history surrounding the song and the flag.

After finishing the website, I presented the class with examples taken from the SMITHSONIAN magazine which showed artworks that were inspired by the flag which had been seen by Francis Scott Key. There were examples by painters, poets, musicians, cartoonists, and weavers. Of course the one to catch the attention of these 6^th graders was the piece done by the team at Ralph Lauren's studio. Next I challenged them to create something red, white, and blue to represent how they felt about the STAR SPANGLED BANNER and that original flag which has been enshrined at the the Smithsonian since 2008. I put out piles of red, white, and blue scraps from many old projects---paper strips, foam punch outs, wire, tissue paper, ribbon, stickers, etc. In the accompanying pictures are some examples of projects that were created by the students.

Since these students are going to be the class to lead the singing of the STAR SPANGLED BANNER at the school graduation ceremony, I asked them to practice the words. Again using the SMITHSONIAN interactive website we heard the music and saw the words. An interesting discussion occurred when they realized that the words for the STAR SPANGLED BANNER were actually piggy-backed on another popular British song. They saw that it was like singing a nursery rhyme. They all knew that the ABC song (which was based on a Mozart tune) which then became the basis for “Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star” which is the same tune as “Baa, Baa Black Sheep.” After several attempts to sing the STAR SPANGLED BANNER, I realized only one girl in the class knew the words and tune. I am going to have to print off copies for everyone to practice next week.

Happy Flag Day and Happy Birthday to the STAR SPANGLED BANNER!!!