What I learned from Joey-

Cow licked brown headed little boy, so obstinate that we would frequently have to collect him out of grandfather’s car in the morning for that long trek down the first grade wing to my kindergarten room.  So full of himself he often appeared to be busting out of his wrinkled shirt, and yet still wearing Velcro sneakers. Grandpa was a robust country boy, sporting his weathered blue jean overalls and tattered plaid shirts as if he just left feeding the chickens to drive Joey to school, now in his twilight years finds himself the guardian of his grandson.

Joey was a trip.

Missing one of his front teeth, prone to finding himself in time-out and often the first to give condolences to his peers who found themselves warming up the corner with him. He had a lot to say. Mostly “I don’t want to” or “I don’t like that”, and his favorite, “is my five minutes up yet?”

And yet, he was incredibly endearing.

But one day, Joey comes down the hallway strutting his stuff a whole three classrooms ahead of dear Grandpa. Yup, something was up, and apparently it was Joey.  He had a more than usual take-charge attitude which manifested itself in his new found macho-bowed-legged swagger.  I was in fer’ it. It was in the middle of circle time, that I noticed, Joey no longer had on his Velcro sneakers, but cowboy boots. Yup, Hoss had decided to join us in class today. But by recess, Hoss was replaced with the Rifleman, and the screaming and pleading children “Stop it Joey, I don’t want to play!” rang out among the swings and slides.

A warning was issued. “If you throw another child on the ground and “arrest them” I am taking your boots!” Well, you know, the Rifleman doesn’t take too kindly to threats.

But there was a new sheriff in town.  When arriving back in the room, I sat the child up on the table, and with one quick thrust both boots were immediatley removed.  And within the hour Joey had returned to me.

Amazing. I hear so many of my teachers complain about feeling disrespected by parents, principals and children.  Only five years old, and Joey already knew what some of us have chosen to forget in life. We can command Rifleman Respect when we live up to our attire. Other's perceptions of us will be formed by whether or not we are strutting our stuff in flip-flops or cowboy boots.  

Sight word: Girl

A friend of mine, who works in surgery at the local children's hospital, said he has an issue with my "science" behind the Duffy Theory of the rising numbers in Autism. The science??? I pointed him to Paragraph Three where I state: I have NO scientific proof to support this; (just like that other popular doctor).  It was just an idea. An observation.

Jeepers!

But weren't all great things born from just an idea?  I stand behind my unscientific theory. I am going to keep talking about it until someone decides to run some statistics on it. Think about it. The Intelligence Gene. I'll even go as far to say it might even matter the particular kind of intelligence in which the parents excel may play a significant role in this.

Well, on to the real message today. This is a cut, paste and match review page for the word "girl."  It assumes that you have the Reading Rocks program already and your children have mastered the previous 23 words in the program. Tomorrow, I will post pages of the first word in Set Two! Dinosaur!!! You know those boys are going to just love it!  So please stop back and print out your pages.

Additionally, we are running a Sale for the rest of February. www.ReadingReallyRocks.com. Look for Sweetheart Specials.

New Workbook Page

No, there will be no ranting and raving about Dr. Wakefield this week, instead it is time to get back down to the business of moving our children forward. For those of you that have children that are emergent (beginner) readers, I am posting a simple worksheet in PDF format that you can print for your child.  This printout makes a little book for your child to read independently.   This book contains 8 different words. Please review the words before your child starts on the worksheet. They are: red, blue, yellow, green, is, the fish, dog.

Then have your child cut on the black lines and stack the new little pages in numerical order.  You can staple them on the left hand side to make a small book.  In the classroom, I usually cut a strip of construction paper that can be folded in half to make a sturdy cover for the book. The children enjoy writing or coloring a picture on the cover.  Now have them read it to everyone they know!

If you are a teacher and are using the Reading Rocks curriculum, this is a new worksheet that reinforces the word Dog, which is the eighth word in the program.  Please download it and add it to Binder One.  As promised, I will post new material to your existing program in the coming weeks.

Would anyone like this as a Blackline master? If so, let me know and I will design it and post it for you to download.

Keep up your most important work!

The Duffy Theory

So yes, I too was once a believer, that the MMR vaccine could have caused this incredible upsurge in Autism.  It’s an easy, jump.  “My kid was fine, then he had his MMR and after that he was not.”  But as time moved on, more and more research was published, I fell from grace.  In 2009, scientific proof was published, that children with Autism have a rare mutation in certain genes called CNV’s which are deletions or duplications of certain genes in DNA. The interesting thing about this is that all of us have deletions or duplications in the DNA of our genes; it’s just that in children with autism these CNV’s are all clustered along the communication pathways of the brain. 

Understandably people question... “So if it’s genetic, where has it been hiding for the past millennium?” Now, here is a question that opens many doors, and truly is the crux of the problem.  Where has it been hiding?  Have we recently overturned some rock, some catalyst to expose it?

I have my own idea. I have no proof. (But apparently, neither did Wakefield)  It’s just an idea.

I noticed that when I was teaching,  my classroom parents whose children were diagnosed with Autism were particularly bright.  Actually, for the most part, they were significantly more intelligent than the rest of my parents. Hardly a “Regular Joe” among them.  So here’s the Duffy Theory (at least for 2011), perhaps Autism is on the rise because our society today is so mobile, so techie  making the world flat. This makes it easy for two very highly intelligent people to find one another at MIT, at work or even at the State University, marry and have kids together. 

My own father is truly brilliant.  But 50 years ago, women did not fill technical positions, or even university classrooms like they do today.  Dear dad married the sweet pretty girl from the neighborhood (she was great, terrific even).  If that were today perhaps he would have married the sweet brilliant techie girl who helped him fix his printer, while he was cramming for his Calc III exam. We live in a different world.

A connected world.

I suggest that the gene was always there, but now, it is so easy for “liked brains” to find one another. 

Perhaps, this should be studied. The intelligence gene.

Perhaps, Dorothy was right. Maybe when we go looking for our own heart's desire, we shouldn’t look any further than our own back yard.

Dr. Wakefield’s Freakonomics

Twelve kids. That’s where it all started, the ruckus we have today, with 12 kids. Hardly, a large sampling, hardly even a minuscule sampling, practically an invisible sampling when compared to the thousands and thousands of children we have today living with autism.  It gets worst for Dr. Wakefield.  Out of these 12, we have learned that five of the children were diagnosed with being developmentally delayed BEFORE their vaccinations.

Hmm, so now we are down to seven children to make the historical link that autism is caused by vaccinations.

Seven kids. 

Perhaps, he did as Mr. Deer has charged, and the doctor deliberately altered the facts and health histories of these children for financial gain, or perhaps it was just bad science. Many parents believe that this journalist, Brian Deer, is a hired to fuel this witch hunt.  That Wakefield has hurt the bottom line of the pharmaceutical companies and now they have launched their campaign to discredit him.  Pitchforks and torches, included. These parents will never be swayed. They are convinced. They will stand behind Wakefield, at all costs.

But the price is steep.

The aftermath of his Wakefield's findings had sweeping repercussions. Children have died from not receiving their vaccinations from this scare. The elderly and the immune compromised have been put at risk because thousands of kids were not properly immunized. Money has been diverted from researching true causes for the reason that autism is on the rise, and is still rising. Or better yet…

Let’s focus our energy on the problem at hand, not Dr. Wakefield’s guilt or innocence.  But as we continue to dispute the cause, we should be equally concerned as to how to treat and educate children with autism. We need to research as many ways as possible to reach our children that are now on the Spectrum by any and all means.  Someday, and sooner than we think, these children will be adults that need to be assimilated into the workforce and independently living.

They need to be ready!

We need to be ready!

Let’s refocus the debate to how to help those children that are here now. And while we are at it, buy a copy of "Freakonomics" for Dr. Wakefield.

Final Winners

Wasn’t it glorious! The spectacular celebrating that Christmas and the New Year bring was exhilaratingly exhausting. Our house was constantly filled with friends, laughter and chocolate! You can see how posting took a back seat to the merriment, in some ways I feel I should apologize, however with the lure of chocolate; certainly you can see how I strayed.  None the less, I did read my emails and pleads for curriculum.  For the third week of our Give-A-Way I would like to award Richard at Rio Vista Elementary a bundle of workbooks for his classroom.  If you prefer a game Richard, just let me know. The last week of our give-a-way we have chosen Elizabeth Sabedra, at Greenfield Elementary for her choice of either a bundle of workbooks or a set of magnetic literacy games.

All winners from our Christmas Give-A-Way need to send an email and confirm their shipping address. Blog@ReadingReallyRocks.com.

Also, our Bundle-Up sale does continue through the end of the week; please have your principals keep us in mind.  Ten years in the business and only one single return! http://www.readingreallyrocks.com/

Look for us in 2011 to post new pages to your Set One Reading Rocks kit and preview pages to Set Two!

Happy New Year!

Just a Reminder:

Give-a-ways every Friday between now and Christmas. Email me or send a comment, as to why Reading Rocks Santa should deliver to you a Classroom Kit, Magnetic Literacy Game Pack, or Bundled Workbooks. One will be chosen weekly... okay maybe two. Blog@ReadingReallyRocks.com.

Also, I am running a Bundle-Up for Christmas Sale on our curriculum. These are absolutely our lowest prices of the year.

Here's to hoping that your Principals are feeling the Christmas Spirit!

http://www.readingreallyrocks.com/shop/bundleupsale.html

Good Luck and Merry Christmas!