Literacy Learning Zone

Slice of Life Stories hosted by the  Two Writing Teachers This Christmas our family enjoyed time together celebrating the joy of Jesus' birth.      Yet this Christmas was a little different than in years past. This Christmas was also about our two one-and-a-half year old daughters.       This Christmas we cherished the magic of Santa Claus.       Letters written, cookies shared, reindeer food sprinkled outside. This Christmas we continued old traditions shared from our families,       and began new traditions that will continue for Christmases to come. This Christmas we delighted in observing the excitement and wonder of our girls,      memories of pure happiness and joy captured in our hearts and minds forever. However, this Christmas there was one little surprise for me under the tree.      This Christmas I was in awe and in absolute disbelief. This Christmas...

Check out more Slice of Life Stories  at the  Two Writing Teachers Me. I won. I am lucky. Actually, I've thought about this a lot this weekend after winning a whopping $500 gift card to a local bookstore from Walden Pond Press on Twitter.  (That's another slice!) I always used to say, "I'm not lucky."  But after winning such a glorious, fantastic, stupendous prize, I realized I am lucky in more ways than one. I don't need to "win" to be lucky. I have a wonderful husband that adores and supports me (and now is encouraging my "Twitter" use after winning). I have beautiful, smart, and funny twin daughters who I love and adore more and more each and every day. I have a loving family and supportive friends who I know I can always count on to be there for me to help out or just listen. I have my health, my heart, my mind, and my spirit all in a good place. I don't need to "win" to be lucky. I am lucky. I won...

Check out more Slice of Life Stories  at the  Two Writing Teachers It's that time of year again.  But, how can it be?  Where do the days weeks  months go? Almost the middle of December with 2012 hiding around the corner.  It's . . . Another new year . . . A new year of hopes and dreams.      A new year of making a difference.           A new year of breathing in the joy of life. A new year of putting myself first.      A new year of committing to exercise.           A new year of eating right. A new year of learning more.      A new year of writing more.           A new year of reading more. A new year of treasuring time.      A new year of time with my husband.           A new year of time with my daughters.           A fresh start.     ...

Check out more Slice of Life Stories  at the  Two Writing Teachers Dearest Friend, I just have to say it:  I'm sorry. I'm really, really sorry.  It's been too long. I haven't been there for you and I can give you a million-and-one excuses as to why . . . but do you really want to hear about it now?  I'm thinking it's too late. I'm sure you don't want to hear about how busy I am a school: Teaching kids. Encouraging them to read.  Wanting them to L.O.V.E. reading.  Searching for books they will adore and recommend.  Solving problems.  Planning targeted interventions to meet the needs of struggling readers.  Wanting more time for the students to write and blog. Laughing and learning together every day. Enjoying each and every student. There are so many stories to tell, but why would you want to hear about them now? I'm also loving being a mom.  It's still crazy to say that.  Yes, I'm a mom . . . of twins. ...

I love stumbling upon new techy what-cha-ma-call-its. Ok.  It may not be new to the world, but it's new to me!  I hope you find it helpful as well! I read many blogs.  Thank you to GoogleReader for sharing new posts every day! (Another great creation!)  There are probably hundreds of blogs that I've retracted from reading because the blog page itself wasn't visually pleasing to my eyes. Too much. Busy, busy. Buttons all over. Advertisements. Hate the font. Small print. Dreadful colors. I'm sure I missed out on valuable learning and thinking because I didn't read the blog. Guess what?  No more! I discovered the "Reader" button in the address bar in Safari. (Click to enlarge. See purple Reader button.) Click on the link to the blog.  Click on the "Reader" button and it's easy on the eyes!  It brings forward just the blog post, darkens the background noise, and is perfect for your reading pleasure! You can also zoom in, zoom ...