MiddleView

It’s interesting how some things become instant traditions.  The first year I was a principal, I ended my very first staff meeting of the year by reading aloud from a children’s picture book that I felt had a good message.  I didn’t expect it to be a regular occurrence, but throughout that year, I had staff members bring me books they’d found along with the message, “this would be a good one for you to read next year.”  And so it became a tradition for me to start the year by reading aloud to the staff.  So much so that at my retirement party last spring, I was read a “doctored” up version of Dr. Seuss’s Oh, the Places You’ll Go!   Inscribed in the front is the message, “Because you always start us off with a book to inspire us at the beginning of each year, we thought it would be fitting to read a book in your honor as we send you off to a new place…”

Some of my favorites?

            Hooray for Diffendoofer Day! by Dr. Seuss
            Through the Cracks by Carolyn Sollman, Barbara Emmons, and Judith Paolini
            Dumpy LaRue by Elizabeth Winthrop
            Mr. DeVore’s Do-Over by David Puckett
            Mr. Peabody’s Apples by Madonna
            Seven Blind Mice by Ed Young
            Courage by Bernard Waber
            I Can Make a Difference by Marian Wright Edelman

If I were still principal, tomorrow would be our first staff meeting and I would be reading from yet another book.  And I know exactly what I would be reading – I found it at Barnes and Noble this weekend - old habits die hard!  It’s called Dream: A Tale of Wonder, Wisdom & Wishes. By Susan Bosak.  The book is filled with wonderful illustrations and inspirational quotes and through the text the author takes us from the dreams of youth to those of old age.  And the message is clear – we need to discover and act upon the possibilities within us.  It’s a good message for both educators and the students we work with.

What are your dreams for this coming year?