College Bound

By: Joelle Charbonneau

My son is only five, so I am not one of the many parents taking their children to college this month.  However, two of my students did go off to school for the first time this weekend and while I am not their parent, I have had a great number of emotional moments as I’ve watch them set off into this next phase of their life.

The two that left this weekend have been with me for years.  I’ve watched them struggle, triumph, get frustrated and celebrate the happy moments.  I pushed them hard as they prepared for countless concerts and musicals and for the intense college application and audition process.  They rose to every occasion.  And in between the lessons were hundreds of phone calls and texts filled with chat, support, questions and advice. 

As a private voice teacher, I get the unique opportunity to really know these students and be a part of their lives.  They are my kids.  I’ve watched them grow and change and truly become young adults.  They are people who think for themselves, are open to new things and passionate about the subjects they have chosen for their futures.  I’m so proud of how far they have come and part of me wishes I could still be there for their weekly lessons to help them take the next steps.

But I can’t.  

They will have new teachers.  They will take these next steps without me.  And as sad as I am to not be there to see each development as it happens, I am so very happy.  They’re ready for this next step.  They have come far enough that they will listen to their teachers with the confidence to try whatever is asked of them.  They are ready to believe in themselves just as I have always believed in them.  I have done my job.  It is time for others to work magic in their lives and for me to step aside.

So, while I’m not the parent saying goodbye, I still feel the tug of sadness and the incredible pride that those parents must feel.   Because they are my kids, too. 

So to Kristen and Jacob – congratulations on taking this step.  And to all the parents out there who are feeling that ache of sadness because their child has started a new phase of their life—my heart is with you all.  Letting go is hard, but this is the best kind of letting go.

Workin' on some writin'

Just keep swimming.

When my novels first showed up on shelves, I got interviewed by a couple of local newspapers. One question they loved to ask was "You're a teacher, how do you have time to write?"

My standard answer was: I leave work around 3:30 and write until I hit 1,000 words. That's kind of a lie. I mean, it sounded good, it made me look good, and I always shot for 1000 words.

But it didn't always happen.

My real answer is I leave at 3:30 and write what I can. Some days it's 250 words. Some days it's 1,500. Today it was 640 and I stopped in the middle of a scene.

Listen, teaching is tough and mentally draining. Sometimes my brain just won't function enough to get me through a scene. Sometimes life gets in the way. I mean, it probably evens out 1,000 words a day in the long run, but it's never exactly 1,000 words.

But what I do love is when I'm teaching writing and something I say or a kid says or a colleague says in class something and it sets off that spark. When I have a moment of clarity about the piece I'm working on.

That happened the other day. I can't really remember what I was talking about in class, but a word I said sparked something. That afternoon, I got home and was really productive. The words flowed out of my fingers, I had a definite end point of the chapter in mind.

And the last sentence I wrote gave me chills.

And that's the fun of writing and teaching. You never know where the inspiration is going to come from.

And sometimes it doesn't come, but at least I get words down. At least I keep the forward motion.

It reminds me of that Dorrie from FINDING NEMO.

Just keep swimming.

How Important is Grammar?

In honor of the end of the school year, I decided to break out this old post of mine. I wrote it for my blog a few years ago, and it got a huge response. In the years since, I'm not sure how much my opinion has changed. It seems teaching Grammar is important, but at what age do you stop teaching it and expect kids to know it? So, here we go:

There are often conversations going on regarding someone's pet peeves of incorrect grammar. Everybody has one. Mine is people saying "I could care less" when they mean "I couldn't care less." But I have another argument as well.

Grammar is not important.

Well, I'll back off of that... simple grammar is something everyone should learn young and grasp. But after that, who really cares?

What is important, and what I stress when I teach, is meaning. A student has to be able to put together an argument or a storyline or a sentence that has meaning. They have to learn how to put together a logical progression and THEN you can go back and fix grammar.

Hell, look at a lot of writing in books these days. People break grammar rules all the time, whether to sound colloquial or to create effect. I understand that you have to understand grammar to break the rules, but grammar should still not be the end all be all of writing.

It should be the least important thing.

National tests these days do not grade on grammar and spelling. They let most errors go as long as it does not affect meaning. Hence, meaning is where we should focus. That's what I work on.

If a story starts:

"Me and you went to the store. Your a giraffe and heads spilld across the road."

I am not going to sit there and help fix the "me and you" and the correct "your" first. I'm going to ask why is there a giraffe in this story, why were there head's spilling across the road, and what does that have to do with the store you went to.

I want to get to the point where someone will write "Me and you went to the store. You bought skittles and I bought a soda."

Then we can go back and fix grammar.

I think people worry about grammar because it's easy to fix. You can--when you edit someone's piece--say well this is wrong and this is wrong and it's easier than saying, but there's a plot hole here on page 202 and I don't know how you can fix it. That involves a back and forth and a conversation.

I'm always willing to talk about writing, be it with students or with other writers. I'm always willing to brainstorm plot ideas and why a paragraph works as a thought. But folks, what it comes down to is this: Whether you are in 8th grade or writing for ten years, most grammatical errors can be fixed by just reading your sentence out loud.

Meaning, however, takes work.

What do you think?

FOR THE RECORD: This is in no way an attempt to trash teachers. I am a teacher and I believe in teachers. All teachers want to make students smarter and more well rounded young men and woman.

However, I think there is an old fashioned thinking vs. a new type of thinking among all citizens of the United States on whether or not grammar should be the key to good writing.

Teachers

by Dave White

I have a theory.

From what I've seen written and heard said, people who are successful rarely remember the good teachers they've had. They remember the teachers who tried to "hold them back" or suggested they couldn't do something.

They remember the bad things. And they use that motivation to get to where they are now.

But in order to get where one is in life, you have to have good teachers. Someone has to help guide you through life, preparing you for what's coming, and teach you something you didn't know.

In my life, I'd say I had more good teachers than bad teachers. I learned a lot in school, and have been inspired and pushed to do something special by more than one. Even the bad teachers I had taught me something. They all helped turn me into a productive member of society.

I teach now. I'm trying to give back to the community as well.

And if there's one thing I know, it's this: Teachers are important.

They are not a group that can be walked over and stepped on, despite the fact people try. People in the private sector like to say we don't work hard or enough, and we're paid too much.

People in the private sector have no idea what we go through. School has changed, and most of us are not the teacher that you hated. We're the one that you've forgotten. The teacher you loved.

Most of us try to get to each and everyone of our students. Most of us try to get students motivated, get them to look at life a new way.

We are not in it for the paycheck.

That's not to say we don't deserve a paycheck. Because we do. We helped make you what you are now. There should be a price tag on that.

Cops help. They should make more money.

Fire Fighters help. They should make more money.

Teachers influence and inspire.

I know the economy is rough right now. I know this is a bad times to be asking for this. But when the economy turns and people in the private sector start collecting bonuses again and making money hand over fist...they'll still believe cops, firefighters, and teachers are paid too much.

There are people who are bad at every job. There are bad teachers, cops, firefighters. Bad writers. Bad governors. Bad businessmen. Bad athletes.

But the majority of people try hard, work hard, and earn their money.

So, I'm sorry if this isn't specifically crime fiction related today. But I have to say, without teachers, I wouldn't be a crime fiction writer.

Without teachers, I wouldn't know what to do.

Teachers are not a blight on society. They are not the dredge of society. They should be honored for what they do.

I hope you pepper the comments section with memories of your favorite teachers.