New Baby, New Article!

In an effort not to let an entire year go by without a new post, a few bits of news. The first one will be a bit of an explanation for why I've been occupied these past months.

First of all, my wife and I were blessed with a second daughter last month: Aria Dawn!



The second bit of news involves my students. I discovered an interesting UK website called Book Drum. Books are "profiled" with detailed notes and multimedia; think of a footnoted "critical edition" of a text, but with Internet steroids. At the time, my AP Lit and Comp seniors were about to begin reading Kingsolver's The Poisonwood Bible. The book was not yet profiled, and I thought a class project creating such a profile would be an interesting opportunity and way to publish student work. I contacted the site editor, who told me that not only had a class of students never done a profile for the site, no one had ever done a large group collaboration, period. Holding my breath, we plunged in.

The results are now on the Book Drum website, and currently featured on their home page. In addition, I wrote a reflective article on the process and project, which is also on the site.

You can click here to see the book profile.

Or here to read the reflective article.

On the creative side of things, not much to report. Last year I taught AP Literature and Composition for the first time, so between prepping for the class and getting ready for baby, not a lot of original writing energy or time. I hope to at least punch out a short story or two this year, perhaps along with more educational articles.

Happy summer!

Article in "Classroom Notes Plus"

Some publication news! At the end of the last school year, I began drafting an article for Classroom Notes Plus, a National Council of Teachers of English journal for secondary educators. The journal articles are basically descriptions and directions for lesson plans: how they impact learning, and how to implement them in the classroom. My article involves a lesson with A Midsummer Night's Dream using a concordance (finding repetitious patterns of words) combined with a "gallery walk" (having students make posters in groups full of text quotes and insightful pictures).

The article will be published this month, in both print and electronic forms. (It prints four times a year to approximately 6000 subscribers.) Unfortunately for the general public, you need to be either a direct subscriber or (if you're a member of NCTE) wait until it's electronically archived to view it online.

More information on Classroon Notes Plus is here.

Special thanks to Felice Kaufmann for her encouragement and editing. Because of her, I now have my first publishing writing credit as an educator!

April's new book "Butterfly Rocks"

I'm very proud of April's creativity. Finding sometimes a few minutes at a time, she's finally published a children's book: Butterfly Rocks. Her artistically talented mother (Jo) was the illustrator.

The story is sweet yet powerful, weaving the story of a woman named Sue (who has cancer, but refuses to let that define her) and a boy named Jack (who receives a mysterious "butterfly rock"). April deftly handles cancer; although matter-of-fact about the impact of illness, she never treads heavily on the subject in a way to scare children. The story is both comforting and inspiring. As for the pictures, Jo may have found her second calling.

What's even more amazing is that it's based on a true story. For the sake of privacy, I'll stop there. But it adds another level of warmth to the book.

It's available from the website Blurb, where you can buy single copies. I've permanently added a widget for the book to the right of my blog, but here's another one to go with this entry. Note that the sample pages are random, and skip around different parts of the book:

Butterfly Rocks by April Watson (Illustrated by Jo Wathen) | Make Your Own Book

Congratulations, April! You're artistic and beautiful! I'm very proud.

In other quick personal news, the school year has started in a fine way -- the students and my classes are great -- and even had a chance to finally launch that long story (which looks like it'll be novel length) with a little help from friends (thanks, Laura!). I'm writing in small chunks at a time, but my goal is to finish it by the end of next summer. More news later . . .

A Castle, a B & B, and a Lodge

Three recent happenings and some pictures to share.

In mid-May, Ayla had a tea party with three of her friends at Yew Dell Gardens, inside of a real castle on its grounds! (I've raved about Yew Dell in a previous post; plan a visit there, especially during its "Sculpture at the Dell" in the summer.) The setting made the afternoon perfect. We were told that we were the first to have a children's tea party there, which is hard to believe; one look at the castle and it seems a natural place to rent for princess or tea parties for the girls, and "wizards and knights" for the boys. Michelle Cook (our beloved Ayla documentarian!) was our photographer, and did an incredible job, as always. Here's a few shots, done vintage style:

Over Memorial Day weekend, April and I wanted to do something different to celebrate our seventh wedding anniversary. We decided to stay at a bed and breakfast for the first time, but we didn't want to drive too far. After Googling and reading some reviews, we went with the 1888 Rocking Horse Manor (at the edge of Old Louisville) and booked their Grand Victorian Suite. To say we were pleased is an understatement. The place was delightful (the backyard garden alone made the stay worthwhile), the breakfast delicious, and the hospitality of manorkeepers John and Ricardo would be difficult to beat. We are already mulling a return trip. During our stay, we walked a few blocks and ate at Amici Cafe, an Italian culinary treasure; I recommend their Penne alla Lorenzo! Here are a few pictures of the manor:

We took our most recent trip last week. April, Ayla, April's parents and I stayed at the Breezy Mountain Lodge just outside of Gatlinburg, Tennessee. It was a family reunion of sorts for April's father's side of the family, where everybody pitched in to rent the Lodge as a private getaway, complete with a mini-movie theater and a game room. Not only was it good to see old faces, but we enjoyed a trip into "town" and the Great Smokey Mountains National Park. We had fun walking down the Parkway (visiting the Hollywood Wax Museum was definitely worth the admission), hiking up to see Laurel Falls , and eating some good meals, including Huck Finn's Catfish Restaurant, a pleasant surprise and a must if you're in the area. (Any place that has "all you can eat vittles" has my heart for sure.)

Now, back home to rest, write, and prepare for next year's classes.

Widgets, Iron Men, and the Latest Hijinks

Forgive me fathers and mothers, I have sinned. It's been 10 months since my last post. There's no particular reason for my delay, except that (mostly) school has kept me hopping around. So I hope to make up for it with some content in today's blog entry.


As far as writing, teaching has kept me hopping too much to be terribly creative. That said, I got a great story idea that will at least be a extended short story, based on a creepy experience that actually happened to me in the last few months. I hope to pursue it this summer, along with a possible polish and submission of a few older short stories. While I'm still holding out for a publisher of another book's worth of poetry, I fear that ship has sailed, so perhaps I'll look at alternate opportunities to get the verse out into the world.


As for school, I've enjoyed creating a semester's worth of lessons for Myths and Legends, a class I never taught before this year. Speaking of school and summer, next year I'll be teaching AP Literature for the first time, so prepping for it in June and July will be part of my upcoming agenda.


Despite hectic lesson planning and grading, April, Ayla and I have tried to enjoy ourselves over the past year. Last August, we made it to Toronto, and despite a sanitation worker strike, had a blast seeing Canada for the first time and visiting with old friends. (Some highlights of the trip: Niagara Falls, Louis Tussaud's Wax Museum, the Ontario Science Centre, Casa Loma, and of course, the CN Tower.) Last fall, we went to the Cincinnati Museum Center at Union Terminal -- easily in the top 5 museums we've had the pleasure of partaking. Last but not least, we went to Fort Boonesborough a few weeks ago and really felt like we stepped back in time. Here's a pic:

Gotta love the bonnet, eh? (Ayla bought it from the fort's gift shop.)


I decided the blog needed a minor facelift, so besides its appearance, I added two widgets. The first comes from Grooveshark.com (a fantastic music website -- if you use Pandora, give Grooveshark a chance!). I recently edited Live From Waverly Hills in multiple tracks and uploaded it to their site; listen in streaming audio! (If you want more info on the 2003 show, click here.) I also added a goodreads widget. I created an account at the end of last year, and for the past several months, I've done short reviews for some of the books I've read. It's not meant to be "professional" reviews -- it just captures some first impressions when I finish a book. If you're interested, click on the widget.


Last but not least, April and I saw Iron Man 2 on an IMAX screen this past weekend. I enjoyed the sequel, but not quite as much as the first one. (That's a tall order, though, since Iron Man is right up there with Spider-Man 2 and The Dark Knight as one of the best comic book action movies ever.) The action and special effects were fun to watch, and the somewhat darker tone added some nice character moments; for example, Downy, Jr. struggling with his mortality and perhaps drinking a bit too much, echoing a 1980's comic book plotline -- although I could have done without the "DJ Iron Man" cringeworthy scene. Paltrow and Favreau's characters are given more to do as well, Rockwell was amazing (although not threatening enough), and Rourke was perfectly cast (if a bit underused) as a Russian heavy. I'm in love with Johansson, and although she didn't have much to do as Black Widow, it was worth it just for her scene storming Hammer's headquarters. As much as I'm a fan of Don Cheadle, I missed a bit of the playful spark from Terrence Howard's take on Rhodes, although the script might be to blame. All in all, highly recommended to see on the big screen.


I hope to post a time or two during the summer (I promise!), so until then . . .

Our classroom videotaped on a NCTE website!

A few months back, our classroom was chosen to be part of the National Council Teachers of English's professional development webcourse, "Pathways for 21st Century Literacies." They were interested in Dragon Booktalk's literature circle podcasts. Laurie Henry and an assistant came and videotaped the students as they podcasted, and interviewed me. Today, the edited video went online, along with some of my resources and links involved in the project. I was very pleased with the final video, and enjoy the site; it has many tech resources and work from actual teachers in the field. Also, it's another way that my students have found an authentic audience, and their good work is archived for the forseeable future.

Unfortunately, the site is not free or accessible by the general public. However, if you're an educator and interested further, the "Pathways for 21st Century Literacies" course is available at:

http://www.ncte.org/pathways/21stcentury

As of today, I'm on the course's home page as a "Classroom Spotlight," but the video and materials are also repeatedly threaded throughout several places on the site.

Special thanks to NCTE's Laurie Henry and Leslie Froeschl for making our participation possible.

Summer at the midpoint

Fleeting, fleeting summer. Here we are, just a month out before school begins again (and Ayla goes to kindergarten).

School, of course, has not been too far away. I spent a week in Bowling Green for an AP Institute (to learn how to teach AP Literature & Composition). It was actually very productive, thanks to our instructor Danny Lawrence. I enjoyed some good meals as well. I will never look at cornbread, garlic mashed potatoes or prime rib the same after Montana Grille, and if there's a higher deity that loves me, Zaxby's will come to Louisville one of these days.

I also have been reading up for a Myths & Legends class that I'll be teaching for the first time next year. I hope to include some discussion of urban legends, especially local ones. (After all, the tools for discerning an urban legend as true or untrue are the same for determining any source is credible.) One of the sources for memorable folklore is a book Weird Kentucky; I definitely recommend it. Oh, and I'm sure Joseph Campbell will make its way into the curriculum . . .

But enough about school. April and I enjoyed our trip to Memphis over Memorial Day weekend. As planned, we hit Graceland, Sun Studios and the National Civil Rights Museum. Strangely, I felt more excited and closer to Elvis at Sun than I did at his home. As for the NCRM, it's a must if you're in the area. The museum is one of the best I've ever visited, and I can't describe how moved I was, looking into room 306 of the Lorraine Motel. On a lighter note, we were glad to have the chance to walk Beale Street and ate some of the best ribs ever at Charles Vergos' Rendezvous.

Going to the Outer Banks was amazing as well. A 12 hour drive was a bit much, although renting a mini-van helped, and Ayla really was a trooper. (On the way there, we stopped by Grand Caverns, Virginia and took a tour, so that gave us a chance to stretch our legs. Beautiful cave!) It felt good to touch the ocean -- and once Ayla got over her apprehension about the power of the waves, she enjoyed it as well. April, Ayla and I climbed Currituck Lighthouse, ascended the dunes at Jockey's Ridge, ambled around the Elizabethan Gardens, huffed around the Wright Brothers Memorial (the mound with the monument is a bit of a hike!) and saw the wild horses of Corolla in person, thanks to a 4 x 4 tour. All in all, pretty fantastic.

Canada is coming soon -- our last big trip of the summer. As long as we get to spend time with our friends Dan and Amy, and take a peek at Niagra Falls and the CN Tower, I'll be happy. After our 12 hour driving adventure, driving 9 up to Paris, Ontario will be a cakewalk.

What else to discuss? Oh yes, the big news of Michael Jackon's death. Have to admit, I got pulled in and watched the memorial live from the Staples Center, so I'm guilty of gawking as well. It's interesting, and sad, that MJ hasn't been on the blip of pop culture for years (indeed, I only found out about his 50 sold out London shows after he died), but when he died, all sins were forgiven by the public and his albums are charting again. How ironic that his current post-mortem album sales may erase his blossoming debt! Look, even if MJ was innocent of specific child molestation charges, he clearly is guilty of horrible judgment and decisions when it came to children. In addition to that, more than likely his death was the result of drug abuse. Should I feel sorry for a multi-millionaire that used drugs to kill the pain of his life? Certainly, he suffered; MJ's father got what he wanted, but what a price. In the end, it's hard to feel sorry for Jackson, if only for one reason: his children. When the world apparently stopped loving him unconditionally, he decided to become a father three times over to fill that void. I'm sure he really loved them, and did his best to raise them. But here's the deal. Jackson chose drugs, which had the chance of killing him, over his children. Because of that choice, with half or more of their child years ahead of them, they'll now be fatherless. And that's the part that guiles me most about Michael Jackson. It's a tragedy, and yes, I'm sure he had personal demons that were nearly impossible to fight -- but in the end, his choices led to three kids without a dad.

So why did I watch the memorial, and despite all of that, still had a twinge of pity for him? When I think of Jackson, I think of Thriller on cassette, playing "Billie Jean" over and over. Watching "Thriller" on MTV and always getting freaked out when he crumples to the ground while his date asks is he's okay -- and then he looks up with those frickin' yellow eyes. (Really, was that video appropriate in the middle of the MTV day for a nine-year old kid?) But mainly, when I think of Jackson, I think of my 1980's youth. Jackson wanted to stay childlike forever, and symbolically, even tragically, it seems he finally paid the price for that desire. When he died, I realized, part of my youth died too. I have a feeling a lot of people around the world felt the same way.