Tuesday, May 21, 2019

SUSAN VERDE



In two weeks I will be facilitating a webinar on EXTREME author visits.  Not going to lie--I'm a little nervous.  A lot of folks out there host amazing visits for amazing people.  What can they learn from me? Only time will tell.


My visits are SO extreme that it takes me awhile to regroup and come down from the high.  Case in point--we just had Susan Verde (author of I Am Peace, I Am Human, I Am Yoga, Hey Wall and others) visit last week and the library is not completely back to normal; planning how to include more mindfulness into our lives and classrooms is fresh on our minds; and, the buzz about the evening gala is well, still buzzing.

For the first time, we featured our guest author in our monthly morning program assembly.  The kindergarteners sang a couple of lovely songs, including Emily Arrow's I Am Peace.



Mrs. Carlson's class performed Susan's My Kicks (they were so good!) and Mrs. Golden's first graders shared the timeline of Susan's life. It was a great assembly highlighting our youngest learners. Susan sat in a chair right in front of the action.


We had three smaller assemblies that day: 3-5, 6 and K-2.  Susan's message was loud and clear. We all get frustrated. We are not perfect. That's where mindfulness can help us.  Take a breath.  Take a break. Be kind. "I thought she was great. I loved her message. She was one of my favorites," a teacher told me the next day. Impressive coming from someone who is hard to impress.

In between the second and third assemblies, Susan had lunch with my Dewey Duty and Reading Ambassadors.  They engaged in conversation like they were all old friends.
           

I hope Susan took my advice and napped between 3 and 6.  We certainly didn't since as soon as the late bus bell rang, my teaching space was in super transformation mode from library to a peaceful, mindful themed art gallery. Thanks to a phenomenal parent volunteer, it worked!

For the third year in a row, our gala centered around PICTURE A POEM. Fifth graders expressed through artwork (illustration, sculpture) an anonymous poem from another fifth grader (not in their class). We do this because this is how illustrators and authors work in the real world.  Susan confirmed this since we met Matt Cordell about six months before she did!

The artwork at the gala was breathtaking. The poetry by the third graders was inspiring. And the mood of evening was joyous, peaceful, exciting and an all around great night.  I heard so many adults comment on how wonderful it was to see the kids so proud of their work. And they certainly had every right to be.

To be honest, I would not have worked as hard as I did to get Susan to Castleton if it wasn't for our Physical Therapist, Mrs. Colloton. She began our mindfulness initiative and shared Susan's books regularly. She was (still is) a fangirl and was beyond thrilled to have Susan visit. Not really knowing much about Mrs. Colloton, I was glad that Susan's visit enabled us to get to know each other better.  In fact, so much so that I wrote Mrs. Colloton a card the next day that said something like, "I knew you were amazing.  I just didn't know how much."

And even though I may not do mindfulness daily (or at all), I have to admit that I am more aware of my surroundings, the humans I care about and the importance of taking a break to breathe from time to time.  Thank you, Susan.

They are all wearing white because they are my "workers.



 







Thank you, SuSUN for shining a bright mindful light on all of us at Castleton. We 💜 you.




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