Since I’m working on Sunday, I decided to take the afternoon. On the way home, I stopped at Pasqual’s and ordered a Fiesta Quesadilla to go, one of my favorite entrees. I planned to sit at the kitchen table and savor every mouthful while watching the NCAA matchup of Wisconsin vs. Southwest Missouri State. By the time I tuned in, the first half was already half over and the score was only 6-4, Wisconsin trailing. Things only got worse from this point. The Badgers must have left their offense in Madison. It took them most of the first half to score ten points. They made only 3 of 19 field goals, 0 of 9 three-point attempts. It was too painful to watch. I turned off the TV and started to tidy up the house, put a load of whites into the washer, cleaned the dirty dishes left over from breakfast, and made a mental list of what I need to do to clear the clutter off my desk.
The boys just returned home from school. Andy immediately tuned in the Badger game, even though I told him he wasn’t going to like what he saw. Eddie probably tuned in the Cartoon Network on the kitchen TV.
Andy and I had a conference with his teacher after school on Wednesday. He’s been slackin’ off, not writing down his homework in his assignment notebook, bringing home mediocre grades on tests – very similar to what happened last year at this time. His teacher is especially concerned because the last quarter of 5th grade focuses on getting her students ready for middle school, accepting responsibility, not always having to be told what to do. I see Andy starting to wander down the road I chose, where the destination is whatever you can get away with, not reaching your full potential. I’m not overly concerned, though. In spite of all the detours I took in my life, I’m very happy with where I am now. I certainly have taken it to the limit in Wisconsin as far as my career is concerned: Librarian of the Year, Wisconsin Library Association President, teaching as a second career. Of course, my accomplishments don’t even come close to what JoAnna has done. The main reason JoAnna was offered the position of Department of Justice Legislative Liaison was that the current Attorney General, Jim Doyle, plans to run for governor in 2002 and wants one of the state’s most astute political operatives on his staff.
Funny thing. After ten weekends of basketball, I was looking forward to this activity-free weekend. At least that’s what I thought. Now, believe it or not, I almost wish Andy was playing in another tournament. His game improved so much over the last few weeks of the season. It was so much fun to watch him play.
JoAnna and I attended the world premiere of the movie The Deep End of the Ocean on Tuesday evening. The author, Jacquelyn Mitchard is from Madison. The book was Oprah Winfrey’s first book club selection. The premiere was a benefit for the Dane County public libraries and probably raised more than $20,000. A reception and silent auction was held at the Frank Lloyd Wright designed Unitarian Church from 5 to 7, followed by a showing of the movie at a nearby theater at 8. We gave the movie a thumbs-up. JoAnna had read the book and I had listened to the book on tape version. We both thought that the movie was very true to the book. No Hollywood liberties taken here. You might want to give the book a try, Mom. I can’t guarantee you’ll like it, though. The subject matter, three-year-old kidnapped son who is “rediscovered” nine years later, is not for readers who like their fiction light and easy to digest.
[
Letter not completed and sent as Dad died on Sunday, March 14th.]
The boys brought home great report cards this week. JoAnna and I had some doubts about how Andy was going to do – he never seems to have any homework – but his second quarter grades demonstrate that he’s been keeping up with his assignments, for the most part.
Here’s a comparison of Andy’s first and second quarter grades:
Subject 1st 2nd
Reading B- B+
Math B- B
Spelling B A
Language Arts B B
Social Studies A A
Science A- B+
He improved his grades in three subjects, but went down ever so slightly in science. Too bad he couldn’t have maintained that A-. Within each subject, students are rated on areas where strength is shown (+), areas where progress is satisfactory (o), and areas where improvement is needed (a check mark – I can’t find the symbol in any of the font styles). Under Reading, four of the five boxes have a plus sign. In Math, he has a check mark with a plus sign for “understands graphs and tables”, “can solve story problems”, and “completes work on time”. Mrs. Ball, Andy’s classroom teacher was not sure what that combination of symbols meant. The three 5th grade classes at Elm Lawn are grouped according to ability for math instruction. Andy has Mrs. Wellman for this subject. Actually, his only solo check mark is found under Language Arts, “completes assigned work on time”, which was a big problem with Andy in 4th grade, an area where he has shown great improvement. Under “Individual Development”, which addresses classroom behavior and social skills, he received an “S” (for satisfactory) in all categories except one, where his effort grade = P (for Progress Shown). No surprise here. “Shows self control.” After all, he has some Richard blood in him, although this attribute could easily be traced to his dad. I certainly lacked self control in Mrs. Duff’s second-grade class and, occasionally, during those marathon wiffle ball games at the Jefferson Street schoolyard.
At a conference with Andy’s teacher on Wednesday, Mrs. Ball had only good things to report about his academic achievement and classroom deportment. Last year Andy had what I can only describe as an attitude problem, and I wonder if it had to do with the fact that things didn’t really seem to click with his teacher. JoAnna and I thought he might have leap-frogged into his sullen teen-age years. He didn’t turn into a model student at the beginning of fifth grade, but so far this year, he is swiftly moving in that direction. This past week, he actually read two books on his own, i.e., not because he had to write a book report for school, going to his bedroom on his own around 8:15 and reading for an hour.
When I first looked at Eddie’s report card, I let out an audible gasp.
Oh my god, I thought, we have big problem here. Eddie has three “D’s”.
Upon closer inspection, I discovered that second graders receive different achievement grades than 5th graders.
Here’s Eddie’s scale:
B = Beginning. The child is working toward completing tasks independently and showing understanding of the skill or concept.
D = Developing. The child shows some understanding and independence.
S = Secure. The child can apply the skills or concept correctly and independently.
M = Modified program (such as the special education reading and language arts classes that Eddie takes.)
Once I processed this information, I quickly realized that Eddie is having a great year academically. Here’s how his grades stack up:
Subject 1st 2nd
Reading M/B M/D
Language Arts M/B M/D
Spelling M/B M/D
Science/Health S+ S+
Social Studies S+ S+
Under Reading, he received a check mark (needs improvement) for “reads fluently”, although here, we have noticed at home, he is making great improvement. I checked out from the library some easy reader books for him last month, titles by highly regarded children’s authors (Arnold Lobel, Lillian Hoban), and he has been enjoying them immensely, eagerly reading and re-reading them, which has really improved his confidence and fluency.
At our conference with Mrs. Magnuson, Eddie’s classroom teacher, and Mrs. Hoskins, his reading teacher, we heard nothing but high praise. Mrs. Magnuson said that Eddie has made great strides both scholastically and socially. She mentioned that he has such wonderful comments to add to the classroom discussion, especially in science. His reading teacher says he’s made such great progress this year that she wants to move him up with the small group of 3rd graders she works with. When we talked to him about this, Eddie had some initial reservations, most notably, leaving a group of kids he knows (and has been able to routinely outshine, which may or may not have anything to do with his decision-making process. Just something that popped into my mind.)
In other areas of the school curriculum, Eddie also received excellent reports. Elm Lawn’s art teacher noted that “Eddie is doing very well in art class, very outstanding drawing skills.” The school’s music teacher noted , “singing tonal patterns so well in tune”.
Middleton gained a measure of revenge against Sauk Prairie by winning their 10th game of the season yesterday, 31-21. The game was actually much closer than the final score indicates. Andy didn’t score any points, but he played great defense against an opponent who was at least three inches taller than him.
Eddie’s been sick all weekend. His fever has been as high as 101 degrees. He seems to be doing a little bit better today, so we hope he’ll be able to attend school tomorrow. He’s spent the weekend in our bedroom, watching TV, drinking orange juice and water, eating toast and cereal. He slept with Mom last night, since we wanted to keep a close watch on him. I slept in Eddie’s bed, which made me feel as though I was a single man again.
JoAnna’s parents called last night, but we didn’t have much of an opportunity to talk to them. We kept losing our connection. It was our first contact with them since they first arrived in Arizona. I told JoAnna this was going to happen. She gave her parents about $800 at Christmas to go towards the rent for an apartment in a more accessible area of the Phoenix metropolitan area, as opposed to the remote scrabble of sand where Alice’s twin brother lives, where their trailer accommodations are located. JoAnna was livid after the second disconnect. Because of her dad’s previous stroke, she worries about another medical emergency and how quickly he could be attended to. Where Larry and Alice are staying now, 2½ miles of washboard dirt road from a main highway, he’d be at the mercy of the angels. Ever since Alice first announced last October that she and Larry would be spending the winter in Arizona, this has been a sore point between JoAnna and her Mom. It almost seems as though the bond between twins – Alice and her brother Albert – is stronger than the bond among family. I stay in the background on this one, even though I think Alice is taking advantage of the situation. Isolation is not a word in Larry’s vocabulary. He thrives on interacting with people and where they live in Arizona is a mecca for hermits.
Stay tuned for further reports.
