Skip to main content

Jackson Benson

This week's post is not about teaching.  It's about a puppy.  Our family's new puppy.

After finding him - this took longer than I had thought possible - it was time to name him.  Although, my husband suggested we look online for names that would suit a black Labrador Retriever, my 7-year-old insisted on giving him an original name.  Through trial and error of tasting the names on our tongues, we finally agreed on Jackson Benson.  And, it suits this 2-month old wonder that we've already fallen in love with.

Jackson hasn't been been with us for three whole days and I can already tell that he is quickly going to become an important member of our family.  My son's never going to be the same because of this little black puppy.  And, I've been given a second chance to do better with a dog than the last time we had pets.  I wasn't very involved then but I'm determined to change that this time around.

Just in the last couple of days, my son has been outdoors more than at any other time before.  He is away from the computer and rough housing with Jackson.  When Joaquin has to go in the house to shower or eat, Jackson whimpers like the baby he is.  It breaks all of our hearts but slowly he is learning his limits and he is getting to know us.  Last night my husband held him until he fell asleep and then he put him in his interim house.  He literally slept like a baby - no crying or fussing for our Jackson.

Yesterday it rained in the afternoon and as soon as I got home I ran outside, my heart pounding, worrying that Jackson was cold and wet, which he was.  I gathered a towel, any towel, and wrapped Jackson up to dry him off.  I held him until he stopped shivering, though I didn't want to put him down.  I surprised myself at the tenderness I felt towards this little puppy that was a stranger to us just two days ago.

As soon as we get home from school this afternoon, my son will run outside to be with Jackson.  I will join him and we will rejoice in this time together.  At some point, I will stand back and just watch the two of them playing.  My heart will swell up and I will be grateful for this moment.

Who would have thought a puppy could bring such joy and gratitude?  Life is good.
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Partner Reading and Content, Too Routine (PRC2)

I'm a hoarder. There, I've said it. I try to deny that I'm a hoarder but it comes back to haunt me every time I move houses, or pack up my classroom at the end of the school year. I have old articles, lesson plans, handouts, folders brimming with teaching ideas, past issues of profesional journals. I hardly throw anything out though I've learned to be more selective over the years. My one rule of thumb, and I really try to stick to this, is that if I haven't used or referred to something in a year, then it's time to toss it into the recycle bin. One exception to this rule (you knew this was coming, didn't you?) is past issues of journals from professional organizations. However, with the ability to locate articles online through my professional memberships, even this exception is becoming less and less useful, which brings me to the topic of this blog post. I am currently reading a copy of The Reading Teacher from 2010. I've clipped a cou...
Post a Comment
Read more

The Reading Strategies Book - Chapter 12, Supporting Students’ Conversations – Speaking, Listening, and Deepening Comprehension

The strategy lessons highlighted in Chapter 12, Supporting Students’ Conversations – Speaking, Listening, and Deepening Comprehension, in The Reading Strategies Book by Jennifer Serravallo are critical to students’ engagement and comprehension, as well as their ability to write literary essays, or even book reviews, summaries and reflective pieces about books. If students aren’t able to talk about books in a way that is invigorating and joyful, they will be less likely to develop an interest in growing ideas for writing about books. In her introduction to this chapter, Jennifer Serravallo, reminds us that when conversations go well, children are inspired by what they read and are motivated to keep reading. However, when conversations fall flat, then kids get bored and tune out. How do we avoid this situation and teach kids to  have  focused conversations about books?  The answer is easy: teach kids  strategies to help them develop effective conversa...
Post a Comment
Read more

Are we listening?

A child sits alone with a ripped worksheet packet on his desk. He appears to be singing or subvocalizing something though no one hears him. Or, perhaps they're ignoring him. The teacher stands at the front of the room teaching on the SmartBoard. The children follow along in their worksheets. Except the child sitting alone. He is in his own world. No one engages him and he engages no one. My heart aches for this child. He is physically and emotionally removed from the class. I ask him why his paper is ripped. (It's not an accidental rip.) He says he did that on a different day. When he had been frustrated about the work. He tells me that he sometimes sits by himself because the work is too hard for him. He later tells me that he sits by himself because the teacher thinks he talks too much during the lesson.  He says he does that because he wants to find out about the "lives of the other children". My first impulse is to rescue him from the wrongheade...
10 comments
Read more