Are there St. Patrick’s Day festivities in your household?  Special foods, decorations, stories, or card exchanges?
We always made St. Patrick’s Day a special occasion when I was a youngster because the hired man, Dan Sullivan, was Irish.  He wore a tiny green bow on his work cap.  It was a game which one of us children spied the bow first when Dan and my dad came from the barn for breakfast.
(Dan worked for my dad on the farm and was a surrogate grandfather for us children.  He took his meals with us and rented a room from a neighbor.)
Mother cooked corned …read more

I was delighted today, when I was substitute teaching, to find kindergarteners and first graders choosing reading and having a fun time.  As they finished their worksheets, they had a couple of choices of activities.  The first ones began to choose reading and soon others joined in.  Some looked at books and read together; others did this on their own.
I was impressed that they were having such an enjoyable time on their own. It’s wonderful that their teachers are nurturing the youngsters’ love of books.  I hope this carries on as they progress through school.

Wherever I look, youngsters are reading Twilight and Stephanie Meyer’s other books.  Today, when I was substitute teaching, I saw fifth and seventh graders with these popular books during free reading time.In discussions, I learned that the youngsters enjoyed reading them even though the books had many pages.
And the movie, Twilight?  The students I talked with today, in general, liked the movie.  They acknowledged it didn’t follow the book entirely, but that didn’t deter them.  Some said they waited in line in the cold outside the theater the first day it came to their town.
How long did you wait in …read more

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Remembering 9/11 occurred across the country today. 
 At the school where I was substitute teaching, the students and faculty gathered at the flag pole in front of the building.  Police and firemen from the community, along with other citizens joined them for a short talk, pledge of allegiance, and to sing “This Land is Your Land.”
On 9/11/01, I also was substitute teaching, in first grade that day, when the principal stopped by my room and handed me a note, mentioning what was happening and that the television in the teacher’s room was on.  Until we knew more, we weren’t to alarm …read more

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Who is Mary Emma Allen?
 I’m a writer, wife, mom and grandmother. I love to read, write, travel and spend time with my grandchildren. We all live in a multigenerational home in New Hampshire with assorted animals and often visiting cousins and school friends.
I have a degree in elementary education and currently do substitute teaching in grades K-12. This, along with having grandchildren in the home, keeps me in touch with young people’s reading and interests. My favorite class at teacher’s college was Children’s Literature, and I’ll always be thankful my professor encouraged me to pursue my love of writing for …read more