Middle Earth Comes to My House

Merry (on left); Pippin (on right)

Emery turned 10 this past week. For his birthday, he wanted a cat since my two very old cats have died in the past two years (one earlier this year) and these were his dear companions (they would sit on his lap while he played video games on our couch). So, Monday we went to our vet to ask for advice. I’m not sure why I wanted to take Emery to our vet to have her teach him about taking care of a pet (I probably read about the idea in a magazine or it is a result of never starting a new project without doing some research first), but it was a wonderful experiences and she has undoubtedly done this before.

Emery asked some very good questions, including how would they react to his violin playing and how could he make them feel comfortable in our home. As for me, I wanted to know about where one can go to find kittens to adopt. (Secretly, I had hoped our vet would say, “How about this kitty someone dropped off a few days ago?”).

It turns out Emery had seen a Project Purr billboard one night on the way to fencing and had been visiting their site surreptitiously through his DS. PP are a wonderful organization that really supports cats’ wellbeing and saves lives. Becoming a foster parent for them is a huge commitment, and these parents know so much about the cats they care for. And they make those who adopt feel like heroes. That is why we found ourselves waiting for them to set up at the Mall one night last week.

2 hours later, we left with two male kittens in a cardboard carrier (Emery took his time making his decision and examining all of his options). Two kitties my husband named Pippin and Merry (from Lord of the Rings, yep, I told you we were nerds). They had been found abandoned in an apartment complex and, although Emery was fine just adopting one, I couldn’t see splitting them up after their sister had been adopted.

It’s been several days now, and I am so happy. Our experience with Project Purr and our vet (who met them this morning) represents one very responsible, loving way to get a pet, (my first two were 1. From my college roommate’s litter and 2. From an ad in the newspaper). The best part was that this time my family helped in the decision.

What pet stories do you have? What are their names? I think that as professors, it’s quite possible our pets have odd (dare I say pretentious) names. My last cats were named Catullus and Ovid (I was taking Latin at the time I got them).

 Emery’s comment: If you want to get a kitten DON’T keep them in your room they will scratch your feet. Plus if your low on money a plastic spoon makes a great toy. Wear socks around them also.  They are well trained and sweet already (thanks to project purr.) 

Video Games, Walkthroughts, and Cheats, Oh My!

Picture of the red DS Emery made before he was given one.

If you’ve read any of these other posts, you’ll know that my son loves video games. As a professor/mom who has read a plethora of parenting books and research articles before he was born (I just finished Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother and I can safely say that I’m not a Tiger mom—and I agree/disgree passionately with her opinions on the Suzuki method, but I have to admit, Emery and I have shared similar arguments), I swore my child would never watch tv or play video games. Yeh, that didn’t last long. But, once I realized that in order to play many of these games, he had to read, I justified the time he spent on these games as worthwhile.

It didn’t take long for him to want to share his enjoyment with me. That has led to my spending many hours either watching or playing games with him. That’s why this week we thought it would be nice to share a few of the games we enjoy with you. (Also, we’re taking it easy this weekend in between his Seussical performances, which I must say are awesome!.)

We are definitely a Nintendo family. I think the first game Emery saw me play was Zelda: Wind Waker, which he tried but was unable to finish (it’s a hard game for a first game to attempt).

Games we play together

1.     All of the Mario Kart games. He can beat me on the courses that require skill; I can beat him on the courses where you can’t possibly fall off the course. He usually plays as Luigi; I prefer Yoshi and Birdo.

2.     The Mario Party games. Those are actually rather a lot of fun, but they can take a long time and a great deal of luck.

3.     Game and Wario—there are some fun two-player games on this one.

4.     Pikmin 3 (there will be an upcoming review on this game)

Games he plays and I watch

1.     Paper Mario Thousand Year Door

2.     Super Mario Bros Wii

3.     Mario Galaxy II

4.     Pokepark I and II

Games for the DS

1.     Zelda Spirit Tracks and Phantom Hourglass

2.     SuperMario Bros.

3.     Pokemon Black/ White

While several of these games have few words, there are many that require reading and even more that require cheat guides. After I got tired reading cheat guides for Emery, he began reading them (and even finding) them for himself.

If you’ve read even one of my posts before, you’ll know that I struggle with letting Emery spend hours playing video games (he has even taken to watching walkthroughs on Youtube of games he’s already played). That’s why we have one tech-free night a week (last year it was Tech-Free Tuesday, but because I teach on Tuesday nights, I’ve had to switch it to tech-free Thurdays). And, then, like many parents, the time comes when I just turn off the tv, personal game system, and console, and give him “a tech break.” Which seems a little weird, shouldn’t tech be a break from other things, like homework or violin or even outdoor play?

How do you negotiate tech in your house? 

The First Weeks of School

 Last week was the first week of school for the kids, and one of my most favorite weeks of the year. I love getting ready for things—writing proposals for projects, pulling together a course, plotting out my semester—with the hopes that this time I won’t be overwhelmed, fall behind, or get distracted.

But, that means my son started school last week. And, as we were told repeatedly during parents’ night, it’s time for our children to be more independent. Which is why I probably shouldn’t have spent most of one evening on the phone with another parent in his class trying to get him registered for Kahn Academy.

But this is not a blog post on Kahn; I will write one at some time, but as of right now, the need to complete lessons on Kahn interferes with just about everything else. So, here some pieces of advice for starting the school year—you know most of them, but they serve as good reminders (maybe Emery will offer some of his own).

1.     Reinstall a good sleep routine. I’m very strict on bedtimes, even in the summer, Emery kept his school sleep hours—with very few exceptions. At this age, what’s a kid doing out of bed after 8 anyway? (We don’t have much of a social life). It makes transitioning to back to school hours so much easier.

2.     Keep outside commitments during the first week to a minimum. Okay, I broke this rule this year as Emery is in a local Playmakers' production of Seussical: The Musical and has had rehearsals every night from 5-8 (which has interfered with his 8 o’clock bedtime).

3.     Clean off that study area and set up for the school year. Yep, we’re in the process of clearing off the desk in our kitchen to set up the homework station—pens, pencils, books, calculator, stapler, tape, etc.

4.     As a former teacher, I think it’s important for a parent to always be aware of what’s going on at school—what will your child be reading and/ or studying this year? Then, maybe read one of the books they read (I just read The Lemonade War—Emery’s first independent book for the year—I was able to read it in one sitting), rent a movie on the topic from your library, tell them how you learned to divide double digit numbers. I don’t know yet if these conversations work, but it’s fun to learn about the Mayans again.

5.     I’m a firm believer in car conversations as I’ve heard these tend to be the places our children open to us. Albeit, sometimes I have to interrupt Emery in mid-thought to navigate construction.  

I asked my husband for his advice, and it once again reveals my bad tendencies as a mom to focus more on the extracurricular than the curricular.

Victor’s advice: Don’t let your wife jam a bunch of other stuff in your kid’s life when you should be focused on grades.

Emery’s side: last week was the first week of school for us kids , and one of my least favorite  weeks. I hate getting ready for school. Plus mom  broke rule 2!!! (more than you know.) I also get giant binders that barely fit in my back pack. While I write this I wonder. Will I be able to switch  costumes quick enough?

What advice do you have for a successful back to school endeavor?

Review of Sea of Monsters: From Mom, Dad, and Son (no spoilers)

Okay, let’s get one thing straight. The book is always, always better than the movie. Now, some great movies have been inspired by books  (Jumangi and The Invention of Hugo Cabret are great examples), but a book was written to be a book, not a movie (at least I hope so). In the case of the movies Sea of Monsters and The Lightening Thief, both stories are well-adapted and manipulated for the screen, but both truly lack the hilarity and originality found in the novels. I was impressed with the way the book’s themes were retained—there are messages about the role of relationships and confidence and working together. (I must admit my bias here, I’ve seen Rick Riordan, the author, speak at a conference, and interviewed and wrote a brief essay on his work). But, this is a review of the film.

Here’s a quick plot summary.

Percy rejoins his friends, Grover and Annabeth, at Camp Half Blood as they embark on a quest to save the camp. The mythical item they need is located on an island in the Sea of Monsters. Along the way, they meet several mythical characters who help or hinder their journey. Percy also learns a bit more about his past and his place in this world.

Random comments.

1. The film was well cast! Thanks so much for having Anthony Stewart Head from Buffy the Vampire Slayer (I’m a huge Buffy nut and sort of scholar) and Yvette Nicole Brown from Community.

2. Some things only my nerdy family noticed: first the joke Nathan Fillion made about short-lived television shows (he was in Firefly—another Whedon connection) and in the scene on the deck of the Andromeda, Luke is listening to “Waltz” by Brahams. the fifth piece in Suzuki Vol. 2 book for violin. And, yes, the scene in the taxi is sort-of like the scene with the Knight Bus in Harry Potter: Prisoner of Azakaban.

3.  As far as watching the film, it was hard to concentrate when Emery kept whispering in my ear all of the things that were different in the movie than the book. Also, Emery thought the 3D was cool; I didn’t mind it, but I didn’t think it was necessary.

4.  I feel like with these two movies, they write them as stand-alone films in case someone is seeing them for the first time, and just in case they don’t make a sequel.  

My son and husband make two good points in their reviews: first, this is a film suitable for younger audiences (even younger than Lightening Thief) and you need to accept that this movie is not a faithful recreation of the book. Am I glad I went to see it, yes. Will we probably buy the DVD, yes.

Emery’s review of Sea of Monsters: the book  was 115% better. First mistake; Talia!!!!!!!  They pronounced her name wrong!!!!! It’s Thalia! They also took out the guinea pig  scene !! When they make the Son of Poseidon, they will regret that. Don’t get me started on Kronos! THEY just eliminated 1 whole movie because they moved elements from the Labyrinth to this movie. On the positive side, I like the special effects (ex the wind) and the plastic eye on Grover. If you read the book and you are flexible watch it if you are not don’t.

Victor's Review: Let me make it clear that my review of Percy Jackson and the Sea Monster is 100% aimed at the movie not the novel which I haven't read. I feel like the best way to go about this is to first admit that I had no real desire to see this film.  Rather, I had a desire to be with my wife and son, and since they were bound for the film, so was I.

I also feel that comparisons all not always fair ... but that's what I'm going to do anyway.  This Jackson film seemed to be aiming squarely at a younger audience whereas by comparison, the Harry Potter films seemed to transcend the YA label,  There was never a second I thought this Percy Jackson film was "for me."  The quippy dialogue bordered on the obvious, and the set pieces were all way tame ... again, I assume, aiming at a younger audience.  (The last film I REALLY enjoy was Django Unchained, so ....)

If you’re a good parent, and your kid wants to see it, then yeah.

If you think a movie with swords should have more stabbing ... then no.

So, what do you think? Did you or will you see it? What else are you watching this summer? 

Summer Reading, Having Some Fun

So, what did your kid (if you have one) read for his or her summer reading? Mine had to read The Report Card by Andrew Clements. School starts next Thursday and he’s not done yet, but I think he’s close. He seems to like it because he’s shared scenes with us and I’ll hear him chuckling from the back seat of the car. He’s read other books by Clements before including Frindle (we read that together at night) and Lunch Money, which he read to himself.

I don’t recall seeing what he was supposed to do with his summer reading other than read the book, but a quick glance at his school's website reveals that he should be able to answer a few discussion questions, including various levels of questions such as recall and evaluate. As an English/ Language Arts person, I’m torn on the topic of summer reading. On the one hand, I appreciate those teachers who encourage students to read for pleasure. Reading after all, has been used to address “summer reading setback.” Allington et al has done substantial research in this area and the ways summer reading might help close the achievement gap and concludes that easy access to self-selected texts can help in this endeavor.  I’m trying not to turn this blog into an academic endeavor, and I’m feeling the urge to cite a bunch of research supporting effective strategies for summer reading, so I’ll conclude this section with three links I found interesting in regards to summer reading:

1. Here’s a June 2013 New York Times’ piece “28 Summer Reading Suggestions from College Admission Experts” by Brennan Barnard. Titles for students, parents, and everyone—is it every too early? I didn't see the film Admission, but I'm currently reading the novel by Jean Hanff Korelitz. It's interesting to learn a little bit about the process of applying to ivy league institutions and the parent in me wants to completely restructure Emery's path to college (he's decided to go into video games, so of course, none of this knowledge I'm gaining will help him). 

2. Some neat ideas to encourage summer reading compiled from librarians and found on the Scholastic site.

3.  Finally, here’s a site with further links directing readers to what’s being assigned in various states as well as good recommendations for specific tastes (so, not just books for boys, but books for teen boys, books for boys who like history, etc.) It’s kind of a cumbersome page and one could spend a lot of time of it . . . 

As a middle/ high school student, I only recall being assigned summer reading once—the semester before AP American History, we were to read James Michener’s Chesapeake and Centennial. I fell in love with these huge texts and went on to read Mexico. We never discussed the books—not once. And, I never brought them up. At the time, it didn’t bother me.

I once worked at a school that required summer reading for its AP courses. I agonized over the choices and chose four novels. I also gave an assignment to be completed before the beginning of school. I cringe at the memory.

If I were to give summer reading now, and speaking as a parent, I think a little guidance would be nice. Here are some guidelines

1.    Chose an engaging text, and if possible, offer choices.

2.    Explain the purpose behind assigning summer reading.

3.    If the summer reading is purely for pleasure, great. If not,

         let parents/ students know what will be expected from them. Should students be able to take a quiz on the book the day they return? Discuss the book as a class?

   

That’s all I can think of. What successful summer reading experiences have you had?  I’ll share that the summer reading program at our local library in which patrons read a certain number of books for rewards really doesn’t motivate Emery and that form sits at home blank, just like last summer. A great book seems to be enough incentive. 

Emery’s comment: I put it off because I forgot where the book was! [I think I hid it]. There are also other books I have not read like No Talking and Lost and Found. i am also reading the sequel to Charlie joe jackson's guide to not reading.