What’s New
Country School Christmas Programs and Santa Suits
Country school Christmas programs were a big deal and still are where country schools still exist. That's why preparing for the Christmas program plays a major role in See Jane Sing! In fact, the progress of the program is a device I use to drive the story's sense of...
Once a Teacher, Always a Teacher
Once a teacher, always a teacher. Those words were ringing in my ears today as I created a sequencing activity to send to my Wisconsin grandkids, ages 8 and 5. It was precisely the sort of thing I often set out for my country school kindergarten through second grade...
East River, West River, and More
East River, West River is a phrase familiar to past and present citizens of the Dakotas. Everyone else in the world is most likely oblivious to East River, West River talk. If you're among the oblivious ones–a group that included me until my husband and I moved to...
Hear Jane Sing’s Author Is Singing for Joy
Hear Jane Sing's author is singing for joy and for good reason. I should know since the author is me. The reason for all the singing, which some people at my house consider more caterwaul than music, is warranted because the first draft of Hear Jane Sing! is finished....
Winter Is Not All Bad
Winter is not all bad. That was my mantra a couple days ago when a surprise storm dumped 9 inches of snow on our town in a few hours. It was very pretty coming down (good news) and half of it had melted by evening (even better news). If all snowstorms were like that,...
Concrete Withdrawal
Concrete withdrawal was something I dealt with during our first year in South Dakota. The memory surfaced yesterday while we watched a skilled crew of men pour the floors of the basement bump out and the downstairs and upstairs garages. To me it looked like our...