If you give a 3rd grader a dictionary...
I'm a member of my local Rotary, at least in part because Rotary has a solid tradition of supporting literacy, in the belief that literacy will lead to peace. One practice to help reinforce if not increase literacy is the giving of dictionaries to third graders and thesauruses to fifth graders.
A week or so ago, I received the thank-you notes from the third graders at Cambridge Elementary. What struck me was how much the thank you notes said about the student who had written them, so I wanted to share a couple with you. The names have been redacted.
Exclamation marks! Yes! But what struck me, aside from the gratitude, is the importance this student places on her friends. Would she be as happy if her friends didn't like the dictionaries?
On the other hand, I suspect this student would like the dictionary no matter what:
A third grader who understands that you underline the title of a book? This is one of us, and I have to say I hope she keeps it up and that I am able to have her in my copyediting class someday.
My favorite, though, was this one:
Now there's a plot, if I ever saw one. I may frame this, with a small hammer attached: "In case of writer's block, break glass."
Thank you, Cambridge Third Graders, and thank you, Mrs. Cota and Mrs. Longley, for fostering enthusiasm for words and language and writing in your students.
A week or so ago, I received the thank-you notes from the third graders at Cambridge Elementary. What struck me was how much the thank you notes said about the student who had written them, so I wanted to share a couple with you. The names have been redacted.
Exclamation marks! Yes! But what struck me, aside from the gratitude, is the importance this student places on her friends. Would she be as happy if her friends didn't like the dictionaries?
On the other hand, I suspect this student would like the dictionary no matter what:
A third grader who understands that you underline the title of a book? This is one of us, and I have to say I hope she keeps it up and that I am able to have her in my copyediting class someday.
My favorite, though, was this one:
Now there's a plot, if I ever saw one. I may frame this, with a small hammer attached: "In case of writer's block, break glass."
Thank you, Cambridge Third Graders, and thank you, Mrs. Cota and Mrs. Longley, for fostering enthusiasm for words and language and writing in your students.