I adopted a new tattling policy after we watched Willy Wonka & The Chocolate Factory (1971 version with Gene Wilder). From Willy Wonka’s mouth, to my ears, and straight out of my mouth again.
Please submit all complaints in writing to the complaint department. It is only open between the hours of 8-9 pm, thus any letters received before this time cannot be guaranteed successful delivery.
The 2nd sentence is of my own making. I enjoyed delivering my lines over and over in a dramatic voice.
But I’ve pushed off and away from school life in my little rowboat. Paddling slowly down the stream. Looking for a quiet place to pitch my tent. And eat a bowl of strawberries & peaches.
I went on a morning walk. I don’t know why I feel the need to pick up trash off the street and cart it home in my pockets. But I do. Sometimes it doesn’t fit in my pockets, but I cart it home anyway. The mannequin arm from a February walk is still draped across my front porch rail. I use the 6 white plates I found daily. The hangers have come in very handy.
As Full Tilt Boogie winds down I’ll be blogging more over here. I don’t make a good multi-tasker. I have a slow methodical brain. It dives down deep into each subject and sometimes forgets to come up for air. Luckily I found an oxygen tank on a walk. And it works!
Street trash – a favorite of mine! My husband teases me, & I keep on picking things up. Found objects rock, don’t they? And, now that my daughter has started making bracelets out of pop tabs, we scrounge more specifically than ever. Thanks for your GREAT blog & all the inspiration you share.
Dear Ms Moss, Sum of your boogiers r flashing their FTBs in faces of us who are still saving our pennies for your class. What will you do?
I have been christened the “magpie” since I started picking things up off the ground to put into my ROD journals. Picked up a really cool security envelope in Portugal 2 weeks (attending an AWESOME workshop with Teesha and Tracy Moore), thinking “Mary Ann would be so proud of me”, only to have my new friend Taylor point out to me that there was dog poop on the other side of the envelope – yuck! Needless to say, that envelope went right back down on the ground where I had found it!! (I can see the tattle letter now – “Dear Ms. Moss, Cynthia picked up dog poop today” – oh dear)
That’s a well-taught and intelligent child who wrote about the bees. Even if the bees were being cilled, Ms. Moss and everyone else got their capital letters and their commas.
My complainrs department is my journal – but it doesn’t get many entries these days.
If I were American, I suppose I’d know what that duck’s face is all about. Ha! – but do you know what Marmite is?
When my kiddos were younger…I always loved the teacher that had that policy..makes the students feel powerful and heard (without nagging teacher)(and shhhh…they are WRITING!) wish I could do it on the bus…Love your trash pick up…I always notice the odd things. esp. the lone shoes on the street.
Glad to know I’m not the only one that picks up cool trash. 😉
Dear Ms. Moss: last night I came home and found my cat watching your FTB videos (photos coming). He said Buck and Wyatt were charging a special “cat discount” to the class. Price of admission can be paid in catnip, raw chicken, and live geccos. What will you do?
You teach 2nd grade and my 9th graders write exactly the same thing. Yikes.
these kid’s notes are priceless!!! Made me laugh in the instant and smile in the memory….Love your complaint dept. idea.
And that fruit and the embroidery on that cloth…
Peace,
sass
priceless letters. paging through a journal full of these would make for a terrific read. leave it to kids to tell it like it is. wendy’s complaint, without actually saying so, made it perfectly clear she was completely grossed out by alan’s disgusting table manners. somehow me thinks alan was purposely trying to get wendy’s goat!
I love your “tattling policy”…I would definitely use it if I were back in my middle school classroom, and I think I will consider it for my daughters when they learn to write! I read once about a woman who put a big picture of an ear on the wall, and when her kids would start to tattle, she told them to go “talk to the ear” about it; I thought that was a pretty priceless idea!
Ha Ha Ha…sounds familiar, like the political pundits who tattle nightly on everyone and everything. I agree, if you have something that is so important to say, then write it down. That is why I use email instead of the phone if I can. Although speaker phones are great because you can really multi-task, shaving your legs, bikini waxing and picking nose hair, all while talking to the IRS. It feels so powerful to say “scuse me a minute, I just need to rip off some wax, can you hold please” and put them on hold, then get back on and make static noises and disconnect the call. Power to the people.
awesome policy!! i think i will do this with my own children at home! 🙂
I’m laughing out loud!! Oh Ms. Moss, what WILL you do???? hahahahahaha
Those notes are precious and priceless! When my daughter was in 2nd grade, my the teacher asked my husband if he’d arrange a field trip to his workplace. Afterward, the children wrote thank you notes. One written in pencil on the same paper as the one’s you’ve shown said, “Dear Mr. H., Thank you for our field trip. May God have mercy on your soul”. We still have all of those letters. Maybe one or two will end up in a journal someday. Personally, I’m just waiting for the day when one of those 2nd graders becomes famous!
I agree with the others – love the complaint department. And also want the peaches and strawberries.
Ha! Loved the letters to the complaint department! 😀
Classic! And I like your new complaint policy. Perfect.
Long ago, my assistant instituted the three minute complaint session. Kids sat in circle and could complain or tattle during that time only (since their writing skills did not include letters equaling sounds yet). They seemed to like it, then they were not allowed gripes until the next day. It faded away when I had a different assistant. I have also met the mob coming in from lunch recess – usually the time of most affronts. As they begin to spill and spew, I will interrupt with “Will what you are going to say make me happy?” That stops it – – most of the time.
Your monkeys have quite good writing. Nice work, Ms Moss!
I want to know what happened to Wendy and Evelyn!
Those notes are so precious….
Loving the new stitches in FTB.
Emie
I might have to use that tattling policy in my high school art room. They tattle, but in more of a gossipy way. I like the tattling hours. That will work best!
I adore your tattling policy! If I need to ‘tell on someone’ I’ll be sure and write you a letter .. wonderful. Donna
ha ha ha kimberly!
they were telling on kids they thought were KILLING bees outside on the schoolyard
These letters are hilarious! I have no idea what a cilling bee is or means, but it must be against the rules!