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Jul
04

Getting to the Root

Bev holding the Uprooter and a tree removed with the tool
Growing up on a farm, and working part time for over a decade as a flower farmer, I thought I had seen most garden tools available to be grasped by green thumbs of the world: every kind of spade and hoe with unique blade shapes, specialized plates for zinnia planting, and cool Japanese beetle traps that may or may not bring every beetle in a mile radius to the bullseye center of our field. 


My horticultural paradigm was knocked off center, though, when I spent a couple of afternoons working with the Indiana School for the Blind and Visually Impaired horticulture program removing invasive species from their campus. I was assigned to the group removing small trees and introduced to the UPROOTER, a.k.a. tool of my dreams. 

As shown in this video, the Uprooter grasps small trees at their base, and provides a long bar/lever to wrench the tree out, providing the most gratifying sensation of feeling the many-fingered roots pull up easily from their depths. If you’ve ever tried to pull even a half inch tree out of your landscaping by hand, maybe you, like me, have resorted to just cutting it off at the ground only to have the tree grow back in a month or so. It’s either that or back surgery. With my very own Uprooter, though, I have removed even the gnarly hackberry tree that I had just been cutting to the ground for the past ten years. 

My most successful consultations through PATINS generate a similar satisfying vibe. A Teacher for the Blind is preparing for a new educational need, or transition to middle school for a student and wants to explore technology options. They have a toolbox full of great devices, strategies and ideas, but want more training or to make sure they have the most up-to-date device. We spend most of our time talking about the student, and their unique needs, and then process our conversation using a great leveraging tool like Joy Zabala’s SETT framework. When a teacher knows their students well, and I am able to connect them with a new accessibility technique or gadget, we reach a moment when the barriers seem to loosen and slide out of the substratum of complexity.

Pinkish red zinnia
What are some barriers you’re facing this school year? Do you need to weed out any old practices that you’ve hoped would just disappear without addressing the root? We’d love to hear from you! Let a PATINS specialist be your Uprooter! 

2
Jun
26

“Mimi, can I read this book to you?”

It has been more than 3 years that I blogged, “Mimi, would you read me this book?” It was about my wife Rita and our 5 grandchildren.

Here is an excerpt:

“We have 5 ranging from 6 years of age down to 6 months. From a very early age, Mimi would “read” picture books to each one. It only has a picture and is wordless, but she would describe the picture in a way that would tell a very short story. As each one has grown older, she would ask if they would like for her to read to them. “Bring me a book,” she will say if they don’t already have on in hand. She has never been turned down.  ore often than not I hear, “Mimi, would you read me this book?” You should know by now that the answer is an overwhelming “YES”. It is a blessing to watch how she draws our grandchildren into her world, no their world. So, as I watch this miracle happen, I take pleasure in 
fact that undoubtedly my grandchildren have found the importance of reading and I have as well. What a precious gift to pass on.”

Jump ahead 3 years and the age range is now 9 to 3 and a half. It has been an amazing look back and where the 3 oldest are now after attending school.

Dean just finished third grade, Logan just finished first grade and Kenzie just finished kindergarten. What is noteworthy is that all 3 read at or beyond grade level and they love to read.

What I wrote about 3 years ago has come full circle. Their enthusiasm for reading has been expressed in a reciprocal way to Mimi. What once was “Mimi, would you read me this book?” is now “Mimi, can I read this book to you?”

She never turns them down.

Kenzi reading to Mimi on the glider outdoors.

We take great pride in listening to them read. It goes without saying that what my wife sowed for our grandchildren 3 years ago has reaped tenfold.


Mimi has not given up reading to our grandchildren. We still have Hazel and Ethan that like to be read to, and it is still enjoyable for Mimi and me when we hear, “Mimi, would you read me this book?”



2
Jun
13

I "Sparked Joy" In My Office and It Worked

I "Sparked Joy" In My Office and It Worked I
I don’t pretend to be any better than the kids who love to watch hours of people unboxing toys they’ll never play with: I love watching people buy homes I’ll never live in, make food I’ll never eat, or declutter spaces I’ll never visit.

To that end, I really adore Marie Kondo, the enthusiastic and sensitive soul who encourages you to either “spark joy” with items or don’t keep them, among other steps in her decluttering process. My husband is terrified when I turn on one of the episodes on Netflix, because he knows I'll be inspired to tackle another room. ?

I admit to being a packrat and wishful crafter, especially in my job. When I see corrugated plastic yard signs or empty takeout I bring up the “Pinterest of my mind” and imagine what I could turn it into. Having a shoestring budget to cover 3-7 different rooms every year meant I had to be creative and I thought if I could just find more there would be… more! What if I needed it later?

A few years ago, unaware of Ms. Kondo’s methods, I inherited a workspace that resembled what an avalanche in a tiny library might look like. Materials were slowly suffocating me, and I realized The Purge must happen. I created a little test in my head: was this going to positively impact a student this month? Yes, keep and organize, if not, pitch. That's it, the only rule!

What was donated?
  • 60% of the games and books
  • Outdated testing materials
  • Old triplicate IEP forms from 1997
  • 99% of my college books and projects
  • 90% of the worksheets
  • Treasure box toys (and any references to treasure box/incentives)Neatly organized office supplies and a cup of coffee
  • Assistive Technology that has really truly bit the dust or past its useful life (check with your schools on how to dispose of it properly)
What stayed?
  • Solidly constructed organization tools like shelves and file drawers
  • Perennial office supplies, although not so many
  • A set of what I still consider my “speech therapy on a deserted island” emergency kit: mirror, dry erase board, post its, pens, crayons, tongue depressors
I can report I’ve never missed anything that was donated, not once.

It was better than a facelift: I felt like I had energy! The room wasn’t so busy, I could put things away quickly and my students could get things out. We were moving and grooving to a new rhythm.

At this stage in my career, the 5-7 speech rooms have condensed into the trunk of my car. It’s still a battle of making sure what’s in there really sparks joy and moves the needle. I’m moving offices again, wish me luck in making sure what stays in my new workspace provides me purpose and energy for another year!



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