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benkyoutobentou · 28 days

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31 Days of Productivity Reading: Retrospective

This ended up being an entire essay so I had to make it into its own post!

How did my goals turn out? I'm so glad you asked.

Finish No. 6 volume 3

[X] Read [half of] 憎らしい彼

Read 独り舞

Read at least ten volumes of manga

[30/31] Read at least an hour per day

Personally, I think I did alright with my goals, especially considering how busy I was during the first few weeks of the month. I only missed my reading goal one day out of the month! I'm happy with that! That one miss was definitely odd though. The very next day, I found myself debating if I should still hit the hour mark. After all, I had already missed one day. What's one more? But I squashed that thought and continued on as though I never missed at all. Missing only once is better than missing twice!

During the course of this challenge, I finished twelve books (two novels and ten manga volumes) and started one more novel. The two novels I finished were No. 6 volume three by Asano Atsuko and 独り舞 by Li Kotomi, the novel I started but didn't get around to finishing was 憎らしい彼 by Nagira Yuu (which is the second book in the美しい彼 series). The manga volumes that I read were 僕らの地球の歩き方 (5) by Sorai Mone, 光が死んだ夏 (4) by Mokmok Len, ベルサイユのばら (1, 2) by Ikeda Riyoko, ３月のライオン (5) by Umino Chica, and ロンリーガールに逆らえない (1-5) by Kashikaze. If I were forced to pick a favorite of the month, I think I would have to choose volume five of ボクチキ but I feel like that's kind of cheating, since it's already my favorite manga series. Most of what I read during the month ended up being continuations of series that I had previously started reading, and I only read two completely new to me things (独り舞 and ロンガル).

Did my physical tbr shrink during this challenge? No! Not at all! Yikes! At the beginning of the month, I got a huge package of eighteen books from a lovely friend over on Instagram who doesn't read Japanese and was getting rid of them anyways. Then, I found the entirety of Basara at a used book shop and picked up the first five volumes. I want to start reading more older and classic shoujo, so this was the perfect opportunity to pick up a series that I probably wouldn't have read otherwise. So in the end, my Japanese tbr ended up expanding by thirteen books, but at least it didn't expand by twenty three, right?

As much as this challenge was a success, it was also a failure. I started this challenge to encourage myself to prioritize reading in my schedule and, honestly, that didn't happen as much as I had hoped. I talked a bit about this with a neighbor who wants to practice piano more, but I think that sometimes, putting emphasis on something can create a mental block, no matter how much you enjoy the activity. Especially with a challenge like this, I constantly felt like I had to have enough time to read. What even is enough time to read? Instead of picking up a book whenever and wherever, I was trying to force time for it, which just ended up making it so that I would push off reading until the very end of the day. It's the same as with practicing piano. If you stop to play a little song when you have five minutes, you'll probably play a lot more in the day than if you specifically try to find enough time for a full hour long practice session. Often, those little pick ups turn into a lot more if you let them.

I mentioned this a bit before, but I'd like to say it again and possibly expand on it. I think I'd like to bring this challenge back in a few months, but instead of focusing on time spent, focus more on page count. This would encourage those small pick ups rather than discourage them, as I felt this timing method did. Each time I wanted to read, I had to start the timer, stop it every time I got interrupted, and overall it was kind of a pain. Definitely not the ideal reading circumstances.

One thing that I did like about the timing system was being able to see my average reading speed. My average speed ended up being a little bit faster than what I had previously thought! My guess before this was about five minutes per novel page. I'm not a whole lot faster than that, but small progress is still progress! It was also interesting to see how my reading speed differed between different manga series and wh that was. I read some series that I knew were slower reads for me (３月のライオン) and some that I knew would be easier (ロンガル) but actually seeing the differences in the way the manga was written and drawn and how that related to my reading speed was interesting. I didn't get to all the manga series I wanted to in the end, but I won't stop reading just because this challenge is over.

Overall, I am really glad that I did this challenge. I had a lot of fun writing these updates each day and I am glad that I got through some books on my tbr, even if I would have liked to have made a bit more progress than I did. Expect to see more of this in the future! Just, maybe not the super near future. I'm also thinking of other fun reading challenges to do... Someone I follow on Instagram has an immersion bingo board that they complete each month, so maybe I could do that with my Japanese rads? Much to be considered... Until next time!

#i actually found that i kinda had choice paralysis today #i started two different (eng) books today and really should get to my library book #and im also kinda feeling like i might pick up a volume of manga tomorrow (today when you see this)#benkyou posting #langblr #studyblr #language learning #polyglot #30 days of productivity #booklr

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harrypotterimagined · 3 years

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Hi! Tbh, i thought you don't write anymore, but i red your writings every day and almost gave up. I hope you're okay with your healthy. Maybe if you will have time you'll write clingy and jealous Cedric Diggory x reader. Although i am just glad you're here (sorry, eng is not my first language)

Hi, this is so nice, thank you so much. I'm happy you like my work 🥺 I'm pretty good! School is still kicking me in the butt!

I don't think this is exactly how you meant it, I hope you still like it!

***

You were sitting outside with Cedric and two other friends near the lake. It was always calmer there than just on the grounds. It was a favorite spot of yours, especially during spring time.

Cedric was leaning against a tree, your legs thrown over him as you laughed with your friends. He always loved to see you like that; happy, casual, carefree. When he watched you in that moment, he felt like he'd never been closer to angels.

He smiled as you laughed loudly, leaning back on your hands. "Right, Cedric?"

Hé turned to the friend, unsure of what was being asked. The girl just raised her eyebrows with a little smirk, and Cedric knew he'd been caught.

"Oh, leave him be," you swatted at your friend, though out of her reach, before you turned to him, giving him a smile that could light up even the darkest night. "I think it's cute."

Your friend snorted, making you take your gorgeous eyes off the boy to laugh with them again. He didn't listen to the bickering too much, just marveled in you. He'd never know how he managed to get you.

Then you lifted your legs off his, turning back to him. "Want to go?" You asked, hand reaching for his, making his heart flutter, still. "We can walk a bit and head to the library?"

"Oh, come on," one of your friends laughed loudly. "We all know you won't be studying."

"Well, I'll certainly be getting better at something," you climbed to your feet, one hand still on his, helping him up. You winked when you noticed his slight blush. "I'll see you guys later."

You waved a quick goodbye, lacing your fingers together with Cedrics. "Thanks for hanging with them today," you smiled at him, shoulders brushing every few steps.

"Of course," he said. He would like to say that he would do nothing rather than be with you, but he wasn't certain how to say that. Instead, he gather his courage. "Remember what I said before?"

"Oh, right," you swung your hands a bit, and he didn't need to look at you to know you were smiling. "You wanted to talk. Not a great thing to say to your partner, by the way."

He chuckled, slowing his pace. "Sorry," he looked at you, a smile not faltering as he met your eyes. Merlin, it was so clear to him. It wasn't the way he had wanted to say it, but the way the sun shone down on you, catching the shade of your hair so nicely.

"Why are we stopping?" He hadn't realized he'd stopped walking. The wind picked up, blowing your hair in your face. He reached over, tucking it behind your ear with a gentle smile. His hand came to rest on your cheek, your eyes expectantly. Waiting for a movement or words to spill out.

You looked so amazing, so warm and touchable, he leaned in, catching your lips with his. It was a feeling he would never grow tired of. Your soft skin beneath his fingers, the way your lips moved against his with a softness similar to the duvet after a long day.

As you smiled into the kiss, he broke away, a smile instantly breaking on his face again as he tried to linger in the sweet bliss a moment longer, already longing for your lips once again. "So what did you want to talk about?" You whispered softly.

"I love you," he said softly, without much thinking. He meant it,had never meant anything as much in his life. It had only been two months, but he was certain. He loved you and couldn't keep it in anymore.

He'd been almost certain you felt the same about him. Why else would you look at him like that? Smile at him like that, kiss him like that? But he felt you tense under his touch, smile washing off your face as you stepped back. "You-" he watched you suck in a breath, pulling away from his touch, eyes big. "I- sorry, I'll... I'll see you uhm, later."

You stumbled over the words, eyes darting to the ground, hands running through your hair. Then you walked away, rushing to get away from him.

He started to say something, but what was there even to say? You'd bolted off when he said he loved you, the message was quite clear.

***

A loud laugh filled the library, your hand smacking Sebastian's arm before anyone could shush him. "Stop laughing you asshole!" You snapped, pulling his sweater in a desperate attempt to shut him up.

"I'm sorry," he whispered, still laughing softly. "Can you just repeat that whole story one more time?"

You groaned, dropping your head to the table. "It's not funny!" You muttered. Merlin, you'd been so stupid. Why did you have to run off? Great job at being a good partner and person. Who does that? "I don't know what to do."

Maybe it was the desperation in your voice, but Sebastian pulled himself together, grabbing your wrist and pulling your head up. "Babe," he said with a smile, cheeks still shining from the tears of laughter. "You fucked up, but it's nothing we can't fix. Why did you run?"

You closed your eyes, sighing deeply. It made no sense. Everyone wanted to be with Cedric. You could name four people in the library that had a crush on the boy, and there he'd been, confessing he loved you of all people and..." I don't think I love him."

"Oh, y/n, that is more serious than I thought," the last amusement of Sebastian face vanished. "You want to break up with him?"

Your mouth dropped open, quickly shaking your head. "No! I care for him a lot, I want him to be my boyfriend, I just... It's not even been two months. How do I even know I love him?"

"I don't know," the boy admitted. "I guess it's just something you know. Haven't you read books that explain it?"

You propped your elbow up on the table, resting your head in your palm. It was all so... Complicated. You got butterflies when he kissed you, you wanted to be with him anytime you could, but was that love? You didn't look at him like he seemed to look at you. You don't even know if you love him, while he had been so certain. "I don't want to break up with him," you said. "I really don't. I just... It's too soon."

"Alright, then you should tell him that. It's better than running off, and he'll understand. Just... Say what you said to me but more considerate."

You chuckled, raising your eyebrows at your friend. "You don't think I'm considerate?"

"You could use some work."

You kicked him under the table, not to hard, and he laughed, pulling your arm from under your head. "You're an ass," you sighed, closing the book you hadn't read a word off. "Thank you."

The boy stood, wrapping you in a hug. "Yeah, you owe me big time."

At the words, you poked his side, causing him to laugh once more. He got shushed instantly this time, pulling himself free from your grip. "I'm gonna look for him," you grabbed the book, tucking it under your arm. "Talk to you tomorrow?"

Without waiting for an answer, you rushed out the library, hoping to catch Cedric before his next class.

***

Charms had always been a favorite class of his. He liked Mr. Flitwick, who seemed to like the boy as well. To this particular class, he'd been looking forwards for two weeks, but all he could think about was you wrapped up in Sebastian's arms before he laughed loudly. He would never forget how you looked at the laughing boy. It couldn't be much different than how you looked at him.

He'd thought vetter of you. Such a beautiful soul, a bright mind, and a heart to match. But there you were, in some lovers quirrel moments after you'd rushed away from his words. You certainly didn't seem afraid of the love Sebastián threw at you.

Maybe he'd read it all wrong, maybe you'd been looking for a moment to break up with him so you could be with Sebastián, you so called best friend.

Conveniently enough, Cedric didn't actually know the other guy. You never asked him to come hang out, he'd maybe spoken to him three times. We're you actually hiding a second lover?

"Mr Diggory," Flitwick said, Cedric's eyes flicking up again. "Please pay attention."

He nodded, eyes remaining on the professor while Mike next to him elbowed his side. "Thinking about your lover, Mr. Diggory?" He mocked. "What's it this time, their eyes? Their bum?"

Any other day he would have laughed about it. But not that day. "Shut up, Mike," he mumbled, scribbling down something from the board without paying much attention. He hated the grip you had on him.

After class, he wasn't in a mood to do anything, thiugh he'd agreed to help a friend with homework. He was thinking about canceling that when he say you pacing outside the classroom. Despite what happened, he couldn't help but admire your beauty for a moment. He was smitten, and it was proving to be a problem.

"Cedric," if he hadn't been looking at you, it might have gone lost in the noise of the crowd. You spoke it like it was a confession, eyes sorrowful. "Can we talk?"

He almost said yes. He would give you everything in the world, if only you kept looking at him like that. But then the image of you wrapped up in Sebastián arms rose again. The times you told him not to worry about the boy. "I'm busy," he said, a sharp edge to his voice he loathed. "I'm helping a friend with transfiguration."

He tried to move away from you, but you took a few steps, hand wrapped around his arm ever so softly. If he hadn't wanted to stop, he wouldn't have felt it. "Please, Cédric. Just a moment. I'm just... I'm really sorry."

He shook his head, scoffed and turned back to you. "Well, it certainly didn't look like that."

"What?" You said softly, never the best at reacting to a sharp tone. He regretted it instantly, and knew he couldn't talk about it to you. "I- what do you mean? I just want to say I didn't mean to-"

But he couldn't listen anymore. He knew he'd forgive you in an instand, and the lingering tightness in his chest would remain there. So he took off, leaving you stunned and behind, something he'd apologize for later. He needed to go to the library. Or where ever Sebastián liked to hang out.

***

Cedric seemed to be avoiding you. While you didn't blame him, it was hard to apologize when he didn't want to talk to you. The last thing you wanted was for the two of you to break up just because you did something stupid.

More than anything, you wanted you could say you loved him too and made a mistake, but you just couldn't lie to him. Not about that, not when you might mean it in a few weeks.

So, since Cedric wasn't spezking to you, and you were certain Sofia would laugh at you, you stuck by Sebastian.

"Yeah, the weirdest thing happened the other day," he said as you were sitting on the grass,, mostly because you needed a distraction. "Cedric rushed in the library, he looked at me and then just... Went away again."

"Doubt it has anything to do with you," you said with a smile. "You're imagining things."

The boy scoffed, laying down in the grass, the sun warming your skin. "Oh sure, all he does is because of you,"

"That's not weird! We're dating and we have a... Thing now." there was no other way to describe it. It wasn't really arguing when you didn't speak.

Sebastian rolled on his side, head propped on his hand. "Just talk to him, y/n."

"He is the one avoiding me," you reminded him, leaning forwards to pluck grass out of his curls. "I mean I get it. But he was always so kind, even when we argued. He was the reasonable one, you know. I'm not sure what I need to do now."

"Well, here's your chance," his eyes darted over your shoulder. "He's right there."

You turned around, the sight of him almost making you smile before you remembered that he might not talk to you. But he did move to you, making you anxious.

"Can we talk?" He asked, eyes darting between you and Sebastian.

"Yeah," you said quickly, pushing yourself up. "Of course. Let's go over there,"

You were prepared for the worse, or so you had thought. He would break up with you and you'd be heartbroken. But the Silence stretched as you leaned against the walls of Hogwarts, nervous to meet his eyes. "So..." you began softly, lip tugged between your teeth.

"You went to Sebastian?" He said softly, not entirely calm. "Did I mean that little to you?"

Your eyebrows knitted together. "Of course I went to him, he's my best friend. Who else would I ask for advice?"

"Didn't realize asking advice meant for you to play with his hair," and it was then that you realized he was jealous. Considering everything... You guessed it made sense.

Licking your lips, you took a leap of faith and stepped a little closer, hand moving to his. He didn't pull away. "There's nothing between me and him, I freaked out a bit when you said... You know. Not because I didn't like it or because I didn't feel the same, but... It's complicated."

"You could have said something instead of running off," he sounded calmer and you smiled slightly. "Complicated how?"

"I care for you, I really do," you whispered, stepping a bit closer. "I just... I don't want to say that I love you before I'm really sure. I don't want to lie, but you mea' so much to me, I don't want to lose you because of something stupid I did."

Cedric took a deep breath. You hated that your words probably hurt him. "You sure are honorful," he then said, smiling slightly. "I understand. It is a bit early."

A huge weight had been lifted off your chest as you nodded once. You'd be okay. He didn't hate you. "Can I kiss you?" You whispered, wishing it was all perfect again, though it would take a bit of work

As an answer, he leaned in, lips touching in a way that made your knees go weak. It wasn't hard to imagine yourself loving him. Cedric was a good man, and you were so lucky he loved you.

#I hope the formatting is okay??? I did this on my phone so I can't see #Ask #Request #Cedric diggory #Cedric diggory imagine #Cedric diggory x reader #Harry Potter imagine #Thank you for the request! Hope you like it?

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limejuicer1862 · 5 years

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Wombwell Rainbow Interviews

I am honoured and privileged that the following writers local, national and international have agreed to be interviewed by me. I gave the writers two options: an emailed list of questions or a more fluid interview via messenger.

The usual ground is covered about motivation, daily routines and work ethic, but some surprises too. Some of these poets you may know, others may be new to you. I hope you enjoy the experience as much as I do.

Neal Zetter

Neal is an award-winning comedy performance poet, children’s author, and entertainer with a 25-year background in communication management and mentoring. He uses his interactive rhythmic, rhyming poetry to to develop literacy, confidence, creativity and communications skills in 3-103 yr olds, making words and language accessible for the least engaged whilst streeeeeeetching the most able.

Workshops & Performing

Most days Neal is found performing or running fun poetry writing or performance workshops in schools and libraries with children, teens, adults or families. He has worked in all 33 London Boroughs and many, many other UK cities. More challenging poetry projects have involved workshops for people with brain injury, mental health, drug and alcohol problems, offenders, those with learning difficulties, homeless, other special needs including not having English as a first language.

Neal also produces adult comedy performance poetry and has nearly 30 years of experience appearing at e.g. West End comedy clubs, the Royal Festival Hall, various festivals, in the centre circle of a League 2 football pitch (!) and even a funeral (!!). He ran his own spoken word-based comedy club (Word Down Walthamstow) 2009-13. Neal has compiled and hosted/compered shows with the likes of John Cooper Clarke, Attila the Stockbroker, Michael Rosen and shared bills with Harry Hill, Phil Jupitus, Mark Lamaar, Omid Djalili and more.

Books

Neal children’s comedy poetry books, all published by Troika, include:

For 6-13 year olds:

Gorilla Ballerina (A Book of Bonkers Animal Poems) – a collection of wacky poems about weird animals

Invasion of the Supervillains (Raps and Rhymes to Worry the Galaxy) – evil companion book to ‘Superheroes’ (below)

Yuck & Yum (A Feast of Funny Food Poems), with poetry pal Joshua Seigal

Here Comes the Superheroes (Raps and Rhymes to Save the Galaxy) – in the Reading Agency’s top 15 children’s poetry books

It’s Not Fine to Sit on a Porcupine – in BookTrust’s top 20 children’s poetry books

Bees in My Bananas – a Wishing Shelf Award winner

For 2-6 year olds:

SSSSNAP! Mister Shark

Odd Socks!

Due Sept 2020 and Sept 2021 for 6-13 year olds

When the Bell Goes (A Rapping Rhyming Trip through Childhood) – a semi-autobiographical poetry collection on the theme of childhood covering growing up, school and family life

Scared? (Poems from the Darker Side) – a collection of funny, and maybe a few more serious ones, about many aspects of fear

The Interview

1. When and why did you start writing poetry?

I wrote my first poem when I was six – a limerick which now appears in the intro to my first book, Bees in My Bananas. I always enjoyed making people laugh and have had an inbuilt sense of rhythm and rhyming for as long as I can remember. So I began writing poetry as naturally as some people learn a new language – there was no grand plan but I have never stopped writing poems since I was a tender year 2 student. And the poem?

There was an old lady from Hull And she bumped into a bull The bull said ‘Ow!” Bashed into a cow And the cow crashed into the wall!

Not a classic but Love Me Do was hardly the best Beatles song, just a fab start!

2. Who introduced you to poetry?

My Dad used to read to me in bed at night before I was able too. I especially liked the poems he read, the main two that stuck in my head were the classic Cat in the Hat by Dr Seuss and The Train to Timbuctoo from Margaret Wise Brown (Google it – it’s a great single-poem book as is the aforementioned ‘Cat’). Both were beautifully rhythmic with strong rhyming and contained many new and exciting fun words, some made up and some that made no sense to me at all – but that’s the joy of poetry and reading!

3. How aware are and were you of the dominating presence of older poets traditional and contemporary?

Great question! Let me answer it in parts. When I I was a primary school child I wasn’t really aware of poets apart from Dr Seuss as mentioned in my earlier reply. I knew poems, but not so aware who wrote them.

In secondary school I studied Eng Lit to A Level and regularly had rows with my teacher over my frustration at studying Wordsworth, Coleridge, Gerard Manly Hopkins, Keats etc. I absolutely see they were fine poets but they didn’t speak to ME a teenager in 1970s London into punk rock, footy and left-wing politics. I needed to hear poems about those topics and the other things in my life. Of course she never agreed with me 😎.

(So, as I was musically inept, despite my love of it, I started to write song lyrics and worked with tune writers to construct songs In a (completely naff) local band (but we thought we were superstars). Bernie Taupin was my role model but I loved the Stones’ land Clash lyrics and Webber/Rice musicals.)

In my very late teens and beyond I started to write poems prolifically but I still could not name any poets of renown. My home-produced books (6) sold in less than three figures and that wasn’t enough as I needed to share my work, after all every poet is a communicator. I saw adverts in Time Out magazine for performance poetry clubs and comedy clubs in the West End and that’s where it all REALLY began for me. It was a scene and for the first time I got to meet and mix with other poets and learn how to produce the right kind of poems to entertain and engage an audience, as well as make them laugh. So, no longer in a vacuum, I compered for and performed with the likes of John Cooper Clarke (the Godfather of performance poetry!), Attila the Stockbroker, Porky the Poet (AKA Phil Jupitus) etc.

Nearly all the poets I’d met or read since my school days were older and, in 1989 when my performance career really started, I was very aware of their presence and influence – I looked up to them. Now I guess, 60 next week, I try to affect younger poets and those starting out in the same way: advising, encouraging and mentoring. And that’s something I really enjoy doing.

Maybe in 50 yrs time or less, my poetry will be as irrelevant to people then as the poets I studied at A Level were to me. And there will be nothing wrong with that. I get it!

3.1. What is the right kind of poem to engage and entertain?

One with a repetitive rhythm, strong rhyme and a chorus/repeated word/line. This works well with my children’s poetry (in class and on assemblies) and adult poetry (in clubs, at arts events etc). We call them ‘call and response’ poems in the trade or often I refer to them as ‘interactive’ and I should add the poems must be about a topic people can relate to in a voice and with words that speak to them.

4. What is your daily writing routine?

I don’t have one. I try to write at different times of the day, on different days of the week and in as many different places as possible. Doing that means there are no times I feel I am unable to write and that must be a good thing. I guess indie cafes are my favourite places but, as I don’t drive and travel by public transport, I do loads of writing on trains, tubes and buses. Other regular haunts are the British Library, Foyle’s Bookshop in Charing X Road and home of course

5. What motivates you to write?

I am very self-motivated when it comes to writing. I always feel I have something to say about things that other people will find interesting too. I am never stuck for ideas, have never experienced writers’ block and keep a long list of topics for future poems. I have written my next three books due out the next three Septembers am already planning more. And the ideas themselves come from keeping my ears and eyes constantly open and writing about What’s around me and my experiences e.g. people I meet, places I go to, things I hear on the news etc

6. How do the writers you read when you were young influence you today?

My influences are threefold:

The aforementioned Dr Seuss and Mary Wise Brown books inspired my rhythmic, rhyming and comedy poems. Other poets like Edward Lear and Spike Milligan did the same.

I have always had a love of music too as I explained so, as I used to write song lyrics it’s not surprising that my poems, as well as being very rhythmic and containing strong rhymes also have choruses and a strong use of repetition.

Finally, since before I could even read, I have had a love of superhero comics, especially Marvel. I used to look at the pictures when my brother collected them and when old enough to read myself I started avidly buying and collecting them myself and have never really stopped. In fact I bought this month’s new Marvel Avengers comic today. These streeeeetched my imagination, developed my vocab and taught me a lot about what was going on in the world around me e.g. politics, Vietnam Nam War, life/death, relationships, history, space and science etc. And of course this love of comics also inspired both my Superheroes and Supervillains poetry books. Keen comic fans will immediately spot some of the styles and influences from the 1960/70 Marvel and DC comics in particular. Without any doubt at all, if I never read these comics I would not have become a poet and author.

7. Whom of today’s writers do you admire the most and why?

As I read mainly blogs, auto-biogs, social history, popular science and other non-fiction my book choices are theme-led rather than author-led so I have not got too many favourites. However I especially like Bill Bryson, Mark Kermode, Jon Ronson and Malcolm Gladwell as they all have a fantastic writing style and a passion for their subject. The last four books I read are Van Gogh’s Ear, The Radium Girls, Chernobyl and A History of the World in 21 Women with many Marvel comics squeezed in between.

The poets I especially admire are the ones that have been on the scene for many years like Michael Rosen, Brian Moses, John Cooper Clarke and Benjamin Zephaniah – you have to take your hat off to them for the quality and quantity of their output. I hope I achieve at least equal longevity as I certainly want to continue what I do until I leave this planet.

8. Why do you write, as opposed to doing anything else?

I write because I must. A poet is what I am not what I do. So, while I might be able to lose interest In other hobbies, jobs and pastimes, I can never give up being a poet.

9What would you say to someone who asked you “How do you become a writer?”

Read, write, read, write, read, write adI infinitum. Like anything you wish to do well, the more you practise and immerse yourself in it the better you will get. And write from the heart about what you love, like, dislike and hate – about what you feel and what matters to you – and you will produce your best work.

8.1. Why write children’s books?

I write poetry for children, teens and adults but, to date, have only produced children’s books. This is because I make my living performing and running workshops in schools virtually every day so the book buyers are there in front of me. Most days end with a book sale with children I have worked with wanting a memento of the day, signed and dedicated. Given the above my writing is certainly weighted to the younger market especially as, sadly, not many teens or adults want to buy poetry books, even if they enjoy listening to poems for their age group.

9. Tell me about the writing projects you have on at the moment.

In my biog you will see details of the next two books I have due in Sept 2020 and 2021, both written. I am working on my 2022 poetry book now (the title is a secret!) and am looking at both an anthology of mixed poems and an EY/KS1 book for the near future.

Wombwell Rainbow Interviews: Neal Zetter Wombwell Rainbow Interviews I am honoured and privileged that the following writers local, national and international have agreed to be interviewed by me.

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growthvue · 6 years

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Effective Digital Citizenship Education

Dr. Kristen Mattson on episode 242 of the 10-Minute Teacher Podcast

From the Cool Cat Teacher Blog by Vicki Davis

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Digital citizenship education doesn’t work in a lecture format. Dr. Kristen Mattson, author of Digital Citizenship in Action talks about how they’ve integrated digital citizenship into all of their courses at her school and how you can too.

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Enhanced Transcript

Digital Citizenship that Works

Link to show: www.coolcatteacher/e242 Date: January 30, 2018

Vicki: Today we’re talking with Dr. Kristen Mattson @DrKMattson. She is a high school library media center director in Illinois and author of the book Digital Citizenship in Action published through ISTE.

So Kristen, in all of my years of blogging, we’ve been talking digital citizenship, but it still seems like so many people are just lecturing to kids about this topic.

Kristen: I think that lecture style of digital citizenship is what we see most frequently, and I think a lot of us are really kind of excited to move away from that, because we know that lecture isn’t the best way to teach kids. Yet we haven’t really talked about some other opportunities to do it in any other way.

In the book Digital Citizenship in Action, it really is encouraging teachers and students to stop thinking about digital citizenship as a list of personal responsibilities that we have as citizens, even though those personal responsibilities are really important.

Those are just sort of the stepping stones to what it means to be in digital relationships and in digital communities with lots of other people.

One thing that I really encourage teachers to do in the book is to actually really get into digital communities with their students, so that students can have an adult role model, have that mentor on the side as they begin navigating a world of a digital community.

Get into digital communities with your students

There are lots of ideas and tools in the book about how you can set up those digital spaces with your kids, show them, help them create norms for those spaces, practice all the things that we’re hoping will transfer outside of the classroom.

Vicki: So what kind of digital communities are you creating for your school?

Kristen: The teachers in my school come to me quite often looking for ideas and ways to engage with their kids online and also to engage with kids in other schools in other places of the country.

We use Google Classroom a lot. We use Padlet. We use Google Hangouts. We use Skype. All sorts of tools that can help us connect, not only with each other but with the other two high schools in our district and then with lots of professionals in the field as well.

A lot of my role is listening to those teachers and what their goals are curricularly but also what their goals are for digital citizenship and helping to match them with the tools that’s going to best fit their needs.

Vicki: So if a principal walked up to you and said, “Tell me your most exciting story about this approach and how it works,” what would you say?

Kristen: I think one of the things I’ve been most excited about this year is what’s happening in our government courses. All of our kids are required to take a government course before they graduate from high school. We talk about all sorts of things, from how to engage as a citizen in the United States to different laws and court cases that have an impact on them. I’ve worked very closely with the department chair for that group, and we’ve really woven in a whole other level of citizenship that talks about what it means to be a citizen online.

An exciting example: privacy and security

So let me give you a quick example. We had students always talking about privacy versus security. We all know that we have a right to privacy , but we also know that the government has the right to invade our privacy if it’s in the best interest to keep the public secure.

Our kids used to talk about their lockers as being sort of a private space in the school. But the principal has the right to search through their locker if it is suspected that the child has brought a weapon or a drug into the school. Sp that’s always the kind of conversation we’ve had with kids about privacy and security.

This year we kind of ramped it up a whole other level. We started talking about privacy and security in digital spaces.

Our kids had some really fantastic conversations about how much people outside of our digital communities should be able to have an influence over what happens inside of our digital space. They had some great points to make about how much employers, or government, or colleges should be able to sort of dictate what they’re doing while they’re in community with their friends.

They also talked about the role of tech companies as censors or not as censors, so it was really cool to see how they were able to apply some of the things that we’ve traditionally always talked about in government class, and taken it into this digital space where they spend a good portion of their time.

Vicki: Where were they having these conversations? In class or online?

Kristen: These were all happening in the government classroom, sort of as an extension of that curriculum that they traditionally go through.

Vicki: How interesting. So they were having a face-to-face conversation about the digital space.

Having a face-to-face conversation about the digital space

Kristen: Yes.

Vicki: Interesting. Did you do anything to document that? I guess you’re kind of moving between your blended and digital space classrooms pretty seamlessly at your school?

Kristen: We are. The course that I was just talking about is actually one of our blended courses. It was a pilot course this year. We should have many more blended courses on the books next year.

It was cool because in this blended course, our kids are taking their coursework online. They’re using tools like Google Classroom and different things that I curate for the teacher and for the class. They’re able to come together in the classroom and have those really awesome conversations that happen while face to face, too.

Vicki: Excellent. So what are some of the cautions you have for schools as they tackle digital citizenship? Some things that maye don’t work…

What doesn’t work when you are teaching digital citizenship?

Kristen: I think the biggest thing that I have found just in my research is that digital citizenship is not very effective when it becomes, “one more thing.”

People that I’ve talked to, both kids and adults, feel that when it is just one more thing, teachers don’t feel very comfortable teaching it — because they may not have been trained, themselves, in what it means to be a good digital citizen, and so they’re not comfortable sharing that with other people.

Kids also feel like it’s very out of context of anything that they’re doing, so the more that we can weave it into the curriculum as it already stands and make it an extension of what we’re already doing, I have found to be very effective.

Our health classes are another place where we’re able to weave a lot of digital citizenship conversation in, and we talk about it a lot more from the personal perspective. We already had a unit in place about healthy relationships, but we never talked about the digital component of that.

You and I both know that a lot of our kids relationships — a lot of our relationships — are happening online. So we were able to take that unit of study, break it apart, and weave in areas where we can talk to kids about healthy and unhealthy relationships and the influence of technology on both of those things.

So the more that we can make it a part of what we’re already doing, the better off we are and the better off our kids are, too.

Vicki: It sounds like you have really helped infuse digital citizenship into all the courses at your school. How are you doing that?

Kristen: I wish I could say, “all”… (laughs)… I wish I could say all the courses. It’s definitely a work in progress. How did they do it, is that what you were going to ask?

Vicki: Yes.

How do you infuse digital citizenship into all courses?

Kristen: I think it’s really — first and foremost — looking for those followers that are excited about the topic, that are already using technology in their classrooms, that are already volunteering for these new initiatives in our district — like the blended learning opportunities.

Just sitting down and having a relationship with those teachers allows me to say, “Hey, let’s take a look at your curriculum. Let’s see where there are some opportunities,” and then truly being a partner in helping create that content, deliver the lesson, reflect with the teacher after the fact.

I really see my role as the school librarian as being that instructional partner who can come alongside and help make that happen, versus just sort of giving it as a directive, which is unfortunately sometimes happens in schools.

Vicki: And digital citizenship is something that concerns all of us in all of our examples.

I love these examples of digital citizenship not just belonging to one teacher — “OK, it’s your job to teach it.” — but actually having it in many different topics, because our students live in the physical world, but the digital world is also part of their physical world.

So digital citizenship is for all of us in all subjects to understand and to integrate. I think you’ll find students will be more engaged and more excited because this is the world in which they live.

Kristen: Oh, I agree 100%.

It can even be done in the elementary curriculum

I’ve been working a little bit with some folks in the elementary world, which is a stretch for me. I was a middle school teacher prior to this. But we’re even looking at some of the things we talk about in terms of community and careers.

When we think about the traditional curriculum — like, “Who are the people in your neighborhood?” — and we talk about the firemen and the police and all those other roles that people in our communities take — we can also take a look at “Who are the people in our online neighborhood? Who are the people that we connect with and see when we are visiting thes online spaces? What sort of jobs are available that help develop and keep these online communities running?”

This is the same way we look at jobs that keep our physical communities running.

Instead of having it be, again, one separate thing, if we can look at what we’re already doing and extend it into that digital realm, we can talk about what it means to be a human being and a citizen, both in physical spaces and in online spaces simultaneously.

Vicki: OK teachers. So her name is Dr. Kristen Mattson. We’ll have the book giveaway and also her full bio in the Shownotes. So check it out!

Transcribed by Kymberli Mulford [email protected]

Bio as submitted

Kristen Mattson, Ed.D., is a high school library media center director in Aurora, Illinois. As part of a Future Ready school district and a member of the Future Ready Librarians leadership team, she enjoys supporting others in her field by presenting at conferences, facilitating professional development sessions, and blogging.

Kristen received her doctoral degree from Northern Illinois University after conducting a critical discourse analysis of digital citizenship curriculum. Her new book, “Digital Citizenship in Action: Empowering Students to Engage in Online Communities” (ISTE, 2017) is a practical guide to teaching digital citizenship that is grounded in her research.

Blog: DrKMattson.com

Twitter: @DrKMattson

Disclosure of Material Connection: This is a “sponsored podcast episode.” The company who sponsored it compensated me via cash payment, gift, or something else of value to include a reference to their product. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I believe will be good for my readers and are from companies I can recommend. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.” This company has no impact on the editorial content of the show.

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