At Threadgill Elementary we now have our own version of Cynthia Rylant's When I Was Young in the Mountains which is entitled When I was Young in the Delta.

I began a schema study this year with a wonderful children's book Little Cliff's First Day of School by Clifton Taulbert, an African-American author from Glen Allen, Mississippi. He tells of growing up in the Mississippi Delta with his great-grandparents. Clifton Taulbert refers to buying "cornbread paper" which is primary tablet paper that is rough to the touch, and the great-grandmother states that Little Cliff is "steppin' on her last nerves." These are terms I have heard used in the Delta all my life, but I have never seen them in print. My class could immediately make connections with this book. I also sent a letter to my parents explaining our schema study and asked them to send their memory stories. The response has been fantastic. Lu Lewis will be proud to know that the children now totally understand "writing from the heart." The parent stories are heart warming and powerful. They are perfect to use in my crafting sessions to model schema.

One parent wrote a story entitled "What a Mother Wouldn't Do." She stated in her story, "When I first went to school in some red tights, white socks, and black shoes, everyone started laughing at me. I felt so bad and I started to cry. Then I remembered Mama said to keep your head up and when someone talks about you, you ain't thought about, until you talked about!"

Our new parent center director Neva Teague has been working with me to involve parents and community in our schema study. Last Friday, in celebration of Grandparent's Day, she invited the Senior Citizen Center that adjoins our school to a refreshment tea and get- acquainted session. This was also an activity for our classroom schema study. Students entertained the senior citizens by reading the grandparent stories they had written. It was a wonderful experience for the students. They felt welcomed and loved by the senior citizens. Now the Senior Citizen Center is participating in the schema study by writing their memory stories for us. They are also volunteering to read to the children and become mentors. This has been a wonderful experience for everyone involved!

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