Aaron Becker's JOURNEY and International Dot Day

 

 

 

Celebri-dots is an awesome blog full of dots created by authors, artists, and celebrities.

 

 

     What a great day to combine two awesome picture books and artists into a blog post about creativity, journeys (my word of the year and this month's theme topic for my 5th graders), imagination, and passions! 

 

 

     Today is International Dot Day, inspired by the book, The Dot, by Peter H. Reynolds!  If you don't know what that is, you need to watch these:

 

 



 

We'll be celebrating International Dot Day in my room this week, and I love how it will connect PERFECTLY with our study of journeys and our love for Aaron Becker's book, Journey, which also inspires creativity and imagination.  When I read the book for the first time, I tweeted about it, and Aaron Becker graciously tweeted back, volunteering to Skype with my class.  We would have LOVED that, but I have multiple classes throughout the day with no common time, so it was going to be tough to figure out how to Skype without leaving some kids out.  Aaron had a BRILLIANT idea to have us send him questions, and he would make a video of himself answering them.  When he sent it to me, I was so moved by how he answered the questions, and his bit of advice at the end for the kids - he only solidified my love of the book.  I asked if I could post the video on my blog, and I'm thrilled that he said yes so I could share it with you.  Enjoy!

 

Aaron Becker answers a fifth grade teachers' classes questions about "Journey" from Aaron Becker on Vimeo.

The kids absolutely loved watching it, and then we wrote about what our passions are/what we're sensitive to.  I really enjoyed what the kids had to say.  Here are some snippets:

- "I am sensitive to the needs of people and animals who are sick."

- "Aaron Becker inspired me to make my own quote.  'Be who you want to be, and follow that your whole life.  Don't let anybody change it.'  I'm starting to get more mature little by little, day by day, year by year.  I'm starting to say please and thank you more.  I want to thank Aaron Becker."

- "My passion is art.  I like art in a bunch of different ways.  I like to make digital collages on my Ipad and I like to sketch and doodle on blank paper.  I sketch to clear my mind of the day."

- "My passion is playing sports, mostly baseball.  I seem to have a special connection to the game.  I'm always focused and encouraging to my teammates, and they treat me with the same respect."

-"My passion is animals.  I feel like every animal I'm around I have an instant connection with.  When I grow up I would love to be a veterinarian and help animals.  I hate that there are thousands of animals out there that are struggling. They need my help. Animals are my escape."

-"I love to help, so I think being a teacher is a job that would suit me well.  I think teachers are kind of like authors.  Authors teach people to read better and to use your imagination while teachers teach all of the subjects.  I love learning."

-"My passion is definitely interior designing.  I love it because it expresses my colors, and makes me feel calm and happy."

- "My passions are my family, my friends, games, and my dog.  I like my dog just about as much as August from Wonder loves Daisy." 

-"I like Aaron Becker's video; he answered a lot of my questions, but what he really made me think about was my own passions.  I really love music, especially classical pieces that are played on the piano.  I play the piano and when I really have a song down with dynamics and everything, it's beautiful and it me a bit emotional, and I think it makes other people feel good, too."

- "This year I am very passionate about photography.  It is one of my favorite time passers.  Photography puts me in a zone where I can relax because I know what I'm doing and I'm having fun. For me, it's a way to be creative."

- "My passion is writing.  I love writing stories.  It is just a great way to express yourself."

- "Aaron Becker's passion reminds me of my passion for reading and baseball.  Everybody has a passion."

- "I think my passion is singing; I love to sing.  I've been singing ever since I was about six."

- "My passion is snowboarding.  I love the way you can get the thrill of speed with the smooth action of turning."

- "I am passionate about Japanese Budo Ninjitsu.  It is a Japanese form of self-defense."

- "I'm passionate about making crafts.  Crafts can be silly and fun."

- "After watching Aaron Becker's video, I want to become an illustrator even more than I wanted to before.  Of course, I have to step up to the plate, pedal to the medal, and take responsibility and try my best to accomplish my dream."

I could add more, but I thought I'd stop on that note! :-)  Don't you love how diverse they all are?!  Thank you SO much, Aaron, for making that video for us and inspiring us to hold on to our passions and what we love to do.  I get to do that every day as a language arts teacher, and I sure hope my students get to do what they love someday!  I'm thankful that we have artists/writers like Aaron Becker and Peter H. Reynolds to remind us that creativity and imagination can take us on incredible journeys!