The Team
They sat on the floor in circles, two distinct groups with matching t-shirts to identify the teams. A question was posed, read twice and then the groups leaned in and whispered to each other. A leader sat in the middle of each, nodding, whispering back, questioning and finally looking around their group for consensus. An answer was provided. The judge gave a response. Points were tallied. The audience, moms and dads straddling hard, metal middle-school chairs, or propped up on top of desks, applauded and smiled.
Three rounds of 20 or more questions each , an accumulation of points, an awards ceremony where everyone went home with a ribbon, but some of a different color than others.
For the past five or six months, LM has been reading from a list of 45 assigned books. They have not been difficult to read, but some were not all that entertaining in thought or content to keep his attention. He participated in the Reading Olympics reluctantly, at the urging of his mother who thought a team-effort exercise was good for her "I know it best" only child.
And it was.
LM was not the leader of his group, but he was quick to offer in his answer to the team and even gave the explanation himself when it was clear he was the most knowledgeable on any given question. He deferred to others on the team when he was unfamiliar with a question and supported his teammates and opponents equally. In the end, he even said how much fun it was.
I was very proud.
And so I told him, when it was all over, just how impressed I was with him. And I congratulated him on a great victory, not one that had to do with points, but one that had to do with teamwork, and the accomplishment of reading and remembering and applying his knowledge.
The celebratory trip to Dairy Queen had to be postponed due to the lateness of the event and the traffic congestion getting home from the middle school. A bit of Ben and Jerry's had to suffice until we can officially make the DQ run this weekend.
We sat side by side on the couch when we arrived home, enjoying the accomplishment, enjoying each other. LM said he was 'weary'. "This is the best kind of sleep, though, Mom. The kind where your mind and your body are all just so tired that you just fall into bed and fall into sleep."
And a well-earned rest at that, my boy. A well-earned rest indeed.
I am so very proud of my Little Man and his Reading Olympics team. Go Reading Rockets!
Three rounds of 20 or more questions each , an accumulation of points, an awards ceremony where everyone went home with a ribbon, but some of a different color than others.
For the past five or six months, LM has been reading from a list of 45 assigned books. They have not been difficult to read, but some were not all that entertaining in thought or content to keep his attention. He participated in the Reading Olympics reluctantly, at the urging of his mother who thought a team-effort exercise was good for her "I know it best" only child.
And it was.
LM was not the leader of his group, but he was quick to offer in his answer to the team and even gave the explanation himself when it was clear he was the most knowledgeable on any given question. He deferred to others on the team when he was unfamiliar with a question and supported his teammates and opponents equally. In the end, he even said how much fun it was.
I was very proud.
And so I told him, when it was all over, just how impressed I was with him. And I congratulated him on a great victory, not one that had to do with points, but one that had to do with teamwork, and the accomplishment of reading and remembering and applying his knowledge.
The celebratory trip to Dairy Queen had to be postponed due to the lateness of the event and the traffic congestion getting home from the middle school. A bit of Ben and Jerry's had to suffice until we can officially make the DQ run this weekend.
We sat side by side on the couch when we arrived home, enjoying the accomplishment, enjoying each other. LM said he was 'weary'. "This is the best kind of sleep, though, Mom. The kind where your mind and your body are all just so tired that you just fall into bed and fall into sleep."
And a well-earned rest at that, my boy. A well-earned rest indeed.
I am so very proud of my Little Man and his Reading Olympics team. Go Reading Rockets!
Comments
Great post!
Good for LM. I'd love to join you both in that DQ run. Mmmmmmmmm.
Congrats to LM and the Rockets - a job well done.
Have a chocolate dip cone for me :)
Congrats, Reading Rockets!!