Summer Vacation Redux #4: Kansas City: World War I Memorial and Museum

Later in day (August 12) on my Total Eclipse cross-country road trip I went to the National World War I Memorial and Museum.  Not a fan of war, but I love a well-designed and educational museum--this one received an A++ in my book.  From the moment you arrive you feel like you're going to enter a very special place.  The exterior is both dramatic and somber.  And on a day like the one I had there, it's a photographer's dream.  So many amazing sight lines, and a sky willingly providing such a beautifully mixed background of blue and clouds.

 You enter though the tomblike doors and find a foyer with information, ticket sales, a gift shop, and a little cafe.

 But to get to the museum itself, you have to cross this incredibly beautiful glass causeway over a field of red poppies.  The imagery sets you up for an experience set apart from the world you've just left.  And the first thing you do is enter a theater and watch a short film which orients you to the world that was, the world that led to the first World War.

 The basic design on the museum is a large oval that moves you through history in a chronological order.  There are many examples of artillery throughout, including this cannon that is the first I encountered.

 Across from it is a cabinet displaying a range of rifles and handguns.

 Above this is a wonderful collection of war posters.

 I wish I had gotten a good shot of the description of these.  They were part of a display of children's army soldiers, kid sized war uniforms, and other Axis propaganda items.  They were printed on fabric, and I think they might have been bookmarks... but I could be wrong.  I just thought they were beautiful in their design.

 There are displays that lie out the scope of the war's reach across the globe and help define it as a world conflict.

 Along with text and images and artifacts and videos, there are even displays like this one about trench warfare and mustard gas that our beneath your very feet!

 About halfway through the museum you arrive at the moment when the United States joined the war.  The museum does a wonderful job of portraying honestly the history of the war from a worldwide perspective and not simply that of the contribution of the United States.

 And perhaps most refreshing of all is it's attention to facts fairly presented and not any misguided need to overplay any particular point of view as the correct one.  Even dissention like this can be found throughout the exhibits.  I found myself feeling a great sense of pride to live in a nation that values the freedom of non-violent expression--a particularly timely notion.

 I was also reminded of my great uncle Homer Bible who fought in this war.  I recalled how as a child during one of our family visits; he shared a photo of himself in uniform.  I wondered which one of these insignias was the one he served under.

 Another theme I gleaned from the exhibits was how technology advanced during these fateful five years--like from horses to armored tanks!

 At various points I encountered these wall murals covering particular spans of time by month and year.

 Each month containing key events by date and sometimes highlighted quotes like these.

Below a glassed in shelf displayed a wide range of pertinent artifacts like this first edition copy of H. G. Wells' "The War That Will End War". 

 The final display is that peace...but peace with a question mark.

 The last stop was to go on the roof of the museum and check out the buildings and sculptures there.  The two side buildings were also galleries, but it was so close to closing time that I didn't try to enter them.  Likewise with the tower that was by the time I got up to it, no longer accepting guests for a trip to the top and a truly exceptional view.  However, the ticket I purchased was good for two consecutive days--which was rather nice, if only I had the time to come back.

Even without a trip to the top of the tower, the view of Kansas City from the rooftop plaza was still wonderful.  The building in the near center is the Amtrak Union Station which also houses many shops and the Kansas City Actor's Theater where I went to see a play that very evening.

New Mural At School

Visiting artist Arturo Ho helped our 5th grades to create a new mural for our courtyard.

School Work #3

Second graders write about what they love about snow!  The work of our 7-year-olds.

School Work #2

Kindergarteners write about Penguins!  The work of our 5-year-olds.

School Work #1

From our Pre-k students: Snowpeople!

4-year-olds create great art!

My Room Of Authors

One of the things that I think could have been fairly said of me as a teacher in the elementary school is this. If your child still needs to learn how to read, Mr. Ash was not the best fit. But if your child still needs to learn how to LOVE to read, then he's your man. And one of the things that I loved to do with my students was read to them. My last year in the classroom was 2005-06, and I chose to read the works of Andrew Clements as my focus author.

We started with his iconic "Frindle" which if you haven't read it--just do it! It's a lovely story. From there we worked our way through "A Week In The Woods," "The Janitor's Boy," my all time favorite of his "School Story," "The Landry News," and early into it when the Scholastic Book Fair came and brought us his newest work "Lunch Money". The thing about his books is that, yes they are formulaic in their underlying theme, but it's such a wonderful formula. They always deal with an adult who's somehow jaded or burdened...uninspired by their life. And a kid who becomes the reason why they rediscover their joy. It's such a simple premise, but perfect for the 8 to 11-year-old crowd who are themselves on the cusp of assuming their sense of purpose in the world and feeling very confused and oppressed by it. The books suggest a power that they can have that is very compelling.

In "Lunch Money" the kids take on creating their own publishing company for comic books as part of the plot. This was something that really intreged my kids. Never one to loose a teachable moment, I turned it into a mini-unit on how books are physically made and how authors have to create stories that fit into a certain number of pages and how those gallies are designed and then actually printed. From there I created a set of templates and sent them on their way! Suddenly, every spare moment was given over to writing and illustrating and in some cases collaborating on ideas and co-authoring stories. And once a set of gallies was completed, I printed the mini-book (1/4 of a piece of paper) in a run sufficient to give copies to everyone else in the class and a few extras to the author to distribute to family and friends not in our class. Before I knew it, every desk had a mini-library of mini-books, and when they weren't working on their latest story, they were just reading and re-reading the books of their peers.

While cleaning this evening, I ran across a copy of one of those little books. I give you for your enjoyment "Spaceball" by Stephan M. This is the joy of being a teacher!