He must have been disappointed.  After causing such a big kerfuffle and kicking off the French and Indian War, George Washington resigned his commission and returned life at Mount Vernon.

Then, the king of England was convinced, more troops would be needed to overcome the enemy in the wilderness.  Sending his son to lead the way, the king wanted to make sure England was the victor, but along the way the collective leadership recognized that it would be quite helpful if they also had someone along who knew the terrain.  That person would be George Washington.

From what I'm reading in Edward Lengel's book, General George Washington, it took some convincing to get George to sign on to another stint.  George had resigned as a full colonel in the continental army, but just about everyone in the regular army outranked him, those rankings taking precedence.  George had to negotiate for higher authority before agreeing to return.

But the part about this account that interests me is that when Washington wrote about the opportunity to his half-brother, he was intrigued by the opportunity to learn real military tactics from the regular army.  This time around, men who knew what they were doing, men who had been trained in military rules and strategies, would be leading by example.  George expressed an desire to take advantage of this rich opportunity to broaden his own scope of knowledge.  He wanted to develop his own skills and improve as a leader.  I'm not sure he would have signed on for another tour of duty if he couldn't learn something along the way.

There is something to be admired in that.  There's also a little something for a fourth grader to understand:

• One should always be willing to try something new, even if you're not the star of the show (That's called humility.).
• Look for opportunities to learn new things and add to your skill set.
• Look for opportunities to experience new things.  I read long ago that opportunities don't knock very loudly on a pillow.
• Don't be afraid to ask boldly for respect and consideration.  Ask boldly, but with respect.
• Admit that you are not the best.
• The wilderness can be a beautiful thing to consider when out strolling with hundreds of your friends and dragging heavy cannon and provisions along behind you.

Sometimes people do their jobs quietly, not looking for recognition or fortune...but expressing our appreciation to those people is very important.

Quick Write:  Who is the person from history that you would most like to meet and talk to?
​Why?  What would you like to ask? 

There is a time to speak up.

     If the train is headed over the cliff, I expect one of the porters to speak up!

     If the ship is sinking, I expect the purser to tell someone.

     Sometimes a "team player" needs to dissent in order to bring a better idea to the table.

     And sometimes a person is being mistreated.

I am still learning from General George Washington, a book given to me by the folks at Washington's Mount Vernon.  In my notes, I seek to sort out the differences between speaking up and complaining.

​In 1754, while only in his early 20s, George Washington was promoted to the rank of lieutenant colonel.  According to sources, he didn't waste any time before complaining about the pay - something he would have to answer for his own soldiers, later in life.  Still, we must recognize the immaturity of this young man in his fledgling years of military leadership; he could not expect to get rich quick on his chosen path.

Still, George excelled in his patriotism and attempt to do the best job possible - in spite of the lack of pay.  Though he whined about the mistreatment, he did not allow that to slow or stop him.  There is a lesson in that, but we will leave that for another time.

After making some difficult choices for his men and facing the French in the Ohio Valley, Lieutenant Colonel George Washington ended up leading an attack that devastated him.  Purely and simply, he made a bad call, and it cost him dearly.  The massacre of his troops in the muddle valley is one for the history books, one in which a global war was stirred - the French and Indian War.  Though the war was probably inevitable, it was George Washington who made the decision for the initial attack.

When it was all said and done, George tucked his tail and returned in shame.  After receiving some criticism and being reassured that he had done all he could in the situation, that he had been faced with rocks and hard places all over the place, George resigned his commission.  In essence, he took his ball and left.  When the going got tough, George got going...home.  He couldn't stand the little bit of heat he received, so he got out of the fire.

It perplexes me that some of the students in this class have been so successful - lettering during their first year at Joplin High School or securing spots in musicals and dramas - but at the same time, others have shown signs of depression or have come up as running away from home or missing.  Perhaps the latter have experienced the final countdown, believing there is nothing for them at home or in school.  Maybe they don't think they can find peace, or maybe they are looking for their rightful places in the world.  Or is it possible that these teenagers are making a last ditch effort to overcome some undesirable item or event in their lives?  Is the school system failing them?  Are their families failing them?  Are they not being taught resilience, or coping and problem-solving skills?  I wish I understood more - or that I could say something when a kid is 10 that could propel them forward with enough force to preserve stability in their lives.  Perhaps all of us who come into contact with youth need to reevaluate our own part in their lives. 

Quick Write:  Did you ever turn someone in or tell on someone and feel bad about it later?​

The 13 colonies were considered separate, but all were under British rule.  A group of representatives from each of the American colonies gathered in Philadelphia in an attempt to unite the interests of the colonies and stand up to the king of England.  As seen in the videos below, these were trying times.  The colonies were experiencing and trying to overcome resistance to their efforts to unite.  At the same time, vigilante mobs sometimes expressed their frustrations in ways that are considered arcane and extreme by today's standards.

The third video shows what mob rule looks like in the 21st century.

But is that fair?  Bullying will, without a doubt, always be with us.  We certainly must deal with the kid who bullies other kids, but we often fail to address the person on the receiving end, as well.  We've learned that in our fourth grade classroom.

There is a great need to let students solve their own problems, but there is also a dire need for explicit teaching for both the bullier and the bullied.  Yes, that's right:  I am a teacher.  I teach kids how to solve problems.  I try very hard not to solve their problems for them.  I know exactly what Brooks Gibbs is saying in the video above.

​We've heard many times about how words can indeed hurt a person, but I still used that line.

I still believe it to be true - that this is a slogan that deserves to be repeated by the victim (The video really explains this better.).  So, the way I look at it is this:  for the person who bullies, words will hurt someone, but for the victim, you can't let them.

Once a Hoggatteer, Always a Hoggatteer!  SAMANTHA still makes her second grade teacher from 1994 and 1995 (That's me.) proud.  Her family has been through a lot, but if any Hoggatteer has ever been a survivor, she has - and she's still thinking of others!  Here is a report that aired on the local news in Oklahoma City, yesterday.

Our attitudes reflect our hearts.

We're still a few weeks away from my exciting summer residency at George Washington's Mount Vernon.  This video is enough to entice the history buff in me...and yes, even the parts where the teachers get to sit down and listen to a lecture or take part in conversations are intriguing.  I am by far not an expert on Washington during any part of his life, but I am already growing in my knowledge because of my acceptance to the teacher institute.

I know the video is not enough.  I long for some explanation to go along with the pictures (or at the very least some kind of audio to overlay the video).  I've combed the interweb looking for blogs from previous participants, but even after looking them over, I say again, it's not enough.  They say - about many things - that you have to see it for yourself to appreciate it; I'm sure that's the case with Mount Vernon.

Few people realize that Paul Revere also worked as a dentist.  Says the Paul Revere House website: