The King of Blues passed away yesterday at the age of 89. Here’s a comic I did back in 2010 where a bright student of mine not only bested one of my arguments but showed a depth of musical knowledge that was impressive for a 9th grader. Rest well, Mr. King.
I’m often asked if I have a “tip jar” for the comic where readers might be able to contribute something to the strip. I don’t really have anything like that set up; I’ve passed my hat around a few times over the years but for the most part it makes me uncomfortable. I’m not a professional and I don’t expect people to think of me as such.
That being said, a unique opportunity has arisen for my classroom and, in the spirit of this undertaking, it feels right to put it out there.
DonorsChoose is a website that distributes money and resources to underfunded public schools via donations from everyday folks. The organization is currently running a campaign wherein they will release $100,000 dollars in donor money if they can get 5000 people to donate to individual teacher proposals. I currently have several projects waiting hopefully to be funded on the website including this one. Take a look if you have a moment:
High Interest Books for Low Level Readers
So here’s what I’m asking: If you’ve at all enjoyed the comic over the years and it’s within your means, please make a small donation. The contest specifies 5000 donations… but that number is in no way attached to the size of your donation. If a bunch of my readers donate a dollar or two, that will help take a huge step toward freeing up that $100,000 dollars. That money’s not going to the comic or to me, it’s going to kids who live in a really poor urban area of southern Ohio who need gateway books to capture their interest in reading.
Thanks in advance to anyone who thinks about making a donation. I think you can see that there are a lot of fun books on there that might be the first step in capturing a reluctant reader’s attention… comics galore!
I mainly did this strip as a “think” piece. I was trying to decide whether or not I could do this strip without directly referencing the existence of other teacher, and ultimately I decided that would be impossible and completely dishonest. I very much doubt that I’ll end up including this in any other collections of this comic, so consider this a “web exclusive!”
…I’m going to try and post five days a week, although the fifth day will always be some kind of extra thing. Today’s are some notes from my sketchbook. They are possibly helpful?
Response to the first two weeks has been a little overwhelming. Thanks to everyone who’s dropped me a line or a comment, especially the teachers! I plan on writing back to everyone this weekend.
Note: My shirt sleeves being rolled up in Panel 1 is NOT a continuity error. I’ll explain my strange teacherly peccadillos in upcoming weeks, I promise.
Teachable Moments 