#Kinderblog13: Pre-race packet and warm up exercise!

(Ok, this not really anything like a race, but it worked well with the warm-up metaphor, so stay with me, ok?)

HI! 
Amy here, friends, blogging from my little corner of The Canada. I am a little late getting the summer blog challenge going this year, and I blame this on having the World's Weirdest End-Of-Year. Seriously. Because of catastrophic flooding in my beautiful city, we did not have a last day of school. That's right. We just sent the kids home, business-as-usual, at the end of one day, and then... schools were closed and there were no more days. I'm still getting over it.

BUT! It is starting to feel like summer (847 degree temperatures help with that) and so THE TIME HAS COME...

Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, children of all ages, take your seats, because:

THE 2013 #KINDERCHAT SUMMER BLOGGING CHALLENGE BEGINS NOW!

This is an annual tradition around these here parts, but if you are new to our happy little #kinderchat family, here is how it works:

• Who can join? The challenge is open to anyone. Most participants are teachers, but all are welcome. The questions/assignments usually relate to teaching and/or kids, but if you are a quantum physicist and can write a relevant post, you are welcome here.
• What happens? Every Saturday for 6 weeks, beginning this Saturday (July 6th), I will post a new blogging assignment right here. I'll probably tweet it, too, so make sure you are following me (@happycampergirl) as well as the kinderchat account (@kinderchat123).
• What do I need to do? Once the topic is posted:
1. Write your response and post it on your own blog
2. Leave the link to your response in the comments of the assignment.
3. Tweet out the link, using the #kinderblog13 hashtag.
4. Visit at least one other blogger's response, AND LEAVE THEM A COMMENT. (This is important, bloggers love comments. It's like having your glitter-covered clip moved to purple so you get to pick a coupon to exchange a sticker redeemable for treasure from the prize box. #snark.)

What I love very best about this challenge is how simple it is. You can do all 6 questions, or just the ones that float your boat. You can join in mid-way, or start from the beginning. You can miss a week and no one will reprimand you. It is SUMMER VACATION, so nothing should be stressful.

If you have never blogged before, this is a great reason to start. If your blog has been neglected due to the insanity of school, this is an opportunity to refresh it. If you are an avid blogger who is not sure what to write about when you do not have munchkins in your classroom, this will provide you with some inspiration. If you are not a blogger, but an avid blog reader, keep a twitter search running for #kinderblog12, because you are bound to make some awesome discoveries.

AND NOW, because I know some of you can't wait to get started, here is a (completely optional, but short and fun) warm up assignment (this is the ONLY assignment with a word count limit, I promise!):

In 250 words or less, tell us YOUR story. What do you do, why do you do it, how do you do it, for how long have you been doing it, where do you do it? What do you BELIEVE about what you do? How do you FEEL about what you do? You only have 250 words, so use them well.

Remember: it doesn't have to be prose. It can be a poem, a song, a series of pictures, even a video clip of you talking, but: ONLY TWO HUNDRED AND FIFTY WORDS.

Ok, that's it. If you write a warm up post, don't forget to link to it in the comments. If you have questions about how this whole thing works, you can post them as comments, too.

Aaannnnndddd..... we're off and running! The first official question gets posted on Saturday; don't forget to come back and check it out.

Smiles and sunshine;

Amy