Sunday, March 25, 2012

Slice of Life Day 25

Every spring the third grade studies Charlotte's Web;  this was in the curriculum when I arrived and I did not change that.  So every year my days are once again shaped and influenced by the exquisite writing of E. B. White and I have the privilege of sharing my love for this book with a new group of students.  This year I've been doing some searching for a few new ideas and stumbled (as usual) across this lovely poem that E.B.White wrote for his wife.  Enjoy!

         Natural History-by E. B. White

The spider, dropping down from twig,
Unwinds a thread of his devising;
A thin, premeditated rig
To use in rising.
And all the journey down through space,
In cool descent, and loyal-hearted,
He builds a ladder to the place
From which he started.
Thus I, gone forth, as spiders do,
In spider's web a truth discerning,
Attach one silken strand to you
For my returning.   

3 comments:

  1. Wow. I have not seen that before. How beautiful! Thanks for sharing. I also appreciate the fact that while you share the same book every year, you are looking for ways to keep it fresh.

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  2. Beautiful. Almost makes me think kindly of the spiders I've found in my house this weekend.

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  3. Thank you for sharing this. I love the analogy of people being able to find their way back to those they love by a symbolic silken thread.

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