Au revoir Typepad

Jan 1 & 2: Looks like i will switch my Twitter-linked blog to this one. it's become waaayy too hard to access Typepad. Hello again, Blogger.

Hospitals Firing Seasoned Nurses: Nurses FIGHT Back!

Hospitals Firing Seasoned Nurses: Nurses FIGHT Back!: This article was written by a member on allnurses. Due to the controversial and emotionally charged nature of the article, the member wanted the topic out in the open so nurses could discuss it. Because she is afraid of retribution if any of her hospital administrative staff should read this arti...

https://divinity.yale.edu/news/professor-lamin-sanneh-1942-2019

I came across this post from this esteemed religious scholar and professor because his book review about Bahira was cited by another scholar.  I look for intersections of faith and religion, the political and the spiritual.

The Sleep Classroom

My biggest task as of late is to get at least four (4) hours of sleep per day. 

This task is made much harder with the presence of smartphones. Smartphones are the deserved treat of the overworked?  But the reward for hard work is, well, more hard work.  In this case it is sleep.

Write a story about a lie (Fast Fiction prompts by Roberta Allen)

Interior Monologue of Robert Aralola

I told her I would call Human Resources.  I told her I would call the police.  I told her she should be ashamed of herself. I told her she should have some self-respect. 

I blotted out my name on the Christmas card.  (But not the book--because it is an antique, tattered as it is--and there are other men with a capital R.)

My words and actions do not betray me if she knows.  I love her.


Speculation by Ocean Cola

That is some Contradictory BullShit.  CBS Cares, ha! 

Emailed in!

In which I work at avocation and vocation...

An avocation is a hobby or any other activity taken up in addition to one's regular work. A vocation is one's principal occupation or a calling to a particular way of life or course of action.Mar 6, 2017

Love is a gift.  You can't make people like you.  You can earn respect, though.  You can also provide appropriate training.  Kicked off Lent with Ash Wednesday service at neighborhood parish.  I haven't seen much of my fifth grader lately before he wakes me from my pre-work nap.  On my way out the door, he wasn't impressed to be reminded that he was born on a Mardi Gras some years ago.  We will go through the Lent readings together.  #spiritualbirthday

#Soulmates by Facebook Reflection

One of my former students from the University of the Philippines penned this reflection on Facebook, after a not-so-recent heartbreak.  (Although I suspect he's still reeling from it???)


"People connect with someone special to them on three levels: physical, emotional, and mental-spiritual. One out of three is what most people get. Sometimes zero out of three is even possible, when the connection is purely on the level of mutual fantasy. Hit two out of three, and you're already lucky; you're with someone who is a good long-term prospect.

"Three out of three--someone who connects with your body, your heart and your mind--that is your soulmate.

"Of course, meeting your soulmate is no guarantee of #forever. Even soulmates can change their mind and leave."

Walter Scott's translation of "Ave Maria"

Anglican version: Ave Maria! Maiden mild!/ Listen to a maiden's prayers/ For Thou canst hear through from the wild/ Thou canst [save] amid despair/
Safe may we sleep beneath Thy care/ Though banished, outcast and reviled/ O Maiden, hear a maiden's prayer/ O Mother, hear a suppliant child/ Ave Maria! [perhaps refashioned into a purity prayer...and, can "save" be substituted with "pray" in respect to Mary's intercessory role?]

April 17, 2013

I submitted my Reflection Paper #2 and gave a presentation on the article, "Children's Literature: A Motivating Context to Explore Functions" by Esther Billings and Charlene Beckmann (NCTM, 2005).

I presented how teachers may present enriching material on functions with students, anywhere from K-12, using the delightful picture book based on a Chinese folktale by Lily Toy Hong, titled "Two of Everything."

Teachers may create a resource, explained by the authors of the article, of functions based on a captivating story that are obviously arising from the book, adapted from the book, or somewhat hidden, which may describe aspects that are suggested by the book if the students care to explore the nuances of the story further.

I tried the book out on my ESOL Kindergartners at School A and ESOL Second Graders at School B.  There are numerous ways to present concepts and differentiate, from drawing pictures to using counters, to function or rule machines, to graphs.  There is even the related English vocabulary of doubling, tripling, and quadrupling :)

April 18, 2013

I am going to have to dig deep; I am having to dig deep.  We are in the thick of spring, and I'm thinking about my transition to new teaching positions which may involve teaching newcomers and incorporating even more picture clues and grammatical communicative tasks.

This morning, I was thinking about my beloved French teacher from middle school, Madame P.  I need to think about how much fun I had learning French, and how I was fascinated by her ability to prepare--by hand, with her whimsical sketches--her quizzes and tests.  They were both fun and challenging.

I also need to think about the high school ESL teachers who seemed to have a similar spirit in being able to work on the fly,quickly preparing picture support to accompany supported text.

It can be done...I can make it challenging and fun!

April 12, 2013

Victory: The shy fourth-grade girl who has been characterized as "selective mute" at School B actually initiated a conversation with me! It's hard to believe, as I can hope for little more than a smile and a hello from ANYONE during morning hallway duty. This is great progress for her and me, and it happened naturally in the context of our ESOL writing activities. When I mentioned to her in passing that "We will be writing today," she created an exchange by inquiring whether Jose F. received our letters. This shows genuine interest in the communicative writing activity, concern for her former classmate/school friend, and a meaningful response to my greeting. Praise be to the Lord!!

March 21, 2013

I am still wincing from this more than two weeks later: it's so demoralizing for a teacher amidst classroom chaos when a young student protests or even just announces gleefully, "But we're not learning anything!"

A lot can be chalked up to classroom management. But a comment like that immediately compels the teacher to check himself or herself on the acuity of the objective. Of course, my knee-jerk response was to put more pressure on that student to respond to my warm-up queries and make the injunction that they all model proper student behaviors when responding to a teacher-directed question.

The need for more student-directed inquiry is a tough nut to crack. It involves engaging them first, and somehow creating a meaningful context.

As for routines--it's a sad fact that students will rely on a set structure as not only an aid, but as a crutch for any actual learning. Students expect....Watch out!!

April 2, 2013

It's bizarre that it hasn't been until recently that it has occurred to the Baltimore County Public Library system to cull out the juvenile non-fiction books from the general non-fiction books. I had to figure this mystery out when for the umpteenth time my son was resistant to checking any storybooks or chapter books out. So, I asked at the information desk and was promptly and considerately directed to the beginner's atlases and books on planets with large text for strictly amateurs. My kindergartener was so enthralled!

April 1, 2013

April Fool's!!

March 27, 3013

It was nice getting in touch with Marianne, who it turns out, now teaches all three of the ESOL kids who transferred out of my Schools A and B, to whom we wrote individual friendly letters. The classes involved were, in order of our meetings, School B- First Grade (writing to Kevin), School B- Fourth Grade (writing to Jose F.), and School A (writing to Alejandro F.)

The children put such care and thoughtfulness into their letters to their old classmates (whom they missed to varying degrees--some poignantly. And some barely knowing them, but writing considerately or even by means of introduction), personalized writings, some with illustrations and spring break decorations.

It was a heart-warming, authentic, communicative writing experience!
I think my students and I appreciate a meaningful writing task. Besides, I would have felt terribly guilty for promising the students on those departure days that we would keep in touch...and not follow through!

As for the students who suddenly have to move out of state or even return to their home countries...I have much less control over that situation...only a prayer ;)

March 28, 2013

Go Fish! was enjoyed by a first grade and a second grade group to pass the time after a test was completed, and in the last few minutes of school before...Spring Break! However, for games to be a worthwhile learning activity, rules must be adhered to, otherwise, what's the point?

The prime educational game of the day, which was a change of pace for the advanced first grade group, was Flip N' Match Homonyms, essentially a concentration (Memory) game utilizing homonym pairs. I still need to thank Christine Williams for ordering these games (among others, still unused) last year. The kids loved it...and I saw remarkable teamwork (partners), strategy, and engagement. Giving children opportunities like this is a better motivation and reward than stickers and bribes.

Plus, I could really appreciate how sharp the minds and recall (Memory!) of these first graders are. I am feeling dull and definitely in the "age 40-up" set by comparison. They can run circles around me!!!

March 22, 2013

I attended the SPED job fair to inquire about available positions. Updating your resume is an opportunity for life review, a sober reflection of where one is in the working economy.

Fortunately, my mentors are encouraging me in strength areas--character, protocol, rapport, inspiration, love of learning, ability to listen and grow, and creativity.

March 23-24, 2013

My scheduled Saturday root canal became a tooth extraction: at age 40, the prognosis is that the detected stress fracture (and subsequent infection) will likely happen again due to my teeth-grinding. So, I was referred by Dr. Kathy Lee, endodontist, to Dr. Mitcherling, oral surgeon.

I was very impressed by the sympathetic, skilled, and upbeat demeanors of these professionals. They seem to know that they are meeting you at a vulnerable moment and want to buoy you with confidence.

Indeed, the oral surgeon even bowled me over with astonishment at how clearly I articulate my speech sounds..."it's almost eerie...I thought you must be from out of state, like Boston...your voice would be good on radio."

March 20, 2013

I was successful with the second grade at School B by providing appropriate motivation and learning supports for them to finally do some writing.

I turned the paragraph writing assignment about a ball sport into writing a Sports Riddle.

Class went like this:

First, because students had expressed disappointment and jealousy at my parameter that not everyone could write about soccer, I started them off with a QuickWrite activity to "write as many words as you can to describe the game of soccer.  The winner has the most descriptions.  You have 3 minutes.  Go!"

Then, I scribed their descriptions.  I also gave them sports vocabulary and concepts such as rules and the object of the game.  Next, I turned the easel around to show them my Sports Riddle.  We checked off which words (provided by them) that I used.  I referred them back to a Word Web that I had modeled using for them previously.

The benefit of reminding of them of the Word Web was to show how it could actually be useful in writing a good riddle.  They also saw that the riddle did not have to have EVERYTHING, only sufficient detail to infer what the sport was.

While they were writing, I had a sports book available (Famous Sports by Cameron Fox, pub. Penguin Young Reader, 2001)) for them to refer to. Also, to motivate them about the enjoyable aspect of riddles, I read aloud vivid descriptions (adjectives and verbs, and place nouns) of animals (from the picture book Africa Calling, Nighttime Falling by Daniel Adlerman, pub.Charlesbridge, 1996).  A book doesn't have to be explicitly a riddle book: just as I had done with the students at School B, I simply omitted the words naming the sport from my model (from the textbook and a piano book featuring sports)

The students first completed their Word Webs, and then moved on to their 2-5 sentence riddles that contained sufficient description.  The students were happy to share and edified by useful and practical suggestions to describe their sport accurately and effectively.  I was charmed by one student who even cleared his throat dramatically a few times to read.  I gave a discarded costume jewelry tiara to the best riddle writer!  She was very happy and proud.