What a day! It was just as busy and hectic as it was wonderful. In the interest of writing in a different genre, this entry is going to be a review of my day…several reviews actually. Think of it as a small edition of Consumer Reports for Teachers. Consumers being the students, of course.
Grammar Concert
No one had ever heard of a Grammar Concert before. I went into this one with confidence that only a teacher who has been winging it the last 18 years can do. Immediately upon entering the theater, it was apparent something exciting was about to happen. Seventy-five 7th grade students gathered on the stage dressed in white tee-shirts decorated in a Grammar motif. (Whoever heard of such a thing?) The theater quickly filled up with parents, younger students, and 7th graders not currently enrolled in Grammar class. The concert began a few minutes late due to technical issues. Upon seeing a 7th grader at the computer to control the music, it was apparent that all students were involved whether they liked the stage or not. It was refreshing to see so many middle school students standing up on stage and having fun with songs that sounded like Barney on steroids. Some of the audience’s favorites included puppets singing about interjections and a couple of ‘cool cats.’ Even without the students singing all the songs as loud as they do in the classroom, the concert was a success. I give it four stars.
Serving up their research topic.
Researching a cold snack.
8th Grade Research Projects
The day the 8th grade students in the High School Prep: Research Class had been waiting for arrived. It was time to pass in the last little bit of their work and learn from each other.As with any 8th grade class, procrastination was evident. While some of the projects showed a lack of effort, many others displayed an over-the-top effort. This reviewer attended -who am I kidding? I facilitated both classes. The morning brought ice cream. Needless to say, we all learned a bit about this delicious treat. Wandering around the room, one could learn about the different types of music, Walt Disney, the history of Christian music, My Chemical Romance, snipers, and a myriad of other self-chosen topics. A note of interest: the student who researched Walt Disney had done it before in elementary school. He reflected on how much more he learned this year and how he would like to research the propaganda of Disney in college. Students wandered around discussing projects and topics until the end of class. This class was a great success.
Checking out a classmate's project.
Everything you ever wanted to know about music.
You will see him in the robotics industry someday.
Everything you ever wanted to know about Drew Barrymore.
You are reading correctly. That says snipers.
Learning from a peer.
The hit of the day - the robotic arm.
The afternoon class took a bit longer to get into presentation mode. It might have something to do with the fact that many of them were trying to hand in things an hour before report card grades were due. Finally, they were set up to go. Within no time, a group of students crowded around the robotic arm. After watching a demonstration of how it worked, they were entertained by the stop-animation commercial made as a result of the research. He was sure to tell them it took 1,002 pictures for an 82 second video. Would you believe it was all done on his iPod touch! Slowly, they began to trickle away and check out the other projects such as tennis, volleyball, Taylor Swift, monkeys, and ninjas to name a few. I was pleasantly surprised to hear them talking about their research and projects more than not. Students recognized their projects were not of the quality they could have been. However, many talked about the research process being a positive one. Students were animated when discussing what they learned. They recognized the areas they need improvement. No doubt, their teacher will bring that up to them for the next research project. I give the overall project 4 ½ stars.
Grades
One of the joys of teaching is grading. NOT. I used to enjoy it when I first started teaching. I am so over that. As a Language Arts teacher, I grade writing. I know that a student has to take risks to become a good writer. I know that a low grade can kill confidence in one’s writing ability, thus stifling possible growth. I know it is important for students to practice reading, writing, and whatever skill is being taught. I like to see proof of that practice. I try to assign projects in which students will have a real audience. Thus, the Grammar Concert and Research Projects. While end of the quarter was good for the Grammar Concert, that deadline was a bit more stressful for the Research Project. I am happy to say after working 13 hours at school yesterday (an of it hour cross country practice) and grading papers for an hour at home last night, MY GRADES WERE IN ON TIME!! It sure does feel good today not to have to worry about any of it. I have earned tomorrow’s parties as much as the students!
Section 1 We end at the beginning Does it feel like this trip will never end? Epic adventures tend to last a bit longer than just an average one. So….on with our tale. We got our bikes all packed up and continued over White Pass. The first time we went over it, it was a cloudy day. Thus, the visibility of the mountains was not much. I was expecting the same on our return trip to Packwood. Therefore, it took my breath away when I saw the mountain off in the distance for the first time. The beauty was so overwhelming, I teared up. I continued to watch the mountain until I could see it no more. Soon we were in Packwood. Back where we started. After a quick breakfast at the local coffee shop, we were on our way. I may have taken a few minutes to ride the big bike first… Not too long though, because someone was ready to get moving. Jennifer had some friends that were camping at Walupt Lake, which is right on the trail for Sectio...
Upon first thought, watching a parent age sucks. Unnoticeable at first. A bit of a stoop, some creaking in the knees, whitening of the hair. The doctor’s visits begin, as do the pills One for high blood pressure, another to thin the blood, and a handful of vitamins to top it off. The signs are there, but it is easier to see him as he has always been. My father, a pillar of strength. Until my pillar was knocked off-kilter. A simple surgery and the mortality of my father looked me square in the eye when the drugs took hold of his brain. Amidst his fidgeting and confusion, I realized…AGING SUCKS! And then….enlightenment dawned upon me….AGING IS BEAUTIFUL Wrinkles tell of smiles while silver hair speaks a life of memories. Knees creaky after years of kneeling in prayer, offering up a lap, and climbing up the stairs for one more kiss goodnight. Almost forty-eight years of memories nestled in my heart. Memories of my father. Taking us to church each Sunday Building and fixing ...
I decided that this break I was going to stay home and spend the week doing things I have not done or haven't done in awhile. It all began Thursday night with Ballroom Dancing, which will continue on Monday and Thursday with lessons. Saturday, I bought a couple of new outfits. Today brought both something I hadn't done in awhile and something new. Today, I went to church which was pretty cool in itself. I went with someone I just met the day before. (I am sure that is no surprise to any of you who know me.) We made plans to meet up at church. It was different from any church I had been in before. The chairs were set up "in the round." There was no piano or organ to accompany our singing. People were in and out throughout the 90 minute service. No surprise, the place was packed. The service was your typical protestant service, minus the organ, of course. It had been awhile since my friend had been to church. Many in the congregation flocked to him at the end to gi...
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