Mind Blowing Quote of the Week

There are weird similarities between Abraham Lincoln and John F. Kennedy. 

Abraham Lincoln was elected to Congress in 1846. John F. Kennedy was elected to Congress in 1946.

Abraham Lincoln was elected President in 1860. John F. Kennedy was elected President in 1960.

Both were shot in the back of the head in the presence of their wives.

Both wives lost their children while living in the White House.

Both Presidents were shot on a Friday.

Lincoln's secretary was named Kennedy.

Both were succeeded by Southerners named Johnson.

Andrew Johnson, who succeeded Lincoln, was born in 1808. Lyndon Johnson, who succeeded Kennedy, was born in 1908.

Lincoln was shot in the Ford Theatre. Kennedy was shot in a Lincoln, made by Ford.

Lincoln was shot in a theater and his assassin ran and hid in a warehouse. Kennedy was shot from a warehouse and his assassin ran And hid in a theater.

Booth and Oswald were assassinated before their trials.

Read more at http://www.omg-facts.com/top#8wRw3WSyOdWVXIWj.99 


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Mind Blown!!!!

Olivares' Final thoughts on Ladybugs

          As a future teacher, I am always on the lookout for fun activities to do with my students. This book brings up a lot of good points to take across as I deal with ELLs in my classroom. In fact that acronym, ELL, is new vocabulary for me. I like it a lot better than ESL which seems to carry some negative stereotypes when you hear it. Kids catch on too subtleties like that very easily. I think the biggest thing the book impressed upon me was reality of having to teach ELLs. I didn’t think too much about teaching students whose primary language wasn’t English until this book. Maybe I assumed, or hoped, that most of my kids would be speaking English already. Perhaps in the upper grade levels it would be less common, but if I stick around in elementary school I am likely to find many students who are initially struggling with a new language.

         

          But back to the book. Ladybugs and Swirling Galaxies gave me great ideas for showcasing my students work in the classroom. It also conveniently allows me to have a fairly blank room with the promise that it will be filled up later; a boon to just starting out teachers without a lot of stuff. The book, along with the guest speaker, reinforced the value of structure to the students. In a system that seems to be greatly favor student creativity, it is good to know that structure is important and that students will do better with it.  This is of course especially important when we consider the difficulty in trying to teach large class sizes where individual help will be hard to give. But the book also points out to when too much structure can be a negative. ELLs tended to like poetry because it was freer than regular writing.

    

          I am glad to have read both Nonfiction Matters and Ladybugs and Swirling Galaxies. It’s given me a better grasp on how important nonfiction reading and writing is and given me the confidence to teach it. I came in to this class thinking that I didn’t like reading nonfiction work. If you had asked me to name off some nonfiction that I liked it would have been either hard or a short list. These books have expanded my horizons. I can feel that my brain has grown from the experience and I am glad that I went through it. Above all I’d recommend these books to all elementary school teachers. They will give insight into how to deal with English Language Learners and nonfiction material, both of which are extremely important and both are topics that I was lacking in experience with.

What is a News Wall?

Chapter 9 had a little something on page 128 where it talked about meaningful print. One way the book mentions to make print meaningful was by having a news wall. Anyone have any idea what a news wall looks like.?

Olivares' Reflections on Chps 7-10

             The end of chapter ten in the personal reflections left me with a very moving idea. “Start now! Start with one student or a small group, and you will find that their energy to explore their world is spectacular!” (pg 148). I’ve said before how I find myself scared of how I will do in front of a full classroom of students. But this gives me a foothold into that world. Start experimenting with a small group of kids and when I finally become a teacher I will be ready. I have young nieces and nephews that I can experiment with, most of them will be elementary level, but one is middle school and the other in high school. I should be teaching the young members of my family the things I learn so that I will be ready when the time comes to be a teacher.

            Chapter seven made me question some thoughts I had on Bilingual languages in classrooms. I wasn’t sure if it was a good idea to have both Spanish and English, or English and another primary language, being used at the same time. I figured that students who could switch between languages wouldn’t want to, and maybe some won’t want to, but I see now that it is a great boon to them if they can. Not only will they be learning conventions in one language, they will learn how to simultaneously use them in another language. Except when explicitly teaching English, I also see now that giving instructions in the child’s primary language would be a boon to them because they’d understand more. I’m not fluent in Spanish, but one day I will finish my learning.

            Chapter 8 was about showcasing the students work and it’s no surprise that they love to showcase their stuff. When I do something amazing I like to be acknowledged for it. I imagine all adults are the same way. Students who have their work showcased are filled with pride and accomplishment. That accomplishment brings such feelings of joy that they want to continue working, which is what we want as teachers. Showcasing student work is important for their self esteem and my students work will be all along the walls of my classroom.

            “Meaningful print.”  That is a fun concept. When I was in school memorizing vocabulary words, I often made stories with one of the vocab words needing to be in every sentence. That helped make the words meaningful to me and I learned more that way. That’s just one way to do it, but there are multiple ways to make print meaningful. The book outlines a few ideas for meaningful print by having content word walls, news walls, magazines, and others kids work. Content word walls can have pictures attached to them so they can have an image to associate with it. I’m interested in what a news wall is. I don’t remember if the book already covered it. Is it news with the vocab words in it so there is a real world connection? I’d be interested to know if that is what it really is.

Mind Blowing Quote of the Week

Along with being the only 1 of 5 mammal species to lay eggs, they are poisonous (the poison located on their ankles can incapacitate a human), they keep 50% of its fat stored in their tails, and they can see electric fields generate by muscle contractions of their prey.

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MIND BLOWN!!!!!!!!

Olivares' Thoughts on Ladybugs book PART 2

            Comprehension strategies like questioning schema making connections, sensory images, inferring, determining importance, and synthesis are all different strategies that I’ve dealt with in great detail during Peter Kittles’ English class. These are strategies that do work and I know because I have used them. By using these strategies it is possible to delve into deeper critical thinking and understanding. I already knew that read-alouds are important for kids from the fact that kids who are read to at home are better readers and generally like books more than kids that are not read to. For those kids who are not read to and especially ELL’s, it is important to have read-alouds in the classroom. It gives experience with the way that English is played with and used. You can be lectured about how adjectives and adverbs give flavor to a text, but to actually experience this in a vocal way is empowering.

            My group’s book, Nonfiction Matters, explained in great depth how to foster an interest and gather information for a nonfiction research paper. Chapter 5 reminds me a lot of our Wonderbook activity where we had them think of topics they were interested in, write down some stuff they already knew, asked questions about what they didn’t know, and looked up that information later. Writing and reading about something you are interested in is a lot easier than reading something that is boring. So it makes perfect sense that focusing on the kids’ interests is a much better way to get them to write rather than forcing everyone to write on the same topic, especially if that topic is confusing to them.

            Questioning has been a big part of my education in my class NSCI 321, Scientific Inquiry. The class is lead by the questions and experiments that we come up with. This is a class I definitely don’t have to study for because I am constantly and personally engaged in leading my own learning experience. I’ve seen personally that kids who are bored are more likely to act out and cause disturbances in class. So if this could be set up in an English class then the kids will be fully engaged and on task. They will be the leaders in their own knowledge and that knowledge will stick with them for much longer. I can guaranty that I will remember the knowledge I learned in my class for years to come.

            I’m always impressed with young students that use big words. I seem to always think “how do you know that word already?” It still surprises me even though I know how smart students can be excellent with new words, especially when they own those words. Such a weird concept, to own a word, but it’s a good way to think of vocabulary words. Students who don’t own their words may use them, but will use them incorrectly or put them in awkward places. Students who own the words they use know exactly what they mean when they say or write it. Helping students to own a word will make their writing that much richer and their ability to comprehend more complex text will increase.

Inspiration for when you're scared

Whenever I'm scared I just tell myself "fall flat on your face, cause if your at your lowest point you have nothin else to be afraid of."

Olivares' Reading Response to Ladybugs, Tornadoes, and Swirling Galaxies

“Our fear has us hearing a million voices in our heads, ‘She needs to be held accountable. What message does this send to the rest of the class? She can do whatever she wants? Is she listening? Is this a power struggle? What should we do?”

    

        I would be worried to about what should be done with this little girl who isn’t listening and has been avoiding work all year long. But she was engaged and the teachers move to have her write about her work was just about the best result that could happen. I may not have thought of that at the time and may have forced her to come join the group, which would have turned the girl off more in the long run.

            This book isn’t giving me anything new, yet at the same time it is. The advice it gives advice that I have been hearing and it makes perfect, logical, I can’t believe I didn’t think of that sense. But what’s new and infinitely more valuable to me is how the teacher’s do it. It’s all nice to say theories to me, but if there is no scaffold, no model, then I feel lost on my own in a minefield. I’m like the beginning ELL students that need that structure to begin to get my writing feet moving. That was another thing that surprised me. We been talking about the Schaffer Method as a bad thing, but it is useful. For beginners or ELL’s just learning to write English it is an invaluable lifeboat. It’s not the end of course, but having models of how things work helps wonders with those who are clueless.

            How these teachers organize their classroom is one thing I am glad to have. Desks that are the kid’s size, comfortable rugs were a given, but there were some new ideas, like pens so that they don’t erase their thinking, or even writing while standing up. That was a brilliant idea that I loved and it makes me want to try it. I know I hate being confined to a desk for hours and so do kids.

            This book is a lot about ELL’s, but in a place as diverse as California that may be a boon. I’m guilty of thinking, as I was reading, of ELL’s as little Spanish kids in a classroom trying to write and read, but that’s not entirely accurate. It’s anyone who’s primary language wasn’t English. Actually, everyone in California used to be an ELL because we all had to learn to write English. It’s just that those speaking the language had a big advantage.

Olivares' Reflections on Teaching Nonfiction Matters

            The teaching itself went really well. It became evident early on that it was really text heavy and that could be improved upon on another attempt. The lesson was easy and fun. The “students” were getting into it, especially during the research portion although it was evident that some were not trying. Like previous class lessons, ours lended itself to a longer time frame. Because of our text heavy presentation we didn’t have as much time for the lesson unfortunately, but this lesson was something that the kids would work on and come back to throughout the year. And that was the point of the Wonderbooks. It was a way to generate interesting topics, which is something that even high school students have trouble deciding on. Being able to choose a topic that is interesting to the student provides them with more to write about and more incentive to write.

            With my little “give me 2” clap we were able to have more class management. I learned that skill from another student who was teaching a P.E. lesson and it suddenly pooped in my head when the time came to get everyone’s attention. The technique was losing some of its effectiveness later on, but this was a group that hadn’t been conditioned to respond to the clap yet. That and they are just pretending to be students.

            Overall, I would say that the lesson was a success. We were able to show the importance of Nonfiction writing and a valuable timeline for writing a research paper that could be adjusted to work for kids grades 3 to 8. I had originally chosen to be in this group because I felt uncertain on how well I could teach a topic that I was confident in. My forte in reading and writing is fiction so I felt that the Nonfiction book would benefit me better than the poetry one, which I was more interested in. The book did help me appreciate Nonfiction in a new light and I hope it will help the others to.

Reflection for Technology and Readicide Group 2

Teaching the New Writing: Technology, Change, and Assessment in the 21^st Century Classroom

Molly O’Connor

Leanna Longoria

Saul Jimenez

            This was a fun project and I wished we had the time to actually finish it. Writing your own story and then coloring it and putting yourself in it would create a sense of joy and accomplishment in the students. The time crunch definitely made the lessons that day seem crunched, but they were longer than thirty minute assignments. Technology can change the ways we teach in such profound ways.  There is no telling what new technological marvel is going to sweep through my students, and I will have to find a way to utilize that tech.

            One thing that I took from this class was that grammar and spelling go down with auto correct features and that makes perfect sense and shows that technology is not a magically solution. Like everything it needs to be taken in moderation and the old pencil and paper ways should not be entirely forgotten. I have some classes where I still take paper notes and sometimes I prefer it. However, what is important is that we help students find a way to love writing and technology plays a big part in that world when so much writing is being done online.

Readicide Group 2

Joyce Merino   Juliet Polk

Bree Dodson   Mollie Zuehlk

Caleb Meyer    Matt Morley

            I’m sure Matt didn’t intend it, but his deep voice while reading all the statistics gave them an air of dread and foreboding. Like the fact that twenty seven percent of adults didn’t read a book in ’07. It provided a good mood that went well considering what the book was about. I also like the To-Kill-a-Reader Casserole and the Bibliophile Recipe. The first was a creative way to illustrate the authors ways that school kills reading and the second offered a solution, which is more important that just stating a problem exists.

            Their four part lesson was also a lot of fun. We got to draw, predict future, and address fears. An effective lesson for younger students. And just like the other activity today, it was not meant for thirty minutes. But the snippet we got was very well done. 

Mind Blowing Quote of the Week

The is a super drug called DNP that can make you shed weight faster than any drug currently known. The downside, it releases so much heat from your fat that you are literally cooked from the inside out. . .
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MIND BLOWN!!!!

Reflections for Note Slipped Under the Door and First Readicide Group

A Note Slipped Under the Door

Ben Okun        Williams Burns

Wesley Pautsch           Sarita Urbano

Teadra Vance

            

First things first. That was a fun assignment. Drawing pictures and then passing them along to other students was a great task. Doesn't require much prep and the children can actively engage with each other multiple times. My big critique for the lesson was maybe watch the language. I know Wesley caught himself when he started talking about his favorite piece of poetry. Watch out who you’re giving praise to because if you constantly give praise to a few good poetry students, but don't acknowledge other students poems then you can have hurt feelings and they may not see their poems as being good.

            Having a classroom that loves to write and loves to comment and critique each other’s work is a dream for my future classroom. This book shows how poetry can be used to achieve this result by having lessons that inspire students to be creative and unrestricted, but still make great work. And it’s not just the already established poets that inspire, but the student’s peers that inspire. I would definitely get this book in the future. When I have money, or find it cheap in a bookstore.

Readicide by Kelly Galagher

Amy Andracchio                    Megan Asel

Danielle Aylesworth               Kelsey Barger

Dana Cummings         Christian Danzero

Miranda Jones                         Kim Sharp

            As an avid reader who spent 2 hours in his bed reading a book this morning, I am not a victim of Readicide. But I have seen its effects in classrooms. I can remember being ecstatic when my brother actually liked the assigned reading in class because normally he wasn’t. Most people in my class cringed and hated assigned reading, and writing essays, and having to take standardized tests. I would hope that as a teacher, at any level, I could have a profound effect on how much my students read.  Even if I was a science teacher, I’d find a way to incorporate a love of reading.

            The group did a good job with their activity. They weren’t prepared when the class actually preferred the multiple choices over the one-pager, but it’s been beat into us so much that we have quietly accepted it. I for one loved the one-pager and found it to be a much better way to think about the story. The prompts, which I didn’t answer all of them and I wouldn’t enforce too much, let me write and organize my thoughts on the story. On my one-pager was the beginnings of an essay that I could have easily expanded upon. Like I pointed out in class, it could be combined with multiple choice tests in a way that can guide students into noticing the main points or remembering important characters and people. Like having a multiple choice test on one side, but a space for notes on the other.

(notes) A Note Slipped Under the Door and Readicide

Teachers:                 William Burns
                                Ben Okun
                                Wesley Pautsch
                               Sarita Urbano


Authors:                Nick Flynn
                                    teaches writing to young people and how people can teach in their own works.
                            Shirley

About the Book:              How do we read poetry


what we doing today             imagery


Thoeries:               Influence of poetry in the classroom. use of mentor poems. Whats a mentor poem???

                                     menotr peoms increase understanding by working with others, reviewing each others work.


expose kids to poems so that they have inspiration.


               Imagery :  vivd pic with descriptive language.          image not symbol!!

In Passing by Alberto Blanco

    Tradeing sketches? poem based off sketches. I like this.







READICIDE

    author:               Kelley Galagher
                                       5 books and 4 professional.
                              defines readicide as systematic killing of the love of reading by school


causes of readicide        no intersting material in class
                                       longer challenging novels replaced with test prep
                                             dont read enough in class. No SSR?!! bullshit i love SSR
                                                         hell yeah SSR improved test scores

how to prevent readicide                       talk to school and get monies for more books. Less test prep and                  
                                                               more books
                                                       Advocate more reading time
                                                      get donations. I have soooo many books that I'm not reading anymore..
                                                     granted not all of my books are kd appropriate, but some are
                                                   be available for students to talk to
                                               current events, current events, current events. Get them interested. I know
                                                                                                                                           I'm not
                                                  50/50 challenging novels and time to read on their own. Their own choice.

Flow                            what is this? When someone sso involved that they nothing else seems to matter.
                                    Yeah i'm guolty of this

One pager                  anwser short q's breif reflection on ideas about the text.