the teachers here at whittier elementary have been challenged to a basketball game tomorrow versus the teachers at burnett elementary... unfortunately, we don't really have any "ballers" here at whittier, (also a few people who _said_ they'd play flaked--lame!) but we're a rag tag, scrappy little bunch (kinda like the student-players in " the white shadow," except without the pro coach). we had one "official" practice today, and i think we've got a chance... at least we have one person over 6' who can dunk (not me)! either way, it'll be fun.
GO WHITTIER WIZARDS!!!
Thursday, March 29, 2007
Thursday, March 22, 2007
celebrate!
today the authors in the room 75 tribe shared their hard work at our writing celebration. i was so proud of my students because the variety of (student selected) writing genres made for an eclectic program: poems, fantasies, personal narratives, and even a biography! my students were super excited and their enthusiasm only intensified when our v.p. (mr. hammond) and our principal (mr. garcia) showed up. i knew they couldn't stay--they had other celebrations to attend--so i rearranged the program to showcase the work of one of my star authors, frida.
she was really interested in frida kahlo, so i encouraged her to write a biographical piece on her namesake. she took to it like a duck to water. over the course of 6 weeks, she revised, edited, augmented, diminished, and ultimately created an informative and entertaining piece of non-fiction. she titled it the dove, after kahlo's nickname.
just before our guests left, i made a terrible program decision: i let blanca share her piece on how her grandpa died and how sad she was that she never met him. big mistake. about three quarters of the way through her piece, she broke into sobs... i rushed to tell her she didn't have to continue, but--being the trooper she is--she continued reading through her sniffles and tears! i made a big deal about how brave and courageous she was to share her piece and how impressed i was with my tribe that they respected her enough not to laugh, (even though a few did)... but it was a bit awkward, and i back-peddled to find a lighter piece to try to restore some levity in the room. shoot! why did i start with ashley's funny poems?
all's well that ends well. we didn't have enough time to hear all the stories, (we had to have time to celebrate publishing with some junk food!) so i told them that we'd continue sharing the stories tomorrow...
she was really interested in frida kahlo, so i encouraged her to write a biographical piece on her namesake. she took to it like a duck to water. over the course of 6 weeks, she revised, edited, augmented, diminished, and ultimately created an informative and entertaining piece of non-fiction. she titled it the dove, after kahlo's nickname.
just before our guests left, i made a terrible program decision: i let blanca share her piece on how her grandpa died and how sad she was that she never met him. big mistake. about three quarters of the way through her piece, she broke into sobs... i rushed to tell her she didn't have to continue, but--being the trooper she is--she continued reading through her sniffles and tears! i made a big deal about how brave and courageous she was to share her piece and how impressed i was with my tribe that they respected her enough not to laugh, (even though a few did)... but it was a bit awkward, and i back-peddled to find a lighter piece to try to restore some levity in the room. shoot! why did i start with ashley's funny poems?
all's well that ends well. we didn't have enough time to hear all the stories, (we had to have time to celebrate publishing with some junk food!) so i told them that we'd continue sharing the stories tomorrow...
Tuesday, March 13, 2007
mutual respect
mutual respect:
a two-way street.
i'll meet you half-way...
collaborative hearts
communicate,
a compromise
a two-way street.
i'll meet you half-way...
collaborative hearts
communicate,
a compromise
Monday, March 12, 2007
HOT MATH
a study by fuchs, et al (2006) sponsored by the center on accelerating student learning (CASL) deals with a 3rd grade intervention called "HOT math" (hands on task). it's a two-tiered system: the first tier is completely scripted and delivered whole class; the second tier is delivered in heterogeneous, small groups.
tier 1 stresses problem-solving strategies, and the first three weeks are dedicated to problem solving information like: "do the answers make sense?" "are the numbers lined up from the text?" "is the work labeled with math words and symbols?"
the remainder of the tier 1 consists of 3, four-week units (in any order):
tier 2 is similar but is delivered in small groups. students are reminded about learning goals, self-regulated learning, and are rewarded with "dollars" for displaying on-task behaviors and attaining self-proscribed, academic goals.
the study found that utilizing even one tier of the HOT math program--whole or small group--had a positive effect on student math achievement.
tier 1 stresses problem-solving strategies, and the first three weeks are dedicated to problem solving information like: "do the answers make sense?" "are the numbers lined up from the text?" "is the work labeled with math words and symbols?"
the remainder of the tier 1 consists of 3, four-week units (in any order):
- "buying bags" problems
- "shopping list problems
- "half" problems
- "pictograph" problems
tier 2 is similar but is delivered in small groups. students are reminded about learning goals, self-regulated learning, and are rewarded with "dollars" for displaying on-task behaviors and attaining self-proscribed, academic goals.
the study found that utilizing even one tier of the HOT math program--whole or small group--had a positive effect on student math achievement.
Sunday, March 11, 2007
holy rollers
since my last piece had me bumming on the l.b.c., this is for balance:
today i witnessed something that has restored my faith in the goodness of my community: when i walked to the beach this morning with my parents' poodle, sophie, i was initially annoyed with a group of college-aged bicyclists riding on the sidewalk along the cliffs where it is clearly marked NO BIKES! i pulled sophie in close as i muzzled my uncontrollable-old-man-urge to yell at the disrespectful youths.
then i noticed one of the law-breakers get off his bike next to two slumbering men (who appeared to have all the trappings of homeless people) and proceed to place two sack lunches from his backpack next to their sleeping bodies. my smile was instantaneous! these kids were breaking the (bicycle) law to feed the needy!
i walked home in the warm sun and thought to myself: yesterday sophie got out of my yard for 5 hours (her second offence) and was caught and nursed (she had a cut between her claws) by two lovely ladies on orange and 8th... today i see a gang of college students feeding the less fortunate in our community--and last night I ROCKED THE JOINT REGARDLESS!
LONG BEACH IS A.O.K.!!!
but the story doesn't end there... i decided to bike to my favorite breakfast spot--quick plug for the "#3 hobo omelet" at the omelet inn on 3rd and pine--and when i got there, i spotted the same bicycle gang from the beach at the intersection of pacific and 3rd (long beach--"the big little city"). i had to know: they were handing out lunches, right? it wasn't a drug deal i had witnessed this morning, right?
so i waited for them to cross the street and asked one of them what was up with the brown bags. it turns out my suspicions were correct: he and a group of friends that go to his church pass out sack lunches to the hungry. how cool is that? i told them they were doing the lord's work ("[you're] on a mission from god."), and i applauded their caring for our community.
today's treasure moment: holy rollers in the queen city
today i witnessed something that has restored my faith in the goodness of my community: when i walked to the beach this morning with my parents' poodle, sophie, i was initially annoyed with a group of college-aged bicyclists riding on the sidewalk along the cliffs where it is clearly marked NO BIKES! i pulled sophie in close as i muzzled my uncontrollable-old-man-urge to yell at the disrespectful youths.
then i noticed one of the law-breakers get off his bike next to two slumbering men (who appeared to have all the trappings of homeless people) and proceed to place two sack lunches from his backpack next to their sleeping bodies. my smile was instantaneous! these kids were breaking the (bicycle) law to feed the needy!
i walked home in the warm sun and thought to myself: yesterday sophie got out of my yard for 5 hours (her second offence) and was caught and nursed (she had a cut between her claws) by two lovely ladies on orange and 8th... today i see a gang of college students feeding the less fortunate in our community--and last night I ROCKED THE JOINT REGARDLESS!
LONG BEACH IS A.O.K.!!!
but the story doesn't end there... i decided to bike to my favorite breakfast spot--quick plug for the "#3 hobo omelet" at the omelet inn on 3rd and pine--and when i got there, i spotted the same bicycle gang from the beach at the intersection of pacific and 3rd (long beach--"the big little city"). i had to know: they were handing out lunches, right? it wasn't a drug deal i had witnessed this morning, right?
so i waited for them to cross the street and asked one of them what was up with the brown bags. it turns out my suspicions were correct: he and a group of friends that go to his church pass out sack lunches to the hungry. how cool is that? i told them they were doing the lord's work ("[you're] on a mission from god."), and i applauded their caring for our community.
today's treasure moment: holy rollers in the queen city
artistic supporters
sometimes i invite my colleagues to my performances--usually the thingz shows since 4 electric seconds hasn't been playing--and it kinda bums me out when they don't go... that's why it was so rad to see wendy wahlen (resident 5th grade reading specialist) go to dipiazza's for a thingz show last weekend. wendy rules!
i love it when people support other creative people and their endeavors, especially local artists. (athletes have athletic supporters and artists need supporters, too.) it makes me proud when i think that i live in a community that feels art is important enough to support with their time and presence (and maybe a little $). too often in the l.b.c. this is not the case...
i don't know if it's apathy or entertainment-option-saturation--it certainly isn't geographic distance since most venues are bicycle or pedestrian-accessible in long beach--but i don't see fervent support for local artists. maybe the art just sucks here...
last night's show certainly didn't suck: the thingz (l.b.c.), pure country gold (portland), and the guilty hearts (l.a.) all rocked fern's! the shamefully mute, minimal turn-out belied an extraordinary night of rock'n'roll. those in attendance gave more props to the jukebox playing "sweet child o' mine" than the first two bands. even the lead singer from pure country gold commented, "they're too cool to dance in the northwest--i didn't think it was the same here..." alas, it is...
people don't dance no more--they just stand there like this... they cross their arms and stare me down and drink and moan and piss.
--the rapture
i love it when people support other creative people and their endeavors, especially local artists. (athletes have athletic supporters and artists need supporters, too.) it makes me proud when i think that i live in a community that feels art is important enough to support with their time and presence (and maybe a little $). too often in the l.b.c. this is not the case...
i don't know if it's apathy or entertainment-option-saturation--it certainly isn't geographic distance since most venues are bicycle or pedestrian-accessible in long beach--but i don't see fervent support for local artists. maybe the art just sucks here...
last night's show certainly didn't suck: the thingz (l.b.c.), pure country gold (portland), and the guilty hearts (l.a.) all rocked fern's! the shamefully mute, minimal turn-out belied an extraordinary night of rock'n'roll. those in attendance gave more props to the jukebox playing "sweet child o' mine" than the first two bands. even the lead singer from pure country gold commented, "they're too cool to dance in the northwest--i didn't think it was the same here..." alas, it is...
people don't dance no more--they just stand there like this... they cross their arms and stare me down and drink and moan and piss.
--the rapture
Thursday, March 08, 2007
technicians or craftsmen?
a study by graham and harris (2005) was of particular interest to me because i love writing. it's one of my favorite subjects to teach--especially since i teach 5th grade, wherein the topics and abilities of my students are as various and multitudinous as the personalities in my classroom.
we use the columbia writing program at my school, so it was nice to see that they were involved in the study. what sparked my interest was the fact that the researchers chose handwriting and spelling as areas of focus to help struggling writers. one of the strengths of the columbia program is that students choose self-selected topics to write about, therefore creating "authentic" published pieces. while this is a more genuine approach, it tends to relegate conventions, such as spelling and handwriting to a secondary or tertiary level of importance. students are encouraged to learn from mentor texts and mentor authors--the real experts--but these authors sometimes use conventions in a somewhat unconventional way.
a while back we had a debate at my school about sentence fragments. open court teaches students to stay away from using them (even my grammar check politely underlines my fragments with a green squiggly line!), yet professional authors use them all the time. who's the real authority? according to one of our trainers, isoke, the essential question is, "good technicians or good craftsmen, which is our goal?"
the answer "good craftsmen" seems obvious, but that's not to discount the importance of knowing the rules and technicalities of the english language--we must explicitly teach them--but isoke says we must not be afraid to allow "playfulness with our language system." fragments (and maybe invented--intentional or otherwise--spellings) are "playful," and they're found everywhere in good writing. according to isoke, "it is the why they chose to [use fragments] that we must teach our students." in other words, if we show our students mentor texts that include sentence fragments, we can gird them with a rationale for using them. how empowering is that?
this excerpt from sandra cisneros' "geraldo no last name" seems germane:
she met him at a dance. pretty too, and young. said he worked in a restaurant, but she can't remember which one. that's all. green pants and saturday shirt. geraldo. that's what he told her.
i count four "fragments" by oc standards, buy isoke would argue--and i would agree--that cisneros "knows more about our language system--not less." she is actually "using more and making more of the rules...--not less."
we use the columbia writing program at my school, so it was nice to see that they were involved in the study. what sparked my interest was the fact that the researchers chose handwriting and spelling as areas of focus to help struggling writers. one of the strengths of the columbia program is that students choose self-selected topics to write about, therefore creating "authentic" published pieces. while this is a more genuine approach, it tends to relegate conventions, such as spelling and handwriting to a secondary or tertiary level of importance. students are encouraged to learn from mentor texts and mentor authors--the real experts--but these authors sometimes use conventions in a somewhat unconventional way.
a while back we had a debate at my school about sentence fragments. open court teaches students to stay away from using them (even my grammar check politely underlines my fragments with a green squiggly line!), yet professional authors use them all the time. who's the real authority? according to one of our trainers, isoke, the essential question is, "good technicians or good craftsmen, which is our goal?"
the answer "good craftsmen" seems obvious, but that's not to discount the importance of knowing the rules and technicalities of the english language--we must explicitly teach them--but isoke says we must not be afraid to allow "playfulness with our language system." fragments (and maybe invented--intentional or otherwise--spellings) are "playful," and they're found everywhere in good writing. according to isoke, "it is the why they chose to [use fragments] that we must teach our students." in other words, if we show our students mentor texts that include sentence fragments, we can gird them with a rationale for using them. how empowering is that?
this excerpt from sandra cisneros' "geraldo no last name" seems germane:
she met him at a dance. pretty too, and young. said he worked in a restaurant, but she can't remember which one. that's all. green pants and saturday shirt. geraldo. that's what he told her.
i count four "fragments" by oc standards, buy isoke would argue--and i would agree--that cisneros "knows more about our language system--not less." she is actually "using more and making more of the rules...--not less."
Saturday, March 03, 2007
read across america
gotta love the good doctor...seuss that is. yesterday was "read across america" at our school, and all the fifth grade classes sang the RAA theme song (written by glen weiss). last year i made a super-quick recording on my little digital box (d12) that records/burns cd's... it was quick and dirty, and not the greatest sound-quality, but it worked. i hate the tone of my singing voice, so instead of recording the words onto the cd, i decided to just record the melody line with my guitar; i figured people could sing along to that... i figured wrong. three of my colleagues told me they couldn't figure out what to sing. here i thought i was making it easy on them (or on their ears at least!), when i unintentionally made it more difficult. it seemed like a win-win situation: they wouldn't have to hear how horrible my voice actually is--no american idol aspirations here!--and they would still get to hear the melody to the song.
oh well. the fifth graders did alright, especially considering that some of them had only heard the song the day before when we practiced together with all the classes in the multi-purpose room. they sounded SO GREAT in there that day!! they kinda seemed to freeze up when it came to the actual performance though...
oh well. the fifth graders did alright, especially considering that some of them had only heard the song the day before when we practiced together with all the classes in the multi-purpose room. they sounded SO GREAT in there that day!! they kinda seemed to freeze up when it came to the actual performance though...
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