A MOMENT PLUGGED BACK IN.....

I decided to unplug a little bit so I set up posts of my tangle alphabet to post last week and next.

I only have 4 weeks left of school and then I have about a 7 week break. In the next four weeks we have the final DBA (District Benchmark Assessment), Play Day, The Janice Saavedra Fun Run (So named for the woman who started it, 23 years ago, and passed away last summer of cancer.), the dedication of the gym in Janice's name, report cards to finish, the 5th grade party and finally the graduation.

I am really looking forward to the summer. It usually takes me a couple weeks to unwind and to find a new rhythm with Sam. So, I want to plan ahead. In the mornings we can go for a walk, run errands and play at home and I'm sure we'll be spending a lot of afternoons at the pool. I also need to plan for next school year, clean my refrigerator, clean the garage, finish the FINANCIAL PEACE UNIVERSITY CLASS I am currently taking, clean the carpets and do some decluttering.

We are saving family activities like: the zoo, aquarium, a day in Santa Fe and a train ride for Richard's Wednesdays off.

We will probably get Sam's eye surgery out of the way too.

This past week we had a meeting with Child Find to determine if they will be picking him up when he ages out of Abrazos. They need to do an update on the needs assessment since the last one they did was almost a year ago. Then they will decide how much intervention he needs. I am hoping he gets to start pre-school (5 days a week, 2 hours a day) in August.

So, what does May look like for you?

TANGLE THE ALPHABET....I and J

TANGLE THE ALPHABET....G and H

TANGLE THE ALPHABET....E and F

TANGLE THE ALPHABET....C and D

BLOWING BUBBLES

See what my Aunt Leslie taught me to do.

Aren't you proud!?

I know how to blow bubbles in my milk.

Finally, a half gallon of milk later....It looked like spilt milk, but I think it looks like... the continent of Asia.

TANGLE THE ALPHABET....A and B

TIME CARD April 17-23

I am keeping track of how many hours I work during this school year. My contract only pays me to work 183 days a year, from 7:30-2:30 (that is 1189.5 hours in total). We are not told we have to work extra hours, but there is no way I could plan, correct papers, make copies, make phone calls, etc., just working to contract. Usually I arrive at school by 6:15 a.m. and leave around 3:15 p.m. Then when Samuel is in bed for the night, I do another couple hours of work. I also take stuff home on the weekends.

This week I worked 50 hours.

Total to date: 1548 hours hours. I have now worked 358.5 hours for free!

HAPPY EASTER!

HAPPY EASTER!

HE LIVES!

THE QUILT HOLES

As I faced my Maker at the last judgment, I knelt before the Lord along with all the other souls. Before each of us laid our lives like the squares of a quilt in many piles; an angel sat before each of us sewing our quilt squares together into a tapestry that was our life.

But as my angel took each piece of cloth off the pile, I noticed how ragged and empty each of my squares was. They were filled with giant holes. Each square was labeled with a part of my life that had been difficult, the challenges and temptations I was faced with in every day life. I saw hardships that I endured, which were the largest holes of all.

I glanced around me. Nobody else had such squares. Other than a tiny hole here and there, the other tapestries were filled with rich color and the bright hues of worldly fortune. I gazed upon my own life and was disheartened.

My angel was sewing the ragged pieces of cloth together, threadbare and empty, like binding air.

Finally the time came when each life was to be displayed, held up to the light, the scrutiny of truth. The others rose, each in turn, holding up their tapestries.. So filled their lives had been. My angel looked upon me and nodded for me to rise.

My gaze dropped to the ground in shame. I hadn't had all the earthly fortunes. I had love in my life and laughter. But there had also been trials of illness and wealth, and false accusations that took from me my world, as I knew it. I had to start over many times. I often struggled with the temptation to quit, only to somehow muster the strength to pick up and begin again. I spent many nights on my knees in prayer, asking for help and guidance in my life. I had often been held up to ridicule, which I endured painfully, each time offering it up to the Father in hopes that I would not melt within my skin beneath the judgmental gaze of those who unfairly judged me.

And now, I had to face the truth: My life was what it was, and I had to accept it for what it was.

I rose and slowly lifted the combined squares of my life to the light. An awe-filled gasp filled the air. I gazed around at the others who stared at me with wide eyes.

Then, I looked upon the tapestry before me. Light flooded the many holes, creating an image: the face of Christ. Then our Lord stood before me, with warmth and love in His eyes. He said, 'Every time you gave over your life to Me, it became My life, My hardships, and My struggles.

'Each point of light in your life is when you stepped aside and let Me shine through, until there was more of Me than there was of you.'

May all our quilts be threadbare and worn, allowing Christ to shine through!

God determines who walks into your life...it's up to you to decide who you let walk away, who you let stay and who you refuse to let go.

ARE YOU REALLY GOING TO EAT THAT?

Have you seen Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution show? I've only watched it a few times, but I think every parent, every teacher.....ok EVERYONE, should sign his petition. When was the last time you saw or TASTED a school cafeteria lunch?

THEY ARE DISGUSTING!

1. I wouldn't give my dog the stuff my students have to eat.
2. It's even worse then going to a fast food place every day.....that stuff may not be good for you, but at least it's edible and has some flavor.
3. No way does this stuff follow the food pyramid.
4. They give the kindergardeners' the same amount they give the 5th graders and the teachers (if you are desperate enough to buy a tray....).
5. They should just call the room they prepare the food in, a reheating station, because they would actually have to cook something, once in awhile, to be called a kitchen.

In our school we serve both breakfast and lunch.

The breakfast usually consists of: toast, milk or juice (A lot of times the milk and juice are still frozen when they serve it. Have you ever tried to drink a frozen milk?), cereal, and another bread product, like: frozen waffles, frozen pancakes, frozen sticky buns or a muffin. I don't think I have ever seen a fruit (besides the juice) even offered for breakfast.

Lunch choices include: main dish...(cardboard) cheese pizza, corn dogs, frito pie, grilled cheese sandwiches (sounds ok....but they are usually cold and hard)....a fruit (from a can)/vegetable....fruit cocktail, salad (a bunch of lettuce), or maybe an apple....then the something else category....popsicle, french fries, bun, or tator tots.

Now don't go crazy and expect all these amazing choices every day. They are drawn out over 5 days and then repeated...week after week....after week after week.....after week.

WHAT A BRAVE LADY!

I found Natalie Munroe's blog. She is the teacher that was suspended because of her blog. If you are a teacher and want to show your support, go on over and tell her you are following her now. She just had a new baby and needs all the support we can give her.

I checked out our policy on Social Networking in our employee handbook and this is what it says:

“Social networking” includes all types of postings on the Internet, including, but not limited to, social networking sites, (such as Facebook, MySpace or LinkedIn); blogs and other on-line journals and diaries; bulletin boards and chat rooms; microblogging, such as Twitter; and the posting of video on YouTube and similar media. Employees need to be mindful of their internet website postings even if done off duty and off District property. Do not engage in social networking during the duty day. Do not disclose personal or contact information, or post photographs of employees without their permission. Never post a photograph and/or information about an APS student. Employees who violate this Policy may be subject to the APS Progressive Discipline Process."

It is ridiculous what she has had to go through and that she even had to take the other blog down. I am now a follower and I am anxious to find out what the final outcome of her case will be.

I HAVE NO IDEA WHAT I'M DOING....

Society places a lot of pressure on Mom's...about how you are "supposed" to raise your children. I am very jealous of stay at home moms, but I know it's not all roses for them either.

I have read and still read tons of child development and self help books, but I've also realized that the rules don't work for ALL kids. I wish there was a rule book that could give me all the "right" ways to do things (with guarantees), but since there isn't, I'm writing my book one day at a time. Advice from, and observation of, trusted friends and family has been more beneficial then anything. I have no idea what I am doing, but all that matters is my son loves me. Here are some things that society may have an opinion about, but I did it my way, none-the-less:

* I had every intention of making my own baby food and I even bought the necessary equipment to do just that (months later sold on Craig's List), but then I realized, what with me working full time, that wanted to spend my weekends going to the duck pond, playing at the park, reading "I Love You, Stinky Face" and visiting family, I decided, why try to reinvent the wheel. I love you Gerber.

* I do not bathe my son every day and I even forget to brush his teeth sometimes.

* My son was on a feeding and sleep schedule within the first 2 months of life. 

* We do not have school every day, but the concepts that Sam understands are amazing.

* I use M&M's to bribe my son, so he'll let me clip his toenails.

* I do not spend every waking moment entertaining him.

* Was never an "oral" kid (except for food he NEVER puts anything in his mouth) and is allowed to play with marbles.

* PBS is not the only channel we watch.

* I let Sam CRY IT OUT at 4 months and within a week he was going down with ease and now sleeps through the night with no problems.

* He doesn't attend a baby gym or play groups every week.

* My son doesn't go to a day care and is still not in preschool.

* I do not use cloth diapers.

* He is 28 months old and is not potty-trained.

* He still has his pacifier.

* I do not believe in co-sleeping.

* I never breast fed.

* I don't stress over food. I offer him healthy choices and our goal is a balanced weekly diet. 

* My son was circumcised and has had all his vaccines since birth.

* Even if Sam doesn't want to nap, every afternoon we have "rest time" because, honestly, I need a break. He is given books and he can sleep or read in his crib.

And yet, with all this, Sam is still happy, healthy and amazes me by what he is learning. He loves animals, music, books, cars, flirting with women, being tickled and playing in water. He hates to have his diaper changed, wearing coats, having his face wiped and vegetables. He is a great traveler, knows how to dust, holds Na-Na's hand when he walks her to the car and takes off his shoes when he enters the house. He has the sweetest smile, the most ear-splitting scream and a giggle that melts my heart. It is a blessing to be his Mommy!

Are you following a rule book or are you writing your own?

MY PERFECT WORLD

The other day I read Ms. Bluebird's blog and had a wonderful conversation with my Dad, where he said he doesn't know how I do it, when my hands are tied and parents aren't taking any responsibility.

I wanted to break down a huge topic into it's simplest parts...the education system is in the toilet and teachers are being blamed for it all.

Let's look at just one aspect.... the latest buzzword.... "differentiate." 

Wikipedia says, "Differentiated instruction involves providing students with different avenues to acquiring content; to processing, constructing, or making sense of ideas; and to developing teaching materials so that all students within a classroom can learn effectively, regardless of differences in ability. Differentiated instruction is the process of ensuring that what a student learns, how he/she learns it, and how the student demonstrates what he/she has learned is a match for that student’s readiness level, interests, and preferred mode of learning."

Does anyone HONESTLY believe that in a 6 and 1/2 hour day, that even SUPERMAN could do this? Maybe, if I had less students, more time, no interruptions, involved parents, children who didn't come to school tired and undernourished and complete training on the new programs, not to mention enough books and paper......and I could go on and on.....

I want to go back to a much simpler time...

In my perfect world parents feed their children, read them books before they tuck them in to bed, give them consequences for poor choices, play catch and teach them to say, "Please" and "Thank You." In my classroom I would have all the basic colors of construction paper, everyone would have a copy of the math text book, we would make cards for Mother's Day, projects with graphs about how mold grows, hold a mock trial, make a 3-D model of the solar system and the Nile River, play chess, memorize the preamble to the constitution, sing songs, write to pen pals in another country, solve algebra equations and sudoku puzzles (because mom and dad had us memorize our multiplication facts), make a fraction pizza, make paper from scratch, grow a flower, do author and culture studies, build a bird house, visit the Natural History Museum, the zoo, a farm and the Nature Center (in the same year), put on a play, build a battery powered car, and have career day.

IT'S FUN TO DREAM SOMETIMES!

AMAZING DOT TO DOT BOOKS

These are the best DOT-TO-DOT books I have ever found. They are very challenging and the pictures are amazing. The numbers go into the hundreds and the path you follow is not obvious. The pictures do not materialize until you are well into the picture.

There are a coupe different versions too...where you have to follow arrows or connect certain coordinates.

Here is an example of one of the pictures. They run around $9.00 per book.

TIME CARD April 10-16

I am keeping track of how many hours I work during this school year. My contract only pays me to work 183 days a year, from 7:30-2:30 (that is 1189.5 hours in total). We are not told we have to work extra hours, but there is no way I could plan, correct papers, make copies, make phone calls, etc., just working to contract. Usually I arrive at school by 6:15 a.m. and leave around 3:15 p.m. Then when Samuel is in bed for the night, I do at least another couple hours of work. I also take stuff home on the weekends.

This week I worked 47 hours.

Total to date: 1498 hours hours. I have now worked 308.5 hours for free!

SUNDAY INSPIRATION

SIX WORD SATURDAY #14

On Saturdays Cate, at SHOW MY FACE, asks us to describe our life in a six word phrase.



Here are my six words:

ONLY SIX MORE WEEKS OF SCHOOL!

WHAT CAN OR SHOULD BE DONE?

Yesterday, I wrote that I am reading Diane Ravitch's book entitled, THE DEATH AND LIFE OF THE GREAT AMERICAN SCHOOL SYSTEM.

My sister-in-law, Connie, left a comment that said, "One thing that troubles me about the current system is that it seems there is not flexibility to get rid of a teacher who is not performing, especially an older one. What can or should be done about this?"

I TOTALLY AGREE WITH HER! It is very frustrating to see teachers who do not belong in education allowed to stay because the system makes it is so DIFFICULT to get them out.

Our employee handbook says, "Managers may use a number of tools to motivate, correct, and/or discipline employees, including, but not limited to warnings, reprimands, suspension with or without pay, and discharge, as determined to be appropriate in each individual circumstance. Progressive discipline may be used to correct employee behavioral or performance problems. However, there may be situations where the severity or seriousness of the offense justifies the omission of one or more of the steps in this process. Likewise, there may be situations where a disciplinary step is repeated. APS may discharge you from your employment for poor performance, misconduct, excessive absences,tardiness, discrimination or other violations of APS policies. If your employment is at-will, you or APS may terminate the employment relationship at any time and for any or no reason."

Under STANDARDS OF CONDUCT there are 31 Unacceptable Activities that include, but are not limited to, everything from: violations of directives and security, intoxication, harassment, disseminating personal student information and leaving work early or coming in late.

Two that speak speak specifically to the work we do are: Unsatisfactory or careless work, failure to meet work productivity or work quality standards. Insubordination or refusing to obey instructions properly issued by your supervisor pertaining to your work; refusal to help out on a special assignment.

It is not clear from the handbook what the Progressive Discipline Process is exactly, but I know the administrator has to show that they have taken a number of steps to work with the teacher, including, warnings, reprimands and putting them on an improvement plan for a set period of time before the district will look at getting rid of them.

I have first hand knowledge of teachers who are not doing their jobs. I know of teachers that show movies, every day. I know of teachers that stop teaching at 11:00 and then give busy work and free time the rest of the day, every day.  I know of teachers who's educational assistant does the teaching, every day. I know of teachers who throw books, arrive late, fail to leave sub plans and don't attend mandatory meetings and no action is ever taken against them.

I do not have all the answers....In my post on CHANGING EDUCATION, I did say the following...."instead of basing a "good" teacher on how well their kids choose to perform on a standardized test (what if the kid is sick, death in the family...any number of other reasons for not performing well)...how about starting with something easy like making it easier to get rid of those teachers who: spend all day outside playing, watching movies every day, playing/shopping on the computer while their kids read/write and create a hostile working environment. I bet 20% of BAD teachers could be eliminated using parameters such as these. Second, 30% could be eliminated by having the evaluation process changed. I think, having the principal "pop" in randomly, 5-6 times throughout the year (or even randomly taping my lessons) would give a much better, overall, picture of my abilities, then getting stressed out about one lesson, on one particular day. Another 20%, who are ready to retire, could have their contracts bought out or allow them to use the rest of their sick leave and end the year early. I have 4 1/2 months of sick leave accrued and when I retire I will lose whatever I don't use. 10% are probably abusive in some way and just haven't been caught yet. Then the last 20% are not being mentored well enough and have no idea how to improve. I lay the blame for this on the administration and the superintendent."

I do think they need to improve the process so that it is very specific and shorten the time lines for improvement, but the rest of us, who are doing our jobs, should not be treated as children or micromanaged because of it.

Social Networking Policy

I found Natalie Munroe's blog. And in reference to her being suspended I checked out our employee handbook. On the issue of Social Networking it says....

“Social networking” includes all types of postings on the Internet, including, but not limited to, social networking sites, (such as Facebook, MySpace or LinkedIn); blogs and other on-line journals and diaries; bulletin boards and chat rooms; microblogging, such as Twitter; and the posting of video on YouTube and similar media. Employees need to be mindful of their internet website postings even if done off duty and off District property. Do not engage in social networking during the duty day. Do not disclose personal or contact information, or post photographs of employees without their permission. Never post a photograph and/or information about an APS student. Employees who violate this Policy may be subject to the APS Progressive Discipline Process."