Emails

This morning I got an email from my favorite and dearest former student teacher. She wanted to inform me that at the end of this school year she and her husband will be moving to Texas. She is worried about finding a new job but is putting it all in God's hand. I know the feeling but she has always landed on her feet even though she is leaving the school she attended as a child and has been teaching at for about 15 of the past 17 years. She will be OK,I know she will.

Now on to the next thing I don't want to talk about - politics. I REALLY HATE Trump but on the flip side I like what he is talking about. His ideas WON'T work but his ideas generally make sense. I like the ideas but not the man. He reminds me of Hitler in the fact he is just leading people around and they don't even know why. I will vote for someone like Cruz over Trump if I have the chance. If not, I won't vote for the fist time since I voted for LBJ after Kennedy. That's more than10 elections in a row.

I have also been doing "feedback" for all my TPT purchases that I have not done over the past two years.

Successful Teaching

As a writer, journalist, history teacher, artist, tech guru, I know that "showing and letting students DO" is more powerful than "telling". My job is to create a word image in the student's mind. Visualization of the words helps readers to comprehend, my Ppt's generally are loaded it lots of images but I can't leave it to the student alone. I need to help them out by painting word pictures in their minds.

 

The same goes for teaching. Lecturing has minimal sticking power that is way I HATE LECTURING. Most students will tune out for a few moments if ever tuning in at all, or simply miss half or more of what you say. Students need to hear and see it and use it. The key to successful teaching is through modeling and demonstrating.

 

If you want students to be able to do something, then you must show them how. You can't simply say it and expect results. You must model or demonstrate it. The best way to show students how to do something is to model the process in front of them. Use metacognitive strategies by "thinking out loud", so that they can hear how you think through the process. Take students through the process step by step by modeling, demonstrating, showing your thinking, and by showing examples and non examples. Let them work in teams if need be.

 

Once you've shown them how to do something, guide them through practice, and remodel when necessary. 

3 Keys to Success

1. Model the process in front of students.
2. Walk students through the process.
3. Observe students in DOING the process.

                     (Repeat as necessary). 

Someone wants my help

Someone wants my help and I am more than happy to give it to her. She is a mom who just found my website on line and email me to help her teach her homeschooled kids about Louisiana. I could do that.

Yes, No, maybe, well see...

I had a question asked of me late yesterday as a former coach, no a committee member approached me about having my name added to their "Wall of Honor" list for this year. He said the committee has been wanting me for years since I retired from coaching but I have always turned them down. Now I am being asked again.

This time they are stressing that if I do want to come back and coach I can and it will not hurt my chances. They want me on the wall because I have coached for so long - 33 years, plus umpired. I still am 'thinking' about it.

The ceremony is this March and they need an answer soon.

Yes, No, maybe, well see...

I have coached boys and girls basketball plus my REAL LOVE - girls softball plus umpiring girls high school softball, rec ball, and adult softball for years and years.

Yes, No, maybe, well see... I really, really, just don't know.

My heart says maybe, my brain says maybe, I just need to sleep on it for a while...

Defiantly not new

Defiantly not new to teaching but new to Facebook (sort of), new to Twitter (sort of), new to blogging (kind of), new to Pinterest, new to webpages (not even close), new to TeacherPayTeachers (if you call 5 years new), and....

I still consider myself a newbie. I still get excited every time an email comes through asking for my help on this project or that project.

Go see all the FREEBIES I have to offer in my TPT store.

Saturday during Lent

I slept really well last night. Me and my cat slept til 7:30 and it felt really good to get a full night of sleep. I wonder if it had anything to do with our dinner last night? I doubt it.

We had supper - church fish Fry - that we took to his house. Sounded like a good idea at first but it turned out to be a lousy idea in the end. We headed to church at 5 to pick up the dinners, then head off to his house but traffic was major backed up along the interstate due to a wreak of both the I-10 and I-210 bridges. And with plant traffic just letting out, east bound was wicked. It took up over 30 minutes just to get to the 10/210 split.

The dinners were getting cold. My father-in-law was getting a bit upset. He's very old. very sit in his ways, and he eats his supper a 5-5:30 PM on the dot. The traffic finally broke at the bottom of the bridge and we raced from there to his house, Got there in about 5 minutes after a 35+ minute delay.

Our son and our granddaughter met us there and had supper with us. My GD made my FIL happy so that was a good thing. 

We came back home afterwards and I went to bed about 10 and slept pretty solid from there. Now it's Saturday and I have no clue what plans are for today.

Blowing my mind

Today I have been working on a 'new to me' website covering the game of Pong - my VERY FIRST TV game - long before any other game...

I have been HOOKED all day.