A Writer's Life

Reflections

2011-12-03T17:51:00.000-08:00

Final Reflection: What are your "key learnings" from this course and how will you apply them in your work? What could we do to improve the course going forward?

I have mostly learned to be a little tiny bit less afraid of technology. I often (most of the time, actually) feel inept with technology, but I am willing to try, and I am learning and improving all the time. So, now I've created my first podcast, had a face to face conversation via my computer and used Excel. I have often used Word and Powerpoint, but rarely ever included any bells and whistles in the Powerpoint, so that was fairly revolutionary for me, too. I feel blessed to have been in this class because I learned so much.

And of course I will use this knowledge to benefit my students. I have already established Edmodo sites for my classes and we are using them to keep everyone up to date and on track. I have posted many handouts so that students can download the second, third or fourth copy after losing the first (and I don't have to make more!) As I learn more, I know that our website will be more and more useful for everyone.

Suggestions for making the class better....I have greatly enjoyed it as is--a good mix of projects, discussion, reflections, and the lovely times we were all able to be together in the same place. The only thing I can think of to add would perhaps be for us to Skype each other after we had our "conversation" with the professor. I also think that maybe trying out the flip cameras in some way would be fun. Who knows, maybe we could create a "movie" in which each of us creates a five minute portion of the whole. Planning it an putting it together could be a blast.

Technology for Professional Development

2011-11-12T21:17:00.000-08:00

Professional Development/Networking: What are the latest trends and opportunities for using educational technology to improve professional development and networking in education? How can you use Ed Tech to improve your professional development and networking?

How is educational technology improving professional development and networking? One thing that I keep seeing happen is webcasts. Wonderful speakers, experts in various areas of education, become available to all of us as they broadcast over the internet. Often the webcasts are interactive, so that participants can converse with the speaker and among each other, thus amplifying the learning. Through this, I can learn from people that I may never have the opportunity to see in person.

Technology also brings me electronic samples of books that I am interested in using in my course. I can read and listen to the ancilliary materials before I commit myself to a purchase.

Skype is another valuable tool for face-to-face teaching, learning, and networking. I can connect with teachers all over the world, sharing ideas and seeing what they are doing in their classrooms.

Assistive Technology--Helping My Kids

2011-10-29T19:39:00.000-07:00

Assistive Technology: What are the major issues and opportunities in your area for improving access to assistive technology?

Well, of course, as in everything in education, one of the major issues is money. Does the budget even permit us to purchase the technologies that would help our students? Still, there does seem to be a great deal of free technology available and I intend to explore it all. (well, maybe not all...)

Until this year, when half the students in one of my classes are identified as special ed, I have probably only taught 10 sped students in 10 years. My career has been mostly directed toward GT students and I have worked extensively with them. (They may need assistive technology to meet their needs as well, but that is not the main topic of this post). Therefore, I have not really given much thought to the ways that technology might help students who have learning difficulties and disabilities. However, after reading the chapters on using technology in English Language Arts and technology in special education, I have several ideas for specific students and some thoughts on what might help everyone.

I have a few students who struggle greatly in writing. Their oral communication skills are good, but they cannot seem to write down much of anything. This is a tremendous problem in an English class. To help them, I would like to find dictation software that would allow them to talk into a microphone and then it would "translate" their spoken words into written sentences and paragraphs.

I also have many students who speak English as a second language. More use of visuals would be good for them, but sometimes I struggle to find the time to download appropriate images and put them into a useful presentation. I need to find more ways to incorporate visuals, but they need to be ways that don't take immense amounts of time.

I am working on a class website, and I know that this technology will benefit all of my students. In fact, to help those who struggle with writing, we may do some podcast assignments, so that they can demonstrate their knowledge in a non-written form. We will also post visual presentations, such as powerpoint or Animoto creations.

Our website will also include blogs. All of my students will benefit from this, but especially the AP Language students who are studying rhetoric and argumentation. I am going to have them respond weekly to a political column (preferably one that creates controversy) and analyze the rhetorical strategies used by the author.

My reluctant writers might also benefit from electronic penpals--with a regular assignment to write, and someone interesting to correspond with, they might become more enthusiastic writers.

In addition to everything else, I want to encourage our ELA department to establish a creative writing journal. It would have to be online at a free hosting location (budget constraints again), but I would love for us to have a place to publish the best original writing (and perhaps art and music) created by students in our school. Once established, this could become something of pride and interest for years into the future.

The more I learn about technology and all that it has to offer my students, the more enthusiastic I am about incorporating it into my classroom as a way to truly benefit my students.

Research and Trends: Using Technology in the Classroom

2011-10-01T19:45:00.000-07:00

An article in the Journal of Adolescent and Adult Literacy has made me re-evaluate how I use technology in the classroom. In this study, a teacher in an urban, mostly minority, mostly low-socio-economic school (very much like mine), moved her English instruction from a teacher-led, book-based curriculum, to a constructivist, project-based, digital learning environment. Students continued to learn and master the curricular requirements for English Language Arts, but in a whole new way.

Groups of students worked together throughout a semester to create a documentary film about a subject of their own choice. They did all of the background research, all of the script writing, all of the acting, directing, camera-work, behind-the-scenes production work--everything that goes into making a real film. And, because it was a creation of their own choosing, they were totally invested and engaged in the work.

At the end of the semester, the students held a film festival, to which they invited their parents, family and friends, as well as the entire faculty. Bringing in a real audience gave the students an authentic experience and provided an opportunity to share their work with a much wider audience. Plus, knowing that the films would be seen by a large and diverse group played an important role in their mindsets while making the films.

I am very interested in adapting at least some of this idea for use in my AP English Language and Composition class. This course focuses on argumentation and the use of rhetoric in argument and persuasive writing. I plan to have my students create their own film as the culminating activity during the second semester of the course. It will not be a 20 minute, full-fledged documentary like those in this article, but rather a 5 to 10 minute film that uses satire to address a real problem. Students will work in groups, select their topic, create their films, and present them in a film festival similar to the one referenced in the article.

Dockter, J., Haug, D., & Lewis, C. (2010). Redefining Rigor: Critical Engagement, Digital Media, and the New English/Language Arts. Journal of Adolescent & Adult Literacy, 53(5), 418-420. Retrieved from EBSCOhost.

Educational Technology

2011-09-24T08:01:00.000-07:00

Ed Tech Needs: What are the greatest needs/issues or opportunities (in terms of improving student and/or teacher performance) regarding educational technology for your grade level (i.e., elementary, middle, high school or university) and why?

In English/Language Arts we need to use technology in both directed and constructed ways. I teach on-level seniors, many (probably most) of whom learned English as their second language. They struggle mightily with vocabulary. In English 4 we study British literature, beginning with Beowulf and working our way through hundreds of years and hundreds (if not thousands) of difficult and unfamiliar words. To teach vocabulary, I do a great deal of direct instruction in class, but I have also found a fun (and competitive) way to have them apply their growing knowledge to new words. From time to time, we all play with vocabulary on the Free Rice website. They compete with me to see how close they can get to my performance on the program. They all get to work together against me and we have a lot of fun. (Free Rice also donates rice to feed the poor--a certain amount for every correct answer. We feel good about doing philanthropic work while learning). Free Rice also has a grammar element, which we use as well.

These same programs are equally effective with my AP English students. Although they are better prepared for reading, in their course we read at an even higher level, with more difficult words. They, too, struggle, and we work continually on improving their vocabulary. Technology is a great tool to use in areas such as these where students need repeated, specific, directed practice.

Other tremendous opportunities in ELA involve creating visual presentations. These are more constructivist applications of the technology, where students play a large role in creating their own knowledge. We use powerpoint, animoto, Prezi, all different ways of transmitting information which encourage student creativity while learning and teaching others. This year I also want to work in a student-created film project. We watch films to evaluate their depictions of some works that we read, but I want students to create their own learning through a story of their own devising and a film that they produce from start to finish. In the past, my AP students have worked in groups to create a satiric film. This is the culminating activity in our unit on satire and we have read several satirical essays, including "A Modest Proposal," prior to working on the film. I will do that again this year, but I am also pondering what kind of film project my on-level seniors may create.

The area I would like to explore for much more use is that of smart phones. Many students have them and I know that we could use them in creative (and probably as yet unknown to me) ways to enhance learning. I want to study this area and find out what programs are available to exploit this as-yet almost untapped resource.

Music in My Heart

2007-08-09T07:57:00.000-07:00

"I think I'll take Garrett's bike out for a ride," Mark called as he left the house. He revved up the motorcycle engine and headed toward Green Oaks. But there, not a mile from home, everything changed. A car screamed through a red light, crashing into Mark and the motorcycle, throwing him more than 20 feet to land on the unforgiving concrete. And Mark walks no more.

Now, three months later, Mark is finally home from the hospital, the house has been renovated to accommodate his wheelchair, and the family struggles to adjust to a new life. As friends and family have rallied around, Mark has brought music into all our lives.

One Sunday morning I talked with my husband about how we could help. Friends were selling rubber-band bracelets embossed with "Make Your Mark" to help fund the house renovations. We had $200 in cash left over from our family vacation, so we decided to spend it on five bracelets (actual cost $10). We felt the Lord's blessing upon that decision. When Maria, Mark's wife, received the money, she cried...she had been praying for help, and it came.

When Michael, my husband, learned that Mark would still have some use of his arms and hands, he decided to order a very fine harmonica for our friend. Mark has played harmonica for years and a really nice instrument might lift his spirits. Finally, after weeks of waiting, the harmonica arrived. We took it to Mark on Saturday. He immediately began playing "We Thank Thee O God for a Prophet," his eyes filled with tears. "It's the best present I've received," he said.

Serving others brings joy and music to the soul. Words are inadequate to express my feelings about our friend, but he has brought music to our hearts and I hope we have created a beautiful melody for him as well.

Pay Attention-Teacher Tube

2007-08-08T12:46:00.000-07:00

Response to My Immortal

2007-08-06T11:04:00.000-07:00

Crying high school girls crowd my mind when I see these lyrics. So much pain, so much drama. I've tried to tell them that there's not a single boy in the entire school worth so many tears, but they don't hear me. Sadly enough, the pain is excruciating, and sometimes the reasons behind it are as well. Day after day, one of our pregnant 9th graders turned corners only to see her former boyfriend (and the father of her child) standing under the stairs kissing another girl. How much pain can one 14-year-old bear? But, I ask myself, why did she place herself in this situation in the first place? When I was in high school (I know, back in the day when we walked through the snow to school uphill both ways) most girls' romantic activities never went past kissing. I try to tell the kids, "If you save sex for later, you'll avoid endless heartache now," but they don't hear me. I've also mentioned (several times) that sex is not a recreational sport, but they don't hear me. I wonder if anyone else is preaching this gospel. Do their parents encourage them to wait? Do their church leaders? (do they have a church?) Does anyone see them? Does anyone care?

I feel like I am beating my head against the wall when I offer this kind of advice, but I keep trying. Maybe I can reach someone.

Final Paper: Specific Strategies for Classroom Teachers to Implement with Underachieving Gifted Students

2007-08-05T19:28:00.000-07:00

Specific Strategies for Classroom Teachers to Implement with
Underachieving Gifted Students

ABSTRACT
Studies show that, for a variety of reasons, gifted students do not achieve in school at the levels they should, based on test data regarding their intelligence and abilities. I began this inquiry with Dixie, an exceptionally gifted student who was frequently bored in class, but I soon determined to look more broadly at all students who are both gifted and at risk. My goal was to find specific strategies that I could use in my classroom to help all of my students achieve their potential. Thus, this review of the literature examines the definition of underachievement in gifted students as well as its causes. The research outlines specific, effective steps that may be taken by a classroom teacher to ameliorate the problem.

Who are the “Underachieving” Gifted?
Dixie sits in the back corner of the room, again. She’s not causing trouble, but she is certainly not working on the assignment. While everyone else slaves over the rhetorical analysis timed writing, Dixie is deep in the calculus book. Her timed writing—the kind of thing that other students spend 40 minutes sweating blood over—was done 10 minutes early. And it’s good—she understands the complex characters and can fully explain their motivations, which is more than most of her classmates can manage. So far this year I have not found a single activity that challenges this child.
Because Dixie is not working at her level and is not challenged, she is bored. She is also underachieving, and that fact puts her at risk.
Colangelo and Sunde (1996) define underachievement as a discrepancy between expected and actual performance. Such a discrepancy exists for Dixie, as it does for many students. They also note that 50 percent of gifted boys and 25 percent of gifted girls underachieve.
Research by Kanvsky and Keighley (2003) shows that boredom frequently leads to nonproduction in the classroom, a situation often followed by dropping out. They cite a lack of challenge as the most frequent cause of boredom.
Other students underachieve due to physical, emotional, or family difficulties. Colbert, Hebert, and Reis (2005) name several risk factors at work in underachievement, including older siblings who dropped out or used drugs, inappropriate early curricular activities, absence of challenge, negative interaction with teachers, family dysfunction, and minimal parental academic guidance and support.
Researchers also cite affiliation/achievement conflicts as reasons for underachievement.
Maureen Neihart (2006) says that such conflicts, common during adolescence, particularly affect gifted females, gifted minority students, and gifted disadvantaged students, acting as an eroding influence on their aspirations and self confidence. She cites a longitudinal study of more than 25,000 students in which researchers found that academic disidentification is much more pronounced among African American males than any other group. She postulates that peer influence plays a major role in the academic disengagement of minority and disadvantaged students; they associate achievement with the betrayal of their cultural group. Therefore, they underachieve.
What Can Classroom Teachers Do?
Once educators begin to understand why students underachieve, we can implement proven strategies to help them fulfill their potential. A wide variety of strategies have been tried, but the most effective may be grouped into five main categories, labeled the 5 Cs: control, choice, challenge, complexity, and caring teachers (Kanevsky & Keighley, 2003).
Control involves providing opportunities for students to take responsibility and make decisions regarding their own learning (Kitano & Lewis, 2005). Such control includes building a sense of self efficacy and agency within students. Teachers can help students set short and long-term goals and see the long-term benefits of classroom activities. They can also teach study skills and time management so that students have a greater sense of self control. To allow more student control and self-efficacy, teachers can also recognize achievement by consistently attributing it to the development of the student, to work and improvement rather than just “brains” (Siegle & McCoach, 2005).
For gifted students to have Choice, they must be given opportunities to work with other
students of similar abilities, interests and motivations; take advanced classes; and compact or accelerate curriculum (Reis & Renzulli, 2004; Colbert, Hebert & Reis, 2005; Neihart, 2006). According to Kitano and Lewis (2005), teachers can enhance this process by designing classroom projects that increase opportunities for teamwork, and build a sense of community and respect. In research on gifted students of color, Ford, Milner and Moore (2003), also note that students should be offered choices and learning opportunities based on their own cultural learning styles. Their research shows that teachers who understand and integrate different cultural needs and styles into the curriculum enhance student achievement. Whiting (2006) also supports a multicultural academic environment, stating that minority students will become more motivated and engaged when they have choices and see themselves affirmed in the materials and content. Additionally, Reis and Renzulli (2004), also advise building educational experiences around student interests.
To incorporate Challenge, teachers must involve students in significant learning experiences; they must differentiate and extend what is taught to accommodate varied pacing and levels of development (Reis & Renzulli, 2004). Every child needs challenge. Without challenge, students become bored, a situation that kills learning. According to Kanevsky and Keighley (2003), learning is the opposite of boredom; learning is the antidote to boredom. In order to engage gifted students, teachers must provide challenging learning experiences.
Complexity naturally follows challenge. Teachers can provide meaningful projects, utilizing real world skills, that build knowledge on multiple levels. According to Kanevsky and Keighley (2003), complexity is defined as a function of unfamiliarity, and gifted students crave the unfamiliar. They add that complexity involves processes requiring high-level thinking and
questioning, students own emotions and interests, opportunities to develop sophisticated products using the resources of a professional and opportunities to work in professional contexts.
In the end however, the Caring shown by teachers plays the most significant role in preventing underachievement. Kanevsky and Keighley (2003) describe caring teachers as nonjudgmental, fair, flexible, and humorous and note that a caring teacher can enhance or overcome lack of any of the other 4 Cs. Caring teachers honor students’ need to talk, question, challenge, and dig deeper. They show concern for all students’ well-being and are enthusiastic about content and teaching. Reis and Renzulli (2004) add that such teachers model kindness, prohibit bullying, and maintain high academic and behavior standards.
The concern, and sometimes the intervention, of caring teachers can make life-altering changes in the life of a child. In comments from her 2002 study of school diagnostic records for more than 22,000 students, conducted over a seven year period, Elizabeth Nielsen encourages teachers to pay attention to and for their students, to look for discrepancies between performance on intellectual ability measures and performance on measures of academics. Such discrepancies are clues and should be examined carefully to see if children should be tested further. Gifted students need to be identified so that they can receive the help they need to avoid underachievement, and observant teachers can help. In another study, (Saunders, 2003) shows that when children are not identified as gifted and fail to receive the needed intellectual and social control, choice, challenge, and complexity, their gifted abilities may actually decrease, and opportunities for those children are lost forever. Caring teachers can make the difference.
And so, for Dixie and for all of my students, I will be that caring teacher.

References
Colangelo, Nicholas, & Peterson, Jean Sunde. (1996). Gifted achievers and underachievers: A comparison of patterns found in school files. Journal of Counseling and Development, 74, 399-407.

Colbert, Robert D., Hebert, Thomas P., & Reis, Sally M. (2005). Understanding resilience in diverse, talented students in an urban high school. Roeper Review, 27, 110-120.

Ford, Donna Y., Milner, H. Richard, & Moore, James L. (2003). Underachievement among gifted students of color: Implications for educators. Theory Into Practice, 44(2), 167-177.

Kanevsky, Lannie & Keighley, Tacey. (2003). To produce or not to produce? Understanding boredom and the honor in underachievement. Roeper Review, 26, 20-28.

Kitano, Margie K., & Lewis, Rena B. (2005). Reslience and coping: Implications for gifted children and youth at risk. Roeper Review, 27, 200-205.

Neihart, Maureen. (2006). Dimensions of underachievement, difficult contexts and perceptions of self. Roeper Review, 28, 196-202.

Nielsen, M. Elizabeth. (2002). Gifted students with learning disabilities: Recommendations for identification and programming. Exceptionality, 10(2), 93-111.

Reis, Sally M., & Renzulli, Joseph S. (2004). Current research on the social and emotional development of gifted and talented students: Good news and future possibilities. Psychology in the Schools, 41(1), 119-129.

Saunders, Carlyn. (2003). Case study: A gifted child at risk. The Journal of Secondary Gifted Education, 14, 100-105.

Siegle, Del & McCoach, Betsy. (2005). Making a difference: Motivating gifted students who are not achieving. Teaching Exceptional Children, 38, 22-27.

Whiting, Gilman W. (2006). From at risk to at promise: Developing scholar identities among black males. The Journal of Secondary Gifted Education, 17, 222-229.

Lit Review 14

2007-08-04T22:23:00.000-07:00

Title: From at risk to at promise: Developing scholar identities among black males
Author: Gilman W. Whiting
Purpose: black males and females are consistently underrepresented in gifted program. Black males are not succeeding in school settings. The Scholar Identity Model presented here offers suggestions for prevention and intervention strategies.

Methodology: review of the literature, suggestions for interventions

Conclusions/Implications:
Black males rank highest in numbers of dropouts, suspended, expelled, kicked out students
They score poorly on tests, have low GPAs, high rates of referrals and placement in special ed. They are underrepresented in gifted education.
How to solve these problems?
Mentors play a central role in the lives of gifted black students--Role Models
Organizations like: Boys and Girls Clubs, National Urban League, YMCA can play a big role
Black male adolescents also need exposure to college settings, including the Ivy League, historically black institutions, vocational internships...
They need counseling experiences where they can discuss concerns and needs, particularly multicultural counseling opportunities
Other suggestions: career days, motivational speakers, multicultural academic content--minority students will become more motivated and engaged when they see themselves affirmed in the materials and content
They need community outreach and service opportunities

Lit Review 13

2007-08-04T22:04:00.000-07:00

Title: Dimensions of Underachievement, difficult contexts and perceptions of self
Author: Maureen Neihart
Purpose: examine achievment affiliation conflicts in gifted adolescents; offer strategies/interventions/supports to manage and to cope
Methodology: Cites three studies: National Educational Longitudinal Study--25,000 students tracked from 8th to 12th grades
Survey of 193 women graduates from Smith College
Study of 27 boys from low socioeconomic backgrounds attending an elite prep school

Studies--Conclusions/Implications
Research shows that: Hispanic and poor students drop out of school much more frequently than others
The achievement gap persists between black and white students
75% of affluent students go to college/50% of disadvantaged students do
(only 30% at Grand Prairie High School do)
Achievement/affiliation conflicts are common during adolescence among gifted females, gifted minority students, gifted disadvantaged students and some gifted males--these conflicts act as an eroding influence on their aspirations and self-concept

Academic disidentification is much more pronounced among African American males than any other group
Researchers postulate that peer influence has much to do with this disengagement--associating achievement with betrayal of the cultural group
Pursuit of academic excellence has psychological costs for minority and disadvantaged students--they feel invisible, marginalized, powerless, isolated, discriminated against, rejected by family and friends

In the study from Smith College: women from working class backgrounds reported significantly more social alienation and less academic preparedness

The study of 27 boys showed that they perceived lower expectations for themselves based on their economic status
They were also concerned that achievement might separate them from who they had been

Students with lower socioeconomic status may deny their talent not only bedfcause of conflicting messages, but they are uncomfortable negotiating the crossing of class boundaries. Minimizing abilities avoids discomfort.
Low income families may place more emphasis on marrying young and securing a job than going to college. Some see college as not worth the financial sacrifice; where no one in the family has college experience, they may be unaware of financial aid.

Coping strategies:
student organizations--band together, peer group networks, role models, mentors
Discussion of race, identity, achievement--talk, see, name the issues
Speakers-role models
Teach code switching--what behaviors are valued and acceptable in which environment, i.e. questioning authority and critical thinking may be valued in school, but not at home
Conversations/relationships with adults who do this may help with the coping strategy

Bibliotherapy
Cinematherapy--may both be useful--read and watch people who resoved achievement conflicts--movie suggestions include "Billy Elliott," "October Sky," "Smoke Signals," "Finding Forrester."

Create a welcoming learning environment

Lit Review 12

2007-08-04T21:56:00.000-07:00

Title: Making a difference: motivating gifted student who are not achieving
Authors: Del Siegle and Betsy McCoach
Purpose: to explore the reasons why gifted students do not achieve and to suggest strategies to help them achieve
Methology: review of the literature--authors address self efficacy and self regulation
Authors' conclusions/implications:
There are four reasons for underachievement:
1) underlying physical, cognitive, or emotional issues
2) a mismatch between the student and the school environment
3) attitudes about themselves and their schooling
4) lack of self-regulation and study skills

Strategies for teachers to help underachiving gifted students:
explain the purpose for lessons and assignments
help students set short and long-term academic goals
help students see the long term benefits of classroom activities
invite community members into the classroom--connect learning to the "real world"
make personal connections with students--learning about their interests, integrate those into instruction
offer authentic choices for students to demonstrate mastery
present challenging material that students can master with effort
build in immediate feedback
treat students as if they are enthusiastic learners
keep a portfolio of work, observe and celebrate improvement
Give feedback--compliments--recognize achievement/attribute it to the development of the student
Teach study skills and time management
provide detailed assignment instructions and evalution rubrics
divide large tasks into smaller steps.

Lit Review 11

2007-08-04T21:45:00.000-07:00

Title: Feelings and attitudes of gifted students
Authors: Tiffany Field, Jeff Harding, Regins Yando, Ketty Gonzalez, David Lasko, and Debra Bendell, et al.
Methodology: study of 224 high school freshmen
62 were gifted, with IQ's of 132 or above
162 non-gifted
What data is being collected: multiple interviews with all students over a school year

Authors' conclusions/implications:
The gifted see themselves as more intimate with friends, assuming fewer family responsibilities and taking more risks. They see themselves as socially precocious. They feel the same as or better than their peers about their academic and social skills.

Lit Review 10

2007-08-04T21:39:00.000-07:00

Title: Gifted students with learning disabilities: recommnedations for identification and programming
Author: M. Elizabeth Nielsen

Author's methodology: examined school district diagnostic data for 22,000 children, tested over a 7 year period

researchers examined the school records, looking especially for students with learning and/or behavioral difficulities
If the IQ was over 120, the students were tested for giftedness
also, records for previously identified gifted students were examined to locate any with undiscovered learning disabilities
Researchers then looked for discrepancies between performance on intellectual ability measures and measures of academics, also looking for extreme scatter on subtests on intellectual measures
Recommendations:
Teachers and diagnosticians work as collaborative teams
Give students opportunities to react with similar peers

Lit Review 9

2007-08-04T21:32:00.001-07:00

Title: A longitudinal study of post-high school development in gifted individuals at risk for poor educational outcomes
Author: Jean Sunde Peterson
Author methodology:
14 gifted adolescents
4 year qualitative longitudinal study focusing on four developmental tasks:
gaining autonomy
becoming differentiated
establishing career direction
developing mature relationships
All participants completed Circumplex Model of Marital and Family Systems

Authors conclucions/implications:
conflict with parents proved to be a major factor in holding students back--it caused problems with gaining autonomy, establishing career direction, and developing mature relationships

Lit Review 8

2007-08-04T21:22:00.001-07:00

Title: Underachievement among gifted students of color: Implications for educators
Authors: Donna Y. Ford, H. Richard Milner, and James L. Moore

Authors' Purpose for Writing: concern that gifted children of color are less often identified and often feel that they don't belong in gifted classes

Authors' Methodolgy: Interviews with gifted students of color--in several states, over several school years

Authors' conclusions/implications:
Educators should not only be concerned with challenging gifted students cognitively and academically, but should also focus their attention on students' identity, friends, belonging, and safety
Educators must address needs based on race, gender and socioeconomic stauts
Educators must ask "how does a student's culture affect his or her achievement?"
"How do a student's social needs affect his or her achievement?"
"How do psychological needs affect the achievement of gifted students of color?"

Educators must learn about various cultural characteristics--use these cultural learning styles to help students learn. Modify teaching styles to accommodate different cultural styles.

research shows that teachers who understand and integrate different cultural needs and styles into the curriculum enhance student achievement. Integrate not only heritage and learning, styles, but make the curriculum relevant

Lit Review 7

2007-08-04T21:15:00.000-07:00

Title: Gifted achievers and underachievers: A comparison of patterns found in school files
Authors: Nicholas Colangelo and Jean Sunde Peterson
Authors' Purpose for writing: To discover why some students underachieve and make recommendations for intervention

Authors' methodology: study of information contained in school cumulative record files of 153 gifted students
Who: 153 gifted students
What data is being collected: information on gender, attendance, coursework, grades, test scores (including ACT scores)

Authors' discoveries/conclusions:
underachievement defined as a discrepancy between expected and actual performance

changes in attendance and tardiness may be among the first signs of underachievement--achievers and underachievers differed significantly in average attendance

50 percent of gifted boys underachieve
25 percent of gifted girls underachieve

Junior high is the time of greatest vulnerability--particularly grade 7

another tip-off for underachievement is course selection--achievers choose more demanding electives.

Princess Belle

2007-08-02T11:52:00.000-07:00

If I had to choose, I would be Princess Belle, the beautiful young woman who tames the Beast. Brave and resourceful, Belle is willing to sacrifice herself for the safety and security of her family, but she is also feisty enough to fight for them. She refuses to marry simply for security, rejecting the richest, most handsome man in town. An independent, clever woman, Belle values intellect and learning and requires a similarly intelligent and motivated man. Along with these more obvious strengths, Belle combines a gentleness of spirit and the ability to forgive. A "steel magnolia," Belle melds strength with tenderness. She is what a real woman (not just a princess) should be.

Lit Review 6

2007-08-02T09:29:00.000-07:00

Title: Case Study: A gifted child at risk

Author: Carlyn Saunders

Author's Purpose for Writing: to examine one GT child and the risk factors affecting his academic performance

Author's methodology: an annotated psychoeducational report on one child

Who is being studied: this is the study of one boy struggling to achieve at the levels indicated by his IQ and other test results

Over what length of time: 3 months

Data collected: interviews with grandparents, mother and stepfather
review of school records
Burks's Behavior Rating Scales, completed by parents, grandparents, teacher, and counselor
The Conners Rating Scales for Hyperactivity, completed by parents, grandparents, teacher and counselor
Diagnostic questionnaires completed by mother and grandparents
Wechsler Intelligence for Children
Wide Range Achievement Test

Recommendations for teachers and schools from this study include:
enriched school programs with challenge and control for students
accelerated academic work
organized and structured school setting
suport for parents in home situation
counseling to deal with anxiety, anger, depression, peer and family relationships, stress
family counseling

This child was functioning at the 99th percentile of intelligence, despite problems with divorced parents, a dad in prison, and a step father with a potentially fatal illness

One interesting conclusion: if children are not identified as gifted and their families helped when they are young, bad situations can continue, IQ scores can suffer, and opportunities are lost.
"If it is not already apparent, it should be stressed that the interaction of factors can have a variety of cumulative negative effects. In time, Jason's IQ score itself would suffer because of obstacles to learning and information processing. If he had not been tested until several years later, it is quite conceivable that he would not have been identified as a gifted child, and more opportunities would have been lost. The very fact of identification often results in a different perception of a child by parents, teachers, and peers, who may have mixed reactions, some negative and some positive. Invariable, however, children's self-esteem is enhanced when they are given feedback that confirms their potential."

Teachers must know their students and push for appropriate testing.

Lit Review 5

2007-08-02T08:42:00.000-07:00

Title: To produce or not to produce: Understanding boredom and the honor in underachievement
Author: Lannie Kanevsky and Tacey Keighley
Author's purpose for writing: to explain the reasons why some GT students deliberately refuse to work
Methodology: three case studies of high school students who gradually disengaged from classroom studies

Core findings: learning is the opposite of boredom
Learning is the antidote to boredom

Five interdependent features distinguish boring from learning experiences (the 5 Cs)
control
choice
challenge
complexity
caring teachers

If the some or all of the 5 Cs are present, students are engaged; if they are not present, students are not engaged. The more Cs that are present, the better.

Students in this study felt that the honorable action in response to an inappropriate curriculum was to disengage and to quit producing.

To re-engage these kinds of students will require understanding the causes of boredom, and offer differentiated curricula rich in the 5 Cs.

Non-producers differ from underachievers. Non-producers have chosen not to do the work because they see it as boring or irrelevant. This is not a problem with self-esteem or dependency, they just see the work as boring and/or irrelevant. They are bored due to a lack of stimulation and challenge in classes.

Lack of challenge is the most frequently cited cause of boredom. Gifted students crave the unfamiliar.

A caring teacher can enhance or overcome lack of the other 4 Cs. Caring teachers are defined as nonjudgmental, fair, flexible. Caring teachers honor students' need to talk, question, challenge, dig deeper; they must respect students, use discovery, hands-on, inquiry-based lessons, varying techniques and media. Caring teachers give students control over some aspects of learning, they show concern for all students' well-being, they return work promptly, and they are enthusiastic about their content and teaching.

Lit Review 4

2007-08-02T08:18:00.000-07:00

Title: Current Research on the social and emotional development of gifted and talented students: Good news and future possibilities
Author: Sally Reis and Joseph Renzulli
Author's Purpose for writing: To examine the current research regarding GT students and discuss the future
Methodology: Case studies
Who is being studied: students identified as gifted and talented
How the author collected information: in-depth interviews
Conclusions/Implications:
Academic supports that teachers can offer students in the classroom include:
compacting curriculum to avoid wasting time teaching children what they already know
differentiating and extending what is taught to accommodate varied pacing and levels of development
accelerating instruction
using high interest content and hands-on activities to create high engagement and creativity

Areas of psychological vulnerability for GT students include perfectionism and underachievement

Successful interventions include:
support and encouragement of accelerative learning experiences
time to learn with others of similar abilities, interests and motivations
engagement in areas of interest with a variety of peers
mentoring and pragmatic coaching to cope with stress and criticism
early presentation of career information
social-emotional curriculum approaches to help gifted students support one another

Bibliotherapy and Cinematherapy--reading and watching the lives of successful gifted people may be helpful

Teachers can model kindesss, caring, concern in class
maintain high academic and behavior standards
give positive feedback
prevent affective curriculum in areas of conflict resolution, decision-making and leadership
build educational experiences around student interests

Final Project Powerpoint-Sherry and Ginny

2007-08-02T08:17:00.000-07:00

https://mavspace.uta.edu/sln8201/FinalProject.ppt

Owls prompt

2007-08-01T11:51:00.000-07:00

In "Owls," Mary Oliver conveys the complexity of her response to nature through the use of imagery, juxtaposition, and highly complex syntax.
Oliver begins her piece by describing the great horned owl in all its majesty and terror. She can hear the "heavy, crisp, breathy snapping of its hooked beak;" she stumbles upon the "headless bodies of rabbits and bluejays" knowing that the owl killed them because it has "an insatiable craving for the taste of brains." She says, "If it could, it would eat the whole world." And yet, she is as attracted by the night killer as she is repelled by it. She sees herself and the owl as "standing at the edge of the mystery" and says that "the world where the owl is endlessly hungry and endlessly on the hunt is the world in which I live too."
From the vivid description of the bloodthirsty owl, Oliver jumps to, of all things, flowers. Poppies or lupines, and roses. They are "red and pink and white tents of softness." This sudden change, this juxtaposition, emphasizes again her complex response to nature. One minute she sees death on the wing, then she is enraptured by flowers. But....soon the flowers take on a kind of sinister air. They become "excessive" and an "immutable force." Perhaps she sees them marching over the sand dunes and taking over the world?
Throughout the piece, Oliver uses highly sophisticated and complex syntax. Beginning in line 45, one sentence utilizes asyndeton, polysyndeton, parallel structure, multiple independent and dependent clauses--all to emphasize her extremely complex response to nature. She is struck, taken, conquered, washed into it; she can't move, is restless no more, replete, supine, finished, filled to the last edges. And this is not only fulfilling and wonderful to her, it is also "terrible" and "frightening."

Lit Review 3

2007-07-31T12:36:00.000-07:00

Title: Understanding Resilience in Diverse, Talented Students in an Urban High School
Author: Sally M. Reis, Robert D. Colbert, Thomas P. Hebert
Author's purpose for writing: to better understand why and how some at-risk gifted students remain resilient despite challenges, and others underachieve.
Author's methodology: three year study of 35 ethnically diverse, academically talented high school students who either achieved or underachieved. Comparative, cross-case study. In-depth interviews with students and their families to examine risk factors and protective factors. Participant observation.
Author's research question: what factors do high achieving students in an urban high school identify as contributing to their resistance?
What factors may contribute to the inability to display resilience in underachieving students placed at risk in an urban high school?

What author discovered, conclusions/implications: Protective factors include supportive adults, friendships with other achieving students, opportunities to take honors/advanced classes, participation in multiple extracurricular activities, development of a strong belief in self, development of ways to cope with negative aspects of their lives, previous participation in a G/T program, religious training, and, for girls, a conscious decision not to date.
Underachievers had specific risk factors: older sibling as dropouts or drug users, fewer protective factors, inappropriate early curricular activities, absence of challenge, negative interaction with teachers, BOREDOM, family dysfunction, minimal parental and academic guidance and support.

Lit Review 2

2007-07-31T12:29:00.000-07:00

Title: Empowering adolescents as servant leaders
Author: Tim Grothaus
Author's purpose for writing: to explain the results of a study involving at-risk, gifted youth who participated in a seven month, comprehensive leadership training program

Author's methodology: case studies, interviews with students participating in the leadership training program

Who is being studied: at-risk, gifted youth

Over what length of time: seven months

What data is collected: interviews with the participants

What the author discovered; conclusions/implications: adolescent self esteem and resilience increase when they engae in meaningful, positive contributions to the community

This program involved students:
engaging in a significant new helping role
balancing experiences with guided reflection
combining support with developmentally appropriate challenges
ensuring continuity in the experience--they have to commit to at least six months in the program

Each team chooses a meaningful project that engages them in community stewardship. Projects included work in such areas as: drug and violence prevention programs, environmental cleanup efforts, justice system reform, and neighborhood enhancement.

Mentors work closely with all participants and at the conclusion, each group makes a presentation to the sponsoring community organizations.

My burning question

2007-07-31T12:27:00.001-07:00

Based on my critical incident and experiences in class with gifted but underperforming students, I have researched what kinds of things a teacher in a classroom can do--specific, usable strategies--to help gifted students who are also considered "at risk."

More on my name

2007-07-30T12:04:00.001-07:00

In English, Sherry means darling (it comes from the French, cherie). It is also the name of a wine that comes from an area of Spain called Jerez. It's the number six--it has six letters and six is my favorite number (I've actually won a round of Trivial Pursuit with the number six). My name is a coral color, rich, with hints of red and orange and pink.

Sherry is the taste of sunshine and fresh peaches made into mouth-watering peach cobbler by my grandmother, Nannie, on the farm in Fairfield.

I don't know why my parents chose my name, they just liked it I suppose. The Lynne in the middle was to match the L's my parents had, Lee and Laverne.

My grandparents, Nannie and Papa, had the most profound influence in my life. They were salt-of-the-earth, decent, honest, hard-working people, who generously shared their abundance with family, friends, neighbors, and even strangers who came to the door. Papa, known in the community as a perfectly honest man, showed me how the value of good, hard work and the joy of a life well-lived.

Most people seem to see Sherry as a friendly, kind of bubbly name, and that works well for me, as I see myself as friendly and enthusiastic. At one time, I thought I would like to have a different name, but I can't really think of one that I like better, so I'll stick with what I have.

My name, my name

2007-07-30T11:37:00.001-07:00

My name is Sherry Lynne. It just screams "I was born in the 1950s!" I haven't always been completely thrilled with my name, but now I think it's kind of fun. Being a Mormon and a tee-totaler, having an alcoholic name is a bit odd, but I prefer to think of it as an English version of the French Cherie, which means "darling." That's much nicer.

My extended family (particularly some of my pesky cousins), being of good, solid, Southern stock, love to call me Sherry Lynne, but no one else does that to me. Of course I call them Rita Jo and David Dean, so all is fair.

My own children love to tease me with the Frankie Valley and the Four Seasons song that starts out "She-eee-eee-eeerry, baby, Sherry baby." That is a truly revolting song, but they swear that it will be the theme song at my 50th birthday party next year. I might let them live through it (though I did deliberately avoid the "Jersey Girls" show on Broadway when we were there last month).

My Gift

2007-07-30T11:09:00.000-07:00

My greatest gift is my enthusiasm. I get really excited about teaching--I love, love, love what I do and I am absolutely crazy about my students. In college, I majored in journalism because I find everything and everyone interesting. Every day is a new adventure in learning and it's all fun! I try to share my enthusiasm about learning with my students--and sometimes I think it actually works. One of my best and brightest (who will be attending Rice University this fall) told me that I was the best teacher he had ever had. Several have said that they don't really like English, but they like my class because it is fun. I believe that if you are interested in what you do, your can get the students involved as well (at least sometimes).

Teaching Demonstration

2007-07-30T09:46:00.000-07:00

Title of the book: Blue Pastures
Author: Mary Oliver
Publishing Information: Harcourt Brace & Company, 1995
ISBN: 0-15-600215-9
Suggested Grade Level: High School

Goal: Students will increase their skills in rhetorical analysis of non-fiction prose.

Objectives: Students will:
recognize, explain the purpose of and analzye the effectiveness of various rhetorical devices and techniques

discover and explain the author's purpose in writing

clearly analyze and explain the rhetorical devices used by the author to achieve her purpose

complete a rhetorical analysis timed writing based on the AP prompt for this excerpt from Mary Oliver's book, Blue Pastures.

Have Fun!

Rather than TEKS, I base my AP lessons on the AP Curricular Requirements. Here are some of the requirements included in this lesson:

The course teaches and requires students to write in several forms (e.g., narrative, expository, analytical, and argumentative essays) about a variety of subjects.

The course requires students to write in informal contexts (e.g., imitation exercises, journal keeping, collaborative writing, and in-class responses) designed to help them become increasingly aware of themselves as writers and of the techniques employed by the writers they read.

The course requires expository, analytical, and argumentative writing assignments that are based on readings representing a wide variety of prose styles and genres.

The course requires nonfiction readings (e.g., essays, journalism, political writing, science writing, nature writing, autobiographies/biographies, diaries, history, criticism) that are selected to give students opportunities to identify and explain an author's use of rhetorical strategies and techniques.

The AP teacher provides instruction and feedback that help the students develop these skills:

A wide-ranging vocabulary used appropriately and effectively

A variety of sentence structures, including appropriate use of subordination and coordination

Logical organization, enhanced by specific techniques to increase coherence, such as repetition, transitions, and emphasis

A balance of generalization and specific, illustrative detail

An effective use of rhetoric, including controlling tone, establishing and maintaining voice, and achieving appropriate emphasis through diction and sentence structure

Research supporting this lesson:

Bloom, Adi. (2007). Skip to my lou, my darlin'. Times Educational Supplement, 6/8/2007, 4740, 15.

Coleman, Jennifer. (2005). Ready, set, motivate. Library Media Connection, March 2005, 30-32.

McCoach, Betsy, and Siegle, Del. (2005). Making a difference: Motivating gifted students who are not achieving. Teaching Exceptional Children, 38, 22-27.

Kitano, Margie K., and Lewis, Rena B. (2005). Resilience and coping: Implications for gifted children and youth at risk. Roeper Review, 27, 200-2005.

Reis, Sally M., and Renzulli, Joseph S. (2004). Current research on the social and emotional development of gifted and talented students: Good news and future possibilities. Psychology in the Schools, 41(1), 119-129.

Procedures:
Students will reorganize themselves into new groups based on the song wordstrips that they receive.

Students will receive a "green sheet" list of terms they must know.

They will analyze each song to determine what rhetorical devices are used.

Students will learn to sing all three songs in a round; this is an analogy to show how authors sometimes incorporate many devices or techniques in one piece.

We will review other rhetorical terms, particularly diction and juxtaposition; both are very important in analyzing this particular piece of prose.

We will review other terms using "wuzzles," which are word puzzles. We will work through one wuzzle worksheet, then each group will create their own wuzzle of a rhetorical term. Groups will share their wuzzle and class members will solve them.

The class will read the "Owls" excerpt together, with the teacher commenting on some rhetorical devices and their importance.

As a group we will determine the author's purpose.

Then, class members will create a didactical journal--one column noting rhetorical devices/techniques, the other explaining their importance/effectiveness. They are working to analyze how the author uses the devices to achieve her purpose.

Once students have completed working together on analyzing Oliver's purpose and how she achieves it, they will write a draft version on the timed writing addressing the AP prompt.

Reading/Writing connection:
students will complete the AP writing prompt

Discussion/Protocol
students will participate in whole group and small group discussions of the material

Extension/Service Projects
This unit will be part of our transcendentalists study. Within that framework, students will also read other nature writings--Thoreau, Emerson, Annie Dillard, Rachel Carson, etc.
Students will visit our school's wetlands area, taking time to explore, then return to class to write extensively about their experiences.
We will complete a major project on the wetlands area--much like the Bluebonnet River Legacy project--incorporating technology with our written reflections and reactions. As our AP Environmental Science teacher is retiring this year, we will give her the presentation as a parting gift.

Lit Review 1

2007-07-30T08:18:00.000-07:00

Title: Resilience and Coping: Implications for Gifted Children and Youth at Risk
Author: Margie K. Kitano, Rena B. Lewis
Author's purpose for writing: to propose specific strategies for enhancing outcomes for gifted children and youth at risk for encountering adversity
Author's methodology-Case studies involving in-depth interviews
Who is being studied: gifted children, particularly those at risk
What the author discovered or conclusions/implications:
Interventions appropriate for gifted students placed at risk include
1) enhance connectivity--a strong, meaningful relationship with a significant, positive other; teachers can fill this role in the classroom and can help with projects that increase opportunities for teamwork, a sense of community, and respect
2) encourage a sense of self-efficacy and agency--provide opportunities for students to take responsibility and make decisions and learn from their successes and failures. Encourage students to solve real-life problems, develop and pursue hobbies and interests.
3) encourage optimism
4) teach directly and indirectly a range of coping strategies and coach implementation
5) validate children's experience with bias
6) support pride in heritage--strengthen ethnic identities

Being a Stellaluna

2007-07-30T07:45:00.001-07:00

I am really fortunate in that many of my colleagues are very open to new ideas and new techniques. I will be working with at least one brand new teacher, who has already requested my assistance, plus a teacher who will be new to our PreAP program. So, I think they will be easy to share with. I will also have a new neighbor in my portable, and he has always been quick to share new ideas with me, so I think he will be open to anything useful that I can share with him. The main difference in my class with be much more peer sharing of writing. I LOVE the writing followed by post-it responses. In the past, my students have mostly had only my reactions to their work, and I know that this will be much more helpful. They will have to make specific, positive comments about what is working in the piece, and writers can then go back and build upon the good. I'm hoping to teach them to make tactful comments and/or questions about what doesn't make sense or work, but to remain kind and helpful rather than become harsh and critical.

My technology people have also always been very cooperative and, as I mentioned before, I want to do a big powerpoint project with our Environmental Science wetlands area as we work through the Transcendental writers. I know that my technology guru will help. I hope that she can also find a way for me to use blogs with my classes. I don't think all of my students have computers at home, but most can gain access to them either at school in the library, or at the homes of friends. I think that blogging their homework and reactions to our reading would be very helpful in sharing and improving writing.

Inside Out Chapter 7

2007-07-29T15:47:00.000-07:00

I love the idea of writing for an expanded or different audience. I am now thinking of ways to do this. I plan on us creating a presentation on our school's wetlands area (much like we did for River Legacy) and presenting it to our AP Environmental Science teacher who established the area and will be retiring this year. I can't see where we can share our rhetorical analysis writings except on a blog for ourselves, but I can see many places where we could share our persuasive and argumentative writings--there are all kinds of causes out in the world to write about.

The Very Best of Friends-Reaction

2007-07-26T11:52:00.000-07:00

Dealing with profound grief is one of the most challenging processes anyone can endure. And people go about this in very different ways. Sometimes the pain is so great that people do feel a need for solitude. Perhaps, for a time, solitude heals, but prolonged aloneness can also destroy. Sometimes situations arise when friends and family must almost force themselves upon a grieving person, drawing them back into the wider world. I think the bereaved must learn to strike a balance between time alone and time with loved ones. As friends and family, we must be sensitive to their needs and allow them the necessary time and space to come to terms with their new life situation. Our friend Mark, run over while riding his motorcycle, now faces life as a paraplegic. His entire existence has changed. Hundreds of friends and family members have rallied to his aid, donating time, money, construction skills to renovate his house, whatever he needs. But, I know that sometimes he can be overwhelmed by too many people and he needs quiet moments to ponder and reflect on what it all means for his family and their future.
Another friend, Roddy, lost his wife. She was only 59. He must be terribly lonely, and yet, constantly filling his house with people and noise is not precisely what he needs 24/7 either.

Farfallina and Marcel-Reaction

2007-07-25T11:41:00.000-07:00

One of my dearest friends moved to Virginia in 1992. I still keep in touch with her, but it's just not the same as when she lived in my neighborhood. I only talk with her every few months and though we try to keep up, it's never going to be as good as seeing her weekly or daily. Still, I don't want to lose her completely and on the infrequent occasions when I do get to visit her, we have a wonderful time. I last went to see her in 2002 and I would really like to go again, soon. Perhaps this will prompt me to take a trip to Virginia this year. I want to sit and visit with Signe again.

How can I describe Signe? She has eight children, yet is still tiny and petite (unlike me with only three kids). She loves to travel (we went to Paris together in 2002) and she has a new husband that I've never met. She is one of the kindest and most generous people that I know. She never says unkind things about people and always gives everyone the benefit of the doubt. When our kids were small, we traded babysitting and she really helped me when I was trying to finish my bachelor's degree. She gives of her time so willingly. She is blonde and pretty and so, so smart. I love talking with her because I always learn new things. We enjoy many of the same things, great literature, history, new places, travel. My mom loves her too because she loves birding. We are of the same faith, so our beliefs and values are the same. We have the same commitment to God and to family. She is more patient than I, but I'm working on it. Having eight children would probably be a great workshop for learning patience. One of our outings was to Mount Vernon and we both marveled at the beauty of George and Martha Washington's home. I am a big fan of both Washingtons, they were truly great Americans, and Signe and I talked at length about their superb legacy and example. We also ate dinner at a tavern in Alexandria where Washington frequently visited.

In Paris, because I can speak French, I was kind of the guide for Signe and her sister, Wendy. We walked all over the city and had a wonderful, wonderful time in the Louvre, the Musee D'Orsay, and just on the streets of the city. We ate delicious food, reveled in the beauties of the city, climbed the stairs of great monuments, looked out on the Champs Elysees from the Arche de Triomple, and just enjoyed being together. I would love to travel with her again and hope to see her very soon.

Inside Out Chapter 6

2007-07-25T11:04:00.000-07:00

More great writing ideas--this time for voice. Teaching voice is challenging; too many high school essays are dry and dull, dull, dull. These ideas will definitely be a part of my classes this fall, especially the mad, soft, and fast talking.

Chicken Sunday

2007-07-24T11:42:00.000-07:00

I would love to live in a community like the one described in Chicken Sunday. In fact, I have lived in such a community. When I was a small child, my mom and I lived with her parents in Fairfield, a small community southeast of Dallas. The town only had about 3,000 residents, and my grandparents knew all of them. Their small country church was a wooden building with a tall steeple, almost hidden by the surrounding trees. Because I was with Nannie and Papa, everyone who knew them also knew me. We shopped in the little stores on the courthouse square, admired the beautiful hats in the milliner's window, and stopped to visit with neighbors on the courthouse lawn. It was an idyllic life, simple and peaceful. We often ate delicious fried chicken on Sundays and enjoyed fresh vegetables from my grandfather's "small" five-acre garden. We scrambled up just-gathered eggs for breakfast and lavished homemade butter and jam on our freshly baked biscuits. No one could possibly be a better cook than Nannie. I can still taste those melt-in-your mouth biscuits. Yummy........

Inside Out Chapters 4 and 5

2007-07-24T07:15:00.000-07:00

Great, wonderful, terrific, fantastic ideas for getting my students started with writing and incorporating the journal into my class. I can clearly see how these will work in my regular classes. I am still trying to figure out how to fit it into my AP classes. We have so much to do in there, that squeezing in one more thing is difficult. Still, I am convinced that they need daily writing practice, so I will try.

Special Places

2007-07-23T08:11:00.001-07:00

I have many special places and they are the temples of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Temples are beautiful, quiet, peaceful places. To enter, you must have a temple recommend. This is a card verifying that you are a member of the church in good standing. Because the temple is a place of sacred and holy rites, only worthy church members may enter. Temples are made of the finest materials and decorated with elegance and simplicity. Everyone inside wears white and speaks in hushed voices. Quiet music plays and visitors have many opportunities to sit quietly, ponder and pray.
I especially love the temple’s Celestial Room. It is large and open, filled with beautiful chandeliers, flooding the room with light. Elegant, but comfortable chairs and couches line the room and peace reigns. You can sit in the Celestial Room all day long if you want to, soaking in the deep feeling of peace, reveling in the profound quiet. I go there to think and to pray. I love being there with my family, all of us quietly pondering who we really are, why our Heavenly Father has sent us here to earth, and what he wants us to accomplish here.
I was married in the temple in Salt Lake City. In our church, we believe that when you are married in the temple, you are “sealed,” that is married not only for this life, but forever. We believe that families will be together after this life. I find that very comforting, as my family, including parents, husband, children, and my many, many aunts, uncles and cousins, are very important to me. We also believe that we can be sealed to our ancestors, creating an endless family line stretching from the distant past, through us and to our descendants.
One thing I really love about the temple is the overwhelming sense of calm when you enter the door. Even if you have to fight North Dallas traffic to reach the nearest temple (which is near Preston and Forest), once you go inside, cares of the world slip away, and peace prevails. You go quietly to the dressing room to change into white, then you join others in the chapel for scripture study and meditation. Whether you have a temple or not, I think everyone needs such a place of quiet tranquility. Demands of the world press upon us, hurrying us from one seemingly important task to the next and often we race until we are exhausted, never stopping to consider what is truly essential for our lives.

Critical Incident Narrative-final version

2007-07-18T20:42:00.001-07:00

Dixie sits in the back corner of the room, again. She’s not causing trouble, but she is certainly not working on the assignment. While everyone else slaves over the rhetorical analysis timed writing, Dixie is deep in the calculus book. Her timed writing—the kind of thing that everyone else spends 40 minutes sweating blood over—was done 10 minutes early. And it’s good—she understands the complex characters and can fully explain their motivations, which is more than most of her classmates can manage. So far this year I have not found a single activity that challenges this child.
I think she did enjoy the nonfiction projects. The were, as usual, too easy for her—she has no problem coming up with food items related to a theme, and her poster describing the tarted-up women populating her book was visually interesting, but not something that required Dixie to think too deeply. Still, she smiled through it all, laughed with her group members, and rattled off several funny bits from the book.
I worry, though, because most of the time she just looks bored. An exaggerated look of patience seems almost permanently plastered on her face. Where other students are puzzled or confused by the AP curriculum, Dixie understands almost instantly. The vocabulary, the rhetorical terms—nothing fazes her. But every day she must wait while everyone else works to catch up. Luckily, she does have a well-honed sense of humor, so when her peers write “the author used diction,” as part of their analysis, she just laughs and then tries to explain how all words are diction and all authors use words. Dixie knows it’s all too easy for her, but she doesn’t make a big deal about it.
The beige, metal building where our class meets sits on a burning-hot asphalt parking lot behind _______________ Like most of my students, Dixie complains about the “endless“ trek out from the main building.(Of course we are only 50 yards from a multi-million dollar football stadium, but my students and I work in a tin building. However, that is an issue for another day). The corrugated roof rattles in the slightest breeze, the pounding of a good rain can drown out all conversation, and (since all four garbage dumpsters are just behind us) all discussion pauses when the gigantic garbage trucks make their daily run. I never cease to be amazed at how fascinated high school boys become watching the process of emptying a dumpster. I know they're just waiting for the driver to miss getting the giant mechanical arms into the slots on either side of the dumpster. Personally, I worry that the drivers (who come up our driveway pretty fast) will puncture our little tin building with those giant metal arms. With Dixie sitting on that far wall, nearest the dumpsters, my most brilliant student would be the first to go. I also have recurring nightmares about the drivers setting one of those behemoths down on top of a wandering student. SPLAT. Not a pretty picture.
The air conditioner in my room whirs constantly and loudly, cooling the room but making us shout to be heard over it. Reading aloud and class discussion are difficult, but we perservere, prefering to pit our voices against the pounding machine rather than perspire profusely. From the back of the room, Dixie continues observing everyone with an air of great patience. Today’s writing assignment is about The Grapes of Wrath, which she decries as a boring book, even if it does have a bizarre and semi-interesting ending. Actually, several students completely failed to understand the final scene and Dixie is once again called upon to explain the action to her less astute peers.
“How could they miss what happened in that scene?” Dixie can’t help but wonder. It seems so obvious to her and yet….Maybe it was just too strange or too shocking. Probably most of the kids had never before considered such a thing, and the idea couldn’t quite penetrate their teenage brains. Breastfeeding a grown man?! It was just too weird, too repulsive. Why on earth would Steinbeck include that—even use it to finish his book? “I read 600 pages—most of it as dull as dirt, just to end with this bizarre scene,” she told me.
And yet…someone as bright as Dixie could understand, could see the profound meaning of such a gesture, offered by the abandoned, grieving mother of a dead infant, to the starving father of another almost-orphaned child. More often a semi-cynical observer than an enthusiastic discussion participant, Dixie struggled to explain the significance of Rose of Sharon’s actions to her classmates. Eyes welling, even she couldn’t quite find the words, but it was a quiet moment of great understanding.
As we continue writing, the musty, dusty smell of paper permeates the room; students go back and forth, back and forth in the text, striving to understand characters and their motivations. They're trying to see if, as has been asserted, Steinbeck was advocating a communist system and the book is a diatribe against capitalism. Or, was he simply highlighting a social problem, seeking solutions, but not advocating any single plan. It's a fairly complex writing assignment, and I’m hoping that Dixie will return to her paper and give it a bit more thought. What was Steinbeck arguing in his Nobel Prize winning novel? Finally she bends over her paper once again, pen in hand, and pauses to think. At least with this assignment, she can bring in her knowledge from other courses and make connections--economics would help here, as would her wide acquaintance with various forms of government.
Dixie is one of those kids who seem to know something about everything. Unlike most of her peers, she actually reads the newspaper and pays attention to what’s happening in the world. I remember our first current events quiz. I had warned the class that they would be tested over news items, mostly things on the front page of the paper. Explosions, murders, tsunamis and UFO’s--surely these are the kinds of things to interest teenagers. Besides, I keep telling them, you’ll be old enough to vote in two years and you need to know what’s going on. When I first made the announcement, they complained for a solid five minutes. “I don’t get the newspaper” “Well read it online,” “I don’t have a computer” “Use the computers in the library or listen to the news on the radio” “My radio doesn’t work” “Ride to school with a friend and listen with them” “I walk to school” “Download it and listen on your Ipod” “But I’m a poor student and don’t have an Ipod.” It was endless. Still, on the appointed day, the quiz began. Five questions worth 20 points each and a bonus question. I couldn’t find much exciting news to ask about, so the bonus was a sports question—at least most of them could score an easy 20 points on that. “Number 1, Name two people running for governor of Texas. (Surely they had noticed that one of the candidates was named Kinky). Number 2, What new drug has become a big problem across the Metroplex?” and so on. As a bonus, they got to name the new quarterback for the Cowboys. I repeated the questions, then we exchanged papers for discussion and a trade and grade. I could see Dixie’s big smile of satisfaction. Where other papers had blanks, hers was filled, and she not only knew Rick Perry and Kinky, she also named Chris Bell and Carole Keaton Strayhorn.
Of course, Dixie’s brilliance often comes in handy, especially when the school needs her. When I was looking to fill a spot on the UIL literary criticism team, she was the first person who came to mind. She probably just skimmed Tess of the D’Urbervilles, “The Trip to Bountiful,” and Emily Dickinson’s poetry, but she is so good at evaluating multiple choice questions that she placed fifth at the district meet. She also competed in three other events. No sweat for Dixie.
I have often apologized to her for being unable to actually conduct the class at her level, but if I went there, no one else would be able to keep up. So, I try to push her to write at ever higher levels and read more complex, rich texts. And, she is patient with the rest of us mere mortals.

River Legacy Reflections

2007-07-18T19:51:00.000-07:00

I craned my neck to see the bird high in the treetop canopy. "I know that call, but I'm not totally sure--what kind of bird is it?" Actually, I thought it was a cardinal, but I didn't want to sound like an idiot, so I kept that tidbit of information to myself. He continued singing. "I wish my mother was here, she would know exactly who is serenading us." Then he took off, a blur of red crossing the winding river. "Yes!" I was right. A beautiful, red cardinal in the forest, just like the ones I loved as a child in the woods near Fairfield, Texas. In fact, most everything today reminded me of childhood woodland explorations. My grandparents lived on a farm in Freestone County. They owned more than 200 acres and we rambled over almost all of it. Sandy paths, wildflowers, towering oaks and petite dogwoods in bloom, all of these were part of my childhood.

Summer days we often started our explorations poking around the stock tanks. Sometimes we'd take along cane poles for a little fishing. I was never really any good at it, but somehow at that age I was also completely unafraid of the potential terrors lurking in the high brush near the water. On one occasion, my cousin, Diana, hooked a water mocasin on her line. Luckily, all of my uncles are good old Texas boys and Uncle Carlton, pistol at the ready, quickly dispatched that critter. Thank goodness, we encountered no cotton-mouths today.

Most of our childhood rambles though, took place in the woods. We chased an armadillo through the trees once (I couldn't believe how fast they can run) and spent many quiet times watching deer feed in forest meadows. Squirrels were our constant companions, chattering from every available branch, and we saw the tracks of many other forest neighbors. And birds.....they were everywhere. Cardinals, all kinds of warblers, sparrows, magnificent red-tailed hawks, squawking blue-jays, and the plaintive sounds of the whip-poor-wills. I was never a big fan of buzzards, those big black vultures, but I loved all of the others.

The plants fascinated me as much as the animals. Dogwoods in bloom are one of the most beautiful sights in east Texas. Redbud trees liven the forest with their many shades of pink, and all the tiny flowers on the forest floor are an endless treasure. You have to look closely to discover the tiny violets in bloom early in the spring, but they're worth the effort. Bluebonnets, Indian Paintbrush, Mexican Hat and other wildflowers bloom in the sunny meadows, but others flower in the shade, along winding paths, twining through the trees.

You can eat well in the forest, too. Grapes grow in luscious clusters, but they're tart; you have to take them home for jam, jelly and grape juice. Eat the dewberries off the vines though, they're delicious. Sometimes you can find figs in the forest, and other yummy treats. Don't try the mushrooms unless you're an expert; some of them are poisonous. My grandmother picked greens called poke and they're delicious too, but don't try them without experienced guidance either, because they can be toxic as well. (I'm not an expert, and without my grandmother, I've given up poke salad.)

Of course, all the memories of place connect directly to my feelings about family. I was so blessed to have Nannie and Papa and their farm. I have 40 first cousins, and groups of us roamed those woods hour after hour, day after sultry day, throughout our childhoods. We forged bonds of love for each other and for the beautiful creations of God. I can't imagine a more idyllic childhood than one spent exploring the sun-dappled forest on a summer day in Texas.

Nannie and Papa have passed away now, and their farm was sold (dividing land among 12 children was not really workable). Luckily, the new owners have given permission for us to ramble around the property occasionally. But, it's not really the same; the people are different and Nannie and Papa aren't there on the front porch of the old farmhouse. It's gone, too, so I revisit it all in memory now. Today was a wonderful look back, a different way of returning with new "family" to a beloved place in my heart.

Inside Out-Comments for Chapters 1, 2, and 3

2007-07-18T19:45:00.000-07:00

I want to develop my own list of beliefs about writing. I believe that this will be a work in progress as I read through the entire book and reflect upon my own writing experiences. However, I will adopt the following:
My primary role is not to teach writing but to coach writing practice
As a teacher, I am a writer and will write with my students
I rely on students to help each other, to give feedback and support each other's efforts
I will build in time for writing
I will use excellent writing examples as models
Everyone can write, it is a craft that can be learned
I will offer students guidance on many ways to "get started, get it down, get it right, and check it out.
I will remember that there are as many ways to go through the writing process are their are writers.
I will work to build a writing-friendly environment in my classroom and adopt some of the activities outlined in chapter three to help build a supportive learning community.

Link to Four Seasons weathercast by Lourdes and Sherry

2007-07-17T12:49:00.000-07:00

https://mavspace.uta.edu/sln8201/fourseasons.mp3

Response to Joyce Armstrong Carroll

2007-07-16T22:08:00.000-07:00

I love these 10 codes. I have tried and tried to work on revision with my students and have pretty much been a failure so far. But this looks like it will work. Yea!

Reading Response 7-16

2007-07-16T21:55:00.001-07:00

The idea of teachers as the best people to help teach each other intrigues me. I am learning a lot from everyone in class. I also like the idea of a learning community, rather than simply a class. This is what I want to work toward with my students this year.The idea of allowing students to express their opinions, even when repugnant to everyone else in the classroom is a difficult one in a high school setting. I'm not sure how far I would feel comfortable going with this -- indeed even how far I would be allowed to tolerate ideas that are so far out of the mainstream. High schools are funny places these days and some speech is probably not going to be tolerated. I don't really know what I would do with a student like this one. I need to think about that.To truly immerse students in literacy, they need lots of modeling and they need lots of time. School doesn't naturally lend itself to slow, time-intensive processes, and we need to allow students the time to practice and to grow.

Latest Version of My Critical Incident

2007-07-16T11:59:00.000-07:00

I think she did enjoy the nonfiction projects. The were, as usual, too easy for her—she has no problem coming up with food items related to a theme, and her poster describing the tarted-up women populating her book was visually interesting, but not something that required Dixie to think too deeply. Still, she smiled through it all, laughed with her group members, and rattled off several funny bits from the book.

I worry, though, because most of the time she just looks bored. An exaggerated look of patience seems almost permanently plastered on her face. Where other students are puzzled or confused by the AP curriculum, Dixie understands almost instantly. The vocabulary, the rhetorical terms—nothing fazes her. But every day she must wait while everyone else works to catch up. Luckily, she does have a well-honed sense of humor, so when her peers write “the author used diction,” as part of their analysis, she just laughs and then tries to explain how all words are diction and all authors use words. Dixie knows it’s all too easy for her, but she doesn’t make a big deal about it.

The beige, metal building I teach in sits on a burning-hot asphalt parking lot behind _______________. (Of course we are only 50 yards from a multi-million dollar football stadium, but my students and I work in a tin building. However, that is an issue for another day). The corrugated roof rattles in the slightest breeze, the pounding of a good rain can drown out all conversation, and (since all four garbage dumpsters are just behind us) all discussion pauses when the gigantic garbage trucks make their daily run. I never cease to be amazed at how fascinated high school boys become watching the process of emptying a dumpster. I know they're just waiting for the driver to miss getting the giant mechanical arms into the slots on either side of the dumpster. Personally, I worry that the drivers (who come up our driveway pretty fast) will puncture our little tin building with those giant metal arms. I also have recurring nightmares about them setting one of those behemoths down on top of a wandering student. SPLAT. Not a pretty picture.

The air conditioner in my room whirs constantly and loudly, cooling the room but making us shout to be heard over it. Reading aloud and class discussion are difficult, but we perservere, prefering to pit our voices against the pounding machine rather than perspire profusely. From the back of the room, Dixie continues observing everyone with an air of great patience. She says The Grapes of Wrath is a boring book, even if it does have a bizarre and semi-interesting ending. Actually, several students completely failed to understand the final scene and Dixie is once again called upon to explain the action to her less astute peers.

“How could they miss what happened in that scene?” Dixie can’t help but wonder. It seems so obvious to her and yet….Maybe it was just too strange or too shocking. Probably most of the kids had never before considered such a thing, and the idea couldn’t quite penetrate their teenage brains. Breastfeeding a grown man?! It was just too weird, too repulsive. Why on earth would Steinbeck include that—even use it to finish his book? “I read 600 pages—most of it as dull as dirt, just to end with this bizarre scene,” she told me. And yet…someone as bright as Dixie could understand, could see the profound meaning of such a gesture, offered by the abandoned, grieving mother of a dead infant, to the starving father of another almost-orphaned child.

The musty, dusty smell of paper is in the air as students go back and forth, back and forth in the text, striving to understand characters and their motivations. They're trying to see if, as has been asserted, Steinbeck was advocating a communist system and the book is a diatribe against capitalism. Or, was he simply highlighting a social problem, seeking solutions, but not advocating any single plan. It's a fairly complex writing assignment, and I’m hoping that Dixie will return to her paper and give it a bit more thought. What was Steinbeck arguing in his Nobel Prize winning novel? Finally she bends over her paper once again, pen in hand, and pauses to think. At least with this assignment, she can bring in her knowledge from other courses and make connections--economics would help here, as would her wide acquaintance with various forms of government.

Dixie is one of those kids who seem to know something about everything. Unlike most of her peers, she actually reads the newspaper and pays attention to what’s happening in the world. I remember our first current events quiz. I had warned the class that they would be tested over news items, mostly things on the front page of the paper. Explosions, murders, tsunamis and UFO’s--surely these are the kinds of things to interest teenagers. Besides, I keep telling them, you’ll be old enough to vote in two years and you need to know what’s going on. When I first made the announcement, they complained for a solid five minutes. “I don’t get the newspaper” “Well read it online,” “I don’t have a computer” “Use the computers in the library or listen to the news on the radio” “My radio doesn’t work” “Ride to school with a friend and listen with them” “I walk to school” “Download it and listen on your Ipod” “But I’m a poor student and don’t have an Ipod.” It was endless. Still, on the appointed day, the quiz began. Five questions worth 20 points each and a bonus question. I couldn’t find much exciting news to ask about, so the bonus was a sports question—at least most of them could score an easy 20 points on that. “Number 1, Name two people running for governor of Texas. (Surely they had noticed that one of the candidates was named Kinky). Number 2, What new drug has become a big problem across the Metroplex?” and so on. As a bonus, they got to name the new quarterback for the Cowboys. I repeated the questions, then we exchanged papers for discussion and a trade and grade. I could see Dixie’s big smile of satisfaction. Where other papers had blanks, hers was filled, and she not only knew Rick Perry and Kinky, she also named Chris Bell and Carole Keaton Strayhorn.

Of course, Dixie’s brilliance often comes in handy, especially when the school needs her. When I was looking to fill a spot on the UIL literary criticism team, she was the first person who came to mind. She probably just skimmed Tess of the D’Urbervilles, The Trip to Bountiful and Emily Dickinson’s poetry, but she is so good at evaluating multiple choice questions that she placed fifth at the district meet. She also competed in three other events. No sweat for Dixie.

I have often apologized to her for being unable to actually conduct the class at her level, but if I went there, no one else would be able to keep up. So, I try to push her to write at ever higher levels and read more complex, rich texts. And, she is patient with the rest of us mere mortals.

Parody Lyrics

2007-07-16T10:15:00.000-07:00

Parody Lyrics to "Beer for My Horses"

Well I can't believe the Olympus news
The whole family's dead and Hercules is confused
First Hercules killed off his wife
Hercules killed his kids
Hercules got away
But he didn't get too far
He didn't get too far

Zeus he told the others, I'm in charge here son,
Hera caused this trouble and now she's on the run
Take the rope in Olympus
Find a laurel tree, round up this wicked woman
Tie her up to the tree, for all the people to see that

Justice is the one thing you should always find
You gotta saddle up your boys you gotta draw a hard line
When the gunsmoke settles, we'll sing a victory tune
And we'll all meet back at the local saloon.
We'll raise up our glasses against evil forces
Singing, Whiskey for my men, beer for my horses.

Mozartians, Beethovians, and the Teaching of Writing

2007-07-15T20:59:00.000-07:00

Mozartians, Beethovians, and the Teaching of Writing

I love this idea of different methods of writing. I'm afraid that I, too have tried too often to make all my students Mozartians. I have worked very diligently to avoid formulaic writing instruction, but this article gives me several new ideas of ways to help and inspire all kinds of writers. I also very much see the need to silence the critic and let the creator work first.

Skeletons Out of the Closet: The Case of the Missing 162%
By Bob Pressnall
Like these students, mine also need work on revision. I appreciate all of the strategies we are learning and will use skeletons in my classroom this year. It is just one more way to help students teach themselves to write.

Getting Real: Authenticity in Writing Prompts
By Patricia Slagle
I have wanted to provide more authentic writing experience, but wasn't really sure how to go about it. Most AP prompts don't really lend themselves to this, but I think I could find a few persuasive prompts that we could use to work for change. My juniors write a major researched argument paper each year on a social issue that they find compelling. I will work to make that assignment more authentic by having them send their ideas to appropriate governmental or organizational leaders who work with their specific issue.

The Parallel Universes of Theory and Practice: One Teacher's Journey
By Beverly Paesano
This phrase is particularly meaningful to me:
.....writing in this process as “an instrument of investigation and discovery
I want to teach writing this way. I want to make my classroom more of a community of learners than a lecture hall.

2007-07-12T07:18:00.000-07:00

Weather Report

Hi, this is Windy Storm reporting for the Four Seasons weather channel.

To reacap, Wednesday morning started out hazy--The Missing Piece Meets the Big O was a bit abstract--with no clear interpretation. However, the morning became sunny and bright with the light-hearted memory writing.

A few light showers blew in with the Conferences, especially for those of us who needed to revamp our writing. However, the afternoon was sunny and breezy with the snapshot and thoughshot writings.

The forecast for Thursday includes scattered storms, some possibly severe, in the morning at the technology lab. However, we expect the clouds to dissipate and we will enjoy a sunny and very pleasant afternoon.

2007-07-11T18:10:00.000-07:00

Reading Response for July 11

I love writing and I do it professionally, but even I sometimes find it difficult to get started. Where does one begin. I agree with Tim G. that regular writing keeps you "in tune," and makes it easier to write. When I haven't written in a while, the blank computer screen stares at me and my mind is blank. It takes time to organize my thoughts and actually begin. However, I find that if I just put something up there, the thoughts begin to flow. Sometimes my opening is terrible, but it is a way to begin and I can go back later to make improvements. This year I will write with my students. I haven't done that before, and I think it will make a huge difference in the way I teach writing.

The article on writing by very young students reminded me of my own daughters and their writing. Often the early attempts were not readable in the traditional sense, but if you just read them phonetically and looked for other clues, they were wonderful, individual pieces. The child who write the most as a small child is now a humanities major in college who loves to write.

For someone who is computer "illiterate" like me, this look at the future is a bit intimidating. However, just from our work this week, I can see how blogs and wikis and other things I don't even know about yet, may help my students. I want them to have the best possible opportunities to learn, to think critically and to write effectively. If computers and technology can help with that process, and I know they can, then I want to know how to use them in my classroom.

2007-07-11T10:58:00.000-07:00

I plucked a pen out of my purse today. It happens to be the pen that Mike bought for me in the gift shop on Liberty Island when we visited the Statue of Liberty in June. We took Lauren and Kara and spent a week in New York City. Just getting there was a major challenge, but I'm really glad we went. We walked (and rode the subway and the boat) all over Manhattan and Queens. We visited not only Liberty Island, but also Ellis Island, the World Trade Center site, the courts area where scenes from Law and Order are filmed, China Town and so much more. On Sunday we started with Times Square and the areas near there. Times Square itself is overwhelming--lights, motion, color and people, people, people. I have never seen so much going on in one place in my life. Monday was the visit to Liberty Island. It was an all-day outing. First you stand in line to buy your ticket, then get in another line to board the ferry. The wait was relieved by a fellow playing steel drum. When he found out we were from Texas, he immediately began playing "The Yellow Rose of Texas." It was too good. We had to give him a good tip. Then came the security line, which Mike had to step out of because he had a pocket knife. We waited while he found a shrub to hide the knife in and returned to join us on the ferry. Off to Liberty Island. After wandering around there for a while (including Mike's stop at the gift shop) we continued on to Ellis Island. We couldn't find any ancestors who had landed there, but it was an interesting visit anyway. While in line, we also met a nice couple from France and had a good conversation in French. Back we went to Battery Park on Manhattan, found Mike's knife, and headed to the subway. In the station, we had an interesting conversation with two NYPD officers. I was incredulous to find that their starting salary is only $25,000. Officers start here at more than $40,000 and our cost of living is much, much less. They told us that houses in places like Staten Island start at $500,000. And that's not Manhattan--things there cost a lot more.........
to be continued.

2007-07-10T18:21:00.000-07:00

I had never thought of keeping a journal of what happens in class. I often think about what worked (or didn't) but I never thought of writing it down. This is a great idea! (perhaps something else to use this blog for). I can see that taking notes on each day's lessons will help me remember what went well and help me better evaluate how to improve my lessons. I had not considered myself a researcher, but now I will.

2007-07-09T17:06:00.000-07:00

I really appreciate the comment from "Letter" in which the author states that "significant expertise resides in the hands of K-12 teachers. I am convinced that this is absolutely true. Teachers have wonderful insight and ideas on how to reach their students. That is one reason I am so grateful to be a part of this writing project.

The author also talks about the Quarterly as a place for teachers to share their expertise. I look forward to reading the comments of other teachers and gleaning ideas to use in my classroom.

I was especially struck by the comment that teachers who want to understand how to teach writing must write. I do write--quite a lot--but I have not usually written the assignments I give to my students. I plan to begin doing that this year and sharing my work with them.

In the "20 minutes" article, I was impressed with the author's assertion that students are becoming more fluent. Our work appears to be paying off. However, as he says, we must now work on moving students from generalized, rather vague writing, to specific, clear writing filled with examples and vivid images. In myAP classes, I work to help my students analyze rhetoric. They want to stay with the generalized, "The author repeated this statement to emphasize its importance" kind of writing, and I am continually trying to move them further, to get them to explain not only what the author did, but why it worked (or did not work) and what effect it created for the reader. I want them to grasp the author's purpose in writing and then see how the author uses language to create the meaning. This is high level thinking, difficult to do and difficult to teach.

I have also spent some time pondering two questions posed by these writers: Can you teach voice? and how can a teacher work successfully with a student whose ideas violate her values? I have contemplated both before and I have some ideas, but no definitive answers. I also found a question that I may research. I'm wondering how the teaching of vocabulary impacts writing. Does teaching vocabulary improve writing? What methods work best? I'm very curious because many of my students have fairly limited vocabularies and they struggle with some of the very sophisticated writing that we read simply because they do not know the words.

Starting Graduate Work

2007-07-09T10:30:00.000-07:00

So, today I'm in my first session of the National Writing Project. This is my first graduate level work and I'm excited to learn.