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Never having seen before the video on the Lost Boys of the Sudan
I was moved tremendously. As a matter of fact I was even oblivious
to the tragedies that occurred.

The poor boys that lost everything in a blink of an eye, but managed
to stay together...united in the face of fear, heartache and suffering.
The atrocities that they endured should never be, least of all by children! 
They were so brave!

One of the most surprising things about their story is that they endured
five years of suffering. The second, is that where ever they went, they 
were unwelcome and chased out! No one helped those young boys! 
Third, is that the human spirit is so with-standing and strong. 
Despite all their hardships, they were able to continue on, 
because surely God was with them!

If they had been in my class, I would have made sure that they had a nice
and secure home with a loving family. I would have tried to gain their trust 
first by welcoming them to my classroom and helping them feel part of my class. 
I would have made them feel valued and cared. I would have tried to initiate a
support system for them within the school with a guidance counselor and
social worker to help aid them emotionally and mentally. But most of all I would 
have started very slow with them to try to get them adjusted first with being
surrounded by four walls and a roof over their head...

Basically, I would have done what I would hope many teachers did for them 
upon coming to the United States, a listening ear, a facilitator of ideas 
and a caring heart.

The Family Stories That Bind Us 

I thought the article to be inspiring and very true, especially within my own family. The more a person is aware of the family history, the more able they are to with-stand trials and tribulations throughout their lives. Just as Dr. Dikes wife, Sarah said' “The ones who know a lot about their families tend to do better when they face challenges.” The study proved that the more they knew about their own family's struggles the stronger they were emotionally, which I feel to agree with their findings. Especially, when they found children to have a stronger sense of control over their own lives and that they were able to face challenges.
I believe the findings to be true because I used myself as the example; after an infidelity within my marriage,  I divorced my husband. Knowing that my grandmother had faced the same circumstance when she was younger, gave me courage to continue with my life. I figured if she had been able to continue raising her eight children, a midst a civil war, why couldn't I? And so began my own challenges, but there was a new found courage within me that had not been there before. Feeling brave came from knowing what my family had gone through, and realizing that I could also come out stronger, because I knew I had a strong support system! If then, children are made aware o their family's own struggles and how they overcome them, they too could develop self-confidence.
For my classroom I would try to devise a meet-greet for my students and their family's. A get-together for all to meet one another, learn about each others backgrounds, traditions and struggles faced in the United States. It would be held once a month and it would supplement parents with information about resources within the community that could assist them, information on how to best communicate with their children, advise them of what is expected of them and their children within a school setting and a place where they could make connections with their children, teachers and their community.

For more information (Twenty questions asked for the study): http://www.huffingtonpost.com/marshall-p-duke/the-stories-that-bind-us-_b_2918975.html

Shelley Duvall's Bedtime Stories - Little Toot and the Loch Ness Monster

I barely  remember long when there were television broadcasting stories such as the "Little Toot and the Loch Ness Monster." They were entertaining as well as informative. They retold stories of ancient myths full of purpose and from different traditions. These stories taught children extended vocabulary which could improve verbal communication. In comparison to many cartoons on television today, the classics were much better.

The story though, was interesting. I reminded me of the "American Dream," and how people in search for a better future venture out to unknown lands and how brave they must be. Just like the little riverboat, they too have dreams and regardless of how scary a new place might be, or how cruel these new places are to them, they find it within themselves to fight through. As immigrants reach a new and foreign destinations, they encounter so much adversity. 

These kinds of stories are great for children, especially those who might be ELL's, because they could empathize with struggles and adversities in and out of school.

American Dream

Why come to America? Most of the stories within the video resembled most of my own family's experiences.  And like most family's whom leave home to come to America, they left behind homes, friends and families. The unthinkable struggles and hardships endured both on their way to and already in the United States can baffle anyone. Yet, many left their home countries in search of a better life and future.
Mystery of Ancestry: It was so intriguing to see the family lineages traced to so long ago. The most interesting story was that of Steven Colbert's great-grandmother who arrived in New York city a midst the Civil War Riots. Any person to withstand such adversity should be awed!
Assimilation and Acceptance: The story of Christy Yamaguchi's grand-father was inspiring. He not only immigrated form Japan, but also from Hawaii, in search of prosperity  Yet, like so many immigrants before him and after, acceptance was difficult to obtain if ever. He endured much discrimination, just as many Latino's do today. My family and even I, myself have also encountered racism. Which, as we all know, is ironic because those who discriminate have ancestors whom once immigrated to America. With any hope, things will all change one day for the better. Hopefully, we can all learn to think of ourselves as many different people but, as one!

Meryl Streep said it best "I think they were very brave, or what they were leaving was so tough, that they needed to come for a new chance!"

A Class Divided. (Video for the 3rd Blog Entry)

The effects of the experiment on the children was a very interesting one. It demonstrated to children what it was like to "be" different. Although, all the children were Caucasian  they were separated by the color of their eyes (blue and brown). This caused obvious pain and discomfort to those children who were thought of as inferior, while the other group felt superior. They were able to witness and "feel" discrimination within a school setting, in which they had never experienced before. Their reactions were so strong that their academics began to delineate because of their own feelings of inferiority.

Seeing their reactions made me empathize with them at some points. Being of Latin descent, I have felt my own moments of rejection and discrimination. Feeling different is neither a pleasant or welcoming feeling, one feels; alienated, belittled and even worthless. And seeing these children undergo these exact feelings, made me feel bad for them. As a mother I would not want my children to ever experience those feelings. Yet, it was truly a remarkable experiment!

After, about 20 years these children were reunited and gave great accounts to how they had felt when taking part in the experiment. They explained how the experiment was a turning point in their lives, because they were able to feel how minority people feel. Yet, their accounts were positive one's in which they learned to "see" and believe that everyone is created equal. I think they learned a really valuable lesson, one that they would not have been able to learn without that experiment.

I believe that it was an extraordinary experience to conduct for the children and the teacher. Especially, at a time were segregation was more apparent. I do not know if I would rein-act that experiment now within classrooms today...partly because of the restrictions already placed on educational facilities as they are today. Perhaps, we should begin with administration, and then with teachers. If then, the majority rules in favor, then it could be done within classes. Of course if this experiment were to be taken on, it should be done very carefully and tactfully, just as the teacher in the video did. Overall, I think that everyone could learn something from just watching this video. 

Multiculturalism in Schools

Having been raised within a Latin culture, I can identify with many people from similar upbringings. Although, my own parents where immigrants to this country they adapted the American view on education. My parents valued education tremendously, to such an extant that they matriculated my sister and I into private schools. Yet, other families did not feel the same way. The video on "Multicultural manners in school how does the priority of education differ among cultures?" does point out a very important fact within many Latin cultures, in that a families' livelihood is extremely important. Whereas education is not viewed nearly as important. Perhaps this is due primarily to the vast majority of the population in many Latin countries to be in poverty. And they are the ones to migrate to America searching for a more prosperous future. Therefore it is essential to know and understand these differences, especially in our classrooms, no matter how frustrating they may be. We need to have our students best interests at heart and help them succeed as much as they are able and allowed to. 

Below I have added a link to a You Tube video on immigrant parents and their struggles.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4CQ61S10QrM


Manners and Body Language


Most of our communication is made through our bodies. So, being able to read and understand messages can be a difficult thing to do. Especially, with people from varying cultures. Gestures, facial expressions and/or body movements could cause confusion in both directions.  Therefore, being informed about different customs and traditions is ever so critical. Otherwise, we run the risk of misunderstanding the messages that are trying to be conveyed to us, primarily form our ELL's students. 
Words of course could also be misunderstood cross-culturally. The video "Manners and Verbal
 Expressions across Cultures " made light of many things that a person might do that might be 
taken the wrong way. For example, an Asian student might reply "yes" when being asked if they
 understood everything a teacher was saying. But in actually they did not, yet, they did not 
answer truthfully as to not offend the teacher. Hence, we have to learn and adapt sometimes to
 our students and find other ways in which to present ideas, comments or information to them.

*An interesting website that I found on how to read someone's body language...note this might
 primarily pertain to North America



http://www.wikihow.com/Read-Body-Language

513: "Native American Indian Children Boarding Schools Cherokee Carlisle"

 

A horrible story in human history...one of many. Unfortunately, stories like that of the "Native American Indian Children" were not rare in  "American" history. Usually the dominant people; "White" men, took control of new lands and conquered it's people. A story all to common. Within this story, the "White" men did the same, but now there was an added insult to injury...they wanted the natives children! It was not enough that they had the natives land....they had to go after what and "who" was ever so precious to them. An injustice that was unwarranted and went unpunished. Children were stolen and never returned to their parents. To think of such an unfathomable act of cruelty...chills me to the bones! The worst of all is that no one did anything...it was done silently. Yet, the memories of these terrors live on within the Indian elders of today...All one can do is pray that they have somehow have found peace.

Best Day of My Life

            One of the best days of my life was when I had my first born daughter Natalia. I had always wanted to have a child since the age of seventeen. I remember yearning to have a little baby cradled in my arms, and to have it look back at me, ever so lovingly. Yet, it was seven years after that first maternal instinct kicked in, that I decided that I was truly ready to have a child.

            I was “fortunate” to have the healthy symptoms; feeling nauseous all day, sleepiness to no end, oh and yes the constant throwing-up at all hours of the day. The doctor told me it was the hormones in my body telling me that the baby was healthy. I could’ve been told in some other way, a minor headache here or there or longer nails, healthy appetite, even larger breasts. All would have been very welcomed, all except the vomiting.

            Nine months after the fact of being miserable all-day-everyday, I was scheduled to have a c-section, due to my baby being breech. It was a cold November morning; it had snowed the week earlier, so snow still covered the ground. I was all ready to go; I had everything packed in my miniature suitcase. As I left the front door of my house, I remember feeling very anxious, and nervous and tired. I hadn’t much slept the night before, because I kept thinking about “D” day. It was a ride I had done hundreds of times before, it only took about 30 minutes to get to the hospital, but with my ex-husband it took only 15 minutes, yet it felt like 5 minutes. Before I knew it we were in the hospital filling out some last minute paperwork. My heart pounded so hard, that I felt as if though it was going to pop out of my chest, my hands were sweaty, my throat was dry and I had shivers going all down my spine. I said to myself that I wasn’t ready, that I wasn’t feeling well that day, that perhaps we should wait a day or two. I confided these thoughts to my then husband, and said “Maybe we should come back tomorrow instead?” He looked at me for a split second and simply replied “no.” Automatically, I thought “darn it, I thought he would he was going to say okay!”

            It was now or never. I got hooked up to the IV, an hour later I received a shot to numb the entire bottom half of my body and then when it finally kicked in,  away we went to the operating room. I remember seeing nothing but white lights, and felt ever so cold…didn’t they carry blankets in this place? If I had thought that my chest was pounding before, that was surely nothing compared to that very moment!

Doctors were all around me, as well as nurses, and my husband was there at my side too. I felt suddenly a tugging sensation, and I felt as though I was being rocked back and forth, I couldn’t see anything because a sheet was covering the view of my stomach. Then I heard a loud shriek, it was my baby girls first cry! Just then, I felt my heart stop! That was until the face of my little Natalia. She was so little, her eyes were still shut, and she was covered in a blanket and carried a pink little hat on her small head. She was beautiful; it was love at first sight! 

My daughter weighed 7 pounds, 3 ounces and measured 21 inches. She had a full set of thin, soft black hair and she smelled…well, like a baby. Four years later, I had another best day of my life…the day my youngest daughter Abigail was born.

Vocabulary

yearning: an instance of such longing.

fortunate: having good fortune; receiving good from uncertain or unexpected sources; lucky.

nauseous: causing nausea;  sickening; nauseating.

hormones: A chemical substance secreted by an endocrine gland or group of endocrine cells that acts to control or regulatespecific physiological processes, including growth,metabolism, and reproduction.

breech: a baby whose buttocks or feet are presented first during the birth process.

shivers: to shake or tremble with cold, fear, excitement, etc.

automatically: occurring spontaneously.

IV: an intravenous device for delivering electrolyte solutions,medicines, and nutrients.

shriek: a loud, sharp, shrill cry.

Vocabulary Exercise:

Great game to practice your vocabulary with the class!!!

Vocab Pyramid:

Put however the eight vocab words in a pyramid and number the pyramid blocks. Students are set up in pods so they go up four at a time (two guess, while the other 2 describe). They start with block one and begin making attempts to get their teammates to say the correct word by giving them clues (definitions or words related to). Once they get a block correct they move to the next block. They get 1 minute and 30 seconds to get as many as possible (that's with an 8 word vocab list). They are permitted to pass a word if they get stuck and they can come back to it. Hope you enjoy playing! For more vocabulary ideas visit:

http://www.proteacher.org/c/694_Vocabulary_Lesson_Ideas.html

Grammar Point

An article is a kind of adjective which is always used with and gives some information about a noun. There are only two articles a and the, but they are used very often and are important for using English accurately.

  The word a (which becomes an when the next word begins with a vowel - a, e, i, o, u) is called the indefinite article because the noun it goes with is indefinite or general. The meaning of the article a is similar to the number one, but one is stronger and gives more emphasis. It is possible to say I have a book or I have one book, but the second sententence emphasizes that I do not have two or three or some other number of books.

  The word the is known as the definite article and indicates a specific thing. The difference between the sentences I sat on a chair and I sat on the chair is that the second sentence refers to a particular, specific chair, not just any chair.

  Many nouns, especially singular forms of countable nouns which you will learn about later, must have an article. In English, it is not possible to say I sat on chair without an article, but a demonstrative or possessive adjective can be used instead of an article as in the sentences I sat on that chair and I sat on his chair.

For More rules on Grammar visit: http://eslus.com/LESSONS/GRAMMAR/POS/pos9.htm

Grammar Exercise

Fill in the article >a<, >an< or >the< where necessary. Choose >x< where no article is used.

1) I like a an the x blue T-shirt over there better than a an the x red one. 2) Their car does 150 miles a an the x hour. 3) Where's a an the x USB drive I lent you last week? 4) Do you still live in a an the x Bristol? 5) Is your mother working in a an the x old office building? 6) Carol's father works as a an the x electrician. 7) The tomatoes are 99 pence a an the x kilo. 8) What do you usually have for a an the x breakfast? 9) Ben has a an the x terrible headache. 10) After this tour you have a an the x whole afternoon free to explore the city. For More exercises or other grammar points visit:  http://www.englisch-hilfen.de/en/exercises/nouns_articles/a_the.htm

Okay, so I was reading an article in the Huffington Post, and it read "Turning 30: 30 Things Every Woman Should Have and Should Know." It was an interesting article to say the least, it made me think and analyze if in fact I, being over 30, had and should know. It gave certain things that a woman should have like; a decent piece of furniture (all your own, not borrowed or given to you), a purse, suitcase, umbrella that you shouldn't be embarrassed to carry, a youth you're content to move beyond, and something ridiculously expensive that you bought for yourself because you deserve it (just to name a few). Then it gave certain things that you should know, like; how to fall in love without loosing yourself, when to try harder and when to walk away, how to live by yourself, even if you don't like to, and what you would and wouldn't do for money or love. I am glad to say that I definitely had most items and knew most things!!!! Take a look at the complete article for more details, and I am certain that you too, will have accomplished most, if not all!


Read more at: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/04/24/turning-30-30-things-every-woman-should-have-and-should-know_n_1447368.html?ref=women

Vocabulary:

analyze: to separate (a material or abstract entity) into constituent parts or elements; determine the elements or essential features of ( opposed to synthesize).
certain: destined; sure to happen (usually followed by an infinitive).
decent: conforming to the recognized standard of propriety, good taste, modesty, etc., as in behavior or speech.
embarrassed: to cause confusion and shame to; make uncomfortably self-conscious.
content: satisfied with what one is or has; not wanting more or anything else.
ridiculously: causing or worthy of ridicule  or derision; absurd; preposterous;laughable.
deserve: to merit, be qualified for, or have a claim to (reward,assistance, punishment, etc.) because of actions, qualities,or situation.
definitely: in a definite  manner; unambiguously. Also, unequivocally; positively.
accomplished: completed; done; effected.

Vocabulary Exercise:

With the vocabulary words listed above, try and compose (make) poem your own poem. The words you use do not have to rhyme. Be as creative as you want, and any topic, so as long as you use the words atop.

Grammar:

Prefixes and Suffixes definitions:
English words can consist of three parts: a prefix and a suffix. The root is the part of the word that contains the basic meaning (definition) of the word. A prefix is a word element that is placed in front of a root. A prefix changes the word's meaning or makes a new word. A suffix is a word element that is placed after the root. The suffix changes the word's meaning as well as its function (use).



COMMON PREFIXES AND SUFFIXES


Prefixes (Before the Root Word)
pre-  before (prepare, predict)
re-  again, go back (redo, reread)
un-  not, the opposite (unhappy, untrue)
Suffixes (After the Root Word)
-er  comparing 2 things (faster, stronger)
-es t  comparing more than 2 things (fastest, strongest)
-ful  to be full of, having a lot (helpful, careful)
-les s  none, without (homeless, helpless)

Grammar Exercise:

Purchase a checkers board (Wal-Mart) and place velcro on the black squares on the game board. Print, laminate, and cut on the following squares on the above template and place corresponding velcro pieces on the back. Place the words with prefixes and suffixes in random order on the game board. Each time a player moves a checker they must say the prefix or suffix, read the word, and explain what it means. (The template "Common Prefixes/Suffixes" from above can help children as they are playing this game).

"Everything that irritates us about

others can lead us to a better understanding of ourselves."

- Carl Jung

I recently read a column in "allAfrica.com" about the importance of knowing one's self and knowing others when taking on a leadership role. If we understand our own personality, it could then make our perceptions clearer and therefore, our opinions more sensible. The article spoke about how significant it is to truly know ourselves: what we are like and why we are that particular way. The unknown author went on to discuss that our temperament is an inborn trait derived from our genes like our race and ethnicity. This in-turn affects our behavior, our personality (the face we show to others), and our character, which is consequential of the way we were brought up.

Vocabulary:

personality: the visible aspect of one's character as it impresses others:He has a pleasing personality.
perceptions: the act or faculty of apprehending by means of the sensesor of the mind; cognition; understanding.
sensible: having, using, or showing good sense  or sound judgment: a sensible young woman.
significant: important; of consequence.
temperament: the combination of mental, physical, and emotional traits of a person; natural predisposition.
trait: a distinguishing characteristic or quality, especially of one's personal nature: bad traits of character.
genes: A portion of a DNA molecule that serves as the basic unit of heredity. Genes control the characteristics that an offspring willhave by transmitting information in the sequence of nucleotides on short sections of DNA.

Vocabulary Exercise:

unscramble the words at the bottom:


1. senge
2. artit
3. besinsle
4. tanoreliysp
5. sonitceeprp
6. canstignitfi
7. pamertentm

Grammar:

Definition: Adjectives are words that describe or modify another person or thing in the sentence. The articles — a, an, and the — are adjectives.

• the tall professor
• the lugubrious lieutenant
• a solid commitment
• a month's pay
• a six-year-old child
• the unhappiest, richest man

Grammar Exercise:

Circle the adjective in each sentence.  Then, tell what noun the adjective is describing.

Example:  The green alien walked out of the spaceship.

(The adjective green describes the alien).

  1. The shiny spaceship landed in my yard.

The adjective ____________ describes _________________.

  2. An alien with big eyes walked out of the ship.

The adjective ____________ describes _________________.

  3. It waved its tiny hand in the air.

The adjective ____________ describes _________________.

  4. The alien said, “Earth is such a beautiful planet.”

The adjective ____________ describes _________________.

  5.  A brown rabbit hopped into the yard and scared the alien.

The adjective ____________ describes _________________.

To read more about the article mentioned above on leadership qualities, go to:http://allafrica.com/stories/201204020067.html

To "Test Which Disney Princess You Are," visit this site (I did it, and it was very accurate-I am Cinderella/ LOL!): http://disney.go.com/games/play3/?content=204062