This is a Terrible Day

Sitting home waiting for PSE&G to come. Thermostat is broken and I'm freezing. Hope someone comes soon. Still haven't left house to get the papers. What sort of day is this going to be. Listed to First Baptist streaming and that was very uplifting.

The Lost Boys

Intersting article in the NYT Sunday on why boys don't read. I've sent it out to a few people and I'm waiting to hear their response to it. Heard an interesting discussion on NPR about education gap. Angel L. Harris at Princeton was on with Diane Ravitch. NYT also did a review of Steven Brill's new book on education.

End of the School Year

I've made it to the end of another school year. Different school, different priorities. Have a lot of work to complete over the summer. But I'm looking forward to enjoying myself staying grounded and close to the church. Have to think through the direction I have to take in the classroom. Hope the Rutgers workshop will help. Need to establish new network of support because you can't get everything you need from school. New challenge is to learn chess well enough to teach it.

Teachers Convention

Will be leaving early this morning for Atlantic City and the Teachers Convention. Hope to have some interesting workshops. I have already planned out my schedule. Want to have time to go to the Tech Lounge and talk about blogging and Power Point presentations. Want to get information on teachers using podcasting in the classroom. Hope things are exciting.

Hurdles of Instruction

I'm starting to get into the center of instruction now. I have been working with Read Aloud/Think Aloud and comprehension with below level readers. Answering compare and contrast questions and also inferencing. There seems to be a huge block with them. Even when I take my time and scaffold carefully they have trouble taking one step on the bridge to pass onto understanding of the question. It is immensely frustrating. You point out the passage with the answer. You asked them to read the passage and they read right pass the answer not even recognizing it! Comprehension is a juggling act; you have to take a question hold it in your mind and don't drop it. Then move onto a text and find a building that block or lego that fits; then return to the text or a corresponding story or new text and find the next facet that answers the questions. My lower level readers are not holding the question in their head or not understanding the question so how can you expect them to answer the question when they don't know what to look for.

4th of July Weekend

Spent this holiday weekend in Bowie. Had a wonderful time. We bought blue crabs at the market and made a crab boil that everyone enjoyed. Thinking about school and hoping to get some rest during this vacation.

It's Been Jazz All Along

This past week is Miles Davis would of been 84 years old. That lead me to YouTube and some videos of him playing with John Coltrance. Then I found Horace Silver "Song for My Father." Then there was Art Tatum and Oscar Peterson. I had to listen to Les McCann and Eddie Harris "Compare To What." Finally I went to Wes Montgomery, "A Day In The Life." This was it again the music I heard when I had no understanding of how powerful it all is. Something that you need in you and is meant to turn you around. Forever tall, like the pyramids ancient and cool like the Nile.