W5- Inspiration

“What this world needs is a new kind of army – the army of the kind”.  ~Cleveland Amory

I believe that kindness is so important today, and it is something that I stress to my students and my little guy regularly.  Being kind to someone is easy to do, the opportunities are endless, and it makes such a big difference someone’s day…there is no good reason not to be kind to others.  Here are a few kindness ideas that you can do or suggest to those in your life to add a little extra sunshine into this world!

*Offer a couple hours of free babysitting to parents

*Donate used books to a library

*Give carepacks to the homeless (can be as simple as a toothbrush/toothpaste, protein bar, bottle of water…something you can have in your car at the ready)

*Help someone with yard work

*Help an elderly person with their groceries

*Hold the door open for the people behind you

*Let someone go in line in front of you

*If someone needs to get into your lane, patiently allow them to go in front of you

*Mentor an at-risk child or teen

*Volunteer (soup kitchen, animal shelter, convalescent home)

*Read to the elderly or to a child

*Return a shopping cart

*Write a letter to someone who made a difference in your life

*If you received excellent service, find out the person’s name and make it a point to tell the manager about his/her awesome customer service

*Pick up trash

*Say good morning

*Send flowers

*collect canned food for a food bank

*cook a meal for someone

*donate blood

*Genuinely ask someone how they are and look them in the eye when they respond, show you care

*introduce yourself to a new co-worker/classmate

*Bring your co-workers/neighbors a special treat…just because

*Be a friend who listens or be a shoulder to cry on

*Give someone one a hug

*Smile

There are so many ways to spread kindness and these are just a few…Think about all the small ways you can make huge impacts.  Being kind is it’s own reward, but humble yourself to know that there will be a time when you could use some extra kindness in your life.  I believe you get out of life what you put into it…and by being kind to others you in turn will reap the benefits of another person’s kindness as well!

W5- Teaching

OSS Here they come!

Today my sixth graders went to Outdoor Science School!!!  I wasn’t even going, but I was sooo excited for them…more excited then I remember being when I myself went to Outdoor Ed.  For Monday and Tuesday, I will be staying behind to teach the students who didn’t end up going to OSS, and then the rest of the week they will go to another class.  I do however get to go visit them Wednesday, along with the principal and my partner’s student teacher. I can’t wait, it will be awesome!!! If I get to come back as a a FT 6th grade teacher, fingers crossed…then I will get to go to OSS with my students, that’s a whole week.  I would miss my boys, but what an experience!  Going camping with your students, being a part of this new adventure and memorable life experience with them, connecting with them on a deeper level than you could when it is just classroom activities…I really love my job.  I really really feel so grateful to be here, at this school and learning what I am learning and experiencing what I am experiening…Sure there are challenging aspects to this job, but I wouldn’t change careers for anything!

I know it’s a luxury getting to love your job, most people work to earn money, they don’t necessarily love their jobs but they can tolerate them enough…and it serves a purpose of bringing home “the bacon.” I know that my journey towards becoming a FT teacher hasn’t been easy, and the financial part is still not where I need it to be…but I figure that eventually it will come…My hubby tolerates his job so I get to love my job, and for that I am so thankful.

***Wednesday I went to OSS and visited my sixth graders!  It was such a fun day, I really had fun and was so proud of how great they were…these kids are very special to me, and it was awesome getting to share in their sixth grade OSS experience!

Me…Classic eyes closed, but hey…I didn’t really have ones without students and for their privacy I didn’t want to put them on a blog…

Teaching Buddies!

W5-Spirituality

GOD is good.

 

That is everything and all that I need to say.  I am blessed.

W4- Health and Fitness

I felt much better this week, still have a lingering cough but nothing compared to what I felt like last week.  That said, you’d think my energy levels would have been higher and the desire to excercise would have been bigger…not the case.  I excercised a little, but it was weak…barely broke a sweat either time and didn’t push myself hard at all.  I keep hoping that the feeling inside me will just happen, and it won’t be so much effort and me needing to remind myself of how important it is and how I should be doing more…So, I started thinking about what motivated me in the past to be active and stay physically fit. 

When I had my office job I would walk stairs and walk during lunch or a couple times a day to keep me awake…Now though I am always working through lunch, making copies, grading papers, checking emails…that won’t work…Originally I thought to do yoga in the morning, but I like to sleep in and waking up earlier than I already do, which is 5:45 am, is just too early in my book.  So…back to before, what did I do in the past….

I ran.  I signed up for a 5k marathon and make a year goal of running a 5k, 10k, half marathon, and full marathon…I didn’t finish it out…I stopped after the 10k…no real good reason other than I had left to visit my Mom in HI and after coming home I couldn’t get back into the groove…so….I was thinking.  I could try and finish that previous goal.  I will register to run a half marathon and full marathon for the year of 2012.  I looked into events and there is the OC Marathon in May, which gives me a little over 3 full months to train for a 13.1 run.  The race is kind of pricey, so I am going to think of a creative way to earn money for it…but the benefit is…and again, the extra positive side is that all the money goes towards local charity groups.  I would be doing something good for my body, but also good for the community.  I can make a big deal about it to my students, and maybe figure out if the school wanted to form a running club…or at least figure out as a class if we could log a set number of miles…haven’t thought it all out yet, but I am getting excited just thinking about it…

So that will be my new focus for health and fitness.  I know myself well enough to know that if I don’t make my goals measurable, just saying excercise each week…I won’t really push myself.  So my new goal is to walk/run 13.1 miles a week.  Whether that is spread out over many days or if I push myself really hard 2 days. Tomorrow I will begin my new plan and write about it next Saturday.  I really want this, I really want to get back into doing something and feeling those good feelings that come with being active and fit.

If you are like me and are having a hard time getting going, I encourage you to do what I am doing…find a marathon in your area and make it a goal, if you need me to, I will encourage you and be your accountability buddy.

OC Marathon, here I come!!!

W4- Family Fun

So…One of the perks of my job is that I work Monday and Tuesday, and then the other days I get to choose if I want to substitute (which is usually every chance I get, but still I have a little bit of flexibility).   This week I ended up being me and then my partner as her sub on Thursday and Friday…That left Wednesday available to take a random sub job or simply take the day off.  I decided to do that later, as did my little guy…Wednesday’s are “early out” days because teachers have collaboration meetings/staff meetings and so on, so with our district, school ends at 12:30 on Wednesday.  I figured Charles could stay home and be “homeschooled” that day.  Knowing that we were staying home, Hubby decided he wanted to stay home too!  We all played hookie with our usual roles and took the day to hang out and have family fun.  We went to Disneyland of course!

It was a lot of fun, and a beautiful day to spend at the park.  We took the monorail into Tomorrowland, and then took the train to New Orleans Square.  I had never been on that train and it was really nice!  It was so much fun having it be the 3 of us!  We went on Winnie the Pooh, Splash Mountain, Haunted Mansion, Pirates of the Caribbean, Go Gadget Coaster, Peter Pan’s Adventure, Snow White’s Adventure, and Roger Rabit.

Days like these are ones that Charles will look back on with fondness, heck…these are the moments I will look back on with fondness.  A lot of our family fun seems to be revolving around Disneyland, but that’s because Disneyland is a really great place and one that prior to our passes, we rarely went to.  Charles got a Disneyland book for his birthday and we were spewing off cool disney facts all day…Did you know that there are hidden Mickey’s on many of the rides?  Did you know that inside the Matterhorn is a basketball court and below Pirates of the Caribbean is the Disney Employee Cafeteria…and that above the main street fire station there is a 600 sq ft. apt that Walt would use for him and his family, and is still used today by corportate execs and special guests…

Have fun with your family…take time to laugh with each other, make jokes, tell stories, and be silly…Snuggle, hold hands, give kisses, and remind them how special they are to you!!!

 

W4- All Things Pretty: Trees

 

 

W4- mmm…mmm…good!

Hello!

Hubby and I were on a roll this week with our cooking! From Thursday to today we made lots of yummy things ranging from crock pot meals, family favorites, sweet treats, and fresh juice…Instead of lots of details to each food thing, I will list the food item and share a picture or a mini story…

Crock-Pot- Spanish Chicken Tacos

This was super easy…We had bought chicken (seasoned with Spanish seasoning) that was on sale and then froze it for a later date.  When we were ready to make it, we put it in the crock pot frozen, added a little salsa and water, and let it do its thing…After about 8 hours on low it was ready to shred (super easily) with a fork and put on tortillas with shredded cheese!  So easy and so tasty…Didn’t take picture, sorry!

Family Favorite-Ham and Beans with Fried Potatoes…Recipe passed down from Hubby’s Grandma to Mom to us…Thanks Mominlaw for the secret tricks with soaking the beans and the potatoes, they were soooo good…

This was very successful, and Hubby had seconds and ate the remaining leftovers the next night.  He was super impressed and there is something to be said about making a meal your hubby really likes, it made me feel a little bit like a domestic goddess! Here our the pictures…

white beans

 

soak beans in carbonated soda for about 8hrsrinse and drain

 

ham, slice into bite size pieces or whatever size you please...wash and peel potatoespour in vegetable oil and toss so all potatoes are covered with the oil

 Forgot to take pictures of cooking process…ham and beans go in big pot and cook for about 2 hours…Potatoes went in pan, which was coated with oil, and cooked for roughly 35 minutes, turning regularly…

final picture...

 

Dessert- Semi-Homemade Chocolate cake…it’s from a box and already made frosting, but I still put it all together, so it’s better than buying an already made cake…I count this as following a recipe…

Fresh Juice and Oatmeal for breakfast…

Crock Pot-Pot Roast (I’ll be honest, Hubby made this and it was delicious)

Hope you enjoyed…now go make yourself something yummy!

W4- Inspiration

“There are many little ways to enlarge your child’s world. Love of books is the best of all.” Jacqueline Kennedy

I truly believe that reading to children has a profound effect on their education and their outlook on life in general.  By reading to them early on, you can set the tone for appreciating books, and inspiring them to find interest in written word.  I remember when Charles was just a baby, I would read to him out of my college textbooks. I needed to read, and he benefitted from hearing my voice and listening to new words…He didn’t realize it when he was little, but by reading aloud to him, we were helping him build his vocabulary, as well as instilling in him a love of reading.

Here is a short list of some of my all time favorite childrens books:

The Giving Tree by Shel Silverstein

The Missing Piece by Shel Silverstein

Big Words for Little People by Jamie Lee Curtis

Oh The Places You’ll go by Dr. Seuss

Love You Forever by Robert Munsch

Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day by Judith Viorst

Whoever You Are by Mem Fox

Walter the Farting Dog series

The Loveables in the Kingdom of Self Esteem

Ok…the list is going to get very long if I keep going…maybe I will add to it when I do a “pretty things” list…because books are so very pretty! What can I say, I love books…especially children’s picture books.  One of my favorite places to go is the public library!  There are so many beautiful books calling for me to come and read them. I can check out dozens if my heart so desires and it’s free!!! One of my favorite aspects of teaching first grade last year was all the read alouds.  With my sixth graders, I don’t really read picture books, maybe I should incorporate it though once in awhile. I know they love listening to stories and looking at the pretty illustrations. Time is just always ticking away so quickly…but that’s a topic for another blog. So read to your little ones or your grandkiddos…they will love it and so will you!!!

Happy Reading!!!

W4- Teaching

Last week I talked about implementing a new behavioral strategy that my mentor had encouraged me to try out in the hopes that I can manage my sixth graders more effectively.  I must tell you, it seems to be working very well! 

To refresh your memory, what I do is express my expectations clearly, make sure they know what I want them to be doing and that it needs to be quiet…then if they talk or mess around, I write their name on the board…if they attempt to argue/defend themselves, a check goes by their name…if they don’t stay quiet or I have to talk to them again about getting on task, that too warrants a check mark…The checks mean they lose recess, which is huge to them.  On the reward side, I give out tickets which earn them dollars for the school store, raffle for a monthly lunch with the teachers (McDonalds so it’s pretty exciting for them), candy, table points, and then of course plenty of plenty verbal praises…

So, I decided again, with the suggestion from my mentor, to add one more element to this new behavior strategy.  The name/consequences are for the individuals that wear on me, that frustrate me because they take the attention away from the learning and make me waste time discipling…but there are also so many great kiddos and I want the class to go smooth…so…I am also rewarding the class with a classwide reward…I will spell out the word “SURPRISE,” one letter at a time…It’s reserved for those moments after I make my expectations clear and they then DO what I ask…consistently…Today they are at S, and tomorrow I plan to catch them a few more times so they can see how much I appreciate their good behavior…

The surprise will need to be educational, I am trying to think of something good…where I can tie in one of the content standards…After today’s rainy day lunch with the kids eating/playing inside, I realized how much they love games…So maybe after they spell out surprise, I can save the last 15-20 minutes of that day and play math bingo or scrabble or put out a few educational games and play fun music in the background…

I am excited for tomorrow, it’s always a good sign when you look forward to the next teaching day where you can focus on catching kiddos being good…it’s nice…and I really do feel lucky getting to work with these young scholars!

Now, off to read to my own little guy, then grade essays…sweet dreams!

 

The Lords Prayer

Our Father, who art in heaven,
Hallowed be thy Name.
Thy kingdom come.
Thy will be done,
On earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our trespasses,
As we forgive those who trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation,
But deliver us from evil.
For thine is the kingdom,
and the power,
and the glory,
for ever and ever.

Amen.

As a youth, I remember saying this prayer weekly…I always liked this part in church because we would hold hands as we said it, and then after, shake hands/hug those around us and say “Peace be with you.” It was my favorite part of church, outside of the singing.  I have to admit however, that this prayer was more of a memorized speech than sacred and touching words…it wasn’t so much a plea to God to help me actually do these things, but rather a bunch of lines in a particular order that I could repeat without even thinking about it…I was missing the point big time and now as an adult, this prayer has so much more meaning and importance than ever before.  To me, when I say this poem, I am literally talking/asking God to remind me that it isn’t about what I want, but his will for me…to help me stay grounded in what is good and not get caught up in evil or wrong doings…

**Here is a breakdown that I found that helps explain it line by line…I like it and hope that when/if you pray this prayer that it is filled with meaning and conviction…

“Our Father” – God wants us to approach Him as “Daddy” (Aramaic: Abba). Jesus takes care of us and protects us. God desires intimacy. Remember, He has infinite love and grace. Jesus wants us to be secure in His family as adopted children and heirs.

“Which Art in Heaven” — Look up to God. Fear Him and revere Him. He is all-powerful and can deal with all our problems, even the big ones. But He loves us so much that He doesn’t stay up there.

“Hallowed be Thy Name” — Holy, holy, holy. Approach Jesus with awe and wonder. Save the word “awesome” for God. Live a life that honors Him.

“Thy Kingdom Come” – “Take this job and love it!” The best job in the world is working for the Lord. Bloom where you’re planted. Do everything as unto the Lord. Find your gifts and use them. Be open to what Jesus has for you.

“Thy Will Be Done” – Jesus Christ is the potter; we are the clay. Jesus keeps us spinning on His potter’s wheel, shaping and reshaping us as He bathes our lives in tears to make us more Christ-like so He can use us for His will. Surrender daily. Keep your clay moist through daily prayer.

“On Earth as it is in Heaven” — Thy will be done – not my will be done!

“Give Us This Day Our Daily Bread” – Trust! Jesus will provide for our needs. His eye is on the sparrow and I know He cares for me.

“Forgive Us Our Debts as We Forgive Our Debtors” — Forgiveness = Surrender. Don’t carry your own luggage – surrender it to Him. Revealing the feeling is the beginning of healing. Act as if you have forgiven and the feeling will follow. In our weakness, God sends His strength and peace.

“Lead Us Not Into Temptation” – Watch for unrecognized temptation. Pray, so you won’t fall. We are tempted every day. It deepens our walk and strengthens our faith – but be careful of spiritual blindness. Open my eyes, Lord, to my blind spots – use honest friends and family.

“Deliver Us From Evil” — The Evil One, Satan. We are saved from death to life. Jesus is more powerful than Satan – God is greater!

“For Thine Is the Kingdom (obedience), and the Power (confidence) and the Glory (joy),Forever” — This is our Father’s world. Everything we have is His. He is the ruler!

 

Peace and Love Friends, may this week be filled with meaning, good intentions and Love…