Wednesday, November 19, 2014
Tuesday, November 18, 2014
Tuesday, October 7, 2014
Our Super Teacher Booth, Decorating With Mini Chalkboards and Blue Pompoms + Lanterns
The last week of September was declared Education Week at the university which happens to be funny because October is officially International Teacher Appreciation Month. We took the time off and moved our activities from the classroom to the backfield.
I helped out the seniors with some booth designs and suggested to adapt the #superteacher theme. We also added more character with mini-chalkboards and created blue pompoms as well as blue and white Japanese lanterns. The result?- A floating haven of blue right in the side of a muddy backfield.
Juliet brought her ribbons with her and sold them at really affordable prices. To check out more of her creations, visit Jam's Ribbon on Facebook.
Like our blue pompoms? We just learned to do that a day before! Where did we learn it? From a tutorial on YouTube! (Sshh don't tell!)
Of course our friend Biboy also brought his blue and white Japanese garden lanterns which made quite a huge difference with the decor.
And what's a teacher's best tool for teaching? Enter chalkboards!
We used mini-chalkboards to tie it up to the Education theme.
You will never guess but this one is Pinterest inspired. We also used mini clothespins.
Finally, this is for all the #superteachers out there.
Did I mention that it was a contest? We won by the way.
I've been seeing a lot of these all over the place. You might want to do this too. Have a fabulous International Teacher Appreciation Month!
Monday, August 11, 2014
Teacher Wishes: Portable Speakers
There was a time when teachers
only needed chalk and blackboard to teach.
These days, the methods are as
diverse and a teacher has to engage a student’s interest in the best way
possible. This means that there should be varied teaching instruction such as using
multimedia and other forms of authentic instructional materials like art.
I enjoy introducing kids to music
and video that are appropriate for my class topics. Thus, for a big class of 45
Grade 8 students, I need some help when it comes to audio materials. This is
where portable speakers come in. It will help if I have audio and video files
to introduce to the students when there are new topics and lessons to discuss
and it will help to arouse their
interest as well.
Young learners are drawn to music
and videos and perhaps someday I can use these to make their learning
experiences more interactive.
Friday, July 25, 2014
Teacher Wishes: Teacher Stamps
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| Photo from Bee Happy Facebook |
Maybe it’s not only elementary
school teachers who should be investing in teacher stamps but also those teaching
in the seventh up to tenth grade. I don’t have teacher stamps but would
definitely appreciate them if they came my way.
I find that praising a student’s
work goes a long way. Simple things like “Good Job!” or “Checked” can actually
make a student feel special and it lets them know that you've read or gone
through their work. Just like anybody, students want to also hear feedback and
would want to improve on their performance when they have the chance.
As an ESL teacher, I give writing
prompts frequently and encounter the occasional misspelled words, grammatical
errors and misuse of punctuation and capitalization errors. However, seeing all
these corrections made by my red pen can feel discouraging. A mark or a stamp
that inspires my student may well change the impression and even give proper motivation.
What are your teacher wishes? Leave a comment below! Have a lovely weekend!
Friday, July 11, 2014
Teacher Fashion: Picks From Bad Teacher
Just some piece of advice,
although Cameron Diaz was hilarious in Bad Teacher, her behaviour as a teacher
is definitely not to be followed. However, even if the film was intended to be
for laughs, her style was indeed serious.
Not a lot of women teachers have
long legs and captivating eyes like Cameron’s, but we can definitely take some
notes! All throughout, she impersonates killer heels and sexy legs, punctuating
her character as a “bad teacher”, but there are a few wearable too.
The inspiration from her teacher
fashion that made the grade were sky high Loubotins, biker jackets and oh those
gorgeous legs.
Monday, July 7, 2014
The Dynamic Learning Program
The Dynamic Learning Program is
not a curriculum or a module but a teaching method tapping into students’
potentials. It was first conceptualized and implemented in a humble school
belonging to one of the poorest towns in the Philippines. Its president and
principal looked at the situation of the lack of teachers in a given field,
turning other expert teachers into facilitators and implementing parallel
classes.
Every Wednesday, students have a
recharge gap from classroom activities and the subjects of Music, Arts and
Physical Education as well as TLE are observed. The DLP focuses on components
like sciences, languages and maths, and all of the students’ works are
accounted for in a portfolio.
Students admit that it is a lot
of work but the rewards are worth it, having been consistently ranked at the
top percentiles of the most challenging academic entrance examinations in the country,
the UPCAT.
The DLP is an example of bridging
gaps in education and it is proof that even a small town school can make a
difference.
Sunday, June 29, 2014
These People Deserve To Be.... Part 2
B stopped schooling after she
gave birth to her son. She still wanted to finish her Education degree and thus
started selling food and even merchandise for a living. She sold makeup and
snacks to teachers and even fellow classmates. Whatever money she has, she
saves for paying off school fees apart from their food and daily expenses.
Every day she wakes up at 4 AM to
prepare food and get ready for uni. Next year she will have to make arrangements
with a neighbour to watch over her son because her evenings will be occupied as
she reviews for the teacher’s license examination, the cost of which she will
have to raise again.
Friday, June 27, 2014
These People Deserve To Be.... Part 1
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| Image Source |
These People
Deserve...
Three weeks into this internship
program and I’ve had the pleasure of knowing friends and a few people who have
their own reason of becoming teachers. There are others who have nothing better
to do with their time in university but there are three people who really
captured my respect and attention.
R is the eldest of five children
and stands as the man of his family. His mother is a laundry woman and together
they go door to door in their neighbourhood taking on jobs washing clothes. He leaves
his second sibling at home to watch over their younger brothers and sisters.
...To Be Teachers.
For R, his days consist of going
to school in the morning on a scholarship and enjoying free tuition and in the
afternoons he hurries home to assist his mother with laundry for their
neighbours. He signed up for an Education degree hoping to be a teacher
someday.
I wish for his dreams to come
true and I know he truly deserves to be a teacher someday. His sacrifices will
pay off now that he is in his senior year.
May you reach your dreams R.
Thursday, June 26, 2014
Modifying My Calling Card
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I have been a technical writer
and blogger for the last four years. After my journalism career, I pretty much
launched into it without any question. I love writing, I decided to make a
career out of it. So I thought, yeah, I could use the vintage typewriter to be my
icon on a calling card even though
- I don’t own a typewriter that’s vintage and
- Most of my writing is completed in front of a laptop
But I’ve done a little tweaking
and it looks better now. Besides, the important thing is to get people to ring
me when they see my calling card. So I’ve retained the typewriter icon but used
a vector image instead. Also, in the future I’m thinking of using an SQR code
that can be scanned using a smartphone and it will link directly to my site but
I still don’t know how that works.
It didn’t take a lot of work
though because I knew from the start what I wanted. This looks friendlier and
drives the message home.
Tuesday, June 24, 2014
For Education
I have weird tendencies when it
comes to note-taking, I rely on blue ink for highlighting passages and heading
when I read, then just black ink for writing notes.
So when I left my pens at home, I
couldn't face the end of it because my brain kept nagging me to get what I
needed.
So while falling in line to pay
for my pens, an elderly man in front of me was carrying about 20 thin, cheap
notebooks and two pencils. There were no rulers or erasers, not even crayons-
just 20 thin notebooks and a couple of pencils. I figured he was buying two of
his grandchildren these school supplies.
He had a 100-peso bill in his
hand and the cashier said the total is Php 120- he reached for 20 pesos. He
searched his pockets for an elusive 20 peso bill, it took him a good five
minutes until he finally found a bill deep in his pockets where his loose
change sat. After a good search, he produced it, paid and went on his way.
If he hadn’t found the missing
20, I was willing to reach out to him. But he was proud enough to pay for all
these goods himself.
From a distance, he had a
weathered face, wore old clothes and wore only slippers. But his gait was that
of a proud man having been able to bring home 20 notebooks and 2 pencils for
eager students. For education.
Monday, June 23, 2014
Teacher Problems and Quick Fixes
Part of a teacher’s job is to
prepare instructional materials and reports. Also, as an intern, there’s the
need to complete journals and scope and sequencing for each week. This means
that I have to submit these documentations to my supervising teacher for
approval.
The thing is, I am an independent
intern and rely on part time work to complete the program. I received a call
though about maintaining a blog and site for a local bakery and party factory
(just among one of my interests) and luckily I was able to submit my portfolio
for evaluation.
However, Friday last week my
printer started to act up.
I felt paralyzed and was
panicking over the weekend. I was desperate to get it fixed. In campus, some IT
companies lined up for the road show and even offered me brochures of competent
printers.
But I am an intern on a budget
and the most practical thing to do is send it for repairs.
After class, I brought my heavy
printer to the repair shop, left it and hoped I could have it back in three
days tops. An hour after leaving the printer there, I received a call from the
shop saying that the issues were fixed and that I could get it back. I just let
out a sigh and thank you up to the heavens.
Someone really is looking out for
me. =)
Wednesday, June 18, 2014
Second Week of Practice Teaching
Then
I used to wake up early, enjoy my
energizing body bar in the shower, follow the corporate dress code and put on
makeup. I really like playing with makeup. Then in the office, my day would
revolve around completing agenda briefs, executive summaries, concept notes and
my boss’s favourite template that takes hours to finish- project briefs.
During my breaks, I’d stalk makeup
online and dream of Magnums.
That’s what it meant to be a
technical writer.
Now
I get up, get ready for school,
make sure that I have teaching materials and that all my learning plans are
complete especially when my supervising teacher takes a look and gives comments
on each part.
“Make sure that your assessment
is in line with your objectives and make sure your activity achieves your
objectives.”
This is the governing rule that I
will hear over and over again.
But
There must be a reason beyond all of this. I know that this is the first step for me to shape myself and perhaps become an instrument of change.
I come from a long line of teachers. I have three grandmothers who were teachers. Three of my aunts are teachers. Heck, we could even put up a school if we wanted to.
But for now, let's see where life takes me.
I know what my skills are, I know what I am capable of. I will always be a lover of writing. I know there is a need for me to write everyday. But perhaps I can also be a good teacher.
Who knows? We will find out someday.
Monday, June 16, 2014
Learning Plan Format- Following the K-12 Program Guidelines
An overview of the prescribed learning plan for Grade 7-10 English following the K+12 paradigm
Level
Topic
I. Learning Target
A1: Cognitive 1
A2: Cognitive 2
B: (Values)
II. Topic
A. Exploring
1. Activation of Prior Knowledge
a. Questioning/ Anticipated Answers
b. Linking Statement
c. Concept Notes
2. Activity "Title of Activity"
a. Learning Materials
b. Graphic Organizer
c. Questioning/ Anticipated Answers
3. Firming Up
a. Formative (Traditional)/ Alternative (Performance Task)
Tuesday, June 10, 2014
Teaching Different Types of Irony, Teachers Have to Be Creative and Focused
Second day in practice teaching and I have realized that I have to focus on which strategies work well when it comes to teaching topics. As for my Learning Plan, I have decided to take on Grade 8 Vocabulary and Reading. I've got to make up my mind on whether I will use a song, puppets, or a story board developed especially for the lesson.
The catch is that I have to make sure I have the materials I will need in time for demo-teaching.
Being a teacher is not easy. And yet people in society don't even appreciate teachers over here.
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