Sophisticated- A reflection

When I was asked by my Literacy coach if I would be interested in this class,I honestly didn't know what to expect. I just said 'yes' and came to class a day later.During our first class,I was feeling a little apprehensive about what I had got myself into.As I sat in class and listened to my classmates including Dr. D throwing terms here and there,I was in a daze.I just sat there-confused.But I must say I'm one of those people who yearns to learn new things -just to know.
So I decided to hang in there.By the time we got to Web 1.0 and Web 2.0,I wanted to quit cos I thought I didn't get it.But as soon as we veered off Web 2.o I saw what direction the class was taking-I totally got it.This class was definetely an eyeopener-do I feel more sophisticated-hell yah. You know I really enjoyed blogging freestyle-just blogging away gave me a place to vent.I loved that alot.The privacy aspect that blogging brings with it is so cool.Cos' I feel like I'm just talking to myself,ranting about my day.And don't we all need to vent sometimes but have no one to tell?
Again, do I feel sophisticated-hell ya!
Wanna know something-and I feel embarassed to say this but I'll confess anyway.I never thought that literacy had taken a whole new definition.That its no longer confined to the print but it encompasses other ideas such as fanfiction,using comics etc.New literacies are asking us as educators to think outside the box so as to keep up with the Joneses-our kids.
Signed-former 'outsider' now an 'insider'

YouTube

Since I discovered the YouTube phenomena,I must say I have become a junkie.I have no clue why I spend literally hours viewing 'stupid' videos from people.I'm glad I have a paying day time job.Well...do I need an intervention...maybe!Anyway I honestly,I think people have found a way of advertising their trade or stupidity-for lack of a better word, through this medium.It is a way of connecting with people-especially socially.Lately I've discovered the Nia phenomenon-the five year old who sings and dances beautifully.Through YouTube-she's gained national recognition and her musical talent is probably on close watch by the music industry whenever she's ready to 'spread her wings.'The entertainment value , the simplicity in navigating the camera, and immediacy of YouTube have all contributed to the popularity of YouTube.

"The Drive-by Workshop"

What a day!I'm so glad we are done testing.I have no idea how to get back to the regular school routine.The kids semed really off today.I need to reach deep down into my bag of tricks to survive next week till everything gets back to normal.In spite of that, I ended my day well...I finally got to meet Kylene Beers-author of our 'Holt and Rinehart' textbook series.She's so sweet and her workshop was eye-opening.One of the things she said that struck a chord with me was that since fluency is synonymous with reading,then we as teachers should not hesitate to have students reread a text to develop fluency.I know I've been guilty in the sense that I have often wondered why anyone would reread a book-ain't that boring?However when you think about it, it makes sense.Kylene left me wanting to hear more because she had some simple and practical approaches to teaching struggling readers.How many times have you seen a student-that one whom when you think about him/her,you'd rather call outsick!The kid comes to school every day -without fail.But yet they don't do crap-no homework,unprepared for class,constant talking while you're trying to teach.According to Kylene,we need to rethink our approach as we try to connect with this type of student. Are you 'failing' the student in the sense that you could not 'diagnose ' their learning style?This kid comes to school everyday,hoping with each new day that you'll finally get it right...I'm telling you now-I'm on the road to recovery!But wait a minute...I hope I still feel refreshed tomorrow morning.

I love to read.I always put myself to sleep with a 'good' book.Growing up as a child ,I remember reading alot.Even though books were a rarety for me as a child,what inspired me to love reading was the fact that I had nothing else to do and no access to a variety of books like our children have today.I do not cofine myself to a specific genre.I read just about anything.If anyone recommends a book,I'll definetely check it out.Right now I'm reading The Great Gatsby.Before Gatsby,I read Freedom Writers and One More Day by Mitch Albom.When I got married I lost my reading mojo .With the birth of my children, I was always so exhausted.In my classroom however,reading revolves around teaching my students to be engaged as readers by using reading strategies before reading,during reading and after reading.I model a strategy such as "Making Inferences", complete a Read Aloud/Think Aloud,then have the students practice the strategy during the Work Period and during their 10 minutes of independent reading.After they read,they make an entry in their Reader's Notebook -sometimes about how they used a preassigned reading strategy while they were reading.Some of my kids don't like to read at all-this is something I struggle with daily but I must say we are making strides towards developing as readers.I think with the onset of technology,reading is changing.For example for struggling readers,there's software available such as Read 180 that can guide them to improve their reading and set at their own pace.With this kind of technology ,students will not feel left behind and also improve their self esteem as they actually see the results immediately.Our kids are more visual and technology definetely can inspire them to read more instead of the traditional way that we read when we went to school.Technology will not replace but enhance student interest in reading.

What is "The Matrix"

I watched the movie-second time around. It is not the typical genre I like to watch cos' its a little intense.The intricate plot interestingly defines what the Matrix is -a computer generated fantasy world that's designed to control mankind therefore implying that the the human world as we know it is a farce. This begs the question-are we controlling the machines or are the machines controlling us?

For some reason, every time I tried to create the account I couldn't .I swear I think I'm the only one who has to struggle with these things.At first I wasn't sure what kind of Info I should submit for my profile ..I was little apprehensive and I needed some guidance.Because I have a fourteen year old,I was confident that he would know. Unfortunately, my son said he was clueless about it...So I decided to try it by myself.I was informed that I couldn't use my email account cos' it was already in use.I knew immediately who the culprit was...my son.I asked him and he conceded that he had a MySpace account!The good news is I took ownership of my email and I set up the account on the same day. It was pretty easy-I think.So what else do I do with it?LOL

Before I venture into MySpacedom, I have something to say............Do I have to?I wonder where we are going with this.Like I've said before, I have my reservations.Most of my students go on to MySpace..they ask me if I have a MySpace page..and my response is ...huh.Well I'm gonna try it today.I hope there are no more passwords that I need to make up.See,this is one of the things I dislike about Cyberworld. Just too much logging in..and passwords.I already have too many numbers in my head...one more and I'll go crazy.