What is important and what is necessary? Are they the same?

I found out today that my brother-in-law has prostrate cancer. It is always a shock to hear of a loved one with something so drastic. We don't know what his next steps will be but at least the problem has been identified. Family illnesses have a way of putting other things in perspective, not diminishing the other important aspects of our lives but making them take their rightful place on our list of priorities.

One item on my list is to start implementing my personal professional development plan. Like in all good educational organizations, we are expected to participate in continuous professional development. I enjoy this when meeting with a group of colleagues but what I really, really struggle with is writing and carrying out my own personal professional development. On my own, by myself.

My plan this year includes reading articles and books on literacy and ELs. Right up my alley. Or it should be. With all the discussion and implementation of the Core Standards each of us should take a look at what we believe as teachers, what the research tells us, and how we apply our knowledge when exploring and accomplishing the expected results with our students. Somehow this has made me take a new look at old familiar things, truths I've known have to be addressed with a new slant. I'd like to say with "fresh eyes" but I think after so many years in the educational field, my eyes are anything but fresh. I have too many years of successful students, students who struggled, and students who failed to be able to look at research and recommendations without bringing all that with me. So as I read for new understanding, I will automatically apply my background knowledge and experiences to make this information meaningful, useful.

The first book I've chosen to dive into a book I've read before, using a different colored highlighter and post-it notes to mark those special sections that should be remembered. My book of choice is "Literacy Instruction for English Language Learners, A Teacher's Guide to Research-Based Practices" by Nancy Cloud, Fred Genesee, and Else Hamayan. This is a great book, one that makes sense to the ESL field.

You will enjoy messing with verb conjugation. Maybe

 I don't know about you but as a native English speaker I don't pay that much attention to conjugating verbs. Maybe I should now that I blog.  

Kenneth Beare does a great job explaining and supporting such things as verb conjugation on his website, http://esl.about.com/b/2012/05/16/verb-conjugation.htm?nl=1 This is just one of the many lessons that are great support to ESL and mainstream classroom teachers. 

I have copied a very helpful chart from this lesson on verbs just to give you an example of what you will find when you explore his work.

Verb Conjugation Grid

	Simple Tenses	Simple Tense Example	Progressive Tenses	Progressive Tense Example	Perfect Tenses	Perfect Tense Example	Perfect Progressive Tenses	Perfect Progressive Tense Example
Present	Present Simple	Jack usually takes a bus to work.	Present Progressive	Alice is writing her report at the moment.	Present Perfect	Bob has purchased three cars in his life.	Present Perfect Progressive	The students have been writing for twenty minutes.
Past	Past Simple	We drove to Yellowstone last	Past Progressive	Daniel was ironing at seven o'clock.	Past Perfect	They had completed the report by the time he requested to see it.	Past Perfect Progressive	My neighbors had been working outside for a few hours when their daughter telephoned with the news.
Future	Future Simple	I'll see you tomorrow afternoon.	Future Progressive	Tom will be making his presentation this time next week.	Future Perfect	We'll have the job finished by six o'clock.	Future Perfect Progressive	Mr. Jones will have been teaching for eight hour straight by the time he finishes.

Full of Hot Air

Today is hot! Very hot and dry. My yard looks like we have tried to kill the Queen Anne's lace but got the grass instead. Patches of white, long, scrawny,  plants cover my yard. The only thing I can do and still be positive is to admire how delicate and graceful they look. Find the beauty in the weeds, the good in the bad.

As I write this, I am working in the waiting room of the car dealership that is fixing the AC in my car. Thanks to the deer who thought it would be fun to crash into my car, I've had a slow leak in my AC that finally became a huge leak. No cool air during the hottest part of the summer. The good in the waiting is that I've been able to work on a grant report, answer emails, read articles on RTI and ESL, and write my first blog post in months.

Thank goodness for technology and the great new book I brought to read, "English Language Learners At School, A guide for Administrators", Else Hamayan and Rebecca Freeman, Caslon Publishing, Second Edition, 2012.

71 contributors have answered many questions that need short, direct answers. A book like this is important for every school administrator who has ESL students in their building. In Iowa that should be about every district in the state.

Have a Little Whine with your Wine!

Well, I've done it. Today I've turned 60. Something about that number has me a little upset. No longer does it give the impression of being young.  59 still sounded sexy, youthful, energetic, exciting. But 60, the BIG 6-0! Ick! No sexy overtones there, no spring in your step visions, no wait let me do it for you vibes. If you can't tell, I'm not handling this birthday well. I had the same problem the year I turned 29. I felt old and worn out. Tears came without warning. And grumpy! It was not a pretty sight. But what happened after all the emotion? Nothing earth shattering, just life, and a happy one at that. So, I need to get a grip in my attitude and enjoy the fact that I have been blessed with another year to enjoy those I love, dislike those I don't, eat what I should or not, exercise and enjoy physical activities that I know will make me hurt tomorrow. All just because I can. 

Oh yeah, you came here looking for an educational nugget. Well, don't worry, I haven't lost all of my memory yet.

Take a moment to read the report, English Language Learner Resource Guide: Top Ten Instructional Tips for Schools With a Low Incidence of ELLS, prepared by Jane D. Hill and Heather Hoak from Mid-continent Research for Education and Learning, April 30, 2012. The five state region of the McREL's North Central Comprehensive Center includes the states of Iowa, Nebraska, North Dakota, Minnesota, and South Dakota. These five states have experienced an increase in the number of schools who have a low number of English Language Learners. Giving support to these schools is very important because even having one ELL is reason to examine teaching practices. This guide gives some good, basic strategies.

Developed for ALL? Does that mean ESL, too?

Several things should be considered when selecting a reading program for classrooms that include ESL students. Even though I do not recommend a particular company or specific series, I do recommend the following list of considerations when investing in our students reading program of study.

Authors

Do the authors have ESL background experience?

Multicultural considerations

Home Language considerations

Teachers Guide

Does the guide give information on second language acquisition?

Language Objectives are clearly indicated for each lesson

Vocabulary is introduced in a meaningful way before, revisited during, reviewed after

Graphic organizers are used to help support comprehension

Background development activity ideas are listed

Do lessons focus on comprehension while building phonemic awareness, phonics, and fluency?

Provides running record opportunities

Formative assessment provided for content and skills as well as language acquisition?

Does not consider ELL instruction as an add-on, something extra.

Differentiation supports provided

Supports and acknowledges home language importance

Writing activities

Oral language, interactive activities included

Provides across curricular opportunities or tie in 

Use sheltered instruction models

Student Text

Colorful

Picture support

Graphs and Charts

Focus on Vocabulary-academic language and content

Leveled Books/reading with age appropriate content

Different genre

Print is appropriate for grade level

Higher level thinking required

Reflective opportunities

Students can find themselves in the stories

Meaningful and interesting stories

Narrative and expository genres are included

I’m sure there are other considerations when choosing a new reading series or program and I would be very interested in hearing what others think. I know that teachers will adapt, add to, subtract from whatever is in their teacher guides based on the needs of their students but I feel it is important for the developers to give as much appropriate support as possible. Is there one particular series or program out there that includes all of these? I don't know, I haven't been in the position to look at different publisher for awhile. More research to be done...is it ever done. Nope.

Have you thanked a teacher today?

My favorite, most memorable teacher?
It would be a toss up between Mrs. Stevens, 3rd grade and Mrs. Duffy, 6th grade.
Mrs. Stevens was a short woman not much taller than her students. She would laugh, listen, and was quick with hugs and praises. She was the first teacher that made me feel as if I was valued as a student. Mrs. Duffy was her opposite: tall with red long fingernails, perfect hair, and beautiful clothes. A woman of elegant stature and grace. She allowed us to write and perform plays until our creative minds could produce no longer, in other words, we had plays all year. I will never forget her standing at the window in that old 3-story school house, speechless, tears on her cheek. All of us sitting quietly in our seats for what seemed like an eternity. In her kind elegant way she was trying to figure out how she could tell us about the death of President Kennedy. A task that deserved all the power words can instill in a young heart.
I have had many teachers, many mentors, many friends who have guided my educational life. However, these two women always come first in my cobweb filled memories. I can see them on the playground of a building that no longer stands. I can hear their voices as if they are whispering in my ear even now. I don't remember any subject or specific topic of study, just their presence. I wonder what they would think if they knew that skinny, quiet, shy little girl followed their footsteps into education.
I wish I could tell these two wonderful women how much I appreciate the impact they had on my life. They modeled my future. It's too late, they are both gone now. I waited too long to say thank you.

Never Too Young

I am amazed with a young man, Jacob Barnett, who has some outstanding credientials already at a tender age of 12. I suggest taking a few minutes to watch as this young man giving us all solid advise. Stop learning, start thinking, then create.

http://edupln.ning.com/video/tedxteen-jacob-barnett-forget-what-you-know?xg_source=shorten_twitter