Ms. Nancy Online

What an incredible movie! At the urging of many, Bob and I went to see this great film last night. We were both touched by the power of one teacher to make a difference in kids’ lives. In these days where the nightly news is a litany of abuse against children, it was wonderful to see the light in a dark room. There are places where the violence is just too much for younger kids, so I’d preview it before you take any of your children, but I would certainly recommend it for high schoolers. It’s a powerful statement. I’m so thankful that you are being the power of one in your child’s life!

It struck me again how in a little slice of the planet we live side by side with people who occupy a different world in terms of their experiences and perceptions. Earlier in the day I heard a fascinating speaker talk about his recent trip to India and was exposed to a very disturbing web site: globalrichlist.com. I think you will find it interesting to see how fortunate you are when compared to the rest of the world. In this entitled culture we occupy in Orange County, it is good to keep some perspective.

The only thing I hated about the movie was the teacher’s marriage ended in divorce. My husband is so a part of everything I do that I can’t imagine the scenario of my involvement with teaching being a cause of conflict. I also wondered how such a sensitive teacher could ignore the growing rift, but that’s another story, I suppose.

Thanks to the parent teachers, we had a great class with plenty of help for the little people. I will attempt to publish a weekly update so you know what we did in class. Here was the day:

• rhythm sticks–syllable review
• student introductions–focus on voice projection and eye contact
• read a wide variety of alphabet books, noticing unifying themes
• brainstorm themes students could use for their own alphabet book–trains, bugs, England, fun things to do in California, plants, the Renaissance, oceanography, anything you are already studying and want to review
• start writing and be ready to share next week; it is not expected that the whole book would be written in one week, but it should be finished by the time of the project fair; students are allowed to co-author a book if they agree on a theme; younger students can use the template, but they don’t have to; any size or shape book can be made. http://www.readwritethink.org/lesson_images/lesson982/template.pdf
• pass out books: “Because of Winn-Dixie” for younger kids and “Out of the Dust” for older students; parent alert: both books are easy reading but deal with difficult issues–death, desertion, alcoholism, poverty; no assignment was given in class, but we will start discussing them next week; students who read the first three chapters will be more than ready for class. http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-4411769998751922010&q=Dust+Bowl

Since we are all dealing with the difficulty of getting back into the groove of school after a long vacation, the spelling bee will be delayed as we get back into the studying mode. Perhaps it can be held near the end of the month. It will also give me a chance to make sure more of the Orange County families know about it. There will be mini-contests for every ability level, so encourage your student to participate for the fun of it as well as the public speaking opportunity.
http://www.eyedocgreg.com/homeschool/spelling_bee.htm