Magic E

 The Magic E (also known as the Silent E) has really impacted my class this year. You know “the Magic E at the end of the word makes the A say A” ( or E say E ,I say I ,O say O , U say U). hat= hate…cop=cope. My students this year are WAY brighter than last year and have grasped this concept , when I think maybe a handful of students from last year understood it. I has one of those “smiles” moments today , that I wrote about 2 blogs ago, something so insignificant but means so much to be and made me so proud. Orestes was writing sentences , and we tell them that they need to sound out words when they’re writing and then when they’re done we’ll help them out. So I over hear Orestes reading out loud the word he wants to write down, and sounding them out as he was writing it. Trevon was watching him write down this sentence.

“I want to tac a rid on the bot.” ( I want to take a ride on the boat.)

So Trevon says , “Hey Orestes , just remember the Magic E.” So Orestes looks down at his paper and ( bink , a light bulb turned on) says, “Oh yeah , The Magic E at the end of a word makes the I say I. So instead of rid it’s ride.”

That made me so proud. Like Elizabeth (the teacher I work with ) and I are doing a great job.

Here are some links we use to help them with the Magic E concept.

http://www.starfall.com/n/long-a/la/load.htm?f

http://www.starfall.com/n/long-i/li/load.htm?f

http://www.starfall.com/n/long-o/lo/load.htm?f

http://www.starfall.com/n/long-u/lu/load.htm?f

http://www.songsforteaching.com/jennyfixmanedutunes/magice.htm

 

kstdt #18

So today I was talking to Trevon (about Booster Dragons) and interrupted him saying :

Ms.P- Trevon I love you sooo much

T-I love you too.

Ms.P- So I was thinking… maybe I could keep you!

T- KEEP ME???

Ms.P- Yeah like be your new mother.

T- Wellllll , I don’t think so because I already have a mudder.

Ms.P- Well it’s just I love you so much …don’t you love me so much?

T- I Dooo , but I love my mudder so much too.

Ms.P- Well what do I do? Who do you think I should ask ? I really want a baby and I was kinda hoping he’d be as awesome as yo u.

T- Wellllllllll…ask God. If you ask Him, he will give you all the babies you want.

 

kstdt #17/smiles

About a month ago Noah brought me some aromatherapy lavender spray, for the car or rooms. The next day I had expressed to him how much my mom had liked it. So he said, “well tell your mom to get me something.” So everyday since then he’s asked for the gift and I’m like “whoops I keep forgetting to tell my mom” or “I told her and she hasn’t gotten anything yet”. The other day at Target, I passed through the dollar section and saw some toy for a buck. I gave it to him Friday and today I asked:

Ms.P- Hey Noah, how was the toy?

Noah- It was okay but it broke after a while.

Ms.P- It broke? How?!

Noah- Because it was cheap.

lol, I thought it was SUPER hilarious but I can’t imagine my son saying that to someone else, I as a parent would die.

 

I also wanted to express how little things in life can bring so much joy and smiles. Seeing an old couple be romantic,  kids running around with no care in the world (tongues hanging out and all), sometimes I catch myself smiling at things that seem so insignificant yet precious at the same time.

Let me just get it out of the way and say it. I cried! Today I was approaching a stop sign and a guy and a girl were crossing the street. It was clear the girl had Down Syndrome. She went to cross with out looking but a guy , I can only describe as a brother , pulled her back into the sidewalk. I let them pass and he gave me a “thank you” hand gesture. As they crossed and reached the other end, the girl grabbed her brothers’ hand ,pulled him down towards her and gave him a kiss on the cheek. I thought , wow, LOVE !

spec. ed.

Yesterday afternoon, for one of my classes ( Assessment of Students with Exceptionalities) the professor brought in a panel of parents that have children with disabilities. It was an hour long interview ( with 1 dad and 3 moms) where they answered questions like:

- what disability does your child have:Autism, Down Syndrome, Bipolar and Dravet Syndrome.

-how has it been for them, emotionally : They all said that they had a hard time accepting that their child was ill and spent a lot of time in denial and mildly depressed.

-their child’s strengths/weaknesses and the best thing about their child having this disability : No matter how much the stress is , they all had a lot of things that made their child as special as the next. The child who was diagnosed with Autism, is 6 yrs old and has a fourth grade reading level and can memorize verbatim a whole episode of tv. The girl that was diagnosed with Down Syndrome , her mother said she’s appreciates that her daughter is a new person everyday, that as tough as it is some days, most of them are exciting. The mother whose has a daughter with Down Syndrome, said her daughter is joyful at all times and that’s what makes it easier on her and her husband. The mother whose daughter has Dravet Syndrome, says she knows she’s a better mother than she would have ever thought to have been.

- who or what is their support system : They all said that their families have been supportive and that they’ve raised awareness to their friends, in which they’ve also become helpful. All the parents are involved in some kind of community resource that helps them cope with their stress , talk to other parents and learn more about the disability their child has.

- their child’s assessment experiences : A lot have had positive experiences, with the professionals they paid for out of their own pocket, but had issues with those professionals that assessed their children through the schools resources. They had positive feedback on the teachers their children have had but still expressed the importance of having a teacher that cares to implement the best practices/needs for their children.

-how it has affected their marriage : 3 out of 4 parents where divorced. I can’t imagine raising a child alone, let alone a child with a disability. I especially felt bad for the father whose wife didn’t want to deal with her sons.

No matter how much research you do on disabilities, you can never truly know what it’ll be like to have a child with a disability. As much studying as I’ve done on children with disabilities, yesterdays experience let me take a closer look at what it’s really like for a parent to have a child with Down Syndrome, Autism , Bipolar disorder ect. It was tough for me to “keep it together” as those parents poured out their hearts and wept about their children and wanting the best/equal opportunities for them. They were all very proud of their children and no matter how much they cried you can clearly see the strength those parents carry, so that they may continue to live their lives and be the best possible parents for those children.

Happy Earth Day 2008!

Do your part in taking care of our Earth!
Check out this website it’s great for “green” lesson plans and things to do with kids.

http://ww2.earthday.net/~earthday/node/12
 

FINALLY!

I would like for it to be known that today, April 18, 2008 (around 11ish am), I Priscilla Torres, was proposed to for the first time. YES, proposed to. FINALLY!!! By Yago O. It was very romantic. All students were lined up by the door ready to go to the park and Yago was the door holder. I was the last one out of the room and as I walked out he grabbed my hand , looked up at me ,with those puppy eyes and said (in his little Argentinian voice) ” Ms.Priscilla, Yo me quiero casar con tigo!” I melted. I of course said me too. Later when he was holding the door for me again he said “Pasa Mi Vida” lol.

How long I’ve been waiting for a proposal…and Who said God doesnt answer prayers?

*you can see a picture of Yago on my blog entry called Spanglish

Paddy Casey

I just recently heard of this singer, checked him out and bought his album. I love it. He’s from Ireland, you know the band U2 ? We’ll he’s nothing like that music , lol just from the same place,Dublin. Actually I think I read that he’s signed by U2 management.He reminds me of like Damien Rice,Gavin Degraw, that new chick Sara Barellies, like Indie/Folk Rock. His songs are mostly about love, lack of love, despair. A very good singer, song-writer. His Album is called Addicted to Company. Check it out.

don’t buy whiskey

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fDmp967UMds

This was pretty cool. I don’t need words to explain it , just watch it.

 

KSTDT #12-16

The kids have been pretty funny this week and it all started off Wednesday I was substituting for 1st grade.

“Nasties” #12

I over hear:

Demari- YOU’RE GAY!

Leonardo- NO WAY….you’re gay, gay, gay!!!

So I come over and I’m like…

Ms.P- HEY! What’s going on here?

L-nothing

Ms.P- WHHHY am I hearing the word gay?

D- we werent fighting we’re just calling each other gay.

Ms.P- Well “GAY” is not a word to be used whenever and not a word to be used at school ,especially in this grade. Plus I’m pretty sure none of you are gay.

D & L- no we’re not gay…we were just saying it cause its funny.

Ms.P- Well I dont think it’s funny.

Then Martin, two feet away on the floor, was obviously over hearing our conversation and decided to comment.

Martin- yeah gay isn’t funny…gays are nasty.

I wanted to laugh sooooo hard not because “gays are nasty” but because it was so out of the blue and I’m sure he’s heard his dad say that before. So I had to seriously proceed with…

Ms.P- Well no their not nasty but it’s not a word you call your friend especially if you’re just using it to play around.

A conversation about what they did during….SPRING BREAK #13-15

Yago, whom I’ve stated before has a hard time speaking in just one language or often forgets how to say things was explaining…

Yago- Yes, yo fui a un campamento, with my church, where you were in teams. They had the colores, blue, amarillo, rosado, gray, negro y blanco. My team siempre won y me dieron a prize. Un dia era de night y…….

Amalia just interrupts and yells out…..SPANGLISH. lol I could not contain my laughter there

………

Orestes was telling me about his spring break but he’s very soft spoken and takes FOR-E-VER to express into words his ideas.

O- I ….was……stayed…home all…day…and…then I went……to my cousins….house……(on and on)

 As he was talking Trevon is looking at Orestes super hard, like with this confused, annoyed, angry face. I’m looking over at Trevon, when we make I contact. I shrub my shoulders to see what the problem is (he’s maybe 1 feet from Orestes and 5 from me) and he looks at me and whispers loud enough for all to hear…

BOOOOOOOOOOOORRRRRING!

Again I could not contain myself.

………

Finally it was Trevons turn and he’s blabbing on and on about what he did…

T- I went to the beach and then I spent one day at the wearhouse with my dad.

Ms.P- oh how cool , what kind of wearhouse was it?

T- The white kind!

Mudder # 16

Trevon is a model (look for the blog entry about him and P.Diddy). He’s always missing school cause he’s “sick”, (aka. photo shoots). We’ve seen him on the cover of Parenting Magazine and yesterday he brough,t inflatable arm wear for when your a kid and you dont want to drown (i forgot what they’re called..floaties?), with his picture on it.

Ms.P-WOW Trevon, that’s super cool. You look awesome. Was that a fun photo shoot, being in a pool and all?

T-SUPER FUN!

Ms.P- And whose that lady with you in the picture?

T- Oh that’s just my fake mudder.

 

party people….

This weekend was another awesome trip to Cape Coral to hang out with Jessica, Michael (it was his birthday) and Emery. We (Nattie, Bryan, Oliver, Marelys and I) left pretty late, around 8:15, on Friday evening and got there around 11pm. The trip wasn’t so bad , Nattie and I entertained ourselves (and I’d like to think Bryan was very much entertained too) by singing. We mostly sang Disney songs but threw in a little mix of Brandy’s The Boy is Mine , Blackstreets No Diggity and a very unsuccessful version of Rappers Delight. We didn’t do much that night, seeing how it was already late, just talked and ate McDonalds. 

Saturday we all had a “cuban” breakfast. Pan cubano with cafe con leche (regular or clarito) and some pastelitos. Then we hung around played games , Imagineiff (Michael won…we let him) and I’m not sure what the other one was called but I WON! Then we all went to Publix to prepare for that evenings party . We got back and put the lasagnas to cook. The guys went out and us chicks played many rough games of Spoons. It can get intense especially with cheaters…let me not name people. But it was great to see how much Ging stunk at the game.

Then once we were all there, Magdi’s friends arrived. I can’t remember the grown ups names but their three kids were cool ( 2 out of 3 are Brennen and Juliana). It was also cool to finally meet the famous Josh and Lilly (Greystone,Graystone or Hindeman). They seem like cool people to hang around with. Soon Josh and Lilly will join the Cape Coral crew. The lasagnas were great, so was the salad and dessert was awesome. We actually celebrated 3 birthdays, Michael, Van and Josh. All in all it was a great weekend spent with great people that love each other and obviously don’t have to try to hard to get along.

Sleeping Arrangements:

Priscilla- living room futon

Marelys & Oliver- Emmy’s room air mattress

Nattie & Bryan- Jenny and Van’s house

Negative things about the trip:

1.  I left Michael’s gift here in Miami

2. Didn’t get to see Jenny’s rats.

3.Jessica is an evil player at spoons. First she puts you down for losing then she tries to team up (an alliance) with you when she’s down too and If you lost before her FOR-GET-IT. Your scum and she’s got that “we’re taking you down, baby” look. And Natties’ a lil cheater too PLUS she scratched me hard (there was blood)

4. Ging needs help with her cursing.

5. No Danny Devito.

6. I once again couldn’t stay behind like I would have liked to.