Descriptive

My descriptive writing piece will be about flowers. It will be a game matching flower parts to the correct name. The game will be played to a familiar tune the children will recognize. The words of the song will be edited to describe each flower part and its function.

It's a work in progress. I'm not sure as to how I will stage the game. I'm hoping it'll be fun and engaging for children of all ages.

Expository Writing

How To Make A Flower Press Book

Supplies needed:

• delicate flowers
• phone book
• good, quality paper (for book pages)
• scissors/glue
• tweezers
• brush
• hole punch
• ribbon/yarn

Step 1: Pick some delicate flowers and leaves(no sturdy flowers, they take longer to dry) Flowers that work well: pansies, ferns, daisies, poppies

Step 2: Press bottom of each flower and leaf inside the pages of a thick phone book. Placing flowers between flattened coffee filters help to speed up the drying process. *It takes 1-2 weeks for flowers to completely dry*

Step3: When the flowers are dry, carefully remove them form the phone book. Arrange flowers on paper. *Flowers may have to be trimmed so trim with scissors*

Step4: Remove the flowers from the paper, remember where each flower goes so it is easier to put them back later. Using the brush, brush a thin layer of glue on the paper where the flower was originally placed.

Step5: Using the tweezers, carefully place the flowers back in place. (adult assisstance may be required)Make sure all flower parts are lying flat on glue, let the glue dry completely.

Step6:Once drying is complete, use a hole punch to punch three holes along the left side of the paper. Tie a piece of ribbon or yarn to keep the paper pages together. Title the book and label each flower. You now have your very own flower press book!

Educator's View on Marijuana

In today's class we were shown a video clip on an intervierw on an educated executive woman who admitted to using marijuana on a regular basis. The magazine from which it came seemed to glamorize the issue.
As a future educator, I feel it is wrong to allow such things to be seen. Children will get the wrong impression. Many schools today express that drugs are wrong during Red Ribbon Week, however, if children come across magazines their mothers, fathers, siblings, or anyone reads and come across an article stating that marijuana should be legalized and professionals use it, many school systems and educators will be in jeopardy.
How can we as educators explain to our students that using marijuana or any drug for that matter is wrong when they read and/or see it in magazines, television, movies, and in their very own environment?
What steps can we as educators take in order to insure our students are on the right path to being drug free?

What is a Narrative?

A narrative is a type of writing that has a begging, middle, end and tells a story. Narrative stories have plots, tell about when and where it take place, and characters that have reasons for what they do in the story. A narrative story may also contain a problem that can be solved or a challenge to overcome.

An example of a narrative writing is a children's book titled: The Polar Express by Chris Van Allsburg.

Other examples of narrative writing are:

Poems that tell stories: The Blind Highland Boy by William Wordsworth

First person narrative novels: Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain

Narrative story

It was a cool and breezy evening, an evening like no other when Joslyn, looking out her bedroom window and fiddling with a daisy's peddles, decided she wanted to go for a walk. Joslyn had been sick and ordered to stay indoors for two weeks and longed to be outside in the fresh autumn air. Joslyn's bedroom was adorned with a mulitplicity of beautiful and vivacious flowers she recieved from neighbors, friends, and relatives.

As Joslyn walked over to her closet for her sweater she noticed a mist in her vanity mirror; thinking nothing of it, Joslyn grabbed her sweater. While Joslyn placed the sweater over her shoulders she noticed an incandescent flash of light coming from under her bed. Apprehended by the thought of something under her bed, Joslyn hesitantly walked over, grabbed the edge of the bed ruffle and was about to lift it when her mother called her down for dinner. Startled by her mother, Joslyn gained composure by taking a deep breath of the sweet-smelling odor that filled her room.

As Joslyn sat at the dinning table with her family she thought to herself,"Instead of going outside, I'll go and investigate that rare yet mysterious light". Joslyn's mother noticed the peculiar expression on Joslyn's face and became concerned. "Joslyn are you feeling okay, do you need some medicine?" Joslyn was immediate in resonding, "No thanks mother, I'm doing well". Joslyn, not wanting her mother to suspect a thing, quickly joined the conversation over who would be clearing the dinner table and dishes.

Upon helping her dad with the dinner dishes, Joslyn placed her sweater on the hallway bench and went upstairs to her bedroom. Turning the doorknob to open her bedroom door, Joslyn noticed the doorknob was unpleasantly cold. Walking into her bedroom, Joslyn's first thought was, "Check under the bed". Joslyn paid no attention to the placement of the flowers on her vanity. The vanity was the least in Joslyn's mind. Joslyn found no trace of light under her bed and thought it was just her imagination. Once Joslyn rose to her feet, she turned to her vanity and saw the placement of the flowers.

Joslyn said aloud," I know those flowers didn't just place themselves there, someone or something had to have done it; but who?" Joslyn knew her mother and her father were downstairs and she just walked in from eating dinner. As Joslyn walked over to inspect her vanity, she again saw the luminous light. Joslyn, overcome with a cold feeling and anxiety turned and there in front of her stood an apparition of a little girl holding a daisy.

Memories: Warm

The memory I decided to write about is obtaining my AAT degree from Palo Alto College.

Having been married as a senior in high school at the age of 17 and having my daughter at the age of 18, my life was placed on hold so I could be a mommy and a wife. As the years progressed I got pregnant with my son and further my dream to continue my education was placed aside. Being a housewife and a mom was the life I wanted but I wanted to be more. As my daughter began her academic life I knew it was time to begin mine. When I finally began going to school my daughter was in first grade and my son was 3 1/2. Upon going back I felt overwhelmed since I'd been out of school for 7yrs. I recieved much encouragement from my husband and family. With all the classes I had to take I thought I was never going to see the day of my graduation. When my graduation day finally arrived my children were 10yrs. and 7yrs. As I walked across the stage I remember thinking to myself, "I did it!" Being an example to my children they see that having determination and hard work one can accomplish anything and overcome any obsticle as long as they put their mind to doing it.

Personal Writing

Dr. Harris had the class create an "All About Me" book, I had fun making this book. For today's blog I chose to use the fact that I love to dance.

The Way I Dance

Jessica Chavarria

Have you ever danced to the beat of your own drum?

I am one who dances and you'll never see me down.

I dance while waiting in lines and listening to music or my hums.

Dancing is a passion that brings me no frowns.

When I dance I don't care who sees,

the music comes from inside me.

Whether I dance slow, moderate, or fast,

dancing is something I know will last.

Dancing keeps me going when times get tough,

I dance because I never give up.

When asked, "Why do you dance?" I say,

"To dance gives me a feeling I can't explain".

Writing is a Process!

Writing is a PROCESS!! Before anyone can write they must first understand that writing is indeed a process. Writing consists of five writing steps:
Pre-writing: this step involves the thoughts in which one begins to think on paper about a certain topic or "brainstorm". I prefer to think of this step as my brain vomitting on paper! (I know sounds gross)
Drafting: this step is the "sloppy" copy in which one's thoughts/ideas are put into making a paper come together.
Revising: this step for me is the fun part! I enjoy being able to delete, change, or add more thoughts/ideas to an already incredible paper. I especially like revising and giving my opinion on others' work! (of course, be courteous and critique accordingly)
Editing: this step is being able to correct any misspellings, grammatical errors, etc. Having a paper free of grammatical errors is great! Make sure to get another person's opinion when in doubt.
Publish: this step is the final step to becoming a writer. Having other's see the finished product and knowing the time and effort put into it gives a person extra motivation on a job well done.

If I won...

If I won a dream vacation package I would give it to my parents; they deserve that and much, much more. Being the only daughter of three children I do my best to help my parents in any way I can. With my dad being a high school graduate and my mom getting out as a junior their advice to my brothers and I was "don't just graduate high school, go beyond that, you are capable of doing so much more", they didn't want us to go through the trials and hardships they faced as young parents.
I remember my dad helping me with my social studies homework and thinking to myself, "Wow, my daddy is a very smart and intelligent man"; I remember the homework was over the country of Spain. As the years went by I continued to turn to my dad for help with my homework; since he took care of my brothers and I while my mom worked graveyard shift at the hospital. As I continued getting tutoring from my dad, he shared many stories, experiences and examples to help me understand my work. Through our conversations, I learned my dad wanted to go to college to become a coach for track and/or football and a history teacher!!!
Going into the sixth grade I was introduced to and fell in love with learning about World History. I, then and now, have a deep passion for learning about ancient civilizations, the many countries in our world, geography and everything else that falls into World History. With my dad being my help, guiding me and having so much knowledge he opened up a whole new level of understanding for me.
As I grew into a young lady my mom talked to me about the facts of life, taught me about
other topics, talked to me about boys and how I would get hurt but to never give up and quit. She told me,"You'll get your heart broken and feel like it's the end of the world but one day you'll meet that special person who will take your heart, mend it, and never let it go". Well of course, I did get hurt and yes, I found that person, my husband who is now my heart, my everything.
My parents got married at the ages of twenty-two and twenty-three, with my mom having been married before, having my older brother and divorced, my dad took on the responsiblility of being a daddy to a one and a half year old, a husband and a provider. My parents had a small wedding but no honeymoon. Two and a half years later I was born and eleven months after my birth my younger brother was born.
Upon my dad's retirement from H-E-B he dreamt of taking a vacation to Cueramaro Guanajuato, Mexico, to visit the birth place of his father; but that didn't happen. Having an immense generousity and much love for his children he instead paid for both my brothers' weddings!! As the months past he became a grandpa for the second time, and now having two granddaughters he forgot about his dream vacation since his dream for being a "popo" was better. My mom was just as crazy about my daughter and my older brother's daughter.
Having been raised by two hardworking, compassionate, and loving parents I learned so much. Now, my dad is a pastor and my mom a pastor's wife, it seems they have no time for anything; they are always busy. As a married woman, wife and mother of two, I understand why my parents instilled my brothers and I with the advice they did. I want the same for my children as any parent would for their children. Yes, definately sign me up for that dream vacation package drawing!!! My parents will be celebrating their 32nd wedding anniversary in November and I want to give them a vacation/honeymoon they so much deserve.
I LOVE YOU MOM AND DAD!!!

Blog #2

What is a circular story? A circular story contains sequencial patterns and a predictable sequence of events. The story begins with one event, progresses and "circles" back to the original event or object in which the story first began. A circular story can be used in the classroom for making predictions, sequencing, comprehension and involving students in critical thinking. Circular stories and other genres can be intgrated into any school subjects. Upon looking for the various types of circular books, The Very Hungry Caterpillar, by Eric Carle is a great book that can be integrated into several subjects. Students learn from the life cycle of a butterfly to sequencing the events in the story!

Making Reading Fun! Just like Dr. Harris made reading fun with bubbles, pancakes and creating a class story, we too can do the same! Having hands-on activities like the bubbles and eating in class, children will want to read and learn. Bringing in manipulatives (like the bubbles) and everyday objects into the classroom, will allow children to relate and participate in real-life settings. Reading and eating food in which the story mentions is a great idea! I think creating an atmosphere in which the students are comfortable is important.

Some fun ways to make reading enjoyable:
Partner read: students partner up and each choose a book and take turns reading.
Mentor read: older students read with younger students or vise versa.
Secret reader: tell students you have a secret reader coming to read, excite students by asking questions as to what the reader might read, make tallies, keep track of guesses, etc.
Book of the week/day: teacher randomly chooses a student's name from hat, secret ballot, etc. The chosen student brings in a book, sits at teacher's desk or reading area and reads the book for the class.

Motivation and M.I

Learning and mutiple intelligence
I've always found it easier to learn through hands-on activities and through music. Upon taking the multiple intelligence test I found out my strengths are kinesthetic and musical. Although taking the m.i. test helped to confirm my personal intelligences I also found it helpful in putting other intelligences in perspective. Through this test I learned everyone thinks differently and my future students will come to my class with a variety of intelligences.

Motivation
Growing up I never realized I had such intelligences; however I did know I was easily motivated. Through interinsic motivation I would encourage myself. I knew what I had to do and did the task. I was never a student who needed a loud hooray or clapping of hands. I was happy to get the teacher's approval through a pat on the back or a simple smile. Every now and then to recieve a sticker or a stamp added to my interinsic motivation.