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.
Wednesday, September 30, 2009
Wednesday, September 23, 2009
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".
Monday, September 21, 2009
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!!!
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!!!
Wednesday, September 9, 2009
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.
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.
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