Hearts of Thanks

 Last package of thank you notes are being shipped to Donors Choose tomorrow. Students wrote thank you notes in little heart note books for each of our wonderful donors.

For those of you who are unaware as to who and what Donor Choose is...

Who and What: Public school teachers post a project for learning supplies that will enhance students learning and growth in the classroom. Donors, YOU, go on Donors Choose website browse all the different projects and then you have the opportunity to give any amount of money you want towards that project. Once a teachers project is funded Donors Choose will go ahead and purchase and ship the supplies to the teachers classroom. Then the donor will receive pictures and letters of learning in action because of your donation!!

Here is another project from my school that needs your support!

Radical Readers

A call for teachers

Here is a little re-cap on what Obama had to say during last nights State of the Union Address:

"In fact, to every young person listening tonight who's contemplating their career choice: If you want to make a difference in the life of our nation; if you want to make a difference in the life of a child - become a teacher. Your country needs you."

"Let's also remember that after parents, the biggest impact on a child's success comes from the man or woman at the front of the classroom. In South Korea, teachers are known as 'nation builders.' Here in America, it's time we treated the people who educate our children with the same level of respect. We want to reward good teachers and stop making excuses for bad ones."

"On many issues, Democrats and Republicans agree, starting with the fact that no one likes how NCLB labels schools as failures, even when they are making broad gains. Parents, teachers, and lawmakers want a system that measures not just an arbitrary level of proficiency, but student growth and school progress in ways that better reflect the impact of a school and its teachers on student learning."

"The future is ours to win. But to get there, we can't just stand still. As Robert Kennedy told us, "The future is not a gift. It is an achievement." Sustaining the American Dream has never been about standing pat. It has required each generation to sacrifice, and struggle, and meet the demands of a new age."

"We do big things.

From the earliest days of our founding, America has been the story of ordinary people who dare to dream. That's how we win the future."

//VIA\\

FEED

I love when an item comes with an added bonus. Forever 21 has partnered with FEED projects to sell bracelets with a purpose. The FEED bracelet comes in 6 different colors that represents different countries.

SILVER = Pakistan

BLACK = Kenya

RED = Swaziland

YELLOW = Sri Lanka

BLUE = Hati

GOLD = Honduras

Each bracelet you purchase provides two school meals to a child in that country. I know that two meals does not sound like much, but if you are constantly mealess 2 meals may feel like 22!

Did you know

That every 5 seconds a child dies from hunger, and over 350 million children go to bed hungry each night.

By the time you read this an average of 8 children have died of hunger. Hunger is such a simple solution, but we need to start now to end child hunger!

 For more information on FEED visit:

http://www.feedprojects.com/

A glimmer of hope

Have you ever had a day of gloom and then just at the end there is a spark of hope? Well today was one of those days...

The day was coming to an end//for the students\\and I decided to check grades to see how they ended their semester. They all managed to get As, Bs and Cs which is wonderful, but this is not the glimmer of hope...

One of my students has been placed out of two ESE (special education) classes and into general education. His end of the semester grades for those two classes were an A- and a B+!! His reaction to these grades was pure joy! When he saw his grades his hands automatically flew into the air clapping and he had the biggest smile on his face with gleaming eyes! I was beyond over joyed for this student and for the hope that he gave me that students with disabilities can be successful in general education classrooms!!

F is for FRUSTRATION and N is for NEVER GIVING UP

//FRUSTRATION\\

when you get nothing done

take one step forward and two back

when blank stares are looking at you

when a label and a number is more important than a person

when focus is lost

//NEVER GIVING UP\\

they are worth fighting for

its a cause not a career

IEPs do serve a purpose

growth happens

tomorrow is a new day

Who You Really Are

"If a human being dreams a great dream, dares to love somebody; if a human being dares to be Martin King, or Mahatma Gandhi, or Mother Theresa, or Malcolm X; if a human being dares to be bigger than the condition into which she or he was born—it means so can you. And so you can try to stretch, stretch, stretch yourself so you can internalize, 'Homo sum, humani nil a me alienum puto. I am a human being, nothing human can be alien to me.' That's one thing I'm learning."

 — Dr. Maya Angelou

/VIA\

GLEE

"Kids who are constantly told no by the people in their environment that they cannot be who they are or have what they want because of who they are…well screw that kids!"

-Chris Colfer

Chris won Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role at this years Golden Globes. I love how he ended his speech by encouraging kids to not be discouraged by what they are facing and to strive to be who they really are!

I know with my students their list of what they cannot do is a mile longer than what they can do...which is entirely not true, but if you are constantly being reminded of what you will never do you start to believe what they say is true.


Later that night GLEE also won Best Television Series - Comedy or Musical.  Ian Brennan  thanked public school teachers for "doing the most important work in America."

While I am talking about GLEE I am so pleased that they decided to keep Becky part of the show! For those who are unaware of who this Becky is well let me introduce you to one of the many shining cast members of GLEE

Lauren Potter

//Interview with Lauren\\

New Blooms

My flowers that I planted in August have withered away. I blame the freezing weather that the sunshine state has had over the last month or two. So I ventured to Lowes today to pick up some new blooms! I meandered the aisle of colorful flowers picking up many and then eventually changing my mind on what I wanted//shock\\

I finally settled on pink geraniums and orange gazanias

I had to rid my pots of the frozen plants and fill them with fresh soil...I tried my best to stay as clean as possible, but this is never an option when I am dealing with dirt

Once the dirt had been cleared and hands had once again became dirtless I took a step back and admired my new blooms

What I see

Procter & Gamble has recently aired a commercial supporting Special Olympics called "What I see."

The commercial features a young athlete Molly Hincka who participates in the Special Olympics. During the commercial Molly's mom, Kerry Hincka, tells her story on Molly's success. Doctors declared that Molly would never walk or talk and always stated what she would never accomplish in life. Fortunately, for Molly her mom had a different outlook on Molly's life. Ms. Hincka stated: “I never saw the things my child couldn’t do,” she says. “I only imagined what she could.”

Sometimes seeing is believing, but in Molly's case her mom believed and eventually saw her daughters true potential.

(via)

k vs. b

 

Over the past month I have gotten two new students from the general education side of the street. I have mixed emotions when students are taken out of gen. ed. and are placed in a self-contained special education classroom.

On one hand I love their work ethic, but on the other I feel sad that they were not successful in general education.

These two new students k and b are the two newest additions to the mayhem. They are completely different and receive different treatment from students.

K- Can clear a hallway as he darts to beat the bell before it rings. His binder is leaking papers from the first week of school and he always seems two steps behind everyone else. He tries his best in every asignment and is a wonderful artist. I understand why K was placed in my classroom because he seems to be a little bit lost in the chaos that is his life.

B- A couple of students (6th graders) think that B came from the gifted club. Which I understand where they are coming from; whenever B is done with his work he pulls out a cross word puzzle book and says no more than 15 words per class. He is extremely organized, does his work and turns in homework. There is a little part of me that wonders why he was moved from gen. ed. to ESE.

All in all K and B are a nice addition to the family. I hope to improve B's skills so he can make back to the gen. ed. setting, but I think K is here to stay!