In a previous piece I told you that my career spanned from 1958 to 1997. That length of time alone calls for Professional development activity (P.D. activity.) However, I took a one year teacher training course at Saskatchewan Teachers' College in Saskatoon in 1957-58. This program was designed to prepare people to take over a classroom and be independent. At that time most of the graduates would be teaching in a one room rural school so they had no supervision and no one to ask for advice. The program was excellent in practical terms but was out of date and obsolete as many of the one room schools were closing due to low enrolments.
I taught in a one room school for my first year and the course served me well. I was very fortunate to teach in a district where the community gave me tremendous support. I then decided to attend university for one year as I had decided to stay with teaching.
As time went on things had to change and I had to add to my skills. Here's where professional development came in. Professional development improved and many valuable sessions were available. Teachers' conventions and workshops were available. You could always pick something up to apply in your classroom. I needed something to keep me motivated and possibly make things more interesting for students.
One of the more influential speakers was a Madeleine Hunter who had many practical strategies in lesson planning. Our district hired her several times and implemented her program. In this way the district was able to set up an excellent teacher evaluation system. Madeleine's program structured the lessons in several parts. As teachers, we were required to follow the plan. It really worked!
Our district set up a professional development fund where teachers could access funds to attend a workshop of some kind every second year. Now some teachers did not like P.D. and did not access the funds. This is where I came in and helped everybody out . I applied every year and as a result got to attend sessions every year.
One time my Dept. Head came to me and asked if I would like to attend a week long session. He pleaded being busy that week. Gullible me said ,"Sure! I'd like to go." It was the Quest program sponsored by the Lions Club and was designed to train teachers to teach the new health program that was about to be implemented. So I accidentally got myself assigned to teaching the new health program. The Quest program however could be adapted to any subject area . So I received a benefit all around.
I found that P.D. kept me motivated and as a result I was able to be much happier and satisfied as I went about my teacher assignments.
Sunday, August 16, 2009
Tuesday, August 11, 2009
REFLECTIONS...STUDENTS
Number one in my reflections of teaching has got to be the students. Some of the adjectives which come to mind are energetic, exciting, genuine, creative and unpretentious to name a few. With qualities like this it was always stimulating for me to be in a classroom. You never knew what was coming next and you had to be ready for it.
Variety of students alone would have made the whole experience challenging and interesting. First the range in abilities in most classes was extremely wide. You had the little guys who were only managing to keep their head above water. Then there were extremely brilliant people. With the brilliant people teaching skills, appreciation,facts or understanding all material was like dropping a pebble down a deep well and hearing it bounce off the sides of the pipe all the way down. They took everything in and related it to the bank of knowledge they already had . Many times these were indicated by idiosyncratic behaviours. One boy had a noticeable little giggle after processing everything. Others you could sort of watch their eyes and "see the wheels turning" so to speak. The poor little guy who was just getting the basics gave the smile as he understood the concept.
Style of learning was always interesting to notice. I'm afraid that I could not always accommodate this one in my bag of tricks. One girl in particular repeated everything aloud to herself. It sometimes drove me batty as well as the kids sitting beside her . But this is the way she learned best. I'm sure many other students had the same style of learning and that for some along the way they had been discouraged from this habit as it was considered to be distracting for other students.
For me each student had a unique personality and this was interesting to get to know. It made it easier for me to consider individual differences. Since I still live in the area where I taught I meet former parents. First, they are amazed that I remember their child after such a long time . Second , they are amazed that I remember something about the child. I tell them that they gave me their child for a year so the least I could do is get to know them. Then it's automatic to remember them.
Now it wasn't always sweetness. There were some bad apples. Bad apples had to be dealt with in their own individual ways. There was always tremendous support from administrators and guidance personnel. Many times these were learning situations as how to or how not to handle a situation. A very high percentage of the bad apples grew into good apples . I taught in one district for 28 years so many former students sent their children to me. These people had turned out to be honorable citizens and good, supportive parents.
So I have many positive memories when it comes to students. Students made the career really tick!
Variety of students alone would have made the whole experience challenging and interesting. First the range in abilities in most classes was extremely wide. You had the little guys who were only managing to keep their head above water. Then there were extremely brilliant people. With the brilliant people teaching skills, appreciation,facts or understanding all material was like dropping a pebble down a deep well and hearing it bounce off the sides of the pipe all the way down. They took everything in and related it to the bank of knowledge they already had . Many times these were indicated by idiosyncratic behaviours. One boy had a noticeable little giggle after processing everything. Others you could sort of watch their eyes and "see the wheels turning" so to speak. The poor little guy who was just getting the basics gave the smile as he understood the concept.
Style of learning was always interesting to notice. I'm afraid that I could not always accommodate this one in my bag of tricks. One girl in particular repeated everything aloud to herself. It sometimes drove me batty as well as the kids sitting beside her . But this is the way she learned best. I'm sure many other students had the same style of learning and that for some along the way they had been discouraged from this habit as it was considered to be distracting for other students.
For me each student had a unique personality and this was interesting to get to know. It made it easier for me to consider individual differences. Since I still live in the area where I taught I meet former parents. First, they are amazed that I remember their child after such a long time . Second , they are amazed that I remember something about the child. I tell them that they gave me their child for a year so the least I could do is get to know them. Then it's automatic to remember them.
Now it wasn't always sweetness. There were some bad apples. Bad apples had to be dealt with in their own individual ways. There was always tremendous support from administrators and guidance personnel. Many times these were learning situations as how to or how not to handle a situation. A very high percentage of the bad apples grew into good apples . I taught in one district for 28 years so many former students sent their children to me. These people had turned out to be honorable citizens and good, supportive parents.
So I have many positive memories when it comes to students. Students made the career really tick!
Monday, August 10, 2009
GREAT BIRDING IN AUGUST
In April, May and June I wrote six pieces on early morning bird walks . These months are exciting because migrating birds are returning. After just winter birds, we see water fowl, shore birds and song birds.
However, in my backyard in August birding becomes active again. Why? Well, some of the local birds come back to the yard with the young of the year. Some years these birds will nest right in the yard using a nest box or manufacturing their own nest. So when they nest away from the yard, it seems like there are chickadees, nuthatches, blue jays and magpies in every bush when they return. At this time of year it is still easy to pick out the young of the year.
Then fall migration is beginning. Many migrants go through our urban yards . Some are seen just once and others hang around a few days or even weeks. So in my back yard I see white crowned sparrows, song sparrows, clay colored sparrows, chipping sparrows juncos and the odd other sparrow. Some years we have an eruption of pine siskins and it looks like this might be the year as I am seeing pine siskins each day. Warbler species that visit are yellow, yellow rumped, and Tennessee. We sometimes find orioles having a good feed of ants . This is the only time of the year when I see hummingbirds .
It seems like when there's dirty weather many more birds appear in the yard. The sparrows take advantage of ground feeders. My vegetable garden is a total jungle at this time so the sparrows run under all the foliage and pick up insects.
So these activities make it active and interesting in my backyard as far as birding goes.
However, in my backyard in August birding becomes active again. Why? Well, some of the local birds come back to the yard with the young of the year. Some years these birds will nest right in the yard using a nest box or manufacturing their own nest. So when they nest away from the yard, it seems like there are chickadees, nuthatches, blue jays and magpies in every bush when they return. At this time of year it is still easy to pick out the young of the year.
Then fall migration is beginning. Many migrants go through our urban yards . Some are seen just once and others hang around a few days or even weeks. So in my back yard I see white crowned sparrows, song sparrows, clay colored sparrows, chipping sparrows juncos and the odd other sparrow. Some years we have an eruption of pine siskins and it looks like this might be the year as I am seeing pine siskins each day. Warbler species that visit are yellow, yellow rumped, and Tennessee. We sometimes find orioles having a good feed of ants . This is the only time of the year when I see hummingbirds .
It seems like when there's dirty weather many more birds appear in the yard. The sparrows take advantage of ground feeders. My vegetable garden is a total jungle at this time so the sparrows run under all the foliage and pick up insects.
So these activities make it active and interesting in my backyard as far as birding goes.
Sunday, August 9, 2009
FIRST MEAL OF NEW POTATOES TODAY
Yeah! that's right! Today was the first day this year to have new potatoes from my own garden! For an avid vegetable gardener the best treat from the garden is to have new potatoes. Next, comes corn. Then beets. You can talk about flavor, freshness or whatever. It all fits when it comes to new potatoes. Working to grow a vegetable garden is all worth it when it comes to consuming the fresh new produce.
I often wonder why I love growing a vegetable garden. It could be in the genes. My father and Grandfather on my mother's side lived for their vegetable patch. I think it has more to do with the food available when I grew up. You can go back to my "Isolated Farm " piece. My Mother was an excellent cook, but the supplies she had to work with were limited. She canned beans and peas. She made lots of relish and pickles. However, potatoes, carrots,turnips, parsnips and beets were stored in a root cellar. By January, carrots and beets were pathetic. Turnips and parsnip lasted a little longer . Potatoes had to hang on until July. They were in dreadful condition. So you see that when new potatoes were ready, they were a real treat compared to what we had just been eating.
So I guess I never lose that experience of new vegetables from my time as a child.
I often wonder why I love growing a vegetable garden. It could be in the genes. My father and Grandfather on my mother's side lived for their vegetable patch. I think it has more to do with the food available when I grew up. You can go back to my "Isolated Farm " piece. My Mother was an excellent cook, but the supplies she had to work with were limited. She canned beans and peas. She made lots of relish and pickles. However, potatoes, carrots,turnips, parsnips and beets were stored in a root cellar. By January, carrots and beets were pathetic. Turnips and parsnip lasted a little longer . Potatoes had to hang on until July. They were in dreadful condition. So you see that when new potatoes were ready, they were a real treat compared to what we had just been eating.
So I guess I never lose that experience of new vegetables from my time as a child.
Sunday, August 2, 2009
Refections on My Career
I was a teacher for 37 years from 1958 to 1997. I taught in three provinces and one territory. I look back on my time with the feeling that I would do it all over again, but change some things which experience drilled into me.
Now for starters, I have to be careful what I say because one of my previous administrators reads this blog. He's a wonderful human being but can be a bit critical at times. I might have to defend myself strenuously if I go too far out in left field.
I took the compulsory administrations class in education. It was a survey course and explained and justified why the system was organized the way it is. The grade system was dealt with thoroughly.
Looking back, some students jumped through the hoops (grades) willingly and paid their debt to society and got an education. However, not all students learned at the same rate or had the same learning style. So some kids had difficulties as they were not prepared or ready to learn the concepts being presented at a certain grade level. Some of these kids went on and never did pick up the concept and as a result were challenged later or met with failure. A simple example would be some student who did not learn to read in the primary grades. Some of the obvious behavior problems were a result of students not being ready for a concept and acting up because of the difficulties experienced.
Now I'm not the only one to make these observations. Various attempts have been made to accommodate the variation in student readiness. "Continuous progress" - remember that one? Open classroom concept? Portfolios? These were attempts to solve the problem of different learning stages of the student population. They were good ideas and would have worked, but they didn't. A teacher was left with the same number of students and found the strategy too challenging so gradually backed into what they were doing previously .
My favorite teaching assignment was to be given 12 to 15 students who were labeled as having problems. I was able to go away with these students and modify a program to where they were able to succeed. At the end of the year I would come back with my charges. Would they have achieved grade level? No! But they would have met with some success and avoided the hassles they would have met in the regular program.
So it bugs me to some extent that I saw students experience problems because of a system which was set up to accommodate administration rather than a system set up to meet the needs of the individual student .
Now for starters, I have to be careful what I say because one of my previous administrators reads this blog. He's a wonderful human being but can be a bit critical at times. I might have to defend myself strenuously if I go too far out in left field.
I took the compulsory administrations class in education. It was a survey course and explained and justified why the system was organized the way it is. The grade system was dealt with thoroughly.
Looking back, some students jumped through the hoops (grades) willingly and paid their debt to society and got an education. However, not all students learned at the same rate or had the same learning style. So some kids had difficulties as they were not prepared or ready to learn the concepts being presented at a certain grade level. Some of these kids went on and never did pick up the concept and as a result were challenged later or met with failure. A simple example would be some student who did not learn to read in the primary grades. Some of the obvious behavior problems were a result of students not being ready for a concept and acting up because of the difficulties experienced.
Now I'm not the only one to make these observations. Various attempts have been made to accommodate the variation in student readiness. "Continuous progress" - remember that one? Open classroom concept? Portfolios? These were attempts to solve the problem of different learning stages of the student population. They were good ideas and would have worked, but they didn't. A teacher was left with the same number of students and found the strategy too challenging so gradually backed into what they were doing previously .
My favorite teaching assignment was to be given 12 to 15 students who were labeled as having problems. I was able to go away with these students and modify a program to where they were able to succeed. At the end of the year I would come back with my charges. Would they have achieved grade level? No! But they would have met with some success and avoided the hassles they would have met in the regular program.
So it bugs me to some extent that I saw students experience problems because of a system which was set up to accommodate administration rather than a system set up to meet the needs of the individual student .
Saturday, July 25, 2009
SKUNK VISITS ALF
Alf and his Dad were away for three weeks . When they got back a wasp colony had firmly established itself under their back step . Gord (Dad) and Alf were trying to get rid of them as it made the back entrance of the house somewhat risky . The wasps came up out of the ground beside the steps so it was assumed they were a type of ground wasp . A system of spray and killing wasps with a trowel was used . Alf was collecting the wasps and put them in water to drown them.
This morning Gord came out the back door to find the ground dug up beside the step. A wasp nest was lying beside the step. No wasps were around. I guess the skunk had a huge evening meal with all the adult wasps and larvae in the nest . Alf's eyes were as big as saucers . His Dad was not aware that skunks ate insects . Now the back step is safe from nasty surprises .
Skunks main diet is from insect material .We often see little digs or scrapes were skunks have retrieved insects or larvae from just under the soil surface . There are more skunks around our yards than we are aware of unless we take note of the places the dig or scrape to uncover food .
This morning Gord came out the back door to find the ground dug up beside the step. A wasp nest was lying beside the step. No wasps were around. I guess the skunk had a huge evening meal with all the adult wasps and larvae in the nest . Alf's eyes were as big as saucers . His Dad was not aware that skunks ate insects . Now the back step is safe from nasty surprises .
Skunks main diet is from insect material .We often see little digs or scrapes were skunks have retrieved insects or larvae from just under the soil surface . There are more skunks around our yards than we are aware of unless we take note of the places the dig or scrape to uncover food .
 |
| photo by Judy Boyd |
Thursday, July 23, 2009
ALF LIKES COOKIES
I've told stories before about Alf, my 5 year old neighbor.
Two evenings ago the doorbell went bing,bing, bing,bing !!!! When that happens we know it's Alf . My wife was the only one home and Alf had found a screwdriver in the alley and was wondering if it was mine . Of course, my wife wouldn't know if it was my screw driver or not, but since she knew I hadn't been working in the alley she told him it likely wasn't mine.
I have a brick house . Alf was outlining a brick with his finger and he said, "You know this is just like a cookie!" My wife asked him why he thought it was like a cookie . He said it's like a cookie but it doesn't have the pink or brown stripes . She still couldn't get the drift of what he was trying to say . He finally said it's like those cookies you gave me one time . Do you have any ? Now she caught on . She had given him cream wafers about a year ago .
So his method of asking for a cookie was most skillful and crafty . He didn't get any cookies , but the next day my wife gave him an ice cream cone . Now I suppose he'll be asking for ice cream . He's an amusing kid to have for a neighbor.
Two evenings ago the doorbell went bing,bing, bing,bing !!!! When that happens we know it's Alf . My wife was the only one home and Alf had found a screwdriver in the alley and was wondering if it was mine . Of course, my wife wouldn't know if it was my screw driver or not, but since she knew I hadn't been working in the alley she told him it likely wasn't mine.
I have a brick house . Alf was outlining a brick with his finger and he said, "You know this is just like a cookie!" My wife asked him why he thought it was like a cookie . He said it's like a cookie but it doesn't have the pink or brown stripes . She still couldn't get the drift of what he was trying to say . He finally said it's like those cookies you gave me one time . Do you have any ? Now she caught on . She had given him cream wafers about a year ago .
So his method of asking for a cookie was most skillful and crafty . He didn't get any cookies , but the next day my wife gave him an ice cream cone . Now I suppose he'll be asking for ice cream . He's an amusing kid to have for a neighbor.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)