Or as the old (from earlier today) joke goes, not all that cute. Lots of coughing and little relief. Thanks to a trip to the Doctor I have an inhaler to try and get some medicine down the tubes that need it. We think it's viral and hopefully it will clear up in the next few days. I'm especially hopeful of that because I have things to do and people to see, and I've had this thing for eleven or so days now and it's getting old.
I haven't seen my kids in nearly three weeks because of feeling poorly. I didn't think it kind to share with others, although I still went up to New York to my class last weekend. At that point I thought lemsip direct doses might keep it in check.
Anyway, there's lots to catch up on, but my brain is too fuzzy to write right now.
If I haven't called you, this is why. I don't have much of a voice at present.
Tuesday, January 31, 2006
Thursday, January 12, 2006
Are You There, God?
Interestingly to me, the only book that I have seen go missing from the Cliveden Park House library since I have started building it, has been Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret, by Judy Blume.
I'm actually fairly impressed that someone took that one. Just because it indicates to me that we were useful in some way. I haven't made a big deal about it, and frankly I imagine that whoever took it probably just borrowed it and then forgot about returning it. But I wish them well.
However, we do have an opening for a new/used copy if anyone spots one in the next few months.
I'm actually fairly impressed that someone took that one. Just because it indicates to me that we were useful in some way. I haven't made a big deal about it, and frankly I imagine that whoever took it probably just borrowed it and then forgot about returning it. But I wish them well.
However, we do have an opening for a new/used copy if anyone spots one in the next few months.
More about Computers
The first group of people who wanted to give us computers is installing four next Monday - Martin Luther King Day. We don't have furniture, really, except a few picnic tables. So it's probably going to have to be those.
The big company will be calling Clyde this week, but the latest news seems to be that they'll be giving us twelve. I don't know how many of them will be brand new, but I'm not picky.
I do plan to go out and browse/window shop at CompUSA this afternoon. I hear the Reader Rabbit software is pretty good (according to my four year old niece). And it occurred to me last night that we could get language software for those of the kids who are learning Spanish. Clyde seems to be all about using the computers for internet access, but I keep harking back to my primary school days when we played a really basic game called Fletcher's Castle with the then brand new, BBC Micro machines. Fletcher's Castle was a teaching program for strategy, I think. I loved it, anyway. I just can't imagine not using these computers for actual teaching, as opposed to surfing.
Which is not to say that the internet can't teach you anything - but it's easier to supervise what people are doing if they don't have that option.
The big company will be calling Clyde this week, but the latest news seems to be that they'll be giving us twelve. I don't know how many of them will be brand new, but I'm not picky.
I do plan to go out and browse/window shop at CompUSA this afternoon. I hear the Reader Rabbit software is pretty good (according to my four year old niece). And it occurred to me last night that we could get language software for those of the kids who are learning Spanish. Clyde seems to be all about using the computers for internet access, but I keep harking back to my primary school days when we played a really basic game called Fletcher's Castle with the then brand new, BBC Micro machines. Fletcher's Castle was a teaching program for strategy, I think. I loved it, anyway. I just can't imagine not using these computers for actual teaching, as opposed to surfing.
Which is not to say that the internet can't teach you anything - but it's easier to supervise what people are doing if they don't have that option.
Word Families - the return
I had anticipated having Mike join me on Monday night, but not Sam. So I was more than a little pushed out of my stride by having an extra child to try and figure out. Consequently I didn't do as much with the twins as I would have liked.
I had prepared a set of word family endings typed and printed from my home computer. I had cut them into small rectangles and mixed them all up in a bag. The families were all the two letter -a ones and all the two letter -i ones.
The first thing I set the twins to was sitting down with the bag of each set and sorting them out for for me. They didn't get it at first, and M was especially tired and not keen at all, but they slowly did a fair bit of the work. I immediately saw that I had given them too complicated a task, but by then I was trying to listen to Sam reading, and I left them to their devices as long as I could.
After a time, T had finished sorting all the -i endings, so I asked her to put them in ABC order by pile. It took a long while to be able to explain this so that she understood, but she finally did and seemed to manage it. After a few minutes of telling me that she didn't want to do it.
M struggled for a long while with the -a endings. In hindsight, as I said, I gave her too big a task. On tuesday I thinned out the piles so that the next time I could have each child work with two endings.
After Sam read Hop on Pop, with much interruption from the girls - I had him work on the -i endings, while T read to me. She couldn't settle on a book and we read parts of Froggy Bakes a Cake and two others that I now can't remember. It was really difficult to concentrate my help with all three kids.
When M stopped organising her word endings - she really didn't get it - I had her pull out some homework and we started her on that.
With ten minutes to the end of the girls' night, I sent Sam upstairs to work with Clyde for a few minutes. Mike came down to sit with me, and then the girls packed up and went home to finish homework and fall into bed. It's a long night for them.
After a couple of easy starts, Mike read the first two chapters of The Chameleon Wore Chartreuse, a Chet Gecko mystery. He seems able to read, but is only reading the words, not the story. I suggested to him that we just work our way through the whole series. Because by the end of this book he'll have a handle on the characters and won't have to learn them again in starting a different book. He seemed okay with that, although he queried that I meant we read the whole book that night.
I had prepared a set of word family endings typed and printed from my home computer. I had cut them into small rectangles and mixed them all up in a bag. The families were all the two letter -a ones and all the two letter -i ones.
The first thing I set the twins to was sitting down with the bag of each set and sorting them out for for me. They didn't get it at first, and M was especially tired and not keen at all, but they slowly did a fair bit of the work. I immediately saw that I had given them too complicated a task, but by then I was trying to listen to Sam reading, and I left them to their devices as long as I could.
After a time, T had finished sorting all the -i endings, so I asked her to put them in ABC order by pile. It took a long while to be able to explain this so that she understood, but she finally did and seemed to manage it. After a few minutes of telling me that she didn't want to do it.
M struggled for a long while with the -a endings. In hindsight, as I said, I gave her too big a task. On tuesday I thinned out the piles so that the next time I could have each child work with two endings.
After Sam read Hop on Pop, with much interruption from the girls - I had him work on the -i endings, while T read to me. She couldn't settle on a book and we read parts of Froggy Bakes a Cake and two others that I now can't remember. It was really difficult to concentrate my help with all three kids.
When M stopped organising her word endings - she really didn't get it - I had her pull out some homework and we started her on that.
With ten minutes to the end of the girls' night, I sent Sam upstairs to work with Clyde for a few minutes. Mike came down to sit with me, and then the girls packed up and went home to finish homework and fall into bed. It's a long night for them.
After a couple of easy starts, Mike read the first two chapters of The Chameleon Wore Chartreuse, a Chet Gecko mystery. He seems able to read, but is only reading the words, not the story. I suggested to him that we just work our way through the whole series. Because by the end of this book he'll have a handle on the characters and won't have to learn them again in starting a different book. He seemed okay with that, although he queried that I meant we read the whole book that night.
This Thing Is Bigger Than The Both Of Us
Welllll, alrighty then.
Last Monday night, the first one I chose to tutor in January, our numbers doubled. I went from "my two girls" to adding two boys and - sort of - an older girl.
These extras are Sam, Mike and Shania.
Sam is seven, but reads less well than the twins, who are six. He lacks confidence, even with Hop on Pop. His older brother, Q, seems to enjoy reading. But Sam hasn't figured it out yet.
Mike is about ten (I've been given differing information about what grade he's in), but originally told me that he reads at a 3rd grade level. He actually doesn't read that poorly, but needs a lot of practice to "get it" with fluency. Right now he's able to read the words, but not hear the story.
Shania, I think, is his sister. They have different last names, but I guess that's neither here nor there with these kids. Anyway, she's about thirteen. She can read, and reads aloud when given the chance to read anything. I don't know how much of the story she understands. She's asked for recommendations, but reads a few paragraphs of each book (aloud) and puts it back on the shelf. The only thing she's picked up of her own accord more than once is an elderly Garfield comic book she found in the big book case. And suddenly I'm grateful for the huge box of Garfield books that's sitting in my attic room, waiting to join the fold of donated books in Cliveden Park. (Thanks, Imagine!)
Clyde also worked with most of these kids for a time, as well as Q, and his regular gang upstairs. He tells me that Mike is just "lost" in math. He doesn't know most of his times tables, but his school is working on fractions and percentages. I myself am easily confused by numbers, but apparently all of this is makes school/life harder for this child. Clyde relates that Mike is far enough behind right now that it is unlikely they will be able to find a way to catch up with his learning this year. That doesn't mean he won't try, of course. But Clyde isn't sure how to best approach things yet. And Mike doesn't seem to mind, which is certainly a challenge, also.
Last Monday night, the first one I chose to tutor in January, our numbers doubled. I went from "my two girls" to adding two boys and - sort of - an older girl.
These extras are Sam, Mike and Shania.
Sam is seven, but reads less well than the twins, who are six. He lacks confidence, even with Hop on Pop. His older brother, Q, seems to enjoy reading. But Sam hasn't figured it out yet.
Mike is about ten (I've been given differing information about what grade he's in), but originally told me that he reads at a 3rd grade level. He actually doesn't read that poorly, but needs a lot of practice to "get it" with fluency. Right now he's able to read the words, but not hear the story.
Shania, I think, is his sister. They have different last names, but I guess that's neither here nor there with these kids. Anyway, she's about thirteen. She can read, and reads aloud when given the chance to read anything. I don't know how much of the story she understands. She's asked for recommendations, but reads a few paragraphs of each book (aloud) and puts it back on the shelf. The only thing she's picked up of her own accord more than once is an elderly Garfield comic book she found in the big book case. And suddenly I'm grateful for the huge box of Garfield books that's sitting in my attic room, waiting to join the fold of donated books in Cliveden Park. (Thanks, Imagine!)
Clyde also worked with most of these kids for a time, as well as Q, and his regular gang upstairs. He tells me that Mike is just "lost" in math. He doesn't know most of his times tables, but his school is working on fractions and percentages. I myself am easily confused by numbers, but apparently all of this is makes school/life harder for this child. Clyde relates that Mike is far enough behind right now that it is unlikely they will be able to find a way to catch up with his learning this year. That doesn't mean he won't try, of course. But Clyde isn't sure how to best approach things yet. And Mike doesn't seem to mind, which is certainly a challenge, also.
Sunday, January 01, 2006
A Happy and Healthy New Year....
... to you all.
I hope 2006 brings goodness and grace to all our lives.
I hope 2006 brings goodness and grace to all our lives.
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