Wednesday, October 17, 2012

What will they think........?


I was rummaging through Google in search of entertaining, culturally applicable current events from Japan
and there I found this:


Behold Japan's Monstrous Five-Patty Lotteria Burgers


Lotteria (A national fast food chain in Japan) is celebrating their 40th birthday with a discounted quintuple cheeseburgers and fried shrimp burgers. Wow. 
As the blog suggests, they are sold at discounted price of 500 yen (about $6.35). The 'Super Cheesy" cheeseburger deal is available on the 16th and the 23rd of October and the "Super Fry-day" fried shrimp burger deal is available on Friday October 19th and the 26th. Both of deals from from 2-8pm (14th-18th hours). 

I'm planning on having my students look and decode the advertisement in Japanese (use of authentic material). And synthesize (critically think) why this is a great deal and should be acclaimed. With "health" being such priority in both countries of US and Japan, why this may be "eye-catching".
Will this be accepted in United States? What kind of issues may this rise if Mc Donald's decided to do this in United States. Why do you think it is okay in Japan?
Now, what do you think about the fried shrimp burger? Does it sound appetizing to you? Why will it not be the best choice in US but popular in Japan? 

What do you think they will say? I'm interested to see what kind of answers I will receive tomorrow. 
LOL 

Monday, October 15, 2012

Back to Phase One....

As I sit in my classroom at "A" High School on a hectic Monday. 
I felt an inclination to reflect on the past month and-a-half of my life as a teacher.
Though teaching, learning, and grading, did happen, 
"Lack of Focus" was probably what took place the most. 

I had allowed my personal issues get the best of my professional life.

I had told myself time and time again to FOCUS and GET YOUR S#$% TOGETHER 
but, it has been more than difficult. 

So, today, as I always do with my cute kids. I shared a little bit of my personal life
( in hopes of redeeming some of my ...lack)
It was my boy drama. LOL (yes, I do have plenty) 
Kids, being kids were all ears. Some thought it was ridiculous that I shared but some were ready to give the best advice ever. I always only share just enough to get them to spark some interest in staying in my class. 
While the story was being told, I had shared about betrayal and dishonesty (lying and cheating to be exact)
I explained to the students, 
I somehow survived through my mini-depression 
Regained some of my confidence and stability 
and am able to laugh about it, finally. 

I didn't really know why I felt a tug in my heart to mention it in class until one of my favorite girls in class had blurt out that the exact situation just had happened to her last night. 
In high school, this is the moment where you say, "OMG. No kidding!"

She shared her story. It hurts. and I know it hurts. 
I know how deteriorating it is to a girl's self worth, esteem, and value.
It takes a part of our dignity away. It really sucks. 

I wrote her a post-it note that said, "Remember, you are a beautiful girl. It is always his loss. You know yourself that you had put in your all towards the relationship. He did not have the capacity to take it all. He is not worth your time. He is not enough for you. You are beautiful and you deserve a man that will bring out all and every hidden gems in you. I know you still care and love for this gentleman. It is okay to still care and love just do yourself a favor and let go. Close your eyes, breathe, and let go."

My mistake. My experience. My problems. My emotions. My past. 
all allows me to understand
Their (students') mistakes. Their experience. Their problems. Their emotions. and Their now.  

I can only be thankful. 
 

Thursday, October 11, 2012

My Every Day...


7:00 a.m.      Waken up by my meowing ("feed me") cat.
7:15 a.m.      Go back to bed for fifteen minutes.
7:30 a.m.      Help my mother wake up and get ready for breakfast
8:00 a.m.      Finally look at my daily curriculum and semi-prepare the days teaching materials
9:00 a.m.      Head to the kitchen for breakfast
9:30 a.m.      Hit the shower and brush my teeth
10:00 a.m.    Get ready to go to work
10:15 a.m.    Driving down the street towards the 91 freeway
10:35 a.m.    sometimes stop by Starbucks for my Vanilla Latte.
                     or arrive at my destination and park my car in the normal spot by the fence
10:45 a.m.    Greet the secretaries in the office as I start my day at "A" high school
10:50 a.m.    I usually make loads of copies for my three wonderful classes
11:12 a.m.    the bell rings. Walk over to the favorite place on Earth, the classroom.
11:17 a.m.    4th period begins
2:45 p.m.     You can assume everything that happens in between. School ends
3:00 p.m.     Hit the 605-91 towards Torrance public library to tutor for an hour
5:00 p.m.     run errands (bank, shopping, prepare dinner...)
7:00 p.m.     Another tutoring
9:00 p.m.     Home sweet home. (sometimes out and about with friends)
                                        work. eat. play. work. eat. play. work. work. play. play. play.
Who knows when I sleep.

This is my usual Mondays through Thursdays.
Translating, studying, researching, stationary designing all falls after 9:00 p.m. or Friday nights, Saturdays, or Sundays.

But this schedule may change for the better. Crazier!
I was just offered a position to teach Japanese and English
at a pretty well known lingual institute in Beverly Hills.
Should I take it or not... It is a big question.
If I do take it, the classes will start at 6:00 p.m. M-Th. I may need to teach  two classes per  day (each 80 minutes). So I will be done teaching around 9 p.m.
The pay is better than private tutoring.
It is a great opportunity.
But I love my tutees. But it is a great opportunity as a language educator.
The facility also offers translation and interpretation services that they had asked me to help with.
All a great resume builder.
UGH... I don't know what to do. Someone help me. oh please.
So I may need to invest in a white board to display my pros and cons.
I really don't know what to do. It is a a drive. It is beverly hills.
The school is very close to my fav restaurants, Mastro's and Buchon (oh boy, I miss Vegas)!
I will meet new people. I will be teaching adults. Will that next student end up my husband?
Who knows what will happen? Will I be okay juggling the schedule? My schedule is crazy enough.
It will get crazier. Will I be able to handle it?
I still need to finish my Master's eventually. aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhh. lol
It's a great way to waste time. Contemplating back and forth on "what ifs."

But I think I know what I should do. It is unfortunate to have to decline a few great positions but it will be an opportunity for other people. I can still be apart of their lives.
Life throws lemons at you, like I said before, I make myself a nice cold...
Arnold Palmer!

We shall see what happens. 
New work, new people, new relationships. Life only gets better!

LIVE. LAUGH. LOVE.




Wednesday, October 10, 2012

the mystery of two halves.....

As I was tutoring couple days ago, I came across a math question that read as follows:

Please rewrite all written statements in to numeric fractions and identify its numerator and denominator.

6.) Two halves

Um. I think I understand English. I've been around this language for a while now.
Two halves really doesn't exist.
Its a whole number: 1.

Well technically the answer is 2/2. Numerator:2 Denominator:2
But 2/2 is not essentially a fraction, it is equated to a whole number, 1.

So, what is the correct answer?

I googled the *#$% out of it and apparently, I am correct. It's not a fraction, the answer is 1.
well, to be sure, I had texted my dear friend for his help.

I asked, how will you read, 2/2?
He responded, it's not two halves. it's 1.

Ugh. What is this stupid trick question. Do teachers entertain themselves by tricking students?
(Oh yeah, can't forget, I am also a teacher.)

What do you think? Is there a correct answer to this?

I asked my tutee to state the following as her answer:
The numerator is 2 and the denominator is also 2 which equals to a whole number of 1.

Well, I made sure to explain the situation to her parents to cover my ass.
Well, I'm sure they had also thought the question was confusing as hell.

Edumacation, oh please, treat us with respect.

On a side note:
It's nice to know that I have friends who will text back with the right answers when I'm in:
MATH CRISIS

Tuesday, October 9, 2012

Rock Anthem of the Week....






"I knew You Were Trouble" - Taylor Swift 

It's a different kind of Taylor Swift.  Poppy with a little bit of rock and a touch of dubstep. I like.
Trouble trouble trouble.......I knew you were trouble when you walked in.


"Never take someone for granted. Hold every person close to your heart because you might wake up one day and realize you've lost a diamond while you were  busy collecting stones." 

Monday, October 8, 2012

It Wouldn't Even Matter....

End to a crazy Monday at "A" high school. You know its going to be a crazy day when you see students being picked up by their parents with eyes filled with tears, students running out the bathroom cursing like no other about "who knows what" and, when your next door neighbor has already written a "blue slip (disciplinary action form)" by 11:15 in the morning.

Mondays are always a little crazy. I have students who are extremely tired or are too excited to stay in their seats. I know you just asked yourself, "excited"? Apparently at the high school I work at, many students despise their own home. They rather be at school with their friends. Students do not receive the attention they ought to receive at home. They rather not be at home where anger, animosity, confusion, frustration, and restlessness or even neglect reside. They are woken up by yelling voices and broken glasses or they are sleepless because of constant spell of loneliness and worthlessness. Home may not always be the safest place for these children. So, they come to school. Attendance is not ever an issue for these students. I will see them everyday at school. They will participate but they like to place themselves on the disruptive end of the spectrum. How do good children turn into delinquents (my lifelong question....)?

I administered the first chapter test in my beginning level class today. I asked one of my students, who may fall under the above mentioned category to summarize their thoughts on the test. He insisted that he failed. I asked him if he's failing all of his classes and not to my surprise, his answer was, yes. I asked him why, knowing that it is a rhetorical question. I'm sure he really doesn't know why he fails, has low self esteem, and low self expectation.
His answer to me was, "because I don't do my homework."
I asked him if his parents ever ask him anything about his homework or school work in general.
He insisted as he walked out the door, "My parents are too busy with their work, they don't care how I do in  school or what I'm doing. They don't even care to know if I'm at school right nor or not. So, why should I care about anything here at school. It wouldn't even matter......"

Another girl in my class who had also heard what was mentioned said, "I will still do it anyways. I want to be somewhere better than I am now. I'll try and do my best to put myself in a better place."

What is the difference between these two students?
Self respect? Self expectation? Amount of attention they receive? Their level of self ambition? The way they perceive their future? or maybe just, their desires..

If the boy was pushed by his mother, sister, his girlfriend, or even a teacher to do better because they care; will he do better? I am sure he will. He lacks organizational skills along with note taking skills. He had never acquired the need to pay attention for key words and insights that the teacher is providing. He lacks basic skills to be educated and learn because he had never needed to acquire any of it. He has always been the failing student that sat in the corner of the room. All of this may be true but can also be changed. He doesn't have to be the student in the corner that is picked on. His self image must be revisited and his mental capacity must be re-challenged. Anything and everything will click in students' minds when and if "it all makes sense" to them. The stars of academia have to line up for him. But before all of this happens, everything will NEED to MATTER. It may not matter to his parents but it does in reality for him. He needs to understand that he is loved. There are people who cares. His existence does make a dramatic impact on the lives around him. If he knew this from the depth of his heart, I know for a fact that he will be compelled to change for the better (in totality). He matters hence, what he does also matters.

The big question, what is my role as a teacher?
What can I do and what should I do to help an underachieving student understand that they have the power within to achieve anything they want...

I should never give up on anyone and anything that I Love. 


Sunday, October 7, 2012

I applaud you....


Dear _ _ _ _ _,

I applaud you for finding the most beautiful individual in the northern hemisphere
I can imagine your friends and family being extremely excited for your great success
You must consider your finding an upgrade
This lovely individual must be the kindest and most compassionate of their kind
Beautiful hair with lovely makeup and unprecedented taste in clothing
Figure cannot be compared to anyone no single person can imagine.
Flawless skin with shining shimmering eyes with dazzling eloquence
The ability to articulate any sense of emotion with a touch of a finger; acronyms galore...
Must be the funniest of their generation

Human full of success with unfathomable ambition and hope for its future
Most obedient and loyal with loads of possessiveness and protectiveness
Calculative and territorial with a possible touch of manipulation; sexy living creature.
Fully loaded individual with a dash of insecurity; what we call, a beautiful mess.

This Homosapien is the epitome of the best catch in the world

I applaud you.
Congratulations for your ultimate find.
Wish you the best of luck.
Happily ever after.

Yours truly



What I Despise.....

I tend to be the lover of most everything (exclude all reptiles, anything smelly, and a few source of carbohydrates) but there is just one thing that will take me "near eternity" to get to and finish...

the art of ASSESSMENT. I consider myself brilliant in creating teacher-friendly, paperless, budget friendly in-class activities and tasks but my biggest struggle is finding the easiest means to collect, grade, record, and return homework, tests, and quizzes (Speaking of which, I need to create a chapter test and a quiz for my classes as we speak).

I have implemented a procedure in class this year that is seemingly accessible until it was sabotaged by a few cute and helpful but clueless students who decided to lend their hands. Don't get me wrong, I appreciate all the help I can get and my love extend towards each and every one of them.

This year, I decided to abandon the modern classroom arrangements and just go by the traditional "rows."
This way, I can collect all assignments  by rows, clip them, grade them, record them, clip them back together and easily return them. Just in case the students are submitting a missing assignment or late work, I have them label their papers with their row numbers so I know where to bring them.
To add to this, I only collect their homework once a week. I have students pass up their homework at the beginning of the class time (usually during their warm ups). I go through them, stamp or sign them and pass them back by rows. After going over the warm up, students correct their own homework as a class. Students who did no do their homework can still redeem themselves by paying attention during the correction process or by redoing their homework and submitting them for half credit on Friday (points are always better than no points/I also know who they are because "I know" or simply because it's missing a stamp or a signature).

Smart me...
less grading and easy collection and distribution.

I figured my students understood what I was doing. Just a few days ago, I had kind students walk in to my classroom after school to offer help. I had asked them to double check to make sure each individual (clipped) piles within each periods consisted of assignments from students in the correct rows (I teach three periods and each period consist of seven rows/ So, there were three piles each with 7 clipped stacks of papers). The students went ahead and dug into the piles. After half-an-hour, the kids were done and I found myself 7 stacks of papers. They went ahead and combined all periods and created seven new stacks of papers... and the papers were for some reason, alphabetized.


Thank you students you guys never cease to amaze me.
note to self, my "explaining skills" need a little help.

well.... enough said. I do need to get to work.