WHOA! Blogger changed their website setup on me.....I already didn't know how to do anything on here.....now a change? Oy! Oh well, I'm tech savvy, right? :)
Right.
I usually start out blogging without much to say and then something magically happens and I write more than anyone wants to read, ha ha. Jk....I'm sure people love my run-on sentenced, drawn out logic. Cause I sure do! :-/
Nothing much to update....... other than, we got our grades for the semester! I'd say we did remarkably well for Jeff almost dying this semester and the fact that I just hate spring semesters in general. They drag it seems...
I got four A's and a C-! Wooooo!!! Ha ha ha ha.....so funny. We truly do get what we put into things. All of my A's were classes where I learned a LOT. I know the knowledge I learned from those classes will benefit me as a teacher, caregiver, mother, and professional.
............the C- was math. Annnnnd if you read my post a couple times ago about my math situation you'll know that I didn't really have my heart in that class. I didn't need the information so I guess I just.....got what I put into it. It's all good though.....in the long run my grades don't matter as much as most people going out into the workforce.
Jeff and I were talking about that....how my grades don't matter as much, but his do.
I plan to own my own business..........so my employer (myself) isn't really going to care if I got a C- in math, ha ha.
Jeff on the other hand......his grades kinda count. Lucky for him he always gets A's in his accounting classes which is delightful cause that's what he's majoring in!
I was looking up quotes by Sister Hinckley the other day cause I just adore her and I ran across one that stuck out to me very strongly. I think the reason it struck me so hard is because I've been feeling this way for quite a while now, but I didn't really know how to put it into words. Sister Hinckley said it so simply......yet so perfectly.
“Everything you are learning is preparing you for something else.”
― Marjorie Pay Hinckley
Very straighforward, right? Kind of a no brainer it sounds like at first, but it made me smile and think about my life a little more critically.
I truly believe that everything we experience is teaching us something we need to know for the future. Good or bad.
I fully admit that my role/goal in life is to be a stay at home mom and raise a family. I want that for myself, my husband wants it, God wants it.... However, along the way I'm getting a bachelor's degree because I love learning. I feel like my field of study will help me be a good mom. And the practical reason....if I needed to work outside of the home I could find a job comperable to the salary of an elementary school teacher to help my family with the degree I'm getting.
Now why does any of that matter with that quote? Because that quote brings me peace that the knowledge I'm gaining now will help me later in life.... which in turn means that my path in life should be one of learning and growing.
I've pondered this a lot as I've been taking education classes these past four years. Education is interesting because it encompasses so many things.....psychology, linguistics, sociology.... (to name a few)
I'm grateful that I've had the opportunity to learn about these things because like Sister Hinckley I know I will need to know it later in life. I love that we have such wonderful women in the Church to look up to and learn from. Julie B. Beck..... Elaine S. Dalton.... Camilla Eyring Kimball.... are some of my favorite women in the Church to quote along with Sister Hinckley. I just feel like if I take all of the advantages that I can now to become educated I'll be able to do hopefully half as much good as these great women have.
Here are some more quotes from Sister Hinckley that I liked :) -----
(This one I've loved for many years, the rest were new to me)
“The only way to get through life is to laugh your way through it. You either have to laugh or cry. I prefer to laugh. Crying gives me a headache.”
“I don't want to drive up to the pearly gates in a shiny sports car, wearing beautifully, tailored clothes, my hair expertly coiffed, and with long, perfectly manicured fingernails.
I want to drive up in a station wagon that has mud on the wheels from taking kids to scout camp.
I want to be there with a smudge of peanut butter on my shirt from making sandwiches for a sick neighbors children.
I want to be there with a little dirt under my fingernails from helping to weed someone's garden.
I want to be there with children's sticky kisses on my cheeks and the tears of a friend on my shoulder.
I want the Lord to know I was really here and that I really lived.”
“Think about your particular assignment at this time in your life. It may be to get an education, it may be to rear children, it may be to be a grandparent, it may be to care for an relieve the suffering of someone you love, it may be to do a job in the most excellent way possible, it may be to support someone who has a difficult assignment of their own. Our assignments are varied and they change from time to time. Don't take them lightly. Give them your full heart and energy. Do them with enthusiasm. Do whatever you have to do this week with your whole heart and soul. To do less than this will leave you with an empty feeling.”
“The trick is to enjoy life. Don't wish away your days, waiting for better ones ahead.”
Wednesday, April 25, 2012
Wednesday, April 18, 2012
Never Again
Everyone lacks patience, right?
Yep.
I've learned a couple things from my jobs (yes, jobS) this week that made me think to myself...."I will never ever do that again..."
First of all, on a light-ish note I started my summer job today! Woooo!! Mowing for a living is how I've....lived ever since I became an adult. Ha ha...I know, I'm so cool. This is my fifth year mowing, but it's my first year mowing fields.
Oh my goodness it was nerve racking! The whole mowing the field part was totally fine. Got it down, no problem, whatever....
Driving the mower on the ROAD.....holy freak out.
You know when you're driving and the annoying SLOW tractor is driving in front of you and you can't pass them and you want to honk at them because they are ruining your life???
Today I was that "tractor" (mower) and I think I ruined several peoples lives, ha ha. Sigh. This brings me to the point where I say....I'll never again get mad at slow tractors. Once you actually become the person who ruins lives I think it's easier to be more patient when your life is being ruined.
Also, my mower was kind of on the frits today. I was mowing in Kaysville and our shop is in Clearfield (15 minute drive)....the mechanic had to come out from the shop and fix my mower three times today. I felt so bad. There really wasn't anything I could do though...the engine was just being ridiculous. So since my mower was a little sick it went extra slow on the road. ......people got angry. Ha ha.
Anyways, never again. On to the other thing I learned this week!
Yesterday we went to "the farm" at my pre-school job. Yay! My head teacher didn't want to go in the first place cause our kids are so......CRAZY! But we ended up going anyways and it was super fun! Stressful? Yes. But that's what you get when you're in charge of a bunch of autistic kids around large farm animals. One of our little girls got into the horse pen (for approx 3 seconds before my coworker snatched her). Ha ha ha! She wasn't my responsibility though....so no big.... :)
I was in charge of two of our little boys. One is the most high functioning in the class, he's super cute, independent, smart, he cries sometimes (but really....who doesn't cry?) however, he's usually calm. The OTHER kid I was in the charge of is our hardest, wildest, severest, hyper crazy yet total stud student. I love him SO much, but oh man.....
Ha ha ha ha!
I always get put with him when we go places because (don't think I'm vain) he loves me. He kisses me several times a day (generally on my arm) and listens to me/is the most calm with me. Not calm...just the MOST calm.
He's so funny, the whole bus ride to the farm he was freaking out and pointing at everything he saw. He got super upset if I wasn't paying attention to him....
"Daddy daddy....MOMMY! A do dooooo!!!! The water!!!!" Just imagine that nonstop for a 15 minute bus ride. Ha ha ha, I love him so much.
Needless to say he went crazy once we got to the farm. He LOVED all of the animals. I couldn't keep up with him he ran from animal to animal (they had a petting zoo type thing set up) and wanted to hold everything, pet everything, scream and talk ("A woh do do! Ah a cha duh uh?") to everything....
Well, there was a tub full of hamsters that they were letting the kids touch and hold. This was his FAVORITE part. However, every time I would attempt to let him hold a hamster he would SQWEEZE the heck out of it....basically the hamster was going to die. So I couldn't let him hold them.
Our pre-school IS a special education pre-school, however, there is ONE class of "normal" kids. The normal kids came on this field trip with us and.....so did a lot of their parents.
For a split second I didn't notice that my little student had grabbed a hamster and was holding it tight upside-down. I instantly reached over and told him no, but while I did so I got the BIGGEST glare from a mother of one of the "normal" kids. She just kept staring at me after that in a huge ridiculing kind of way and it really made me sad.
I guess the moral of the story is....I will never ever look at the parent/caregiver of a handicap child like that. Never again.
I've never really had that problem in the first place, but I know it's a big problem for a lot of parents with special needs children.
I think the main reason I've never had this problem is I've been around and worked with special needs people for the majority of my life. Whenever I see a struggling mother with a handicap child at the store I make sure to smile at both the mom and child.
Working with my little autistic students for 2 1/2 hours a day is tiring enough, I can't imagine parents who do it all day and night long.
I understand that many people don't have the same feelings I have about special needs people. I also know that many people think they are annoying and their parents should be able to keep them in complete control. It just makes me sad that I can't educate more people into patience and understanding.
I'm grateful that God has blessed me with many opportunities to work with disabled people. They are such wonderful people and are beautiful children of God.
"Face trouble with courage, disappointment with cheerfulness, and triumph with humility."
-President Thomas S. Monson
Yep.
I've learned a couple things from my jobs (yes, jobS) this week that made me think to myself...."I will never ever do that again..."
First of all, on a light-ish note I started my summer job today! Woooo!! Mowing for a living is how I've....lived ever since I became an adult. Ha ha...I know, I'm so cool. This is my fifth year mowing, but it's my first year mowing fields.
Oh my goodness it was nerve racking! The whole mowing the field part was totally fine. Got it down, no problem, whatever....
Driving the mower on the ROAD.....holy freak out.
You know when you're driving and the annoying SLOW tractor is driving in front of you and you can't pass them and you want to honk at them because they are ruining your life???
Today I was that "tractor" (mower) and I think I ruined several peoples lives, ha ha. Sigh. This brings me to the point where I say....I'll never again get mad at slow tractors. Once you actually become the person who ruins lives I think it's easier to be more patient when your life is being ruined.
Also, my mower was kind of on the frits today. I was mowing in Kaysville and our shop is in Clearfield (15 minute drive)....the mechanic had to come out from the shop and fix my mower three times today. I felt so bad. There really wasn't anything I could do though...the engine was just being ridiculous. So since my mower was a little sick it went extra slow on the road. ......people got angry. Ha ha.
Anyways, never again. On to the other thing I learned this week!
Yesterday we went to "the farm" at my pre-school job. Yay! My head teacher didn't want to go in the first place cause our kids are so......CRAZY! But we ended up going anyways and it was super fun! Stressful? Yes. But that's what you get when you're in charge of a bunch of autistic kids around large farm animals. One of our little girls got into the horse pen (for approx 3 seconds before my coworker snatched her). Ha ha ha! She wasn't my responsibility though....so no big.... :)
I was in charge of two of our little boys. One is the most high functioning in the class, he's super cute, independent, smart, he cries sometimes (but really....who doesn't cry?) however, he's usually calm. The OTHER kid I was in the charge of is our hardest, wildest, severest, hyper crazy yet total stud student. I love him SO much, but oh man.....
Ha ha ha ha!
I always get put with him when we go places because (don't think I'm vain) he loves me. He kisses me several times a day (generally on my arm) and listens to me/is the most calm with me. Not calm...just the MOST calm.
He's so funny, the whole bus ride to the farm he was freaking out and pointing at everything he saw. He got super upset if I wasn't paying attention to him....
"Daddy daddy....MOMMY! A do dooooo!!!! The water!!!!" Just imagine that nonstop for a 15 minute bus ride. Ha ha ha, I love him so much.
Needless to say he went crazy once we got to the farm. He LOVED all of the animals. I couldn't keep up with him he ran from animal to animal (they had a petting zoo type thing set up) and wanted to hold everything, pet everything, scream and talk ("A woh do do! Ah a cha duh uh?") to everything....
Well, there was a tub full of hamsters that they were letting the kids touch and hold. This was his FAVORITE part. However, every time I would attempt to let him hold a hamster he would SQWEEZE the heck out of it....basically the hamster was going to die. So I couldn't let him hold them.
Our pre-school IS a special education pre-school, however, there is ONE class of "normal" kids. The normal kids came on this field trip with us and.....so did a lot of their parents.
For a split second I didn't notice that my little student had grabbed a hamster and was holding it tight upside-down. I instantly reached over and told him no, but while I did so I got the BIGGEST glare from a mother of one of the "normal" kids. She just kept staring at me after that in a huge ridiculing kind of way and it really made me sad.
I guess the moral of the story is....I will never ever look at the parent/caregiver of a handicap child like that. Never again.
I've never really had that problem in the first place, but I know it's a big problem for a lot of parents with special needs children.
I think the main reason I've never had this problem is I've been around and worked with special needs people for the majority of my life. Whenever I see a struggling mother with a handicap child at the store I make sure to smile at both the mom and child.
Working with my little autistic students for 2 1/2 hours a day is tiring enough, I can't imagine parents who do it all day and night long.
I understand that many people don't have the same feelings I have about special needs people. I also know that many people think they are annoying and their parents should be able to keep them in complete control. It just makes me sad that I can't educate more people into patience and understanding.
I'm grateful that God has blessed me with many opportunities to work with disabled people. They are such wonderful people and are beautiful children of God.
"Face trouble with courage, disappointment with cheerfulness, and triumph with humility."
-President Thomas S. Monson
Friday, April 13, 2012
Sometimes
Sometimes I hate dreams.
For example, last night I had a dream that Jeff and I were in charge of my dog (yes, he's mine, I wanted him in the 6th grade even though my mom treats him as my equal in the present day, ha ha ha ha.......jk, Mom.)
And for some reason we lost him. You know how dreams are weird and sometimes have like 4th dimensions and what not? Well, he was lost in a 4th dimension. My mom called me and was all like..."hey blah blah blah" and I couldn't bring myself to tell her we had lost him so I pretended like everything was cool.
I also hate when dreams feel super realistic and you think they are really happening. Even with the 4th dimension thing....I still thought it was real.
So Jeff and I searched frantically for Sparky alongside Jeff's pet jaguar. Yes, at this point I STILL thought it was all real.
We finally found him in a snowy 4th dimension and Jeff's stupid jaguar started attacking him! If you know my dog.............he's afraid of bugs......so....
Needless to say, I still thought this was all real and I woke up crying because of Jeff's stupid jaguar.
Sometimes I hate dreams.
Sometimes I'm completely done with 3 out of my 5 classes for the semester and feel really great about it! Wooo! That sometime is right now.
Sometimes I accidently get stuck in a math class that too late in the semester I find out I don't need and it ends up being the bain of my existence.
I took Math for Elementary School Teachers 2 this semester cause for some really ridiculous reason I thought I needed it for my major still?
Come to find out pre-schoolers and kindergarteners don't learn math that 3rd-6th graders learn.....which is what we were taught this semester.
Now....you would think that learning things for 3rd to 6th grade isn't tough, but oh no....my professor pretty much took us into the deep sea of math to unknown parts of theory and reasoning.
In the end, I've been kicking myself for the past 2 months because I don't need to know this stuff and it's really hard. She told our classes yesterday that the final IS our grade. So whatever we get on the final is the only thing that counts. I was so mad....ha ha ha. It's like....well, then why have I even been turning homework in several times a week? I know....I know....to learn. Learning is great.
I think someday far down the road I'll be glad I took this class. Someday when my children are 3rd - 6th graders....yep....that's when I'll be glad.
To sum up that whole story....sometimes I need to pay closer attention to credits in my major, ha ha.
Sometimes I get foreign type professors and it makes my life interesting.
I have a Chinese lady as a professor right now. She is super super super smart....like I'm pretty sure she could talk about early childhood for 5 hours and I wouldn't get bored, but sometimes....
She doesn't understand me. Ha ha. She speaks English great when she's the only one talking (lecturing), but when she has to collaborate with others it gets a little confusing. It's cool to me that she tries though. It's cool that she is here and wants to further the early childhood knowledge of clueless Americans.
Anyways, some other fun things happening in my life in the next little while.......
Jeff's birthday is this weekend! Wooo! :)
I start mowing on Wednesday which will be interesting. It'll be nice being alone because I think I've had too many summers of drama between the girls and the guys in charge, ha ha. However, it'll be weird being alone.....I might start talking to myself (more) and that's kind of unhealthy? I love being outide all day though! Love love love! It just feels so good! Plus I'm getting paid a whole lot more than I ever have which will be wonderful.
I'm starting that on Wednesday, but I'm only going part time till pre-school gets out at the end of May. It's going to be so weird leaving that job.......I have no idea how I feel about that right now.
I'm taking my first summer classes ever this summer. First time in all four years of college. Weird. It's only 6 credits online, but still. So weird.
Jeff and I are trying to decide somewhere fun to go this summer! We are thinking Yellowstone, but haven't really decided yet. We are going to see Brian Regan at Tuachan with some of our married friends in May! Hooray!
Well, that's pretty much my life for now! Hopefully Jeff and I come up with some fun stuff to do this summer that I can post about :)
For example, last night I had a dream that Jeff and I were in charge of my dog (yes, he's mine, I wanted him in the 6th grade even though my mom treats him as my equal in the present day, ha ha ha ha.......jk, Mom.)
And for some reason we lost him. You know how dreams are weird and sometimes have like 4th dimensions and what not? Well, he was lost in a 4th dimension. My mom called me and was all like..."hey blah blah blah" and I couldn't bring myself to tell her we had lost him so I pretended like everything was cool.
I also hate when dreams feel super realistic and you think they are really happening. Even with the 4th dimension thing....I still thought it was real.
So Jeff and I searched frantically for Sparky alongside Jeff's pet jaguar. Yes, at this point I STILL thought it was all real.
We finally found him in a snowy 4th dimension and Jeff's stupid jaguar started attacking him! If you know my dog.............he's afraid of bugs......so....
Needless to say, I still thought this was all real and I woke up crying because of Jeff's stupid jaguar.
Sometimes I hate dreams.
Sometimes I'm completely done with 3 out of my 5 classes for the semester and feel really great about it! Wooo! That sometime is right now.
Sometimes I accidently get stuck in a math class that too late in the semester I find out I don't need and it ends up being the bain of my existence.
I took Math for Elementary School Teachers 2 this semester cause for some really ridiculous reason I thought I needed it for my major still?
Come to find out pre-schoolers and kindergarteners don't learn math that 3rd-6th graders learn.....which is what we were taught this semester.
Now....you would think that learning things for 3rd to 6th grade isn't tough, but oh no....my professor pretty much took us into the deep sea of math to unknown parts of theory and reasoning.
In the end, I've been kicking myself for the past 2 months because I don't need to know this stuff and it's really hard. She told our classes yesterday that the final IS our grade. So whatever we get on the final is the only thing that counts. I was so mad....ha ha ha. It's like....well, then why have I even been turning homework in several times a week? I know....I know....to learn. Learning is great.
I think someday far down the road I'll be glad I took this class. Someday when my children are 3rd - 6th graders....yep....that's when I'll be glad.
To sum up that whole story....sometimes I need to pay closer attention to credits in my major, ha ha.
Sometimes I get foreign type professors and it makes my life interesting.
I have a Chinese lady as a professor right now. She is super super super smart....like I'm pretty sure she could talk about early childhood for 5 hours and I wouldn't get bored, but sometimes....
She doesn't understand me. Ha ha. She speaks English great when she's the only one talking (lecturing), but when she has to collaborate with others it gets a little confusing. It's cool to me that she tries though. It's cool that she is here and wants to further the early childhood knowledge of clueless Americans.
Anyways, some other fun things happening in my life in the next little while.......
Jeff's birthday is this weekend! Wooo! :)
I start mowing on Wednesday which will be interesting. It'll be nice being alone because I think I've had too many summers of drama between the girls and the guys in charge, ha ha. However, it'll be weird being alone.....I might start talking to myself (more) and that's kind of unhealthy? I love being outide all day though! Love love love! It just feels so good! Plus I'm getting paid a whole lot more than I ever have which will be wonderful.
I'm starting that on Wednesday, but I'm only going part time till pre-school gets out at the end of May. It's going to be so weird leaving that job.......I have no idea how I feel about that right now.
I'm taking my first summer classes ever this summer. First time in all four years of college. Weird. It's only 6 credits online, but still. So weird.
Jeff and I are trying to decide somewhere fun to go this summer! We are thinking Yellowstone, but haven't really decided yet. We are going to see Brian Regan at Tuachan with some of our married friends in May! Hooray!
Well, that's pretty much my life for now! Hopefully Jeff and I come up with some fun stuff to do this summer that I can post about :)
Wednesday, April 11, 2012
ECE, FTW!
Since I don't have time to actually blog about my life I thought I would post a short paper I had to write for one of my classes! It's a class where I've had a lab down in the children's school two hours a week all semester and I've had to implement lesson plans for the kids down there. Anywho......many of you won't find it interesting, but I figured I would post it anyways! :)
P.S. I wrote it in less than 10 minutes so if there are errors.....don't judge. Ha ha :)
_____________________________________________________________________________________
My personal philosophy of how children learn best is summarized mainly through nurture, environment, and social interaction. I do recognize that biological factors are a cause of development, and that the inherent nature of a child can play into their overall ability to learn. However, I feel that the majority of a person’s development comes from what physically, cognitively, and emotionally happens to them on a day to day basis.
Throughout my academic career I have loved learning about the different theorists of early childhood and I feel that they all add a puzzle piece to what really sums up early childhood development. However, my favorite theorist is Lev Vygotsky. I have studied his work and really feel that his opinions and observations are very close to mine.
In Vygotsky’s theory of cognitive development we learn that young children are molded by scaffolding, social interaction, and observation. Through my work with children I have noticed that they often learn best from modeling and really excel when they are being taught through scaffolding.
Another key point that I have observed is the way a child’s environment affects the way they learn. I have seen students who have had a lot of success in school for weeks and then overnight they completely change. I have also seen children who day to day shift from being a behavioral problem to being the ideal student. I find in these situations it is ultimately up to the teacher to figure out the source of the problem. There is an unlimited amount of reasons why students suffer or excel because of their environment. Whether the family is nuclear, single parent, low or high income, separated, or becoming separated the child will be affected. All of these factors and more can play into a child’s ability to learn. I have seen a direct correlation in students learning from how they perform at school versus what their parents say is going on at home.
Another thing I love about Vygotsky’s work is his theory of self-regulation. Especially while working with toddlers and preschoolers I have noticed the need for self-regulation. Self-regulation is the key to success in education. Therefore, if it can be mastered at a young age the future success of the child will increase. Without the understanding of self-regulation many children won’t be able to focus later in life and won’t make wise decisions. It’s also interesting to note that some children might not be at the proper developmental stage to implement self-regulatory behavior. For this reason, I feel that teachers need to be sensitive to each child and recognize what every student’s current abilities are.
Going along with being sensitive as a teacher there is the zone of proximal development, also developed by Vygotsky. As a teacher there really is no other concept that can match its importance. If a teacher expects too much or too little of a child that student will never grow. Understanding the zone of proximal development for every child is a daunting, but worthwhile thing for a teacher.
Overall, I have found that implementing Vygotsky’s theories has helped me so far as an educator. Recognizing how environment shapes a child is extremely beneficial in education. Also direct influence of family, peers, the teacher, and the child themselves are all central to the child’s learning.
P.S. I wrote it in less than 10 minutes so if there are errors.....don't judge. Ha ha :)
_____________________________________________________________________________________
My personal philosophy of how children learn best is summarized mainly through nurture, environment, and social interaction. I do recognize that biological factors are a cause of development, and that the inherent nature of a child can play into their overall ability to learn. However, I feel that the majority of a person’s development comes from what physically, cognitively, and emotionally happens to them on a day to day basis.
Throughout my academic career I have loved learning about the different theorists of early childhood and I feel that they all add a puzzle piece to what really sums up early childhood development. However, my favorite theorist is Lev Vygotsky. I have studied his work and really feel that his opinions and observations are very close to mine.
In Vygotsky’s theory of cognitive development we learn that young children are molded by scaffolding, social interaction, and observation. Through my work with children I have noticed that they often learn best from modeling and really excel when they are being taught through scaffolding.
Another key point that I have observed is the way a child’s environment affects the way they learn. I have seen students who have had a lot of success in school for weeks and then overnight they completely change. I have also seen children who day to day shift from being a behavioral problem to being the ideal student. I find in these situations it is ultimately up to the teacher to figure out the source of the problem. There is an unlimited amount of reasons why students suffer or excel because of their environment. Whether the family is nuclear, single parent, low or high income, separated, or becoming separated the child will be affected. All of these factors and more can play into a child’s ability to learn. I have seen a direct correlation in students learning from how they perform at school versus what their parents say is going on at home.
Another thing I love about Vygotsky’s work is his theory of self-regulation. Especially while working with toddlers and preschoolers I have noticed the need for self-regulation. Self-regulation is the key to success in education. Therefore, if it can be mastered at a young age the future success of the child will increase. Without the understanding of self-regulation many children won’t be able to focus later in life and won’t make wise decisions. It’s also interesting to note that some children might not be at the proper developmental stage to implement self-regulatory behavior. For this reason, I feel that teachers need to be sensitive to each child and recognize what every student’s current abilities are.
Going along with being sensitive as a teacher there is the zone of proximal development, also developed by Vygotsky. As a teacher there really is no other concept that can match its importance. If a teacher expects too much or too little of a child that student will never grow. Understanding the zone of proximal development for every child is a daunting, but worthwhile thing for a teacher.
Overall, I have found that implementing Vygotsky’s theories has helped me so far as an educator. Recognizing how environment shapes a child is extremely beneficial in education. Also direct influence of family, peers, the teacher, and the child themselves are all central to the child’s learning.
Thursday, April 5, 2012
Whitney Made Me Do It.
I'm mostly doing this because A. I love Whitney. B. I give into peer pressure. C. This reminds me of the awesome survey emails we used to do in 7th grade. And D. I probably need to blog.
Whit tagged me in this thing where I'm supposed to answer these questions and then tag 10....or 11 people and give them questions. Weeeeeeell, the only three people I know who have blogs are....Whitney.....and two people she already tagged.
Ahem.
So I won't be tagging anyone.
Also....
I don't know how to tag....
On to the questions! I'm sure you're dying to know all about me! Ha ha...
1. Who has your heart? Metaphorically - Jeff. Literally - Hopefully not the evil queen from Once Upon a Time.
2. If you could commit any crime and completely get away with it (even God didn't see it) what would you do?
This isn't really a crime.....but it's not really....ethical? I would want to be a fly on the wall or hide a camera on peoples lives for a day. I'm THE biggest people watcher ever, but often times I wonder what people are like, what they say, etc. when others aren't around. Does that make me sound paranoid? I'm not paranoid, just curious. Curious about people....how they think...how they are.... I'm secretly a massive gossiper in my own brain and sometimes/all the times at my husband. I need to learn from President Uchtdorf's talk last weekend.....
Sorry if I sound like a stalker. :-/
3. What is the weirdest thing that you love?
Sea otters. <3 Mowing lawns. Family pictures on Facebook. (are those weird things?)
4. What would you do if you won a billion dollars?
I would be scared. Ha ha ha, no really, I would be. You always hear about people going CRAZY after winning lots of money.
I would probably give a bunch to all of our families, buy nice cars, a house, a summer home, have enough to provide a good life for our kids...... and then give the rest to the church.
I don't think I would just quit working or living a normal life because that's probably the point when people get too selfish or crazy. I would just keep living normally and have a few nice things. :)
5. If you could have any mode of transportation, what would it be?
Airplane. However, that would be highly inconvenient for short distances. Sooo...I guess for short distances....horse. Ha ha :)
6. What is your dream job?
National Geographic Photographer!! They get to see the coolest things ever.
7. What celebrity would you like hang out with for 24 hours?
Although I love Josh Groban and Michael Buble I don't really think I'd want to hang out with them. Meet them....sure? That'd be cool! But be with them for 24 hours? Probably not. The only person I want to be with for 24 hours straight is Jeff. Anyone else......eeeeeeh.... :)
8. What human trait do you find obnoxious?
Ha ha ha ha ha ha........
There are a couple, HOWEVER, they can pretty much always be found in the same people. For all I know I'm exactly like this.....(but I don't see it, so let me believe I'm awesome)
-Brown nosers
-People who think everyone wants to hear about their current issues with illness, family problems, or how the world hates them (don't get me wrong....I like listening to peoples problems...I just find it super bizarre when people walk into a room and start talking about it before anyone asks....especially when you're all strangers to the person) (obviously this happens to me far too frequently that it has become tidious to my brain)
9. Where do you work?
I work for the school district at their special education pre-school! I blog about it a lot, but I'm in an autistic class and I love it. The kids are 3 to 5 years old and we have ten of them. Eight boys and two girls. Autism is kind of a boy thing. It's the place where I decided I want to do early childhood for the rest of my life, but also where I decided I don't think I could do special ed. forever. It's super heartbreaking to see what some of our students have to go through, but I love watching them learn!
10. What characteristic do you wish you had?
Eloquence. Nuff said.
Ha ha ha....I often find that louder people than me control conversations because of my lack of eloquence. I find that my lack of it streams from being shy as a child. Oh well......I get a word in sometimes!
With my husband I get lots of words in, but that's cause he loves me and likes listening to me talk (I think).
11. Who would win in a fight between a grilled cheese and a...taco...?
I think the better question is why are those two things in the same room together? No, definitely the grilled cheese....it has more resistance to breakage (if we're talkin a hard shell taco) and more......volume. (???)
Whit tagged me in this thing where I'm supposed to answer these questions and then tag 10....or 11 people and give them questions. Weeeeeeell, the only three people I know who have blogs are....Whitney.....and two people she already tagged.
Ahem.
So I won't be tagging anyone.
Also....
I don't know how to tag....
On to the questions! I'm sure you're dying to know all about me! Ha ha...
1. Who has your heart? Metaphorically - Jeff. Literally - Hopefully not the evil queen from Once Upon a Time.
2. If you could commit any crime and completely get away with it (even God didn't see it) what would you do?
This isn't really a crime.....but it's not really....ethical? I would want to be a fly on the wall or hide a camera on peoples lives for a day. I'm THE biggest people watcher ever, but often times I wonder what people are like, what they say, etc. when others aren't around. Does that make me sound paranoid? I'm not paranoid, just curious. Curious about people....how they think...how they are.... I'm secretly a massive gossiper in my own brain and sometimes/all the times at my husband. I need to learn from President Uchtdorf's talk last weekend.....
Sorry if I sound like a stalker. :-/
3. What is the weirdest thing that you love?
Sea otters. <3 Mowing lawns. Family pictures on Facebook. (are those weird things?)
4. What would you do if you won a billion dollars?
I would be scared. Ha ha ha, no really, I would be. You always hear about people going CRAZY after winning lots of money.
I would probably give a bunch to all of our families, buy nice cars, a house, a summer home, have enough to provide a good life for our kids...... and then give the rest to the church.
I don't think I would just quit working or living a normal life because that's probably the point when people get too selfish or crazy. I would just keep living normally and have a few nice things. :)
5. If you could have any mode of transportation, what would it be?
Airplane. However, that would be highly inconvenient for short distances. Sooo...I guess for short distances....horse. Ha ha :)
6. What is your dream job?
National Geographic Photographer!! They get to see the coolest things ever.
7. What celebrity would you like hang out with for 24 hours?
Although I love Josh Groban and Michael Buble I don't really think I'd want to hang out with them. Meet them....sure? That'd be cool! But be with them for 24 hours? Probably not. The only person I want to be with for 24 hours straight is Jeff. Anyone else......eeeeeeh.... :)
8. What human trait do you find obnoxious?
Ha ha ha ha ha ha........
There are a couple, HOWEVER, they can pretty much always be found in the same people. For all I know I'm exactly like this.....(but I don't see it, so let me believe I'm awesome)
-Brown nosers
-People who think everyone wants to hear about their current issues with illness, family problems, or how the world hates them (don't get me wrong....I like listening to peoples problems...I just find it super bizarre when people walk into a room and start talking about it before anyone asks....especially when you're all strangers to the person) (obviously this happens to me far too frequently that it has become tidious to my brain)
9. Where do you work?
I work for the school district at their special education pre-school! I blog about it a lot, but I'm in an autistic class and I love it. The kids are 3 to 5 years old and we have ten of them. Eight boys and two girls. Autism is kind of a boy thing. It's the place where I decided I want to do early childhood for the rest of my life, but also where I decided I don't think I could do special ed. forever. It's super heartbreaking to see what some of our students have to go through, but I love watching them learn!
10. What characteristic do you wish you had?
Eloquence. Nuff said.
Ha ha ha....I often find that louder people than me control conversations because of my lack of eloquence. I find that my lack of it streams from being shy as a child. Oh well......I get a word in sometimes!
With my husband I get lots of words in, but that's cause he loves me and likes listening to me talk (I think).
11. Who would win in a fight between a grilled cheese and a...taco...?
I think the better question is why are those two things in the same room together? No, definitely the grilled cheese....it has more resistance to breakage (if we're talkin a hard shell taco) and more......volume. (???)
Wednesday, March 28, 2012
Anniversary, daytime tv, and sickness.....oh my!
The things I learned from daytime television today.....
-If your twin's boyfriend gets you pregnant make sure you take everyone involved, yet clueless onto the Jerry Springer show to solve said problem.
-Aliens will shortly be taking over Los Angeles via networking of Catalina Island. However, these beasties aren't in UFOs, they are in USOs. (USO = Unidentified Submerged Object, aka, Alien Submarines)
-Serial killers don't make good bank robbers.
Why am I watching daytime television????
Because I'm sick.....and have been for almost two weeks.
I dunno, I'm BASICALLY better, just not 100% yet.
I'm getting rather tired of being sick. I work work work Monday, Tuesday, crash Wednesday because I don't have pre-school, and then work work the rest of the week. That's been my pattern as of late.
I'm convinced that I just need to get more rest, but rest is hard to come by. That's why I've forced myself to do so today..........as a result I watched a whole bunch of great television.
Anyways, enough of that ridiculous stuff.
Jeff and I have officially been married for a year! Woo hoo!
As of two days ago actually...
A year ago today we were hanging out in San Diego enjoying our honeymoon. :)
This past weekend we went and stayed overnight in Salt Lake. It was really fun!
I love going to temples I've never been to before so we went and did a session at the Draper Temple on Saturday. I've done baptisms there, but neither of us had gone through before so it was fun. Such a beautiful temple! I love how perfect temples are.
After that we checked into our hotel and then went and saw The Hunger Games at the Gateway! It was super good! I really want the next movie to come out now....I hate how they always leave you on a cliffhanger.
Next we went and checked out the new City Creek Center in downtown Salt Lake. It was CRAZY!!! Absolute ciaos! Ha ha! We were thinking we were going to be able to go shopping for some stuff, but it was so packed! Granted we probably could have gotten some shopping done, but I was a little too overwhelmed by the large number of people, ha ha.
They have a Disney store there which I was really excited about, but the line to get in was huge so we didn't even try. (someday I'm sure I will get to go in!)
Although there were tons of people it was still a WAY cool place! If I ever live in downtown, or Salt Lake for that matter, I want to live there! Seriously it was way neat! They have apartments everywhere, it's a full on community with everything you could ever need.
We then went to Applebee's for dinner (my favorite)! It was a pretty spectacular day! I love that Jeff knows me so well and does things that he knows I'll enjoy.
Being married a year has taught me a lot. It's crazy how life can change so much, be so great, and keep getting better over that period of time.
I think one of the greatest things I have learned from being married a year is exactly how time fits into our relationship and what that really means for the rest of our life with each other.
I have many friends who have been married shorter (in some cases longer) than we have and don't seem to grasp this concept. They need to be graduated from school now, they need to have babies now, they need a house now, they need this NOW!
Like I said, being married for a year has taught me a ton about those things and how it's all going to work out. I think people get so wrapped up in the fact that....wow, we're married so we need this and this and this and that.....
But being married has taught me that really all I need is Jeff and all that other stuff will happen when it's best for us.
God always gives us what we need when we need it. Of course we have agency that can speed up our needs and turn them into wants, but that's our own choice.
I'm looking forward to this year of marriage and all the ones to come! I love being able to learn new things about life with someone next to me. It just makes life that much better!
-If your twin's boyfriend gets you pregnant make sure you take everyone involved, yet clueless onto the Jerry Springer show to solve said problem.
-Aliens will shortly be taking over Los Angeles via networking of Catalina Island. However, these beasties aren't in UFOs, they are in USOs. (USO = Unidentified Submerged Object, aka, Alien Submarines)
-Serial killers don't make good bank robbers.
Why am I watching daytime television????
Because I'm sick.....and have been for almost two weeks.
I dunno, I'm BASICALLY better, just not 100% yet.
I'm getting rather tired of being sick. I work work work Monday, Tuesday, crash Wednesday because I don't have pre-school, and then work work the rest of the week. That's been my pattern as of late.
I'm convinced that I just need to get more rest, but rest is hard to come by. That's why I've forced myself to do so today..........as a result I watched a whole bunch of great television.
Anyways, enough of that ridiculous stuff.
Jeff and I have officially been married for a year! Woo hoo!
As of two days ago actually...
A year ago today we were hanging out in San Diego enjoying our honeymoon. :)
This past weekend we went and stayed overnight in Salt Lake. It was really fun!
I love going to temples I've never been to before so we went and did a session at the Draper Temple on Saturday. I've done baptisms there, but neither of us had gone through before so it was fun. Such a beautiful temple! I love how perfect temples are.
After that we checked into our hotel and then went and saw The Hunger Games at the Gateway! It was super good! I really want the next movie to come out now....I hate how they always leave you on a cliffhanger.
Next we went and checked out the new City Creek Center in downtown Salt Lake. It was CRAZY!!! Absolute ciaos! Ha ha! We were thinking we were going to be able to go shopping for some stuff, but it was so packed! Granted we probably could have gotten some shopping done, but I was a little too overwhelmed by the large number of people, ha ha.
They have a Disney store there which I was really excited about, but the line to get in was huge so we didn't even try. (someday I'm sure I will get to go in!)
Although there were tons of people it was still a WAY cool place! If I ever live in downtown, or Salt Lake for that matter, I want to live there! Seriously it was way neat! They have apartments everywhere, it's a full on community with everything you could ever need.
We then went to Applebee's for dinner (my favorite)! It was a pretty spectacular day! I love that Jeff knows me so well and does things that he knows I'll enjoy.
Being married a year has taught me a lot. It's crazy how life can change so much, be so great, and keep getting better over that period of time.
I think one of the greatest things I have learned from being married a year is exactly how time fits into our relationship and what that really means for the rest of our life with each other.
I have many friends who have been married shorter (in some cases longer) than we have and don't seem to grasp this concept. They need to be graduated from school now, they need to have babies now, they need a house now, they need this NOW!
Like I said, being married for a year has taught me a ton about those things and how it's all going to work out. I think people get so wrapped up in the fact that....wow, we're married so we need this and this and this and that.....
But being married has taught me that really all I need is Jeff and all that other stuff will happen when it's best for us.
God always gives us what we need when we need it. Of course we have agency that can speed up our needs and turn them into wants, but that's our own choice.
I'm looking forward to this year of marriage and all the ones to come! I love being able to learn new things about life with someone next to me. It just makes life that much better!
Thursday, March 15, 2012
Harp Drugs
Last night I played my harp for our ward Relief Society birthday dinnner. I guess the Relief Society is 170 years old!
I played Lord I Would Follow Thee....which is pretty fitting for Relief Society because it's all about service, and well, Relief Society is service!
I came away from that meeting with lots of things, but the two main things that I brought out of it was...
1. Learning, talking, and living Relief Society gives the best spirit. I wish I could live in that spirit more.
2. I really really really really wish I could play my harp more. Even to the point where I can be good enough to teach lessons.
Since I've had to play twice this week for things I've been practicing a lot and it's brought a wonderful spirit into my heart.
I had lots of people over the last week from my ward ask me tons of questions about it and say how soothing it is. It's not like other string instruments where you have to play it right to sound decent....with the harp you can just run your finger up it and it sounds pretty.
I wish I wasn't so busy with school and work that I could play more.
Honestly, I probably could play more, but after a long day it's hard to put forth effort in anything but relaxing. Especially since my days generally don't end till 8:00 or 9:00 when I get all my homework done.
Pretty much the conclusion I've come to is I'll play more once I'm a stay-at-home mom. Although motherhood is a daunting thing and I in no way think I'll have all the time in the world, I definitely will have more time than I do now to do things like that.
It's no wonder to me sometimes why so many women go through post partum depression, especially people in recent generations. In the past couple of decades it's almost been mandatory/expected that women work and go to school and achieve all sorts of greatness before they have kids. Going from running around like crazy for several years getting a college degree to being at home full time....I guess it just makes sense.
Another cool thing that happened last night was I was able to sit by a couple of ladies in my ward who....after some discussion.... I found out are inactive.
I have to attribute this experience all to God, because when I walked into the room I saw a table full of primary ladies that I am friends with/feel comfortable around....so as I was walking to sit by them I noticed this lone sister sitting at another table and the spirit told me to go sit by her.
I'm really glad I did because not too long after that her daughter came in and sat down and I quickly realized if I hadn't sat there nobody else would have.
They told me about their lives and I told them about mine and they seemed so geniunely grateful that I had sat by them.
They talked about their struggle with coming to church and I think although they were justifying some things it made them feel better to tell me.
I'm grateful to be a member of the Church. I love that I know the truth and can guide my life around it to be happy.
I look at the situations that my students are in at school and wonder how they would be different if their families were members. One little girl in my class has gotten left on the bus twice this week because her mom has forgotten to come out to get her for over an hour. Even though the bus driver calls the mom and what not she still doesn't come out.
Our administrator of the pre-school said that if that happens one more time the bus driver has to take the little girl directly to child services and leave her there. The thought of that to me is frightening because this little girl has some extreme behaviors.
In the end, this situation is the way it is because the mom is abusing drugs. That's actually the reason her daughter is disabled because she did drugs while she was pregnant. It's so sad when moms do drugs pre-natally. Most children in that situation usually come out to have "autistic tendencies". The child doesn't actually have autism, they just get thrown in the autistic class because that's how they act. We have a couple of kids like that in our class.
We have other parents who are neglecting their kids and won't take them to the doctor even though they have severe medical needs. It's just so sad! I wish people had the light of the Gospel in their lives because I know that even though some of these people are living in homeless shelters, the Gospel has the power to lift them up and out of those bad situations.
It just makes me so sad to see kids suffer from their parents decisions.
I am grateful to be sealed to my husband for almost a year now and to know that even though life is difficult at times, it's never more than we can't handle with having the Gospel in our lives.
I played Lord I Would Follow Thee....which is pretty fitting for Relief Society because it's all about service, and well, Relief Society is service!
I came away from that meeting with lots of things, but the two main things that I brought out of it was...
1. Learning, talking, and living Relief Society gives the best spirit. I wish I could live in that spirit more.
2. I really really really really wish I could play my harp more. Even to the point where I can be good enough to teach lessons.
Since I've had to play twice this week for things I've been practicing a lot and it's brought a wonderful spirit into my heart.
I had lots of people over the last week from my ward ask me tons of questions about it and say how soothing it is. It's not like other string instruments where you have to play it right to sound decent....with the harp you can just run your finger up it and it sounds pretty.
I wish I wasn't so busy with school and work that I could play more.
Honestly, I probably could play more, but after a long day it's hard to put forth effort in anything but relaxing. Especially since my days generally don't end till 8:00 or 9:00 when I get all my homework done.
Pretty much the conclusion I've come to is I'll play more once I'm a stay-at-home mom. Although motherhood is a daunting thing and I in no way think I'll have all the time in the world, I definitely will have more time than I do now to do things like that.
It's no wonder to me sometimes why so many women go through post partum depression, especially people in recent generations. In the past couple of decades it's almost been mandatory/expected that women work and go to school and achieve all sorts of greatness before they have kids. Going from running around like crazy for several years getting a college degree to being at home full time....I guess it just makes sense.
Another cool thing that happened last night was I was able to sit by a couple of ladies in my ward who....after some discussion.... I found out are inactive.
I have to attribute this experience all to God, because when I walked into the room I saw a table full of primary ladies that I am friends with/feel comfortable around....so as I was walking to sit by them I noticed this lone sister sitting at another table and the spirit told me to go sit by her.
I'm really glad I did because not too long after that her daughter came in and sat down and I quickly realized if I hadn't sat there nobody else would have.
They told me about their lives and I told them about mine and they seemed so geniunely grateful that I had sat by them.
They talked about their struggle with coming to church and I think although they were justifying some things it made them feel better to tell me.
I'm grateful to be a member of the Church. I love that I know the truth and can guide my life around it to be happy.
I look at the situations that my students are in at school and wonder how they would be different if their families were members. One little girl in my class has gotten left on the bus twice this week because her mom has forgotten to come out to get her for over an hour. Even though the bus driver calls the mom and what not she still doesn't come out.
Our administrator of the pre-school said that if that happens one more time the bus driver has to take the little girl directly to child services and leave her there. The thought of that to me is frightening because this little girl has some extreme behaviors.
In the end, this situation is the way it is because the mom is abusing drugs. That's actually the reason her daughter is disabled because she did drugs while she was pregnant. It's so sad when moms do drugs pre-natally. Most children in that situation usually come out to have "autistic tendencies". The child doesn't actually have autism, they just get thrown in the autistic class because that's how they act. We have a couple of kids like that in our class.
We have other parents who are neglecting their kids and won't take them to the doctor even though they have severe medical needs. It's just so sad! I wish people had the light of the Gospel in their lives because I know that even though some of these people are living in homeless shelters, the Gospel has the power to lift them up and out of those bad situations.
It just makes me so sad to see kids suffer from their parents decisions.
I am grateful to be sealed to my husband for almost a year now and to know that even though life is difficult at times, it's never more than we can't handle with having the Gospel in our lives.
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