Embarrassed

I read today that Nevada rates 50th of the 50 states for k-12 education. They received a "D". The US average was a "C". Yes, I live in Nevada and taught here. I am embarrassed. When some of us would suggest some changes to our education system, we were laughed at or told everything was working just right or more money was needed to accomplish better scores. Money is not the solution. We need to go back to basics and let these students know from the beginning that there is discipline. We have academic standards (which have caused so many problems), but where are the discipline standards? I have been finding more and more educators and parents who believe the same. I guess we just have to continuing trying to be heard. I will get down off of my soap box for now. Let me leave you with this thought. In the 60's math decided it needed to make things more complicated. We learned 1+1=2. But, that was not enough. What if you had 1 apple +1 apple =2 and one of those apples had a bite taken out of it. Then you had 1+1<2. And it went on and on from there.

Quick dish

No pogonip today, just rain and snow.  The perfect dish for today is what we call slumgullion.  I use an electric skillet and put in a pound or two of hamburger depending on how much meat you like.  I brown this then add one or two cans of diced tomatoes, frozen mixed vegetables, canned mushroom pieces, sometimes zucchini, chopped onions.  Let this simmer until all vegetables are done.  Then I sprinkle jack cheese on the top and let it melt.  Serve with French bread or sheepherder bread....or no bread.  Enjoy.  

Our troops

Today I am not in as jolly a mood as I would like.  When I see what has happened in Haiti, I feel so sad but so lucky at the same time.  Then of course we have the soldiers putting their lives on the line for our freedom and safety.  At this time I would like to share a poem with you that I wrote a while ago.

 TO ALL OF OUR TROOPS FIGHTING FOR US:

You give me hope for the future of “We the People of The United States..”

And the rights, freedoms and happiness this document conveys.

Hope to not lose the freedoms of yesterday and feelings of pride

In the Red, White, and Blue as it waves high in the sky.

Hope to awaken tomorrow knowing my family, home and farm are still mine,

And making a living that keeps us happy and comfortable most of the time.

Hope to still have my own thoughts, prayers, and freedom of speech

And have arguments with others who disagree but respect my beliefs.

Hope to be able to dream about my children’s future of a job, home, and children

And hopes that these dreams will come true as mine did so very often.

Hope that my students still feel the pride and emotion from their trip to The Capital

When they visited Mt. Vernon, Lincoln, and the Viet Nam Wall.

Hope that I will never forget the expressions and tears from my adult choir in DC

When they stood on the steps in front of  Lincoln  …their  American songs to sing.

Hope that I will no longer take for granted all of these blessings,

Thank you for helping us fight for these rights..”The Bell of Freedom” rings.

A little history

One of the many things I wanted to do was be a math teacher...very much like the ones I had in high school.  These men were very good.  My college profs were not too bad.  One really did not like females in the classes and had an ego that got in the way of his teaching. I have always loved math...loved to solve problems and look for patterns. I graduated from college with a math/music/elem.ed teaching degree.  Every math job I applied for asked if I could coach anything or wondered why I had math and music.  To make a long story short, I finally taught math my last thirteen years of teaching in a public school. Sometimes my students would laugh because they said that I got too excited about things.  And, I did.  Solving quadratic equations... so fun. Triangles and hexagons... great fun.  I could go on and on.                                                       Here is something that I do when I am driving.  I look at the license plate numbers and try to do find patterns or just turn the numbers into problems.  What is it divisible by?  What is the square root?  What would the next number be?  What is the sum?, etc.  See, I think this is fun.  I would love to show many students and parents how fun math can be.  And, music and math do go together.  Those of us who teach music have been trying to show for years how music and rhythm help you learn math facts, alphabet (the alphabet song), English grammar rules, etc.  In the paper this morning there is an article about a school district receiving a grant to "infuse" music with math and English.  "Teachers said music helps build better brains."  This is not new data. I hope to share some of my ideas of "infusing" music with math, English, and other subjects.  For now, I will leave you with this silly story.  When my children and I were driving through the city one day, I noticed a sign on a shoe store that read SAS .  I excitedly yelled out, "Look, that is side-angle side."

A New Year, A New Blog

The pogonip returned to my valley this winter (2009), and I found myself staring out at its beautiful crystals and freeing my mind to do what it does best…wander.  This blog will allow me to share with you those thoughts.  Simple recipes, crafty how-tos, entertaining anecdotes and more will be the topics of my blogs.   And, being a life-long educator, I will certainly throw in teaching techniques that I have found useful in years past and my reactions to current education news.

While this blog will be a healthy outlet for me, my main objective is to make you smile and feel inspired.

Happy 2010!!!

Here are some interesting facts about pogonip.