Letter to an Anonymous Parent

Dear Parent,
  I am sorry to hear that your child is overwhelmed by the spelling list I sent home on Monday. In class, your child does not seem discouraged or frustrated when we practice our spelling words. I know that students can react differently at home than they do at school, however I am completely astounded that his or her reaction is as drastically different as your led me to believe it was. It does not help me teach your child any better to hear that the frustrations at home exist. In fact, it tends to indicate to me that the method you are using may contribute to the frustration, but I digress.

In addition to the puzzling frustration, I am perplexed at your timing when you tell me about said frustration. What is your intent in telling me this on Thursday, the day before the spelling test? Do you think this will cause me to change the spelling words for the test? Is your plan to get me to "throw out" the spelling test altogether? If I trashed lesson plans based on one particular student every time a student was frustrated or discouraged (even for moment!), I would never teach anything I set out to teach.

Honestly, I believe you think I am a pushover. I'm not. I'm certain you've felt some push-back from me when you tried to sway me before. I would encourage you to get over this one time discouragement. I believe your child acts in a way that shows frustration, discouragement, or signs of being overwhelmed when he or she is working on this list at home. Those "symptoms" at home don't lead me to any "diagnosis" that will change what I am doing for tomorrow's test.

I am truly sorry that your child feels discouraged. Please don't bring it to me because you're upset. Call a friend and vent, or if you really feel you need more help than that, seek out a professional. I'm not here to make YOU feel better. I'm here to teach your child, and NO ONE learns by doing things they already know how to do. The spelling list is designed to be challenging, and to push your child to achieve more. Don't you think I am aware how your child does on spelling tests? I have a grade book full of numbers indicating how well or poorly your child has done on previous tests. I still chose to assign this spelling list.

In case you are under the impression that a spelling list is only about learning how to spell the words on the list, it isn't. There are other aspects that a spelling test assesses. Among many others are listening/dictation skills and practicing the spelling of certain SOUNDS. That's right-it's not just about "high frequency" words and how to know the letter combinations of words. It's also about helping students to understand the sounds within words. Phonemes, phonograms, etc....call them what you will, but these letter combinations are what will assist your child in both writing and reading for the rest of his or her life. I know some adults who might benefit from this sort of practice.

A few more points to add...mistakes are learning opportunities. I know that children can get discouraged by their mistakes, but I am trying to teach my students how to learn from their mistakes and use their past mistakes to help them succeed. If your child is discouraged or overwhelmed by something in class, I will adjust as needed to help them to succeed. Also, if they are discouraged or overwhelmed by something I assigned to them and demonstrate this discouragement at home, BY ALL MEANS mention it to me, but NOT one day prior to the test. That's silly. I can't help your child with only one day's notice. Lastly, teachers can make mistakes, too. Have I ever assigned something that was WAY too hard (or too easy)? Of course! Do I try to learn from those mistakes and avoid assigning things that aren't at the right level again? Absolutely! Thank you for calling the difficulty to my attention...however, it was a little late this time. If you had mentioned it to me on Tuesday, I might have been able to help your child, adjust the plan, or skip it altogether. Unfortunately, I can't this time. My other students have been planning and practicing these words all week, and it's not fair to them (or their parents) to change plans now.

Sincerely,
  Your Child's Teacher

Apologies-I Have NOT Fallen Off the Face of the Earth!

I have been MIA for a while now. I could blame it on any number of things, but I will keep the excuses to a minimum. I have been busy moving (including packing and unpacking), as well as it being a busy time of year at work, but that's no reason to completely neglect the blog. I genuinely have had little inspiration to write, and I am hoping that will change soon.

Tonight, I saw the movie Noah. Let me start with this-it is a movie based on a story in the Bible, but there is some poetic/artistic license taken. That being said, I thought it was very well done. It is a great portrayal of the story, and I believe it shows some dark things we always like to gloss over in the story of Noah. We typically look at all of the good things, but we forget the real reason for the flood-the darkness God saw in the world.

I rather liked much of how they chose to portray certain aspects of the movie. I felt it was true to the story, even though there were some changes made in the story. Huh?! How can it be true to the story AND have changes? Well, in my opinion, the changes that were made did not detract from the overall story. For example, (without spoiling anything), they show Methuselah dying in the flood. If you read closely in scripture, you can see that Methuselah died the year of the flood, but no where in scripture does it indicate that he died IN the flood. There are plenty of other things, but some of them are mild spoilers. They wouldn't ruin the story for you, because I am sure most of you know the general story anyway, and the pieces I thought would be worth mentioning aren't major "plot" points.

**spoilers below**

One that really deviated from the scripture is that Ham and Japheth did not have wives that came on the Ark with them. Scripture clearly states that Noah, his wife, his sons and his sons' wives came on the Ark. Um...Mr. Director/Screenplay writer, I think you missed a little bit. Actually, I think he did that on purpose, because it allowed him to write in an additional subplot.

**spoilers over**

I hope that doesn't ruin the movie for you if you read that and haven't seen it. :)

Another thing I have already noticed in looking at the scripture is that Noah's sons are always listed in this order: Shem, Ham, and Japheth. That's the birth order represented in the movie. However, upon reading into the story of Noah's nakedness/drunkenness, Ham is the one who discovers Noah naked, while Shem and Japheth are the ones who walk backward to cover their father up without seeing him naked. (Maybe a little prudish, but those were different times...?). Anyway, the scripture indicates that Ham is the youngest son. Genesis 9:18-25 says, "The sons of Noah who came out of the ark were Shem, Ham, and Japheth. (Ham was the father of Canaan). These were the three sons of Noah, and from them came the people who were scattered over the whole earth. Noah, a man of the soil, proceeded to plant a vineyard. When he drank some of its wine, he became drunk and lay uncovered inside his tent. Ham, the father of Canaan, saw his father naked and told his two brothers outside. But Shem and Japheth took a garment and laid it across their shoulders; then they walked in backward and covered their father's naked body. Their faces were turned the other way so that they would not see their father naked. When Noah awoke from his wine and found out what his youngest son had done to him, he said, 'Cursed be Canaan! The lowest of slaves will he be to his brothers.'"

So...that indicates to me that Ham was the youngest. Not sure why he is mentioned before Japheth, then. Just a thought. The director/writer obviously felt Ham wasn't the youngest due to always being mentioned second, because he was portrayed as the middle child in the film.

Can I also just mention how amazing Emma Watson was in the movie? She is such a great actress! I didn't even think about Hermione the whole movie!! That's saying something, especially for an actress who I only know as Hermione! :)

So, whether you've heard good things or bad things about Noah, go see it and "judge" it for yourself. I think there are so many aspects of the story we don't know because scripture simply doesn't tell us that we can't say the writer/director was wrong in his portrayal. We just don't know. So, take it for what it is-one person's (or group's) opinion on the story. Sure, it's flawed. But my portrayal would be flawed, too. So would yours.

:)

Moved and Spring Break

It's spring break! Tracy and I recently moved to Silverton, and I think we're really going to love our new place. It's about 5 minutes from work/church, and we're in the community where most of the people we interact with regularly live (aside from family). It's really going to be nice, I think.

We are all moved in, and now we just have to go back to the old apartment to clean and get rid of garbage. :)

Also, we're thinking about planting a garden in the flower bed out front. Our landlords said we are welcome to plant whatever we want out front to help make it look nice. We are totally excited to brainstorm and get started. Pictures to come (whenever we make it happen!).

Sorry I've been MIA...I've been super stressed lately, which is no excuse. But it's what's been happening.

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Gluten Free

So, I was perusing Pinterest today. I haven't done that in a while! While I was clicking from pin to pin, I found this article:

http://eatlocalgrown.com/article/11266-wheat-gluten-the-culprit-for-so-many-ills.html

As I was reading through the article, I found that many of these symptoms are things I've been dealing with for a while! So, I decided it was about time I start eating gluten free.

Adjusting to gluten free is difficult. I don't think eating gluten free will be hard in and of itself, but making the necessary changes is the hard part. I didn't realize how much gluten I was actually eating, but it's a lot!

So, I think I will start tracking changes in my symptoms. Maybe even weight, too? I have read various information about eating gluten free and how it doesn't always help with weight loss. So, I want to see what happens with me...

I'll keep you updated!

Also...I have a few blogs coming up. I have taken too much time "off" from the blog! Woops!

Happy New Year 2014!

I hope you had a safe and fun New Year's Eve with family and/or friends! My New Year's Eve was fairly lowkey, but I rather enjoyed it!

My sister and I joked most of the day yesterday that we didn't think we'd make it until midnight. Then we both ended up taking long naps in the afternoon-the unplanned sort of naps that just feel so luxurious! It was great, but when we woke up around 6pm we realized we needed to go grocery shopping. We went through our grocery/meal planning and finally headed out for the grocery store around 8:15pm. So late, right?

When we got home from grocery shopping, it was after 9pm! We  quickly cooked our "dinner" of appetizers, cut up veggies, mixed dip, and popped in the first DVD of How I Met Your Mother season 1. That lasted us until about 12:30. We made it past midnight (probably due to the naps)! When the disc ended, we both were ready for bed. We said, "Happy New Year" to each other and went to sleep! Ha!

As far as the New Year goes, it's also been lowkey so far. I slept until 11 or so (with a couple "wakeups" in between in the 4 o'clock and 8 o'clock hours). My sister and I drank coffee and I ate a bagel while we watched the beginning of Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring. We got "interrupted" by a skype date with my dear friend Emily and her adorable son Bryce. While I was talking to Emily and Bryce, my mom showed up for a quick visit. When mom left, Tracy and I continued LOTR. :)

Now for my 2014 resolutions. This year I've chosen to keep my resolution from 2013 going, as I felt I kind of picked up steam a bit at the end of the year, and also add a couple more.

Here are my 3 resolutions for 2014:
1) Continue my efforts toward being more active in a variety of ways.
2) Keep things more organized, clean, and clutter free.
3) Work toward a healthier me.

I've address resolution #1 in previous posts, so let me address resolutions #2 and #3.

#2-I have not done a great job over the last 4 months or so at keeping my living space, car, etc. clean and organized. I want to do a better job of this. Fortunately, my sister agreed that she wants to join me in this. I am hoping between the two of us, we can accomplish this. I don't need to be perfectly clean and organized, but it's been in a ridiculous state most of the time we've lived here. I would like to change that in 2014.

#3-I have gained back some of the weight I lost in 2012 and 2013. I am also not eating as many healthy foods as I was previously. My goal this year is not to "lose weight" or "stop eating junk food", because I feel like those are such intense goals that will surely result in failure, disappointment, and possibly depression. I don't want to do that to myself. Instead, I just want to make a few changes to start with, and potentially build from there. I am planning to start by incorporating more vegetables into my diet. I eat veggies fairly regularly, but there's not much variety, nor am I eating anywhere near enough veggies. So that's where I'm starting. I will try to add in more fruit, lessen the carbs, cut out diet soda, possibly cut out soda altogether, decrease the sugar intake, etc. These are all areas I want to work on as far as the food portion goes. Additionally, I need to increase my exercise. I have basically done NOTHING about exercise since I moved at the end of August. I used to walk fairly often in my neighborhood before I moved. I would also drive down to a fun nature trail to walk occasionally. I have not felt as comfortable walking in my current neighborhood, and I have taken no steps toward finding a trail to walk since I moved. That's something I need to look into. I also need to consider using my Wii Fit, maybe going back to my 50 workout that I found on pinterest, and research other ways I can easily exercise in my cold, wet location.

So, those are my goals for 2014. I feel like they are all broad enough that I can feel successful. :)

What are your resolutions for 2014?

I pray God's blessings over you as we start this new year together, even from afar!

2013 Resolution Review

As it is nearing the end of this year, I thought I would follow in Julie's footsteps and look back at my resolution. I use the singular, because I only had one resolution for 2013. It was a broad resolution, so I figured it meant I could incorporate the resolution into many areas of life.

To see last year's post about my resolution, go here.
To quote from that post:
"My resolution for 2013 is to be more active.

As simple as that. I want to be more active in many areas in my life-physically, socially, spiritually, etc."

So, how did I do? I think I did a good job at being "more" active. In 2012, I don't feel like I did much at all. While I increased my activity in 2013, I still think I could have been more active. That being said...let's take a look at a few of the things I did in 2013!

More activity-from January, when I was still actively embracing my resolution (ha, no pun intended...sort of)
Tryon Creek State Park-from March, when Mom and I went on a hike
The Human Condition-from April, when I was active emotionally, even without planning on it (that's activity, right?)
Productivity-from April, when I felt productive (which includes activity!)
Can of Worms-from June, when I sang a silly song that prompted lots of silly questions
Disappointment-from June, when I had a "DTR" with a guy initiated by me (if you know me well, you know how hard that was for me, which is why I am listing this as an accomplishment from 2013...despite the disappointing outcome)
Singer/songwriter-from June, when I attempted (almost successfully) to write a song-music & lyrics!
Revised Summer Reading List-from June (updated later, too), when I made a "to-read" list and checked books off (of course, I kept adding to the list, even mentally-that took my attention away from a lot of the list! woops!)
Movies-from July, when I went to the movies TWICE in one month (once with a friend, once with family)
DIY-shutters-from July, when I spray painted and repurposed a couple shutters
Bittersweet Change-from August, when I changed jobs and became a "classroom" teacher
What's New? #1-from September, when I finally posted pictures from my amazing road trip in July/August
What's New? #2 and My Classroom-from September, when I reorganized and cleaned my new classroom
What's New? #3-from September, when I looked back on my grandfather's passing in August
What's New? #4-from September, when I looked back on my move from Oregon City to Salem at the end of August
Slow and Steady Wins the Race?-from October, when I considered having a housewarming party (which I had in November, I think...)
Classroom DIY: Whisper phones-from November, when I made whisper phones for my classroom
DIY Penguin Ornaments-from December, when I made cute penguin ornaments for my students
Parmesan Garlic Knots-from December, when I made an appetizer for our staff Christmas party

Ok, so I think I was pretty active. You probably could've just looked at the blog archive to see all of these, but listing them here makes me see how much I really did this year. In addition to this, I have now played in 2 community bands in 2013, I have subbed in a bell choir, I was a bridesmaid at a friend's wedding, I put together a PreK-8th grade spring concert, I applied to a BUNCH of teaching jobs and had 3 interviews, I attended (albeit late!) another friend's wedding, I went to my friends' concert in LA (Saints!-check 'em out!), I found a church home, I started coaching Bible Quiz at church, and I've taken steps to join a bell choir in Salem (though I can't start playing with them until 2014). I also started the year off with a little more physical activity than in much of 2012. I think I ended 2012 fairly well with the physical activities, but I slacked off there at the end of 2013. The social part was hard...I have struggled with this since moving to Oregon much more than I think I ever did in California.

Here's to another great year of resolutions! Look for a post tomorrow with my 2014 resolutions! :)

Parmesan Garlic Knots

Last week we had a staff Christmas party. We all signed up to bring something to contribute to the meal. I signed up for an appetizer. I wracked my brain for about a week to figure out what to bring. I finally decided on parmesan garlic knots. I had seen the recipe on pinterest OR a friend made them...I can't remember. Either way, I decided to try my hand at them.

They are a fairly easy appetizer to make.

Ingredients: Biscuits (I used Pilsbury Grands), Parmesan cheese, minced garlic, and butter (not pictured).

Now that you've gathered your ingredients, melt the butter. I melted it in the microwave to save time as I was in a bit of a hurry, but my preference is to melt it on the stovetop. I think it tastes better that way. While the butter is melting, take one biscuit at a time. Flatten it, and slice it in half. Take one half, roll it into a "snake". The length and thickness are a matter of personal preference, but you do need to be able to tie the dough into a knot, which is what you do next. It's a bit odd, but you actually do tie a knot with the dough. It should stick a little and need to be pulled a bit to get it through and make a knot.

After you tie the dough into a knot, place it on a baking sheet (or other baking device, as later you'll see I used a few cake pans when I ran out of clean baking sheets...haha). They look kind of cute like this, don't they? I didn't take pictures of the next few steps, since my hands were so messy. Brush on melted butter with a pastry/basting brush. If you don't have a pastry or baking brush, I would recommend getting one. I found one for less than $2.00 at our local grocery store. I will admit it's sort of a low-end grocery store, so it may be a little more expensive at your store. However, it's worth the investment if it's only a few dollars. After brushing on the butter, I rubbed on a little bit of the minced garlic. There is no amount that I used...I guessed as I went and tried to make sure each knot had the same amount of garlic as the others. Last, sprinkle on a bit of parmesan cheese. Again, no amount. I just tried to match from knot to knot. Look at the baking instructions on the biscuit package. I cooked mine for 1 minute less than the short-end of the baking time, and they were a little crispy on the bottom. Admittedly, I did not use cooking spray on the baking sheet which might have helped with the dark bottoms on the knots. Our oven also runs a little high, and since I was rushing to be done in time, I didn't think to lower it a smidge like I usually do. If you're worried about your knots, stay close and keep an eye on them. I think mine were only in for 7 minutes, so it's not a long bake time.

When they came out of the oven,  I brushed on a little more melted butter.

Here's the final product. I was a little disappointed that they were slightly overcooked. They weren't burnt, but they weren't in that magical perfectly cooked middle, either. They are flavorful, but if you make large knots (some of mine were a little too big), they can be less flavorful. Be careful with your knot size. If you want to be extra prepared in the favor department, you can always buy the butter flavor biscuits (or another flavor!).

I got some compliments at the Christmas party, even though I had baked them that morning and reheated them in my coworker's oven. Oh, and despite the slightly overcooked nature of my knots...

Maybe you'll have better luck at the recipe than I did? Or maybe you're at least a more watchful baker than I was? Haha!