Speech Class

Today's topic--no holds barred--is thoughts on speech class. I'm sure with rough drafts of informative speeches due today, I'll have some interesting responses. Even though it's Friday, I almost had to come unleashed at a couple who had virtually nothing done. Ridiculous! However, I do have some students who have wonderfully written speeches. Thank you to them.

Yet another favorite

Marcus chose the topic of favorite sport and why. Some day we will not have the topics of "favorites," but until then I'll comply.

To watch, hockey is my favorite sport to watch. I mean, seriously, how awesome is it to see people slam into each other, then rip off their pads and jerseys only to beat on each other some more. Not once have I been to a hockey game and not seen blood.

Other sports that are okay to watch are volleyball, basketball, and some football. I probably say these because I have the most background knowledge of these sports.

To play, my favorite sport is cart golf. Seriously, if I were any good, would I be a teacher? So without a cart, a 9 hole round of golf might take something like 3 hours to play. That would be ridiculous. Besides, without a cart, how would I listen to tunes?

We are now at the halfway point of our challenge. Tomorrow starts the downhill slide.

Thoughts on the 1 to 1 computers

Michael's topic of the day is our thoughts on the 1 to 1 computers. We will each have no less than 125 words.

Well, as a PC lover, the switch to Mac was fairly smooth. I had previously used Macs at my other school and at the end of my post secondary education. Although some differences and certain nuances exist, the platforms are very similar. Gone are the days of complete and total difference.

For those that choose to embrace the Macs, they actually do hold power in the classroom. For students who have to use computers daily, the thought of losing them is one thing most students do not want to explore. Take for instance our speech class. Without the computer use, students would be unable to complete the 30 day challenge, thus rendering themselves as unsuccessful. We don't want students to feel unsuccessful, so therefore, the use of computers adds to the increase of student self esteem. Plus, as we are writing informative speeches, the research process is simplified by the use of computers.

Probably my favorite aspect of the 1 to 1 movement has been the use of no excuses. If a class has the assignment available via the computer, and every student is issued a computer, then no one really has an excuse to not have an assignment complete.

Overall, I have to say, without a doubt, that the use of computers at our school will make academic life, as well as personal life more successful.

One Wish

Logan's choice of the day (quite creative, I might add) is "If you had one wish, what would it be, and why."

Well, thank goodness I'm not in a beauty contest because then I'd have to wish for world peace, or my chances of winning the contest would be quickly pushed aside.

What if I was a football player? Then I'd have to wish to win all the time because winning is everything.

If I were a janitor, I'd wish for bigger brooms so I could always be sure to sweep the corners (sorry, inside joke at the school--I'll explain if need be).

But since I'm me, I wish for a month long, expense paid vacation to somewhere warm. Say for instance that someone wanted to give me a trip to a tropical area, February or March would be a nice time to travel.

Since I have no rich uncles on the soon to die list, my wish is to get one full day where I can do nothing--no laundry, no cooking, etc. All I have to do is watch television, surf the net, and read a book. I believe this day is called a snow day. My wish would be simple to fulfill.

My Favorite Book

Today's topic, chosen by Matt, is "My Favorite Book" and why. I also added the stipulation of 100+ words.

Without a doubt, Gone With The Wind by Margaret Mitchell is my favorite book. I think I've read it 4 or 5 times. Every time I read it, I appreciate something different, whether it is the description of the dresses the women wore to the details of Atlanta burning. The love story blended with the historical fiction makes this enticing to read.

If Mitchell were writing in today's era, she would probably be pressured by publishers to write a sequel to make the series continue. Although this might have not been a bad idea, as the sequels written vary from Mitchell's style.

School lunches

I'm pretty sure Dan picked the topic of school lunches because he is anxiously awaiting lunch time. Although today's lunch is something with gravy. Yuck. Finally I remembered to bring my lunch. I was on a 5 day school lunch cycle. Really not good for me.

We were noticing in another class how blah the lunch menu is for January. We really could use less patty/processed stuff. Doubt that will happen though, as funding is always an issue. Just once I'd like to have fresh fruit. This time of year, about the only thing we get are oranges.

We're working on thesis statements and also researching for our informative speeches today. Hopefully all students can be successful in their quest for finding information.

My Favorite Class

So today's topic choice comes from Shawn...he wants us to name our favorite class and why that class is our favorite.

Really I have a hard time deciding which class would be my favorite. I really liked some of my college professors. Probably one of my favorite professors in journalism was Carol Lomicky. Even though her classes were really tough--and early in the morning--I learned a lot from her. She was a great teacher.

In English, I really enjoyed the classes I had with Mike Benzel & Susanne George. Both encouraged free thought, which I know made me love literature even more.

I had a few other classes in general studies that had okay profs--Peter Longo in Political Science--although the class was still about thoughts & theories of some long dead people, it was interesting. Carol Lily (sp possibly) was another great professor in World History. Actually incorporated literature to make history come alive and have some meaning.

High school must be too far gone, or no one really impressed me.

When I grow up...a topic by Brittney

Brittney's blog topic choice is for everyone to tell what they want to be/do when we graduate from high school. I guess kids could answer what they want to be when they grow up as well.

Hopefully all have high aspirations.

Saw some interesting videos today. I bet if they knew they had to post them, they would have taken a little bit more time. Actually, 5 of them were really well done & met all the requirements...the other 6 left something to be desired.

All had to submit a works cited page separate from the video.

Day 8

Blake put us up to the challenge of discussing President Obama's speech. The kids watched the swearing in as well as his entire charismatic presentation. Today's word count needs to be above 75 words.

I also posed the question to my theatre production class as to why people wore the colors they did and what the colors represent, if anything. We also discussed the setup and staging needed for everything to go off without a hitch (man, I sound like a bumpkin).

Anyway, the historic event was witnessed by my classes, as I felt this is a moment they should be able to look back on and say they saw it live.

Favorite Place I've visited

Today's topic was a student choice, & we need to tell our favorite place we've visited & why (oh, & I also added that we need to have 70+ words).

I've been fortunate to be able to visit numerous places in my life. Some of the the best memories are from Jamaica, Savannah, New York City, Chicago, Northern California, and Las Vegas.

While each is special and holds its own memories, I'd have to say that overall, Jamaica was my favorite place, as we were married, there. The wedding was a smooth, hassle free process. We were entirely pampered the whole time we were there. I'd highly recommend a wedding in Jamaica.

Dani's choice for the challenge

Dani chose our blog topic for today--favorite bands and/or artists.

My number one favorite artist is Kenny Loggins--hello, Footloose & Caddyshack...plus he has some good slower songs.

Number 2--old blue eyes himself--Sinatra

Number 3--Harry Connick, Jr, plus he's pretty okay to look at

Number 4--Nickelback--included in my golf cart tunes

Number 5--Tom Petty

Number 6--Van Halen

Number 7--Bob Marley--his music makes me feel like I live in a warm place although it's frigid here.

Number 8--Quiet Riot--had the tape as a kid

Number 9--Metallica

Number 10--Beatles

Now, if you asked my husband, he would reply that Air Supply is my favorite band...seriously, he actually said this before one of our wedding showers.

The Bluejay Speech Invite is tomorrow. Pretty under control and ready to go for tomorrow. Sleep will be my main priority on Sunday.

usng txt lang

Today's topic is for the students to tell me about anything; however, there's a catch (there's always a catch). You need to type everything in a text or chat format. I've already heard the comment that "Geez, this is harder than I thought."

hpe ths wrks out k.

The Challenge Rolls On...

Today's challenge asks the students to be the best speaker they can be. In order to be a champion at speaking, they will need to have goals. Achieving these goals will help students in achieving self satisfaction. Even the smallest of goals that can be reached will guide students in the right direction (99% of the time).

So for today, they must minimally tell me:
1 week goal
1 month goal
1 term goal

Those who do only minimum work will sell themselves short, as I'm sure those with longer term goals will be more successful in the long run.

My goals are:
1 week--get through this weekend's speech meet that we host without biting someone's head off
1 month--cook at least 2 healthy meals per week rather than eating out
1 term--gather prom needs lists and order supplies
until summer--plan our destination for this year's girls' trip
summertime goal--reduce my golf score to below 58.

Day 3--Tell me about an infomercial

All is well now that we're back from the snow filled roads. A 10:00 start is wonderful...time to sleep in, eat breakfast, watch some news, check my email...you know, all that stuff that gets rushed together.

Today the kids need to tell me about their favorite infomercial. Little do they know that this will lead us into our next speeches where they need to tell us about something. They will have the option to do a demonstration speech that's 3-5 minutes and then an informative speech of 4-6 minutes, OR they will be able to give just the informative speech but it will need to be 7-8 minutes in length.

Snowed in

Not sure how much snow we received, but we had enough wind to keep me happy for the rest of the year. Seriously bad road conditions--total whiteout just leaving the building. But we're lucky enough to have a late start tomorrow. Go Nebraska Snow!

Day 2-dum dum dum

Day two of the 30 day challenge consists of students adding a photo of themselves, as well as text. As an added extra for Monday, everyone needs to have at least 50 words, which seems to be a big deal. A couple of special students seem to lag behind. Their initials may or may not be b.s. and s.k. We will have to work to make them more computer literate & saavy.

Start of my student's 30 Day Challenge

Some of my students are really enjoying starting to write in complete sentences. Others are focusing on the snow, forget about the blogging they should be doing.

So, for the next 30 school days they will be adding to their blogs, with a topic of either my choice or their choice. This should be an interesting adventure.

New Year's Day

We did very little today. I watched the Rose Parade & then the Husker game, all the while staying in my bathrobe. Josh did a "craft" project during the first part of the game. He had to borrow some of my scrapbooking tools.

I've included our latest picture from Christmas (number 4, I think).

Last night we went to dinner with friends, then back to a house to play games--board games, pool, and video games. I'm pretty sure that not much has changed since I was younger--we're just set in older bodies now. This is one of the first times in about 3 years that we have had New Year's plans, since Josh works or the power is out. All in all, the night was great just being together.