(a read aloud story)    

by Elaine Gallagher   

 

         Louie was a baby polar bear who lived with his Mother on the coldest continent in the world, Antarctica, where the South Pole is located.  That’s why Louie and his kind are called “Polar Bears”.  Polar bears are big, with long white fur to match the snow.  They have a little, short tail, and can swim very fast in the cold ocean water.

         Louie had no brothers.  He had no sisters.  He had no friends because no other bears live near Louie’s family. His father had gone to hunt food. Maybe he would come home with a seal or a big fish.  Louie had no one but his mother. He was all alone when his father went to hunt for food.

         Most animals in Antarctica are afraid of polar bears because polar bears are very big, and very strong, and always very hungry.  They are the strongest of all the wild animals that live in Antarctica.

         Louie felt sad. “I am not big.  I am not strong.  I do not eat much”, he thought.  “I wish the other animal babies would play with me.”

         One day, Louie saw a large group of penguins. “Wow! Maybe one of those baby penguins can be my friend!” yelled Louie.

         As soon as the group of penguins saw Louie, they turned and ran. Poor, sad Louie.  He was so lonely.

         His mother told him not to worry. “Someday, Louie, you will have a chance to have a good friend.”

         Two days later, his mother called, “Louie, Louie,” “Guess what?” 

         Louie had never seen his mother so excited. “What, Mother?”  Louie asked.

         “A new polar bear family has moved to our part of the glacier.  A mother polar bear and her baby,” said Louie’s mother. Slowly, Louie and his mother made their way to the other side of the glacier.  They saw a mother polar bear with a small bear. They did not see the father bear, so they carefully and slowly went towards the mother and her baby.

         “Hello,” Louie’s mother called softly.

         The other bear looked up. She looked around to make sure there were no other polar bears.  She shyly asked, “Hello.  Who are you?”

         “This is my son, Louie, and I am La Verne, his mother. We live here. Who are you?”

         The other bear answered, “I am Marie, and this is my daughter, Chinook.  We moved here because hunters were bothering us.  They shot and killed Chinook’s father for his beautiful fur skin.  So we had to move far away to be safe.  Are there hunters here?”

         “No…only once or twice have we seen bear-hunters. It is safer for us.  But for Louie, it is very lonely.”

         Chinook came closer to Louie and began to sniff him. Sniff.  Sniff.  Sniff.

         La Verne introduced her son to the new neighbors. “Louie, this is Marie and her baby, Chinook.  Maybe the two of you can become friends.”

         That night, Louie’s Father arrived home after being away for four days, hunting.  He was swimming towards them in the open ocean. He had a huge fish.

         “Daddy, Daddy,” greeted Louie, happy to see his father. “Hello, Louie. I am happy to be home. I brought you and your mother a big fish to eat so you will not be hungry.”

         “Thank you, Daddy,” Louie said. “We have new neighbors, Marie and Chinook.  They do not have a Father bear to help them.  Can we give them some of our fish?”

         “Of course,” said the Father bear.  “We’ll all be neighbors now and we will help each other.”

         Chinook got up and moved closer to Louie and his mother. She asked, “Can we play, Louie? Can we slide together?»

         “Oh yes.  Yes! Yes! Yes!” shouted Louie, happily. “Mom, I have a friend!  I will not be lonely anymore!”

         Louie and Chinook went to slide on the ice.  They became great friends, running, sliding, playing, and swimming!

         Louie was not lonely any more.

THE END

Activities:

1. Art. Now you can make a polar bear. Make a simple bear outline, which students will draw and cut-out. They will draw a nose, mouth, and eyes. Then, using small cotton-balls, which they’ll stretch to make larger, but less-fat, they’ll glue the cotton on the bear outline to make a white, fat, polar bear.
2. If you can not do an art project, show pictures of polar bears to students and ask them for ideas on how they can make an arctic scene or collage with polar bears. Work on this as a project.
3. Emotional Intelligence. Discuss the world problem of the polar bears’ territory gradually disappearing, which can lead to extinction of the bears if humans are not careful. Discuss what we can do. Then talk about loneliness.  How does it feel to be lonely? What can we do to help others so they will not feel too lonely?
4. Research:

Younger students: Is this story fact or fiction? How do you know? Find Antarctica    on a map. What other animals live there? Do polar bears also live in the North Pole? Explain.

 Older students: What can you find out about the exploration of Antarctica? Who «owns» Antarctica? Explain. Describe the climate of Antarctica. Has Antarctica always been so cold?  Give evidence. Describe / illustrate the geography/topography of Antarctica. Make a graph or chart showing life on Antarctica. Investigate polar bears and the environmental crisis they are facing. Describe and explain your research.

___________________________________

 by Elaine Gallagher                                                                                                      

4^th Thursday in November

      People, worldwide, have observed festivals of thanksgiving when they harvested their crops. Harvest festivals honoring goddesses of grains and orchards were held by Ancient Greeks and Romans The Greek goddess was Demeter. The Roman goddess was Ceres, whose name is the root for our word cereal.

People would have music and play sports and games. They also would hold a harvest parade, decorating wagons with sheaves of grain. That was the origin of decorated floats we see in parades today. Choosing a queen to ride on a parade float goes back to the time when people honored a goddess as ruler of the harvest festival.

In the seventeenth century, a group of Pilgrims had left England in search of religious freedom in Europe, going to Holland. Because their children were learning Dutch and losing their English, the Pilgrims decided to go to the New World. In 1620, the Pilgrims crossed the Atlantic aboard the ship, ‘Mayflower’. They landed at a place we now call Massachusetts, set up a colony, and planted the seeds they had brought from England. But the seeds didn’t grow, and there was so little food that many of them starved to death. Also, they were not prepared for the long cold winters. Luckily, for the Pilgrims, some nearby Native Americans came to the rescue. The Native Americans taught the Pilgrims how to grow native food such as corn, pumpkins, and potatoes.

The Native Americans gave the Pilgrims more seeds, and helped build houses for them. Without help from the Natives, the Pilgrims would not have survived.

Thanksgiving Day in the U.S.A. commemorates a feast held by early British settlers in the colony of Massachusetts. After the first harvest, the Pilgrims’ leader, William Bradford, suggested that the Pilgrims hold a feast of Thanksgiving. He felt that it was a good time to thank God for the Pilgrims’ survival in their new homeland and for the friendly Native Americans who had helped them survive.

President Lincoln declared a national Day of Thanksgiving on October 3, 1863. It was, however, a one-time event, and future Thanksgiving observances were based on dates determined by various presidents. Finally, President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed a bill creating the current holiday in 1941, which is celebrated on the 4^th Thursday of November each year.

TEACHERS;

IF YOU WANT A POWER POINT PROGRAM ABOUT THANKSGIVING FOR

YOUR STUDENTS (IN ENGLISH OR IN SPANISH) WRITE TO ME AND I’LL

SEND IT VIA EMAIL. THE PRESENTATION HAS 9 SLIDES.

elaine.gallagher@uno-internacional.com

Compiled by Elaine Gallagher            

            2,000 years ago, the Celtic people of the United Kingdom began the holiday we now know as Halloween. Every autumn, as days became colder and darker, the Celts made up a story to explain why winter came, and all the crops and flowers died. The Celts believed in a sun god who made the crops grow. But each year the sun god was attacked and held prisoner for six months by an evil power called Samhain, the “Lord of Darkness”, who brought the cold and darkness of winter days.

            A New Year’s ceremony, to mark the weakening of the sun god and the triumph of Samhain, was held on October 31^st by the Celtic priests. The priests wore long, flowing white robes and met on hilltops to light bonfires. Sometimes they would hurl animals or prisoners into the fires as a sacrifice* to please the cruel Lord of Darkness. The fire was strong; hot like the sun. The priests believed that evil spirits would fear the fire. Then the priests thanked the sun god for the good harvest, and at midnight they asked Samhain to let brightness and warmth return to Earth.

            The night of October 31^st was feared more than any other night of the year by the Celtics. They were sure that evil spirits lurked everywhere, so they started fires in their homes to keep evil spirits from coming inside. They believed that Samhain called dead people together and turned them into other forms, especially cats.

           When much of Europe was conquered by the Romans, they gradually blended two Roman festivals, called Feralia and Pomona, with the Samhain festival. Feralia was a festival to honor the dead, and Pomona, was celebrated by the Romans spreading out apples and nuts to show their thanks for a good harvest. The Halloween custom of bobbing for apples comes from the Roman Pomona ceremonies. The Catholic Church contributed the name “Halloween” to all these traditions. November 1^st is All Saints’ Day, which honors all saints who died for their faith. The night before All Saints’ Day – October 31^st – was called “All Hallow’s Eve”, old English for All Holy Evening. Eventually, this name was contracted to “Hallowe’en.”

Celebrations for Halloween

 Halloween is celebrated in the USA now more than in Europe. Long before American children started trick-or-treating, people in Europe celebrated October 31^st as a day of ghosts and goblins.  Trick-or-treating has its roots in receiving food in return for praying for the donors’ dead ancestors.  When the Irish came to North America, Halloween became very popular. Children started playing pranks each year on October 31^st, blaming the pranks on evil goblins.

 

Superstitions and Halloween Customs

Costumes: People used to fear evil spirits, especially on Halloween. They hoped that by putting on masks and costumes, that evil spirits would leave them alone.

Jack O’Lanterns: A legend from Ireland tells about, Jack, a stingy man who was ordered to wander the Earth after he died, searching for a resting place. Because of all his bad deeds, Jack was forbidden to enter heaven. The devil gave Jack a piece of burning coal, which he put into a turnip, making a lantern. Irish children used to carve smiling faces on hollowed out turnips. On Halloween night they put them on a window to scare away witches. When the Irish moved to North America, they brought their Halloween beliefs and customs with them. But instead of turnips, they carved pumpkins which were more common than turnips. The carved pumpkin became called a Jack O’Lantern in memory of the old legend.

Trick-Or-Treating: In Ireland hundreds of years ago, some people celebrated  Halloween night by putting on white robes and masks. Then they marched from farm to farm begging for food or money in the name of the old Druid, “Muck Olla.” In exchange for the treats, the  beggars offered wishes for good luck and prosperity. On All Souls’ Day, the poor begged for “soul cakes”, square buns with currents. In return for the soul cakes, the beggars prayed for any dead relatives of the person giving the cakes.

The custom gradually changed, and children started getting apples, buns, and money when they begged.  Later, when the Irish came to America, tricks were added to the begging for treats. Halloween pranksters took gates off hinges, soaped windows, rang doorbells and ran away, and then blamed everything on leprechauns.

Superstitions: People wanted to know what would happen to them in the future, and because Halloween was a time of witches and goblins, some superstitions were started.

1. If a cat sat next to you on Halloween, you would have good fortune. But if the cat jumped on your lap, you would enjoy fantastic luck.
2. A person would throw a stone into a fire to find out whether he could expect to live much longer. If the stone rolled away from the fire, the person would soon die.
3. Girls would throw a nut into a fire to find out whether their boyfriend loved them. If the nut burned, the love was still true. But if the nut burst, the boyfriend didn’t care anymore.
4. The Irish would cook up a dish in which they placed a ring, a thimble, a tiny doll, and a coin. If you got the ring, you would be married within a year. If you got the thimble, you’d never marry. If you found the doll in your serving, you would have children. And if you received the coin, great wealth would soon come to you.
5. You could make a wish come true by eating a crust of bread before going to bed on Halloween night.

 

________________________________

* Vey little is known about the Druids and there is no conclusive evidence that they made human sacrifices. Many historians believe that the references made on the subject by Juluis Cesar in “The war of the Galias” had the intention of justify the roman invasion of a barbarian people to whom they must impose the culture of Rome. [Editor’s Note]

 

compiled by Elaine Gallagher         

United Nations Day was established by Presidential Proclamation to commemorate the establishment of the United Nations in 1945.

United Nations Day is celebrated by all 189 countries which are members of the United Nations. The day is used for informing the world as to the aims, purposes, and achievements of the United Nations Organization.

The name “United Nations” was devised by United States President Franklin D. Roosevelt in the “Declaration by the United Nations” of January 1, 1942, during the Second World War, when representatives of 26 nations pledged their countries to continue fighting together against the Axis Powers.

The representatives of 50 countries at the United Nations Conference drew up the United Nations Charter of International Organization. They met in San Francisco from April 25 to June 26, 1945. Delegates deliberated on the basis of proposals worked out by representatives of China, France, the Soviet Union, United Kingdom, and United States, from August to October 1944. The representatives of the 50 countries signed the Charter on June 26, 1945. Poland, which was not repre4sented in the Conference, signed it later and became one of the original 51 member States.

The United Nations officially came into existence on October 24, 1945, when the Charter was ratified by China, France, the Soviet Union, United Kingdom, United States, and a majority of other signatories. United Nations Day is celebrated on October 24^th of each year.

On April 25, 1945, delegates from fifty countries drove through the rain to meet for the United Nations Conference on International Organization at the Flag-bedecked War Memorial Opera House in San Francisco.

Although the delegates came from nations, “small, weak, and strong, and in different stages of political and social development,” these earnest individuals were “determined to set up an organization which should preserve peace, advance justice, and constitute a permanent structure for international cooperation.” For nine weeks (from April 26^th to June 26^th) the conference worked on the Charter.

Its preamble is considered to be one of the fines expressions of purpose ever set forth in any language. By October 24, 1945, the majority of thesignatory nations had ratified the charter, and had sent formal notes to the State Department in Washington, D.C. The signers included China, France, the Soviet Union, United Kingdom, United States, and many others.

On October 24, 1945, with flags of fifty nations flying together, the United Nations came into being. In order to stress the charter´s importance, in 1947 the General Assembly of the UN passed a resolution: that October 24^th shall hereafter be officially called United Nations Day, and shall be devoted to making known to the people of the world the aims and .achievements the United Nations, and to gaining their support for the work of the United Nations.

It was apparent, and also important, that the general public should be informed about the content and purpose of the United Nations. Therefore, an entire week –United Nations Week– was set aside in October, with its chief observance on United Nations Day, October 24^th.

By 1956, the American committee for the United Nations promoted the celebration of the United Nations Week.

The official American Association for the United Nations sent out information and suggestions for programs with this advice:

“This is United Nations Week, The success of the United Nations in building world peace depends on all of us –on our own understanding and support; know how it works and what is doing. Help the United Nations help all of us to a peaceful feature.”

An important part of the United Nations Week is setting up of information centers where various types of literature on the work of the United Nations may be obtained.

In some towns public rallies are held, usually at the City Hall, with the flag of the U.S.A. displayed alongside the United Nation’s flag. Speakers at these rallies stress the accomplishments of the organization and shop windows feature products and clothing from other lands. Throughout the week there are forums and panel discussions. One town may put an “International Festival”, complete with songs and dances from various countries represented in the United Nations Organization.

Agencies of the United Nations include:

• UNICEF . International Children’s Emergency Fund,
• UNESCO – U.N. Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, and
• WHO – World Health Organization

They continue their efforts to aid unprivileged areas.

by Elaine Gallagher         

The first celebration to honor Christopher Columbus took place in Barcelona, Spain, in 1493. Following his voyage across the Atlantic and back again, Columbus rode on a beautiful white horse at the head of a parade beside King Ferdinand. Because he failed to bring back gold and spices, however, there were no parades after Columbus’ second, third, and fourth voyages. In fact, nearly three hundred years went by before another big Columbus Day celebration took place on October 12, 1792 in New York and Maryland. 

In Mexico and most other Latin American countries, this day is celebrated as the Dia de la Raza, Day of the Race, though some countries celebrate it under other names. In the 15^th century, Christopher Columbus thought he had found a new and shorter route to India, which was a trading partner of many countries in Europe. It took him eight years to convince Queen Isabella of Spain to finance his journey. He left with three small ships: La Niña, La Pinta, and La Santa Maria. And on October 12, 1492 he landed on an island in the Bahamas, thinking he was in India.

Archaeological finds have proven that America was discovered long before Columbus arrived, but he was the first one to establish real contact between the American continents and Europe. He claimed the new land in the name of the Spanish monarchy. Thirty years later in 1522, Mexico was conquered by Hernan Cortes and became a colony of Spain for the next 300 years. The Spanish conquistadors brought missionaries with them, and although Spain imposed its government and religion, the people of Mexico intermarried and many native traditions have survived.      

Mexico today is a mixture of the Spanish and the indigenous. We call that new race and that new culture mestizo. And that is what we celebrate on October 12^th, Dia de la Raza. In the U.S.A. Columbus Day is often celebrated on the Monday closest to the 12^th in order to give a long weekend.

 

 

By ALBERT EINSTEIN (1879-1955)    

(Translated to English by Elaine Gallagher)    

(NOTE: CRISIS is singular.  CRISES is plural)    

1. We can’t think that things will change if we keep doing the same thing as always. A crisis is a great blessing to people and to countries because crises cause change, which results in progress.

2. Creativity is born in anguish, as the light of day follows the darkness of night. It’s in crisis that innovation is born, and the discovery of grand strategies. Those who rise above crises, rise above themselves, without ever being kept down by others. 

3. Those who attribute crises to their failings and problems , are negating their own talents and abilities, giving more strength to the problems than to their solutions. A true crisis, is the crisis of incompetency.

4. The main problem of people and of countries is laziness to seek and find solutions to crises. Without crises, there are no goals or objectives. Without goals and objectives, life is routine, a slow agony of passing time. Without crises, there are no merits or recognitions.  It is during crises that the best of each of us has the opportunity to blossom and flower, because without a crisis, we are not challenged, and life is too easy.

5. To talk about crises is to move forward. To keep silent about crises is to exalt conformity. In place of moving forward, we simply work harder, not smarter.

6. The only crisis that threatens each of us is the tragedy of not wanting to struggle to do our very best.

====================================================================

 TEACHERS:

This article can be used as a base of research by your students. From 4th grade through high school, students can investigate the life, the philosophy, the discoveries and theories of Albert Einstein.

Interestingly, his parents thought he had learning disabilities, and that he was slow academically. He spoke late, did not want to mingle with other students, and had terrible temper tantrums as a child. He dropped out of school when he was 15 because he hated the boring, memorization, note-taking, traditional teaching in his classes. He loved music, played the violin, and loved mathematics. Teachers were not reaching Einstein’s learning preferences.

This bit of information may inspire some of your students to know more about the academic, scientific, genius, Dr. Albert Einstein.

________________________________

To Tell or Not to Tell, That is the Question

By Alicia Haslam

“It´s not possible to become a good thinker and to be a lousy inquirer. Thoughts do not originate form answers but form questions”—Richard Pau

Asking is in our nature. As they learn to speak , children absorb the world around them by forming questions.

A child starts “What?” to identify the objects and events around him. Then, “Why?”, to try to understand how the world works.

Not only UNO Internacional, but also, the great majority of advanced educational programs, uses inquiry as the main tool to build knowledge and achieve higher-level thinking. Inquiry is a method that allows students to gain knowledge through their own natural curiosity. By asking questions themselves, they develop the ability to process information at an advanced level. They teacher´s responsibility is to guide these questions and facilitate higher understanding.

To achieve this, a teacher leads students through steps. For example, students are presented with a picture of a man in the desert, far away from civilizations; he is naked and is holding a short straw. Apparently he is dead.

There are two ways to find out what happened to him: you can tell the students or you can answer what they wish to know.

In both cases they learn the story. However, in the first scenario, since they haven´t built up their own thoughts, it will become just another forgettable story. On the other hand, if they lead themselves to discovery, the story turns into an adventure and they become part of it.

  “Tell me and I forget, Show me and I remember, Involve me and I understand”— Chinese proverb…

Here´s how the inquiry process works:

At first, the teacher allows students to ask literal questions. These make reference to simple data appearing directly in the source. For example “Is the man dead or alive?” Then, as understanding progresses, students start setting up exploratory questions, making reference to meanings, implications and interests that are beyond mere information. Example: “What is the relationship between the straw in his hand and the fact that he is naked?”

Finally, and after some discussion and reflection, students begin to ask the so-called metacognitive questions that lead to their own understanding and make them responsible to their own learning without depending exclusively on the interpretation of the teacher (who is, by now, a mere spectator, listening to the discussion aroused in the classroom) Example: “Could he have been part of a crew of some sort of plane or air balloon, crashing down, and forcing him to jump overboard after drawings straws?”

As this example shows, formulating questions is an effective way to clarify ideas, which are expressed through investigations, sharing ideas and reflections. When students make these sorts of questions, they demonstrate that they are deeply and actively involved in their own learning and understanding of how the world works.

 __________________________

• Article based on ¿Que…Qué? El Arte de Preguntar para Enseñar Mejor, Everardo García and UNESCO The transdisciplinary evolution of learning

 

By Elaine Gallagher       

Hi teachers. Before we knew it, school began again, and it seems like we just barely began summer vacation.  Here are some activities to get ready for September, celebrating holiday México.

 

Young Heroes of Chapultepec

September 13^th

When the American army led by General Winfled Scott began attack on the Chapultepec Castle on September 13, 1847, the director ordered all cadets to abandon the castle and return to their families. At that time the Chapultepec Castle was a Military School.

The cadets refused to leave the castle and stayed at their posts, aware that they were sacrificing their lives. The Mexican cadets who set the example of dying for their country were Juan Escutia, Fernando Montes de Oca, Agustín Melgar, Vicente Suárez, Juan de la Barrera, and Francisco Márquez.

The cadet Juan Escutia had entered the Military School on September 9^th of that same year as a Castle guard when it was attacked. When the castle was taken over, Escutia took the nation’s flag so the enemy could not get to it. Since he was seriously wounded, he climbed to the top of a tower and jumped down wrapped in the flag. He fell dead. 

The first monument in memory of these young heroes was built at the site where Juan Escutia died.

 

Independence Day

September 16^th

Miguel Hidalgo was born in the ranch of San Vicente in the district of Guanajuato on May 8, 1753. He studied in the city of Valladolid, the present Morelia, and was ordained priest in 1778. He occupied the chair of theology and was later named rector of the College of San Nicholas, and finally appointed parish priest of Dolores in the state of Guanajuato. The town is now known as Dolores Hidalgo. Every morning Miguel Hidalgo would ring the bell in his church. The people of his parish were used to hearing the bell. But on the morning of September 16, 1810, they heard something unusual. As Father Hidalgo rang the bell that morning he shouted, “Viva la Independencia! Viva Mexico!”

Father Hidalgo’s cry for Mexican Independence started a long fight for freedom from Spain. His words (called El Grito de Dolores) spread all over Mexico. He tried to lead a Mexican war for independence. But in 1811 he was captured by the Spanish and executed in Chihuahua on July 30^th of that year as a traitor.

Today, Miguel Hidalgo is remembered as the Father of Mexican Independence. The Mexican people celebrate his famous shout on September 16^th as Mexican Independence Day. Every year the President of Mexico rings the very same bell that Father Hidalgo rang in 1810, and repeats El Grito de Dolores.

To show pride in their country on Independence Day, Mexicans fly the flag and sing the national anthem. In each city and town, crowds gather in the town-square. Flags and wreaths of flowers drape the buildings. Confetti and paper streamers fly everywhere.

_____________________________

        Compiled by Elaine Gallagher    

1. Small, safe, personalized schools.  No school should be larger than 500 students. This is one of the recommendations from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, to assure that students become known to Directors, not just as a number.

If you have more students, divide your school into sub-group Units of 500 students, maximum. If your school has 600 students, organize two 300-student Units. Each Unit, has its own Director, rules, expectations, and extra-curricula programs. One General Director receives reports from each Unit Director, with whom he/she meets monthly to note     student/faculty progress.

2. High expectations. Every student graduates ready for college, university or a good job.

3. Local control. Critical decision, like hiring/firing and curriculum customization are done at the school site, not by external owners or a school board. Teachers and principals are empowered to try new things.

4. Parent participation. Parents should be required to volunteer 35 hours per school year. (lunchroom, playground, reading aloud, listening to students read one-on-one, peaking to a class about his/her career, etc.)

5. Maximize funding directly to the classroom. Money is spent on hiring great teachers, supplying technology and materials needed, healthy lunches, sports, art, music, computers, and field trips. Money is not spent on bureaucracy.

6. Extend the school day. Keep the school open until 5:30 p.m. daily to provide students with an after-school safe place to have sports, arts, music, games, and computer time, and to be of a service to the parents who work, so children do not go home to an empty house. Extra hours are NOT an excuse for assigning homework, but to expand and challenge students’ abilities in various areas.

Teachers who work afternoons get paid extra. Students are served healthy lunches: no junk food, no sodas, no candies, no processed snacks. Monthly menus are provided.

7. HOMEWORK is NOT necessary. 8:30 a.m. – 5:30 p.m. is a FULL work day! Let the children be children as long as possible. What’s the rush? Let them go home relaxed, and ready to have «down time» with family…NOT to complete more work!

RESEARCH DOES NOT SUPPORT HOMEWORK ASSIGNMENTS BEFORE HIGH SCHOOL.  Studying for a test or reading to prepare for class discussions are acceptable, with FREE WEEK-ENDS and NO MONDAY EXAMS!!

     by Elaine Gallagher   

To directors and coordinators: (teachers, too, can read this)   

In planning school schedules, we forget to allow enough time so teachers at the same grade levels can be free at the same time, for talking and sharing ideas together. It is very important that at least 60 minutes, once a week, teachers have non-teaching time built into their schedules for collaborative time.

An IDEAL teaching schedule would have an hour a day, 4 days a week, for teacher planning/correcting time, plus an hour of collaborative time with other teachers of the same grade. These times are in addition to a duty-free lunch period.

Your TEACHERS are your strongest asset, and make the difference between an average school, and an excellent school! So give teachers the professional respect and time they need.

No teacher should have to bring work home from school! If part of the job is planning and assessing students, then time in the work day should be scheduled to complete those tasks.

Why Educators Should Be Given Time to Collaborate

 

Lew Gerstner, the former chairman of IBM, was asked if he felt the key to improving USA schools was simply extending the time teachers and students spend in the classroom–more time on-task, longer school days, longer school years.

Gerstner pointed out that the United States has created a system that impacts students for 13 years (K-12), yet approximately one out of every four students  (25%) who enters the system fails to complete it…that is, they drop out.

Furthermore, many of those who do complete 12^th grade are incapable of doing what the system was designed to ensure they could do: get a job and do well at it.

Gerstner insisted that if IBM found that one of every four of its computers failed to reach the end of the assembly line, and many of those which did could not do what the computer was designed to do, IBM would NOT solve the problem by running the assembly line more hours in the day or more days in the year.

They would have people sit down together and determine more effective ways to achieve the intended objective.