<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?>
<!-- generator="FeedCreator 1.7.2" -->
<rss version="2.0">
    <channel>
        <title>Voices</title>
        <description></description>
        <link>http://neighborsgo.com/index.php?page_id=1007&amp;module_name=sblog_info&amp;sblog_id=</link>
        <lastBuildDate>Sun, 22 Nov 2009 05:42:15 +0100</lastBuildDate>
        <generator>FeedCreator 1.7.2</generator>
        <pubDate>Sun, 22 Nov 2009 11:42:00 +0100</pubDate>
        <item>
            <title>So, where are you going to college?</title>
            <link>http://neighborsgo.com/index.php?page_id=1000&amp;site_page_id=301&amp;sblog_id=720&amp;post_id=15703</link>
            <description><![CDATA[With college looming like a big black hole of doom, uncertainty and dismay abound. To dispel some of the annoying and dreaded “So, where you going to college?” questions, we’ve made a handy list of answers. Say ‘em loud, say ‘em proud.   
1.) I'm going to be in the first graduating class from the University of the International Space Station.
 
2.) I'm going to major in kinesiology in the circus.   
3.) I just got my acceptance letter from the owl- I'm going to Hogwarts!  
4.) I've been accepted to Harvard, NorthLake, and Hogwarts. (pause). I was just kidding about NorthLake.  
5.) I'm going to the liberal arts program at MIT.  
6.) I'm going to study mathematics at Julliard.   
7.) I'm going to Austria to study marine biology. No, no, not Australia.   
8.) I'm not, I'm going to be a spy for the FBI. But that's classified information.   
9.) I'm going to take a year off to do Catholic missionary work in Italy. The Vatican needs me.   
10.) AHHHH!!!! MY SPLEEN!!!! <a href='http://neighborsgo.com/index.php?page_id=1000&site_page_id=301&sblog_id=720&post_id=15703'>(more)</a>]]></description>
            <pubDate>Sun, 28 Jun 2009 00:46:22 +0100</pubDate>
        </item>
        <item>
            <title>Nice Welder with a Death Mask</title>
            <link>http://neighborsgo.com/index.php?page_id=1000&amp;site_page_id=301&amp;sblog_id=720&amp;post_id=14824</link>
            <description><![CDATA[Saturday, May 2, 2009, I went Alvaro Obregon in Col. Roma to see the artists and artwork.  But being that México City, ground zero, was in almost total shut down because of the flu scare there were fewer artists.  Bummer.I walked onto Fronteas street to go to a store and ran into this welder shop, Servicio Romero.  Romero says he is an expert on welding parts to cars and art.  OK.The items he had stuck to the front entrance counter caught my attention, items Romero called “arte.”  Mr. Romero was in the process of shaving when I walked in because it was late in the day and he was on this way out, going to go sing.  AND then he started singing for me, cute.  He even showed me his guitar that he uses as well.I noted that Romero has lots of stuff in his small shop.    There is a cardboard box that is filled with papers, Romero’s filing system.  And on the counter he also has his Mega health powder.  Romero was really in good shape and he showed me a couple of trophy’s he had won in running; this guy is in his 60's, I was impressed.What I thought was most interesting is that Romero does not put his pictures to remember in a photo album but he glues them on the wall.  He gave me a story of every faded picture that was stuck on his wall.  It was evident by the empty spaces that some of the pictures had fallen off and he had not replaced them.The one thing that Romero did not talk about was the facemask he had on the wall.  It was obvious that he stuck that mask on the wall and spray painted it.  I asked if facemask was of Pancho Villa and he said no – it was his DAD!  He had his fathers’ death mask on the wall, which I guess explains the flowers over the head on a bicycle frame – a tribute.  Fascinating.Mr. Romero invited me to come back and to chat, and I know I will.  <a href='http://neighborsgo.com/index.php?page_id=1000&site_page_id=301&sblog_id=720&post_id=14824'>(more)</a>]]></description>
            <pubDate>Mon, 04 May 2009 20:46:24 +0100</pubDate>
        </item>
        <item>
            <title>Motivating Students Toward Excellence: It's all about relationships</title>
            <link>http://neighborsgo.com/index.php?page_id=1000&amp;site_page_id=301&amp;sblog_id=720&amp;post_id=14267</link>
            <description><![CDATA[ With TAKS season in full swing, and the consequences of “high stakes testing” looming over our children like a hungry predator for the next two months, it is all coming down to the wire.  With any luck, our children will put to use the test taking strategies, the critical reading and thinking skills, and the intuitive reasoning that we as parents and teachers have tirelessly “coached” them in, and we’ll all get through yet another year of standardized testing.  
  There are many who complain about the TAKS tests.  Claims of bias, undue emphasis, and traumatic stress syndrome, abound.  However, it is important that we stop and consider the alternative. If nothing else, we have “standards” in place.  And we are at least insuring literacy and at best motivating excellence.  And therein lies the “rub.” 
  The dynamics of learning for today’s children is a little more complex than it was for us. While they seem to intuitively be able to master the latest release in videogames, know all the words to hit songs after hearing them only once, and can recite word for word the dialog in the latest Hannah Montana Movie or Disney High School Musical Release,-- basic multiplication, simple sentence structure and common knowledge (even in the small circles of their lives,) like knowing the name of their school principal-- may be a mystery or at best a vague recollection.
 At the heart of all of this controversy is an elusive key: motivation. 
   As parents and teachers we know that we must “motivate” our children to learn.  Contrary to popular opinion, not all children come to school in the morning, thinking “Oh Boy!  I can’t wait to learn more about colonialism, prime numbers and plot structure today!”   Granted, there are a few who might, but the large majority of our children come to school with videogames, IPod music, and television shows on their brains.  What’s “on their mind” as they enter the classroom, normally has nothing to do with what they are supposed to be learning at school.  Quite honestly, unless we can put the day’s lessons into a videogame, hit pop song, or a Cartoon Network Serial-- we’re starting off the day “behind the curve.”  
  So, how do we “round them up, and bring them in?” The answer is in how the children are “hardwiring.”  
When it comes to motivation, there are basically two types of children, and two types of goals to motivate towards.   
  “Internally motivated” children take off like a rocket! All you have to do is put it out there for them—and they soak it up and look for more! These children are “self starters,” they normally read at an early age, and begin to excel in certain areas of their own interest very quickly. They find their own resources, and ask all the questions in their “quest for knowledge.” Unfortunately, these children are the minority. 
  “Externally motivated” children make up the majority, and for teachers and parents they are a little more challenging … and every one of them is different.  Finding what “moves them to action” takes a little knowledge of the age group, and a lot of love and attention to detail.
Additionally, there is short term motivation, and long term motivation.
  It is our duty as parents and teachers to work together to keep children motivated. In order to motivate our kids, as parents and teachers we must find what makes the children focus, and what makes them work.  What are their major distractions? What will they work for?  What will they work towards?  Who will they work for? 
  When we look for motivators, we must look at our goals for our children. Short term goals are motivated differently than long term goals, but both are necessary.
  Short term motivators may be the promise of more computer game time in exchange for “real” study time.  Short term may be the removal of privileges (like phone or internet time) until lessons are done and learned, grades go up, or attitudes are adjusted.  Short term might be a special “lunch with the teacher,” or time with the class pet.  Short term might be a homework reprieve if the student excels on a pretest.  
  When I first began my career as a High School English teacher, I thought that the more I knew about my teaching field, and the better I was able to “answer all of the students’ questions,” the more I would be respected and the more I would be able to “teach” the children.  One day I came in from an especially challenging day with some surly (but bright) children who decided that they weren’t interested in studying Shakespeare (which was part of the required curriculum.) I was highly frustrated, I couldn’t understand why they didn’t  see the beauty in the language of Julius Caesar. My mother (a veteran “master teacher” of 50+ years) told me, “There is an old adage that says, ‘Children don’t care how much you know, until they know how much you care.’”  She looked me in the eye, put her arm around me and said, “Norma, you have to REACH them before you can TEACH them.”
Bottom Line:  Motivating children is eventually all you can really do for them.  You can’t think for them. You can’t learn the material for them.  You can’t take their exams. 
  We can however, teach them “how” to think.  With “mastery learning” as the basis of our teaching, we can present the materials to be covered on the exams, so that there is no “mystery testing” or reason for anxiety. 
So, SHORT TERM-- We can teach them strategies for taking the exams, so that they do not have to fear them.  We can give them the reasoning skills and the confidence to meet the challenges of exams.  We can fuel their desire to excel, by giving them the ability to do so.  
And LONG TERM? -- There is no motivation like SUCCESS.  
Give our “externally motivated” kids a taste of that--- and they’ll become “internally motivated.”  We’ll have done our job, and they will have secured their future.
 
 
 
 
  <a href='http://neighborsgo.com/index.php?page_id=1000&site_page_id=301&sblog_id=720&post_id=14267'>(more)</a>]]></description>
            <pubDate>Thu, 26 Mar 2009 23:42:00 +0100</pubDate>
        </item>
        <item>
            <title>An online meeting place</title>
            <link>http://neighborsgo.com/index.php?page_id=1000&amp;site_page_id=301&amp;sblog_id=720&amp;post_id=12374</link>
            <description><![CDATA[Nice note from a new Voice:The
workshop was potent, and so was the coffee.  I was up most of the
night trying to process all the information, experience, wisdom, and
talent from the Community Voices workshop.  
 
Why didn't we all come away with names and email addresses for all the
other Voicettes?  I did get a few.  This is an
interesting situation, at least according to my friends clamoring for
details.  In a way, each new Voicette has been thrown, or dove, into a
public fishbowl.   (I'm thinking of the fish in The Cat In the Hat, balanced
precariously on the cake and the rake.)  
 
We aren't dancing with the stars, but we do have goals and strengths,
ambitions and fears going into this year.  Part of me was screaming,
&quot;What in the hey-ho were you thinking?,&quot; all through your inspiring
session.
 
I'm not asking for a public forum for the Voices as we learn to tap
dance.  I'm just suggesting an online meeting place.  It doesn't even
have to be a padded room.
 
 

Nancy
Ruder

  Padded walls or not, this blog can be a way to meet the other Voices. Sign up and then add this blog to your Neighborsgo world.    <a href='http://neighborsgo.com/index.php?page_id=1000&site_page_id=301&sblog_id=720&post_id=12374'>(more)</a>]]></description>
            <pubDate>Mon, 03 Nov 2008 18:43:07 +0100</pubDate>
        </item>
        <item>
            <title>Looking for new Community Voices</title>
            <link>http://neighborsgo.com/index.php?page_id=1000&amp;site_page_id=301&amp;sblog_id=720&amp;post_id=11864</link>
            <description><![CDATA[We just introduced our 2008 Teacher Voices and our Student Voices. Now,
we’re looking for new Community Voices volunteer columnists. In addition to
being the stars of the Thursday Sounding Off feature, Voices columnists also
participate in a writing workshop and other special events. They also, of
course, write columns — usually one per month. Please help us by spreading the
word. Some of our best Voices columnists have come to us through Sounding Off
and recommendations from other Voices. 

Thanks for your help. Here’s a column I wrote recently about our search and
selection process. 

http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/dn/opinion/askeditor/stories/asktheeditor_18edi.87809de9.html

 

And here’s all you need to do to apply: 

1. Write a little about yourself and put together a
list of current and previous civic involvements. How would others in the
community describe you? What is unique about your background and experience?
Why should we choose you? 

2. Share a previous writing sample or write something
new on a current topic. A writing sample should be 600 to 650 words. 

3. Jot down three other topics you would like to
write about. 

4. E-mail the application to voices@dallasnews.com.
Please include your address and phone number. 

5. Deadline to apply is 4 p.m., Oct. 10.  <a href='http://neighborsgo.com/index.php?page_id=1000&site_page_id=301&sblog_id=720&post_id=11864'>(more)</a>]]></description>
            <pubDate>Thu, 25 Sep 2008 14:50:11 +0100</pubDate>
        </item>
        <item>
            <title>Suggested reading list</title>
            <link>http://neighborsgo.com/index.php?page_id=1000&amp;site_page_id=301&amp;sblog_id=720&amp;post_id=11792</link>
            <description><![CDATA[This is additional information that wouldn't fit onto my voices column regarding today. It provides suggested quality literature for all age groups--one list for each &quot;reading ladder rung&quot; that I mentioned in my column. If you would like to read the column, you can find it here:http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/news/city/collin/opinion/stories/DN-east_boor_18edi.ART.East.Edition1.26b66ee.htmlHappy reading!  Suggested Reading List: First Rung: Easily digested, plot-driven books. Normally best for children ages 5-10, but also wonderful for family read-out-loud sessions. You will be (pleasantly)surprised at how much different the books are from the movies.1.Raggedy Ann, by Johnny Gruelle2. Paddington Bear, by Michael Bond3.Peter Pan, by J.M. Barrie4.The Phantom Toll Booth, by Norton Juster5.Alice in Wonderland and Through The Looking Glass, by Lewis Carrol6. The Wizard of Oz, by L. Frank Baum7. Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, by Roald Dahl8. The Borrowers, by Mary Norton9. Ramona, by Beverly Cleary10. Shiloh, by Phyllis Reynolds NaylorSecond Rung Books: Often factual, most of the time historical fiction.  These blend plots and ideas, and are a great transition for readers ages 10-14.1. Number the Stars, by Lois Lowry2. The Witch of Blackbird Pond, by Elizabeth Speare3. Johnny Tremain, by Esther Forbes4. Where the Red Fern Grows, by Wilson Rawls5. The Lord of the Rings (trilogy), by J.R.R. Tolkien6. The Chronicles of Narnia (series), by C.S. Lewis7. The Scarlet Pimpernel, by Emmuska Orczy8. A Wrinkle in Time, by Madeline L'Engle9. The Hiding Place, by Corrie Ten Boom10. The Bronze Bow, by Elizabeth SpeareThird Rung Books: mostly about ideas.  Great for readers ages 13-15 and up.  Although all three rungs provide a god basis for family discussion, this third rung is by far the best.1. Nineteen Eighty-Four, by George Orwell2. Frankenstein, by Mary Shelley3. Crime and Punishment, by Fyodor Doestoevsky4. The Screwtape Letters, by C.S. Lewis5. Animal Farm, by George Orwell6.The Diary of Anne Frank7. A Tale of Two Cities, by Charles Dickens8. The Giver, by Lois Lowry9. A Man For All Seasons, by Robert Bolt10. Lost Horizon, by James Hilton  <a href='http://neighborsgo.com/index.php?page_id=1000&site_page_id=301&sblog_id=720&post_id=11792'>(more)</a>]]></description>
            <pubDate>Thu, 18 Sep 2008 20:24:19 +0100</pubDate>
        </item>
        <item>
            <title>Processing the New Voices</title>
            <link>http://neighborsgo.com/index.php?page_id=1000&amp;site_page_id=301&amp;sblog_id=720&amp;post_id=11417</link>
            <description><![CDATA[There's a lot of work that goes in to choosing and processing the new group of Teacher and Student Voices. We're a few weeks away from introducing them formally on our pages, but here's a sneek peek at the faces readers will be seeing a lot more of this school year. 
(It's a video of me copying the images to help the photo desk know who to pop into our library system.) <a href='http://neighborsgo.com/index.php?page_id=1000&site_page_id=301&sblog_id=720&post_id=11417'>(more)</a>]]></description>
            <pubDate>Mon, 18 Aug 2008 21:01:13 +0100</pubDate>
        </item>
        <item>
            <title>tomorrow...teachers go back to work</title>
            <link>http://neighborsgo.com/index.php?page_id=1000&amp;site_page_id=301&amp;sblog_id=720&amp;post_id=11406</link>
            <description><![CDATA[It's a little bit sad, and a little bit exciting.  In a way, being a teacher is like never having to grow up.  We are all very excited...like the kids...to get out of school in June...and come mid-August, it's a bitter-sweet ending to a summer that has been in some ways too short and in others...well, a great break, but it's time...
As a teacher, I always look forward to August, a new set of faces, new names to learn, new minds to mold...
Somehow, as I get older...I see things differently, though.  I find myself  wondering about the lifecycle and the endgame...
Tomorrow is a new day, the beginning of a new year, and time goes on...childten grow up, we grow older and the circle continues...the cycle continues... <a href='http://neighborsgo.com/index.php?page_id=1000&site_page_id=301&sblog_id=720&post_id=11406'>(more)</a>]]></description>
            <pubDate>Mon, 18 Aug 2008 01:20:21 +0100</pubDate>
        </item>
        <item>
            <title>VOICES workshop</title>
            <link>http://neighborsgo.com/index.php?page_id=1000&amp;site_page_id=301&amp;sblog_id=720&amp;post_id=11345</link>
            <description><![CDATA[Kudos to Michael Landauer and the DMN editorial staff for a highly informative and well planned workshop!  Lots of info, never a dull moment, and a rockin' good time!  I'm looking forward to the opportunity! <a href='http://neighborsgo.com/index.php?page_id=1000&site_page_id=301&sblog_id=720&post_id=11345'>(more)</a>]]></description>
            <pubDate>Wed, 13 Aug 2008 02:46:07 +0100</pubDate>
        </item>
        <item>
            <title>Tuesday's Voices workshop</title>
            <link>http://neighborsgo.com/index.php?page_id=1000&amp;site_page_id=301&amp;sblog_id=720&amp;post_id=11337</link>
            <description><![CDATA[Another week, another Community Voices extravaganza put together by Michael Landauer. What will today bring? Here's hoping proper introductions were made ... <a href='http://neighborsgo.com/index.php?page_id=1000&site_page_id=301&sblog_id=720&post_id=11337'>(more)</a>]]></description>
            <pubDate>Tue, 12 Aug 2008 17:30:11 +0100</pubDate>
        </item>
    </channel>
</rss>
