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I Have Been Nominated for the Liebster Blog!

11/25/2012

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Yesterday when I woke up,  I checked my email and to my surprise, there was a message that I was nominated for a Leibster Award! Thank you Tracey!  I am excited that you found my blog!    
The Liebster Award is given by bloggers to up and coming bloggers who have less than 200 followers.  It’s to show that new bloggers are appreciated and help spread the word about our little pieces of cyberspace.

Here are the rules:
1. You must post 11 random things about yourself.
2. Answer the questions that the nominator set for you.
3. Create 11 questions for the people you nominate.
4. Choose 11 other blogs with fewer than 200 followers to nominate and link them in your post.
5. You cannot “tag back” the other blog, but leave a comment on this post with the URL of your Liebster post so I can learn more about you & see who you nominate.
About myself

1. I would love to go to S. Korea to teach.
2. I geocache when I get a chance.
3. I have 6 ukuleles.
4. I have 4 children, a husband, and a cat.
5. I am the tech contact at my school, but I am just learning about social media and it scares me.
6. I used to do many crafts, but lately, I find that I prefer to do technology related things.
7. I have always wanted to be a teacher.
8. I have just started going to a gym and working out with a personal trainer.
9. I am awaiting the arrival of my 5th grandchild after Christmas.
10. I work with my husband directing and teaching 5 ukulele groups.
11.  I met my husband in high school.

Here are the questions I was asked to answer:

1.  What is your favorite comfort food? Chocolate
2.  What is a song that always makes you happy when you hear it? Believe from Polar Express
3.  What sound do you love? My cat purring beside me
4.  If you could throw any kind of party, what kind would it be and who would it be for? I think I would do a geocaching party and it would be for my grandchildren.
5. If you could learn to do anything, what would it be? I think I would like to learn to do charcoal drawing. My daughter is incredible at it, but I would need lots of help.
6.  If you could be any fictional character from a book you read aloud in your classroom, who would you be? I think I would like to be the Velveteen Rabbit.
7.  What is one chore that you dislike the most? laundry
8.  Who do you admire most in your life? This is really hard, because I admire many people. I think I will choose my children because they are not afraid to follow their dreams and make them reality.
9.  When your school days are over, where do you want to retire? Wherever my family is.
10. When you have 30 minutes to yourself, what do you like to do? visit sites and blogs on the computer
11.  What is something that you treasure? my gifts from my children and grandchildren - photos, scrapbooks, special jewelry


Here are my nominees for the Liebster Blog award.


The Happy Teacher
Raki's Rad Resources
Yay Third Grade!
Charmed in Third Grade
Darling Little Learners
Mrs. P's Ed Tech Talk
Interactive Education
The Teched Out Teacher
Teacher Gone Digital
Inspired Writing Teacher
Total Teachaholic


Nominees, here are your questions!

1. What is one of the craziest lessons you have ever taught?
2. If you could teach anywhere in the world, where would it be?
3. Who was your favorite teacher in school and why?
4. What do you do to stay motivated at report card time?
5. What kinds of incentives do you use with your students?
6. What are the different grades you have taught?
7. Do you participate in any outside groups?
8. What do you do just for you?
9. Have you ever had a different career?
10.What is your favorite subject to teach?
11. What technology do you use in the classroom?

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This is a Time for Giving

11/23/2012

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Christmas is just around the corner and the kids are getting excited about the holidays, presents, and trips that might be ahead. This is a great time to remind them about giving instead of just receiving.
In our district we just reconfigured the grades so that the elementary schools go from K-5 now. That puts my Grade 3 class in the middle. The new term for them this year is "the little big kids". They are very excited about this role.
Because the leaders in the school have all left, it is a great time for them to take on some of that responsibility.
As we prepared for the Canadian Thanksgiving in early October, we began to look at all we had and realized that we could make a difference for others who didn't have as much. We began looking at ways we could help.
Here we recycle drink containers for refunds. Our class has taken over collecting the containers from around the school and the money we raise from recycling them is going towards an adopted boy and girl in Rwanda. The students were very excited to receive the information about them and the pictures a few weeks ago.

PicturePennies for Presents
This is the third year that Room 101 has done Pennies for Presents. We collect pennies for about 3 weeks and each day we count, roll, and keep a tally of how much has been collected. It is a special time for my students because they get to do announcements and posters as well as the monitoring of the collections. This year we will be filling our meter bank each day. They are very excited about this.
The great thing about this activity is that everyone in the school can be included, because even our needy children can find a penny to share. It is amazing to watch the excitement in the school as the totals grow.

Acts of Kindness
Our class has been focusing on being bucket fillers and doing acts of kindness. I came across this video one day and it was a great springboard for how a simple act of kindness can make a big difference. We refer to it often now.
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These books are great for sharing the idea of giving instead of getting. My students were able to make many connections after listening to the stories.
We took advantage of the American Thanksgiving holiday to reinforce the concept of giving and Christmas. We continue to talk about how we can give by doing random acts of kindness as well.

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Changing Technology

11/16/2012

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Watching video clips on the laptop.
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Using an iphone for facetiming, texting, and surfing the net.
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Educational apps are available for the phones, tablets, and computers. Here are some samples.
Last time I wrote about my son Felipe going to Sokcho, South Korea and how the student exchange began, as well as the creation of the Sokcho International School.
Today I want to reflect on the change in technology since he went there in July 2000.
It is important to note that in some areas of South Korea, the advancements in technology are less evident than in other areas. It was interesting to travel there in 2002 and witness with my own eyes some of the contrasts.
It almost seemed like third world living mixed up with state of the art affluence. Technology has been responsible for much of this advancement.
When Felipe went to Sokcho, computers were still fairly new and many people didn't have their own computers. The main use of the computer was to write emails. While we were there, we would visit internet cafes to send messages home.
I still remember getting the weekly email updates from Felipe about his new job and life in a foreign country. This was an important way of connecting because phone calls were very expensive and mail took way too long to arrive.
Now we are able to video chat, send music and videos, use social media, surf the internet, use mobile devices and much more. The vehicles are equipped with the latest technology as well. Much of this technology is manuafactured in Korea.
Classrooms and schools are becoming more and more high tech. Even 6 years ago when I visited, each classroom in my daughter-in-law's school had a computer and television mounted in it. In SIS (Sokcho International School) the students have ipads and they are using e-textbooks for instruction. Almost every student has a mobile phone as well, even the littlest ones.
With all these advancements in technology, we need to remember that our goal is to help our students learn and continue to be lifelong learners. I would love to hear from others about how technology has helped their teaching.
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Teaching Across the World

11/10/2012

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Felipe's classroom at ECC was about the size of a small office.
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The Grade 1 classroom at SIS
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Listening to books on the computer
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An intermediate classroom
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Felipe's new music room
In July 2000, my son Felipe headed off on a journey that was about to change his life. He had just finished his BMus at the University of Victoria, along with a TESOL course. He packed his bags and headed to South Korea with a couple of his buddies from the music department to teach English in a small private academy called ECC. This was supposed to be a short term stay, but ended up becoming his home. He now has a wife and 2 children and they have built a beautiful house not far from where he works today.
In an effort to remain connected, Felipe and I often talked about  the possibility of students coming to Campbell River to visit. His boss' son was travelling to Nova Scotia for English immersion, so why not the west coast? Conversations began to put into motion plans to make exchanges possible in some of the Campbell River schools during the winter break in Korea. Felipe became the liason between the principal and our district.
I still remember when the first group arrived. It was snowing and the plane couldn't land on our little airfield. It had to return to Comox, (about a 40 minute drive away) and then the students and chaperones ( the principal's husband, Felipe, and his wife) had to be transported by shuttle to Campbell River. Their first experience in Canada was a snowy one.
I had the privilege of hosting one of the girls in my home as well as one of the boys in my classroom. The chaperones stayed with us as well until they were sure the students were settled with the families. Then they returned to Sokcho. They returned at the end of the 2 months to escort the students back home. This began a tradition in Campbell River that continues today.
The principal had a dream to create an international school that would be linked to a community in BC and provide Canadian curricula.
Felipe continued to act as liason between her and Campbell River. The Sokcho International School became a reality a year and a half ago. It is slowly growing and the students are learning the BC curriculum. They are connected with the Campbell River school district and the current principal of the school was a former principal in Campbell River. Felipe is teaching the music there as well as helping out with the business side of things.
Needless to say, it is exciting to have this connection with my son, especially when he lives so far away. It is also great to see that my grandson is attending the school now. I enjoy seeing the photos of some of the work that he is doing courtesy of his teacher who posts updates on her facebook page.
Sometimes it is hard to see our children travel to other places to work, but it is rewarding to see that they are making a difference.
I would love to hear your stories about teaching across the world and remaining connected with home.
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Using Technology in the Classroom

11/3/2012

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Using technology in the classroom is commonplace now. I love this sculpture. It was in the lobby of the hotel in Seoul when we were there in 2009. I think it speaks well to how the children of the 21 century are different learners than those of the 20th century. They are so tech savvy, that the traditional ways of teaching need to be spiced up to get their attention.
Technology sculpture in S. Korea
I enjoy using technology in my classroom and the kids seem to be finding it engaging. Even simple things like projecting a worksheet on the board interests them. The same worksheet handed out to them at their desks would not get their attention. Little do they know that they are still doing the same task.

Classrooms look so different nowadays. It is not uncommon to find computers, ipads, ipods, document cameras, video cameras, smartboards,  interactive whiteboards, projectors, cameras and other pieces of technology in many schools. Websites are now a common source of reference and paper worksheets are often replaced by interactive worksheets projected on the board.

As children are exposed to more and more multimedia before they even enter school, it is becoming more evident that we need to tap into this learning style that has been created and direct it in a positive way. Technology is not supposed to replace our teaching, it is supposed to enhance it and help engage learning.

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    About Me Charlene Sequeira

    I am a wife, mother of 4, grandmother of 9, and a retired primary and music teacher. I love working with kids and continue to volunteer at school and teach ukulele.

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