http://teachinglife.today.com Insights of a Soon To Be Teacher Tue, 30 Jun 2009 14:30:39 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en I have not written a post here in some time because I have been out of the country, in Croatia.  I went to Karlovac for a mission trip with my church for two weeks.  I was there to build relationships and spread God's love and grace among the youth and ... http://teachinglife.today.com/2009/06/30/teaching-english-as-a-foreign-language-in-a-foreign-country/ I read an article in the New York Post today about the policy of some primary schools paying students for getting good grades. This is clearly controversial and there are arguments on both sides of this method of reward. The payoff is based on the performance of 10 different assessments ... http://teachinglife.today.com/2009/06/08/new-york-paying-children-for-good-grades/ As June begins and the spring rains end, the long days are filled with the laughter and sounds of children playing outside.  This is no longer just a weekend event, but since school is now out in most of the country, children will be seen playing outside on a Wednesday ... http://teachinglife.today.com/2009/06/07/schools-out-for-summer/ Removing or significantly cutting back on Physical Education classes has been occurring for several years now.  Why do I bring it up now?  Personally, I am hearing on the news more and more about obesity in children and the increase of Type II diabetes in young children.  So, at a ... http://teachinglife.today.com/2009/05/26/physical-education-cutbacks-in-school/ I watched the Make a Difference Movie the other day and I found it to be such an inspirational video about the difference a teacher can really make.  This effect can last many years into the child's adulthood. This video has been around for many years and was created by ... http://teachinglife.today.com/2009/05/19/making-a-difference-as-a-teacher/ Sometimes all a teacher wants is some new books to replace the tattered old ones for a new language arts lesson. Or brand new markers to allow her class to delve into their creative side.  But, with budget cuts and limited resources, even these simple items can be hard to ... http://teachinglife.today.com/2009/05/11/donors-choose-to-help-out-schools/ Close to 300 schools around the country have been closed due to the swine flu. These schools are taking precautions if there has been a confirmed case or a suspected case. Schools have been closed in 11 states, most of them in New York City, Texas,  and California.  Other schools ... http://teachinglife.today.com/2009/04/30/more-schools-closing-due-to-swine-flu/ On April 22, the Chicago Board of Education voted  to have more than 25% of Chicago's elementary schools to be year round. What this means is that students will still have a 170 day school year, but summers will be shorter and breaks will be spread out throughout the year.  ... http://teachinglife.today.com/2009/04/23/more-year-round-elementary-schools-in-chicago/ Observing students running around playing basketball and then sitting down to learn a lesson in 8 minutes before beginning the basketball activity may look strange to an outsider that is accustomed to traditional classroom instruction. In England, the teachers at Monkseaton High School in Tyne and Wear are using a ... http://teachinglife.today.com/2009/04/17/new-teaching-method-using-8-minute-lessons-spaced-learning/ While there are many citizens in the US against the war in Iraq and Afghanistan, most people today still support the troops, even if they are against the wars. It was a lot different during the Vietnam War. Back then, even the troops were treated with disrespect from many anti-war ... http://teachinglife.today.com/2009/04/08/years-later-harvard-still-unsupportive-of-rotc-program/