Why I am a Christian:

Why I am a Christian? After all, many would say all religions contain elements of truth—a higher power or consciousness of good, the need to reconcile or align oneself with the good and deny, suppress, or fight the bad, the consciousness of something wrong that needs to be corrected. So many of the ancient myths and stories contain these themes—some go so far as to have a virgin mother figure, a messiah like figure or war hero. All usually contain some teaching on love, forgiveness, righteousness, and justice. So why am a Christian, and not anything else or nothing at all? Because Christianity remains rooted in the historical Christ who can be said to have fulfilled not just the Jewish law and prophecies, but also the myths of the Norse and Romans, the philosophies of the Greeks, the suffering and self-denial of the Buddhists, the monotheistic holiness of the Muslim, the ethics of the Confucians, the Nirvana of the Hindus, and He is the answer of the human heart in a living breathing complex reality, and not just in a remote idealism. He was the God-Man, the fulfillment of all priestly figures of all religions. He came down and lived the truth in a flesh and blood way that we can understand because truth just cannot be spoken—it must be lived out. The Incarnation is the supreme crux that makes all the difference. He is the Way, the Truth, and the Life. . .

Invertebrates (to tune of Bingo)

This is another one of the memory songs I wrote. Hopefully, this will help kids learn the taxonomy of the invetebrate part of the animal kingdom. One great way of helping kids learn this is by repeating it each day of your unit on invetebrates while showing pictures or flashcards of the animals within each phylum or class.

The Annelid group includes earthworms
With their segmented bodies,
Invertebrates, invetebrates,
Invertebrates have no backbone!

Sponges are the simplest animals,
These Porifera filter feed.
Invertebrates, invetebrates,
Invetebrates have no backbone!

Cnidaria are stinging creatures
Like jellyfish, anemones, and corral,
Invertebrates, invetebrates,
Invetebrates have no backbone!

Echinoderms are marine animals,
Whose arms radiate from a center,
Invertebrates, invetebrates,
Invetebrates have no backbone!

Mollusca is a group of snails and slugs,
Bivalves, and cephalopods, (Bivalves-oysters, clams)
Invertebrates, invetebrates,
Invetebrates have no backbone! (Cephalopods-squid, octopus)

Arthropods with exoskeletons,
Are many--break them into classes!
Invertebrates, invetebrates,
Invetebrates have no backbone!

Arachnids are eight-legged creatures,
You think of them as spiders!
Invertebrates, invetebrates,
Invetebrates have no backbone!

Crustaceans have hard outer shells,
And sometimes claws like lobsters,
Invertebrates, invetebrates,
Invetebrates have no backbone!

Insects have three parts,
Six legs, and an antennae,
Invertebrates, invetebrates,
Invetebrates have no backbone!

(NOTE: There are 8 other phyla that include various types of worm-like creatures. There are also five other phyla of various other kinds of sea creatures with which most people are unfamiliar. The ones in the song are the most common types.)

VERTEBRATES MEMORY SONG: Classical Educators

I've always been partial to the classical model of education. It has influenced my teaching philosophy in many ways. I especially like the focus on memory skills in the grammar stage (which is the elementary years). After having worked with this age group for going on 11 years, I think the modern teacher's disregard for memory work is sad--especially since so many of them beat their head against a brick wall in trying to teach abstract "higher-order thinking skills" before some children are really ready. I am not against teaching higher-order thinking skills in moderation as children are ready; however, memory skills are important too. When I was homeschooling, I noticed that good poems and songs to use in memory work were not always easily found, so I often made my own. I decided it was time to share my work with all who would like to use it for non-commerical purposes.

MEMORY WORK PIECE #1 SCIENCE--A Piggyback song about "Vertebrates"

(Sing to tune Jingle Bells)

(CHORUS) Vertebrates, vertebrates, creatures with a backbone,
There are five groups of them by which they can be know,
Amphibians, reptiles, fish, and mammals too,
And then there's the final group called birds,
but let's give each one its due

Amphibians lay eggs--in the water yes,
They breathe through gills when young,
They must stay moist I stress;
Their skin is smooth and damp,
And cold-blooded though they be,
These toads and frogs, and salamanders, are oh, so lovely!

(Chorus)

Reptiles have scaly skin, and it's also dry
They are cold-blooded as well,
On this I wouldn't lie;
Lizards and crocodiles fit,
In this group with snakes,
Alligators and turtles too, oh for goodness sakes!

(Chorus)

Fish live within the water, and breathe through their gills,
Cold-blooded creatures also,
These facts I must instill;
They have fins upon their bodies,
No arms, legs, wings or claws,
Their scales are such a grand design,
That we give to God applause!

(Chorus)

Mammals have fur or hair and they're warm-blooded, yes,
Most grow within their mother--no eggs for them, you've guessed,
They also have four limbs, and mother's milk they drink,
There are 11 groups of them,
Oh my, this makes me think!

(Chorus)

Birds are made to fly, at least most of which we know,
They have feathers, wings, and efficient lungs,
And from eggs they grow;
Their beaks God made to help them
Grasp and eat the food they need,
Warm-blooded like all the mammals,
They are unique indeed!

Back at it again

It has been a year and a half since I last wrote on this blog. I guess it has been that long since I've had enough downtime to put any significant amount of thought into anything extraneous. In fact, since I last wrote, I finished my Master's Degree in teaching, looked like mad and finally found a new teaching job, began that new teaching job at the fourth grade in a low-income public school in my hometown, and I also gave birth to my sixth daughter! I've finally reached a point of relaxation and rest that were welcome friends. However, I was beginning to get a little antsy with all the open "thought" time available and thought it was time to start blogging again. Will I keep it up? Well, we'll see.

The Brain Needs a Vacation Too

I don't think as educators, we have learned to teach in the natural rhythm of the whole human. Holistic teaching is important. A child who is anxious, tired, stressed, excited, or overwhelmed will not learn. Do we take these things into account when trying to teach? Right now, myself and my kids are on a much needed vacation from school--they have a break from homeschooling, and I am having a break from working on my master's program. And yet I'm using this time to explore interests and concerns outside of my regimented program. In fact, I think I am probably learning and growing more as a teacher right now by following my own curiosity. Sometimes, what I'm reading isn't even directly related to education. I've been reading a fiction book and online religious history resources, and yet I can't help but feel that the reading I'm doing is directly impacting what kind of teacher and mother I am becoming because I am flowing with my spirit's natural learning rhythm and the needs of my own heart. By pressing incessant duties upon children, could it be that we are denying them these basic skills in life long learning, reflecting, and growing inside?

How my philosophies of life influence my educational goals

This is an excerpt from a paper I wrote for my History and Philosophy of Education class:
"So how does my metaphysical philosophy drive my educational goals? Well, since I believe that the universe was created by a good God according to patterns and principles, and that it is a reflection of Him, it must then follow that one of my main goals in education is to guide students to see and discover the patterns and principles in creation so that they can live in harmony with the creation and its Creator. Since I believe that the nature of God is goodness, love, justice, and wisdom, then my second goal in education is the be a model of God’s goodness, love, justice, and wisdom in my interactions with students that they may come to know and be like Him. I also believe that humankind is made in God’s image, and yet that image has been marred by sin. In response, God sent Christ as our redemption. Therefore, another educational goal I have is to treat all my students with dignity as God’s image bearers as I train them to treat others with dignity. Not only that, but because of the effects of the Fall, my goal is to guide them into the knowledge of Christ and His grace as I am able and mediate for them before God in prayer for their souls’ salvation. I also intend to support and train students as they work on developing their full potential so they might shine more brightly as tiny reflections of God on the earth. Finally, since I believe reality is absolute, my next educational goal is to teach reality as something to respect as we respect God—not something we create for ourselves. And because reality consists of a deeper spiritual dimension with its corresponding physical dimension, I also purpose to make sure I teach with depth and not just coverage so that my focus is not mere rote learning that touches on the mere physical surface of things.
Now how are my educational goals influenced by my epistemological beliefs? Since I believe that the revelation of Scripture enlightened by the Holy Spirit is the best way of arriving at truth, my goal is to make that revelation integral to my conveyance of knowledge. This may be directly to my children at home or in a private religious school. Or if teaching in a public school, it may be indirectly as I live out and teach its basic principles. However, I intend to make clear through words and actions that the quest for knowledge can rightly be attained through a variety of other methods, such as reason, senses, intuition, and authority, when they are balanced out and used in an attitude of humility that remains open to correction.
My axiological beliefs also influence my educational goals. Since I believe in right and wrong that is absolute according to God and Scripture, one goal I have is to implement rules and curriculum that best align with those absolute moral standards. Since I believe there is a type of absolute beauty that reflects God and His glory, I also set an educational goal of helping students develop a taste for that beauty (as best as I can ascertain it), recognize their unique preference for various aspects of that beauty, discover the beauty around them, and create beauty within their lives."

Technology and Education in a Postmodern World

Postmodernism and technology in education has been on my mind a lot lately. It is rather frustrating because due to the No Child Left Behind Act, Americans are too distracted with the the need to bring children up to an unrealistic and frustrating standard, that the massively changing culture with new needs, is being forgotten. Even in my master's studies, sometimes the focus keeps coming back to bringing up reading skills, that the need for widespread educational change is shoved aside. Reading is important, but pressuring children to learn how through testing is not the answer.
LISTEN UP, people--the world is no longer the same as it was 10 years ago!!! Information spreads so rapidly and new knowledge is being accumulated exponentially. The American school system and its beauracracy changes slow enough without new information and ideas expanding at such a quick rate. Homeschoolers and children in more innovative countries are going to speed ahead while children in our public schools languish in a worn out system. Jesus said, "You cannot put new wine in old wineskins." Why do we keep trying to put the new culture with its easy to access information, networking mindset, and need for creativity and innovation into the old top-down authoritative, regimented, competetive, and structured educational system?
Some of the teachers and administrators (the really good ones), keep trying to fits the square pegs into round holes, and because children are adaptable creatures, some manage to fit. However, it is time to venture outside our comfort zones, learn to TRUST local schools, teachers, and children to teach and learn and innovate, and hold them accountable for long term holistic results that include happiness, stability, creativity, and adaptability, and not test scores which mainly test how well students can memorize and take tests. If we encourage teachers to differientiate intruction, why do we not differentiate testing as well? Is taking tests well what we want students to know? The real question is: what skills do they need for the 21st century? I'll bet you one thing--they are not the skills that most of us have been teaching. See this site for a great article on the subject.