Christy B
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Posts posted by Christy B
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Try reading Andrew's article on plagiarism:
http://www.excellenceinwriting.com/article-list
It might help you grit your teeth for the next 30 weeks. :)
Thank you for trying. :tongue_smilie:
I was actually excited when I saw your link . . . and disappointed when I read the article. But really, I was sincere in asking "how is this not plagiarism" and I appreciate your sincerity in posting the link.
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I love IEW for those who struggle with writing or whose parents/teachers need a way to teach a student how to write.
I don't at all recommend it for those who are natural writers.
Ah, that makes sense, then. My older dd, a struggling writer, enjoyed IEW. My younger, however, is definitely what I would consider a natural writer.
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There, I said it.
Everyone I know loves it and thinks it's the greatest invention since the graphite pencil or the word processor, but I hate it.
For starters, HOW is this not just a great way to teach kids a method of glorified plagiarism?
It's like stealing blank paper, sketch pencils, charcoal, pastels, and watercolor from an artist, and giving them cheap magic markers and color by number pages.
Our first week of Classical Conversations Challenge A is not going well. Had I known that IEW was pervasive across the curriculum and not just in the writing class, I doubt I would have enrolled my child. I figured, one writing class, one semester -- suck it up and get through the 15 weeks. But it's in the science, too. Her lovely little three paragraph essay on algae -- not acceptable because it is not in IEW format. Her paragraph on Noah is all stilted and weird because she HAD to include that who clause and that 'ly word. :glare:
You're kidding me. 30 weeks of this? I'm gonna die.
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Thank you so, so much for the great ideas.
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A family very dear to us was on vacation a few hours away from home when their son sustained a serious spinal injury. They have been at the hospital for a couple of days now and we hope to go see them tomorrow.
What are some items that we could put in a little gift basket that they would find helpful and useful? I can't imagine how hard it would be to go through something so traumatic and be away from home. They can't send someone to their house to fetch things for them, etc.
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I had to choose other.
My first thought would be "where is my daddy, and how quickly will he deal with this . . . and if he's not available, where is my 16 year old daughter, and how much will I have to pay her to deal with it?"
Yes, I am a spoiled only child, sandwiched between two generations of go-to people.
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Exactly how bad would it be if one was to pray for a couple to be completely infertile?
I would say "amen" to that prayer in this situation.
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Are you kidding? A recent trip to the cardiologist and a resulting prescription for beta blockers means I take breaks in the middle of my breaks. Seriously, my chosen "break" activity might be reading a book or browsing a favorite blog, and I have to stop doing that and go take a nap instead. :glare:
It's a humbling experience for a chronic type-A multitasking overachiever.
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Well, it's good to know I'm in good company, and since so many of us seem to share this struggle, I'll tell you what amazing thing happened to help me this weekend!
I went for coffee with a dear friend and neighbor who is my exact opposite in many ways -- she is a genius science-y person, and a PROJECT MANAGER. She is a concrete, analytical, problem-solving, linear thinker. I am am abstract, global, spiral thinking musician. I spilled out my rambling incoherent thoughts and problems. She pulled out her notebook (even that made me laugh -- all my notebooks are gorgeous things, with matching ink pens -- she had freebie from a drug rep).
Within five minutes she had determined that:
1. I am literally killing myself (or at least, wearing myself pretty doggone out) and
2. I knew what I had to do, I just didn't want to do it and
3. I had a list -- a checklist, with boxes, and deadlines -- call these three teachers by this date to see if they have openings; contact these eight families by this date, explain that you are not healthy enough to teach piano this year and give them the names of the other teachers.
She explained that it's just a totally different approach to life -- she sees every situation as a project to be managed: identified, categorized, and completed. I see situations as they relate to people and people's feelings. (It helps that she does not know the students and families -- I'm emotionally attached and she is not.)
She also threatened/promised that if I blind cc'd her on the contacts by the deadline, she would take me out for coffee (decaf, see item #1).
So.
I actually came home and did what I was supposed to do.
Maybe some of us just have brains wired to be more all over the place and we just need friends who can cut through the mental clutter and help us focus. (And I'm going to help her choose paint and paint her dining room, which sounds like the most fun EVER to me and for some reason scares her to death, lol.)
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I would have stuck with the name given to me when I was born. My adoptive parents changed it and I would have preferred that they leave me with the one connection I had to my birth family.
As it happens, though, my adoptive name suits me quite well, as it is a less girly and less common name. So, it ended well, I guess.
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Thank you, each of you, for just being plain nice to me.
I started the thread honestly thinking that I was just a big lazy unfocused dolt who needed a kick in the pants, and between your comments and the doctor's office calling me twice (literally, between posts) I realized that the biggest part of the problem is that I'm overwhelmed with too many responsibilities AND I'm trying to do it all -- perfectly -- and I don't know how to say no, or stop, or slow down.
Actually, I take that back. I do say no, and stop, and slow down. The problem is I am surrounded by people who won't hear it.
So, thank you. Thank you for hearing me, and for listening between the lines and knowing that what I needed, more than anything, is permission to stop being super-human.
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I don't think there's a doubt in anyone's mind that I have ADD. Mix ADD with perfectionism (possibly OCD) and the hyperfocusing is off-the-charts funny (well, in a sad, "bless her heart" kind of way).
I'm sad to say it, but the double whammy of one doctor wanting me to see a cardiologist, followed by another doctor seeing my chart and ordering a bucket of bloodwork has given me the "permission" I needed to cut some of the more stressful "extras" out of my life. I need to act quickly, because I'm sure that all the bloodwork and tests are going to end up coming back just fine, and then I won't feel like I have a legitimate reason to scale back. (I know, theoretically, that I don't need a reason beyond the fact that I'm so exhausted I can't think straight, much less get anything done -- but it's rather deeply ingrained in me that you don't let people down unless you're literally dying and have no other choice -- and even then, you had better darn well apologize for inconveniencing them.)
It was the second doctor's assessment of the situation that made me realize part of the reason nothing is getting done, is because it's kind of hard to get stuff done what with the exhaustion, dizziness, and nausea coming from my heart beating backwards or whatever it's doing. That makes me feel like less of a loser. :tongue_smilie:
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Are you putting off the piano email because you know it's too many students.
ETA: I understand the frustration with the summer slipping by, but, really, you still have many weeks left -- 3 more weeks of July and 4.5 of August. You can accomplish A LOT in that time, so choose not to be paralyzed by not being perfect about your start date. :)
Also, for difficult things, I try to seek out an accountability partner! My sil and I are texting each other at 5:30 am right now as we work on establishing that habit.
YES. I'm putting off the email because it's too much. I said yes to a lot of students last year simply because we were in a financial bind and I needed the income. Dh had NO IDEA how many hours I was working; he has now taken a new job that allows him to work from home -- he was shocked to discover how many students I had (I teach almost 20 hours a week). He has been "on my case" for me to shed some students and I just can't. Well, I haven't been able to -- since posting my original question, I just got a call from my doctor, and the "nothing" that she was checking out last week using a Holter monitor turns out to be "maybe something" and so I'm being sent to a cardiologist. So, I may be able to bring myself to let go of some things. People will cut me some slack if they think they're literally killing me with their demands. ;)
School starts August 16th for us (we're enrolled in Classical Conversations). So it feels like July is "it". Next year will be better, we'll finish in April. And, we have a family vacation planned in October. I prefer the beach in the fall, anyway. But, my window for getting stuff done is closing, thus the panic.
Accountability is a great idea! My mom would actually be great at that. She's more of a doer and less of an over-analyzer. Good idea.
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First of all, yes, I am painfully aware of the IRONY of sitting on my bum at my computer, bemoaning the fact that I am stuck in this rut of seemingly endless hours of planning, researching, organizing, and scheduling, and not getting anything DONE. I have no doubt my time could be, at this moment, better invested in DOING something (even folding laundry).
That said. :-)
I really could use some help. I hope that I am not the only person who has found herself in this bind, and maybe there are some great ideas and concrete suggestions to help me break this cycle.
I am a planner and organizer by nature -- I love administrative work. I am also a perfectionist. I don't want to start a project until I know EXACTLY what the desired end result will be, until I'm SURE it's the right thing to do, etc.
I have a home -- that I adore (it's my actual dream house) and all the stuff that goes along with keeping house AND a lot of projects (some big, some small) that I want to tackle. So I need to decide on things like paint color, systems of organization, etc. I have projects that are about 90% completed and projects that I haven't even started and everything in between.
I have a job -- I teach piano and I have 30 students and that is WAY too many, so I invested countless hours and sleepless nights trying to figure out a way to let some go -- and I can't. There is no way. So then countless more hours and sleepless nights working on a schedule to fit everyone in. And now I need to order music and tell everyone a start date -- I know what day we should start in August and for some reason I can NOT bring myself to send that email and say, okay, here is when we are starting.
I have a highschooler who needs all her PSAT SAT, etc done this year. I have scheduled the PSAT and am working on the SAT, ACT, etc. HOURS of trying to figure all of this out. Of course, in the meantime, I have discovered that I actually love doing this -- and now I think this is what I want to do when I "grow up" and finish homeschooling -- I want to put my two years of liberal arts college credits toward finishing up a bachelor's degree to become a guidance counselor . . . and do you know how HARD it is to stay focused on my daughter's junior and senior year of high school when now all I can think about is finishing my own degree? Dang hard, is what it is.
And then there are the activities: band, martial arts, 4H, etc -- all require my participation to some degree or another (I am hugely invested in the homeschool band, martial arts just requires my services as taxi driver -- other activities fall somewhere in between). But then there's the remembering and accounting and scheduling ALL the activities and keeping everyone coordinated, making sure everyone has a ride, etc.
I KNOW there is time to do all of this -- I know it because I know I spend HOURS thinking about it, planning it, and organizing it. I have HOURS upon hours invested and yet nothing is actually. getting. done.
HOW do I break out of this cycle? And what is wrong with my brain that I am like this? I am so frustrated that my summer has almost slipped away and I feel like have nothing to show for it but a bunch of to-do lists with nothing checked of. :confused:
What steps do I take to become a DOER instead of a PLANNER?
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Thanks so much for the advice. We have enrolled in Classical Conversations this year, and my daughter's director/tutor is a super-organized test genius. So she will be on hand to help, as well.
Brigid, you are so right -- the more I get locked in and scheduled on the calendar the better I feel. Dd and I both work best with specific goals and deadlines. We even have a vacation planned for the week before her PSAT, so she will not need to take any of her regular schoolwork along, and maybe we can do an hour or so a day of test prep (she actually LOVES testing so she thinks this is all great fun).
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Last year was an academic and personal nightmare. Onward we go.
Dd is entering her junior year and needs to do ALL the testing bit: PSAT, SAT, ACT, etc. Advice for someone starting late?
We have located two schools willing to administer the PSAT in the fall. I guess the next step is to register for the SAT and ACT online.
My biggest question is the whole issue of sending scores to colleges. She has a particular college in mind that is her first choice; they award scholarship to homeschoolers based on SAT and ACT scores. Is there a way NOT to send the first set of scores? I'm trying to read and research online and my head is spinning. I need a "college testing for dummies" crash course.
I am really kicking myself over this one.
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Oh, dear.
When I stumbled upon this the other day, I suspected it would come in handy. I think I will hang on to it for sure!
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I know this has been discussed but I have tried several different searches and I'm not coming up with much.
I have a dd who is technically a rising 11th grader. She excels in Math and Science and struggles in everything else. Maturity is an issue -- she is responsible and level-headed in some areas (like Civil Air Patrol) but I can see a lot of irresponsibility in other areas (like academics). I think she is certainly college bound -- she struggles with writing and literature but I imagine a lot of science/mathy kids struggle.
She's mentioned off-hand a couple of times that she wishes she had an extra year of high school. This is largely because she LOVES her extracurricular activities (band and CAP). However, we are starting Classical Conversations this year (Challenge III) and she has looked over the scope and sequence and commented that she really regrets not having started sooner, and wishes she could do I, II, and III.
There are two main possibilities for college: one is the community college/transfer to four year college program. I know an extra year of high school wouldn't cause any problems on this track whatsoever. She can start taking courses there any time now and it would be a good transition. The other college she is really interested in is VERY homeschool friendly and they love non-traditional students. I honestly think they would rather have a better prepared, more mature student arrive on campus. Do I dare ask the admissions counselor about a fifth year of high school? I don't want to bring it up and have it raise all kinds of questions and end up hurting her chances of being accepted there.
If -- and it's a big, big if -- we were to do something like this, how on earth do I create a transcript? I don't want it to look like she has failed a grade. She actually makes all As and Bs. She just wants to fit in more classes.
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So far . . .
The best thing:
I've tried to instill in my girls a healthy balance of respect and skepticism in regards to authority. They'll have no problem taking direction and supervision from their superiors in school or work . . . and they'll be darn difficult to abuse, emotionally or otherwise.
What I'd change:
More regular family meals, more deliberately careful use of electronics, more consistency and higher standards in schoolwork.
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What great ideas! Thank you!
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My daughter's friend is 14, VERY bright -- he's academically gifted and I guess precocious is the word that comes to mind -- not just book-smart but emotionally and socially advanced as well. He is a huge Shakespeare fan and enjoyed Lord of the Rings at age 6.
He is, understandably, running out of good reading material.
Please, could you all suggest some engaging, challenging, and yet age appropriate titles for summer reading? His family is Christian but not uber-conservative (for example, he has read all the Harry Potter books; the more mature content of Shakespeare has not been a problem, etc). I just don't want to recommend titles that would have themes that are *too* adult, IFKWIM?
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:iagree:I've tried, but rarely get responses from people. For me, it isn't worth the time because generally it is wasted. -
I am very glad to know that the conference organizers are willing to listen to feedback and that a strong message is being sent that this sort of behavior will not be tolerated. I assume I am one of many, many conference attendees who wrote and complained.
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Steck-Vaughn is another publisher to investigate.
Warning, vent ahead: I. Hate. IEW.
in K-8 Curriculum Board
Posted
Yeah, and using the possibility of explosives detonated in the World Trade Center as an example of something that goes against commonly held belief or general knowledge . . . just a weird choice, IMO.
Sigh.
I might as well face it, I just don't like coloring in someone else's lines. I'm a hopeless non-conformist who should have KNOWN better than to sign up for a curriculum program.