Pretend Students

So I have been tutoring in a community college biology class. This is a class I took last year, and recieved a very good A with lots of study. So to make a few extra bucks, I am now an SI, or supplemental instructor. Sort of like a GA for community college. I attend a class and thier labs, and lead study sessions once a week to try to help people pass. I am fed up with students giving no effort, and whining that they aren't passing. My boss at the assistant living home says it is becuase there is too easy of rewards, like kids in baseball, everyone gets a trophy, whether they won the championship (if they were even allowed to keep score, or if they were dead last. Everyone wins, no matter how much effort or success actually happened. So now we have produced students who actually think that just for paying for the class they should automatically pass (true quote!)

Here are the top ten signs that your students are not passing Biology 101:

10. the student, after not taking the first three oppurtunities, asks when there will be extra credit.

9. We are now in chapter 18. The student comes to you confused over the material from chapter 4.

8. The student has missed the first two lecture exams. 7 weeks later, asks if they can make them up.

7. there are 48 people enrolled, 17 show up, 3 leave during break

6. the student is "taking notes" on thier laptop, but actually talking on facebook

5. the student shows up for lab prac., having never been to a lab, and is in shock that there are tests for labs, and gets a 4 out of 50.

4. the student comes to you 9 weeks into the course, and asks why they are failing, "but I never fail!?" All you can say is "Who are you? I've never seen you before."

3. In lab, the student should be looking at a paramecium, and is focused on the interesting jagged edge of the glass slide under the microscope. Wait, was that an air bubble?

2. the student has not shown up for 4 weeks ("but I have doctor notes!"). We have been observing pond water. We ask if she has brought in her pond water sample. She looks in her FOLDER to see if she has it.

1. the student's mom calls to let you know they are in jail, and will be out for the next few weeks.

spring cleaning

So I had the chance to use a real keyboard yesterday, but do I? No. Instead I use the real internet access with the added perk of a hard drive to find the cute little picture of the bird. So now I am again hunt-and-peck-wii-mote typing and cramping my hand. What a cute bird.

Today my husband and I are cleaning the appartment. We do this on occasion; usually when my parents are coming, or like now, when appartment inspections are coming. Every six months our landlords get to come look around, looking for structural damage, hidden cats, burn marks, or meth labs, and make sure we are all being good little residents.

On our one and only previous inspection, we were left a nice little love note that we were in lease violation for "some minor housekeeping issues." So there were a couple of cereal bowls not in the dishwasher, and a stack of unfolded laundry was hibernating on the living room floor. How could we be so dangerous. Jerks.

So that brings us to why today is cleaning day. The last two weeks of this month are inspection days. Time to get out the shovels and a can of lysol.

4 to 94: issue one

This idea has been developing in my mind for the past couple of months. Mainly I think it is confused about what happened. I went to school for early childhood ed, student taught 3rd grade, taught preschool for a term, and now I find myself a direct care worker at an assisted living home. So now I can't help noticing some amazing similarities between these age groups who exist at such opposing ends of life's spectrum.

both 4 and 94 year-olds will point out the exact spot on their plate where they want their ketchup puddle for fry dunking

both 4 and 94 year olds try to play card games, but only one player remembers the rules and often changes them for their own benefit,

both 4 and 94 year olds can easily be distracted about having to do something they don't want to by being told "you GET to (fill in blank) now!"

both 4 and 94 year olds are extremely picky eaters

both 4 and 94 year olds think their favorite show should be on RIGHT NOW, just keep changing the channel, it has to be there somewhere.

both 4 and 94 year olds resist taking their bath, every week

both 4 and 94 year olds think their neighbor at the table got more mandarin oranges in their cup, even though you've counted the exact amount to be fair

this is the one that annoys me most:

both 4 and 94 year olds think they are the only person who really matters and I am there to serve and gravel at their feet.

okay, that one was a bit mean, I am a bit annoyed today about the expectant attitutes with little greatfulness. So here is some of the goodies:

both love hugs

both sneak candy

both love jokes

Some quotes:
4-year-old: (about the overly sticky homemade playdough) "This playdough is like mud on on a warm summer's day" (insert wistful little sigh)

94-year old:
Me: How are you feeling today?
her: "Why, I feel with my hands, every day."

real post, typed real slow

I need a real keyboard... but this works to let me write a bit.

I am called Sparrow at a summer camp/outdoor education camp in Northern CA. We all had to choose cheesy, outdoorsy names for the kids to call us, because that is apparently more fun and makes it easier for us to hide our facebook identities from overly enthusiastic campers when we return to the new world. It also makes it hard for us to find each other. My phone number list in my cell has names like: Daisy, Cougar, Steller Jay, Rodeo, and Sarge, all are people I was once pretty close to, and can`t remember what their real names are.

My husband chose to be "Walker" as in Texas Ranger. This added to the kids` confusion as he was one of the few allowed to drive around on camp.

I called myself Sparrow. Not, as one parent asked, because I think so little of myself, but because I needed the daily reminder that God is in control and was taking care of me. There is a verse, I think in John, about how God will care for us abd we are not to worry; we can see that He even cares for even the smallest sparrows. (my paraphrasing of course). Every time I was called Sparrow, Iwas reminded of this promise. I have a little sparrow figuriene to this day on my nightstand as a reminder, and thought continuing the name would be nice in continuing quest to learn not to worry.

what would you name yourself?

first try

I am painstakingly writing this on my Nintendo Wii. Must point controller at hunt and peck keyboard on TV. Just wanted to try it out. Real posts to come with real keyboard.