Little Pen-Pals

2005-11-25T12:00:00.000-08:00

On Tuesday, after I wrote, we showed the powerpoint to Virginia´s classroom. That classroom really enjoyed watching pictures of themselves on the TV. They laughed every time a new picture came up. I do not think they understood perfectly everything about the letter exchange, but we tried to explain it as clearly as possible. We kept asking them where they had gotten letters from, what language they were written on, etc.

Yesterday (Thursday) I went to read the letters in my classroom more calmly. I read each one in english, and translated.

Today, I went to give them letter 1 from Amy. Only 12 students were in my class today. Before recess they went to the computer lab to watch a Xuxa dvd, and afterwards, they watched a play

Im at the computer lab..

2005-11-22T09:44:00.000-08:00

at Gustavo Barroso! Today was a very productive day. Virginia and I got here at 8. My classroom was already in the computer lab, playing an alphabet game, a pair on each computer. At 830 we showed my classroom the powerpoint presentation of them that we sent to the kids in Logan. They really enjoyed seeing pictures of themselves. We also finally gave them letter 1 from Maria. We also watched the powerpoint presentation Marias class sent of Logan and their classroom. Right now it is Virginia´s classroom recess, but afterwards, we are going to do the same with her classroom.

On Thursday, my classroom is going to write letter 2 to Amy.

2005-11-18T08:42:00.000-08:00

Today Virginia and I went to watch Ana Lice and Paulo speak at the Prefeitura de Fortaleza about Informatica Educativa in Educacão Infantil.

2005-11-17T14:41:00.000-08:00

Today I went to the school for an hour. They were coloring a flag of Brasil. I talked to Ana Lice about next week, we are going to have the letters printed (they never came in the mail) and finally show the powerpoint presentations.

Happy Birthday Virginia!!

2005-11-11T16:39:00.000-08:00

Today we went to the school and in Virginia´s classroom Olimpia planned a little birthday party for her! My class sang Parabens to her too.

Letter 2 for Maria!

2005-11-08T16:43:00.000-08:00

Today Virginia and I did letter 2 for Maria in my classroom. The kids were sooo "inquietos"- more than ever. It was hard also because we worked after their recess, which means other kid´s recess so for the 1st thirty minutes it was very loud. But somehow, we managed to finish. We weren´t able to explain the activity as a class because of how they were and how loud it was, so we had to go to each individual table. The worksheet/letter was the same as Virginia´s class. They finished in less than 1 1/2 hr. and at the end, we quickly went over what they had just glued and colored. We explained the inside their heart they had important concepts like family, God, school, etc. I will scan these letters and hopefully send them by Monday.

2005-11-03T17:58:00.000-08:00

Today I went from 8 until around 945. From 8 to 9 I hung out in my classroom. I observed them working with the number 10. Ana Lice put bottle caps on the floor and each student had to come to the center and count to ten. Then they had to form the number 10 with a 1 and a zero. Afterwards, Ana Lice left the classroom for a little bit and I reviewed the colors in english with them. I showed Ana Lice the letter to for Maria that we are going to do on Tuesday. During their recess, I showed her the powerpoint presenation I made of our classroom to show to our penpals and even to the students here. Paulo also showed Virginia and I the presentation they are going to do at the seminar which is in about a week.

2005-11-01T15:51:00.000-08:00

Today I went to complete activity 8 for Tel´s class. After recess I went to my classroom for an hour. They had just finished learning about the number 15. They were coloring a worksheet with drawings of fifteen monkeys and writing the number 15 on it. Ana Lice said before recess she had placed numbers on the floor for them to count until 15. When I got there some of them were eating their lanche from the cafeteria and I asked Ana Lice why they did not do so during recess. She said a lot of times they get it almost when recess is over. I think this is awful because it leaves less class time. I already think that there is more class time that could be used.

Halloween (in the States...)

2005-10-31T14:45:00.000-08:00

Today I arrived a little bit before 8. Tel observed us. Virginia and I completed letter 2 to Maria Angela in Utah in her classroom (the values worksheet). I think everything went pretty well. We finished before their recess. They first wrote their name and in four stars wrote their friends name, the number of brothers and sisters, what they wanted to be when they grew up, and a thing they liked to do. It was good because we helped them write a lot of it, but we did not write much on the board. Most of them seem to be improving their writing skills. It was still dificult because they always get up and/or yell "Tia!". We are going to scan those letters and then send them, but we are STILL waiting to receive her first letters. Once we do we are also going to show a powerpoint presentation that Maria made of Utah.

2005-10-26T13:20:00.000-07:00

Today I went with Virginia after their recess. We first met with Olimpia at the teachers lounge to talk about letter two to Maria Angela which we were originally planning to do on Thursday. But, we found out its feriado so we´re gonna do it Monday. We are only doing it in Virginia´s class for now because, like I said, my class is waiting to receive letters.
Afterwards, I went to my classroom. I talked to Ana Lice about the second letter, explaining we´ll do it later, and we made a few changes from Virginia´s classroom´s worksheet since my students have a lower reading and writing level. The worksheet/"letter" consists of a picture of a boy/girl holding a heart. In it they are going to cut and paste values that are important to them such as family, God, school, etc. Ana Lice said she liked it. The kids were only coloring a picture today and they were very calm. Ana Lice talked about the lack of parental support. The more I am at Gustavo Barroso, the more I realize how big of a problem this is.

2005-10-25T11:41:00.000-07:00

Today I went from 745 until around 930. When I got there the kids were coming back from the computer lab. I think that they were playing games there. Today they did a worksheet that Ana Lice made. Basically, they had to circle letters of their name, write their name, count the letters of their name, write their friends name, and color in a picture. This took them a while. Ana Lice and I helped them a lot. They always ask so many questions and they need so much assistance that I wonder how things are with just one person leading the classroom. Afterwards, they washed their hands and ate their snacks. Ana Lice and some students are being interviewed for a project they are going to have on Instructional Technology in the Educacão Infantil departments in schools around the area. It will be presented in Novemeber, and Im definitely planning on going. Right now Im waiting to send Amys letters and receive letters.

Letter 1 to Amy !

2005-10-20T10:41:00.000-07:00

I am just getting back from GB. Today was another big day because we wrote our first letter to Amy. I think it went so well. I know I might not write a lot of things in this blog, because many things progress with our project that I can not keep up with on here. My classroom is now exchanging letters with both Amy and Maria.
I am more excited about actually RECEIVING some letters though- because my classroom wrote their second letter today already, and they still haven´t received any. I think this project will become a lot more exciting for them once they get something themselves. They seemed to have really enjoyed today though.
I think its because of the experience of the other letter that today went really well. I brought two things that made the explanation better. One is a map of Brazil. The other is a really nice book of photographs of Ceará that I bought. I also put four symbols on the letter: one of a globe, a letter, friends and one of an airplane (I got them from clipart) to reinforce those concepts. I talked to them for a little before starting the activity, explaining that we also had friends from São Paulo who wanted to become friends with us. There was actually a girl who was born in São Paulo in the class. I also asked them many questions about Fortaleza and Ceará and I repeated many times that this time their drawing had to be especifially of Ceará and Fortaleza. When I showed them the book I made sure they were thinking about drawing those specific things, like caju, tapioca, mountains, beaches, fishermen, things that are typical of this state and city. They separated into tables of four and for the most part, each table drew the same thing. But, this is very typical of five year olds, I think. They look at their friends pictures and feel secure with that. Most of them drew beaches, waterfalls, boats and some of them friends and family. Afterwards they colored in Ceará and São Paulo on a map of Brazil. On this map I also made arrows pointing the way these letters traveled. I have all the letters with me now, and after I scan them, I will mail them to Amy in São Paulo. I´m actually expecting her letters soon, since she already sent them on Monday. So, next week, we´ll hopefully receive not only the ones from Amy, but also the ones from Maria. Also, we are going to exchange powerpoint presentations with pictures of the classroom and our cities. Also, we´ll be working on letter two for Maria next week. Next week should be exciting.

My Tuesday October 18

2005-10-20T06:12:00.000-07:00

I didn´t get a chance to write on Tuesday (keep in mind this entry would go before the other one from today), so I will write about what I did now:

I got there with Virginia before eight. Our goal for today was to take pictures for the powerpoint presentaions we are going to make (one for each classroom). We knew this would not take long, so basically, we went today to help and observe. Also, I had to talk to my teacher about how to incorporate Amy in this project. I thought this weekend maybe it would be good to have another classroom from GB, close to our classrooms age, write to Amys class. Today I talked to Ana Lice about it, and I think she really wanted to be that classroom. So, today we decided we were going to write to both.
When I got there Ana Lice was still calling roll (this takes a while because as you know, the kids have to get a name tag and recognize their name). She picked up a homework, although only about half turned it in. A lot of them said they forgot. Ana Lice said, remember to bring it tomorrow. It was a worksheet with drawings and they had to color the living things. Then she asked who remembered to bring an animal. Less than half of the class brought either a stuffed animal or a toy of an animal. Ana Lice put them all on her desk, and then, she showed each one, asking them what animal it was, what they ate, and if they were domestic animals or not. After that they sang a song about a frog that doesn´t take a shower and passed around a frog (toy). Then, Ana Lice left the classroom for a little bit, I think to get water, and she left on a CD with more songs. The kids just sang along to the ones they knew. They kept sitting because they were not allowed to get up or dance, like sometimes they are. When Ana Lice got back she wrote on the board the lyrics to the frog song they were singing. She asked them where they could see the letter S. They circled the letter S. Afterwards I took a picture of each student. I made sure they wore their nametag. Some of them were absent, but a lot of them were there. I did this pretty quick.
Ana Lice told me that after recess they would work on a worksheet and circle all the letter ss in it. Overall, I think she seemed pretty tired today and not so much willing to use all her time. A lot of times I feel like she spends too much time doing one thing, for example, calling roll. She takes time to grab the CD player, when I think she could have this ready. I can understand how her job can be exhausting though. One thing I have been thinking about is how much more prepared I think she could get this students for the next grade, which is where Virginias students are right now. It seems like Virginias students are more advanced in writing and reading and I also feel like maybe my kids won´t be prepared enough. I also feel like it´s all on Virginia´s grade (first grade)... like that is the crucial point for them to learn to read and write. I think the younger grades, like my class, could concentrate a lot more on reading and writing and less on just playing.

Dia Das Criancas

2005-10-13T12:06:00.000-07:00

In the morning I went to GB with Virginia. Because we did not go Tuesday (I did not feel good, and she went to Lagamar) we did not know that today was going to be different. Since yesterday was the Dia Das Criancas today they only went to school to play. They also got off earlier, at 1030. So, when we got there our classes and a few older grades (basically the smaller kids) were in the soccer field. They had a moonwalk, a trampoline and one of those ball pools they have in McDonalds. We said hi to the kids and talked to Ana Lice and Olimpia for awhile.

We finished the first letter...

2005-09-29T17:12:00.000-07:00

But there's plenty of work to do now. Today went so much better. At least in my class, I felt. I think the kids understood more what was going on and also, we learned interesting things about them (for example, some do not even know what endereco means). In my class, we started off by asking them if they remembered what we had done on Tuesday. We asked: Who are we writing to? Where do they live? How is it going to be delivered? What is a letter? Have you ever gotten a letter or a card?
We read off a basic letter Virginia and I made for the whole class (in Utah), one that kind of introduced who we were. We left a blank space for us to fill out today. So, we asked them to let us know what they wanted to know about them, or to share about what they were learning, so we could write it then. Which is what we did. Pretty much this letter (it is in portuguese but Maria will translate and we think its important that they hear both languages) just said, Hi, we are a kindergarden class from Fortaleza and we hope you like the letters we are sending to you. I read this part to them and then we all together (with a lot of help from Ana Lice, Virginia and I, at least in guiding the questions) filled in that blank space with things like "what language do you guys speak? what are you learning in school? what is your favorite story book? ... we are learning about forclore, transit, germination, the alphabet, even the colors in english.." Afterwards we handed each of them the "letter" they finished on Tuesday and we went around with the envelope so they could put it in themselves. The ones who were absent on Tuesday sat apart during this time and did their letter/worksheet. Finally, we told them that were were writing their address on the envelope (which meant where they lived) and that Virginia and I would go to the post office and it would get mailed (it would go in an airplane). We reminded them that we, too, would receive a letter from our new friends from the United States. Overall, I think it went well in my class. Even though the kids are not crazy about this activity, I think they will get more excited once they receive a letter themselves. Also, Im glad they understood it a lot better today and I do think they liked it. Im happy they are able to think about other places.
Because we had a little extra time and Ana Lice likes it, Virginia and I reviewed the colors in english. I was surprised they remembered some of them.
Afterwards we went to Virginia´s class. But, that was a different story. First of all, the teacher did not give us the whole time, or I guess she did, but in a way. When we got there they were still finishing copying their homework. So, only the ones who had finished that got a chance to really work with us. In this class, most of the kids had only gotten to the written part of the letter. So, during this time we handed it back to them and finished. But, it was a lot more informal because some kids were copying the homework, others were coloring our letters and others had finished everything. They stood up a lot, some of them were working with the teachers and because of that, I dont think they all even heard everything we said when we stood up in front of the class to explain how we were mailing the letters.
The whole time I was thinking how hard it would be to be Olimpia, Virginias teacher. I mean, it is CLEAR that these kids are at different levels (when it comes to reading and writing). And, how can she work with that?

"Composing" the first letter

2005-09-27T13:11:00.000-07:00

Today was a big day. Virginia and I spent the whole morning at GB working on the first letter that will be sent by the end of this week.
We arrived at 740am. We first went to Ana Lices class. We went according to our plan. After she called roll, she told the kids Virginia and I were going to start an activity with them. Virginia and I gave an introduction together. We started by asking if anyone in the class lived close to another classmate. Then, we went on about having friends and having them even if they did not live close to us. We asked them if they wanted a new friend because we knew kids in the United States who wanted to meet them. We explained that because its a place that is far away we were going to do this through a series of letters that we were mailing to them.
After this, we handed them a worksheets with two maps, one of south america and the other one of the world. In this map, they colored Brasil, Ceara and made a dot on Fortaleza. Then, we handed them the worksheet (which is the actual "letter") which said
Oi! O meu nome é _____________
Eu tenho__________ anos e eu moro em Fortaleza __________.
They filled in their name, age and Brasil. At the bottom they drew what they liked best about Fortaleza. Most of them drew a sun, the beach, or a fruit tree.
Afterwards (this took a little over an hour) we went to Virginias and did pretty much the same (same explanation and the worksheet was the same except with more blanks because they are more advanced in writing). However, both experiences were different. First of all, as we were doing it, not everything went as planned. In my class it was very hard to explain everything. These students hardly know they are from Brasil. I definitely think it was really hard for them to understand exactly what they were doing. Also, as we were doing it I thought about how we could have gone more in depth about two subjects: one is basic information about the world (continents, countries, etc) and the other one is an explanation of what a letter is. I am not saying we did not go into these subjects, I just felt like it was a lot more difficult than expected. However, I see it as a learning experience and something we can work on throughout this project.
Virginias class was a lot more responsive with basic questions about Brasil (they seemed to know they lived in Fortaleza, which is in Ceara, which is in Brasil). They were also quicker at writing. And, because I think we had the experience of the first classroom, we did a better job at explaining.
However, I do think that things will become so much clearer in the near future. For example, Virginia and I decided that on Thursday we are going to create a letter from the whole class that Maria will read to the kids there. At that time, we can show them how we are putting all the letters in the envelope and we´re going to have them think of questions about what they want to know about the students in Utah.

2005-09-22T17:17:00.000-07:00

Today Jo said that we should write what we do while we are at the school instead of when we get to the computer. I think that is not necessary if I get to a computer immediately after I go to the school. However, this week I have not been very good with that. I mean, look at my last entry. And today there is a lot to say. I mean, my project has progessed so much since my last entries. As a reminder, I did not write last week because I did not visit once last week, since Ana Lice was doing her curso. Virginia and I have actually pretty much concluded our project idea, and we're about to start with it next week. I spent a lot of time last week talking over it with Virginia. To sum it up, we are pairing with Maria Angela, who is from São Paulo, but working in Utah right now. She´s also a part of this exchange program and the reason we are working with her is because she is also working with little kids. Pretty much we are going to start connecting our classrooms through pen-pals. Virginia and I are currently working on our lesson plan.
On another note, let me tell you about my day today and the school. And also, what I can remember about Tuesday.
I arrived at 740AM. The kids were already in the computer lab. When I got there they were about to start watching a tutorial on traffic. This week they are ending traffic and concentrating more on germination. However, this was the time scheduled to continue with trafic. For about thirty minutes they watched these short, animated clips about fastening a seatbealt, speeding and learning how to be safe when riding a bycicle. The kids were definitely excited to watch them and even though a lot of them got distracted, it seemed like most of them were getting the point of the clips. Paulo also made a difference since he made sure to talk about the clips and ask a lot of questions. It seemed like it made them stay on task. My only complaint is that, unfortunately, during one of the clips something kept popping up and we were not able to watch it. Paulo tried about 3 times, until he just decided to move on. I was wondering if he had watched it before the classroom came into the lab. It took about 5 minutes of our time, but, I thought, when it comes to computers something like this is bound to happen. After the clips and discussion the kids paired up and got on a computer. There, they painted a light (semaforo.. how would you say it in english?) using Paint. I don´t know how much experience the kids had with using a computer, some of them seemed a little more advanced. A lot of others did not really know how to manage a mouse. I helped a lot, and so did Ana Lice, Paulo, and the other monitor. I really enjoyed it because I really felt like I was helping. I made sure the kids switched their turn to give their pair a chance. Most of them finished pretty quick and spent the rest of the time painting with different colors. Afterwards we went back to the classroom and it was already time for their snack. Which, just in case I have not mentioned before, consists of about 20 minutes of washing hands and singing their snack songs. Then, it was time for recess and Tel and Jo showed up.
Tel, Jo, Ana Lice, Paulo and I met for a little bit afterwards in the teachersroom. There, we discussed the project more in depth. It was good because I got some of my questions answered and they gave me more details about how our lesson plan needs to be. We also talked a bit about the website that Virginia and I are going to create, aside from mailing the letters. Later on, I updated Virginia since she couldn't be there.
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Going back to Tuesday. On Tuesday, the kids went to the lab also. This time, they watched a clip on germination. Just like the traffic ones, they are computer ones that Paulo plugs into the TV. The image was pretty clear and the kids seemed pretty excited. They really enjoy going to the computer lab, I have noticed. Afterwards, they went back to their classroom and Ana Lice gave them another lecture on germination. She placed little cards on the board that showed how a bean grew. I left before recess which was when they actually planted a bean. They are currently watching it grow.

2005-09-20T19:57:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I went with Nick and Virginia to interview Paulo about technology in the school. Today I went mostly to observe my class. I was there for almost two hours. Today my class went to the lab to study germination. more later

2005-09-08T10:04:00.000-07:00

Today I went from 730 until 9. But, today was different. Today the teacher gave me a long time for me to teach them the colors and the numbers in english. I think she enjoyed this time because she could concentrate on preparing lesson plans for later. And, since I love teaching kids, I enjoyed it too. Afterwards she told me that whenever I wanted to I could take time to do activities with them, games, whatever I want to. It really made my time there go by faster. I think I am definitely going to think of some activities for them to learn english and more reading and writing. I could even do some research on lesson plans. Its more entertaining that sitting to watch. I first taught them the colors with crayons, I made them repeat them many times. I taught them the numbers with these shapes she gave me. I also taught them "thank you" and "My name is". Its hard to teach them a lot in one day because they are so little and they hardly remember a lot of things. But, I think if we keep practicing how to say all the numbers and colors, they will learn.
Ana Lice´s class is next week (there are no classes for the kids) so I probably won´t be going. Unless I got for another reason. I never asked her about us teaching. Maybe in the future. Its good because I can concentrate on the project. I have been talking to Virginia about it and we´re pretty set on the pen pal idea and the website. We just need to figure out how to do a website. I looked up some kindergarden websites that got me really excited. Our idea is to post their pictures so whoever these kids are connected with can see a picture of themselves. I dont think I mentioned it before, but I think we might work with kids in São Paulo instead of the ones at Caic. This idea came up last Thursday during Tels class. There, we talked to Amy, one of the girls who is there and working with smaller children too. I will be sure to keep updating you on what is going on with our project.

Day before 7 de Setembro

2005-09-06T11:48:00.000-07:00

Today I went to the school. They were working on Patriotism since tomorrow is Brazils independence day. I arrived a little bit before eight and this gave me the chance to observe how Ana Lice calls roll. She puts slips of paper with everyones name on the floor and she calls on someone to go pick it up and place it on the bulletin board. That way, they can become familiar with their name written. Afterwards, she taped a Brazilian flag on the board and asked them the colors and shapes of it. Then she played the national anthem (which the kids did not know) and other music about Brazilian races and Brazilian cities. Then, she gave them a worksheet with the different parts of the flag which they had to color, cut and paste together. This pretty much took the whole time. During the recess I talked to Ana Lice about different aspects of education. I did this because it was our homework for Tels class. Below is a part of what I posted for Tel.
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She says education to her is extremely important. In order to have a bright future, education is necessary. However, she feels like many parents do not value education, at least as much as they should. She feels only half of the parents commit to their childrens education. Many of them do not attend meetings, do not wake them up to go to school, and do not make them do their homework. She says shes constantly telling her students that education is fundemental, is something they need, is something they should want.She says that as far as beliefs, hers are mainly not the same as her students (she did not want to go into this) However, she says that she respects everyones beliefs and that respect is very important. She feels like her classroom is a place to trade beliefs and learn more from each other. She feels like mostly everyone in her classroom comes from the same socio economic standing, many of them struggling economically, and there is not much diversity as far as beliefs. These children are raised catholic and there are no students from different cities or with many different characteristics. The most important values in the classroom are culture, ecuacation, family and faith (belief in God). She teaches them to value family more than anything. Family is the base for everything, she feels. She can tell the difference in a child when their families are not the usual. For example, she says its different when the child is raised without his father. She senses the child wanting that figure, needing them. What do her students know about culture? They learn dances, music and history. Last week, for example, they learned the lendas of Saci Perere, etc.
Overall, my interview went well. Now that I look back on it, I wish I had gotten into some things more, for example, asked her to mention more examples about how these children learn about their culture. Her answers did not surprise me at all. I have been observing her classroom for two weeks now and I feel like her answers were accurate as far as what I have seen in school. For example, I notice that it is common for these children to skip class. On different days, different students show up. At the same time, maybe this is just the case since it is kindergarden. Also, I have heard teachers complain about how the parents do not give importance to homework. One thing I would like to know is what the parents of these kids do. Did they finish highschool or attend any college? When their kids go, for example, to fifth grade, will these parents be able to help them with their math or portuguese homework?My interview only made me wonder a lot more things. Like seeing this reality in this school makes me wonder how kindergardens are in the United States. What do they value? It makes me think of my kindergarden in Costa Rica and what I was taught to value there. It makes me wonder how other teachers feel. Im interested to read the results of the other students, although mostly they will be with different ages. Of course its a sad reality to see that parents dont value education. To me, they just did not have the opportunity to even learn to value it because a lot of times you learn the value of education when you are going to school yourself. It is there where people tell you to keep going. It makes me wonder where these children will be in 20 years.

Lots of ideas....

2005-08-31T09:18:00.000-07:00

Today I arrived determined to talk to the teacher, Ana Lice, about some ideas. Yesterday at CAIC I felt like I put my ideas together more clearly, and at the same time I was getting more new and improved ideas. I think that talking to Jo really helped me. The possibility of having a penpal was something I had thought about but I knew it wasnt really going to work between Gustavo and a school in the US. Yesterday they told us that we could also connect Gustavo with CAIC. At first I thought it would be great but right now I am having more ideas that I think might be easier for me to do since getting to CAIC might be too time consuming and complicated. But let me start at the beginning.. Ill describe how the classroom was today, and then Ill get into my conversation with Ana Lice.
I arrived at eight with Virginia. This time we only stayed until about ten. As usual, the kids were excited I was there. This time, there were a few more students and I realized that its not uncommon for them to miss class since they must not have been there Monday. Later on I heard a converstation between teachers about how some parents were complaining the kids were not getting enough homework (the little kids, I mean). They said, the parents are not responsable to wake them up to go to school and they probably wont be when it comes to homework. I can see their point, but at the same time I also feel like these kids could be pushed harder (I will get into that later on throughout this semester).
When I got there they were still working on the lendas. They were studying the lenda of Saci, one of the characters that has only one leg. These stories are so interesting to me, at least to think of little kids memorizing such fairy-like stories. On the board, Ana Lice had written a little poem of Saci and the kids read it with her (they couldnt read of course, they already knew it). Today, she told them they had to look for all the words that had the letter S in it. They did this as a class together (she pointed at every word and asked them, and they got it pretty quick). She told me after recess they would do something similar to Monday, a worksheet to color a picture of Saci and to circle the few words with the letter S. Afterwards, she just played a CD and they sang along and danced for a while. Then, they washed their hands (two by two so it takes a while) and ate their snack. And that was it.
Ana Lice is doing a course on Edacão Infantil and so shes gone for one week each month. On this week (In september, for example, itll be in the middle of the month) the kids dont have school. They dont have substitute teachers and today the idea of Virginia and I teaching (at least for a few days) crossed my mind. Its sad...
So about project ideas. I told her about how I was thinking about doing pen pals with Caic. She said she had already done something similar and liked it. I talked to Virginia about it too and I think it would be convenient if her class did it too. I was also thinking a great idea is to make a website for the class. The more I think about the website idea, the more I like it. I think we could (Virginia could have one for her class I could have one for mine) have a class site with pictures of each kid and post things they do or even incorporate the whole penpal project into it (like scan their letters, etc, even connect the classes or schools through this website). I dont know how convenient it is to do the penpal idea with CAIC, although I know itd be a great thing to do. But, I also think theres other great things we could do without including CAIC. But Im gonna talk to people about going to CAIC and at least meeting the teachers that teach my level. Also, I wanna think more about the website.
Something I think is very important is that Ana Lice told me that she didnt like computers very much. I didnt act like it was a big deal. In EDIT 2000 we learned some information about tecnophobia and I dont know if she would qualify. I think if this whole website thing works out maybe itll give her a lot more confidence about using a computer. She doesnt even have an email account ...
So far, I think Im leaning towards a website and things we could do with it. Also, I feel like Virginias class and I have a lot in common, they are both very much into learning to read and write, and its an area I feel is in a lot of need. So, if we could somehow include these reading and writing subjects into a website or a penpal idea I think it would be great.

First visit in the classroom...

2005-08-29T10:07:00.000-07:00

I got to school at eight. Paulo introduced me to the teacher Im going to work with, Ana Lice. She teaches ages 5-6 (the second smallest group in the school).. a class of about 20 kids. I was thinking that it would be harder to work with little kids (in a way I still think it is) but, today I felt like things are really going to work out with this group.
Currently, they are working on a "project" about Forclore. I realized that Forclore, when it comes to what they learn in this school, has to do mostly with the Brazilian legends. Today in class, she read them a legend. Ana Lice told me they have been working on these legends (lendas) for almost two weeks so now they are almost finished (She said usually her projects last about two weeks). Because they are small and everything takes time, they have only gotten a chance to go over four legends. I cant remember which ones specifically. She also played the songs of the legends and they sang along. They were super cheery about them and excited about the songs, especially the girls. They also seemed to know them pretty well. After their recess, they colored in a worksheet with a picture of the character of the legend which she read. In it, they had to circle any word that had the letter R. They studied the letter R before recess today. She picked on a girl to go pick the letter R from an alphabet on the bulletin board. After her, everyone went. It seemed like everyone grasped it well.
I was thinking that for my specific project with her I would like to do something with music. I think its perfect for this class because they are all very outgoing and seem to love music. I was thinking it could have something to do with Brazilian culture, but I dont think these lendas is an option since I think Ana Lice wants to move on.
Im going again on Wednesdays but starting next week, Im going to go on Tuesdays and Thursdays. This seemed to work for both her and me. Also, these are the days where shes going to the computer lab, so this is also very benefitial.
As far as right now, it seems like Im just going to help her with what shes doing. For example, next week shes starting a new project on Traffic (lights, signs, etc). Paulo told me Dr. Aires had some computer resources for this subject and Im going to find out more about it.

The beginning..

2005-08-24T10:05:00.000-07:00

Today I went to the school with Virginia. We got there at eight and left during their recess at around 10. Mostly I just went to observe the classroom she is going to work with since I am still not sure who I am going to work with. Paulo told me that it would be good for me to work with the smaller kids since Virginia is not doing so anymore. This week those two teachers are taking a class so I am going to go again on Monday and talk to one of them.

Test

2005-08-19T07:47:00.000-07:00

This is me. And this is a test.