http://dalbanese.edublogs.org Life and Learning Tue, 03 Nov 2009 11:54:05 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en November 6, 2009 For too long teachers have stood on the sidelines listening to the debate that is being waged between politicians and the business community in this state and across the nation.  Every week the headlines scream at us with negative, critical commentary about what is going wrong in public ... http://dalbanese.edublogs.org/2009/11/03/take-back/ 10-23-09 Jazz Festival Music Want to impress students and keep it real? Bring on the music! Music is a language that we can all speak and a voice that is both historic and timeless. Students in my class absolutely love to listen to music while they are writing and working.  Everyone has ... http://dalbanese.edublogs.org/2009/10/20/jazz-festival-music/ 10-16-09 “Sit down before fact as a little child, be prepared to give up every conceived notion, follow humbly wherever and whatever abysses nature leads, or you will learn nothing.”  ~Thomas Huxley With lofty goals in mind, the state of Delaware’s superintendents launched an initiative: to change the nature of public education.  ... http://dalbanese.edublogs.org/2009/10/13/old-ideas-new-package/ 10-9-09 Parents across the region are taking to the fields to coach and watch as their children play favorite fall sports. When the weather is golden as it has been in the past few weeks, the local fields are full of soccer, baseball, hockey, lacrosse and football. Whether highly organized into ... http://dalbanese.edublogs.org/2009/10/06/having-fun/ 9-25-09 When given a choice, teachers usually do what is best for children. If we see value in a program or new initiative, we agree to sign on and learn new methods that may be more effective for our children. There is no issue at all. We are all about improving ... http://dalbanese.edublogs.org/2009/09/30/another-program/ 9-18-09 Parents in Prison Waiting for a pumpkin latte at my favorite coffee shop I overheard a group of teenage girls talking. Truly I do not purposefully eavesdrop on these conversations, but my teacher/journalistic radar was tweaked especially since this gave me insight into my students’ lives. Three girls were talking. “My father’s in ... http://dalbanese.edublogs.org/2009/09/30/parents-in-prison/ 9-11-09 We’ve been told that we were going from Cape to Great.  That little motto has been the tagline for many documents and the conclusion of countless discussions in the district for many years now. Now that has changed. Cape is great. This bell was rung loud and clear from the Superintendent on ... http://dalbanese.edublogs.org/2009/09/30/new-cape/ 9-4-09 Just last night at a restaurant in Rehoboth, I overheard a father say to his son that he expected him to be on the A honor roll this school year. The son took this news reluctantly and tried to protest that he wasn’t going to be able ... http://dalbanese.edublogs.org/2009/09/30/getting-ready/ 8-28-09 Conversations with my friends take a depressing tone at this time of year. Late August and our kids are headed back to college.  Sandy told me last night that she was not looking forward to a quiet house. With teens and young adults, the house always seems to be filled ... http://dalbanese.edublogs.org/2009/08/24/leaving/ There is such a danger in settling for test scores. Test scores are only one way to measure academic progress and yet they are the only way that gets any attention at all especially in August when everyone is interested in rating the schools. Here’s how it works. The state of ... http://dalbanese.edublogs.org/2009/08/18/settling-for-scores/