I hope that everyone did well on their finals, the stress is FINALLY over! I also hope that everyone has an amazing Christmas Break. Relax for sure, we all need this break. :)

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

Good Night & God Bless

Not sure if this will be my last official post or not. . . you just never know with me these days!

Finals are submitted.  May be that a few more blog postings should be submitted . . . ;)  But, other than that - - YOU'RE DONE!!!  Go rest!  Relax!  Celebrate!  Hug and kiss those you love - and heck - why not those you don't!!  Surprise someone! 

Grading is going well and I truly believe I'll be finished SOON.  I'm doing the "harder to grade" projects first.  Syntax/Form are finished.  Only a couple more Semantics.  Then I'm on to Pragmatics.  Yes, I've graded a few out of order to give me an idea of what's what and to break up things at times.  I've even graded a couple of Finals already. 

You all have taught me a lot, as all students do.  I've learned that MORE direct instruction is at times necessary and that doesn't have to be lecturing in front of a Power Point.  I'm anxious to see what other good tips you have in store for me in the Final.  I've also learned many more things about myself, my instruction as well as college students and LEARNING.  I'm excited for next semester to roll around (after some REST) and finding ways to continue to grow as an instructor and how I can be a better teacher in 2010.

I wish each of you a wonderful Christmas with those you love the most!
God bless you every one!
Mrs. White

Today

I am finally done with this semester =)
i came back to Louisville today, and went to watch my boyfriend graduate from UL with his bachelors degree =). im very proud of him.
have an amazing break everyone =)

Officially finished

Yay, I am officially finished with this semester. I have really enjoyed SED 260. Mrs. White, you are AWESOME. My time here at EKU is over, I will be attending Asbury starting in the Spring. Hope everyone has a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. Take care and may GOD BLESS each and everyone of you.

This Past Weekend

This was one of the worst weekends I have had in a long time. My boyfriend and I were at a friends's going away party on Saturday. He is getting shipped out to Afghanistan at the beginning of the year. The party was full of fun, kareoke, drinks, and plenty of drama for everyone to enjoy. My boyfriend and his friend were very drunk, while I got to be the DD, so I was the one who was driving back to our friend Dave's house. I unlocked my car with the remote, but once I got inside I realized my car key itself was not on there. It had a crack in the plastic, and if you pulled too hard on the lanyard the key would come off the ring. By the time I noticed they had closed the building we were in. I checked my coat pockets, my boyfriends pockets, and my car. It was no where to be found. It was late, and I was dealing with drunk men, so I just decided to drive Dave's car back to his house. I was so frustrated for the rest of the night that I went back at 3:30 am to find them. The interior light in my car doesn't work so it was pretty much pointless for me to even go look. My boyfriend and I woke up the next afternoon after having a very personal conversation about how he was unhappy with what he was doing in life right now. Money was an issue also we talked about. Dave drove us back to my car where we looked in the parking lot, my car again, and Dave's car. We even went to the liquor store to look in the parking lot and the store. Needless to say the key was gone forever. My boyfriend started making arrangments to get my car towed to the dealership. What was wrong with asking my parents? Oh, they thought I was back at school studying for finals. There was no way I was going to tell them I had lied and that I had no way of driving my car now. At the mere mention of the word tow, I started crying. I knew that my boyfriend was going to have to pay for everything, and after our conversation the night before I couldn't believe this had happened. We managed to use his Grandma's Triple A, and they keys were only $5. He bought my keys, and I bought him lunch. The weekend had a good ending, considering I have my car, but the stress just about killed me.

I'm Done!!!!!

YAY YAY YAY! I'm officially done with everything for this semester and am starting my break! I'm so excited to have a break plus I love Christmas time and spending time with family and friends! I've really enjoyed SED 260 and learned alot, but I'm so ready for a break! Hope everyone has a very safe andmerry Christmas, happy holiday and happy new year. Mrs. White thanks for everything!

Countdown...

...countdown to Final posting...I'm grading and thus available.  Post or call if you have last minute questions.  Numbers on Blackboard.

I HATE COMPUTERS!!!

I was just typing up my final in the Library on one of the big screen computers, and the mouse that they had has a back button....I hit the button losing all my work, I was on questin 15, so guess who gets to restart...

Final question 12!!!

I am having difficutly understanding what this question is asking. Could you put it into different words or explain it to me more. thanks

A tough Holiday

So this weekend I found out some bad news about my aunt and uncle. They have been together for 41 years and they are the perfect couple. My aunt is a very religous person and very caring. She would do anything for anyone. Well on saturday my Aunt and my mother found my uncle with another woman. this has just devistated my heart. Nothing could have prepared me for this because if anyone would have told me this years ago I would have never believed it. they have been together since my mother was 4 years old so he has been a part of my family forever. He has been having an affair on my aunt for several months now and she has had some suspicion about it but saturday they finally caught him. So please keep my family in yor prayers becasue this is a very hard time for us right now.

today

Nothing can go right for me today in a previous post i wrote about how i missed a final. I came back to my room and blackboad did not save my test answers, i was coming back from selling my book and finishing up the finals parts i did not need the book for, ughh. its just not my day =/

Happy Holidays

I have enjoyed being in SED 260. It has taught me alot and showed me what it will take to become a good special educator. I hope everyone has a great holiday season and that everyone is successful in what they want to do. I wish everyone the best of luck. Thank you Mrs. White for deciding to teach our class and sticking with us.

im so mad at myself

i wrote that my ASL final was on wednesday at 10:30-12:30 well turns out it was monday. yes, i missed the final. i dont know what i was thinking, ughhhh im so mad at myself =/

Christmas break

Hope everyone has a good break, and a merry Christmas. Those of you that pray, plz keep me and my family in them, my little brother joined the Navy and left for bootcamp yesterday. So it will be our first Christmas with out him. Every one be safe and have great Christmas and Happy New year.

Dialect

I have this horrible habit of saying warsh instead of wash. I was doing some research and it said that the intruding "r" is typical for Eastern Kentucky dialect. I did not realize my dialect was so strong until I lived in N.C. and everybody I met was from all over the U.S. I was always teased for talkin' funny, even people from the South teased me. I'm not ashamed of my dialect, it is a part of who I am. It didn't change when I lived in another state. I guess you can say, I'm a true Kentucky girl.

Happy Birthday to me!

I will be turning 25 on Christmas Eve! At first I was sad about it because I feel like I'm getting old but everyday on Earth is a blessing and I am thankful for my daughter Denise, my family, friends, church family, and school family. Mrs. White I love you still praying for you, I'll see you next semester, hope everyone has a safe and happy holiday break!

Braille

I was at WalMart last night doing a little Stocking stuffer shopping and picked up a box of Band-Aids. When I first picked it up I thought it had some glue on the box, so I put that one back and picked up another box realizing that it had the same thing on it. When I looked up at the all the other boxes, I saw that they had them too. Im not too sure why, but I thought that was the coolest thing since sliced bread. I did not know that Band-Aid brand band aids had braille on them!
The more I thought about it, the more I looked around and noticed that nothing else had that, and wondered why not?

Onion

On Friday I took N1H1 flu shot and I had been sick the whole weekend, side effects. Anyways,I have something one of the international students shared with us. you may be interested and try it, I havent.

''onion"

In 1919. When the flu killed 40 million people, there was this doctor that visited the many farmers to see if he could help them combat the flu. Many of the farmers and their family had contracted it, and many died. The doctor came upon this one farmer, and to his surprise, everyone was very healthy. When the doctor asked what the farmer was doing that was different, the wife replied that she had placed an unpeeled onion in a dish in the rooms of the home (probably only two rooms back then). The doctor couldn't believe it, and asked if he could have one of the onions, and place it under the microscope.She gave him one, and when he did this, he did find the flu virus in the onion. It obviously absorbed the bacteria, therefore keeping the family healthy. Now, I heard this story from my hairdresser in Arizona . She said that several years ago, many of her employees were co ming down with the flu, and so were many of her customers. The next year, she placed several bowls with onions around in her shop. To her surprise, none of her staff got sick.

Good Luck

Hey everyone! Just wanted to wish you all luck this week on your finals!! Have a great break and enjoy time with your families!
Mrs. White, I will keep you in my thoughts and prayers as I know this will be a difficult time for you and your family!!
Its been a great semester!! Good luck!

Final - Questions with Automatic Grading

There are some questions which have automatic grading.  IF it grades incorrectly do not worry I will grade in the CORRECT way and give the points that your answer correctly earn.  No worries!  I WILL manually alter grades to reflect the accurate score your answer demonstrates you should have.

Mrs. White

Christmas Break

I hope that everyone has safe holidays and my prayers are with you and your families during this eventful time.

Ken

Last weekend I visited Mary and her family her son Ken who is Autistic came up to me while I was on the computer and gave me a big hug and said I love you Meredith out of nowhere. I almost cried because it was such a big accomplishment for him to reach out to me like that.

My new boyfriend

I don't know if anyone knows this but in November I just got out of a relationship that I had been in for 8 months. Within that week I ran into a guy I had known for a while by the name of Eric Paycheck. He is now my new boyfriend and has made me very happy. I thank God for him because he has helped me through a rough patch in my life and treats me like a princess.

Final Exam!!!

I was working on the final on Bb and all of sudden I was logged off of Bb and when I logged back onto Bb the assessement tab is gone for SED 260- Please help! :(
Thanks!

2 Questions about the final

Mrs. White (or anyone else who wants to help me out),

I have 2 questions about the final. Number 17 is worth three points and asks, "Briefly describe specific strategies for creating a language rich classroom that would accommodate ESL children within the classroom." Since it is worth three points, is the questions asking for three different strategies?
My second question is about number 16. When it lists the options is has "transitive" listed as A and B. Is it supposed to be like that?

Thanks!

The Jigsaw Classroom

Thought you all may be interested in this website.

Final Finally Posted

Your Final is now posted.  I'm sorry it's a bit later than what originally discussed.  But, you do have a full SIX DAYS to work on it.  I truly believe that is ample time and a fair time frame.  I know you understood it was the best I could do with all of my other responsibilities and needs at this time.

Have a great weekend and Finals week.  Remember BALANCE truly is a key during even this time of the semester.  You must take at least a bit of time each day for your own self if you want to be the most effective you can be with all of your responsibilities.

You will be in my prayers throughout this week.

Warmly,
Mrs. White

Final!?!?

I went to assessments on my blackboard and cannot find the final. I thought the final was going to be posted Wednesday (12/9/2009) to Wednesday (12/16/2009).

Mrs. White

I hate it because I missed class today. Just wanted to tell you how much I enjoyed your class. You are such an awesome lady. To see you go through what you have went through this semester and still carry on with life and your walk with God just amazes me. You are such a strong and faithfu woman of God, I really admire you for that. Thank you for such an awesome class. I'll try to keep in touch with you through facebook, maybe we can catch up with each other over a cup of coffee sometime. Have a very Merry Christmas and a Happy and Healthy New Year. May God Bless And Keep You!!

Class next week

We do have class next week don't we. I had car trouble on the way to class today and was unable to make it. I know our final will be available starting tomorrow until next Thursday. Was just wondering since I didn't make it today.

My child thatI did mine with does not use all of these Semantic Phases. Is that ok if I don't have an utterance for each one? AlsoI was wondering if this was considered as notice?

Child: I find Mickey House

But he really meant to say "I found Mickey Mouse"

Semantic phases

Would battery is finished fall under nonexistance, because in the child's context she means that they are nolonger working.

Christmas Break

Just wanted to tell everyone to have a safe and happy holiday. Have fun but be careful as you do it. See you around campus next year. Oh, and good luck on your finals!!

Extra Credit

Just a reminder...for those of you wishing to demonstrate your understanding of course content to earn additional or extra credit the DROP DEAD DATE for that is this Friday, the 11th.  There will be absolutely NO exceptions to this.

I always work with students to make accommodations on assignments in order to best meet your needs.  The opportunity to do the extra credit is such and therefore there is not altering it in ANY WAY.

Therefore if you are working on extra credit be certain you have determined what it is you are doing, what the scoring requirements are and that you are able to complete the assignment within the time frame provided.

Do not hesitate to post here on the blog, email, Facebook or call me if you have a question about how to complete it on time.

Language Project question

If the the child says "I want batteries for my toy-laptop" do I take the whole sentence if Iam doing existence or I take toy-laptop?

Final Exam Availability

Final Exam - bit of a change from what I said in class yesterday. 

• The Final Exam will be DUE Thursday, December 17th at midnight.
• The Final will be available to you by Thursday or Friday at the very latest.
• I will provide you a list of question topics in class on Wednesday.

Semantics

Adult: We will be okay, won’t we?

Child: Yeah. [46]

With semantics, what content does "Yeah." go into?

Type Token Ratios (Semantics)

I was wondering if anybody knows if we have to sit down and count how many different words the child is saying. I know we can copy and paste the child's sample and do word count..but it said that we have to divide the total number of different words by the total number of words??

Sectioning off Clauses

I am still a little confused when it says to "section off the clauses." I may or may not have already done this, I just do not understand what this is saying. I was going to see if someone could explain it more for me, to make sure that I have it done. It is worth 5 points on the rubric. Thank you! :)

Sensitive to Cultural Diversity

I'm glad that Mrs. White pointed out some things in class today about the example of people's perceptions of coal miners and how some of you all experienced some negative things in relation to that but had never really thought about it when you yourself pre judge. We do live in a society where the unknown is feared, if you look different, sound different, have different views then people start judging but get offended when it's turned around on them. I think it's very important to be open minded to everybody and their experiences and backgrounds and differences especially in a classroom because you will be spending a lot of time with your students and will have an influence whether positive or negative.

ESL

Today’s lesson made me think about what we were talking about in my English class. We had to write a paper based on a writing done by Anzudual, a Spanish speaking American born in the USA, where she got in trouble speaking Spanish in her classroom rather than English. This lead to a paper in which we were asked to discuss if we should have Spanish in your level classes. I was surprised by the negative level of responses that the class had. Most of them thought that it would be horrible to have Spanish in elementary level classes. Some of them even used examples of their children not having a good understanding of the English language, but excellent Spanish language. My paper as if often does sparked an argument, because I disagreed with this statement, because I think that Spanish should be taught along side English. I guess I feel that no one should be left out of a lesson it helps Spanish Speaking students learn English and English speaking students learn Spanish.

Language Analysis- FORM

Would "it was a scary house" be an equative sentence?
Is 'was' an irregular past verb?

Utterances

If a sentence starts with the word “so” or the sound “Oh” is it an utterance.

Examples are: “So, can we…..” or “Oh, by the way…..”

Project Question

For the analysis of semantics does anyone know if it's possiable that a clause not fit one of those phases. If so then do we just put in a no phase category?

Thanks a bunch!
Hang in there everyone 2 MORE WEEKS!!!!!!

Counseling

Shelby will begin counseling this week; we still desires your prayers.

"Homeless" People

Some "homeless" people can be so unthankful! I went to pick up my boyfriend today and when we were on our way back to my house, we saw a middle aged (maybe older) man standing on the side of the road with a sign saying he needed clothes, food, or anything that would help for the winter. So we decided to stop the car and my boyfriend was going to give him his coat and toboggan. When Cody got out of the car and took his coat and toboggan off to give to the man, the man said, "Man, I don't want that. I'll freeze to death in that! If I wanted summer clothes I would have wrote 'summer clothes' on my sign." He even pointed to his sign while he was saying this. Then he said, "People stop by here all the time and try to give me hats and toboggans!" Me and Cody were shocked! Cody just told him, "Well, these things will help keep you warm. I was just trying to help you." Then the man wouldn't say anything else and turned around. It just made me so mad because he was SO ungrateful for something nice someone did not HAVE to do. We were trying to be nice. If he hadn't wanted to wear the coat, he could have just took it and used it to sit on or something. I don't understand why people have a sign wanting "help" and then they act like what you offer them is not even good enough! The things Cody was going to give him were very nice and warm. He probably didn't really want items but just wanted money instead. People like that make me sick because there are really people out there who would be SO happy to have a coat and toboggan! :(

SNOW= LOVE= HAPPINESS!!!!! :-D

OMG, It snowed overnight! I was so excited. First thing for me this morning besides sitting up and looking out the window was putting on boots and jacket to run out the door and play in the snow. I absolutely LOVE the snow. It makes me so happy. I cannot believe it snowed. Pure happiness.

Inspriational quotes for finals week.

" Their is enough Chocolate and erasers to make it through this week." - Sam (my roommate)

" Its evil, its cruel, its at 8 am on what day?" - Drew

I know God will not give me anything I can't handle. I just wish that He didn't trust me so much. ~Mother Teresa

I ask not for a lighter burden, but for broader shoulders. ~Jewish Proverb

If you want to forget all your other troubles, wear too tight shoes. ~The Houghton Line, November 1965

Adversity is like a strong wind. It tears away from us all but the things that cannot be torn, so that we see ourselves as we really are. ~Arthur Golden, Memoirs of a Geisha

When the Japanese mend broken objects, they aggrandize the damage by filling the cracks with gold. They believe that when something's suffered damage and has a history it becomes more beautiful. ~Barbara Bloom

If you don't like something change it; if you can't change it, change the way you think about it. ~Mary Engelbreit

Very Bad Day!

Today has been the worst day-
I was on my way to class and received a phone call from the Guidance Counselor at my daughters high school stating that I needed to come to the school as soon as possible. Needless to say being that I had never received one of these types of calls I was completely freaked out. All I could think about was that my daughter had got caught skipping school or the worst cheating on a test. Never in a million years would I have expected to hear what was going to come out of her mouth.
On November 6th my daughter was date raped from a so called male friend. She has been carrying this around with her for a month and I absolutely had no idea that anything was wrong. I will admit that I had noticed that Shelby had been acting a little odd but she's a teenager- I gathered that as "normal." There is a lot of details of the day that I would rather not blog but my afternoon consisted of being interviewed by school officials and the Richmond Police Department. I have to say that a part of me died today and I don't think I will ever forget the look on my daughters face when she told me. My heart is broken for Shelby and I'm completely humiliated that my co-workers know what is going on. I feel like I have failed Shelby as a parent and I don't know how to make my heart stop hurting. But I guess most of all I'm hurt that Shelby didn't feel that she could come to me when this first happened because she and I have always been able to talk about anything. When I ask her why she didn't come to me when this first happened she just said that she didn't want to burden me with it because she knew that I had been really stressed with class this semester. How sad is that??
Oh well- tomorrow Shelby will be spending the afternoon at the police dept. being interviewed and then on to see a doctor.
For those of you that pray- I need you help.

Reflections

Some days I just feel like reflecting. Today is one of those days. As I look back at what I have been through this year I have learned a lot. I have never been a very religious person. Not that I in now way had disbelief in God - it has always been the people that I have meet in my journey that have made going to church an bad experience. But several of my friends that I have meet this year have changed my views. Am I still comfortable going to my church? No, not really, but I have learned that not all church going experiences are bad. In fact they can be very enjoyable- when in the right company. In fact one of my best friends has given me hope. She and I have had many discussion on Church and how it can be beneficial - she has never pushed for me to do something I am not ready for.

Christmas

Christmas is almost here and I can’t wait. I think I am almost as excited for my children to open their presents as they are. However, I am hoping you all could possibly help me out on something. My daughter has this one doll that is her best buddy, it goes everywhere with her even to surgeries, and its getting old. I bought it at Wal-Mart, but they no longer make them and I haven’t been able to find it online, on EBay, or anywhere. So I am hoping if any of you have nieces or little girls in your family that has this doll and wouldn’t mind selling it, you would sell it to me. It doesn’t matter what condition it is in, I just need the doll. Here is the info on it. It is a Kid Connection brand, it came in a Pretty Pony box with one big purple pony and one little purple pony, the doll has plastic hands and a plastic head, the body is made of purple cloth and it has purple hair and it is about 5-6 inches tall. These dolls also came in pink and that would be fine too. Thanks for all the help.

End of the Semester

It always seems that the end of the semester comes so fast. It's a bitter sweet feeling. I'm excited to have another one down but it gets extremely stressful because I'm such a procrastinator. I hope everything goes smooth and gets done. Good luck everyone!!

Sunday

I don't know if anyone saw the Bengals game on Sunday, but they kicked butt! We have swept the Ravens, Steelers, and now the Browns. This season is going amazing! Who Dey!!!

Extra Credit

Mrs. White I would like to do the extra observation as extra credit please. I don't know if you covered this earlier in class when I wasn't there, but I was just wondering how much this extra credit is worth.

Next semester

It was a big let down a few weeks ago when I found out my best friend was not going to be able to come back to EKU next semester and be my roommate. I tried talking her mom into letting her come back and live with me RENT FREE! So I just found out tonight that she is actually going to be coming back next semester! :) I am so happy I no longer have to spend lonely night after lonely night in this place after Christmas break! I would like to ask people to keep me and my loved ones in their prayers please! :) Thanks everyone! (I hope I keep receiving good news!) Oh, and I want to ask everyone what classes they plan on taking next semester?

Cerebral Palsy

Today's class discussion on cerebral palsy made me think of someone I knew with it. My best friend in high school had a 22 year old sister who had the disease. She developed it after recieving a shot all kids get when they are young. However, she was sick when they gave her the shot. From then on she became mentally and physically handicapped. She was nonverbal, but made lots of noises. She loved to laugh. My friend was the one who took care of her a lot. She bathed her, fed her, changed her, and watched the same movie over and over with her. Annie was her favorite movie. Our senior year of high school I remember being at Kroger when I called my friend. When she answered she was crying. I obviously asked what was wrong and she told me that Rachel had passed away that morning. I couldn't believe it. I immediately dropped everything I was doing and took my sister and my other friend to my friend's house. It was so sudden, and all I could do for her was just hug her and cry with her. I had never seen her so upset before. Rachel was an amazing person, and was one of the only people I know with cerebral palsy. It was sad to think that her life was cut so short at the age of 22. The class today just made me think of her, and how much my friend's life has changed since she is gone. Rachel was her best friend, and not just a sister.

My break

For most of my break I worked at 430 or 5 in the morning and got very little sleep. I got to see my sis who lives in Ashland and we saw my dad. I had not seen him in a while. For Thanksgiving my nan, Amy (My sis) and I went to my uncle's in Cynthiana. It was fun, we played The Beatles Rockband and my aunt sung. I thought about my mother a lot during the break. She always loved the holidays and I miss her terribly.

Epilepsy

Today we discussed epilepsy and it made me think of my cousin Zane who has it. He has been on so many different medications because none of them seem to work. One time over the summer he just slept and when he was awake just sat in his stroller drooling on himself. I felt so bad for him. He is 4 right now and I hope he finds a medicine that works for him. I have seen him have a seizure and he had a lollipop in his mouth while he was seizing. I was so afraid he was going to choke. It makes me wonder how he got epilepsy.

2009

I was just thinking as we approach the beginning of December how fast this year has flown by. It seems it was just yesterday that 2009 was beginning and here we are about to start 2010 in a month. This has been a very eventful and stressful year for me as I know it has been for many. I've had alot going on beyond the stress of school and work so its been tough. I will be glad when this semester is over and I pray and hope that 2010 will be great. With that being said and since we just celebrated Thanksgiving I dont want to make it seem like this year hasn't had many great memories and things to be thankful for, because that is not true at all. This year has been blessed with good news for our family regading my mom's breast cancer diagnosis. She didn't have to receive chemo and she will complete radiation at the end of this year. We will continue and pray that the cancer never comes back! My grandmother who has been ill is having more better days than bad as well so that is wonderful. I've met many new amazing people and tremendously enjoyed this class, my other classmates and Mrs. White's inspiration and passion for teaching, as well as learned more in this class then others. Most importantly I feel although this year has had its rough times, I feel I'v grown as a person. I have so much to be thankful for but I'm so ready for a break and to regroup. I will continue to pray for all of you and your families in hopes that the rest of the year as well as 2010 will be great!!

When disaster strikes...

"Tragedy blows through your life like a tornado, uprooting everything. Creating chaos. You wait for the dust to settle and then you choose. You can live in the wreckage and pretend it's still the mansion you remember. Or you can crawl from the rubble and slowly rebuild. Because after disaster strikes, the important thing is that you move on. But if you’re like me, you just keep chasing the storm."

I was not originally thrilled with spending 7 hours in a car going to Chicago for the holidays, but I made the most of it and enjoyed the time. I met family members I didn't know existed, spent time with ones I hadn't seen since I was a child, and ate my weight in food 3 days straight! I was okay with the way things were. I came back at 11pm Saturday to a tragedy on the homefront. My baby, (cat) Mouse, of 9 years, passed away. I am still torn to pieces, I raised him and spoiled him to the core. After the funeral this morning, I had to work. I had a great time. My other babies, 2 girls, almost 3, helped bring light back into my life. I was so upset by what happened that nothing else seemed of importance. If He brings you to it, He will bring you through it. God will provide and God will protect. Have faith. Faith is not believing that He can, but that He will.

Great Break

I hope everyone had a great holiday break. I had an awesome holiday break. I spent the bigger part of 3 days with my parents. Haven't had a chance to spend that much time with them lately. My 6 and 10 year old nephews and I put up my mom and dad's tree last night and we had a blast. I have a lot of homework to do in the next 3 weeks but I'm ready for this semester to be over. I will have to say SED 260 was my favorite class this semester. Thank you Mrs. White for making it such a great class, your and awesome teacher and person. See everyone in class tomorrow afternoon.

Thanksgiving

Happy Thanksgiving everyone! Hope everyone enjoyed their holiday, and some much needed time off. I spent the day with my grandparents up in Indianpolis, IN. We had dinner at their neighbors house. And can you believe it? Their neighbors forgot to make mashed potatos! How do you have thanksgiving without potatos? I mean really. However, Grandma came through in the end, and brought some over. Thanksgiving was also fun because I am still celebrating my birthday with my family. I turned 21 last Thursday, and it was awesome. My roommate surprised me by having my boyfriend come down just for my special day. He told me he couldn't come. She also threw me a party that night. I got to see my other roommate dance at her Dance theater recital, which was amazing. I hope everyone had a good weekend, and just think winter break is not that far away!

Prayers

Hello Everyone.
I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving break.

For those of you that pray-
This week Mrs. White will be returning to her home for the first time since Virgil's passing. This is going to be a hard transition for her and she needs all the support she can get. Please say a prayer for her; she would do it for each of us.

Thanks.

Daily Dozen

At the end of each of the past few semesters I have posted the following.  A student from last year emailed me this week and said she'd pulled these out as reminders and encouragement.  It reminded me I've not shared these thoughts with you.  Honestly, I need to walk with these each day, too. 

So, as we near the end of the semester with many assignments, projects and tests coming due. . . I encourage you to consider these tips for each day. See if there aren't at least a few you can do each day.

• Take one day at a time.
• Pray
• Eat right.
• Pace yourself. Spread out big changes and difficult projects over time; don't lump the hard things all together.
• Talk less; listen more.
• Separate worries from concerns . If a situation is a concern, find out what God would have you do and let go of the anxiety . If you can't do anything about a situation, forget it.
• Find time to be alone, jot down thoughts and inspirations.
• Spend time with someone you love.
• Laugh, find at least a few minutes to relax and have fun.
• Develop a forgiving attitude (most people are doing the best they can).
• Go to bed on time and get up on time so you can start the day unrushed.
• Every night before bed, think of one thing you're grateful for that you've never been grateful for before.

Thanksgiving Break

I hope everyone had a wonderful break with friends and family. I had a great break, although it was very busy! Ben and I try to see both our families on Thanksgiving and it makes for a long day--then we have to get up at 4 AM to make it to Wal-Mart to get all the great deals!
I made it to Wal-Mart to get the one "big thing" we are getting our daughter and that was enough for me! I don't know how people do that all day long!
We ended up going by my families business and working there all afternoon. Malorie has decided that she is going to work there and we literally spent the entire weekend at the store. She worked her little tail off and loved it! She was not happy that we had to leave each day either.
Some exciting news for me though--I found a new car!!!! I loved my old car and only had it for 6months and was looking for something similar and luckily I found the exact same car--color and all! I am so excited!! Just gotta watch out for those telephone polls from now on. LOL!
Have a great week all!!!! The end is near!

up coming week

I was just sitting here thinking about all the things I have to do this week and needless to say I am very overwhelmed. On top of all the school stuff I have going on this Tuesday is my nephew Haydens 4th birthday and my sisters birthday is Saturday. This week is going to be crazy but I hope every one had a great holiday and I cant wait to see everyone in class on Monday.

Thanksgiving "Break"

I am very thankful for this break we get from school so I can spend time with my family! I am also thankful the assignments in this class were pushed back. However, my other teachers must not take into consideration that people actually want family time over the holidays! Some of my assignments were not even assigned until last week and they are due the first day I go back to classes. It irritates me because I have to worry about 3 papers to write PLUS other things when I finally get to spend time with family I rarely see. I am so glad that Mrs. White understands and cares for her students! :) Thank you so much, Mrs. White! You are one of the best teachers I have ever had at EKU! Hope everyone had a good Thanksgiving! :)

Reading Review

Does anybody know if we are allowed to put our opinion into the reading review along with our summary? Like how we see ourselves as future educators type thing?

I am blessed and I want to move to China

I brought home to international students with me for Thanksgiving. They are from China! It has been so amazing. It is like a total culture shock for them! They have never had turkey, muffins, pancakes, stuffing, pie, and much more. They don't celebrate Christmas in China, so they hadn't put up a Christmas tree until last night. They are teaching me to speak and write Chinese. Tonight they taught me Hello, my name is Whitney, I am tired, and I am happy. It is so hard because one word could mean four different things if you say it in a different pitch. Writing has been almost impossible for me, but I am working on it! I don't know how they speak english and chinese so well! They make me want to move to China, but a visit will do for now! I hope everyone is having a wonderful break:) See you Monday.

Cute little survey to do with your kids

My aunt had a question and answer survey given to her by a friend that she used on my 4 year old cousin. I thought some of his responses were funny, so I'll pass it on to everyone.

Ask your child(ren) to answer the questions.
Tag other moms with older kids who might have fun with this.

1. What is something mom always says to you?
"No pushing"

2. What makes mom happy?
"No pushing"

3. What makes mom sad?
"Grabbing"

4. When does your mom laugh?
"When I make stuff and people help"

5. What was your mom like as a child?
"You were in a cradle when you were baby"

6. How old is your mom?
"3"

7. How tall is your mom?
"Big, big, big"

8. What is her favorite thing to do?
"Be quite and not move"

9. What does your mom do when you're not around?
"You play with Daddy"

11. What is your mom really good at?
"Really good at jumping"

12. What is your mom not very good at?
"You don't got he right way on the street"

13. What does your mom do for her job?
"Fixing pancakes"

14. What is your mom's favorite food?
"Sausage"

15. What makes you proud of your mom?
"Jumping high"

16. If your mom were a cartoon character, who would she be?
"A drum man"

17. What do you and your mom do together?
"Play together"

18. How are you and your mom the same?
"We babysit each other"

19. How are you and your mom different?
"We have different shirts and pants on"

20. How do you know your mom loves you?
"All the way up to the moon"

21. What does your mom like most about your dad?
"Playing with Daddy"

22. Where is your mom's favorite place to go?
"To the park"

Thanksgiving! =)

I hope everybody has an amazing and restful break! Be safe and remember to be grateful for every person in your life. Thanksgiving gives us a reason to tell the people we love the most how much we do...so take some time out of your day to tell the people you love how much you do! See you all next week!

Grandfather's Surgery Scheduled

My grandfather's surgery has been scheduled for Dec. 1. We have to be at the hospital at 5:15 in the morning to check him in (won't that be fun?). As soon as I get somewhere that I can use a computer I will let everyone know what's going on. Thank you for your continued thoughts and prayers.

Demonstrating Your Understanding

Many of you have asked about doing additional work to demonstrate you do understand the content we are studying and how it connects/relates to the real world.  You shared a variety of ideas of HOW this could be accomplished via your reflections.

The following are YOUR ideas.  You may choose ONE of the following to complete.

1. An additional observation (could be done at Model).  Teacher questions would NOT be required.  A similar rubric would be developed but not the exact one.  The focus would be on identifying how specific elements of language are addressed in the instructional setting and connect this to specific material in SED260.
2. Participation in a threaded discussion or blog discussion (in addition to monthly blog) relative to the topics of the questions on Test 3.  At least 6 students would need to choose this option in order for there to be effective discussion/interaction among the students regarding the topics.
3. Oral Q&A/discussion of the same topics presented in the threaded discussion/blog discussion.  This would take the format of a "panel discussion."  Thus it would require a group with a minimum of 3 students who would want to do this.  It would have to occur outside of class time - as would all of these learning opportunities. 
4. Write a "response" to a "real-life scenario" which involved an issue requiring you to demonstrate your understanding of the role of language in learning of a child with special needs.

Notes:

• All choices will provide you the opportunity to earn an additional 20 points to be added to any assignment/assessment you wish.
• If you wish to complete one of the options YOU MUST RESPOND to this post or email me your choice of assignment by Monday, November 30th at midnight. 
• ALL extra work must be completed by Friday, December 11th.

Study Guide

Several of you indicated that a STUDY GUIDE would be helpful.  I am open to this idea.  However, I need YOUR assistance. 

1. How would a study guide be used differently than making the content of an online test available for an entire week as opposed to requiring students to take an online timed test or a paper and pencil test?
2. How much prior to the test would it be beneficial to have a Study Guide (as many of you do not even open the test and review the content prior to a day or two before it is due)?
3. What type of information would you expect to be on the Study Guide?  Topics, sample questions, highlighted sections of the text???
4. In other words - if you believe a Study Guide is different than having access to test content for an entire week - 1) how is the content different 2) when would it be most beneficial/used by students

Your feedback here will determine IF and WHAT TYPE of Study Guide would be created for the Final Exam.

Test 3 - Statistics

I have completed grading Test 3.  The following statistics represents the tests which were submitted via Blackboard that I have analyzed.

Question ID --- Question Topic --- Number of Students Demonstrated Question/Content Mastery


Question ID 11 Read & Write Gold 31

Question ID 3 Assistive Technology Tool 29

Question ID 8 Accommodations for LD Students 29

Question ID 5 Characteristics of Autism 28

Question ID 9 EBD Language Assessment Need 27

Question ID 6 Intellectual Delay - Elizabeth 26

Question ID 10 EBD Instructional/Language Goal 26

Question ID 1 Pronoun Reversal 18

Question ID 4 Vocab Strategy for LD Students 16

Question ID 2 Communicative Intent 15

Question ID 7 Speech Acts 13

This clearly allows me to see the material that the majority of students did not comprehend at an in depth level.  I will ensure that I include these topics in our future classes.

Holiday

Everyone be safe while traveling.
Happy Thanksgiving!

See you next week. :)

Thanksgiving break

As the holiday approaches, so does a very serious surgery for my grandfather. I can not wait to spend some time with him on thanksgiving before he leaves for surgery on Saturday. Prayers are appreciated, he is having to travel to Virginia and will be there for 8 days. My dad is taking my grandparents because they are not comfortable driving that far, but it is still a very scary situation. Surgeries are never fun, I just cannot wait for my grandfather to feel 100 percent and be back to his old self.

Thanksgiving Break

I just wanted to wish everyone a SAFE and Happy Thanksgiving. Everyone needs to go home and kick their feet up and eat lots of Great food. Have a great weekend and cya in class on Monday.

Margee

Ms. White

Thank you so much for changing the dates for us on the language project and reading reveiw. You are such a helpful teacher. Will miss not having you next semester! :(

Language project

Do we need to cover MLU if doing the Pragmatics section of the project? After we transcribe our language projects how long do you want part 2 to be?

Meredith

Pragmatics rubric

When I clicked on the rubric for Pragmatics in our language project folder there was no rubric.

class today

I will not be in class today because I woke up sick this morning. Please keep me updated and for the girls that are in CDS 275 I wont be in their either so please let me know what we go over.

Thanksgiving

In 2006 my husband was deployed during Thanksgiving. I stayed at Camp Lejeune,NC to go to school. I was too scared to drive over 700 miles home, so I decided to stay there for Thanksgiving. I had a friend from Florida that stayed also. We both were really depressed about our husbands being away and not being with our families. So we decided to "get over it" by working at the U.S.O.(United Service Organizations) on Thanksgiving. I will never forget that feeling. There was so many young men and women in line to get food. I thought I was so alone, but really there were people all around me feeling the same way I did. I will always remember this on Thanksgiving. So as you gather with your family this Thanksgiving remember our service men and women and their families.

reality check

last friday i got a HUGE reality check. my dad got really sick, and was rushed to the hospital, once we found out his diagnosis of meningitis it was deja vu for my family all over again. as everyone knows meningitis is very serious and can be fatal. i had this twice when i was little and was able to pull through. if it is not treated fast enough it can kill you. the doctors told him that if he had not received help within two hours of when he did he prolly would not have made it. this opened my eyes so much. my dad is only 40 years old. being away at school made this so much harder and with me having had meningitis before they would not allow me to see him until 2 days later. i wasnt told he was in the hospital for a few hours since i was here at school and they did not want me rushing home. it just makes me think, i couldve easily gotten the call he was gone instead that hes in the hospital. this made me realize to appreciate what you have, dont take it for granted. keep the ones you love close. i see the blogs on here of people losing loved ones, and going through hard family situations, thankfully my situation ended on a happier note. but for those whose did not or are still dealing with it, i will continue to think about you. especially with the holidays coming near i will cherish my time with them even more and not take it for granted.

Every beginning...

'Every beginning comes from some other beginning's end.' ~Seneca.

Not only do I say this as my teen years ended yesterday and I have started a new decade of life but also because a lot has been changing in my life the past few weeks. I have finally had the strength to let go of my hopes and cling to what is reality. I may not like it but I cannot change it, therefore, I must change my attitude about it. I accept it now and can move on. A new chapter is many ways. Wrapped in a blanket of joy since I learned what is important in life. Do not try to make something where there isn't, rather, work with what you have, and make the most of it. That is where I find my true joy.

What a stressful weekend

This weekend has been very stressful. Avery dear friend of mine lost her mother last night to lung cancer. From Thursday afternoon to last night it was very hard to see her go through what she went through. My friend just lost her grandmother 4 weeks ago and now she has lost her mom also. Sometimes I think we never really realize how fragile life can be. Please remember her in your prayers.

language project

thank you very much mrs. white for extending the date for the language project. i had only 1 option for my project and he's in louisville, so his mother is taping for me, i was so worried she would not give me the videos on time. she has 3 other children and works, this is a huge relief to me.

thank =)

Language Sample

Hello Mrs. White.
When I collected my language sample I had three children working on a project together; luckily for me, all three were very vocal. :)
When I'm typing up my 100 utterances is it okay if I only use the three children communicating with one another or do I have to include my comments to the children as well. I would like to bring in the audio and let you listen to a few parts of the tape- one of the little girls on the tape is a trip. LOL

Observation

So i am finally done with my 15 hours of observation for EDF 203. At first I was not looking forward to going every Tuesday. I had other things that I needed to get done and 15 hours of outside time seemed like a lot. However, this Tuesday was my last day and I was kinda sad to leave. I helped with the after school program and the students were putting on a puppet show. I helped them make their puppets and it was fun to see the whole thing come together. Their show for the whole school was today, I really wanted to go but had class. I felt like being there helped me relate things that we were learning in class. I am going to have to do another 15 hours of observation next semester. I am hoping I can go back there and work with the same kids.

Grandfather's Surgery

My grandfather met with the surgeon today and his surgery will be sometime after Thanksgiving. I was hoping for next week so I wouldn't have to miss any classes but at the same time I'm glad that our family gets to spend Thanksgiving together without having to worry about the surgery. As soon as we know more I will let you guys know.

Heartfelt Thanks

To be greeted tonight with a basket full of your incredible thoughtfulness touched me in a way I simply can't express.  When I looked into the basket and saw Virgil smiling up at me from the beautiful frame along with the gorgeous angel the emptiness and loneliness that I carry with me was replaced once again with a peace and comfort that can only come from a loving Heavenly Father.  Your Starbucks card will purchase coffee to warm me on upcoming cold days.  The plant sits on the table beside his recliner as he loved plants and often would have one sitting there that he would nurture.  I nibbled on way too many of the delicious chocolate chip cookies which were one of his favorite snacks as well as I drove home to Indiana tonight.  Your personal expressions written inside the card are deeply appreciated.  Know I treasure each of you and covet your prayers during the upcoming difficult days of transitioning into a totally new life.  Thank you for your support and thoughtfulness.  I pray God's special gifts and blessings for EACH of you.

Mrs. White

Reading Response & Language Analysis

Hello Everyone!
I was thinking about what Mrs. White suggested today about pushing the Language Analysis Project back and having the Reading Response due sooner. How many of you would like to have a little bit more time on the Language Analysis Project? I for one, would love to see the date pushed back to Dec. 7th!?

What do the rest of you think?

Loving these basketball games

I know that I just posted, but I forgot to ask if anyone liked the scores of the games over the past couple days? Im refuring to the UK vs UofL scores... All Im saying is that the #5 team in the nation, aka UK, won by 2 on a last second shot, and the the #22 team, aka UofL won by 30... I guess what Im trying to say is.......GO CARDS!!! HAHAHA

Good News

I finally got cleared from the doctor to go without my finger brace, which means that the tendons have finally healed. Although I cant really bend it what so ever, although he said in time I will be able to again. Im just thankful to have that stupid thing off finally...

Prayers Needed Again

I know you guys have to be getting tired of me telling you that there's something else wrong with a member of my family but it's happened again. My grandfather went in for a heart cath on Monday and as soon as they started to put the catheter in they saw that the blockage was over 70% and they stopped immediately. They have now told him that he has to have at least a double bypass. The doctor was trying to get it scheduled for this week but the only doctor who could do it that soon doesn't except my grandfather's insurance and we can't afford to pay him outright.

So, now we have found another doctor in Lexington at Central Baptist who will be doing the surgery. My grandfather goes to see him Thursday and hopefully he'll be able to tell us when my grandfather's surgery will be. I'm actually really hoping for next week even though it is Thanksgiving because then I won't have to worry about missing class.

Observations

Good afternoon,

I am attempting to finish grading the observation reports.  I know that several times in class we talked about the importance of drawing connections between what was observed in the classroom and what you are learning in SED260.  This is the purpose for the observation.  Are you able to identify the concepts, discussions, material from the text and class discussions within a real world classroom setting. 

If you have questions about your observation grade feel free to email me to discuss it. 

I am interested in your feedback on the rubric.  How did you use it to develop your report?  How could the rubric or other communication be improved to assist you in demonstrating your understanding of SED260 material as it was implemented within the classrooms you visited?

Mrs. White

Bad Novemeber

I don't know about the rest of you- but November has been a terrible month. Last week my husband and I had to replace an appliance which cost $300 and yesterday my car broke down and we found out today that the motor has to be replaced which is going to cost us $1400.00. It seems like the harder I try to live for Christ the harder life seems to get.

Hannah hears

Friday my daughter received her first hearing aid and it was the cutest, funniest, most memorable thing I have ever experienced. Keep in mind that she is profoundly deaf in one ear and moderate-severe in the other therefore has heard very few sound in her ten years of life. She is sitting in her chair at the Doc.s office and they put the hearing aid on her and when the thing finally turns on, her eyes got as big as nickels and she just looked at me. Then she makes a noise and you could just see the amazement in her face. Of course she then proceeds to go throughout the doctor’s office banging and clanging everything, while she is jumping, stomping, and clapping.

However, because she couldn’t hear before she believes no one else could either so I have had to listen to all kinds of things so far (leaves, birds, the fact that she makes noise when she goes to the bathroom, and so on...). I never realized how much I take for granted and how many noises I tune out until now. But watching her experience the hearing world for the first time has brought tears of joy to my eyes multiple times.

Question 2

I have already posted my test, but I was just wondering if #2 confussed anyone else? what was it asking for?

Hi :)

I hope that everyone had a fabulous weekend and has done good on their tests for class. See you all tomorrow!

Strength

Many of us have been tested throughout the past few days. Mrs. White more than most, a very good friend of mine ended up in the hospital on Thursday and was their for a while. She is out now and on the mend, for that I am very thankful. The world is a place of greeting and goodbyes. Its moments like this when I am alone in my dorm room looking out my window and can see all the lights on campus that I feel alive. These are just my thoughts for today. I wonder how others are feeling when they look outside at night, at the stars or at lights from their neighbors.

Language Project

I haven't been able to start on my language project because I do not own a voice recorder or video camera. I was wondering if I could borrow someones and I promise I will return it back to you as soon as I am done with it. If anyone has one and does not mind me using it I would greatly appreciate it. My email is Margee_crawford18@eku.edu contact me if you would like.

Margee

Test question 6

Can anyone help me with this question? Any advice on where I can find info to help me out with it or anything? Thanks! :)

Mrs. White & Test

I talked to Mrs. White today and she wanted everyone to just do their best on the test and she will see us Wednesday. We will have class Monday with Debbie Haydon. (She will not be blogging so if you have any questions about the test post them for others to answer.)

Thanks,
Ashley J.

Stories

I babysit an 8 year old and a 6 year old... I passed one of my professors while with them and she said "I didn't know you had kids, Danele, they are precious!" I am 19 years old!! As if it wouldn't have been impossible enough for me to have a kid at 11, I sure didn't have another at 13!

One of my teachers today told me she was going to have to put me in the corner for "being silly!" I was heavily caffeinated and she was boring me. Of course I couldn't sit still and focus, what do you want?

In the nursery we have a precious little boy with down sydrome. He is almost two years old but functions at about a 8 month level. I didn't know it before but they are teaching him sign language and it is the cutest thing. He signed that he wanted food so i held him while he fed himself cheerios, signed when he wanted his drink, and when he was done he signed thank you. I was honestly in awe.

That's all.

Missed class

I was unable to attend class today Wed 11-11-09 I have been sick and not feeling very well. If anyone could just sum up what we talked about and I missed anything that might be important. thanks it means a lot.

Margee

EXAM 3 QUESTION 1

I'm having a hard time answering this question. I'm not quite sure what it's wanting me to do.

help?

BTC

Can anyone give me the information to contact the people at BTC?

EXAM 3 Question

Does anyone remember discussing the Speech Acts- that must have been the day I was out when my daughter was ill- could someone give me some feedback.
I would appreciate it very much. :)

Personal Update

My husband, Virgil, received his ultimate healing this morning when the Lord called him home at 2:30 a.m.  I was with him at the time.  I appreciate your continued prayers and support during this difficult time.

Your test is now available on Blackboard.

Debbie Haydon will teach the class on Wednesday. 

Mrs. White

Test #3

Is anyone having trouble finding the test?

Bluegrass Tech. Center

After visiting the Bluegrass Tech. Center, I was amazed with the eyegaze. It blew my mind that the machine could read my eyes. I believe this center helps so many people of all ages. It is amazing what is invented to help people who have disabilities.

Monday Class Cancelled

Class is cancelled for this afternoon. Debbie Haydon will be meeting the class on Wednesday and teaching.


Because there is no class today be prepared to discuss the following objectives on Wednesday. They are found in the Weekly Resources. You can find material to address these in the links there as well as in our text.


. . . discuss how the degree of hearing loss or the level of deafness impacts language development.

. . . list and discuss the factors which impact speech and language development

. . . identify the areas which must be considered as appropriate educational placements are determined for students.

. . . list strategies for addressing the academic needs of deaf and hard of hearing students in the classroom.

. . . list strategies for addressing the academic needs of blind or visually impaired students in the classroom.



Test 3 will open and be available for the week as scheduled. It is due next Monday.

BTC

"Chip"

Technology Center

The technology center was definitely a great experience. There were a lot of useful tools that would help students out immensely. My favorite tool was the My Tobii. This was the tool that gave students the ability to speak if they couldn't. I thought it was cool how all you had to do is look at the picture and it spoke for you! In the future if my students needs to partake in any of these devices, I will definitely be using one of these!

Observation Report & Test 3

I have begun to grade Observation Reports.  The rubric adds up to 24 points but I am making it a 25 point assignment.  So, everyone who turns in an assignment gets at least 1 point.

Test 3 will open after class on Monday and be available for the week.  It is then due by 3:30 on Monday, November 16th, per the amended schedule which is available on Blackboard (and was passed out in class).

Feel free to comment here with any questions you may have so your peers or I may assist with answering those.

Mrs. White

Personal Update

We received the results of the CT scan on Thursday which explain my husband, Virgil's, rapid decline.  The cancer has spread extensively.  He has been a valiant warrior in this battle against cancer.  It appears the battle is now in the last stage.  We may have days to weeks left. 

When I am unable to meet the class either Karen Dilka or Debbie Hayden will teach.  If none of us can we will notify you in advance.  Be certain to check the blog or email frequently.

I deeply appreciate your prayers and support during this extremely difficult time.

Mrs. White

Old Car/ New Car

So many of you know that on Monday my car broke. It's that simple it will not move I can turn it on and roll down the windows and...sit in a parking space. So my family finally after this car has broken down I don't know how many times has finally decided that i get mom's old car. Well at least it is new to me. On the plus side more room.

Bad mood

Okay I am hall council president at my dorm. I get that everyone has to miss meeting and has a life outside of school. But, what i don't get is how some of the people in my council seem to think that I have no life outside of Hall council, and how others seem to think that I spend my time plotting ways for revenge. So I get an email from one of my members saying that no one told her she was a part of Hall Council. If she checked her email more often she would - i don't know- see the email I sent that welcomed everyone to hall council and that clearly in bold capitalization say the day and the time of meetings. It is not my job to go chasing after college students to make sure that they know what time the meeting is - just so twenty minutes latter they can send me an excuse for why they can't make it. I get that people have a life, they have school work, my issue is that why sign up for something if you are not going to be able to do it. Now that I think about it she sent me an email three weeks ago asking what her position is. oh well at least I got my frustrations out somewhat maybe now I can go to sleep.

BTC

I had a great time on the field trip today. It really did touch me learning about all of the technology that they have out there. Although it is quite pricey. But I am pretty much obsessed with the $18,000 machine now. That was so cool.

BTC

This trip was nothing what I expected it to be! It was by far amazing! The stories one of the lady told us really touched me and makes me want to go into the field I am going into even more. I guess you can say it was inspiring to me! I would even consider working there some day if it was possible! The most advanced and amazing piece of equipment there (in my opinion) was the eye gaze machine. I could not believe how sensitive it was to pick up your eye movement. If I was not able to say what I wanted or able to move around, I would definitely buy one of these machines even though the lady said it costed like $18,000.00. It would just be worth the money! And you're just going to spend that money somewhere else anyways! If I ever have a child who needed any of the equipment I saw today (expensive or not) I would definitely take my child there and check out the technology. I would definitely buy something that would help enhance the life of my child. I could tell that these people were extremely passionate about what they do. It really touches my heart and inspires me so much to just meet people with strong desires like the people I met at the BTC. Another piece of technology that caught my interest was the Intellikeys. It just amazes me how you can remove the "slides" on the keyboard and it reads the different barcodes in order to read which piece is in the slot. It is also very neat that you can actually have sheets customized! I just cannot go into enough detail to even begin to describe all these cool instruments I saw today at tht BTC! But I can say the two most interesting ones to me were the intellikeys and the eye gaze! :) I am so glad I got to go on this trip. Oh, and thanks for the ride, Emily! :)

Is our observation due at 3:30 or midnight? Just wondering. :)

Tech. Center

Mrs. White,
Would you mind listing the names of the ladies from the Technology Center on the blog? I failed to write their names down when they introduced themselves.
Thanks a bunch. :)

Field Trip

I just got back from our field trip and it was great! Very interesting and informative! The coolest thing I saw was the eyegaze. It was super cool. I can just imagine if I couldn't communicate because of a disability that it would be so frustrating. This program would be such a help and blessing to someone. It would allow someone the ability to say what they wanted and needed.

This semester

I feel like everything is starting to "snowball" on me in my classes. It's like everything major that is due for my classes are scheduled to be due in November. Needless to say, I cannot wait until the end of November. Not only is there a lot of upcoming work and tests, but also worrying with making my schedule for NEXT semester. I am so tired and am ready for a nice longggg break. But I feel like this has been one of the best semesters I've had. It could be where I am starting to get used to college at a University. But I really believe it is because I have become closer in my walk with God! He has helped relieve so much stress in my life. If I had not become closer to Him like I have, then I probably would have had another panic attack. I love Jesus so much! :) And I know I am majoring in the career right for me!

Monday at Bluegrass Tech. Center

This is for Jo, Jeannie and Mrs. White. I'm unsure what is happening yet, but my grandfather has past away this today. So I'm unsure about the arrangements for tomorrow, about going to the Bluegrass Center. Jeannie or Jo, if you want email me your number and I'll call you about what is going on tomorrow. My email is ashley_douglas6@eku.edu. Sorry guys, please pray for my family and I.

Halloween experience

I had a pupkin curving experience yesterday, the curving activitywas organized by CRU members for the international students. It was the first time I curved a pumkin but I was the fastest and everyone liked my design. It was interesting because we donot celebrate Halloween in my country.

Halloween Party

Last weekend was my parent's Halloween party. They try to have one every year, and they invite their friends over for a costume party. Well the kids were old enough this year to get an invite. My parent's cooked lots of Halloween themed treats like mummy dogs, and deviled eggs that looked like eyes. And of course candy. It was great to see my parent's friends because they all have known me since I was in diapers. We all had a lot of fun, and ended up watching Transformers 2 at the end of the night. It didn't really go with the theme, but we didn't care. It was a new movie. Hope everyone had a great Halloween!

The weekend

My sister and her two friends came up this weekend from WKU. I had so much fun with them. I don't get to see my sister often so it was really good to see her. We ended up going to see the Greek's Lipsync competition on Friday. Everyone had a great time. I think we were the only row in the whole theater that was dancing during the breaks between routines! They left this afternoon, and I made my way back home to help my boyfriend move into his new house. It was cold but we worked up a sweat. Halloween was a lot of fun this year since I got to see my sister, my boyfriend, and my parent's all in the same weekend!

Happy Halloween all! :) This is one of my favorite holidays because you get to dress up and it's right after my birthday! But, you all should definitely think about coming to RT's for the annual Halloween Party there. If you are in Richmond for the weekend. I am a server there and we are all dressing up as well. Plus, we are giving away $100 each for best male and female costume. Anyone could use that extra cash in their pocket. :) But again Happy Halloween, hope to see you all there!

Hometown Observation

I finally did my hometown observation this morning! I tried over Fall Break, but none of the principals ever called me back (how rude!). It is definitely not as easy to observe in your hometown (at least mine anyways) than Richmond because in Richmond you can pretty much just walk into a school and observe. Over Fall Break I called 3 of the nearby elementary schools telling them that that I would like to do one hour of observation in a Special Education classroom and they were all so confused. They didn't know what to do. They all asked me to leave a message with their principals, which I did, but none of them called me back! I was not very happy. Anyways, I decided to take Mrs. Whites advice on taking advantage of our observation hour to maybe observe in a grade that we never really saw ourselves teaching in so we can see if we definitely want to rule it out or not. So... I decided to observe in my high school which is a far jump from the usual 2nd-4th grades that I normally observe in! I was a nervous wreck this morning getting ready ha ha! In an elementary observation I always dress nice, but I never put too much thought into what I wear because it's an elementary school! High school kids are brutal though so I wanted to look nice. I was also super nervous simply because it was high school... MY high school! Long story short, the observation was great. I got to see a few of my old teachers and they were excited that I am going into Special Education. The class I observed was an MH class (mental handicaps). This was also something I had never before observed and I really, really enjoyed it! I realized once again how important is it for me to learn sign language because a bunch of the kids in the class used sign language as their primary means of communication.

Oh and by far the best part of the observation was this:
I stood in the doorway for "hallway duty" while the bell changed and my sister, who is a freshman, walked past with all of her friends. She knew I was coming so I thought she would be excited. Of course, being me, I smiled really big, waved, and said "Heeeeey Cassie!" Apparently it is not cool for an older sister to come to your high school and say hi to you in front of all of your friends because Cassie was embarrassed (which she never gets). I'm not her mom! I am her COOL big sister. Ha ha, at least I like to think so. Anyways, the look on her face was priceless. I had a great time!

Autism and Deafness

When a child has both of these disabilities is another big challenge. I once met a deaf child whom I guess had autism too although it was not professionally diagnosed because autism is one of the disabilities that do not get much attention in my country. This girl when asked questions she signs exactly what is being asked over and over again her teachers concluded that its because she does not understand sign language. Without the techniques like the ones that Mrs White teaches us it would not be easy to help children like this. I hope to share the information with my colleagues when I get back home so as the children get the necessary assistance.

mentoring!

I am mentoring in a special education class for EDF203 and it has been so awesome. I have been able to work with kids that have the disablities we have been learning about in class. There is one student that speaks a different language that is labeled as having a learning disability, but the teacher I am working with told me that she believes it is only a language difference rather than disability. I just thought that was interesting because we have been learning about that!

CDS 275

This is for Ashley D., Ashley S., Natalie, and Sandy.

I received the excuse letter from from Mrs. White and emailed it to Mr. Fischer with all our names on it. See you girls Monday. :)


Thanks Mrs. White. :)

Directions to Bluegrass Technology Center

Here are the directions to the Bluegrass Technology Center.  I look forward to seeing each of you there next week either on Monday or Wednesday.  We will meet only ONE time next week.  Class will begin at 4:00 and conclude at 5:30.  I trust you will find the hands-on experience as beneficial as the classes who have visited prior to you.  I'm sure you'll enjoy having an the other day next week to use as you wish.

this is just not my week

last friday i lost my great grandma. better know as KK i used to live with her and we were VERY close. i was her oldest great grandchild, so i knew her better than my cousins can remember. there are only 2 others they are now 11 and 6 so they really dont remember her like i do. my nana is her daughter and my best friend. my nana is pretty much my world and to see her this torn up is making things so much worse. we did not have a funeral but this friday they are having a memorial service for her, its gonna be pretty hard. im not looking forward to it...im taking my nana to it and picking her up, which also is not gonna be good. this week has been hell. being an hour and a half away from my family is the last thing i want to be doing. hopefully this weekend goes good, and sadly this sunday is my nana's birthday, usually we have a great time with birthdays but i know its going to be hard. i just want to get this week over with.

Not a Very GOOD week!

So the start of my week which was SUnday should have pointed out that I wasn't going to have a very good week! On Sunday I had a meeting with my sorority and before I left I went and started my car. Once I did that I realized that I had forgotten something in my room that I needed. So I went back into my apt and grab what I needed. When I got back to my car I realized that I had LOCKED my KEYS in my car and it was running!!! I know if anyone could have seen my face it was priceless! Well that bad part is that my phone was in my car also!! So I had no means of communication! Yeah I know!! So Finally my roommate came home and I had to call a locksmith service to come to my apt and unlock my car! It cost me 45 dollars for him to do a job in 2 seconds!! So needless to say I need to get a spare made! Then today I had to park in the teachers lot because I was running late to class! Well when I got out of my class, what can I say my car was no longer in that spot!! EKU had towed my car away!! Yup crazy huh! Well that's been my week so far and it's only been three days!! Hopefully nothing else goes wrong and Halloween is a fun filled non-stressfull time!!

Observation report

There is a question that asks How the teacher uses language, what exactly are you looking for when you ask that?

Autism-CBS News

This morning I was watching The Early Show on CBS and they had an autistic artist on named Stephen Wiltshire. He flew over New York City in a helicopter on Friday. Now his is drawing a panorama of New York's Skyline by memory. If you have time you should go onto cbsnews.com, then to The Early Show, and check out his drawing. He should be done by this Friday.

Ashley J.

SED 260 & CDS 275

Hi folks I missed both SED & CDS yesterday due to my daughter being ill. As I had posted earlier in the blog (Kali) has had a fever since Friday. I took her to the Dr. yesterday and she is now on med's and is not allowed to go back to school for a week unless she goes two consecutive days without a fever. Kali has always been a pretty sickly kid, which always causes great concern when she gets a fever- when she was 6 yrs old Kali got sick with a high fever and we (including the Dr.) just assumed that it was viral; she was prescribed an antibiotic and sent home. After 2 more trips to the Dr. and two more antibiotics prescribed in a week- Kali was finally admitted to the hospital. She had huge marble size lesions in her mouth, on her tongue, in her ears, on her eyes, and on her back. The ones on her back were the size of small pancakes that looked like burn blisters. (she still has scars on her back from those). After 11 days in the hospital the Dr. finally found out what was wrong with Kali- she was Diagnosed with Stevens-Johnson Syndrome- which is a rare serious disorder where the skin and mucous membranes react severely to a medication or infection. Basically this disease causes the top layers of skin to die and shed. It was horrific and my daughter was in such pain that even Morphine didn't help. It was by far the worst thing I have ever gone through as a mother.
The doctors finally figured out that the onset of Stevens Johnson Syndrome was by an allergic reaction to antibiotics. She is allergic to Penicillin, Keflex, Duricef, Biaxin, and all sulfur drugs. (Which her original Dr. had failed to document some of the med's he had prescribed her which sent me on a wild goose chase to the pharmacy begging for printouts of all she had taken in the past 6 months so I could take them to the hospital staff) Needless to say he is no longer her physician and her medical chart is now neon green with all kinds of neon stickers on it as a red flag to all the Dr.'s at Madison Pediatrics to know she is high risk. Fortunately, Kali can take Azythromycin but her Dr. is always hesitant about giving her any med's in fear that she will have another reaction. So for all you Mommy's in class - make sure your Dr's document everything in your child's chart- don't do like me and assume they are doing their job.
Kali is now 13 and she has had only 3 other outbreaks of SJS since then and I pray that she never has to deal with it again. For those of you that pray please say a little prayer for Kali that she doesn't get any worse.

ALSO...could someone fill me in on what I missed in class. Thanks. :)

Today

So I know a lot of people that are in this class are also in CDS 275. Today was a crazy day in both classes we, we got out early for both. I just want to say that I will be praying for Mrs. White and her family and I hope everyone else is. Also I was going over the study guide for CDS 275 and I just wanted to post one of the bonues questions. Bonus: a BAHA or bone anchored hearing aid maby also be an option. For what type of hearing loss? Answer: BAHA is used to help people with chronic ear infections, congenital external auditory canal atresia and single sided deafness who cannot benefit from conventional hearing aids.

Last weekend

So last weekend I got to go to my first Bengals game! It was so amazing. I got to go with my boyfriend, an old friend of mine, and her boyfriend. I got to meet her boyfriend for the first time, and I was the first one to meet him out of my family. It's a big deal haha. Even though the Bengals played horribley against the Texans I had a blast. I got to stay the night with my boyfriend Josh that night, but when I came home it turned out that two of my roommates were sick. I tend to get sick very easily so needless to say I was on edge all week. They both went to the doctor on Wednesday, and they were both suspected to have swine flu. Yay! We spent the rest of the week cleaning everything from the bathrooms down to the doorknobs. It was a pretty crazy week.

H1N1 (Swine Flu)

On Friday the 16th my daughter started to feel poorly, low-grade temp and no appetite, I thought she was coming down with the same virus my son had two days previously so I didn’t worry. However, by Sunday night a bad cough had developed which had me worried, so Monday morning I took her to the doctor.
She has had 30 surgeries so needless to say she has multiple underlying conditions and due to some of these surgeries I have to take measures to stop or lessen any coughing or vomiting. The doctor ran some blood test and my worst fear was confirmed, she had H1N1 (Swine Flu) and admitted to the hospital. I have heard horror story after horror story about children who have underlying conditions contracting H1N1 so to say I was scared would be an understatement. Unfortunately, I had waited too long and we were past the 24hr limit for the medication that can be given for this flu.
Although, things seemed to be getting better Tuesday night, she broke her fever and was not coughing as badly, but on Wednesday morning at 6am she had a temp. of 101.5. The nurse gave her Tylenol and when we checked it an hour later we expected the temp to be down, but it was 103.9. The doctors ran more tests and did more X-rays and found that she had pneumonia as well. This allowed them to give her antibiotics and she was able to come home on Friday. She is in school today and is almost back to her energetic, opinionated, wonderful self.
I wanted to put this on the blog so that people can understand what the symptoms of this flu is and realize that if you think you are getting sick please, please go to the doctor ASAP so that you do not pass the 24hr deadline. Thankfully my daughter pulled out of it without a scratch but there was a 28 yr old father with no underlying condition who passed away from H1N1 the night before my daughter was diagnosed.

Sick Child

Mrs. White,
My daughter has been ill all weekend with a fever; she has a Dr's appt. today at 1:00 with Madison Pediatrics. Hopefully I will be able to get her in and out and back home before class starts. If not- I will be there Wednesday. Please say a prayer for her that it's not the Swine Flu.

Glad to start a new week!

I'm super glad last week is finally over...WAY tooo busy! I love starting new "non-busy" weeks because it gives me time to catch up and actually breathe! I started my new job on Sunday at Babies R Us in Hamburg, so girls with children...if you need some baby clothes, come see me =)! Hope everybody has a great week!

Mom's Surgery

My mom's surgery is this morning at 10:15. Hopefully she'll be out of surgery and ready to go home by 3:30. I'll let you all know how she's doing when I get back to Richmond.

San Diego...

For those of you who pray... Please pray for my mothers safety this week as she is in San Diego on a business trip. She is like my best friend and I am always so fearful while she is away. I told her she should take me with her but she never lets me go! I even tried the whole 'potential job' thing this time. Apparently it cant count as a business trip for me even though it is my job over the summer. Bummer.

One Crazy week

This has to have been one of the craziest longest weeks I have had in a long time. I haven't felt good all week. Tuesday was my birthday, but I have been unable to catch up on any of my school and to top it off I have to nasty old swine flu. But at least on the bright side, God has blessed me with another year! Also, I have it better than most people do with the swine flu. I'm getting over it pretty fast. I'm feeling way better than I did. The Doctor says it's should be over by Sunday
so I'm so looking forward until tomorrow. Can't wait to be back at the swing of things very soon! Sorry about the Ranting, needed to get some steam out. Have a great rest of the weekend!

Wednesday's Class - Videos

If you missed class on Wednesday and want to view the videos we saw you can see two of them at the Stuff2View site I use to place videos for class.

http://stuff2view.blogspot.com/

The other clips were from Encyclomedia through the EKU online library resources.  Students can access it with their userid or request an account and I'd encourage you to do this.  You will find many resources to help you throughout your education courses. 

The clips were from a series on Dealing with Anger.  If you do a search on "Anger" you will find many interesting videos and clips.

Langauge Analysis Rubric

Mrs. White,
I wanted to let you know that I tried opening up the rubric for the Pragmatics Analysis a number of times today and each time I got an error message.

I didn't have any trouble with the Form or Semantics rubric.

Thanks. :)