Dear Abram

You earned a name in the "faith hall of fame" (Hebrews 11), and I'm a bit confused about how all this works practically in life.  Would you answer some questions for me?

When you went to Egypt to get food in a famine, you sorta took things into your own hands.  You told Sarai to lie and say she was your sister...wanted to save your own hide, right?  It doesn't seem like that was what God wanted, though, because Pharoah's whole household got diseased when he took Sarai as his wife.  You took things into your own hands and failed.  God blessed you with riches, but that's because He promised He would.

When you gave the best choice of land to Lot (yes, your little nephew who was not given the covenant promise that you were) did God tell you specifically to do that, or were you just acting maturely? Was it faith that told you not to be proactive in gaining that land?

When the King of Sodom offered you a bunch of money, you refused him because you made an oath to God not to take money from him so that it could only be said that the riches had come from God.  Did God tell you to take that oath, or did you just know because you were abiding in Him?

When you listened to the voice of Sarai and had a child with Hagar, you were taking things into your own hands?  How did that work out for you? Is that how God wanted to work to give you children?

So I guess what I'm wondering is, what do you think of the common Christian phrase:
"Work as if it's all up to you, pray as if it's all up to God"
?
?

Monkey Horror

Today, in an attempt to check out a possible field trip opportunity, some friends and I traveled to a "monkey park" about an hour from home. We were hoping to see some monkeys up close, but after seeing these signs, we were a bit concerned.

 But in the end the monkeys were not as horrifying as the signs seemed to indicate.  They appreciated the snacks we shared with them and came right up to take it gently from our hands. They did not appreciate, however, the others there who were determined to get the baby monkeys out of the trees by throwing bottles at them.

Teacher Conferences

That's right, throughout the world, teachers gather yearly to continue their own education.  The conferences for my school regularly take place in the first week of October because it coincides with National Holiday in China.  Here are some things I've learned from my conference experiences:

1) The more specific the session, the more useful.  I've found that general sessions can be so general, that they can rarely be useful.  Educators love to point to the fact that we all must find our own style and learn what kind of teacher we are without ever explicitly saying how we are supposed to do this.

2) Sometimes teachers like to make others think so much that they've forgotten how to think themselves.
     "Professor, but how can I....?"
     "Well, that's a great question.  What do you think? Anyone?"
This is NOT an exaggeration of a real situation.

3) There's never enough time for collaboration.  What we teachers really want to do is get together and hear awesome ideas from others who teach the same subject and grade as we do.  Turns out, there's no time for that because we're so busy learning about general topics and being asked, "So what do YOU think?"
I'm convinced that the fate of teachers (and perhaps most professions) is to spend vast quantities of time on work that is both seemingly less useful and most clearly less interesting than what we would do if given the time to better ourselves.  But maybe my view of human nature is skewed.

4) Titles can be deceiving.  Had a friend go to a session entitled "Writing Indicators" thinking he would learn about how to teach writing. He soon found out it was really about how to write indicators (which are what we base lessons off of)...a significantly more drab topic (as far as most are concerned).

Don't Read This Dating Book

Over dinner with Kim this evening, I decided that if I were to write a book, it would be titled "Don't Read This Dating Book" and would recount the many humorous (and not so humorous) contents of Dating Books.

Dating books have their place for sure.  Certainly the books I read as a teen have led me to my present mindset (and ability to laugh at dating books).  But to some extent, I think they all may lack one aspect: truth and humor...also known as sarcasm.  To make up for this loss, the following:
(Warning: These are taken from my life experience, and therefore may be insulting to some...please take with a grain of salt...I'm not making fun of you...specifically)

Possible titles for my book with condensed summaries:


1) Longings of the heart: Read this book if you wish you were dating, but you're not, so you're reading a book about how to date or not date to fulfill your romantic longings by thinking of what you should or should not do once you do have a date.

2) I Kissed Courting Goodbye: Courting is given a new name and thoroughly described.

3) Online Dating: Proactive steps for the desperate.

4) Why Aren't You Married Yet: How not to be afraid of the opposite gender.

5) You'll Get Married When: Finally, a detailed and scientific explanation of why you really will find your significant other once you are finally fully satisfied with your present condition.

6) Things Singles Don't Know: An encyclopedic record of all the things singles don't know because they are not married with kids, listed here in alphabetical order with full and simple explanations of each.  You too can learn about "real life."

7) The Kid Table: Why you always get stuck at the kid table and what to do about it.

8) Making the Most: How to make the most of being single including chapters on "babysitting," "service," and developing skills and talents to attract the opposite gender (recipes included for girls and guitar tips for guys).

9) Share the Bed: Why sleeping with stuffed animals prepares you for your mate.

10) I'm Dating Jesus: Come on people, what does that even mean?

Falling for Fall

It's the end of summer...hopefully.  And I really want fall.  Here's why:

Fall is:

jeans and a hoodie

pumpkin bread fresh from the oven

spiced drinks

fresh wind

dried leaves

Thanksgiving

walks without sweat

cozy with a book

open arms and deep breaths

sweatpants without the sweat

picnics

open windows

family soon

Growing Zhuankou

This weekend I didn't have any masters work to complete, so decided to go explore. There is a new fancy mall a 5-minute bike ride from our apartment, so Kim and I met up with some friends for dinner and exploring the new place.  We rode our bikes.  The biggest parking area at this mall is for bikes and electric bikes.

Just so you can see how close it is to our apartment, below is a photo from our balcony.  Notice, slightly to the left, is a rounded white structure with spikes. This is a stadium.

The same stadium is seen below, in a picture taken at the entrance to the mall.

At the mall, we encountered some fun Chinglish in the Korean menu.

"Explodes the squid circle"

"The porphyra capensi boards"

And in one of the clothing stores.

We had a great time exploring and the mall really is nice.  It is completely air conditioned, open, and clean. On the way home, we bought this little guy from a street vendor.  In honor of the curious menu that night, we named him "Roasts the Scallion".

Roasts the Scallion

A Taste of Home

I know, Christmas is a long way off, but I'm already excited to be in the U.S. this year.  I've already begun to envision all the yummy things and delightful moments I will be able to experience.  Lately I've been thinking about tea quite a bit.  Kim threw me a wonderful tea and cupcake birthday party because I've been going on and on about it for so long.  There's something wonderful about sipping tea with friends and family, and somehow sipping it out of cute little china cups makes it even more pleasant.

What is is about tea time that is worth looking forward to?  Here's what I look forward to about it in Columbia:
Each morning at home, almost no matter what time I wake up, a pot of tea awaits me. Recently my parents have begun making tea in a coffee pot (obviously one that has been purged of all coffee smell and taste).  There's always a pot on along with a can of the stuff that makes it twice as enjoyable as when I make it myself: evaporated milk.  Add some sugar and the best part is still to come.

After the tea is prepared, I go and sit down on our kitchen table bench and cross my legs. There's inevitably somebody there, whether it's my parents having their morning talk or whoever else is staying at the house at the time.  This Christmas I'll miss having Sam around to ask me to play guitar with him and Lucas and Jamie looking bleary eyed from a not so rest-filled night.  If Jamie was there, I could admire her ever artful breakfast. But no matter who is there, there's always somebody there, and we drink tea together... on a bench in the kitchen, tea with evaporated milk and sugar, made in a coffee pot, begun before anyone gets up in the morning.

And that's just one thing I look forward to about going home at Christmas.  I can't wait.

Summer Travels

I finally have internet here at home, so I'm inspired to write about my travels this summer.
Kim and I originally set out to have a cheap but enjoyable vacation traveling in China and exploring the beauty it has.

The Hump hostel in Kunming (I know, strange name)

We first set out for Kunming.  This is a major city in Yunnan province and Kim and I were immediately impressed.  The sky was blue and it somehow seemed less dirty and hustle/bustle than Wuhan. We stayed in a hostel with an awesome patio and view.

But Kunming was just a stopover point.  From there we took an 8 hour train to LiJiang and met an  Indian boxer who was happy to speak English with us.

Our train buddy

We spent 3 days in LiJiang.  Our activities included exploring, shopping, and hiking the Tiger Leaping Gorge.

Garden Inn Hostel in LiJiang

Tiger Leaping Gorge

Women in LiJiang

From LiJiang we took the 8 hour train back to Kunming and spent a night in the same hostel.  Then we had a flight to Guilin.  We only took the flight because they ran out of bed train tickets, and we aren't crazy enough to get a seat for 16 hours.  We took a 2 hour bus from Guilin to Yangshuo.

In Yangshuo, we enjoyed the "karst peaks" and unique mountains by kayaking, bike riding, and wandering around the town.

Kayaking in Yangshuo

Trippers Carpe Diem Hostel just outside Yangshuo

After Yangshuo we took the bus back into Guilin where we enjoyed 3 nights in a 5 star luxury hotel. What a way to end our trip!

We thoroughly enjoyed the pool at the Shangri-La

And then we were back in Wuhan.  We love our new apartment and feel so at home.  Photos to come, but below is one taste of the joy of our new place.

View from our last apartment (no, the guy was not always hanging there)

The view from our new living room (lest you be too amazed, this kind of sky comes only a few days a year in Wuhan)

Where are we?

For my 3 weeks in Beijing, I'm living with several friends in a neighborhood in the suburbs.  I've found a couple aspects of our housing complex quite interesting.

1) Gas, water, and electricity all are charged on separate cards.  This means that, when any of these start to run low (or run out), in the house, the resident must go to a place in the center of the neighborhood with the specific card (whether gas, water, or electricity) and "charge" the card by paying money to have credit put on it.  It's like gas, water, and electricity credit.

2)  At least once a month the electricity and water for the entire neighborhood is cut off.  This is because one person did not pay their bill.  Neighbors go and yell at each other until the bill is paid and the water and electricity is restored. We were here to experience one of these days.

Oh man, it's just so NOT America.

On the bright side, "our" house has pretty grape vines and an apricot tree.

The Power of the Suburb

Maybe this post will be somewhat controversial. I had friends at Moody would scoffed at living in the suburbs like it was for the weak at heart.  Let me admit now, then: I am the weak of heart.

For these 3 weeks, as I study in Beijing, some of my Wuhan friends and I are staying at a lovely house in the suburbs.  The center where I'm taking classes is also in the suburbs.  I never knew how much the city wore down on me until I stepped away.  To wake up to the sound of birds or even weird cat howls is a great improvement to honking horns, poorly functioning ancient vehicles, construction, and people hocking loud spitballs out their windows.  On one of our rides to another part of the city, I contemplated why this is.

I think there's something one has to close off or become hard to while living in the city. If one lets it all in, it will grate and annoy.  It takes a lot of energy to close all that off.  Outside the city, especially in the country, there's a release.  You can open up because what's there is beauty and peace.

So I guess I discovered why I don't like cities.  

Changes

Some people really like change.  Honestly, I don't know if I know myself enough to know whether I like change or not.  I think I like it except for right before it happens.  Now, I haven't been all around the world, but I think China may be one place that change happens faster than anywhere else.  After three years in Wuhan, I want to document some changes in life since my first year here.

1) Suburb--city: I live in the least developed of 3 parts of Wuhan.  Up until this year, the area I live in and the school have been almost in a suburb-like area.  There hasn't been much traffic and I used to be able to look out my window at an open field where people would grow veggies.  I don't have a before and after photo, but I do have this photo of what is used to be like across from my apartment. In fact, my first year I went there to dig up soil to try to grow veggies on my deck (which was an ultimate FAIL, but the way). For the now photo, just imagine huge buildings, probably 20 floors high, in the construction phase, with waving dark green nets on them that make them look like death.
Speaking of death, as traffic increases, it gets more and more difficult to maneuver my way to school on my bike. Sometimes it feels like a video game.

2) Prices:  I know prices have changed all around the world, but for some reason the change seems more dramatic here.  Our favorite milk tea place's price has risen 50% (ok, that just means 2RMB to 3RMB, but nonetheless). Milk has risen probably 20% since my first year.  Crazy!

3) Availability: I now live no more than 20 minutes from a Subway (the restaurant).  In the next year, we will also have a Starbucks. The grocery store now has liquid detergent.

All this to say, I'm starting to feel like I actually live in a big city... Change.  Some of it I like, but some I don't.

Tie Your Laces

In the midst of all the craziness of the end of the school year, there is one thing that helps me remember why I am still in Wuhan.  I truly believe that our students are better than anywhere else.  Here are a couple reasons why:

1) Lock-ish in: Our middle school had a lock-ish in a few weeks ago. It's a lock-ish in because it only goes from 3-10 pm, not all night (which of course I love).  The middle school STUCO, which I facilitate, plans the whole night.  What I most loved about this night was that almost everybody came and everybody participated in everything.  We had a nasty drink game and Wii Dance, but even the most "cool" and the most shy did it all.  I was amazed to see all our guys get up and dance away, no matter how silly they looked.  Even the students who don't say a word in class "shook their tail feathers." :) I wish I could post a video, but I probably shouldn't.  One student, when asked what their favorite part of the lock-in was, answered "definitely the drinking game and dancing."  What are we teaching our students?

2) Community: We recently had an assembly looking back on the year.  Our theme has been "Better Community, Better WYIS" which is based off of the Shanghai Expo theme.  In this assembly, students drew pictures of ways our school has shown this motto.
Here are some of the pictures people drew.  They're quite entertaining.

It's hard to tell, but this is a picture of people playing the drink game in which they had to roll a dice to decide which drinks would be mixed together for them to drink (soy sauce and vinegar, yogurt, and ketchup were all options)

This is a picture of the Wii dancing from the lock-in. It's especially meaningful since it was drawn by one of our quietest Asian students. 

The "fit in together" part so perfectly illustrates how our students have come together despite ethnic and religious differences.

I love this because of the "x alot" part.  We do get a lot of new students throughout any given year and our students do well at welcoming them in.

Ah, the practicalities of living in community.  

My favorite, just because it looks so cool.

Ting Bu Dong

Leo (fake name used to protect identity), my newest Japanese student, is the sweetest kid, super hard working, and very smart, but he sure makes me feel inadequate. Here's a glimpse into a situation that happens at least once a period.

Students are working on their English quizzes.  Leo finished his quickly because it is modified for his language ability (and shorter).  When he is done, he doesn't know what to do.  Now, instead of the usual middle school child, who would, at this point, pull out some random object and transform the desk into a battlefield or something of that sort, Leo wants to make sure he knows what he is supposed to be doing, or at least that's what I think he wants to know.  He comes up to me with his Japanese/English dictionary.  What will the first word in our attempt at communication be? 

"What".  Okay, that gets me started.  He wants to know something. He slowly types in another word, then changes it to English.  "Send."  Now I'm totally thrown off.  Send? I'm quite confused at this point, so I wait for the next word, "something."  And that's it.  What, send, and something, and he points to himself.  From this, I must guess at what he is asking.   Maybe I need to send something to him.  Maybe he wants to know what to send?  I throw the words out to the class, because sometimes the other ESL students have some insight, but today the closest anyone could guess was that Leo wanted to ask if he should send the quiz to the ESL teacher. That didn't really make sense to me.  So, I just gave him something to work on and he seemed fine.  What send something?  Who knows?

 
At least today I learned one thing about Leo through my periodic attempts at communication. He is writing using sentence patterns like "I like" " I don't like", etc.  One sentence I just could not figure out, though. "Horizontal bar is bad for me."  So I asked him to draw it.  What do ya' know? It's a gymnastic bar, that is, of course, horizontal.  And apparently Leo thinks it is bad for him, though I'm pretty sure he thinks "bad for me" means "I dislike it." Oh, the adventures of ESL...keeps me on my toes.

By the way, in case you didn't know, "ting bu dong" means "I hear, but I don't understand" in Chinese. I don't know it in Japanese. Maybe I should learn.

Smile!

7 things that made me smile today:

1) I slept like I was drugged, but I wasn't.  This is a miracle considering my allergies have kept me up every other night this week (while I was drugged).

Prince

2) This guy, my Prince.  Apparently if I kiss him enough he will be transformed into a real prince. Thanks Jenny (she made him by hand)!  I love him and will kiss him until he is transformed (I'm hoping soon).

3) Poetry with my students.  We read "In a Station of the Metro" by Ezra Pound and they got into it and understood (love it when that happens).  It's only two lines; enjoy it here: http://www.bartleby.com/104/106.html

4) The smell of freshly cut grass. It only occurs twice a year: at the end of winter and at the end of summer (and they do the whole area with a weed whacker).

5) Music night tonight. It hasn't happened yet, but live music never fails to make me smile.

6) Wind.  Never underestimate the delight brought by wind in a humid and hot city... and if I close my eyes, I can almost pretend I'm in an open field with wildflowers surrounding me.

7) Writing a vocabulary quiz in Japanese. In an effort to somehow help my new student (whose English vocabulary consists of "homework, yes, no, good, ok", and the days of the week), I created a vocabulary quiz in which he connects the Japanese words to the English.  I was quite proud of myself.  Thanks Google Translate, and I hope you know what you're doing.
Okay, the truth is that, in reality, I was merely procrastinating checking some essays (which is my absolute least favorite teaching activity), but at least it was a beneficial procrastination time.

As a dear friend would say: "Ah, life's pleasantries."

This is it.

So this is it.  I started this blog for my Technology Course and now it’s almost over.  Thus, we all know that it is the duty of the last post to look back and review.

What have I learned?

1)      I learned how little I know.  There’s a vast amount of fun, educational technology tools out there.  I can’t use all of them at this point, but with unlimited accessibility, the sky is the limit. Did you know there are actually little boxes hidden throughout the world that you can find using the location coordinates and a GPS.  There’s even one in Wuhan somewhere.  How fun!

2)      Technology doesn’t have to be difficult.  Even with what is easily available at WYIS, we can use technology to encourage creativity in the students and excite them about learning.

3)      My PLN is invaluable.  A PLN is a Personal Learning Network.  I have connected to several useful blogs and the information and ideas I receive from them are so helpful and fun.  I know there is hope for me to keep caught up with changes by following these blogs.  By the way, if you have a blog that I don't know about, please comment. I want to follow you:)

What has changed?

1)      I want to use technology in unique and fun ways in my class.

2)      I regularly use Google Reader to stay connected with my PLN (and of course, family and friend blogs).

3)      I’m a little less reluctant to be creative with technology.

Goodbye to this course is not goodbye to technology...or this blog, so keep reading :)

Strength of a Buffalo

We've all seen one of the many motivational sports movies: a coach pushes a team to greatness, lives are changed, and the team wins.  I experienced my own story, now tritely titled "Strength of the Buffalo," this weekend at the iSC soccer tournament.

Setting and Characters: The high school girls' team consists of two 6th graders, two 7th graders, and one 8th (gaolie).  Then we have five 9th graders and one 10th grader (injured), meaning our oldest high school player is in 9th grade and our youngest in 6th.  There are 11 girls altogether, and 7 on the field at a time, meaning 3 subs are available.
And here's the schedule: First game starts at 8 am.  After each 45 minutes of a game (5 minute half), the girls have a 50 minute break, and then play again...times 5.  The first day includes a total of 200 minutes of playing time.

The plot: One character, "Boot," is the impenetrable defense force on the team.  Nothing can get past her.  Her backup, the newbie, is a blonde French 9th grader who shocks all with her skill and determination.  The force of forwards consists of one Ball of Determination with 0% body fat, Lightning Bolt "K," and a new-to-offense 7th grader, Screaming "P".  Together, the team (meaning all of them, not one sitting on the sidelines for long) persevere through extreme difficult: Lightning Bolt "K" gets sick on day 1 after the 3rd game, 10th grader injures leg, 7th grade goalie gets a bloody nose, etc.  All go to sleep at 8:30 on the night of day 1.  On day 2 of the tournament, the team fights their way to the semi-finals, with the help of 6th grader "5 foot Dynamite" and her compadre Defense "D".  All are amazed at the perseverance and stamina of the young players.


And in the final scene, the team is playing their last game (game 3 of day 2, game 8 of the weekend).  They give their all as their opponent frequently sends in subs to replace the entire team.  The middle schoolers hold their own against juniors and seniors on the opposition.  The high schoolers push themselves to heights unknown.  They give it all.  The score is tied.  They go into a 10 minute overtime, running on shere determination and character.  There is a shoot out.  They lose by one.

As the girls fell to the ground of pure exhaustion and disappointment, a coach was glad for the sunglasses that hid the formation of tears.  They were not tears of disappointment, but of pride: for a team that gave everything and deserved more than they got.  For character in perseverance and determination beyond what she herself knew she had.  For a world in which one's best is simply not always enough to win.  But in her heart, they were winners...and she was proud.

I know, sounds a bit corny, but people seem to have a thing for that.

The middle school high school team

Girls, I couldn't be prouder and more amazed at your awesomeness.

The Goal-Driven Life

Ever since beginning my "professional" life, I've struggled with the idea of living by goals.  Every year, we are asked to make several goals for ourselves.  The direction of these goals is never clearly stated.  For example, in my first year of teaching, I didn't really know what to say for a goal (survive?), so as my third one I wrote something along the lines of "trusting in God's strength to use me and change me."  Now, if you've ever done some serious goal writing, you'll know that they are supposed to be SMART (specific, measurable, attainable, realistic, and timely).   I think my goal was only 2 of those, probably, but my supervisor didn't really know what to say.  How can you measure that, make it more specific, know that you've attained it, or even make it timely? And yet, of all my goals, I wanted nothing more than that.  In the big picture of things, that was far more important than including standards with every lesson or being sure to assess learning every day.

But I'm still torn.  I know that it is important to have direction and continue to push ourselves to excel.  At the same time, a part of me says "trust God, ask Him to work, and even if you don't know what He's doing, He'll do more than you could ever 'goal' for yourself."  That first year, my supervisor admitted, later on, that he was somewhat worried about me because of my aversion to goals or rather that I perhaps thought we couldn't know what direction God wanted us to take.  He brought up the point that we can ask God to show us what goals He wants for us.  I liked that idea, but still... do we have to know what God is doing in order to go along with His plan?

Just so you know, I do realize the roots of my "fear" of goals.  It's a long story, not for this post, but in short, it came from a series of goals I had planned out for myself which I could not achieve for reasons beyond my control (and the goals were even SMART).  I had "goaled" out my life only to realize that what I thought I wanted was not what God wanted.  And yet, what He had for me was far better than all the things I had planned out and worked to accomplish.  As a result, I decided that, if I just waited on Him, He would bring about His good in time.  I don't really need to know what that is in order to achieve it.

Some of you may be thinking that I'm quite pathetic now.  One series of goal unreached and I've completely given up. But that's not it.  There is a greater goal, living with purpose (No, I never read the book, maybe I'm a heathen) and a single goal "to glorify God and enjoy Him forever." But then you could say "that's a spiritual goal, what about the practical every-day stuff, like include standards on all my lesson plan, or study Chinese two hours a week."  And those are the types of goals I hypocritically set for myself despite my dislike of goals. Maybe I agree that goals do have their place.

In summary, goals are written to give us direction.  Plans are made so we don't go crazy, but if we give our plans to the Lord (and plans based on goals), then He will guide us.  And even if we don't reach our goals and our plans are unaccomplished, it is okay because we can always trust that God is working beyond our sight.

But my "goal" for this post was to get some feedback.  What does the Bible say about living by goals? What do you think?

Here's a start:
Psalm 19:21 "Many are the plans in a man's heart, but it is the Lord's purpose that prevails."
Hebrews 12:2 "Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith..."
James 4:13-14 "Now listen, you who say 'Today or tomorrow we will go to this city or that city, spend a year there, carry on business and make money.'  Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while then vanishes."
Proverbs 16:13 "Commit to the Lord whatever you do, and your plans will succeed"

There are many more, and I would even say you could make a case for both sides using Scripture, but is there a perspective I'm missing?

Technology Desserts

We all know the predicament (or one of the sort):  you just made a truly scrumptious dessert.  I, for one, love cupcakes. They look, smell, and actually taste amazing.  And then the decision comes: do I horde this and eat it all or share this with others who just might fall in love with it too, leaving me with far less to eat?  Usually (and hopefully), we end up sharing because we get to see the look on others’ faces when they take that delightful first bite.

Technology is like this in our school.  We have 3 projectors that are to be signed out the week before use.  My temptation is to take what I’ve learned and horde that technology.  If I don’t help others out, then I can at least guarantee that I will have a projector when I want one, and better yet, have the projector that is on the same floor as my classroom.  If I share, I might not have one when it is most useful to me or I may even have to climb a flight of stairs to pick it up before my class.  This same rule applies to student laptops in our school.

So to say how I am going to serve as a “teacher leader for technology integration in [my] professional setting” may be giving me too much credit.  Maybe I just want to keep it to myself… at least that’s my first thought of self-preservation.  Then my mature side comes in and tells the little devil on my shoulder that I am being totally immature and should probably share with others.  

I find it very difficult to lead other teachers informally.  Teaching is one of those professions in which there are about as many good methods as there are personalities.  Teaching is so incredibly personal, in a way an extension of who we are, that to show others how to improve is a delicate endeavor.  I’ve noticed that I am most influenced as a teacher by the example of others.  We all get glimpses of each others’ teaching lives as we work together.  These glimpses are often enough for me to get ideas of how to grow as a teacher.  I think that example is a profound means of leadership.  If I am using technology well in my classes and the students get excited about it, word will spread.  As my own standard of work rises, others around me may well follow along.

Worthy of the Calling

Over the past week or so, I've noticed a phrase (or variation of) in my reading come back again and again, "that they would be considered (or counted) worthy of the calling they have received."  How can I read that without wondering, "what does that look like?"

The past couple of weeks have been a bit busy.  Of course, sickness always makes life a little hectic because there's another something on the list of things to do: more sleep!  As I read about the life of Paul, he seems like a pretty busy guy.  He often worked so that the people could not accuse him of laziness or taking advantage.  So he was serving the people while working to support himself.  Everyone who works in a non-C job can probably understand this struggle.  Go to work, get home, how can I serve my fellowship and how can I reach out.  Even though we can be lights in our work, there's also a pulling to continue to serve.  Now, I consider my job "service," but at the same time I feel a pull to serve the community, the Chinese people.  How can I help them and spend time with them?  But by the time I get back from a full day with middle schoolers and racking my brain to think of creative ways to teach, I don't have much left to give.  Put a masters course on top of that, along with an attempt at a social life and the study of Chinese, and what do I have left to give?

But is that what we have to do to walk in a manner worthy of the calling?  Run ourselves silly?  I don't think so.  In 2 Thessalonians 1:12, I see a very relieving phrase added on to our repeated call: "according to the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ."  I don't think that phrase needs much explanation.  He knows us.  He knows what we need.

Despite this, though, I often feel the urge to DO more.  At the same time, I think of the call to lead peaceful lives.  I guess the key to the directive to be counted worthy is to allow less to be more.  Our less is used by Him to be more... and we always are less, no matter what we do, because He is more.

Internet oh internet, why are you so sporadic?

The internet is a precarious thing in China.  One minute we have facebook, the next we don't.  One day my VPN works, the next it has been blocked.  I only have to move five steps in one direction to lose the wireless internet connection in my apartment.  If I have these difficulties,  I can only imagine my students have the same.  My main concerns for using internet in my class are all related to its sporadic nature.  Even within our school we cannot trust that our classroom will have enough internet "bars" to do what we need to do.  My greatest concern is planning wonders and never getting to achieve them.

There is only one way I can think of to alleviate this concern: ignore it.  If I never planned a lesson that could go wrong, I wouldn't have very many lessons in my book.  I can be understanding for students who lost internet the night before an important project and I can prepare backup lessons for times when the school server is weak, but I can't completely cut out internet use merely because it is erratic.  I'm really taking a step out in my plans for the technology enhanced lesson plan; hopes for grandeur.

So even if I can't use youtube or facebook or blogspot in my lessons, my students will not be lacking in internet proficiency.

I Will Never...

I don't know about most people, but God has this way of getting me to do things I never thought I'd do and making me think it was my idea until it's too late.  Two things I said I would never do:

1) Coach: I hate coaches. I know this insults some, but, starting tomorrow, I will be in that category so nobody else can complain. 
Now this one I KNOW has to be God's work.  Why would I say I would coach soccer?  First, the extent of my soccer knowledge is based on semi-participating in a couple soccer seasons, both of which I abhorred, by the way.  I'd rather eat grass than kick a ball on it (only semi- exaggerating, too).  Second, I don't DO sports and I most decisively do NOT do coaching.  But, through some covert process, God got me here and now I'm thinking, "Ok, what does a coach do?"  Covert ideas God used to get me to coach:
     a) I want to spend more non-teaching time with students.  I want to have fun and hang out and build relationship.
     b) If I run with the girls, the time can replace my gym time on Tuesday and Thursday, leaving me with no less time after school on those days.  No loss!
     c) I get to touch grass... kind of. And breathe the fresh air more... kind of.

2) Ever since my orchestra director in middle school pulled out a picture of her two dogs and introduced them as her family, I was determined not to refer to a pet as a member of the family.  If I don't have my own family, just skip the introducing the family step.  I'm so ashamed that this slipped out of my mouth a couple times.  "Prince, come to mommy," gasp, did I just say that?  This issue has been solved, though, because we have found our beloved Prince a real home with a genuine backyard and people who will be home more than a couple hours every day.

And so, if you ever catch yourself saying "I will never," realize that you might just be telling a lie. I did.

SoftAware

·      What software applications do you use regularly in your teaching practice? 

I felt mighty proud the other day.  That doesn't happen often because I think I'm a pretty ordinary person and ordinary people just feel ordinary most of the time.  BUT, today students were creating projects using the computers.  One group had several questions that I was actually able to answer.  After one answer, a student stated, "Wow, Ms. Orner, you, like, know everything."  Now, let me just say, I don't hear this very often.  I teach 3 subjects in middle school, which means, let's be honest (that's what I do), I'm not exactly an "expert" in all of them.  I teach. I'm not like, "the English person" or "the math person" or "that geography girl."  I'm "that middle school teacher."  And I like it that way.  When my students ask me questions about this, I tell them I only teach because I care that they learn about life.  In reality, Math, English, and Geography are great, but what I really get excited about is teaching greater life truths through those avenues. 

Getting back to the point. Even though my students aren't exactly technology gurus, I was thankful that, because of this wonderful "Technology in Education" class, I could help my students. They were really impressed with the whole "Creative Commons" business. In today's assignment one group was creating a glog and the others were working on PowerPoints.  The students had made glogs once before and fell in love with its cutsey creativity.  On a project about community, one student made a Christmas theme.  When asked why she used Christmas trees as her background, she responded, "Well, people like to get together with family and friends at Christmas time, so it's like community." I have such clever students.  Another one had some Nintendo characters as the background, but that explanation, or lack thereof, wasn't quite on the same level :)

If I had summarize what applications I use regularly in my classes, it would have to be narrowed the following:

- PowerPoint: I use them for the rare lecture to teach students how to take notes. Students also use them for projects.

- Wikispaces: I'm working on making this one more regular and beneficial, but it pops up in class often.

- Glogster: I use it as a project option for my students

- Microsoft Word: It's great for essays and, well, essays.

- Microsoft Excel: Once a year my math class pulls it out to make cool graphs.

- Youtube: self explanatory, I think.

- Allrecipes.com: Not sure if this counts, but when we have culture days in Geography, I use it to find recipes for the food I make.

- Grooveshark: It's great for motivating students to be quiet and listen to the music :)

Now the true colors of my knowledge are shown when I admit that I don't know how many of the items I listed are actually software applications.

·      What other software skills would you like to improve to increase your professional efficacy?  

Facebook. I want to teach the students to start their own fake protest (within the school) and spread their message to other students without using word of mouth. Unfortunately, Facebook is blocked here...I don't know why. [Long side note insert: At my school among the teachers we have a "Sarcasm Sign."  It's not actually a sign, one simply has to hold up the hands as if holding a sign.  This arm motion indicates that the speaker is using sarcasm...'cuz sometimes it's hard to tell (I think we got this from "Big Bang Theory").  Here I hold up a Sarcasm Sign about the comments above, just in case you couldn't catch the tone. End long side note]. After my experiment with Prezi, I'm not sure if I can add that to my list of skills I want to improve, unless improve means the outcome is at least two times better and the process at least ten times faster.  I suppose I should say that I want to work on making a podcast, but I don't, and that's that.  Even though I use it now, I would really like to improve the use of Wikispaces to make it more effective and engaging for the students.  Right now it is mostly being used as an avenue for them to see each others' work and for me to post documents that the students can view at home.

·      Propose an action plan to improve these skills.  

Ok, as long as I don't have to write a goal :)  My action plan (if you are reading and aren't interested in education, skip this part. It is serious and NOT funny, and thus boring unless you like to know what teachers do to improve their lessons with software applications):

In my next English unit in 7th grade the students will be reading "Crispin: the Cross of Lead."  As an introduction to this unit, students research 14th century England so they can understand the setting of the book. I want to research ways to use Wikispaces effectively and view example wikis for inspiration.

BORING PART OVER.

Used

All you people who have gone through mid-life crisis, let me tell you something:  you're a little late!  I feel as though the last couple months I've been going through mid-20s crisis.  
What is mid-20s crisis? It's when you stop, look at yourself, and say "now what?"  I ask "is this really what I want to be doing...forever... (which is a stupid question, really, because that's assuming that I get to plan my own life...and I don't).

So lately I've been kind of smoggy headed; not just because I live in Wuhan, but because there are so many things floating around up there, that no one thing has pulled through like it usually does. I like to think of myself as a person of vision.  And I guess I also like to think that "vision" is really just another way of saying "faith."  If you think about it, faith is trusting God: who He is and what He is doing (I'm so glad I can write the word "God" because I'm using my VPN and it's looks like somebody is writing this from California... muhahaha... censoring, I have you beat).  Vision is looking to that "something" that God is doing/going to do.  Vision is knowing God is working, but it doesn't necessarily mean we always know how, by what means, or to what end.  That's why I think the two, faith and vision, are tied together so closely.  This year, however, my vision has been a bit foggy. My faith was great, but for a while I lost sight of what God was doing.  I thought that vision meant I had to know what God was doing rather than being alert to see.  The last few months I've been so caught up in seeing way ahead (where am I gonna be in 5 years?) that I've lost sight of what I'm doing now; and what God is doing now. I've lost the vision that should come as a booster to faith, as though, if I can't see way ahead, what's the use in looking.


I am a teacher!  Yes.  But lately my sight has been on this side of teaching: standards, lesson plans, appropriate assessment, individualized lessons, etc.  I'm gonna be honest here (because what's the point of having a blog and just writing what everyone expects?) and say I had begun to dislike teaching... even dread teaching.  Gasp! My beloved profession and passion, unbeloved and dispassionate.  But why?


I lost sight of being used.  Let me say it again, because it's really important.  I lost sight of being used.  I lost my vision because vision involves looking for how God is using His people, and I wasn't looking for that because I have been more concerned about how God is going to be using me in 5 years.  I'm using the past tense here, but it makes it seem so far in away.  "Lost," past tense, as in, like 15 minutes ago I realized this.  Why do I dread going back to school?  Not because I'm not rested, not because I don't want to be with students (I love them!), but because teaching started to become standards and assessments.  Teaching was mysteriously transformed from a "how can I be used" profession to a what can I use to be a better teacher profession...standards... benchmarks... assessments... Sigh!  How have I let myself come to this?


So what is it about teaching that I love? I will recap here as a reminder to myself and so you can remind me when I forget later on:

• students: they make me laugh, they have "aha" moments, they teach me and stretch me and challenge me
• surrender: I'm sure there are other professions, but this one in particular is quite efficient in turning eyes to the only one who can bring real heart change and Who can provide real daily strength and wisdom
• holidays: honestly, I do like having summers "off", that's always nice, but it's definitely at the bottom of the list
• I don't have to sit at a desk all day: I get to talk to people...that's always good.
• Mostly just the first point and all that comes with it

Back to "being used."  If I want to regain my vision, I can only turn my sight back to being used.  Teaching involves planning and standards and assessments, but that is not the whole.  That is just a means.  I know I'm being quite daring in saying this, but I also believe one could, just maybe, be a good teacher without these things.  My mom was a good teacher of life and I know she didn't sit down with my dad when I was born and create a list of standards and benchmarks for each year of my life.  Things happen, people teach.  Now, I know we need standards and benchmarks, but maybe only just because my supervisor says (and his, and his, etc.).  They're good, but they're not the heart of teaching.  But I think most educators would agree with that...I hope.


All you out there who don't teach and think this doesn't apply to you, guess again.  Being used is the main message here.  I don't care what you do; God can use you.  When you get into the grind of "life" and "work" and all that jazz, remember to be used.  That's what life is about.  


This is my vision, make it yours: to be used.

Into the 21st Century

Scenario 1:

"Dearest students, today we will be beginning our non-fiction unit.  Exciting activities to come include reading your own choice of biography or autobiography (as long as the library has it), looking at print and non-print advertising, and writing...duh duh duuuuuuhhh...your own memoir.  This is one of my favorite units (along with all my other favorites) because I get to learn about your lives." 

Students groan.  Hands raise.

"But, like, what do we write about...ish?" 

"You write about you, about your life, about something you've learned from all you've been through.  You get to tell the world who you are!"

Raised hand. "But, uh, I haven't, like, really learned anything.  I'm only in middle school."

Teacher: "Exactly, and that's why...wait, what?!!!!  You haven't learned anything from life?  You live in China.  You've traveled the world. You speak three languages...and you haven't LEARNED anything?!!!" 

Teacher enters freak out mode.   

This 100% true story is brought to you by TFTFCS (Teachers for Twenty-First Century Skills).  Do I feel ready for a scenario like this in which students have to critically assess their own lives and find something they've learned?  No, it's like pulling teeth.  Teaching critical, creative thinking requires a whole lot of critical, creative thinking.

Scenario Two:

Johnny (whining): "Ms. Orner, Bobby isn't helping our group. He just sits there."

Bobby (angered): "I was, but then they said I wasn't doing it right, so I stopped."

Johnny: "Yeah, but you weren't doing it right and our group would have lost..."

Bobby: "Well, I liked mine bett....

Ms. Orner (holding hands up in pacification): "Now Johnny, did you hear what Bobby said?"

Johnny: "No."

Ms. Orner: "Bobby, did you hear what Johnny said?"

Bobby: "No."

Ms. Orner: "Arright, let's start at the beginning."

Am I ready to teach middle school students the social skills necessary to collaborate in groups and share opinions respectfully?  Only by the grace of God.

Scenario 3:

Studious Sally: "Ms. Orner, I'm trying to arrange these photos to make the letter 'M' for my advertisement.  I can't get the photos to touch so it is easy to read.  Can you help me?"

Need I say more?

How well prepared do I feel for 21st century teaching and learning? I don't know, maybe about as ready as any of the Joe Shmoe's out there.  Who ever feels ready for the future?  Probably only people who could use a little talking down.  I'm sure there's a personality label for those people.  I remember appreciating when Kris Allen won American Idol.  The station played back his first audition when they asked him if he was the next American Idol. He responded "well, maybe. I'm sure there are people out there better than me."  And he won. I, for one, really appreciate that.  Was he prepared for the future, probably not, but he won. And he did it with a realistic attitude.  I, with Kris Allen, will say, "I'm not ready, but here I come."

The great thing about teaching 6th and 7th grade is that I can assess how much my students retain from year to year.  Every year I am amazed at the difference between the two grades.  I swear there is some magical transformation that occurs during that summer after 6th grade.  Visualize with me:

Enter 6th grade classroom 4 minutes before the bell: 

Tammy, running into the classroom and sprawling all supplies on the floor, "Am I late?"

Jose, tripping over Tammy as he enters, runs to get his favorite seat and sits down.  He pulls out his eraser to play with for approximately 3 minutes and then looks up to the teacher: "Do I need anything for class?" Meanwhile, Tammy digs through her supplies to make sure she has all necessary items for the next 3 classes while Jose runs to his locker.  30 seconds later he runs back. "I can't find my locker key."  Jose searches while Tammy begins giving detailed account of all the time she spent on homework and all the reasons her assignments are late.  Bell rings.  Jose runs in and asks to go to the bathroom.

Enter 7th grade classroom 1 minutes before the bell.  

Susie: "Ms. Orner, what are we doing today?"

Luke, pulling out his homework, "where do we turn in our work, Ms. Orner?" "Don't forget we have a spelling quiz today...."

So I know, students are leaving my class changed.  Am I the magical ingredient? Not solely.  Are they ready for the 21st century?  No, but they're only in 6th (or 7th grade) and they have a year's worth of learning more than last year. 

And what are my challenges and strengths?  This is a slightly awkward question for a public post!  Dear world, I train my kids well to face the reality of the world, along with the joys and difficulties that come with it.  I help students dig deep to find their own creativity and intelligence.  Oh, and by the way, I face everyday wondering how I am going to answer each difficult question about life (and grammar [and even 6th grade math, let's be honest]).  And I pray to God for wisdom when Bobby and Johnny can't work in a group again and Studious Sally asks me about formatting and somebody used the wiki to invite a friend to a chat room.  And world, please understand, I do the best I can...one day at a time.