I think it was time wasted…

But I did get 16 clock hours out of the way for the next school year. The workshop I attended for the last two days was on Models of Collaboration. For those of you who aren't familiar with educational "stuff", collaboration came about as a result of No Child Left Behind (NCLB). Oh, over the years there have been various methods for providing a Free and Appropriate Public Education (FAPE) to all students, regardless of their abilities. For students with disabilities, we've done self-contained, mainstreaming, inclusion, and now collaboration.

NCLB requires that a Highly Qualified Teacher (HQT) teach ALL students. The problem with having students with disabilities in a self-contained classroom is that the special education teacher is an HQT in special education, but he or she is usually NOT an HQT for the various subjects that are taught. Luckily, I was highly qualified in language arts AND special education, so I could teach English in a self-contained classroom, and it made it easy for me to transfer into a general ed setting. I still teach the majority of the seniors with IEPs.

For most special education teachers, it would be impossible to become highly qualified in ALL of the subjects that must be taught. Think about it. In a high school setting where there are only one or two special ed teachers (and that is often the case in small, rural schools), the teachers would have to be highly qualified in English, science, math, and social studies. But wait (there's more…) In science, they would have to be highly qualified in physical science, biology, chemistry, etc. In math, they would have to be HQ in algebra, geometry, and pre-cal. Who has the time, energy, or MONEY to go back to school to become highly qualified in all those subjects? Not this chick!

SO, this means that, in most instances, the students must be taught by a teacher in a general education setting by a HQT. Because many general ed teachers aren't the "experts" in accommodating the students with special needs, a special education teacher needs to collaborate with the general ed teacher in order to provide FAPE. Depending on the child, the amount of collaboration between the general ed and the special ed teacher varies. For some students, very few accommodations are needed, so the teachers will keep documentation through email, quick conferences, or a note. Sadly, other students require many accommodations. And that is where collaboration comes in to play.

There are several models of collaboration, and of course, the state department wants everyone to be at the "optimal" level, where there is a special ed teacher in each class, each day, for the entire period. Ummmm…logistically, that is pretty much impossible. At BRHS, we have five special ed teachers. One stays in the resource room all day, so that leaves four to go to all of the classes. Each one has a subject area that he or she does. Rita is the English person, so she goes into the English classes that have special needs students. The problem is that sometimes, four or five of the eight English teachers will have students with IEPs during the same block. How can she be in every room, every day, for the entire block? She can't. Of course, we could put EVERY 9^th grade student into the same teacher's class during one block; every 10^th grade student would be in another block, so on and so forth, but that ends up being reverse inclusion. And that is frowned upon because the students aren't mixed in with the general ed students.

I was hoping that there would be some fantastic new information that Beth and I could take back to our faculty and administrators, but everything we heard is the same old stuff that we've heard for the last several years. They (state dept. people) keep preaching the "optimal" model, but they don't show us HOW to work around the personnel issues. Those issues all go back to funding. Our system alone had to pink slip over 30 people this year because WE DON'T HAVE THE FUNDING to keep them. It's really frustrating to me because I would LOVE to have Rita as a TRUE co-teacher, but unless I can figure out how to clone her, I don't see it happening. Ho hum!

Ali, Bama, and I are heading to the lake tomorrow. Woo Hoo!!!! J J J I'm about to wake John from his nap, and we're gonna go get groceries tonight. I can't stop tomorrow because it will be TOO hot to leave the pups in the car. And once I get there, I really don't want to leave. I'm planning on staying until about Wednesday. Kristen is coming up next week, I think. Yea!!!! I haven't seen her all summer, and I miss her goofy self!

Have a GREAT rest of the week and weekend. I'll blog at ya later. J

Recap of the weekend

Susan and I met at Santa Fe Day Spa Thursday for our pedicures, and it was heavenly! Not only was this one of the best pedicures I've ever had, but they also offered complimentary mimosas. So refreshing! After that we had lunch at PF Chang's. She and I love Chang's, but Tim and John...not so much. Because they don't, we usually do lunch there. We each order an entree, but then we share. Our typical order is lettuce wraps for an appetizer, and Mongolian beef and Chang's Spicy Chicken for the entrees, but this time, I ordered the sesame chicken. It was good, but I think I prefer the spicy chicken. Following lunch, we just did some browsing at The Summit. We were just about to go to Starbuck's for our coffee when Alison sent Susan a text. Her husband Oliver teaches with Susan, and they had some "gossip" and wanted to meet at Superior Grill. So we met them and their gorgeous daughter Maggie. {I seem to know more gossip/news about SPHS than I do BRHS. LOL} I dropped Susan off at her house about 6:30 and headed to the lake.


I got to the lake about 8:45. It was later than I'd planned, but I was interested in what Oliver and Alison had to say. :) There was NO ONE else in the "subdivision." (One of the older ladies calls our little community a subdivision. It tickles me.) I thought I might be scared since I didn't have Ali and Bama with me, but I was too tired to even think about it. After unloading the car, I sat down to watch TV for a bit, but I don't think I watched much before I fell asleep.


I got up about 7 Friday. My favorite time of day at the lake is early in the morning. Everything is so quiet and still. The water looks like a mirror with the reflection of the trees. It is a perfect time to sit on the porch with a hot cup of coffee, reflect on life, and talk to God. That's what I miss the most when I'm not there.


About 9 I headed out to the dock to begin baking. And it was HOT! Around 11:30, I saw these guys:

It was a pair of geese and their four little goslings. Since I was on the dock, I didn't have my camera with me, but about 11:00 on Saturday, they cruised by again. I ran inside, grabbed my camera, and got a quick shot. They were a little far off, so I wasn't sure how well the picture would turn out. I had to crop it to get it big enough so that you could see them here. They came by again this morning about 9. I really wasn't expecting them so early since it was a couple of hours later when they came by Friday and Saturday. I hope that when I go back Thursday, they'll still be taking their morning swim. I know it won't be long before the babies are on their own.

Yesterday John and I worked our tails off in the yard. We started about 8, stopped at noon for lunch (and so he could rest!), and then finally finished up about 2. It was a hard day's work, but the result was worth it. Hopefully, the rest of the summer won't require quite as much hard work!

We decided we'd head down to the lake to take a quick swim. The water felt nice, but it would have been nicer had it been just a little cooler. After we finished with our swim/floating, we wiped down the boat. Then it was nap time! Try as I might, though, I could not sleep, so I read. (I'm reading Jodi Picoult's book Change of Heart, but I leave it at the lake so I'll have something next time without having to buy new books every week. I kinda wish I'd brought it home.)

John grilled chicken (YUM!) and then we took a late afternoon ride so I could get some sunset pictures. These are a few of my favorites:

I love the second one because with the vapor trail and the sun, it looks like God has put His exclamation point at the end of the most wonderful day. My true favorite one, though, is the last one. I just love the way it turned out.

I had wanted to get one of Bailey Bridge with the sun setting behind it, but of course, my batteries died just before we got back to the bridge. That just means another late afternoon cruise. :)

We got up this morning and did the house cleaning. Amy, Allen, Will, and Maggie are staying at our place tomorrow night, and I didn't want it to be a mess. :) We headed home about 1 because Jess and Lance and the grandpups were coming by to see John for Father's Day on their way back to Millbrook.

I have another full week this week. Tuesday and Wednesday will be spent in workshops for work, and then Thursday, Ali, Bama, and I are going back to the lake. John will be up Friday. The last two Fridays have been slow, so he's been able to leave work early. I hope that holds true this weekend!

On Saturday, Phillip, Katy, and Sam are coming to the lake. We are SOOOO excited! I told John I want to take Sam to Rock Creek Marina to see the carp. They are HUGE! You can take a baby bottle, fill it with crackers and water, and feed them. Or if you're brave enough, you can feed them by hand. Something about a fish eating from my hand grosses me out, though. :) Sam still a little too young to feed them himself, but I would love for him to see them. We used to take Katy and Jessi before we moved from Jasper.

Well, that's my weekend recap. Hope I didn't bore you too badly! Maybe I'll get one more post in this week--probably Wednesday since I have Bunco Tuesday night. If I don't though, have a GREAT week!

Love,

Stuff...random stuff

Most of my posts are written for me so that I can go back and remember what we did when. Sometimes there is a point to them, and sometimes, like this one, it is just random "stuff."

So...here is my randomness for today:

Long week but productive -- cleaned house Monday, went to Opelika Tuesday (there by 8:45 and home by 11:00), washed my car today (man, was it HOT out there!!!), PEDICURES and lunch with Susan tomorrow (ahhhhh...I. Can't. Wait.), headed to the lake from Birmingham, laying out Friday and doing ab. so. lute. ly. nothing else, probably help John do some yard work Saturday before baking in the sun, home Sunday in time to see Jess and Lance.

From my dear, dear friend Karen. She gave this to me a few weeks back, but I haven't gotten around to posting it. I love knowing that Karen sees me as a kindred spirit. She has such a wonderful, beautiful spirit. I would love to be like her when I grow up. Thanks, KK! I love you!

Karen also tagged me last week. I am to list six UNIMPORTANT things that make me happy. Like Karen, I've done this before, but it's always fun to list things on a different day. So here are my six:

1. Seeing that gorgeous red cardinal in the tree outside my bathroom window this morning.

2. Having a clean car that is relatively free of dog hair. For the moment.

3. Spending the day with my best girlfriend tomorrow.

4. Seeing Ali curled up asleep in the recliner.

5. Getting kisses from Ali, even if they ARE up the nose.

6. Chocolate truffle brownies.

Now I have to tag six other people. They are, in no particular order:

1. Mom (I know she'll have lots to be happy about when she gets back from her trip.)

2. Mary

3. Dana

4. Debbie

5. Trina

6. Julie

7. Anyone else who wants to play :-)

Let's see...This isn't really a "random" bit of info. When I think "random" I think "not so important" but this is very important. I got an email from my bio-dad. He went to the doctor on the 9th, found out he had colon cancer, had a colon resection, BUT the biopsy showed no other concerns, and he doesn't need any follow treatments. YEA!!! My sister had a colonoscopy, and it was clear. YEA!!! Now, I need to call my doc to find out what he recommends I do. UGH!!! But I'll do it!

One last thing...Mom and the crew are returning from Mexico on Saturday. Please keep them in your thoughts for this trip home.

There isn't anything else to comment on tonight. At least not that I can think of, so I'm gonna call it quits. Have a GREAT day tomorrow. I will think of you as I'm getting my toes pampered and drink my complimentary mimosa. :)

Love,

Pix of our "craft" project

Here are the pictures of the skis that we converted into towel/life jacket racks. I think they turned out really well!

An accurate forecast would be nice

(This is pretty long, but my whole purpose in starting to blog was to get back to journaling. If you don't want to read it, my feelings won't be hurt! : ) )

OK...I know that meteorologists tell us that anything beyond a 36 hour window is usually just guestimation, but goodness! All of last week showed the Logan area sunny with a chance of afternoon thunderstorms, some severe. I can live with that. This is, after all, Alabama, and that is pretty much par for the course here at this time of year. On our way up Friday (John did get off early, so we did get an earlier start) I checked the forecast again. Instead of it showing sunshine, it showed storms. Huh? When did that happen? I guess they did get it somewhat accurate because it stormed during the AM hours and cleared up during the PM hours. They just didn't get it accurate until about 12 hours before.

When we got to Crane Hill, the weather seemed okay, so John decided to get the boat and bring it around. I dropped him off and headed to the trailer. On my way, it began to sprinkle. John had beaten me by just a few minutes. He had just gotten the boat docked and secured, and he'd walked up when the thunder started. And then the wind started. Oh my goodness! The wind was FIERCE! If we'd been 10 minutes later getting to the launch, he'd have been out on the lake with all that wind.

We unloaded the truck, sat on the porch, and watched it storm. I really love watching the storms over the lake. It is such a sensory experience with the rumble of the thunder, the rain on the tin roof, the wind chimes as the wind blows through them. Then there is the feel of the wind, and occasionally the rain as it blows through the screen, on my skin. The smell of the rain is so fresh and clean. Finally, there is the lightning as it lights up the sky.

I was wakened at 6:00 Saturday morning to the boom of more thunder and then the rain. So much for getting up early and doing the yard work. We got up about 8 and John made us delicious Western omelets for breakfast. By the time we finished eating, the storm had passed over, so we did get out and cut up the tree that had fallen.

We thought it was just a limb, but it turned out that it was the cowcumber tree that had caught the oak tree that fell last year. We knew it needed to come down, but it looked like it would fall on the back porch if we just cut it. John wanted to wait until he had somebody (read that as a MAN) who could help him. Fortunately, nature took care of it for us, and just like the oak last year, it barely missed the trailer. Had it fallen another three feet to the right, we'd have had to rebuild the porch. He got it cut up, and I dragged off the limbs. At some time during that, I tweaked my ankle. Ouch!

After getting that done, we stopped for a bite to eat before tackling the logs that had washed up. We had hoped we'd be able to take the one closest to the water and just shove it back out. HA! It weighed a ton, so John had to cut it as well. Between dragging limbs and tossing them down the embankment, shoving pieces of logs into the water, and carrying other pieces of logs to the "to be burned" pile, my back and calves were killing me! Add the tweaked ankle, and I've done a LOT of complaining. LOL (Getting old stinks!!!!!) I don't mind a hard day's work though. I feel so good when I see what has been accomplished.

Since we were finally finished with some of the work we'd planned on doing, we showered (because we STUNK!!!!) and rode over to Ron and Cindy's. A few weeks back when John and I spent the day in Birmingham, we had stopped at a neat shop that had all kinds of lake-related decor. One of the things we saw as an old ski that had had hooks put on it so that it could be used as a coat rack (or whatever.) When we cleaned out the boat house in the fall, we found an old pair of kid's skis. We put them aside, thinking we'd use them in some way later on. When we saw the skis in the shop, we knew what we would do with our old skis. So, we got hooks and during our lunch break Saturday, John created our own ski-rack. We took one of them to Ron and Cindy, and we hung ours on the porch to use for towels and/or life jackets when we come up from the lake. I took pictures. I'll post them later so you can see our handiwork. :)

After dinner, we decided to take a ride. It was SO nice...finally!!! I wish I had had my camera because the sky was beautiful. Of course, it would have been funny to capture Ron as he fell into the lake.

We were just cruising along when I realized that I needed to pee. Badly. But I thought I could wait, so I didn't say anything for about 10 minutes. John still just kept cruising along, so about 10 minutes later, I told him he HAD to speed up! (Keep in mind that speeding up in a boat means hitting the wake of other boats harder...) We got back to Ron and Cindy's, and Ron was going to jump from the boat to the dock. It would have been fine except that the boat moved away from the dock about the time he jumped. Cindy and I both jumped up to try to grab him, I peed on myself, and he got wet anyway. Yeah...and none of us were drunk! Anyway, we dropped them off and headed home.

We woke up again to storms yesterday, so we snuggled in and slept until about 9. John again did his magic for breakfast. This time he made his scrumptious cheese grits, fried eggs, and bacon. Apparently, when he was a young bachelor and they all hung out at the lake, he was famous for his cheese grits. Whenever the pre-me crew gets together and starts talking about those early days, somebody mentions John's grits. :) About the time we finished breakfast (well, it was more like brunch) the power went off and didn't come back on until about 3. A good day for napping. :) The storm finally passed around noon, and it began to clear. Of course it would...we had to come home!

We did the minimal straightening since it was already later, loaded up, and John headed back around to Arrowhead with the boat. I met him there, we hooked up the trailer, loaded the boat, put it in storage and headed home. So much for playtime this weekend. :(

It was a weekend of firsts for me. I drove the boat over to R & C's Saturday, and I backed the trailer down the launch yesterday. I had tried to back the trailer the last time we were up, but I got frustrated and gave up. I was determined that I was going to get it this time, and I did. And it didn't take forever. I haven't gotten brave enough to pull the trailer WITH the boat yet, but I will. :)

I guess that's about it. (I've got to quit ending my posts that way!) I need to get my butt in gear and clean house. I'm having a Pampered Chef party tomorrow night, and I always spaz out whenever I'm having anything here because I want the house to look perfect. And what am I doing? Sitting here writing this post. I do have all day, all night, and most of tomorrow if I need it. The house isn't that dirty, so it really won't take forever. I just hate being stuck inside when it is a gorgeous day outside! Oh well!

Have a GREAT day!

Love,