Fondest Christmas Memories

It's too hard for me to choose one Christmas that stands out. Christmas is a time to make fond memories with your loved ones. It brings memories of passing down traditions to our children. The tradition of teaching them the family recipes passed down from generations and then sitting down to eat a feast that is enough to feed an army. The tradition of watching children open their presents and the excitement of getting something that they really wanted. The tradition of visiting with everyone after we have eaten so much that you can hardly move and the tradition of sharing memories of christmas past and present including the loved ones that are no longer with us. Family is Christmas!
I hope that this doesn't sound too mushy but that is how I remeber Christmas!
Karla K.

World Issue-Hunger and Famine

This is an issue that seems to get alot of attention around the holidays but as you all know it is happening year round in our country and in other countries as well.
It is frustrating to me that so many have to go hungry. The lack of nutrition has such a huge impact on children and their ability to develop their mind and body.
How does hunger affect children and families? Without adequate calories and a diverse diet consisting of grains, fruits, vegetables and proteins that provide the appropriate vitamins and nutrients, families become malnourished, with children and women being the most vulnerable. Children especially need an adequate diet for growth and development. Acute malnutrition results in significant weight loss or even death.
Chronic, or long-term, malnutrition, even at mild levels, can increase susceptibility to diseases like diarrhea, malaria, and measles. Chronic malnutrition contributes to the deaths of 6.5 million children per year around the world. Chronic malnutrition of children under two often results in stunting -- reduced height and permanently diminished physical and mental capacity. Stunting negatively impacts the health and productivity of current and future generations.

Feel free to visit this website to find out more info. or to sponsor a child in support of good health and happiness.

http://www.savethechildren.org/programs/hunger-malnutrition/hunger-and-famine.html

Issue In Education

WASL Graduation Requirements
The issue is all Washington students must take and pass a statewide assessment to meet graduation requirements. This also applies to Special Education students which is why I have strong opinions. Special Education students have to take their grade level test at least once to determine if they can meet standard or not. Some students qualify for the WAAS Portfolio but the majority of mine don't. If the student did not meet grade level standards than the next year the IEP team can determine which level test they need to take according to their ability level and they'll need to pass this to graduate. I have had to administer the tenth grade test to some of my students who are between a 3rd and 5th grade level. This is a humiliating process when you don't understand what is being asked in the test, much less being asked to write an answer. They try to pretend that they are working on it but they really aren't. My opinion is that we are wasting a year having them do the test that is not at their level. Just let them take their ability level so they can start working towards passing it for graduation so they can begin to feel a sense of accomplshment. There, I'm done standing on my soap box!
Let me know what your opinion is.
Karla
Here's the website with more info.
http://www.k12.wa.us/

Worst Job

I started working at age 13 doing babysitting and a paper route. It was easy to get into fast food jobs so that is where I worked for many years including A&W , Orange Julius, and yes McDonalds! I also worked at a hospital as a caterer and service attendant. The worst job ever was working as a housekeeper cleaning up after other people. Not only was it back breaking work and low pay, cleaning the toilets was so disguisting! After a summer of doing this I became the team leader and my responsibilities no longer required me to clean toilets. Hallelujah!!! I made the shift to working with children in the school setting when my first child started preschool by volunteering. She is 24 now. I have been working in schools since then. Including being a wife and a parent, being a teacher is and has been the most educational and rewarding job that I have ever done!

Vacation/Home Sweet Home

I haven't been to many places as far as vacations go. However, I have lived in many different places as a child with my parents and siblings including Dillon Montana the Big Sky Country, Ketchican Alaska, and Redding California. My husband and I and our children have also lived in some neat places. We lived in Priest River Idaho and Anchorage Alaska. One of my favorite places was Alaska. Not only is it beautiful country, we were able to see so much wildlife including moose that would be walking around town. Most exciting was to sit in our lawn chairs on the side of the street and watch the sled dogs race by at the start of the Iditarod in Anchorage! That was a thrill of a lifetime! It's clear to see that for most of my life I have lived in cold, snowy areas so I love to cross country ski, snowmobile, ice fish, and sled with my family and friends.

Achoo!

Unfortunately, I have been ill. I missed seeing all your smiling faces.
I hope that you're all healthy. Have a Great Week!
Karla

I have many hobbies but unfortunately I haven't had much time to enjoy them due to the fact that there aren't enough hours in the day. However, there's always time to curl up on the couch with a good book and one of my five cats and relax!! I love to read novels, autobiographies, decorating magazines, and children's books to my grandchildren. Reading is not only a form of relaxation for me, it is educational, motivational, and fun!!!

My Furry Friend!!

Wildcat Coffee-S.A.I.L.S

My teaching is always focused on preparing students for transition from school to work. The title says it all: S.A.I.L.S Program (Students Achieving Independent Living Skills). We have all been working hard to prepare our newly purchased espresso stand, Wildcat Coffee, for opening day. As part of the curriculum, the students recently took the food handlers test and everyone passed. Some students will receive a limited use card for working at our business only and others can both work in our business , as well as apply for a job in any food establishment. I'm so proud of them all and they're are proud of themselves too!!

Technology

It seems that I've always been a year or two behind on learning how to use the latest and greatest technology. By that time, there have been more technological advances and so I guess that I'll always have more to learn.
I have always been interested in how a document camera works. I've seen it used in a presentation and it looks so simple but very effective as a teaching tool. I would like to find out more about it and possibly write a grant to get one for my classroom because visual demonstrations are one of the most effective modes of teaching and learning.
I would also like to learn about and acquire a scanner so my students can scan their best works and include them in their job portfolios. This could be part of a grant also.
These technologies probably seem outdated to some of you, but I think that these things would prove to be most useful to me as a teacher and to my students.
Have A Great Day!!
Karla K.

Independent-Shopping

You can become more independent by shopping for your own groceries.


Fred Meyer
Safeway