Friday, May 26, 2006

You Call That A Firework?????




Just because we were talking about fireworks here are a couple on images from Chinese New Year in Macau last year. It was like showbag alley!!!!!!

My sister and I have fond memories of watching Dad have all the dangerous fun so you can imagine how we felt when we went down to the river to see the fire works driving away the evil spirits.
WE HAD TO HELP.
You all get a joss stick to light your explosives...just carry it a bit carefully among the stalls.
Choose about 10kg of fireworks for about $20.


Freak out Gran .... a lot.







Don't you just love the rockets propped up in the cardboard box...remember my 5 year old niece had a joss stick amongst it all.








She picked her own fireworks




We passed the "Children Below 13 years" section where you leave your kids to set off their fire works while you go to the grown up sections!!!!!
We didn't leave the Demon Spawn there to set off her incendiaries.


Hand held ground to air missiles!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

FABULOUS



Made in China

Lord Preserve Me

With the help of 2paw I designed a good little learning task to follow up the excursion . As I was only doing it with the grade 4s...(grade 5 are at sport on Friday ) I though ...No Problem. It is a bit fiddly but we'll be fine...just me and 14 kids.

LORD PRESERVE ME

In a nut shell...cut out 2 large circles, cut out a viewing window, draw the spots to put the pictures, join with a split pin so you can turn one piece revealing the tiny pictures and a simple describing sentence.
(At this point my imaginary husband would have been pretty darn handy. With 28 pieces of cardboard, scissors, tape, split pins, photos and glue he would have created a scrap book to rival anything Hi I'm Sandy Genovese (Austar 5.30 daily) could produce.
But I digress


I made an example at home and took it with me.
I made another example in front of them.....lots of excitement...all were very keen.
Then began what I like to call...puppy enthusiasm...all drool and out of control , oversized paws.

I will colour code some of the interactions. Welcome to my life.

Reading by colour...me in red , the kids in blue

Draw around a large round thing....a cup?...no a large thing....this cup?...NO a BIG round thing....can I borrow the cup next?..........

Only cut one window...but I've done 3....I'll just cut one more.

Only cut one window... I bags this window ( running to to door) ?????????

Find the middle for the pin...middle of what ( look around confused)

What/Where is a split pin?...box marked split pins wasn't a big enough clue!!!!!

Put your pics in order...no...dont just glue them down. ....think about the order..no...dont just glue them down..... NO DONT JUST GLUE THEM DOWN.

SIGH.
Go and get another copy of the pictures.

I've cut my pictures too small.....hands teacher pictures cut down to less than 1cm x 1 cm

Put an arrow to show which way to turn the picture circle......a number of stupid statements and actions- too many to type...#$^%*)(&&Y^%&^*&^*(^%$#%^##$#$%^$$&. Picture much re-cutting-re-gluing-re-writing-rerereripping off the incorrect sodding tags and re-chucking them in the bin.( oops...sorry
)

And so we soldiered on until every one had finished and until they put the headings on the front circle in a manner which in some cases suggested they did the lettering blindfolded and with fingers stuck together with sticky tape ( well.....more than a suggestion perhaps....I kind of stopped looking too closely by then)...they worked really well.

And the Grade 5s were impressed and a bit jealous that they had missed out. So did i say they could do it next week? After all that? Would anyone be that insane?
Yep...Grade 5s on Monday.

Lord Preserve Me

Monday, May 22, 2006

Ah..The Warm Fuzzy Glow Of Support

Thank you for your words of kindness(no I haven't sodding well finished my PT notes thanks very much!!!!!!) So nice to know I am not alone in thinking that my job may yet have reasonable limits asseptable (The Super Nanny version of the word) to others. They are teaching nose blowing and lace tying in Grade 1- what are the parents doing ....where will it end???? All the kids living at their teachers house I suspect!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I know it isn't everyone but out of 26 kids it only take 5 ( or in some cases fewer than that!!) to come from families leaving everything up to school and all the others have to miss out till they are tamed. I have always offered to let critics of teachers come to my class and teach for a day....I even offer to do the planning...maybe the new Minister will have a go. Not this year though. My class is pretty gorgeous.... remember they WANTED to go to the museum so it wouldn't be a fair example of a normal class. The potential for naughtiness lurks close beneath the surface though but $1000 worth of lego, Gourlays sweets, new software, a one and a half metre high dolls house and the new ICE AGE 2 board game goes a hell of a long way towards keeping a lid on undesirable behaviour. An expensive behavioural management technique but damn effective!!!!!!!!!

Also thanks to 2paw for the bells and whistles being added to my blog...make no mistake ..it isn't me making the clicky links and Avatars appear.....or even the photos . My contribution to the photos of muffins was the commando raid on the muffin and 2paws camera!!!!!!

I have a good excuse for blogging not PT noting . As I am the only family member still in Tassie it is obvious to my family that i am the one to try to get my cousin in England in touch with my Dad who arrived in London ( in how many pieces we don't know because the Cantankerous Old Sod hasn't rung anyone yet) yesterday at lunch time. Cousin Shrek is supposed to get COS train tickets to get to his place to watch the World Cup soccer but can't ring him to find out when he wants to travel etc. Of course it should fall on the only 2 people in the equation who actually have JOBS to sort it all out. So - here I am waiting to see if another cousin is on line and will email me with her sisters phone number so I can send it to Shrek so he can find COS and everyone will be happy (except COS who will be telling all and sundry that we are fussing over nothing because he wasn't lost.....he knew where he was all the time and he would have rung Shrek...eventually!!!!)
No ...dont worry..the chances of COS reading my blog are the same as me actually becoming the real Mrs MacGyver....or at this rate...the real Mrs ANYTHING!!!!!!!
So ...still waiting and blogging, and finding websites for a friends' kids home work.....what a good adopted auntie I am!!!!

Saturday, May 20, 2006

Not Rock n Roll...but Rant n Rave!!!!


Everyone relax...I am not still ferrying Preps to and from the toilets..the bus didn't leave with out me ...not that I think no one would encourage that to happen!!!!
Lots and lots went on this week and none of it in the least bit interesting.
I am still unsure of blog ettiquette...I know 2paw will blog whether she has anything interesting to say or not but is that true of everyone???? ( waiting to be hit with flying objects- he he he)
I have been feeding my class the occassional Gourlay's lolly -yes I am supposed to be supporting of the healthy eating policy that the government says is our responsibility but if you have ever seen me you will realize that I support the eating of everything policy...and think that what parents feed their kids( so long as it isnt poison,drugs, alcohol or my chocolate) entirely up to them. Why is what kids eat now teachers responsibility? (now we're off on a little rant...sorry) Why are we being made to provide hours of fitness and exercise at school out of the time that is really for providing the possibility of some education. No parent ever has asked me at parent teacher"is my child fit" but everyone wants ot know if they can read.write add and have friends. "can my child run a lap of the oval? " had NEVER been asked. Fitness an eating habits are a family thing...if you are concerned...get on with it, if not....carry on as you wish( with the usual caveat of poison etc.)
Anyway I did give them a barley sugar along with their maths test...barley sugar is good for sickness and and energy boost....just what some of them needed when faced with a page of equations and problem solving ( not very ELS....SO WHAT?????) Is feeding them lollies from the excursion considered follow up???? I guess at a push it linked maths with the trip!
I hope blogs are untraceable by the Ed Dept otherwise I might find myself sacked and lots of time to blog!!!!!!
Going to feed them the peppermint humbugs next week....bribery and corruption is the only way to get through all the reading tests now. I have topped up the prize box and will reorganise the seating arrangements, planned a new contract system...which they may or may not like, and I STILL haven't typed all my parent teacher notes. Guess what I should be doing right now......so off I go. Only got Literacy, Maintaining wellbeing and a general comment to write for every one!!!!! Since my entire family is away there isn't even a roast chicken dinner to distract me from the task...pity...I love to be distracted from such things.
Actually I am well on the way through Autumn on my 4 Seasons Quilt. Maybe I will just do the last 2 leaves and then do the notes....after starting Winter!?! I can see some late nights coming up before next week.
If I was one of my own students I would be saying " Just do it, the sooner you start the sooner you finish." But then again...................nuh!!!
Off to sew. ....there is a bottle of Porpherys and raspberry muffins (the recipe is here) investigate....I am maintaining my wellbeing!!!!.....and so the fires of procrastination consume the notions of work.
TTFN
Mrs MacGyver

Monday, May 15, 2006

Follow The Yellow Brick Road...to the toilet

Well we've been to Oz..and very nice it was too. I have been to school productions before and I have to say this was the BEST. The cringe-o-meter didn't go off once.
I have seen much much worse adult productions. Launcestion Players have some talent to recruit!!! Our Munchkins were terriffic and we could even tell who they were despite distance and makeup.
Our section of the audience were also terriffic. Although some of hte youger members could hve gone home at interval ...once everyone got to Oz they were happy but they managed to cope with another hour or so and someone only had to go to the toilet about every 25 seconds!!!! I managed to hold on...NO WAY I was using toilets after 100 children under the age of 8!!!!!
No work was achieved when we got back to school so Friday was all about Oz. NO spelling tests...and this is Wednesday and I still haven't caught up on them which burns my soul!!!!!
A weekend that can best be described with the words -soup-dinners- napping.
Big excursion on Monday. The class was sooooo good on Friday that I didn't have to leave anyone behind ar school which was good.
It was an excellent day. 2paw got to exersise her teacher muscles ...no they aren't a bit rusty...and the Principal got to be a helper too. No actual parent help (or parent hinderance) so everything was very ordered and calm.
I can highly recommend that everyone go and see Michael make lollies at the Gourlays factory near the Windmill. It is free and very interesting and we left smelling like giant raspberry drops....could be worse I guess.!!! The Grahame Base display at the Museum is great and I wish we had been able to spend all day at the Gun Powder Mill...I could think of tonnes of ideas but our time was limited. All in all I am almost sad that all my excursion budget is gone so this class can't go on any more excursions this year. Of course there was a group off to the Princess Theatre to sing in the competitions today and the Gd 5s have 5/6 sport so they aren't exactly trapped in the class room for ever more. They'll survive. I only go on Excursions if there is a high educational outcome and I am too worn out to think of any more now!!!! Parent teacher interviews coming up...loads to do for that . Probably should be working on my notes instead of blogging but as predicted it is a bit addictive and so I am doing this instead quite happily. I haven't emailed anyone in a couple of weeks. I can't bring myself to retype news...I think my family will just have to read my blog...although perhaps I will just cut and paste bits into an email for Mum...she wont be amused with the imaginary husband or drinking with the phone-a-friend ideas!!!!!!
Ok...biting the bullet....P/T notes are a must.....off to conquer the department online reporting system once more. Bring on the chocolate and vodka...it's gonna be a long couple of nights.
( Other advantages of imaginary husbands - when you really have to concentrate they don't turn up the telly, require assistance to find anything right there in front of them in the fridge or complain about how much time you spend on your job!!!!!!)
TTFN

Thursday, May 11, 2006

The Wonderful Wizard Of Blog

Guess where I am off to tomorrow.
I may need several pairs of red shoes since instead of going with civilized company I am going with my class!!!! Actually the whole school is going but I just have to worry about my 26...and I am SURE they will behave like angels...coz any one who doesn't won't be off to see the museum on Monday!!!!
I have staggered through this week not really able to predict what will be going on day to day but having nearly made it to Friday I am treating my self to a wee glass if red wine. Of course having no self restraint it will probably turn into a bottle but it is a long evening and I can pace myself!!!!
Before you start tut tutting about women with imaginary husbands who sit at home alone and secretly drink just hear me out.
A. It isn't a secret because I just told you
B. I will soon ring 2paw and then technically I will be drinking with her.

We often watch TV on the phone together ( just making my case sadder and sadder aren't I???)
We don't watch reality TV...is that better???
If I wanted reality I would go out and get myself a life!!!!!!!!
I am now going back to my previous posts and correct any mistakes I can find. I was re reading a bit of one before and I realised how annoyed I was at all the times a lower case i has been used. my picky teacher self isn't coping. Those things are laziness not pathetic typing although there is lots of that too.

In reference to the comment that I should take up knitting to drive 2paw mad.......who needs knitting??????????????

Sunday, May 07, 2006

d-d-d-d-d-d-d Under Pressure

OMGCB
So many comments...so much support for the eccentric loone!!!!!!!!
OK OK ....stop worrying every one. She was looking over my shoulder laughing when I was doing my first post. It is an old game...one we used to play in the staff room. I would be mean to her or about her and then she would report all the worried comments and looks ...much to our amusement. It isn't everyones sense of humour ....but it is ours!!!!!

I might be a visitor at a knitting coven some time since I have been sooooooooooooooooooo invited..maybe in September if I dont go away. I have met some of you at the market in York town Square but sitting down for chatting and a little lunch sounds good too. If ANY ONE starts marching in formation I am out of there!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I dont think 2paw could cope if I took up knitting...she has enough with finishing all my sewing projects and being my P.A. in general!!!!!!

And yes Suzi...Granny's Garden had a apple tree and a witch and a giant - you had to tell him you whated him to eat you to get to the next part of the adventure!!!!! and a VERY annoying theme tune that played every time you made a mistake and got caught by the witch ...and that was extrememly often with some kids!!!!


Imaginary husband are turning out to be surprisingly useful!!!! Funnily enough you ask them to put out the rubbish and it doesnt happen and you have to do it yourself.....just like a real live husband.....and divorce is very easy,stress free and cheap!!!!!! although Captain Archer and I might get back together!!!!


And just to finish off today...2paw is a lousy cook and the world slowest driver...she should have to wear a white hat to warn others!!!!!!


I am freaking out ....I am editing this page and people are already leaving comments....I might be slightly in melt down...is that a blogging disease????

the 4 seasons quilt

Friday, May 05, 2006

I hate my friend!!!!!!

Hello Everyone and welcome to my first post.
For those of you out there saying"no it isn't ...you already have one post"...here goes........
I have this friend...well I say friend but that is up for debate at the moment..well she decided I need a blog...technically I have no life but now I have a blog!!!!!!!
Let me go back to the beginning...we are going back, baaaack,baaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaak, to the wild and crazy 1990s.
I met 2paw at the school to which I was transferred ...(to skip the boring bits where I didnt know anyone and she was an eccentric loone - her class making their own board shorts and teaching them to march in formation in assembly...) I was very sensible and calm and so naturally we ended up finding out we both liked all things SCI FI and books and any way........
We taught together in a double unit and I was the computer expert.....she knew what one looked like. She could add and spell so we complemented each other quite well.
From the mysteries of how to load Granny's Garden ( go on ...la la the tune and it will be in your head all day) and Dread Dragon Droom she has become a blog master.
A few quotes from along the way....
That loaded quickly ..it only took 10 mins- a page of text
I dont need a computer at home ...there is one in the school library
user name???????? I already use my name
log in....where is the fire?????
all computer terms...followed by a question mark...
BUT now to the biggie.
She gets a computer and a horrible disease ( not related) ...and plays for endless hours on the net. BUT she won't go into chat rooms, leave comments, pay for anything...because she doesn't talk to strangers and I said all along that she would crack.....and SHE DID.
so ...say in a sing song way..."she has internet friends .... she has internet friends "
but sod it ...now I do too !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
so here I am in the wonderful world of blogging....from computer expert to sad nerd...all in less than 10 years...who would have thunk it?????

Thanks for all your welcoming comments...I will be making my secretary reply ....in due course!!! she has to be good for something!!!

Monday, May 01, 2006

Here you go then!!!

Have a blog, whether you like it or not!!
Love 2paw,
Harki-Parki-Parker-Posey and
Peri Naughty the Golden Labradors