Afternoon Playing, a set on Flickr.
We set the camera up and let the pictures tell the story.
Via Flickr:
The Girl and I spend a day out of school together.
general
L with Papa
This Is A Test
It’s a delicate balance, making a test that is both challenging and yet not impossible. On the one hand, a good test measures how much students know. The flip side of that, however, is just as important: a good test also tells how well a teacher taught.
I found today’s exam did neither…
Counting Up Costs
When I was a kid, there was once a toy backhoe that I saw in a department stores -- I believe it was Sears back when Sears mattered -- that I wanted so badly I could think of nothing else at times. Every single time we were in the store, I had to head over to the toy department and look at it, handle it, play with it as much as was possible in its wrapping.
I can only imagine my torture if someone in my class had said backhoe, brought it to school, and wouldn't allow me to touch it.
The Girl finds herself in a similar situation. Of course it's not a backhoe; it's a Barbie camper. And she did have the awful situation of being able to see but not touch, of being able to watch someone play with it but not join in.
And so she decided there's only one way to solve the problem, given the fact that the answer to the questino, "Mama, Tata, can you buy me..." was "No."
Check the piggie bank and see how much she was short.
The End of the Season
Poles traditionally don't put up the Christmas tree until a few days before Christmas, as opposed to Americans, who seem to start getting ready for Christmas before Halloween. This is especially true in shops. On the other hand, Poles tend to leave their trees up until the end of January.
This late set-up, late pack-up habit undoubtedly comes from the Catholicism that permeates Polish society. Christmas day is only the beginning of the Christmas season, and accordingly, having the tree and decoration up during the season and not simply before it.
We work something of a compromise in our home: we decorate a couple of weeks before and keep it a couple of weeks after. Eventually, though, the time comes: we put on some carols for one last time and take down the tree.
The Girl, happy to have her dancing space back, spins in joy.
Early Sun
A couple of weeks ago, the sun came streaming through rare, early-morning fog to produce the most ethereal view in our neighbor’s backyard.
Helping
One of the reasons I so like taking L to the park is the adventure she has meeting new people. She always makes a new friend -- though they seldom even learn their names -- and sharpens her social skills.
Monkeying Around
Tough Lessons
Because one of my plugins broke with the upgrade to WordPress 3.3, I have to click over to Flickr and manually grab the code for each image I want to insert. In some ways, it would be easier simply to upload them directly to this site, but we use Flickr as a mastery back-up for our best photos -- the ones we absolutely don't want to lose -- so in the long run, it's worth the extra step. But it does mean some clicking: Click on the picture. Click on the "Share" button. Select the text and copy. Click to the new window -- you get the point.
Still, as far as sharing goes, this is fairly painless, because one of the hardest things to learn is the gift of sharing. I say "gift of sharing" as if it's something easy for me to do. It's not. I doubt it's easy for anyone in all situations. We all have this or that which we hang on to with clinched fists even when we aren't aware of how are knuckles are turning white.
For the Girl, it's Wawel's candy, "Kasztanki." L is simply obsessed with them. This is partially because of their rarity: they're not readily available in the South. (One might find them in Polish stores up north, but not down here.) Babcia sends them to the Girl on a fairly regular basis, but from time to time, she does run out, and then it's a period of slow heartbreak.
Tonight, we suggested that L share her favorite candy with Nana and Papa so they could see what all the fuss was about. Judging from her expression, one would think we'd asked her to give up a kidney or sacrifice her life. Eventually she relented, though not without a bit of persuasion.
I suppose we all take some persuading to share some things.
The Return to Reality
The return after a long break is both nerve-wracking and refreshing. The former comes from the unpredictability of fourteen-year-olds. The latter is a simple function of having a long period away from each other. As much as I like my students, it's good to be away from them from time to time -- to be around adults more than kids. (Well, having a five-year-old daughter, I'm not sure how much that's really possible.)
For everyone today -- teachers and students -- it seemed the "refreshing" won out. Far from being reluctant to return to studies, many students seemed positively eager to come back -- at least that was the feeling I got in my classes.
It was a good Monday, and often can one say that, especially after a long break?