Tuesday, April 14, 2009

reflection;
1)One time I used the redirection response was in science class when we were learning how to fill out science lab books. After the first assignment I was very disappointed in the minimal answers and thought that the students put into their work. When I handed them back I was apologetic to them about the misunderstanding we had between us. I explained, using modeling, that their assignments needed to be more complete and thorough. We worked through the assignment together and I explained that I would not hold the poor grades against them as this was a learning experience. I showed them exactly what was expected. Overall the lab books were turned in with much improved results. I think the response worked because none of them felt they were 'bad' or had done very poorly on the task-they were given another chance. This worked for most of the students who were at least minimally motivated to do school. I think it gave hope that they could do better to improve themselves and their grades.

2)For the negative result I am thinking of student that we have been trying to reach all year. He is habitually truant. He has missed more than half of the school days so far. All four responses have been used to no avail. The neighborhood police officer now stops by his apartment to bring him in but he rarely show more than 2 or 3 days in a row. He is a smart kid but obviously involved in outside activities that hold more power over him than the desire for an education. It is saddening and frustrating to see him making choices that are unhealthy. In the beginning of the year I would pull him aside and congratulate him when he was there on time -or at all-but the result was the same. We talked to him about other consequences that he might incur. Nothing. I am not one to give up, but I don't know how I would do anything different the 'next time'. I don't know,

Sunday, April 12, 2009

Resilience at its best. The story was uplifting and inspirational. The emotional upheaval of having a child with needs as severe as Rick's had to have been a psychological roller coaster for those parents. The hopes and dreams they had for their child had to be readjusted and refocused many times. The entire family possess a strength in character and resolution that most humans do not attain.
This is also a good example of not to judge what is on the inside by what is showing on the outside. Our human reactions tend to lead us to the first explanation or thought we might have.We need to be less judgmental.'Do not give up' - is a recurring message throughout their experience. The hope theme is strong and lifts the reader to improve their own outlook.

Wednesday, April 8, 2009

Imagine

Imagine what you CAN do when you are inspired!!
Please read the following article and watch the video clip and reflect and share.

[From Sports Illustrated, By Rick Reilly]
I try to be a good father. Give my kids mulligans. Work nights to pay For their text messaging. Take them to swimsuit shoots.
But compared with Dick Hoyt, I suck.
Eighty-five times he's pushed his disabled son, Rick, 26.2 miles in Marathons. Eight times he's not only pushed him 26.2 miles in a Wheelchair but also towed him 2.4 miles in a dinghy while swimming and Pedaled him 112 miles in a seat on the handlebars--all in the same day.
Dick's also pulled him cross-country skiing, taken him on his back Mountain climbing and once hauled him across the U.S. On a bike. Makes Taking your son bowling look a little lame, right?
And what has Rick done for his father? Not much--except save his life.This love story began in Winchester , Mass. , 43 years ago, when Rick Was strangled by the umbilical cord during birth, leaving him Brain-damaged and unable to control his limbs.
"He'll be a vegetable the rest of his life;'' Dick says doctors told him And his wife, Judy, when Rick was nine months old. ``Put him in an Institution.''
But the Hoyts weren't buying it. They noticed the way Rick's eyes Followed them around the room. When Rick was 11 they took him to the Engineering department at Tufts University and asked if there was Anything to help the boy communicate. ``No way,'' Dick says he was told. ``There's nothing going on in his brain.''
"Tell him a joke,'' Dick countered. They did. Rick laughed. Turns out a Lot was going on in his brain. Rigged up with a computer that allowed Him to control the cursor by touching a switch with the side of his Head, Rick was finally able to communicate. First words? ``Go Bruins!'' And after a high school classmate was paralyzed in an accident and the School organized a charity run for him, Rick pecked out, ``Dad, I want To do that.''
Yeah, right. How was Dick, a self-described ``porker'' who never ran More than a mile at a time, going to push his son five miles? Still, he Tried. ``Then it was me who was handicapped,'' Dick says. ``I was sore For two weeks.''
That day changed Rick's life. ``Dad,'' he typed, ``when we were running, It felt like I wasn't disabled anymore!''
And that sentence changed Dick's life. He became obsessed with giving Rick that feeling as often as he could. He got into such hard-belly Shape that he and Rick were ready to try the 1979 Boston Marathon.
``No way,'' Dick was told by a race official. The Hoyts weren't quite a Single runner, and they weren't quite a wheelchair competitor. For a few Years Dick and Rick just joined the massive field and ran anyway, then They found a way to get into the race Officially: In 1983 they ran another marathon so fast they made the Qualifying time for Boston the following year.
Then somebody said, ``Hey, Dick, why not a triathlon?''
How's a guy who never learned to swim and hadn't ridden a bike since he Was six going to haul his 110-pound kid through a triathlon? Still, Dick Tried.
Now they've done 212 triathlons, including four grueling 15-hour Ironmans in Hawaii . It must be a buzzkill to be a 25-year-old stud Getting passed by an old guy towing a grown man in a dinghy, don't you Think?
Hey, Dick, why not see how you'd do on your own? ``No way,'' he says. Dick does it purely for ``the awesome feeling'' he gets seeing Rick with A cantaloupe smile as they run, swim and ride together.
This year, at ages 65 and 43, Dick and Rick finished their 24th Boston Marathon, in 5,083rd place out of more than 20,000 starters. Their best Time? Two hours, 40 minutes in 1992--only 35 minutes off the world Record, which, in case you don't keep track of these things, happens to Be held by a guy who was not pushing another man in a wheelchair at the Time.
``No question about it,'' Rick types. ``My dad is the Father of the Century.''
And Dick got something else out of all this too. Two years ago he had a Mild heart attack during a race. Doctors found that one of his arteries Was 95% clogged. ``If you hadn't been in such great shape,'' One doctor told him, ``you probably would've died 15 years ago.'' So, in a way, Dick and Rick saved each other's life.
Rick, who has his own apartment (he gets home care) and works in Boston, and Dick, retired from the military and living in Holland, Mass. , always find ways to be together. They give speeches around the country and compete in some backbreaking race every weekend, including this Father's Day.
That night, Rick will buy his dad dinner, but the thing he really wants to give him is a gift he can never buy.
``The thing I'd most like,'' Rick types, ``is that my dad sit in the chair and I push him once.''


"Praise Progress It's A Moving Target"

"Praise Progress It's A Moving Target"

The A B C's of Performance

A= Activator
What Gets Performance Going

B= Behavior
The Performance That Occurs

C= Consequences
Your Response to the Performance

4 Kinds of Responses

1. No Response
2. Negative Response
3. Redirection
4. Positive Response


Reflection

1) Please describe a time that you used one of the above 4 responses and the long-term outcome what positive. Why do you feel that this response worked?

2) Please describe a time that you used on of the above 4 responses and did not get the long-term results that you wanted. How would you do it differently next time?

Tuesday, March 31, 2009

Whale Done--Chapter One

"I've always thought that people need to feel good about themselves and I see my role as offering support to them, to provide some light along the way."

Leo Buscaglia


In our text Whale Done--The Power of Positive Relationships read the introduction and chapter one. Reflect on the chapter and make a connection to our education system--how are our philosohies different or the same. These connections may be within your classroom or school.

  • Do we accentuate the postive?
  • Build trust?
  • What do we do when mistakes occur

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On-line Articles

Your books have been sent out and should be arriving. I apologize for the delay.

Please click on the following links below and write your reflections and AHAs (Ideas that made you think of say AHA). Please also respond to one AHA from another student.

Wednesday, March 25, 2009

Welcome/Introductions

Introductions--Attitudes the Difference

Please introduce yourself to the rest of the class by answering the following questions:

1) Your Name

2) School/City

3) Grade level and subject that you teach

4) What hobbies do you have that create laughter and joy in your life

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