Friday fashion report

Friday at my school is Free Dress Day, and nothing says "Free Dress Day" like a Mesut Ozil Real Madrid jersey...

...unless it's a counterfeit Mesut Ozil Real Madrid jersey. 

For Mesut Ozil's official website, click here.

For an unofficial Mesut Ozil website that has actual photos and information, click here.

For highlights of Mesut Ozil's 2011-12 season, watch the video below.

What is the plural of the word "haiku"? In any event, here are twelve of them about standardized tests, in the order they were written.

1.

Standardized testing

today at [insert name of school here*]--

I am very bored.

2. 

Administrators 

of standardized tests-- you're slaves

of standardized tests.

3.

All year long students

have prepared to take this test--

now they will take it.

4.

Someone had to cut

all the erasers in half--

test preparation.

5.

Inside students take

a standardized test; outside

the crows fly around.

6.

Standardized testing--

some kids are finished early,

some are still working.

7.

What I want to know--

who's responsible for all

these standardized tests?

8.

Making money and

boring kids halfway to death--

testing industry.

9.

The students are bored.

I am also very bored--

Day One of testing.

10.

Today is the last 

sesson of the [insert name of standardized test here**]--

can't wait to be done.

11.

Some students finished

the Math [insert name of standardized test here**] early--

I hope they did well.

12.

[insert name of standardized test here**] Day Four

is just as boring as all

the other days were.

*Must have four syllable

**Must have three syllables

Pictures of the Day-- Student protests in London

Not sure I quite understand this one...

Some of my best friends are poor.

I can't think of a response to this one.

For more on the protests, click here.

A basketball

This week I was teaching my fifth graders the difference between observations, inferences, and opinions. For practice, I had them write about an object they all know well-- a Baden Junior Official 110 basketball that the kids get to play with at recess. Here is a selection of their work:

I feel like I Love basket ball I Love to play basketball and that is my favorite sport. It fun to play basketball.

--C-P (girl)

I don't like people who invent basketballs. Basketball is a good sport. It looks like a face.

--M (boy)

its fun

wouldnt need one

better than soccer

looks kinda new

it needs different

colors

annoying sometimes

--C (girl)

Basket balls is tight! Basket balls is a good exercise. basketballs is popular.

--X (boy)

Basketballs can be play more likely outside., People play basketballs because it's entertaining

--A (girl)

basketballs is great

in philippines our sport

is basketball there

very fun to play with.

--A (boy)

soccer it better

--H (boy)

It's brighter than the

black stripes on it

It's fun

I wish I had one

It's darker than my pink nails

people love to play

with basketball

looks like an orange

It hurts when you get hit by it

--F (girl)

Basket balls are fun to play with. I like the feeling of the bumps. It's fun when you bounce it and it comes back to you. I like the prints on the basketball.

--A (girl)

Fun to Play with

Fun to throw

Fun to

bowl with

--J (boy)

I like basketball but maybe other people don't. Sometimes I think that basketball could get boring because you play it a lot. I think that is dirty. I think Football is way cooler than basketball. ugly, boring, fun. I mostly like playing Football than basketball.

--J (girl)

it's orange

and it smells

like mystery and

feels like tiny

thorns.

--J (boy)

boring ball

ugly ball

weird ball

Dirty ball

annoing

--H (girl)

basketball is somehow

better than other ball

basketball are fun lots

of people like or want

to play it.

--U (girl)

The students in my class are evil

This is what appeared on the whiteboard in my room the morning after Milan's 2-0 loss to Inter.

They wrote this despite the fact that I told them that I would give them a night off from homework if Milan won. In addition, several of them taunted me to my face. Needless to say, there will be an extra long, extra difficult homework assignment coming very soon.

Cartoon History of My Job: Can I go to the nurse's office?

What I have been reading lately #39

Blood, Sweat, and Tea: Real-Life Adventures in an Inner-City Ambulance-- by Tom Reynolds

Tom Reynolds (real name-- Brian Kellett) is an emergency medical technician in London. He writes a blog about his job. Some of the posts from the blog were collected and published in this book. The book was very entertaining.

The Class-- by Francois Begaudeau

Francois Begaudeau was a teacher in Paris who wrote a novel about his experiences. The novel was then turned into a movie. I liked both the book and the movie.

Lost and Found

This is the Lost and Found at the school where I work.  When students lose clothing and other items, the items are placed here.  Below is another view, this time from the side.  

We have a loss dog.

This email went out to the entire staff today:

Information is in the office if you find a tan & white boxer pit mix dog name is "Shady" the dog is friendly, we owners information in the office. Please report if seen and hold if possible. Hes a good boy and strong but sweet so speak gangly with him may jump up on you but just wants to kiss.

Update - later in the day:

The dog returned home on his own. So no more loss dog.

A training after work

Today at the John Stanford Center for Education Excellence, headquarters of the Seattle Public Schools, we learned about the following topics: high-leverage practices, summative and formative assessments, and the importance of pressing for justification. We also got to meet a man who was introduced as the mastermind behind assessment.

Back to work

Today summer vacation ended and I had to go back to work. All the teachers and staff at my job have a week of meetings before the students start to arrive on September 3. During today's meeting, we learned about the following exciting new concepts - loose coupling, the need to deromanticize leadership and teaching, and the PELP Coherence Framework. Later in the week, our agenda says that we will have some Polarity Management.

Fun at work #1

An email message from the school secretary:

If u here of a black lab running around the school, please let the office know immediately. We will call the dog's owner who is looking for him. The dog is friendly (but still has teeth) And loves children. The dog is wearing a red collar.