Whhheeeeeee! Crazy Day!

Today was a marathon day; suitable lead in to a marathon weekend.

6:00am - Rise and shine
6:50am - Gas up the car
7:00am - Get on the 5N heading to Anaheim. Disneyland area.
8:00am - Arrive at the CATE Conference, after wrestling with traffic for an hour. 37 miles, 58 min.
8:00am-2:00pm
I am attending the CATE Conference in Anaheim for the weekend. Today was a Pre-convention option with the California Writing Project. First the keynote speaker Linda Darling-Hammond spoke about teachers and the role we play in the classroom as leaders, role models and teachers. One thing she said that I took note of: "As we share our experiences, we are changed by that and become and become broader in who we are."

Afterwards the group went to break out sessions. I choice a session on using primary sources in the classroom. Unfortunately, this workshop was a flashback to some of the bad workshops I attended at the NCTE last October. The presenter basically showed the audience the Library of Congress website and talked about how she uses it to teach about the Japanese Internment Camps in California during the war. Not that this session was completely useless; it's just that I began using that site about 3 years ago while in the teaching credential program. Luckily I was sitting next to an hilarious guy, so we had fun amusing ourselves.

After the session it was time for a big lunch with an even bigger soft, fluffy, round, chocolately, filled with mousse, and layers, and layers of tasty stuff. :) A second keynote speaker, Dr. Ernest Morrell spoke about "Linking Literacy and Popular Culture: Finding Connections for Lifelong Learning" (also the name of his book). He then shared his experiences and research with pop culture. He was an excellent speaker with a great story.

After the speaker I had to leave early because tonight was Parent Conference night at my school. I had parents of 13 of my students show up. I actually enjoy these nights. I like chatting with parents. I love how they check out my room--my room is cool :). I also like to put the kids who aren't doing their best on the spot in front of their parents, guardians, siblings. A couple of my kids were there with older siblings because their parents weren't available. One of my kids had a brother who, years ago, would have so been my type. I was cracking up inside!

Parents seem to like me. One of my Armenian student's mom asked me what perfume I wear. I thought, "what an odd question". I thought maybe she owned a shop. But, it ends up she just liked me and wanted to buy me a gift of perfume. She kept asking me my favorite scent. I finally told her something that is more natural or vanilla scented. :) Another mom, from El Salvador, said that the next time they make Pupusas (A Salvordoranean version of a quesadilla or pita with cheese and herbs)she would bring some to me. A couple parents said that their kids say mine is the only class they like. I think it's because I'm cool and easy. But hey, maybe they are actually LEARNING something. Overall it was a successful and positive night.

8:00pm - I finally arrived home after stopping for Thai take-out on my way. Once home I really really needed to rest. Now it's 9:30 and I still need to wash dishes, pack for two nights, and sleep. Wish me luck!

Friday, Saturday and Sunday I'll be attending the CATE. Friday I will take "Intertextuality: Leading Students to Deeper Reading", "Preparing Students for High Stakes Writing", and "Teaching Writing from the Margins: Responding Effectively to Students' Texts".

Additionally there's a session for new teachers where I heard we are getting lots of free books and stuff :) The coordinator of the convention happens to be a teacher at my school so she told me about the freebies.

AND FINALLY...I'm GOING TO DISNEYLAND!! Yup, Friday evening's event is serious academia people. :)