The sky is the limit

To my "prodocencia"friends

2008-06-15T19:13:00.000-07:00

Hi there fellows. I miss you already. Our course at UFTM was amazing besides interesting, meaningful, useful and very enjoyable. Here I want to thank, again, the coordinators Virginia, Angela, Eduardo and all the staff. Let's not say good-bye, let's say: See you soon.

Workshop:Becoming a reflective teacher

2008-06-10T08:22:00.000-07:00

Workshop: Becoming a reflective teacher :6/6/2008
Presentation: Profa. Dra. Luciana M.Colucci – UFTM
Last Friday we were delighted in having Professor Luciana giving us a workshop about “becoming a reflective teacher”. It was very useful. We’ve worked on many questions like “What makes a good teacher”, talked and made many reflections on subjects like: “Don’t go on automatic! Focus and awareness is everything (Jean Houston), the importance of a regular reflection on teachers job and we had many discussions on a special issue “teachers roles”, when, during a lesson, teachers need to manage the activities and the learners in the classroom in different ways. These different kinds of behavior are called “teachers role”. Some roles teachers often use: Planner: prepares the lesson in detail before teaching, Informer: gives information about the language or an activity, Manager: organizes, make sure everything is running and sets up rules, Monitor: goes around checking learning, Involver: make sure everybody is participating, Parent/Friend: gives support when they don’t feel well, Diagnostician: recognizes difficulties, Resource: helps and gives advice. She gave us a message with a delicious chocolate bar that said”A journey of a thousand miles starts with a single step….Take the risk…(Calvin and Hobbes). Be positive, be enthusiastic on your career, she told us.
At the end of the lecture we were supposed to watch a movie ”Emperor’s Club”, where William Hundert, a retired "old-school" classic teacher is passionate about his subject. Moreover, he strongly believes in moulding his students by using principles. However, his methods are put to the test by a new student, Sedgewick Bell who shakes Hundert's controlled world and threatens to undermine all that he stands for. Hundert's challenge is to change this young man while maintaining his integrity.
We were given a task to find in this film some of different roles that professor Hundert plays. I could realize that he took many roles, all above mentioned and many others in different situations, always having in mind he was dealing with human beings. It was a wonderful film, a wonderful workshop. Very comprehensive, useful and very enjoyable. And professor Luciana is very capable, nice and sweet . Congratulations.

Freddom Writers (the movie)

2008-06-05T07:08:00.000-07:00

Hello everybody. I’ve recently seen an special movie that I would like to recommend:.The Freedom Writers Diary.It is the amazing true story of strength, courage, and achievement in the face of adversity. In the fall of 1994, in Room 203 at Woodrow Wilson High School in Long Beach, California, an idealistic teacher named Erin Gruwell faced her first group of students, dubbed by the administration as "unteachable, at-risk" teenagers. The class was a diverse mix of African-American, Latino, Cambodian, Vietnamese, and Caucasian students, many of whom had grown up in rough neighborhoods in Long Beach. In the first few weeks of class, the students made it clear that they were not interested in what their teacher had to say, and made bets about how long she would last in their classroom.
By fostering an educational philosophy that valued and promoted diversity, she transformed her students' lives. She encouraged them to rethink rigid beliefs about themselves and others, to reconsider daily decisions, and to rechart their futures. With Erin's steadfast support, her students shattered stereotypes to become critical thinkers, aspiring college students, and citizens for change. There is a Freedom Writers Foundation that uses innovative teaching methods to train teachers, in addition to providing scholarships for deserving students. Using the Freedom Writers Method, the Foundation actively addresses the problem with proven results in communities across the country.
Led by Erin Gruwell, with support from original Freedom Writers and other educators, the Institute is a year-long program centered on a five-day seminar designed to equip teachers with the innovative teaching tools they need to reach and empower their students.
I’m pretty sure you’ll like it and learn a lot besides having a good time of entertainment.

Let's have a pray to start our week?

2008-06-02T08:47:00.000-07:00

Our Father, who art in Heaven, hallowed be thy name;

thy kingdom come,thy will be done on Earth as it is in Heaven.

Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive our trespasses

as we forgive those who trespass against us;

and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. Amen.

Poem by Emily Dickinson

2008-05-27T11:05:00.000-07:00

The heart asks pleasure first
And then excuse from pain;
And then, those little anodynes
That deaden suffering;

And then, to go to sleep;
And then, if it should be
The will of its Inquisitor,
The liberty to die.

Emily Dickinson
(1830-l860)

Pre -Teaching Training Course-Technological Devices-Professor M. Nilce

2008-05-15T11:33:00.000-07:00

Technological Devices (May 9/2008 and May 16/08)
Professor Maria Nilce emphasized that nowadays we all belong to the hightech generation. We are indeed the digital generation. We're inserted in a world, surrounded by computers, notebooks, i-pods, dateshow, pen-drives, internet, i-boards and so on.
As she argues we have to keep in mind that tech devices are only tools to help teachers. When to use it or how to use it in benefit of students, teachers will provide the answer. This modern way of teaching and learning is a result of a natural process of evolution, although, sometimes, we find teachers who resist to change instead of to try to adapt themselves, to follow the natural course of this process in order to achieve success on practice. Conflict may be constructive when its effect is to introduce different methods or techniques to deal with teacher's routine tasks.Students have an aim (to learn)and they need a motivation to keep interested day-by-day. Hightech devices can mean a big and pleasant approach.
M. Nilce also pointed out that an approach is axiomatic, a method is procedural and a technique can be implemented.
However, it's necessary to use common sense about how and how much to use these sources because, although new h.t.device means more dynamic and appealing classes, teachers must be careful before putting this method into practice.
First of all teachers must have a dominion about what they are going to teach.Also
be confident and prepare the contents well and in advance.
Hightech can also represents a time consuming that requires a special attention.
Educators must find their own ways to teach keeping in mind that students also have their own ways of learning and that each one is different from another one and carries different needs, aims and motivations.

Enya-The Celts

2008-05-04T07:55:00.000-07:00

Pre -Teaching Training Course

2008-05-01T16:33:00.000-07:00

Following our PTTC meetings on Fridays afternoon, on April 25 we received professor Graça talking about Cultures all over the world. We have discussed about habits, the way of how society behaves. She told us the history of languages used in the past, like Latin, and French besides Portuguese and the way some languages tend to disappear through time. She also pointed out the importance of learning the English language nowadays,language used in the USA, mainly because of the economical power of that country.
According to recent date, 45% of the population in the world speak English. Professor Graça said that there is a very famous motto that says: "If you know English the world will be yours" , and asked : Is it correct or it seems to be an insulting?
After a long conversation about this subject she gave us some English Patterns Practices and made us to feel the importance of teaching Grammar associated with exercises and texts. We've made a lot of exercises adopting the repetition method and at the end of the lecture we were told to prepare an English lass.

Why to construct a blog?

2008-05-01T12:50:00.000-07:00

A blog give us our own voice on the web.
It's a place to collect and share things
that we find interesting,a personal diary
or links to web site that we want to keep
or to remember.It's a way to organise our
own thoughts, it's even a way to organise
our studies and our knowledge with
special friends or with people that we
have something in common.

Humanity Live - Scorpions

2008-04-23T09:26:00.000-07:00

Pre -Teaching Training Course

2008-04-22T13:43:00.000-07:00

Pre- Teaching Training Course + Workshop + Immersion

Finally a holyday to update my blog.
Regarding the PTTC I would like to make some comments about our meetings that I, unfortunately, didn’t have the chance to make it before.
After the opening by Denise de Paula from UFSCAR, presenting the lecture “Developing the foreign language teachers competence” in which she had the opportunity to tell us about her own experiences in this area, we had a Lecture by Maisa Fatureto “Beyound the limits”that showed us the importance of always keep our minds and eyes very open to improve our career according to the market needs. To keep the motivation up and never give up.
On April 4th it was Bia Pucci’s turn and she presented us a revision of many language structures, and many communicative activities as well. We have done a lot in such a little time. It was very useful and enjoyable.
On April 12th we received an enthusiastic and capable teacher Alessandra Masson. Fantastic afternoon. It was highly productive.
Immersion: I am speechless.Amazing. We’ve learned a lot, we’ve improved our communication skills and the atmosphere was great, full of joy and enchantment.
Note: The catering was remarkable!
On April 18th: Leila Maxwell started the lecture by using a warm up technique. After this we had a class about written and speaking production and the main points that teachers must look out in these forms of activities. We worked with a phonetic table, played some guess games and so on. It was interesting. Leila Maxwell is indeed a great teacher. “She’s a tough cook”.
By the way I would like to thank Virginia, Angela, Eduardo and the staff for the kind and warm reception. You’re great. Congratulations for this brilliant project.
CleoniceCB (Cléo)
Uberaba, April 22nd ,2008

If I can stop one heart from breaking

2008-04-20T14:25:00.001-07:00

If I can stop one heart from breaking
I shall not live in vain;
If I can ease one life the aching
Or cool one pain
Or help one fainting robin
Unto his nest again
I shall not live in vain.

Emily Dickinson (l830-86)
Complete poems

How to teach vocabulary

2008-04-19T13:00:00.000-07:00

Professor Jeremy Harmer reports that words are quite important. And why are them so important? Words are what a language is made of, their meanings, how they relate to each other. He says that we have a magic ability to twist their meanings sometimes and it make the language very fun. It's true. The more knowledge we have in this field, the easiest way to communicate ourselves, bigger is the possibility to make people to understand us. How to improve our range of vocabulary? There are many books focusing this subject, but according to Harmer vocabulary is more than merely lists. Meanings sometimes can change if our intention is to use it metaphorically, how they can be form, changing a noun to a verb, for example.
He believes that perhaps the best vocabulary exercises are reading and listening.
Students can learn vocabulary from many ways : by showing objects or pictures, listing a number of things in categories such as fruit, furniture, clothing, vegetable, by matching words with definition, through music and so on.
Harmer also point out that apart from teaching vocabulary, teachers should also help students to acquire vocabulary related skills, such as dictionary use and guessing strategies. I agree with him and I consider these points very important.

2008-04-16T18:29:00.001-07:00

Teaching Grammar

2008-04-14T11:34:00.000-07:00

Following the thoughts of Jeremy Harmer, grammar has always been a problem for language for both, teacher and student. He says that rules are always complex and interpretations are often highly controversial. Why is grammar such a problem?
According to Mr JH there are some guidelines for teaching grammar such as by giving the students what they want and need, trying to be sensitive to see some approaches to grammar that can interest students, motivating them by the use of some more attractive activities.
Another point is : Teachers need to know grammar. They have to know what they are talking about when they are asking the student.
Make it easier to talk about it, is another point. It is extremely important to be able to talk about grammar whether discussing problems with colleagues or helping students out with queries and problems . Its important to see that the terminology is used for guidance rather than for imposing rigid rules then everyone will find it usefull.
Another point : Being unafraid to say what you don't know. Grammar is such a large and complex field .It would be unrealistic to expect teachers who are not academic grammarians to carry all information in their heads. Another tip is : To know where to look for the information the teacher or the students need. Sometimes the textbook or our own knowledge will not give us most of the answers we are looking for. There are lots of good grammar books to refer to them frequently.
I agree with Mr. Jeremy Harmer that we need to evaluate each approach to grammar with a hint of scepticism always trying to make it easier to teach and to make, in the methods, the necessary changes.

Learning how to construct a Blog

2008-04-09T11:19:00.000-07:00

Hello my friends. Today Iam learning how to construct a Blog. Iam very happy indeed of doing this course in a very high level like this. Iam enjoying it very much. If you like the English language like me join the group and have fun while you are learning.