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I’ve been planning my cruise  — the Microsoft sponsored "game cruise" — which means I’ve been researching things like diet cokes and internet access.  It’s a good thing, because BOTH are expensive.  I was going to take my laptop, but there really isn’t a point, since internet access is at .65 a minute.  They have packages, but they don’t save much.  I’ll probably get the smallest package and then use it only to email family.  It will be weird to be so unconnected, but I’ll get over it.  They have an internet cafe so I’ll use that. 

I also need to remember to put my phone in flight mode — it will work on the ship, but my average data load would cost about $165 a day.  I’m going to see though, if I can get an international data rate for a short time, but I think the cruise rate is fixed even with an international data rate.

I can blog as I go and then upload everything while I’ll at the Miami Airport.

The other thing is diet cokes.  With my gastric reflux, the only beverage that tastes decent to me is diet coke.  Thankfully they have a soda package which costs abour $30.  I doubt I spend that much on diet cokes on a normal basis, but there are some days….

I’m not sure it would put it his way — but I’ve been running it for about 10 minutes and impressed.  I will warn — if you are the slight be dyslexic and I am when it comes to left and right, setting up will freak you out.

Synergy is eff’in the best program ever if you have multiple computers in one area like me!

Synergy in action

My husband works as the IT Top Gun in a small retail company here in Dallas.  Right now is crunch time — inventory.  Well, every once in a while, he gets tired and just can’t figure out computer stuff any more. Tonight, it was how to get to the Task Manger in Windows so he could shut down a process.  Well, if he pressed Cntl-Alt-Del he got the Task Manager for the computer at the house, not his office.  So, I played for a minute, couldn’t find it in the help, and it wasn’t set up like Lanschool (it has key strokes).

Did a quick internet search and it’s quite easy and simple — just click on Windows, Run, and type in Taskmgr.exe — yeah, simple, but then I haven’t been staring a computer screen for the last 12 hours.  Works in both Windowx XP and in VIsta, so it’s handy thing to know.

Keeps me from feeling like "just a teacher".

I really agree with this article, but with a different slant.  I’ll also admit I have never reached teacher burn out.  No matter what students I have, how many, or what I teach I’ve always found positives about the situation. 

Rowdy students haven’t ever been a real problem for me and most of the school officials have stayed out of my way in the past.  In fact, most of the time I can keep the parents happy but when I have been dissatisfied with the job I’m doing a parent has been in the way.

One of my favorite parents was a woman who regular wrote excuse notes for her kiddo — Johnny (not his name) missed class today because my car wasn’t working and I had to go to the doctor.  Did she consider dropping him off at school and picking him up later and using HIS car?  Weird. 

In fact, most of my problem parents make inappropriate excuses for their children, either in person or writing.

Quoted from http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/01/02/teacher-burnout-blame-the-parents/:

Teacher Burnout? Blame the Parents – Well – Tara Parker-Pope – Health – New York Times Blog

The stress of teaching is often blamed on rowdy students and unrealistic expectations from school officials. But new research suggests that parents may be the real culprit in teacher burnout.

I started reading this article and thought — and what is different about what they are doing and what my school was doing for years.  We still have a lot of those kids, but most of them ended up at the new school that uncrowded us starting two years ago.  At one point we had 57 different home languages.

It is VERY rewarding working with those students though.  Though difficult. I had a group of them in a portable, teaching them Algebra.  They would go through phases — one day cussing at each other, anothing day stealing packs, just lots of little nonsense.  I’ve got two in my computer science class, one who is doing extremely well. 

The bad part, and I grew up with this sort of problem — is that whatever cultural bias existed that cause their problems were not resolved automatically upon landing in the US.  If they hated another group back in their home country, they still hated them here, and we got refugees from BOTH sides.  And let’s face it, the "Irish" problem still existed in this country until very recently and was alive and well in the small town my parents grew up in (meaning the Protestant/Catholic problems).

I used to tell that to my fellow teachers and I don’t think they still got it.  But I was NOT allowed to wear Green on St. Patrick’s day.  We didn’t have to wear orange but we were NOT allowed green.

Quoted from http://www.nytimes.com/2007/12/25/us/25school.html?_r=1&hp=&adxnnl=1&oref=slogin&adxnnlx=1198548084-uoFq9Itu5J2X0Jgggs2ksg:

Georgia School Melds a World of Differences – New York Times

More than half the 380 students at this unusual school outside Atlanta are refugees from some 40 countries, many torn by war.

I really like Alfred Thompson’s blog at http://blogs.msdn.com/alfredth/default.aspx

Lately I’ve really made out like a bandit…

A few weeks ago he posted about a couple of workshops sponsored by Microsoft. Well, I decided to try the one in Vegas this summer.

And this week he posted about a game conference on a cruise in February. I’m registered and am getting ready to go.

Both are excellent deals — go read about them!

A lot of CS teachers want one. I would but need time too!

Quoted from http://www.engadget.com/2007/12/09/is-aibo-returning-from-the-dead/:

Is AIBO returning from the dead? – Engadget

Supposedly, AIBO is back… with a vengence.

Special Ed usually isn’t an issue for CS.  In fact, I have a special ed child in Computer Science that the Special ED department chair offered to take out, and he’s doing fine.

However, Web Mastering and Special Ed is something else.

I have a child in Web Mastering that refuses to read web pages.  I don’t know if she can’t read and won’t.  I honestly don’t care.  If a child is enrolled in Web Mastering they better be able to read before they get there because a) I don’t have to time read every single web page to a child, and b) what’s the point of being in a Web Mastering class if you can’t read.  Get the child to a reading specialist and fix it, especially since we are talking 10-12.

There are certain things I require a web mastering student to do before they can pass.  They are:

1. Send an email that is at least equal to my mother’s writing ability (not a very high standard, by the way).
2. Shop on the internet.  I would really like them to be able to comparison shop, but just finding something they can buy will do it this year.
3. Set up a power point with at least one slide telling me why they want to buy the object.
4. Set up a simple web page using HTML tags
5. Reduce the size of a digital photograph so it can be used on the web, crop that photograph, and combine images in one photograph with another.
6. Produce a simple web page using Dreamweaver.
7. Produce a simple navigation using Fireworks.
8. Produce a simple animation using Flash.

Vastly easier than what a regular student is required to do.

I really don’t think I am expecting too much.  They should at least try everything.  The fun part, is that most of the time, I find something in the above the child not only can do, but enjoys doing and does well.  Usually it’s shopping but oh well.

Right now, I’m going around and around with a Special Ed Coordinator who can’t wrap her head around the above requirements.  And hasn’t spent one moment in my room helping the child.  She wants ME to send the student with work to another room.  Sorry, that is not happening.  Software isn’t there, coordinator hasn’t gotten a clue, and we’re all better off in my room, as occasionally I can get the child to actually do something. 

I’m finally getting some of the things for my classroom from the STEM award.  Today I got Abode Create Suite 3 Web Premium which includes the latest versions of Dreamweaver, which I use ALL the time, and Contribute which I am testing now.

Yesterday, my NAS came.  Buffalo Terabyte and came with 700 gig.  It’s very nice and very easy to set up and use.

Getting all the new toys has been fun.

Well, I never "loved" the Commodore 64, but it did use them to teach Computer Math most of my first year of teaching computer science.  Interesting article.

In act, I’ve never really loved any piece of equipment and was happy to go to the next.

"There was something magical about the C64," says Andreas Wallstrom of Stockholm, Sweden.

Commodore 64 still loved after all these years – CNN.com