2008年12月31日 星期三
Happy New Year!--An Old Entry Re-posted
http://www.tiec.tp.edu.tw/lifetype/post/1130/19093
May everyone have a beautiful and happy 2009!
2008年12月30日 星期二
Keep Moving Up
"This is not the end of the game. Keep moving up. Things can go better."
To Losan (羅珊老師)
Thank you for visiting my blog, and the sweet words. You're always generous in encouraging others. Those who know you love you.
To Sandy (黃馨儀老師)
Thank you for the comments on my two entries.
I found you a great singer the day we encountered at Lungshan Junior High School. Besides, the enthusiasm you showed was really impressive. My intuition told me that you are a born teacher. Annie spoke highly of you.
2008年12月29日 星期一
Teaching Vocabulary
2008年12月28日 星期日
"Speaking Passport"--a Way to Get Students to Talk
Last Monday, after my speech at Lungshan Junior High School, I drove Ms. Hsin-yi Huang (黃馨儀老師), a teacher from Blessed Imelda's School (靜修女中), to the MRT station. In my car, she told me that her school has an English Day every week. On that day students have to bring their "speaking passport" and went to a teacher to tell him/her the answer to the question the school posed on the previous day, for example, "What did you do last Sunday?" so that they can have their passport stamped.
2008年12月27日 星期六
The Secret to Happiness
"The Secret to Happiness: Singing some songs when feeling nervous." This is the title of an article on the front page of today's United Daily News as follows.
2008年12月26日 星期五
About Poetry Recitation
Today I told Class 314 why I'd like them to recite the poem "The Road Not Taken" to me individually. I don't want them to learn English just to pass the tests, be they the mid-terms, the finals, the UEE, or even TOEFL.
2008年12月25日 星期四
Merry Christmas!
2008年12月24日 星期三
Happy Xmas
It is Xmas Eve. Merry Xmas!
Here is a song I'd like to teach students tomorrow but might not have time to. That's why I put the video on my blog for whoever wants to sing it. The title of the song is "Happy Xmas War Is Over," an anti-war song. It was written by John Lennon and his wife Yoko Ono.
Unit 11 in our textbook "The Cellist of Sarajevo" is about how the cellist Vedran Smailovic conveyed his outrage over war through music. This song can be used as a supplement.
2008年12月23日 星期二
Advice on How to Prepare for Biology on the SAT
http://mag.udn.com/mag/campus/storypage.jsp?f_ART_ID=167711
Advice on How to Prepare for Earth Science on the SAT
An article on how to prepare for Earth Science on the SAT.
http://mag.udn.com/mag/campus/storypage.jsp?f_ART_ID=167890
2008年12月22日 星期一
Thank you, Annie (詹麗馨老師)
Dear Annie,
This is a thank-you note to you. Thinking that I might be too tired to cook dinner tonight after going back home from your school, you prepared tonight's dinner and even tomorrow's breakfast and lunch for me:curry beef, curry fried rice, marinated bean curd, stir-fried ground pork, and weet soup. Thank you. After the speech, I drove home with a heart filled with gratitude. You're always like this, ready to take care of people around you. You're an angel.
A Talk on "Teaching English Through Songs" at Lunhshan Junior High School
2008年12月21日 星期日
To Someone
The following are the comments from "Someone" on my "Photos of My 2008-2009 Classes" and my response.
Advice on How to Prepare for Chemistry on the SAT
http://mag.udn.com/mag/campus/storypage.jsp?f_ART_ID=167627
Please read on if you cannot get linked to the website.
2008年12月20日 星期六
Advice on How to Prepare for Civics on the SAT
An article on how to prepare for civics on the SAT.
http://mag.udn.com/mag/campus/storypage.jsp?f_ART_ID=167510
If you cannot get connected, just read on.
To Varren
Another former student Varren (洪儷珊) also gave her comments on "Photos of My 2008-2009 Classes." Here are her comments and my response.
To Eric
My former student Eric (李鎮宇) left his comments on my "Photos of My 2008-2009 Classes." The following are his comments and my response.
2008年12月19日 星期五
Photos of My 2008-2009 Classes
These are the three classes I'm teaching now. They are all seniors. Each class is unique.
To Gara
To Bubble
The following are the comments from Bubble on "Teaching the Song "Whatever Will Be Will Be" and my response.
Advice on How to Prepare for Physics on the SAT
http://mag.udn.com/mag/campus/storypage.jsp?f_ART_ID=167278
學測考前衝刺系列》物理 歷屆考題算3遍
Advice on How to Prepare for Geography on the SAT
Advice on How to Prepare for Geography on the SAT
Advice on how to prepare for geography on the SAT:
http://mag.udn.com/mag/campus/storypage.jsp?f_ART_ID=167044
Or read on in case you can't get linked to the Net.
學測考前衝刺系統》地理 一定會考地圖
2008年12月18日 星期四
Teaching the Song "Whatever Will Be Will Be"
Seeing that many students are in distress after the mock exam, I decided to teach them the song, "Whatever Will Be Will Be." In fact, last night, I had intended to teach them "Hero;" however, I changed my mind after Se-heng sent me a text message after hanging up the phone telling me her favorite song was "Whatever Will Be Will Be." It was the happy tune of the song.
2008年12月17日 星期三
如何準備學測及指考英文--鄭思恆學姐的經驗談
如何準備學測及指考英文--萬修安學姐的個人經驗談
The 2nd mock exam was over this afternoon. It means that the SAT is just a few weeks away. Tonight, I called and asked Miranda, a former student who is majoring in English at National Central University, for her advice on how to prepare for English on the SAT and the UEE. Miranda got a 14 ranking score in English on the SAT and a 93.xx on the UEE. The following is her advice:
Advice on How to Prepare for History on the SAT
An article on how to prepare for history on the SAT:
http://mag.udn.com/mag/campus/storypage.jsp?f_ART_ID=166816
學測考前衝刺系列》中國史、世界史 要加強
2008年12月16日 星期二
Advice on How to Prepare for math on the SAT
http://mag.udn.com/mag/campus/storypage.jsp?f_ART_ID=166640
Also, in case you can't get connected, here is the article:
學測考前衝刺系列》數學 留意時事+觀念題
An Inspiring Blog--Xuite 日誌
This is a blog you would like to visit for some inspiration. It is kept by Mr. Pei-kang Hsu (徐培剛先生). Reading it and knowing what somebody is doing for everybody will bring you strength to move on. When you're at a crossroads in life, it might help you in the decision-making. Make sure you visit it once in a while.
2008年12月15日 星期一
Advice on How to Prepare for Chinese on the SAT
This article provides tips on how to prepare for Chinese on the SAT. It is also available on the webpage: http://mag.udn.com/mag/campus/storypage.jsp?f_ART_ID=166423 學測考前衝刺系列》國文 多看名家作品 |
Tips on Writing the SAT Composition
In the following article are some tips on writing the SAT composition. You can also visit the webpage:
http://mag.udn.com/mag/campus/storypage.jsp?f_ART_ID=166340
學測考前衝刺系列》堆單字套公式 作文難拿分
Advice on How to Prepare for English on the SAT
http://mag.udn.com/mag/campus/storypage.jsp?f_MAIN_ID=12&f_SUB_ID=611&f_ART_ID=166339
2008/12/14
學測考前衝刺系列》英文 熟背5千字
2008年12月14日 星期日
How Long Hasn't Your Heart Leapt Up?
Words from Albert Einstein:
“There are only two ways to live your life. One is as though nothing is a miracle. The other is as though everything is a miracle.”
I came across this in the December issue of Reader's Digest. This reminds me of William Wordswoth's poem “My Heart Leaps Up When I Behold.”
2008年12月13日 星期六
A Touching Video: Chile's Highway Hero Dog
This surveillance video touched hearts worldwide. On a busy highway in Chile, a dog ran the risk of losing his own life in attempt to rescue his canine buddy by draggin it to the side of the highway. The poor dog which had got hit did not make it, though.
2008年12月12日 星期五
Students' Compositions: Apology Letters (SAT 2008)
On the 2008 SAT, the examinees were asked to write an apology letter.
2008年12月11日 星期四
She is really in love with English
Pei-ling (陳培玲), a student in Class 310 was the first one to recite to me the whole poem "The Road Not Taken." To my surprise, she later even memorized Hemingway's "True Nobility." Today, after reciting it to me, she asked me to give her another great article. I first thought of "General MacArthur's Prayer for His Son." Pei-ling is a science major, but it seems that she has been much engrossed in English recently.
2008年12月10日 星期三
My Assignment for Tonight
1. Grade 310 compositions. (Thankfully, I have finished two-thirds in school this afternoon.)
2008年12月9日 星期二
How to Prepare for English on the SAT--過來人的話
Today, Sun sent me an email answering the question I posed the day before yesterday: "How did you get the highest ranking–15–in English on the 2008 SAT?" With her persmission, I posted her mail here, in the hope that some students will benefit from the answer:
陳 桑 to me show details 7:51 AM (11 hours ago) Reply
2008年12月8日 星期一
Reading Assignment
Last Friday before I handed out two stories to a class so that they could read them on the weekend, I asked the students how many of them had read Obama's winning speech, which I handed out three weeks ago. As expected, I saw only a few hands up.
2008年12月7日 星期日
To Sun
Thank you for the comments. Hmm, I can imagine your sweet smile when seeing the concluding sentence in "The Buzz of a Mosquito." :)
BTW, would you please answer the following question:
How did you get the highest ranking--15--in English on the 2008 SAT?
Your experience will be of great help to many high school students. Please feel free to answer in Chinese. After all, what's important is to get your message across.
To Der-chen
My 314 student Der-chen made comments on the entry "Teaching 'The Road Not Taken'" in verse form as follows. After that is my response.
Re:Teaching ["The Road Not Taken"]
What a spectacle [it] is.
A Teacher is A Teacher always.
I can`t touch the sky,
so I leave with a sigh.
Posted by Der Chen.Lin at 06/12/2008, 20:28
Dear Der-chen,
What Those Highest SAT Scorers Have in Common
An article in the United Daily News dated Dec. 5 was about the common behavior of 8 examinees who scored highest on the SAT. It was a study done by an NTU student. Quite interesting.
http://mag.udn.com/mag/campus/storypage.jsp?f_ART_ID=164449
According to her study, the 8 highest SAT scorers take a nap, love reading and writing, and exercise regularly.
If you have difficulty getting linked to the webpage, just read on.
2008年12月6日 星期六
Teaching "The Road Not Taken"
Then we started our contact with the poem.
2008年12月5日 星期五
The Buzz of a Mosquito
Now I'm feeling very sleepy because I slept for only one or two hours last night. A mosquito kept buzzing around my ears. Though trying to imagining it talking to me, I just couldn't take the buzzing as sweet whispers. And whenever I turned on the lights and sought for it, it got out of my sight. The buzz of mosquitoes is really something unbearable to me. How I wish all mosquitoes went to bed at night, too!
Good night.
2008年12月4日 星期四
A Celebration of Perseverance
Today I celebrated my 1st blog anniversary by giving each of my students a piece of chocolate. I should have celebrated yesterday; however, yesterday I could only met two classes, 310 and 313. In order not to leave Class 314 out, I had the celebration today.
To Annie
Thanks for the encouraging words. It is you that inspired me to keep a blog of my own. Remember that you started your blog much earlier than I? I believe that in the blog there is the spirit of sharing.
Sorry that I usually keep my blog late at night. There are so many things at hand to tackle every night, you know.
Your blog is also a valuable trove for teachers. In there we can find your love for your students, teaching, and books. I also enjoy reading your blog.
Thank you for being my friend.
2008年12月3日 星期三
My 1st Blog Anniversary
Today is my 1st blog anniversary. I learned blogging on December 3, 2007 for the first time at Ching-mei Senior High School (景美女中). It was a Monday afternoon. The instructor were Mr. Yi-chieh Chen (陳怡杰老師) and his lovely wife Ming-hsuan (明璇老師). Then we had our 2nd class on December 17.
2008年12月2日 星期二
A Smiling Sky
This evening one of the TV news reports presented a smiling sky. Then I went out searching for it, only to find a few stars twinkling in the dark night.
Visit this webpage, take a look at the smiling sky, and smile. :)
http://blog.roodo.com/magthepig/archives/7746449.html
To Sandra from Taipei County
Re:What Good Does Keeping a Blog Do?
Dear June,
It's really a pleasure to read your blog. Thank you for being such a diligent blogger that I can learn from your entries on a daily basis.
By keeping blogs, we English teachers can reflect on our teaching, share our experiences, and learn from each other. Therefore, blogging for me is also a good way to facilitate teachers' professional development, particularly when we have role models to follow, just like you.
Dear Sandra,
2008年12月1日 星期一
What Good Does Keeping a Blog Do?
This afternoon, we English teachers had a meeting. During the meeting, the chairperson Ms. Chang (張倚鳳老師) asked if anyone could share with all the teachers what they learned at any recent workshop. Melody (陳美麗老師) said something about last Monday's speech, the one on how to guide high school students to write a good English composition. She mentioned many good points. Then Ms. Chang asked if anyone would like to say more about the speech. To share what I learned, I raised my hand and invited the teachers tor read the notes I took in my blog.
The following are the comments from Hsiao-fang on "Still more reading lists for high school freshmen" and my response.