J-K Chronicles

December Reading List

2012-01-17T00:10:00.002-06:00

27. North by Northanger by Carrie Bebris - adult - P&P continuation mystery. This has a fun twist with Darcy's mother Lady Anne Darcy in it and you get to meet the newest Darcy.

28. The Matters at Mansfield by Carrie Bebris - adult - P&P continuation mystery. My favorite in the series! Anne de Bourgh escapes her mother, some characters from Mansfield Park make an appearance, and you get to learn a lot about Regency guns.

29. Clementine and the Family Meeting by Sara Pennypacker - middle grade - Clementine returns in a fun story about how change can affect a family. I think Clementine is this generation's Ramona.

30. Bluefish by Pat Schmatz - young adult - This was recommended by the CCBC according to my school librarian. For me, it was just ok. Some fun connections with other books, but lots of characters making questionable decisions. Overall a bit of a downer to read.

31. 39 Clues: Cahills vs. Vespers: A King's Ransom by Jude Watson - middle grade - LOVE this series almost as much as the first one! Amy and Dan continue on their mission to outwit Vesper One and free their relatives. Great assistance from some Cahill cousins and some intriguing information about their father.

32. Memory Book One by Linda Wells - adult - P&P what if book - Christmas vacation re-read treat

33. Memory Book Two by Linda Wells -adult - P&P what if book - Christmas vacation re-read treat

34. Memory Book Three by Linda Wells - adult - P&P what if book - Christmas vacation re-read treat

35. Bigger Than a Breadbox by Laurel Snyder - middle grade - Another highly recommended book that just didn't do it for me. The main character is dealing with her parents separation and possible divorce, along with a relocation to grandma's house in another state. She finds a magic breadbox that will give her anything she asks for that will fit inside of the breadbox. However, she doesn't think about WHERE those things are coming from...which leads to a lot of complications.

A Day in the Life of...

2012-01-16T22:31:00.005-06:00

I'm Julie and I teach 5th grade in WI. So, my teaching blog is really just my weekly newsletter to parents, which wouldn't work well for this activity! So I'm going to use my personal blog, which has been somewhat neglected of late.

I have loved seeing everyone's days and wanted to share my own.

Every day my schedule is a little different, so I picked Wednesday to share since it is my day with least amount of prep and the day with the craziest family schedule!

1:30 am - Wake up on oldest daughter's floor, go put on jammies, pee. Either crawl in bed with hubby and littlest daughter (getting less than 1/3 of the bed), or go and sleep in littlest daughter's bed.

4:30 am - Woke up by husband when he gets in the shower. Switch to our bed if sleeping in littlest's room to keep her from rolling out of bed.

5:45 am - Wake up again either from littlest tapping my cheek to wake me up, or from hubby coming in to get her up for breakfast. Listen to news while trying to find the energy to get out of bed.

6 am - Take over prodding oldest to get out bed, pee, teeth, shower, straighten or blow dry hair. Quick pick out something comfortable to wear that is clean and somewhat matching!

6:20 am- Haul the oldest out of bed, grab the littlest and get her dressed. Brush her teeth and barette the super long bangs out of her face. Badger the oldest to eat.

6:30 am - Toss some cereal in a bag to eat on the way to daycare & school, pack a lunch, gather my school bag together from where I left it when I put the oldest to bed and fell asleep on her floor. Remind the oldest about the time and packing her dance bag.

6:45 am - Trade off with the hubby putting the littlest in snow gear and helping the oldest find all her needed items for school and/or reminding her that the bus comes in five minutes. Hopefully leave for daycare by 6:50.

6:50 am - Drive to daycare, about 15 minutes if I hit all green lights. Usually more like 20 minutes.

7:10 am - Drop littlest at daycare - pray I get there before my provider has to leave to take her kids to school at 7:15. Drive three minutes to work

7:15 am - Walk in building, check mail, lunch in fridge, unpack, start technology, check lunch menu, write morning directions. Hopefully check school email before kids arrive.

7:40 am - First bell lets kids into school. Start taking lunch count, redirect a few kiddos to completing morning directions.

7:50 am - Tardy bell - enter attendance and lunch in the computer. Review any schedule changes for the day. Kiddos finish morning work.

8 am - Prayer/Pledge/Birthday announcements

8:05 am - Math - correct homework, review trouble problems. Intro new concept, demo problems, small group work, discuss. Assign differentiated homework, individually modify for a few more. Circulate during work time or work on carpet with small group if lots of questions.

8:45 am - snack/read aloud

9 am - Reading - Silent reading of own book, try to get some conferencing in with individual students - so far not doing such a great job of that! Large group instruction of a reading concept, small group reinforcement - assign homework, usually read - sometimes worksheet or response activity. Remember to send small group to learning resource at 9:30.

9:45 - Language - review grammar concept/correct homework. Check in on writing status. Work on writing project (currently research reports). Explain/review what we are doing to small group returning from learning resource. Circulate, reinforce guidelines, answer questions. Remind of goals/expectations for next writing day (Monday). Get a teacher with a free period to babysit for two minutes while I pee.

10:45 - Spelling - take unit test - monitor students not taking test because took with tutor/learning resource. Introduce new unit. Review/reinforce rule or concept of unit. Look over directions to highlight any that are unusual.

11:15 -Pray, pack up for science, get outside gear on, line up, walk through lunch line, check off on computer (hope it works). Check mail, go eat. Check email. Pee.

Noon - Let the kids in the locked door from recess. Supervise in the hallway.

12:05 - Social studies - Check in with non-homeroom class on absent students. Review concept/correct homework. Set up for notes, reading, discussion, or activity with the class. Teach lesson. Remind of weekly homework due on Thursday. Send to homeroom, meet my homeroom in hallway - walk to computers.

12:45 pm - Prep - Breathe, pee, check email. Respond to emails and phone calls. Organize papers. Run out of time.

1:15 pm - Check office mail when I pick up homeroom from computer lab. Teach religion.

1:45 pm -Repeat the social studies lesson from earlier in the day with homeroom. Hopefully don't leave out anything!

2:30 pm - Dismiss bus riders only. Everyone else should be working on homework or reading - usually not very quietly. Try to get homework on assignment board and website.

2:40 pm - Dismiss everyone else. Follow them out the door. Drive 20 minutes to pick up oldest at her school.

3:10 pm - Pick up oldest. Listen to info about her day. Drive to dance class.

3:40 pm - Keep oldest company until her class starts at 4. Make a plan for dinner and homework.

4 pm - Go back to school. Set up for Thursday. Grade papers or plan for next week. Make copies. Check email, surf the web.

6:30 pm - Pick up oldest at dance. Grab dinner. Drive home.

7 pm - Eat dinner, get oldest started on homework. Check in with hubby, cuddle with littlest. Check in on oldest's homework. Finish my grading/planning/prep. Maybe surf the web.

8:30 pm - Start getting the oldest to bed. Sneak in quietly to get on jammies since hubby and littlest are asleep in our room. Snuggle with oldest, planning to get up and finish school work. Fall asleep.

1:30 am - Wake up on oldest's floor....

November books

2011-12-18T15:32:00.002-06:00

20. The Royal Treatment by Mary Janice Davidson - adult - romance novel featuring an alternate reality where Alaska is ruled by a royal family and is its own country.

21. Racing in the Rain by Garth Stein - young adult - Dog's point of view of life, ok but not my cup of tea.

22. Twilight by Stephenie Meyer - young adult - Okay, perhaps I'm the last person in America who hasn't read these books. Girl meets boy, falls in love, finds out he's a vampire

23. New Moon by Stephenie Meyer - young adult - book two in the series - vampire leaves girl for "her own good," she meets werewolf, she starts to fall for werewolf, she saves vampire, all ok

24. Eclipse by Stephenie Meyer - young adult - book three - werewolf and vampire fight over girl, end up fighting together to protect girl, girl plans to marry vampire

25. Breaking Dawn by Stephenie Meyer - book four - vampire and girl get married, have baby, she becomes a vampire, vampires and werewolves fight off big, bad vampires

26. Lionheart by Sharon Kay Penman - adult - King Richard II of England on crusade - long, lots of battle, loved his sister

October Books

2011-12-18T14:48:00.003-06:00

6. After Ever After by Jordan Sonnenblick - middle grade/young adult -Sequel to Drums, Girls, and Dangerous Pie tells the story of Steven in eighth grade and what is life is like post cancer.

7. 39 Clues Cahills vs. Vespers: The Medusa Plot by Gordon Korman - middle grade - First in a new series continuing the adventures of Amy and Dan Cahill and their many cousins two years after the original series.

8. Fate and Consequences by Linda Wells -adult - Pride and Prejudice what-if book. Reread for me.

9. Affinity and Affection by Linda Wells -adult- Pride and Prejudice what-if book. Reread.

10. New York to Dallas by J.D. Robb -adult- Latest in the Eve Dallas mystery series. Very good read, great mystery and some clues to Eve's past are discovered.

11. Dark Falls by Kat Falls -middle grade/young adult - Futuristic underworld pioneer society. Good mystery and realistic future possibilities.

12. On This Spot: An Expedition Back Through Time -picture book - by Susan E. Goodman -The same spot in New York City from the very beginning through modern times.

13. Christian the Lion by Anthony Bourke - picture book- tells the story of a young lion raised in London stores who was returned to the wild successfully.

14. The Mayflower and the Pilgrims' New World by Nathaniel Philbrick - Young adult - version of his adult novel follows the story of the original Mayflower settlers prior to, during, and after their journey to the New World.

15. Causing Havoc by Lori Foster -adult- Romance novel involving long lost siblings and mixed martial arts.

16. The Naked Marquess by Sally Mackenzie -adult- Regency romance with lots of humor and bawdines.

17. Taming the Prince by Teresa Meirdos - adult- Middle Ages romance with a proxy wedding and a groom afraid of his kids.

18. King George What Was His Problem by Steve Sheinkin - middle grade/young adult - story of the American Revolution

19. Miss Malarkey Leaves No Reader Behind by Judy Finchler and Kevin O'Malley - Picture book - tells about a teacher helping a reluctant reader

School Year Reading Log September

2011-10-02T22:39:00.002-05:00

1) Asperger's in Pink by Julie Clark - adult - a mom's story of her daughter's journey through diagnosis and life with Asperger's.

2) The History Detectives by Barb Karg - adult - a collection of short stories telling the details behind the artifacts and stories profiled on the television show The History Detectives.

3) The Wilder Life: My Adventures in the Lost World of Little House on the Prairie by Wendy McClure - adult - a woman's journey through her childhood by revisiting Little House books and sites.

4) Torn by Margaret Peterson Haddix - middle grade - the fourth book in her new series, the main characters end up on a boat in the middle of Hudson Bay with Henry Hudson, hard to tell if this is the end or if there are more to come

5) The Boy at the End of the World by Greg van Eekhout - middle grade - post apocalyptic world with one human survivor, born from an ark of protected beings, who goes in search of the possibility of more survivors.

Summer Reading Challenge Weeks 11 and 12

2011-08-21T20:39:00.002-05:00

71. Stray Dogs, Saints, and Saviors: Fighting for the Soul of America's Toughest High School by Alexander Russo - adult book - story behind Green Dot's attempt to revitalize an L.A. school - 8/10

72. Secret Daughter: A Mixed Race Daughter and the Mother Who Gave Her Away by June Cross - adult book - memoir by an Afro-American daughter of a white mother and black father, who was raised by friends of the family - 9/10

73. Secret Daughter by Shilpi Somaya Gowda - adult book - an international adoption story told from the perspective of the birth mother, adoptive mother, and daughter - 10/10

74. The Friendship Doll by Kirby Larson - middle grades - the imagined story of one of the Friendship Dolls sent to the US by Japan in the 1920's - really four interconnected short stories - 9/10

75. Help! I'm a Prisoner in the Library by Eth Clifford - young middle grade - two girls are accidentally locked into the library at night in a snow storm, best thing is the title - 6/10

76. The CAFE Book by Gail Boushey and Joan Moser - adult book - explanation of a reading workshop system, some good elements for 5th grade but seems better for primary - 8/10

77. Unraveling Freedom: The Battle for Democracy on the Home Front During World War One by Ann Bausum - middle grade/young adult - background information and story about World War One - excellent connections to 9/11, Iraq and Afghanistan today - 12/10

78. Photo by Brady: A Picture of the Civil War by Jennifer Armstrong - middle grade/young adult - background story of the Matthew Brady and Civil War photography, super pictures, hard text - 8/10

Didn't quite make my summer goal but came very close!

Summer Reading Challenge Weeks 9 & 10

2011-08-09T19:55:00.003-05:00

62. March by Geraldine Brooks - adult - the story of the dad from Little Women during the Civil War - 8/10

63. Too Much Temptation by Lori Foster - adult - romantic fluff, but fun - 10/10

64. Best Books for Boys by Pam Allyn - adult - reading ideas and lists for boy readers, not much new - 8/10

65. Sent by Margaret Peterson Haddix - middle grade - second book in series about children who were stolen from their place in history, raised in modern America, and are being sent back in time to fix things - 10/10

66. A Pemberly Medley by Abigail Reynolds - adult - five P&P short novellas in one book, varying quality - 9/10

67. Abduction by Peg Kehret - middle grade - Kindergarten student disappears from school, gripping story but some security measures out of date - 9/10

68. The Mysterious Edge of the Heroic World by E.L. Konigsburg - young adult - two boys discover a mystery and work to right a wrong, seems to recycle some plot ideas from her other novels - 8/10

69. Leading Change in Your School: How to Conquer Myths, Build Commitment and Get Results by Douglas B. Reeves - adult - interesting book with some good ideas, not a long read - 9/10

70. Year of Wonders: A Novel of the Plague by Geraldine Brooks - adult - gripping story, interesting plot layout - 9/10

Summer Reading Challenge week #8

2011-07-25T14:41:00.003-05:00

53. Basketball Belles by Sue Macy - picture book - neat story telling of the first time two women's basketball teams played each other - 9/10

54. The Little Red Pen by Janet Stevens and Susan Stevens Brummel - picture book - an absolute must read for any teacher! - 10/10

55. It Doesn't Take a Genius by Randall McCutcheon and Tommie Lindsey - adult - book for my summer class, lots of anecdotes, just ok - 7/10

56. Bird in a Box by Andrea Davis Pinkney - middle grade - Great Depression meets boxing - 8/10

57. Darcy and FitzWilliam by Karen V. Wasylowski - adult - P&P continuation from Darcy and his cousin's point of views, ok - 8/10

58. The Secret Life of Mrs. Finkleman by Ben H. Winters - middle grade - excellent story combining mystery, music, and middle school - great for Andrew Clements or Blue Balliett fans - 10/10

59. I Am Scout: The Biography of Harper Lee by Charles J. Shields - adult - provides a lot of information that I did not know about the author of To Kill a Mockingbird - 9/10

60. The Wonder of Charlie Anne by Kimberly Newton Fusco - middle grade - Great Depression meets Civil Rights meets Little House on the Prairie - 9/10

61. 20 Things Adoptive Parents Need to Succeed by Sherrie Eldridge - adult - just ok, lots of things that don't apply to our adoption situation - 8/10

Started and abandoned:

Friends edited by Ann M. Martin and David Levithan: a collection of middle grade/young adult short stories, just didn't get into it
The Runaway Princess by Kate Coombs: middle grade, princess goes to fight the dragon, just not my type of story
The Fabric of America by Andrew Linklater: adult, theory of how boundaries define the nation, too academic for summer

Summer Reading Challenge Week #7

2011-07-18T15:21:00.003-05:00

43. The Penderwicks at Point Mouette by Jeanne Birdsall - middle grade - The third Penderwick adventure, just as good as the first two with a different main narrator - 10/10

44. Mr. Darcy's Little Sister by C. Allyn Pierson - adult - P&P sequel from Georgiana's point of view - 8/10

45. The Case of the Curious Crinoline by Nancy Springer - middle grade - another Enola Holmes mystery, brings in Florence Nightingale - 9/10

46. The Case of the Gypsy Good-bye by Nancy Springer - middle grade - final Enola Holmes mystery, resolves what happened to her mother and her relationship with her brothers - 10/10

47. The Great Wall of Lucy Wu by Wendy Wan-Long Shang - middle grade - Chinese-American girl finds out that her Chinese great-aunt will be spending several months with them and sharing her room - 10/10

48. The Help by Kathryn Stockett - adult - 1960's southern interactions between white employers and African-American domestic help - 10/10

49. The President's Daughter by Ellen Emerson White - young adult - First female President's daughter's experiences on the campaign trail and moving to the White House - 10/10

50. White House Autumn by Ellen Emerson White - young adult - Continuing story of Meg Powers and her family's experience - 10/10

51. Long Live the Queen by Ellen Emerson White - young adult - Meg is kidnapped by terrorists and rescues herself - 12/10

52. Long May She Reign by Ellen Emerson White - young adult - Meg works to rebuild her life after the kidnapping - 10/10

Summer Reading Challenge Week #6

2011-07-12T21:20:00.003-05:00

37. Chasing Fire by Nora Roberts - adult - love story told among Montana wildfire jumpers - 8/10

38. Maria Von Trapp: Beyond the Sound of Music by Candice F. Ransom- middle grade/young adult - the true story behind the main character in The Sound of Music - 9/10

39. DK Biography: Abigail Adams by Kem Knapp Sawyer - middle grade/young adult - love this series - great book! 10/10

40. The Case of the Left Handed Lady by Nancy Springer - middle grade - more Enola Holmes mysteries - 9/10

41. The Case of the Bizarre Bouquets by Nancy Springer - middle grade - even more Enola Holmes mysteries - 9/10

42. The Case of the Peculiar Fan by Nancy Springer - middle grade - Enola Holmes, yet again - 10/10

Started and abandoned:

Falling In by Frances O'Roark Dowell - middle grade
Heck: Where the Bad Kids Go by Dale E. Basye - middle grade
Where Men Win Glory by Jon Krakauer - adult

Summer Book Challenge week #5

2011-07-04T13:14:00.003-05:00

28. How Far We Have Come by Linda Wells - adult - final book in a Pride & Prejudice trilogy - 10/10

29. The Limit by Kristen Landon - middle grade/young adult - scarily realistic futuristic novel. Parents who spend over their government limit have their children taken away to a workhouse to pay off the debt. 10/10

30. Elmo Loves You by Sarah Albee - board book - Joy loves Elmo, 'nuff said. 9/10

31. Late For School by Steve Martin - picture book - funny pictures and text to capture the saga of a late dash to school, on a Saturday! 8/10

32. The Case of the Missing Marquess by Nancy Springer - middle grade - first book in a series about Sherlock Holmes' younger sister Enola Holmes. 8/10

33. The Penderwicks on Gardam Street by Jeanne Birdsall - middle grade - The next adventure of the Penderwick girls - this time at home with a newly dating father. 10/10

34. William and Kate: A Royal Love Story by Christopher Andersen - adult - Details behind the royal couple's early lives and romance. A lot of it is probably made up, but a fun read. 8/10

35. Theodosia and the Serpents of Chaos by R.L. LaFevers - middle grade - Set in early 1900's Britain, tells the story of a girl who can sense and remove ancient Egyptian curses in the museum where her parents work. 8/10

36. The Redheaded Princess by Ann Rinaldi - middle grade - The story of Princess Elizabeth Tudor from her earliest memories to her ascension to the throne. 9/10

Summer Book-a-Day Challenge week #4

2011-06-27T15:51:00.003-05:00

22. Scumble by Ingrid Law - middle grade - companion novel to Savvy. The story tells about a 13 year old boy's challenge to learn to manage is new talent, his savvy. 8/10

23. Interlude in Death by J.D. Robb - adult - Eve Dallas novella, futuristic crime mystery - 9/10

24. Moo, Baa, La La La! by Sandra Boynton - board book - Love Boyton!! 10/10

25. Goodnight Moon by Margaret Wise Brown - board book - classic - 9-10

26. Trials to Bear by Linda Wells - adult - Pride and Prejudice what if?, second book of a trilogy - Elizabeth and Darcy's first year of marriage

27. Are You Sleeping? by Debbie Trafton O'Neal - picture book - children's song with additional verse, wonderful illustrations - 10/10

Summer Book-a-Day Challenge week #3

2011-06-20T22:24:00.003-05:00

14. Belly Up by Stuart Gibbs - middle grade - boy investigates the murder of a hippo, after no one believes him - 7/10

15. Junonia by Kevin Henkes - younger middle grade - girl's annual Florida vacation & birthday turn out differently than usual - 8/10

16. Liar, Liar by Gary Paulsen - young adult - boy gets caught in the web of his many lies - 9/10

17. The Tudors by G.J. Meyer - adult - concise summary of the reigns of the Tudor kings and queens; not the best choice for summer reading! - 8/10

18. Our Only May Amelia by Jennifer L. Holm - middle grade - the story of the only girl growing up in a family with 7 brothers in 1900's Washington state - 9/10

19. The Trouble of May Amelia by Jennifer L. Holm - middle grade - continues the story of May Amelia - 8/10

20. Perfect Fit by Linda Wells - adult - modern Pride & Prejudice story - author Elizabeth Bennet meets William Darcy at his cousin Anne's wedding - 10/10

21. Room by Emma Donoghue - adult - told from the point of view of 5 year old Jack, who has spent his whole life inside the Room with his mother - having no other contact with other people - haunting story - 10/10

Summer Book-a-Day Challenge week #2

2011-06-13T21:39:00.003-05:00

Not quite one a day this week, but six more is pretty respectable!

8. Chance Encounters by Linda Wells - adult - Pride and Prejudice what if? novel - Elizabeth and Darcy meet by chance at a London theatre -10/10

9. The Penderwicks by Jeanne Birdsall - middle grade - four sisters spend the summer at a cottage on an estate and have adventures with the neighbor boy -9/10

10. A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Future by Michael J. Fox - adult - expanded graduation speech, not as good as his biographies - 8/10

11. Hero by Mike Lupica - young adult - a boy discovers he has super hero powers and must learn how to deal with them and who to trust after the death of his father - 7/10

12. Aliens on Vacation by Clete Barrett Smith - middle grade/young adult - a boy spends the summer at his grandmother's B&B and discovers that all the guests are really from outer space! - 8/10

12. The Visconti House by Elsbeth Edgar - middle grade/young adult - Australian novel; a boy and a girl uncover the mystery behind the mysterious Visconti house - 10/10

Book a Day Challenge - Summer 2011

2011-06-05T00:05:00.008-05:00

So, someone I greatly admire is sponsoring a book-a-day reading challenge for the summer. See her post here. My goal is 79 books for summer 2011, following her rules. Can I do it?

Let's see:
1. The Day of the Pelican by Katherine Patterson - young adult - story of one family's experience with Kosovo, ethnic cleansing, and immigration to America - 8/10

2. School of Fear by Gitty Daneshvari - middle grade - four students come to School of Fear to overcome their various overwhelming fears -9/10

3. School of Fear: Class is Not Dismissed by Gitty Daneshvari - middle grade - students return to School of Fear to help save the school and continue to work on overcoming their fears - 8/10

4. Fate & Consequences by Linda Wells - adult - Pride and Prejudice what if? novel - Darcy saves Georgiana from Wickham, but scandal spreads - the one joy is a chance meeting with a young lady named Elizabeth Bennett - 10/10

5. Ninth Ward by Jewell Parker Rhodes - middle grades - Hurricane Katrina through the eyes of a young girl and her friend working together to survive - 8/10

6. Ghost Dog Secrets by Peg Kehret - middle grade - young boy finds a dog being abused and is prompted to help by a ghost dog - 10/10

7. The Well by Mildred D. Taylor - middle grade - historical fiction, early 1900's Mississippi - story of a drought and black/white interactions - 10/10

Speech to WI Senate hearing

2011-03-24T21:09:00.001-05:00

by Marjorie Passman on Thursday, March 24, 2011

Despite the accent you are about to hear, I have lived in Wisconsin for the last 40 years. For 25 years I have taught elementary, middle and high school. I am now on the Madison School Board but today I represent only myself and not my school board.

I come to you to ask you to reconsider the Charter School Bill you have before you. The key question before us is what will happen to pubic education if this bill passes as is.

Let’s look into the future – to the year 2025. On one side of the educational spectrum we will see a mass of private Charter Schools, filled with uncredentialed teachers and staff, unrestricted in curriculum and educational philosophy. Those not chosen by lottery will return to the dying embers of our public schools that have had essential funding drained from them for private Charter Schools. Add vouchers to the picture and you will actually have the poor paying for the rich to attend private school.

Those in crowded underfunded schools will not have their needs met – crime and poverty will increase and those needing the most from society will be getting the least.

In addition, Charter Schools have not, by any means, been universally successful. Charter schools were supposed to be the great panacea of education – they would produce great achievement and higher test scores. Recent studies do not find major gains for students in either voucher or Charter Schools. Some were more successful than others but by giving a school a Charter did not ensure success, by any means. In low income areas achievement results were the same as public schools.

Pennsylvania passed a charter law in l997 and in 2008 the RAND Corporation concluded that any gain for students were the same as the public school gains.. Those schools run for profit) did not perform any better than public schools. In 2009 Philadelphia concluded that privatization of schools had not worked.

But, I am not here to debunk Charter Schools. I am here to tell you what they will do to our Public Schools. I am here to ask you to save our public schools. 1) make them instrumentalities of their local school district, 2) finance them independently and not by preempting the funds for local schools, and, 3) Have them judged by the Department of Public Instruction – an agency whose very existence is about education while an independent politically appointed committee will not have the skills or knowledge to determine the validity of a charter’s application.

Our nation was the first to create and support public schools. Those leaders of Federal and State governments wanted to provide all children with universal access to free education. They wanted to guarantee equal opportunities for all children. They wanted our schools to unify (not separate) a diverse population, and they wanted public schools to improve social conditions. Our public schools have always been the great equalizer in our Society. Their doors have been open to any child no matter what their needs were. It is the mix of children that created a vibrancy and energy in education that was so crucial to first generation Americans like myself.

Thank you,
Marjorie Passman

To My Fellow Teachers and Staff of MMSD

2011-03-24T21:07:00.000-05:00

by Marjorie Passman on Tuesday, March 22, 2011

I am very grateful to the WSJ for printing my Letter to the Editor but they "kinda" mangled it. I have been asked to show the original and here it is:

We all became educators because we couldn’t help it. It was in our blood. There was nothing else we wanted to do with our lives. We unquestioningly assumed the responsibility of educating future generations of our community.

Our children have the best that education can offer right in front of them everyday. You love what you do and you will continue to do that in spite of the storms raging around you. All you have ever wanted were the funds and respect you deserve.

Thanks to our Governor the funds are not to be, but I can assure you that you have more respect than ever from the decent, humane people in our city. You must believe in the essential value of your work. You must cling tenaciously to what you know is right.

You don’t necessarily need a mantra to work in other jobs, but you do in education. You need to hold onto something beyond the daily teaching experience - something you can connect with when life is difficult and overwhelming. So, please believe that what you are doing is the single most important job there is. You are fundamental to the central core of a sane world. Of course, teachers and staff have little time for such self-reflection because you are too busy just getting through the infinitely frenzied world you live in.

Let me end by asking you who you think can return our state and country to its historical commitment to democratic principles. Who can assume the obligation and duty to do this? The answer, simply put is – YOU, THE WONDERFUL TEACHERS AND STAFF OF OUR PUBLIC SCHOOLS!

Marjorie Passman

New videos

2011-03-24T20:57:00.002-05:00

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0k7F8O_5yaE

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sLkik6suMJs

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rTuf826MQQs

A Sleeping Giant Wakes in Wisconsin

2011-03-22T22:27:00.001-05:00

Laura Flanders
guardian.co.uk,
Tuesday 22 March 2011

Ramrod democracy was working so well until it hit Wisconsin. The news from that state just keeps on coming and growing in significance.

The latest chapter in a month-long struggle came Friday, when Dane County circuit judge Maryann Sumi issued a restraining order on Governor Scott Walker's hotly-debated anti-union bill – citing possible violation of the state's open meetings law. Now implementation of the bill which, among other things, limits collective bargaining to issues of wages (capped in any case to inflation-only increases), will be put on hold, indefinitely, pending a full investigation of state senate Republicans' heavyhanded tactics.

Walker's critics have good reason to relish in the Governor's Mubarak moment. Despite all those precious dollars lavished on securing Republican majorities in the last election, despite that flood of anti-union messages on state media, some righteous public workers, their unions, some thousands of determined protesters and, now, a Republican-appointed judge managed to stop the state steamroller. Where's the palace guard when you need them?

At the Left Forum, an annual gathering of independent lefties in New York last weekend, news of the judge's stay was greeted with glee. People power worked, they say, and here was people power in action.

Judge Sumi's decision puts paid to all those who say progress is achieved through any one set of tactics: voting or protest, law or disobedience. Wisconsinites stopped the Walker steamroller through a combination of them all: direct action, legislative action, protest, and finally a lawsuit filed by the Dane County district attorney.

Sleeping giant seems to be the phrase of the day – as in, "Governor Walker's bill has awakened a sleeping giant." That's what state senator Lena Taylor of Milwaukee said, on her return to her home state after three weeks away, to prevent a senate vote on the measure. "The sleeping giant's awake," chuckled assemblyman Robert Turner from Racine, one of the Democratic legislators who'd held round-the-clock hearings in the state house to keep the assembly in session – and the state house open for protesters. Even one enormous tractor bore the words, on a handwritten sign in the window as it lumbered around the capitol, kicking off the biggest rally in Wisconsin state history, the Saturday after the governor signed the bill, 12 March. "They want us to go back to sleep, but we're not going," one Madison public school teacher told me as she watched the farmers' procession.

"Wisconsin will not tolerate backroom deals and political power plays when it comes to public schools and valued services," Mary Bell, president of the Wisconsin Education Association, the state's largest public employees union, told the press after the judge's stay was announced Friday.

The fight isn't over: Republicans plan to appeal the decision, and the legislature has a chance to take up the bill again. Recall organising efforts go on, even as Walker's budget makes mincemeat of desperately-needed healthcare and education programs. It's going to take every tactic in the book to turn back the steamroller for good. At least, though, we can stop for just a minute and acknowledge what's happening in this country.

When was the last time you heard about a Tea Party rally?

Wisconsin's Radical Break

2011-03-22T22:24:00.001-05:00

By WILLIAM CRONON

Published: March 21, 2011

Madison, Wis.

Chris Silas Neal

NOW that a Wisconsin judge has temporarily blocked a state law that would strip public employee unions of most collective bargaining rights, it’s worth stepping back to place these events in larger historical context.

Republicans in Wisconsin are seeking to reverse civic traditions that for more than a century have been among the most celebrated achievements not just of their state, but of their own party as well.

Wisconsin was at the forefront of the progressive reform movement in the early 20th century, when the policies of Gov. Robert M. La Follette prompted a fellow Republican, Theodore Roosevelt, to call the state a “laboratory of democracy.” The state pioneered many social reforms: It was the first to introduce workers’ compensation, in 1911; unemployment insurance, in 1932; and public employee bargaining, in 1959.

University of Wisconsin professors helped design Social Security and were responsible for founding the union that eventually became the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees. Wisconsin reformers were equally active in promoting workplace safety, and often led the nation in natural resource conservation and environmental protection.

But while Americans are aware of this progressive tradition, they probably don’t know that many of the innovations on behalf of working people were at least as much the work of Republicans as of Democrats.

Although Wisconsin has a Democratic reputation these days — it backed the party’s presidential candidates in 2000, 2004 and 2008 — the state was dominated by Republicans for a full century after the Civil War. The Democratic Party was so ineffective that Wisconsin politics were largely conducted as debates between the progressive and conservative wings of the Republican Party.

When the Wisconsin Democratic Party finally revived itself in the 1950s, it did so in a context where members of both parties were unusually open to bipartisan policy approaches. Many of the new Democrats had in fact been progressive Republicans just a few years earlier, having left the party in revulsion against the reactionary politics of their own senator, Joseph R. McCarthy, and in sympathy with postwar liberalizing forces like the growing civil rights movement.

The demonizing of government at all levels that has become such a reflexive impulse for conservatives in the early 21st century would have mystified most elected officials in Wisconsin just a few decades ago.

When Gov. Gaylord A. Nelson, a Democrat, sought to extend collective bargaining rights to municipal workers in 1959, he did so in partnership with a Legislature in which one house was controlled by the Republicans. Both sides believed the normalization of labor-management relations would increase efficiency and avoid crippling strikes like those of the Milwaukee garbage collectors during the 1950s. Later, in 1967, when collective bargaining was extended to state workers for the same reasons, the reform was promoted by a Republican governor, Warren P. Knowles, with a Republican Legislature.

The policies that the current governor, Scott Walker, has sought to overturn, in other words, are legacies of his own party.

But Mr. Walker’s assault on collective bargaining rights breaks with Wisconsin history in two much deeper ways as well. Among the state’s proudest traditions is a passion for transparent government that often strikes outsiders as extreme. Its open meetings law, open records law and public comment procedures are among the strongest in the nation. Indeed, the basis for the restraining order blocking the collective bargaining law is that Republicans may have violated open meetings rules in passing it. The legislation they have enacted turns out to be radical not just in its content, but in its blunt ends-justify-the-means disregard for openness and transparency.

This in turn points to what is perhaps Mr. Walker’s greatest break from the political traditions of his state. Wisconsinites have long believed that common problems deserve common solutions, and that when something needs fixing, we should roll up our sleeves and work together — no matter what our politics — to achieve the common good.

Mr. Walker’s conduct has provoked a level of divisiveness and bitter partisan hostility the likes of which have not been seen in this state since at least the Vietnam War. Many citizens are furious at their governor and his party, not only because of profound policy differences, but because these particular Republicans have exercised power in abusively nontransparent ways that represent such a radical break from the state’s tradition of open government.

Perhaps that is why — as a centrist and a lifelong independent — I have found myself returning over the past few weeks to the question posed by the lawyer Joseph N. Welch during the hearings that finally helped bring down another Wisconsin Republican, Joe McCarthy, in 1954: “Have you no sense of decency, sir, at long last? Have you left no sense of decency?”

Scott Walker is not Joe McCarthy. Their political convictions and the two moments in history are quite different. But there is something about the style of the two men — their aggressiveness, their self-certainty, their seeming indifference to contrary views — that may help explain the extreme partisan reactions they triggered. McCarthy helped create the modern Democratic Party in Wisconsin by infuriating progressive Republicans, imagining that he could build a national platform by cultivating an image as a sternly uncompromising leader willing to attack anyone who stood in his way. Mr. Walker appears to be provoking some of the same ire from adversaries and from advocates of good government by acting with a similar contempt for those who disagree with him.

The turmoil in Wisconsin is not only about bargaining rights or the pension payments of public employees. It is about transparency and openness. It is about neighborliness, decency and mutual respect. Joe McCarthy forgot these lessons of good government, and so, I fear, has Mr. Walker. Wisconsin’s citizens have not.

William Cronon is a professor of history, geography and environmental studies at the University of Wisconsin–Madison.

A version of this op-ed appeared in print on March 22, 2011, on page A27 of the New York edition.

I Want My Party Back

2011-03-16T22:28:00.001-05:00

by Marc Seals on Facebook, 2/24/2011

Here is an op-ed piece that I wrote that the paper would not run (because of length).... Share or repost at will, but I ask that my name remains as author.

After nearly two decades of being a Republican, I must face the reality that my party has abandoned me.

In the early 1990s, I became a registered Republican. I was a public school English teacher in Georgia who felt betrayed by the leftward shift of the Democratic Party; it seemed that there was no longer room for moderate or conservative Democrats. I took call for the Republican Party to be a "big tent" at face value and jumped ship.

I was strongly opposed to the idea of teachers being unionized. Unions were for blue-collar workers, I thought. Unions create an antagonistic relationship between employees and management, I thought. In fact, I was the campus representative for two non-union teachers associations-- the Professional Association of Georgia Educators and the Professional Educators' Network (in Florida). These organization existed to provide an alternative to the teachers' unions; even so, I never heard anyone within those organizations say that the unions did not have a fundamental right to exist.

Even when I returned to graduate school, I stuck by my conservative principles. This was rather lonely at times, I will confess, but I believe that education should not be a partisan issue. I have never voted straight party line, because I agree with the Clinton-era Republican mantra that "character counts." Nevertheless, I have voted for far more Republicans than Democrats over the last two decades.

I finally earned my PhD in 2004 (after ten years of college), and I moved to Wisconsin to take a position on the faculty at the University of Wisconsin-Baraboo/Sauk County. The pay here was quite a bit lower than in other Midwestern states, but the benefits package helped make up for that. We were paid less because the benefits were more generous. I fell in love with Wisconsin and the Baraboo community. I have become a die-hard Packers fan. I root for the Badgers (unless they are playing my alma mater). I have endured the coldest weather in decades (2006) and the snowiest winter on record (2007) with my smile intact. In short, I have made this my home.

Every year that I have lived here, we have not received even a cost of living increase; we accepted this because we were told that it was the only way that we could keep our benefits package. When the economy sunk into recession, we had a legislatively approved raise taken away and replaced by furloughs that amounted to a 3% cut in pay. We have endured this pay cut for each of the last two years. When people ask what I make as a professor, I ask them what they think I make-- they usually guess a sum that is at least twice my salary. In addition, we accepted larger class sizes (and thus a larger grading burden) to help the state balance the budget.

Now the governor says that it is time that state employees pay their share. After years of flat salaries and even pay cuts, to hear that we have not sacrificed is insulting and disingenuous. I teach 100 students a semester in classes in American literature, film, and composition. I am the faculty sponsor of the Navigators Christian Fellowship, the faculty sponsor of the UW-BSC Disc Golf Club, and the Director of the Honors Program. I work about sixty hours a week (because that is how long it takes to do my job well). In short, I work hard and (I think) do a good job (as may be evidenced by the fact that three times in four years, the students have selected me as "faculty member of the year").

The so-called Budget Repair Bill will represent a reduction in my take-home pay of somewhere between 8 and 13 percent, depending upon whose figures you believe. A cut like this will be devastating to my family. I fear that we will need to sell our home. We may even need to seek employment elsewhere. This prospect would break my heart, because I really do love it here. Governor Walker has said that we are the "haves." A comment to a recent Baraboo News Republic letter to the editor suggested that all the professors drove Jaguars and Mercedes. No one on our campus drives anything like that. (I, for the record, drive a 2003 Honda with a check-engine light that has been on for six years, a broken door lock, and a malfunctioning interior light.)

Even so, I find it most distressing that the bill takes away the right of workers to have collective bargaining. Wisconsin was the pioneer of workers' rights 75 years ago; it is disheartening to watch this reversed. The United Nations’ “Universal Declaration of Human Rights” (to which the United States is a signatory) asserts “that recognition of the inherent dignity and of the equal and inalienable rights of all members of the human family is the foundation of freedom, justice and peace in the world”; this declaration lists as one of its articles “Everyone has the right to form and to join trade unions for the protection of his [or her] interests.” The faculty at UW-BSC are not unionized. In fact, very few of the 26 institutions within the University of Wisconsin system have voted to unionize. This may very well be because we wanted to avoid an antagonistic stance toward administration and the legislature. That antagonism is, sadly, now a foregone conclusion.

I will not revisit in any detail the arguments that show the absurdity of Governor Walker’s arguments. It has been well documented that Governor Walker is misrepresenting the fiscal crisis for political gain; regardless, he has clearly overplayed his hand. A poll released this week shows that the majority of Wisconsinites agree. Governor Walker does not seem concerned, insisting that he is backed by a “quiet majority.” If he valued education enough to listen, I could teach him about the Greek concept of hubris—excessive pride or self-confidence to the point of dismissive arrogance. Hubris was the downfall of many Greek heroes, and it will likely prove to be Governor Walker’s downfall as well.

The recording of the prank phone call released Wednesday demonstrates that the governor is willing to engage in dirty political tricks, duping Democratic senators into returning to Madison. Even more damaging was the confession that he considered planting troublemakers in amongst the peaceful demonstrators. Finally, he agreed to accept an illegal trip to California. If this administration is what the Republican Party has become, then I must wonder where that leaves me. I know where it leaves Walker-- poised to hand the state back to the Democrats in the next election cycle and become a footnote in state history.

Personally, I pray that Governor Walker listens to the voters and sits down with the opposition to negotiate. Regardless, I want him to know one thing—I want my party back.

What WouldJesus Cut?

2011-03-16T22:26:00.001-05:00

by Jim Wallis @ www.huffingtonpost.com on 2/10/2011

House Republicans announced a plan yesterday to cut $43 billion in domestic spending and international aid, while increasing spending for military and defense by another $8 billion. This proposal comes just months after billions of dollars were added to the deficit with an extension of tax cuts to the wealthiest 2 percent of Americans. House Republicans focused in on only 12 percent of federal spending, and targeted things like education, the environment, food safety, law enforcement, infrastructure, and transportation -- programs that benefit or protect most Americans. They also proposed cutting funding for programs that benefit the most vulnerable members of our society, such as nutrition programs for our poorest women and children. We don't yet know all the cuts Republicans are targeting in their proposals, but it's good to finally know what their priorities are.

Under the proposed budget cuts, deficit reduction will not come from the super-rich; it will come from the rest of us. And the poorer you are, the more vulnerable you become, and the more you will pay for the burdens of deficit reduction. For example, Women, Infants, and Children (WIC), a program that helps provide food to hungry mothers and their children faces a $758 million cut. Also, the proposed budget cuts $544 million in international food aid grants for organizations such as World Vision. AmeriCorps, a program that provides public service opportunities for our young adults, would be eliminated entirely. But our military and defense budget, which sends our young adults off to kill and be killed, would receive an $8 billion increase.

It used to be very popular for Christians to ask, "What Would Jesus Do?" They even wore bracelets with the initials "WWJD." The bracelets acted as reminders that as Christians, our actions should always reflect the values and example we see in the life of Jesus. Already, in a first wave of response to the proposed cuts, thousands of Christians told their members of Congress that they need to ask themselves, "What Would Jesus Cut?" They believe, and so do I, that the moral test of any society is how it treats its poorest and most vulnerable citizens. And that is exactly what the Bible says, over and over again.

I believe that vaccines that save children's lives; bed nets that protect them from malaria; and food that keeps their families from starving are more important to Jesus than tax cuts for the rich; bigger subsidies for corporations; and more weapons in a world already filled with conflict. I also believe that tested and effective domestic programs that clearly help to lift people out of poverty are more reflective of the compassion of Christ than tax and spending policies that make the super-rich even richer. And I don't believe, as the Republicans keep saying, that the best way to help everybody is to keep helping the super-rich. That's not smart economics and, as we say in the evangelical community, it's not biblical. So many of us in the faith community are ready to make a moral argument against the proposed budget cuts to our members of Congress, especially to those who claim to be people of faith.

Organizations like Bread for the World and Catholic Charities advocate for critical nutrition programs that keep hunger at bay for millions of American families. Groups such as Habitat for Humanity, the Salvation Army, and the Christian Community Development Association deliver crucial health and human services around the country that hold neighborhoods and cities together. Government aid to programs like these is money very well spent, and many would have to shut their doors without it. Government funding is critical to the work that faith-based organizations like World Vision and Catholic Relief Services do around the world to bring millions of children and families out of poverty, and public-private partnerships pioneered by foundations such as the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation that are saving millions of lives.

In Great Britain, Prime Minister Cameron made the choice to delay a costly nuclear submarine program while also increasing funding for international aid. We can do the same. Look to leaders in the faith community to say that the choice to protect the rich instead of the poor in deficit reduction is an immoral one. Taking the cutting knife to programs that benefit low-income people, while refusing to scrutinize the much larger blank checks we keep giving to defense contractors and corporate executives, is hypocritical and cruel. I'll go even further and say that such a twisted moral calculus for the nation's fiscal policy is simply not fair, and not right. It is not only bad economics, but also bad religion. The priorities we are now seeing are not consistent with Christian, Jewish, or Muslim values. And if the super-rich and their representatives in Congress persist in this fight against the poor, they will be picking a fight with all of us.

Another Great video link

2011-03-15T18:29:00.001-05:00

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cKOvqXoWB7s

Open Letter to the People of Wisconsin

2011-03-15T18:27:00.001-05:00

Kelly Vinehout and Douglas Smith: Open letter to the people of Wisconsin
3/14/2011

To the People of Wisconsin:

There are times when life happens so powerfully and unexpectedly that all you can do is embrace it fully and play the role you are given to the best of your ability. Sometimes that role is to lead, sometimes to support or protect, and sometimes that role is as a witness.

Way past bedtime on a Thursday night, February 17, 2011, we found ourselves unexpectedly sitting at a table in a fast-food restaurant with a group of people who had sacrificed their own comfort so that the people of Wisconsin would have a chance to learn the contents of the Governor’s “Budget Repair” bill. They had no extra clothes, no food, only the small amount of cash they typically carried with them, and no place to go. Some did not even have essential medication with them. Despite this, their conversation focused on remaining in contact with their constituents and being able to negotiate with their Republican colleagues.

The comment “Why don’t you come to my house?” was spontaneous, genuine, and one we would repeat. That night and the next day, we escorted Wisconsin Democratic Senators to our home where they slept, ate, and constantly worked for the next week, before moving on to another “undisclosed location.”

It was a pleasure to host this group of dedicated and loyal people. We were repeatedly amazed at how hard they worked. They were awake by 4:30 or 5:00 AM and kept working until well past midnight. Each of them made many personal sacrifices and agonized that they were missing events at home, such as birthdays of their children and spouses, children’s school events, funerals, family reunions planned long ago, wedding anniversaries, and many other days that we cherish as families. Their spouses scrambled to take out loans to pay bills at home when their paychecks were withheld. They risked debt and sacrificed time with their own families so that they could represent those they were elected to serve. They spent endless hours returning telephone calls to the people in their districts. Contrary to the contents of some of the newspaper articles we have since read, they attempted daily to negotiate with their Republican colleagues and their Governor, and spent endless hours attempting to contact these legislators. We watched them write these letters at our kitchen table. We watched their disappointment as their pleas for negotiation were steadfastly refused. We, common citizens who previously knew very little about politics, were then amazed to read news releases stating it was the Democratic Senators who were refusing to negotiate.

Although we are very private people, we decided to write this letter because, just as you had a right to learn the contents of your Governor’s proposed bill, you have a right to know the truth of what happened during the three weeks your Senators worked in Illinois. We witnessed first-hand how these Senators never stopped working from the moment they made the heart-breaking decision to leave the state they love. They made many personal sacrifices because every week they received tens of thousands of messages from their constituents pleading with them to not return.

We thank the great state of Wisconsin for the honor of participating in your effort to ensure a government “of the people, by the people, for the people.” We are proud to be your neighbors as you move forward in the long days ahead, using the democratic process to ensure justice for all.

-- Kelly Vinehout and Douglas Smith
Woodstock, Illinois

Eight Civics Lessons

2011-03-15T18:17:00.002-05:00

By Diane Ravitch at www.huffingtonpost.com

Governor Scott Walker of Wisconsin has taught the nation some very important civics lessons. The price is high, but we should pay careful attention to what he teaches by example.

The first lesson: Citizens should not be hoodwinked by rhetoric. Governor Walker said that the state was broke. He said that public sector workers had to make larger contributions to the cost of their pensions and health care, even as he handed out generous corporate tax breaks for the same amount. Doing a reverse Robin Hood, he took from the middle class to enrich the powerful. The unions promptly agreed to pay what the governor proposed, effectively cutting their compensation, but the governor would not take yes for an answer. He insisted on breaking the unions, even though no financial issues were involved.

Lesson two: It is really important to vote. Only 51.7% of eligible voters in Wisconsin cast a ballot last November, and they ended up with a governor and a legislature who are wreaking havoc on state government and decimating vital public services.

Lesson three: Voters should listen carefully to the candidates and ask for details about what they will do if they win. Scott Walker promised to balance the budget but he didn't reveal his intention to strip away collective bargaining rights from public sector workers. Journalists and citizens should have asked how he planned to balance the budget.

Lesson four: Politics in a democracy is different from politics in an authoritarian state. When there is strong opposition to their decisions, they negotiate and compromise. Negotiation and compromise are not signs of weakness, but of the disposition needed to build consensus.

Lesson five: Leaders in a democracy do not crush their opposition. Politics is not war. Leaders may not agree with the people on the other side of the aisle, but at the end of the day, they recognize them as "my loyal opposition," not my enemy. That spirit of comity is at the heart of our democracy. Elected officials do not destroy those with whom they disagree.

Lesson six: Citizens should not believe politicians who talk "school reform" yet plan to cut $1 billion from the state's education budget, while privatizing public schools. Schools will be devastated by the cuts. Class sizes will soar. Programs that children need will be eliminated. And for-profit operators will find a way to make money from a dire situation. This is not school reform.

Lesson seven: Governor Walker's attack on teachers has galvanized millions of demoralized teachers across the nation. The fact that Wisconsin's teachers organized and protested in the face of insuperable odds has inspired their colleagues across the nation. Teachers realize that it is not only their collective bargaining rights that are at risk, but their profession. Wisconsin will lose many senior teachers -- the master teachers needed in every school -- who will retire to save their pensions, their old-age security.

Lesson eight: In his effort to destroy public sector unions, Governor Walker joins in common cause with other Republican governors, including those in New Jersey, Ohio, Idaho, Tennessee, and Indiana and elsewhere. It's time to remind them that the International Declaration of Human Rights, adopted by the United Nations in 1948, contains Article 23, section 4, which says: "Everyone has the right to form and to join trade unions for the protection of his interests." When the Declaration was passed, only eight nations abstained, not only the Soviet bloc, but also South Africa -- which opposed the pledge of racial equality -- and Saudi Arabia -- which objected to the pledge of religious toleration.

So Governor Walker and his fellow anti-union governors have decided to demolish one of the pillars of a democratic society: the right to join a trade union for the protection of one's interests. Totalitarian societies ban unions outright or create faux unions without any collective bargaining rights. Not a club that good Americans should want to join!

By his negative example, Governor Scott Walker has reminded us about the rights and obligations of citizenship, about the importance of standing up for the right of children to attend a good public school, and about the dangers to our democracy of the path that he has charted for his state.

Now it's up to us to learn from those civics lessons and get our democracy back on track.

Don't Hate Me Because I Care About Others

2011-03-15T18:11:00.001-05:00

from http://opinionateddem.addictinginfo.org/2011/03/08/dont-hate-me-because-i-care-about-others/

Why am I demonized for wanting a healthy and successful America? Why am I demonized for wanting equality for LGBT individuals and every minority group? Why am I demonized for caring about the education of the children in America? Why am I demonized for wanting others to respect those who teach and take care of us? Why am I demonized for wanting energy independence and to ideally get off oil altogether? Why am I demonized for wanting to make sure that elderly Americans and Veterans are taken care of? Why am I demonized for wanting to solve problems diplomatically and not through violent means? Something about all these demonizations just doesn’t make sense. I think some people in this country need a very loud wake up call, and by some people I mean the people who are shouting “demon!” at those that seem to care about others.

Politics aren’t perfect, you can’t please all people at all time. However, when it comes down to the basic necessities of life such as; food, clean water, clothing, education, and health… suddenly the people that want those things for everyone are demonized and called names. There is a terrible dilemma in all of this. What happens when we only take care of those that can take care of themselves? You’re left with a third world nation.

When we give tax breaks to the wealthy and then cut social programs to pay for those breaks, that is a major moral dilemma. When the poor and unemployed are called “freeloaders” because they need some assistance, that is a major moral dilemma. When minority groups striving for equality are told that they want “special rights”, that is a major moral dilemma. “Special rights” are the ones the majority of Americans already have… “special rights” are equal rights. When we give breaks to billionaires and seek to privatize industry and education so that only the wealthy can prosper, that is a major moral dilemma. When those breaks are paid for with money that should be educating our children and treating our sick, that is a major moral dilemma. When the poor and unemployed are being swept under the rug because they are too unsightly to help and/or deal with? That is a major moral dilemma.

The Middle Class is vanishing because they are being indirectly demonized as being not quite good enough to compete with those on Wall Street, and with the wealthiest Corporatists. The Middle Class is being told that they should no longer be able to send their children to public schools. The Middle Class is being told that their jobs are no longer valuable. They are no longer valuable within the public sector which some think should now be private, or in the private sector which some think should now be done overseas with less regulation and for less money. The Middle Class is becoming the poor and unemployed due to either wealthy monopoly Corporatists that downsize or outsource, or due to Public Sector jobs being defunded our ousted altogether.

Who is shouting “Demon!” at all the everyday average Americans and those that stand up for them? The Koch(Tea) Party, a lot of the GOP, and many other conservatives that claim they stand for values. What values? The value of the Monopolistic Corporatist that just outsourced your job? The same party that shouts “Demon!” is the party that says they are for a higher moral integrity in America. Morals for who? Is it moral to deny health care and education to those that can’t afford it? Is it moral to diminish Veteran and elderly benefits? Is it moral to deny basic rights to minority groups? Is is moral to lay off thousands, not because you have to, but because it would be cheaper to hire overseas? Is it moral to give billions in subsidies to oil companies bringing in record profits, then defund crucial social programs to pay for it? Is is moral to give breaks to the wealthy and then deny the poor? If those are your morals… I’d hate to see you on a bad day.

Don’t hate me because I care for others. We need to shift the priorities in this nation from “survival of the fittest” to survival for all. They can call me a demon all they want, but I will never stop fighting for those less fortunate that are demonized themselves. The “American Dream” shall live on. Success should not be turned into what we can only dream about, we need to wake up America and make it happen.

You Can NOT Have My State

2011-03-15T18:06:00.002-05:00

You believe we’re broke.
I believe we live in one of the wealthiest nations on earth.

You believe public employees don’t deserve good health and retirement benefits.
I believe everyone deserves good health and retirement benefits.

You believe it’s okay to silence your opponents.
I believe everyone’s voice should be heard.

You believe might makes right.
I believe a bully is a bully, whether he’s an angry kid on a playground or an angry man in a
suit.

You believe government should be vilified, belittled and shackled.
I believe government is the only institution in the world in which we can all share and
participate equally.

You believe in every man for himself.
I believe we are better and stronger when we work together.

You believe “we can’t…”
I believe “We can. We must. We will!”

And so, in this time and place, I plant my flag and make my statement. With all the fervor and strength I can muster I tell you now, YOU CANNOT HAVE MY STATE!

There is room in this world for honest disagreements. There is room for differing policy views and different world views. But there is no place in this state, in this world, for the behavior you
have chosen. There is no place for those who would trample the rights of anyone, be they in the minority or the majority. There is no place for those who would hide from the voice of the people
behind armed authority. There is no place for those who would serve the interests of wealthy corporations ahead of the poor or disadvantaged. There is no place for those who would say “We
have nothing to discuss.”

I did not ask for this fight. But you have brought it to my home, so fight I will. I will not allow you to create the ugly, selfish, hateful world of your vision. We are better human beings than that. While your world view insists that self-interest is the way forward, my world view rests on the power of community.

The new day starts now. We are going to clean house. Your power derives solely from the consent of the governed, and we no longer consent to be treated as your subjects. Your experiment is over…

YOU CANNOT HAVE MYSTATE!

http://youcannothavemystate.com
March 11, 2011

New links

2011-03-04T21:37:00.002-06:00

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rG9I-oA_Er0

http://www.parentdish.com/2011/03/04/wisconsin-teachers-union/?a_dgi=aolshare_facebook

From a friend

2011-03-02T19:12:00.000-06:00

I am a Wisconsinite.

by James Uphoff on Tuesday, March 1, 2011 at 2:10pm

I was born and raised in Wisconsin. At the time I did not think that made me very lucky. After I graduated from UW-Madison I moved to NYC and immediately considered myself a New Yorker. Even after moving back to raise a family I would, for a time, tell people I lived in Madison but just moved back from NYC because I felt it sounded cooler. I was wrong. There is nothing cooler than being a Wisconsinite.

My family has always been politically active in Wisconsin politics and labor movements. I feel like my sisters and I spent a good portion of our childhoods at the Labor Temple on Park St. or handing out flyers at Farmer's Market. It didn't dawn on me at the time what it was I was involved in. My parents always worked for the community. They always fought for workers and those that stood to protect them. For me... it was just another rally or picnic. I didn't understand the fight that it took just to maintain what had been taken for granted by many.

My mother spent over 10 years working at the WEAC headquarters in Madison where she also served as a union representative. It was something she was proud of. A little over a year ago she was diagnosed with brain cancer, the treatment of which has left her unable to work or even care for herself. That responsibility has landed mostly on my dad who is retired. Without the benefits that she worked and fought for we would not have been able to afford to treat or care for her now. She was a public worker. She was a union member. I grew up in the same house and can promise you, she did not bring home lavish pay.

This is not about money and numbers. It is about people. This is about the teachers that spend as much time with your kids as you do. It is about the nurses that care for you and yours when ill. It is about law enforcement and fire fighters. It is about the people of Wisconsin that make the state what it is.

The events of the last few weeks have been inspiring to the world. It has given me new respect for the people I have chosen to live with. It has given me faith in the power of the people. It has given me an opportunity to march with my father on one side and my son on the other. I know it means nothing to him now but some day he may look back at it as his first memory of democracy. We must fight on for him.

I am from Wisconsin. I always have been. Pretty cool huh?

3 Generations

Another great video

2011-03-02T18:32:00.002-06:00

http://vimeo.com/20482056

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gjb44QYB8nw&feature=player_embedded

Wisconsin You are Winning

2011-03-01T16:14:00.000-06:00

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

Les Mes flash mob

2011-03-01T15:59:00.001-06:00

http://vimeo.com/20508571

video of sleeping at the capitol

2011-02-26T14:40:00.000-06:00

http://host.madison.com/video/page/?asset_id=65834391&genre_id=9077

Budget Repair Bill Facts

2011-02-26T14:25:00.002-06:00

by Middleton Education Association on Tuesday, February 22, 2011 at 11:09pm

The Budget Repair Bill…What Exactly Does it Say?

1. Public employees would be required to contribute 5.8% of their salaries toward their retirement funds

2. Public employees would be required to pay 12.6% of their health insurance premiums. Actually, that’s how this is publicized. What the document actually says is that public employers can pay a maximum of 87.4% of insurance premiums, which doesn’t require them to pay any.

3. Collectively these concessions would amount to an 8-10% cut in pay for all public employees.

4. The bill repeals the authority of the following groups to collectively bargain:

a. Home health care workers under the Medicaid program

b. Family child care workers

c. University of WI hospital and clinic employees

5. These groups are exempt from any collective bargaining changes:

a. Policemen

b. Firefighters

c. State patrol

6. For all other public employees, including the following, the bill limits collective bargaining to wage negotiation only.

a. Teachers

b. Prison guards

c. DNR employees

d. Social workers

e. Trash collectors

f. Snow removal crews

7. This “wage negotiation”, the only surviving entity to collective bargaining, applies only to base wage negotiations. Total wage increases could not exceed a cap based on the consumer price index , which currently would give public employees a 1% increase in pay.

8. Public employers would not be allowed to offer pay raises above this cap unless approved by referendum.

9. The collective bargaining rights lost:

a. Contracts are limited to one year

b. Wages would be frozen until the new contract is settled

c. Collective bargaining units are required to take annual votes to maintain certification as a union

d. Employers would be prohibited from collecting union dues

e. Members of collective bargaining units would not be required to pay dues

10. If the Governor declares a state of emergency, the bill authorizes the termination of any employees that are absent for three days without approval of the employer. It also authorizes the termination of any employees that participate in an organized action to stop or slow work.

Why Are the Unions of Some Groups Protected?

Walker openly said it is because he knew he might need their services once he unveiled his repair bill. If that is the case, wouldn’t he need prison guards as well? It must just be coincidence that firefighters, policemen, and the state patrol all publicly endorsed Walker in the campaign. The prison guards endorsed Barrett.

Collective Bargaining

1. This is a process of voluntary, respectful negotiations between employers and the union representative(s) of the employees.

2. The agreements regulate the following aspects of employment:

a. Working conditions

b. Wage scales

c. Working hours

d. Training

e. Overtime

3. For teachers this would also include class sizes, prep time, personal days, and course loads.

4. These negotiations result in a contract by which both sides must abide.

5. For teachers in Wisconsin, these negotiations almost always include salary concessions based on the rising cost of insurance.

6. From 1993 to 2009, the Qualified Economic Offer (QEO) limited the pay and benefits for K-12 teachers to a combined increase of 3.8%.

7. As rising health insurance costs ate up most of the 3.8%, teacher salaries in Wisconsin have steadily declined when adjusted for inflation. Wisconsin teacher salaries currently rank 24th in the nation.

What the Protest is About

1. Leaders of the AFL have been trying to sit down at the bargaining table with Scott Walker since his swear-in. He has refused every request.

2. The teacher’s union alone offered him $100 million dollars before the bill came out and he turned it down.

3. Since then, we have said over and over and over that we will accept the concessions but we refuse to lose our voice.

4. This is called the “Budget Repair Bill”, what does this have to do with union busting? THAT is the reason the democratic senators left.

5. Some 200,000 peaceful protests have taken place at the capitol in the first 9 days after the release of the bill.

Unions and the Middle Class

The following is an excerpt from an article that sums up what I’ve read from many different sources.

Regardless of your opinion of unions, love them or hate them, the fact is that labor unions created our middle class. The unions established the 40 hour work week, fair pay for a reasonable day’s work, vacations, work place safety and protected our children from child labor abuses.

This is not someone’s opinion; it’s our nation’s history.

It was in 1983 that the numbers of unionized workers began to decrease in our country. At that time about 20 percent of our work force was unionized. Today less than 11 percent is unionized, about half.

During this same period, the salary gap between the CEO and the lowest paid employee of a company widened significantly. In 1983 the average CEO earned 50 times more than the lowest paid employee of the same company.

Today that gap is over 550 times. That means that about half way through the first work day in a year, the CEO of that company has earned more than the lowest paid employee will earn for the entire year.

The recent ruling of the U.S. Supreme Court that allowed businesses to make unlimited, anonymous contributions to our politicians, set the stage for the ultra rich to destroy our unions, and eventually, our middle class.

Paul Carmen

The Division of the People

Scott Walker has very skillfully pitted the private and public employees of our state, when all of us should be concerned with what is going on here. We are no different than they are, together we are the middle class. We are all little people, living paycheck to paycheck. Their anger is directed at the wrong group.

I was in Madison on Saturday, when 70,000 people converged on the Capitol. Some 3,000 of these were pro-Walker demonstrators. Every single one of them talked about the money, they do not seem to understand what this protest is about.

Some of their signs….

“You don’t care about this country! “

“Shame on you and your selfishness!”

“Sorry I couldn’t get here until today, Scott, I was working all week paying for union greed!”

If you look at Walker’s propaganda tactics, it is all about trying to anger the private sector. His television ads say “It’s time they paid just like the rest of us”, and “As a taxpayer, I don’t think they should get away with it anymore!”

Why would Walker continue to air these toxic ads when the unions agreed to the concessions? Why doesn’t he talk about collective bargaining? He uses the money piece because he can incite people with it. Because he wants the private sector to think that while they are all suffering in this recession, public employees are living the high life. It’s a message that is easily translated into, “this is their fault”.

And he is also very careful to always refer to us as public employees. He never uses the words teacher, social worker, firefighter, policeman, nurse, trash collector…all those professions that serve the state.

Scott Walker has YET to answer the question, “What does collective bargaining have to do with repairing the budget?” He doesn’t respond because the answer is unacceptable. With his pending budget cuts, he needs to bust unions in order for schools to stay open.

The Budget Cuts

1. Walker was supposed to unveil his budget plan on Tuesday, Feb. 25, but he has postponed it until the bill is settled. He may still speak about it but will not release any numbers.

2. Some of it has been leaked and we can probably expect at least the following:

a. A decrease in educational funds by $500 per student.

b. The revocation of Title IX funding, which provides for children of poverty and disadvantage. The Milwaukee Public Schools are the recipients of the largest amount of these funds. (If both these cuts take place, the Green Bay Public Schools will be facing a deficit of $18 million)

c. An increase in state university tuition costs by 25%.

3. Fitzgerald, one of the republican senators, when asked if there were any chance that they might reconsider their position responded, “The republicans remain rock solid in support of Walker’s plan. The new budget slashes spending on public schools and municipal services by 1 billion dollars or more. Employers will need to make cuts without bargaining with employees.” That is word for word.

What This Bill Will Do to Education in Wisconsin

1. Although the actual amounts have yet to be revealed, Walker has warned school districts to expect significant cuts. He reasons that they should be able to absorb this loss of funding with the money they save by having teachers pay more of the districts’ costs. Those concessions could save as much as $300 of this per student loss, but the remaining $200 would have to be found elsewhere.

2. The more immediate problem is that many districts have contracts with teachers that extend as long as four years out. How can he drastically cut district funding when districts are still obliged to pay their teachers? They will have no choice but to lay off teachers. Didn’t he say he was doing all this to save jobs and avoid layoffs?

3. Without a union, and without any money, districts could be forced to lay off their most experienced and/or highest educated teachers. They will be forced to increase class sizes, cut courses, cut programs, and eliminate prep time and personal days for teachers. ALL of these result in lower quality education in Wisconsin. This WILL hurt kids.

4. Quality education requires quality teachers. To attract quality people to this profession and to this state, they need to treat teachers fairly and compensate them for their hard work. The hard work they do with the children of our state, and the long hours they put in outside the school day. I doubt there are many teachers outside Wisconsin right now wishing they worked here.

5. The five lowest achieving states on the ACT and SAT are the only five with non-unionized teachers. Wisconsin currently ranks #2.

6. Every citizen of this state should take note that Scott Walker has not uttered a single word about maintaining high quality education in Wisconsin.

Walker’s History in Milwaukee

If Wisconsin citizens learn any lesson from this, it should be to get informed and get involved. This radicalism should be no surprise given the fact that he did exactly the same thing in his previous position.

In Walker’s first term as Milwaukee’s County Executive, he announced layoffs that decimated the county's public parks staff and also reduced the number of county social workers, corrections officers and janitors. As a result, park bathrooms were shuttered and pools were closed. Trash was piled up so high in the Milwaukee County Courthouse that visitors had to sidestep apple cores and coffee cups, and some judges resorted to cleaning toilets, a local newspaper reported.

Rich Abelson, executive director of AFSCME District Council 48, Milwaukee's largest union, said , "The result of his tenure is an absolute devastation of the programs and services in Milwaukee County."

The union filed multiple lawsuits against Walker over the years for unfair labor practices. Those unfair practices included favoritism toward select groups, exactly as he has shown in this bill. He was found guilty of doing so, but he was already elected governor by the time the judgment was made. He is currently appealing that ruling.

Why Other States Would Want to Do the Same

It is no coincidence that the other states who would like to impose this radical change all have Republican governors. Wisconsin, Ohio, Indiana, Iowa and Tennessee are looking to curtail or even eliminate collective bargaining rights for state and local government workers.

Unions have been the biggest sources of financial and grass roots organizational support for Democrats and have long been a target of business-backed Republicans. Unions are also extremely successful at getting voters to the polls.

Unions were the only liberal groups to make the top 10 list of groups spending money on the 2010 election outside of the more regulated political party system, according to the Center for Responsive Politics.

Hence the national interest in the events at our Capitol this last week. This has become ground zero for the battle to save union rights. On Sunday, $4 million poured into the state of Wisconsin to support the fight to save our collective voice. In Madison on Saturday the trades union (not targeted in the bill) served free brats to demonstrators all day, volunteering in the cold. A local pizza pub gave away free pizza all night, donated by groups from 30 states and 5 countries, including Egypt, Korea, and Canada.

This is history in the making. What happens here will set the precedent for all other states.

It Isn’t About the Money but Let’s Be Honest, That Hurts

1. Through collective bargaining, the insurance and pension benefits of public employees have been bought and paid for. We have left salaries on every bargaining table to maintain them. Wisconsin needs to pay its debts, no one argues that. But that debt should be absorbed by everyone that lives in Wisconsin. The salaries and benefits of public employees did not cause this deficit.

2. For me personally, this means a salary cut of about $6,000. Gross. I will pay this every year for the rest of my career. And with Walker’s caps on salary increase it will probably take me 10 years to get back to where I am now. If I work another 15 years, I will have contributed $90,000 to Wisconsin’s debt. If I manage to get any raises in there this contribution to the state will be even greater, because those raises will be on a lower base.

3. Still, I will make it. There are others who won’t. I have a friend who is a master’s educated teacher with 10 years of experience. He has 3 small children and his wife stays home to care for them. With this salary cut, their family will qualify for WIC. Well, actually, they would qualify if the IRS recognized this salary reduction. But they won’t see it because we will still earn the same salary, we just have to fork over our “contribution” right off the top. This accounting method also disqualifies families from receiving any reduced income support.

4. Teachers are among the highest paid public employees. However, teachers are the only public employees required to have a four-year college degree. The average cost of a college degree is $20,000 per year. To move up on the pay scale, teachers can earn a master’s degree plus 30 additional graduate credits. Graduate credits usually range between $400 and $800 per credit.

5. To reach the top of the pay scale (in my district), a teacher needs to take 66 graduate credits. A teacher reaching that right now would have spent $113,000 on their education (if we use $500 per graduate credit and graduation in 4 years, both underestimates).

6. Teachers are not the only ones affected. I met a jail receptionist who makes $10.50 an hour, which is already poverty level. Should she be forced to pay down Wisconsin’s debt? I met a social worker who makes $27,000 a year and is a single mother to two children. Should she?

The people who plow our streets, on evenings and weekends and holidays…is there any reason they should be more responsible for Wisconsin’s debt than any private sector employee?

7. This will be a serious financial hardship for tens of thousands of people. Many, many families will lose their homes, guaranteed. But at least Scott Walker will have kept his promise…he did not raise taxes.

Video of Madison Rallies

2011-02-21T18:19:00.000-06:00

http://vimeo.com/20089255

http://vimeo.com/20168864

High paid teachers

2011-02-21T15:47:00.002-06:00

Many different sources for this one, so I'm sorry, I don't know who to credit. Just know, I got it somewhere else!
**********************************************************************************

I, for one, am sick and tired of those high paid teachers. Their hefty salaries are driving up taxes, and they only work nine or ten months a year!

It's time we put things in perspective and pay them for what they do...baby-sit! We can get that for less than minimum wage. That's right......I would give them $3.00 dollars an hour and only the hours they worked, not any of that silly planning time. That would be 15 dollars a day.

Each parent should pay 15 dollars a day for these teachers to baby-sit their children!

Now, how many do they teach in a day....maybe 25. Then that's 15 X 25=$375 a day. But remember they only work 180 days a year!

I'm not going to pay them for any vacations. Let's see.. *that's 375x180= $67,500.00 (Hold on, my calculator must need batteries!)

What about those special education teachers or the ones with masters degrees?

Well, we could pay them minimum wage just to be fair. Let's round it off to $6.00 an hour. That would be $6 times 5 hours times 25 children times180 days =$135,000.00 per year.

Wait a minute, there is something wrong here!!!

There sure is, huh????!!!!!!!!!!!!

What if we treated doctors the way we treat teachers?

2011-02-21T15:40:00.001-06:00

by Shaun Johnson in The Huffington Post

A good friend and colleague who is now in Chicago first gifted me with this parable. It's been in my thoughts lately as my wife pursues her medical degree. In fact, she and I have talked about this at length, and when making comparisons between how physicians and teachers are treated, she is just as astounded.

Parallels are occasionally noted between medical training and education, especially the capstone clinical experiences present in both professions. Let us pretend that physicians of all specialties were held to similar measures of accountability and enveloped with the same kinds of discourses that we see in education reform debates. What might that look like, and how would the general public, in addition to doctors, feel about that?

It would not take a skilled social scientist to observe that, despite exceptional achievements in treating disease and diagnostic technologies, for example, the medical profession is failing. It has failed in its tasks to disseminate good information about health, quash misconceptions, fight corporations and health lobbies that keep people sick, and prevent high rates of obesity, diabetes, and heart disease, particularly in low-income populations. What do we do about this? Well, I have a few proposals listed in no particular order:

We must begin to hold all physicians accountable, regardless of specialization, to certain quantifiable measures of health, namely cholesterol levels, blood pressure, weight, and BMI. All patients assigned to a physician must meet specific annual minimum standards of health. Bad doctors will be those who do not meet their patients' annual minimums, and they may be subject to certain penalties if the health scores of their patients do not improve in a reasonable amount of time.

It will be mandatory for the Department of Health and Human Services, as well as all of the major governing bodies in medicine, to set a goal for reaching universal health and well-being in the United States. That is, a target year will be identified in which every person will achieve the ideal values in cholesterol, blood pressure, and BMI. Future targets may include assessments of mental health. A specific interval of time will also be determined to assess all patients for these values. Although pharmaceuticals may be used to stabilize or improve health outcomes, the patient must not be on any medications at the time of assessment unless approved by an official of the administrative body of the national health assessments.

Quantifiable variables will be utilized to evaluate all practices and hospitals. All of this information will be made public. Additionally, medical schools will be evaluated based on the quantifiable health of patients in the care of their graduates. Medical schools will subsequently be ranked based on the health outcomes of their graduates' patients regardless of specialty. Given more advanced statistical models, these numbers could ultimately be used to assess the impact of pre-medical programs at the undergraduate level.

In certain high needs areas, such as family practice, emergency medicine, or in practices in low income areas, alternative routes to being licensed will be provided. Moreover, data will determine what skills are necessary to impart in the curriculum of such programs. For instance, if a certain community prevails in specific medical conditions over others, then time will not be wasted covering rare conditions so that alternative programs can operate expeditiously.

Barriers to participation will be lowered in certain instances, in the form of direct subsidies or significant tax exemptions, for the opening of small hospitals or short-term care centers by private organizations or motivated members of the community.

Any hospital or practice is subject to a turnaround plan if minimum health requirements are not met. Should the facility not meet those requirements of minimum annual health, the entire staff will be terminated and reconstituted with more competent practitioners. Moreover, staff may be required to enroll in continuing medical education in advanced and remedial level re-licensing courses, including basic physics, chemistry, and biology.

In addition to in- or out-of-network information and basic demographics, an online data warehouse will be established that will provide all health data and outcomes for every licensed physician in the United States, regardless of specialty. The individual physician's education, license information, and health outcomes of patients will be listed. Should in-network physicians be deemed unfit for local health care consumers, the Federal government, with matching funds by health providers, will offer subsidies for consumers to see other practitioners.

Finally, a certain percentage of any and all physicians' patients will be assigned to them, care of those who qualify will be fully covered by providers. This will ensure adequate racial, income, and overall demographic diversity of clientele. The annual minimum health outcome data of these patients will also be included in the physician's overall quality.

Did I miss any? What if we indeed held doctors and other professionals to the same bloat and condescension that we currently hold teachers? I can predict some of the responses that physicians might make: "We can't control what our patients do or eat outside of our offices to maintain minimum levels of health. Also, these variables -- BMI, cholesterol, blood pressure -- are limited and don't adequately measure a healthy person. And one other thing, you can't expect us to be evaluated based on all patients equally, regardless of family history, poverty, and other complications." As an educator, my sentiments exactly!

And then they came for me...

2011-02-20T16:03:00.001-06:00

These were the words written on a protest sign at the Capitol Building in Madison, WI one day this week. They rang a bell for me, but I wasn't quite sure why that was. So I did a little research.

These words are attributed to a man named Pastor Martin Niemoller, and were written soon after World War II. Pastor Niemoller served in the German army during WWI. He began as a supporter of the Nazi party, but eventually spoke up against them. He opposed Hitler and was sent to Sachsenhausen and Dachau concentration camps. After the war, Pastor Niemoller became a leader in the Evangelical Church in Germany and in the World Peace Movement.

These are his words:

"They came first for the Communists, and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a Communist.

Then they came for the Jews, and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a Jew.

Then they came for the trade unionists, and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a trade unionist.

Then they came for the Catholics, and I didn't speak up because I was Protestant.

Then they came for me, and by that time no one was left to speak up."

I want to thank my former high school teacher, and I'm sorry I can't remember which one, who referenced these words. You made me think then and I have remembered still some twenty years later.

So Wisconsinites, I ask you to "speak up." Exercise your First Amendment rights to practice free speech, to peaceably assemble, and to petition your government for a redress of grievances. Three of the Five Freedoms in one shot. Forward Wisconsin.

One response to my email

2011-02-20T16:00:00.002-06:00

Rep. Hulsey is not my representative, but he has some great points.

*****************************************************************************

Dear Friend,

I’m writing today to tell you that I share your opposition to the provisions within Governor Walker’s “budget repair” bill that would destroy a 50 year tradition of state support for the rights of working people and families in our state.

This action is beyond radical – it’s a step backward that amounts to an attack on all Wisconsin’s working families. This isn’t the way we do things in Wisconsin. We have always worked out our differences by sitting down together and reaching a reasonable compromise. Beyond that, this is being sold as a budget repair bill, but it has nothing to do with Wisconsin’s budget, and everything to do with punishing people that Governor Walker sees as his political opponents and destroying their rights.

The time for us to take action against this legislation is limited. Here’s what we can do together:

• The State Assembly will reconvene on Tuesday to consider the bill on the floor. Show up and shake the foundations of this building with your opposition as we debate the power hungry GOP representatives on the floor of the Assembly.

• Contact friends, relatives, and supporters of collective bargaining rights around the state, and urge them to contact their Republican representatives. If you know anyone in Appleton or Neenah (Senator Ellis), the LaCrosse area (Senator Kapanke), the Hudson area (Senator Harsdorf), the Ripon area (Senator Olsen), Waupun or Beaver Dam (Senate Majority Leader Fitzgerald), Platteville or Dodgeville (Senator Schultz), Sheboygan or Manitowoc (Senator Leibham), the Green Bay area (Senator Cowles), Fond du Lac or Oshkosh (Senator Hopper), communication from the constituents of these Senators would be especially helpful. You can find contact information on the Legislature’s website at

http://legis.wi.gov/.

• Protests continue at the state capitol building, including musical performances on Monday and major rallies every day until the people of our state are heard by this Governor.

Again, thank you for contacting me regarding this urgently important issue. You have my assurance that I will do everything possible to oppose this ridiculous overreach by the Governor. I hope you will do the same.

Sincerely,

Brett Hulsey

State Representative

77th Assembly District

My buget email

2011-02-20T15:58:00.001-06:00

Dear Senators,

Please take the opportunity to rethink your vote on Governor Walker's budget proposal. This is not a decision to made lightly or quickly. This decision needs to be made after each legislator has exercised due deliberation and due diligence. Neither can be achieved with the speed that this bill is being pushed through the legislature.

Everyone in the state understands that this is a tough economy. We all know that monetary concessions will need to be made, but they should be made by ALL people in the state not just some of them. We also need to consider monetary and policy points separately. Removing collective bargaining except for wages is not the type of item that should be included in a budget bill. We need to protect the many gains that have been made in our great state in the past, and stand by the rights that people have fought and died for.

Please take the time to fully examine this bill, remove the non-monetary issues, protect the right to collectively bargain, and sit down with all involved parties to find a solution. We can work together to make things better, but the key word is together. Without bringing all involved parties to the table, no good will come from this legislation.

Sincerely,

Julie J.

Thank you!

2011-02-20T15:53:00.000-06:00

In Loco Parentis

2011-02-20T15:52:00.000-06:00

In Loco Parentis: “Why aren’t the teachers doing their jobs today?”

by Jon Hawkins on Wednesday, February 16, 2011 at 8:54am

Today all public schools in Madison, Wisconsin, are closed. No services provided. A “sick-in” has been declared as part of a protest against Governor Scott Walker and his move to unilaterally dissolve all collective bargaining (i.e. “unions”) for state workers. Our union released a statement explaining that we are doing this for our kids.

I know some people--people I care about and respect--will disagree with what we’re doing. Some will say we serve kids best by staying in the classroom. Some that they don’t like or can’t stand by unions. But here’s why so many of us have made the decision we have.

“In loco parentis.” Latin for, “In the place of the parent.” That’s my job. It is my duty to be the parent for every *single* child who walks through the door of my school. It is my job to see to their safety, welfare, and health. *Every* child, without exception, and it is my union contract that allows me to do this. It makes sure that I can speak and act as a parent (even if only a substitute parent) needs to, and I can’t simply be shuffled off or fired because doing so is inconvenient for the people above me.

I have taught the children of politicians, principals, and district administrators and never once had to back down from what was right and true. Because they can’t fire me. If I feel that a teacher in my building is shoving a student into a special education ghetto, I can speak up against it publicly and force the district to abide by the rules. And they can’t fire me. I can be active in local politics, fighting to make sure that my students’ rights are being protected, no matter what pressure is brought against the district. And they can’t fire me. I can speak truth at a PTO meeting, telling the parents what they need to know about how their children are being educated. And they can’t fire me. I can go toe-to-toe with my principal to ensure that all kids are being treated fairly and getting the services they are entitled to. And they can’t fire me. I can disagree publicly, and loudly, with my superintendent about what should be done in our schools to best serve our kids, and not back down until the right thing is done. And they can’t fire me, because it is my *job* and my contract makes sure I can do it. “In loco parentis.”

My union contract protects my job in times of conflict, and Governor Walker wants to make that go away.

Two months and one week ago my wife gave birth to the most beautiful child that has ever existed. He is happy and healthy and wonderful and the most amazing thing that has ever happened to me. No doubts.

Now, a question... If I have to choose between *your* child’s welfare and *my* child’s welfare--between doing my duty and having a job--which am I going to choose? No doubts.

Teachers’ working conditions are children’s learning conditions. Your teachers’ protections are your child’s protections.

I hope this helps explain why we’re doing what we’re doing, and I hope you’ll help explain it to others.

Wisconsin. Forward.

2010 Cybil Award Finalists

2011-01-03T21:33:00.001-06:00

I can't wait to read some of these great books - I'm proud that I have already read or planned to read a few of them!

Oh I wish...

2011-01-03T21:25:00.001-06:00

Here is a great open adoption story! It makes me envious as it is something we will never have an opportunity to experience with Joy's birth family.

Another thought on teaching

2011-01-03T18:44:00.002-06:00

Check out this post from California - very interesting!

http://www.sbsun.com/ci_16994814?IADID=Search-www.sbsun.com-www.sbsun.com

Letter to Santa

2010-12-24T23:27:00.001-06:00

Please read this!

2010-11-30T22:06:00.001-06:00

Please read this great post about what NOT to say to adoptive families!

http://www.danoah.com/2010/09/how-much-did-your-kid-cost.html

Father's Day 2010

2010-11-26T22:39:00.001-06:00

I Love Daddy Father's Day 5x7 folded card

Unique party invitations and announcements by Shutterfly.

View the entire collection of cards.

Crazy back to school

2010-09-26T23:09:00.005-05:00

It has been a crazy month trying to get into the back to school groove. Faith has been challenging - all those tween emotional highs and lows, plus increased homework and less time from mom and day. Sleep has been precious - the baby is sleeping through the night, but I'm having problems trying to get it all done in the waking hours! I hope that soon we'll be in a routine and things will even out - or that Christmas break comes quickly!

AMAZING video!

2010-09-06T16:58:00.000-05:00

Thanks for the put-up Connie!

2010-08-29T21:21:00.001-05:00

Go here to read a great article about teachers!

The Span

2010-08-28T23:26:00.000-05:00

You know you have a large age difference between your children when you are buying bras for one and diapers for the other at the same time!

So far Joy is liking daycare and Faith is liking 4th grade. Hopefully, this will continue for both of them beyond the first week of school! It's too soon to really have a good idea about my class this year - everyone is always on best behavior at first.

I'm feeling ok about being back - but it's hard knowing I'm operating at maybe 90% so far. Or maybe I'm at 100% but I'm too used to being at 110% that it feels like I'm slacking. But all I can do is do my best.

Back to School

2010-08-23T23:46:00.003-05:00

Well I didn't meet my goal this year of having my room done before inservice started. It's the first time in about 8 years though. Gee, I wonder what was going on nine school years ago that kept me from meeting that goal?

Oh, yeah, the big one was a teeny, tiny baby going to daycare for the first time and I didn't want to stay a minute longer than I had too at work!

The little one had a great first day though - hope it keeps up!

Danger Will Robinson!

2010-08-15T23:12:00.002-05:00

Note to self - do not leave the camera out where the 9 yo has access to it. Especially when you're tired.

OOPS!!

2010-08-11T17:02:00.002-05:00

See the whole article at Yahoo News!!

Rolling over!

2010-08-09T20:36:00.001-05:00

Joy rolled from her back to her belly in her crib today! She's done this before with some assistance, but this one was solo because she did it while she was going down for a nap. She was so surprised she started yelling like a banshee! She's growing up so fast.

Growing Up

2010-08-08T21:45:00.001-05:00

I've had to face the tough reality that Faith is growing up. She's interested in different things, has ever so fun mood swings, is getting zits, really should be wearing a cami and showing daily, plus so much more.

The latest reality for me was her planning on how she could get a job to earn some money. She's going to ask our neighbor if she can help her in the garden for $0.50/hour. Then again, I guess she is still a kid in some ways!

Super video!

2010-07-29T19:34:00.002-05:00

20 Things You Will Never Hear Me Say

2010-07-28T21:38:00.002-05:00

With thanks to Chris at Notes From the Trenches for the idea - and #8!

20 Things You Will Never Hear Me Say

1. “I have too many books. I really should never buy another.”

2. “I love how I look in that photo – the camera really does take off ten pounds!”

3. “I don’t think my children watch enough television or DVDs.”

4. “I wish my kids would learn to ignore me and stop doing everything I ask them to - the first time they are asked!”

5. “My house is too clean. You truly could eat off the floor.”

6. “Tween-age girl emotional swings are a piece of cake – nothing to them!”

7. “Of course – clean laundry stays in the basket and dirty laundry goes on the floor. How logical!”

8. “I love getting my period. I wish it came more often.”

9. “How shall we spend the extra money we have this month after we’ve paid the bills?”

10. “I love cooking from scratch.”

11. “I can’t wait to go swimsuit shopping! Make sure to bring the camera!”

12. “I am completely caught up on grading papers and planning lessons.”

13. “The only thing I love more than spending time in the car with my children is running errands with a tired baby and a cranky tween. I think I love that the most!”

14. “The bank statement came today and I just finished balancing the checkbook to the penny.”

15. “I have a great idea… let’s go to Build-A-Bear! I don’t think you have enough stuffed animals!”

16. “Please turn the channel to Nickelodeon and put the volume up as high as it will go.”

17. “I am just too thin!”

18. “Of course you can have a cell phone, a laptop, a DS, an ipod, and any other electronic device you want. We ARE made of money after all!”

19. “I wish it were even more humid in Wisconsin.”

20. “I love exercising. I wish there were more hours in the day so I could exercise longer.”

20 Things You Will Never ...

2010-07-27T23:05:00.001-05:00

Check out Chris's post here - hysterically funny!

I will think about and post my own list soon ...

Back to School Anxiety

2010-07-19T20:18:00.002-05:00

Well as it is now several days past the 4th of July, I am officially in back to school gear up mode. I am starting to look around at my house and see all of my "do this summer" projects that are still in process or not even begun. My reading pile has barely shrunk because for every book I read, I seem to add one or two more to the pile.

I'm starting to wonder about class lists, and am figuring out how to get into school at least once per week to work without my children tagging along. I am wondering about tweaking my reading class once again and exactly how different our new social studies text will be. And this will be the year that I sit down with the 8th grade SS teacher and we figure out how we will teach US history so as not to both cover the same small bits to death!

I'm hoping I can convince Joy that taking naps in her crib is a good idea before she will have to at daycare this fall. I would like Faith to read a little more and watch tv a little less. I'm wondering how will we afford everything this fall - especially since I don't want to take away EVERY activity my former only child has participated in.

I wish I could feel that exercise is a priority and that it is fun to do. I wish ice cream had no calories and a full serving of fruits and vegetables. I wish I had all the time to do everything I want to do.

Sounds of Summer Silence

2010-07-14T13:04:00.002-05:00

Just a quick note - right now I am enjoying the silence. Both girls are taking naps. It doesn't happen often, but Faith had a sleepover at a friend's last night and she is exhausted. Joy is finally getting on a bit of a schedule regarding napping - if she would just stop knocking her nuk out of her mouth we'd be good!

Joy rolled from her tummy to her back today - YEAH!

Ebay sales are quite interesting when you are the seller - making some decent $$ though. Might have enough to pay for one week of daycare at the end of the summer but we'll have a lot more space in our closets!

Every reading teacher should read The Book Whisperer by Donalyn Miller. It's reinspired me to try Readers' Workshop again.

Thankful -

2010-07-04T20:22:00.002-05:00

My wonderful choir friends held a picnic/baby shower for us today. It was such a fun time to visit and socialize - the kids played and we ate - joyous! They surprised us with some gifts for Joy - totally not expected, but oh so nice. It makes me feel so loved to be part of such a great community.

And then a blogging friend directed me here and I realize that I am even more blessed. Pay it forward if you can.

Happy Independence Day!

2010-07-04T10:33:00.003-05:00

I am so thankful as I sit here to have the independence of our country that so many people have fought for and defended over the years. It makes me appreciate all that I have!

Humane Society

2010-07-01T12:43:00.003-05:00

Everyone kept telling me that it wasn't a good idea to sign up my animal loving daughter for a week long summer camp at the local Humane Society. They kept saying that she would be bugging us for a pet continually. My family laughed and laughed because they know my oldest well and they know me even better.

Day 4 of camp is today. She's been begging for "her" dog all week - an Alaskan husky. When we finally convinced her that he was not a good choice for our family, she started begging for "her friend's" dog - a chocolate lab. We finally had to break down and tell her that we WILL NOT be adopting a dog from the shelter this week - no matter how cute they are or how friendly they are or how much fun they would have in our backyard or how much they would keep our oldest from being BORED. Nope, no dog. Now if I had my way, maybe a cat would come home...

But Dan says NO pets - at least not until the baby is two. Then we shall see!

Happy Father's Day

2010-06-20T21:13:00.004-05:00

Here's to supper daddy! He helped with the oldest's sleepover on Friday - Saturday. Bless him, he not only heard them "Let me teach you how to make scrambled eggs!" but got up to make sure they didn't burn the house down. Then he took her swimming for special Daddy-Daughter time today so that I could try to deal with the cranky little one. I know - this picture is the only time she smiled all day I think! Can babies start teething at 2 months old? 'Cuz I think I feel a tooth breaking through.

2010-06-07T22:11:00.000-05:00

Personalize a digital collage

Random thoughts.

2010-06-07T14:50:00.002-05:00

1. This is going to be a long summer vacation. It's day 4 and already Faith is bored.

2. I'm proud of myself for going to the mall and into several stores -some with incredible sales - and we only bought one container of Claire's ear cleanser and one Japanese eraser.

3. I wish the baby would figure out how to sleep other places than on me. I love her but I don't always want to be wearing her.

4. I have to watch my couponing and only print the coupons for things we actually buy - too much wasted ink and paper. And ink cartridges for the new printer cost an arm and a leg.

5. I love friends who work at American Girl and bring you along to the employee sale!

6. I'm looking forward to seeing what kind of produce my "deluxe produce assortment" from SHARE Wisconsin will be - I have have to dig out some recipes for unusual items.

7. We have Fall DAYCARE!

8. Now we have to figure out how to pay for it - gulp!

9. Faith mouthpiece tested for band and will be playing the trumpet. She did best with French Horn but they said that is not a good instrument to start with.

10. I'm a little bit sad she won't be dancing next year - too much $$.

11. I have to stop staying up extra late "because the baby will just be getting up soon" - last night that didn't happen until 5 am - got to get some real sleep!

12. My life is pretty boring.

Joy's homework by Faith

2010-06-03T21:40:00.003-05:00

My Girls!

2010-06-01T11:59:00.000-05:00

Daycare Dilemma

2010-05-26T13:33:00.002-05:00

I started calling for daycares today for this fall. I know it seems crazy but finding infant childcare is nutso. First I eliminated all places that were not state certified. Then I had to start cold calling - I broke out into a sweat. I hate making cold calls. I never know what I should say! But all is good, I have two home cares with opening and two "interviews" within the next week. Hopefully one of them will be wonderful!

Something to think about....

2010-05-19T14:46:00.000-05:00

With any of the parables, we look for the central message. It does not help to seek meaning in all the little details - that is not how the Jews would read them or how Jesus intended it. He would want to convey one main lesson, as in the parable of the talents. Here you have three men with different gifts. A talent was originally a coin or a weight, but through this parable it acquired the general meaning of a gift or an aptitude with which each of us is endowed. Some have more gifts than others - that is obvious. People have different temperaments, some more optimistic than others, a more or less attractive personality, more or less brains, a stronger or sicklier body, more or less beautiful hair, skin, face, body, and so on. Jesus is saying: Use everything you are given. Live your life to the full. Do not hide away the gifts the Lord gave you, whether of personality or of brains or whatever. The biggest tragedy is a life unlived. The fact that you are endowed in a different way from your brother or sister or parents or friends, does not mean that you should hide away the abilities and personality you have. Use it to the full for other people. The central message is the real explanation: use everything you are given.

from sacredspace.ie

A Mother's Day Reflection

2010-05-13T12:45:00.003-05:00

As I sit here holding Joy and working on the computer, I've been pondering her birthmother. With the way that Joy was placed for adoption, we will realistically never have any contact with her. We will never be able to send her some pictures, talk on the phone, or have her visit. In many ways this makes me profoundly sad. The woman who gave me one of the greatest gifts of my life, will never know how wonderful her gift was and how amazing her daughter has become.

So what can we do as parents to acknowledge Joy's birthmother and help Joy to understand just how much she did love her?

I've been thinking about getting involved with Elizabeth House. It's an organization for pregnant women who want to either parent or place for adoption. I think it might just be a way to honor Joy's birthmother. It seems the least I can do.

The phone call - adoption story pt. 2

2010-05-09T19:15:00.003-05:00

I was at work on a normal Tuesday in April. I'd just finished eating my lunch and had just 10 minutes before my fifth graders were due back inside from recess. I walked into my classroom to a ringing telephone - I thought great - someone's sick and ran to grab it.

It was our social worker. Her first words were - Do you have some time? and You might want to sit down. She told me about a little girl who had been born just two days previously and her birthmother wanted to place her for adoption, but did not want to choose the family. We were the longest waiting family with our agency in the entire state - if we wanted her, she would be ours. She told us a little bit more information - the baby was caucasian, full term, and birthmom had been drug and alcohol free throughout her pregnancy.

I said I would call her back after I talked to Dan. One quick phone call to him - one call back to her and we were going to be parents again!

The baby was being brought from her birth county to ours that afternoon and her social worker would like to meet us at the bridge care foster family's house when she brought the baby. That would be about three hours after the first phone call.

I told lots of people at work about our new after school plans, but waited to tell Faith until the school day was actually over otherwise she would have gotten nothing done - you're welcome Mrs. H! When she came down to my classroom after school I was talking with a friend of ours (she's a sub in our building and the mom of one of Faith's best friends). I told Faith to come over and sit down and my friend said, I'll shut the door on my way out.

Faith's first words were "Am I in trouble?" - finding out she was going to be a big sister was WAAAY better than getting in trouble!

Mother's Day 2010

2010-05-09T19:03:00.006-05:00

The Adoption Story part one

2010-05-04T10:53:00.005-05:00

Some of you have asked about Joy's arrival. We were quite surprised to say the least! Here's a little back story.

My pregnancy with Faith was complicated and I was told by my wonderful ob-gyn that most of my complications would like be repeated in further pregnancies. At the time, we weren't thinking of more children we were just enjoying the one we had. As she grew, we came to realize that we wanted another child. Dan and I both have siblings and love that relationship. Neither one of us was looking forward to another experience of Julie being pregnant but thought we'd try to get pregnant AND explore adoption.

We had heard great things about our agency from other families and went to an orientation meeting. They went through the process for both international and domestic. We talked and chose domestic - only problem was that so many people wanted to adopt domestically that our agency used a lottery system to determine which families could join the program. We entered the lottery and weren't chosen. We kept this up for four more attempts, six months apart for each. Finally on our fifth attempt we were the alternate family!

As the alternate family, we were guaranteed a start in January 2006 or sooner if one of regular families opted out or was screened out. So we kept on waiting. That January we attended adoption classes and completed tons of paperwork. By March of 2006 we were paperwork ready - our portfolio was done and birthmothers could start looking at our family as a possible forever family for her child.

Things were quiet for awhile - not unexpected, we were at the end of a line of waiting adoptive families as our agency lists families from longest waiting to newest waiting and operates under a birthmother choice system. Every March we would receive the paperwork to renew our homestudy and update our information. Every March we did. There were a few times that a birthmother selected our family as one of her "short list" to see portfolios but we were never the family she selected as her match. We would get emails from our agency asking if we would be open to a birthmother with this situation or that situation. At the beginning, we were pretty choosy and didn't say yes every time. By the end, we were starting to feel "why not?" since no one seemed to pick us anyway.

In the mean time, nothing was happening in the let's get pregnant option and it seemed like every one we knew was expanded their family. My sister completed two international adoptions in the time we were waiting. My high school friend adopted her son internationally. Another high school friend had her third child. My sister-in-law and her sister both had babies. Another friend married and gained instant step-children. We were starting to feel that maybe we were getting too old, that our family would be complete with just one child. Faith didn't really need to have the sibling relationship - she was super close to her cousins - that's almost the same.

So we were up to our fourth renewal, to start our fifth year of waiting for a child. When the paperwork came, I just put it aside. We weren't ready to think about it. Dan and I talked, and talked, and thought, and prayed, and talked some more. It finally came down to that we weren't quite ready to say with our whole hearts "We are done. Our family is complete." So we sent back the paperwork at the end of March when I had the time to complete it over spring break.

Our social worker knew of our concerns and said she was glad that we had decided to continue. Then came the fateful day of Tuesday, April 13, 2010.

to be continued

Poem

2010-05-04T09:15:00.000-05:00

Great poem over at http://www.lssadopt.org/AboutUs/Blog/Posts/mothersday

Thanks Chris @ http://www.notesfromthetrenches.com/

2010-05-01T19:42:00.000-05:00

They Are Lucky They Are Cute

April 29, 2010

I went outside this afternoon and saw this scene.

I didn’t do it, Mom.

Notice her paint covered hand hanging at her side.

That isn’t my hand print. That hand doesn’t even have a thumb!

Who doesn’t have a thumb that could have done this?

Well, I don’t know everything!

One week

2010-04-19T17:19:00.001-05:00

Joy Emma

2010-04-14T06:16:00.003-05:00

born April 11
7 lbs, 5 oz 20 in
Coming home with us soon!

View across Gma Jo's living room

2010-04-11T19:01:00.000-05:00

Many are the women of proven worth, but you have excelled them all

2010-04-10T16:01:00.004-05:00

I just came home from a funeral of a great lady. Marion was a teacher at my school and just a super person. She lost her battle with cancer after a 23 year fight - which tells you something about her just from that small piece of info!

This was the first reading at her funeral.

Proverbs 31:10-12, 17, 20, 25-31

When one finds a worthy wife, her value is far beyond pearls.
Her husband, entrusting his heart to her, has an unfailing prize.
She brings him good, and not evil, all the days of her life.
She is girt about with strength, and sturdy are her arms.
She reaches out her hands to the poor, and extends her arms to the needy.
She is clothed with strength and dignity, and she laughs at the days to come.
She opens her mouth in wisdom, and on her tongue is kindly counsel.
She watches the conduct of her household, and eats not her food in idleness.
Her children rise up and praise her; her husband too, extols her:
"Many are the women of proven worth, but you have excelled them all."
Charm is deceptive and beauty fleeting; but the woman who fears the Lord is to be praised.
Give her a reward for her labors, and let her works praise her at the city gates.

I want to be just like you when I grow up Marion. I know you're up in heaven meeting all those great artists you admired, welcoming all the lost and lonely into your arms, and making it a more beautiful place for all of us when we are privileged to join you there. God bless - you are missed.

http://marionrusso.shutterfly.com/

http://new.madison.com/obit/135959

Adoption Tax Credit - We Need Your Help

2010-04-04T23:18:00.002-05:00

Bet you didn't know there was an adoption tax credit, unless you are in the process of adoption. And even then, bet you didn't know that the credit is due to expire in December 2010.

Click on the link below to see how you can help ensure that more families pursue adoption and help all kids to find their forever families - thanks!

Adoption Tax Credit - We Need Your Help

Posted using ShareThis

Thanks Chris!

2010-04-04T23:09:00.003-05:00

Chris, I wish I knew you in person. This is just one example of why I keep coming back to your blog every time - you rock! Notes from the trenches

Spring Break Creation

2010-03-31T21:29:00.002-05:00

Every girl's dream - her own fairy tale cottage! Complete with flower window box, arched windows in the doorway, and built in shelving inside! Gotta love her imagination!

**In case you're curious, it is a tuba box.

Birthday Extravaganza

2010-03-25T20:43:00.004-05:00

My girl is nine. Which is a scary thought as those nine years have just whizzed right by! We hosted our first ever sleepover party last weekend - which is truly a misnomer, because I don't think anyone really slept! But a good time was had by all.

We took them all to Build-a-Bear before coming home for pizza, cake & ice cream, movies, create a photo frame, various unplanned activities that parents were not privileged to know, a teeny tiny bit of sleep, doughnuts, egg hunt, piano playing, present opening, and other crazy events!

Tonight we just had dinner out and then presents with mom and dad. Someone had to work on her homework due tomorrow and the late work we found in her desk so it would be turned in before spring break starts after school tomorrow.

Though it looks like we'll finish Harry Potter #5 in a day or two so we should be able to watch the DVD over break!

Check out this article...

2010-03-18T22:54:00.002-05:00

School Lunch

Still sick ....blech

2010-03-16T12:04:00.002-05:00

Ok - so I never got better from the first end of winter cold. Woke up from a lovely Sunday nap with no voice and an incredible sore throat. I went "AHA! I have strep!" so I went to urgent care again.

Oh, no. Not strep according the the rapid test - it's viral laryngitis. Stay home for three days. Gargle. Lots of Tylenol. Lovely.

Almost done with day one and starting to feel a teeny tiny bit better. Going to go to work if I can talk on Tuesday. Urgent Care calls. Apparently my culture turned into strep when they grew it longer.

Make another day of sub plans. Quick run pick up Faith. Drop of plans. Get the last yearbook orders so I can send in the final numbers due that day. Check for the homework from the kid who was gone the entire last week of the quarter so I can try to finish report cards due the next day.

Get the kid home. Start puking. Have a high fever. Feel worse. Keep taking meds as prescibed.
Have her call her dad to come home ASAP.

Barely sleep. Still not feeling great today. Not puking. Low grade fever. Tired of being home. WTF is wrong with me?

Nasty end of winter colds

2010-03-05T11:26:00.003-06:00

ICKY - that's what I feel like today. I've got a nasty head cough that morphed into some weird combination of sore throat and dry hacking cough. Ended up in Urgent Care last night after some severe nagging (thank you!) by my co-worker. The drugs are making me feel better today - hope it knocks it out of the park.

Another One Bites the Dust.

2010-02-13T18:41:00.002-06:00

This week saw the completion of another big third grade project .... the Saint Report. She did a great job finding her information and typed her report all by herself. She picked all of her own props, decided herself to appropriate the Laura Ingalls Wilder outfit she received for Christmas. She practiced her presentation and assembled it all to take to school. I'm so proud of her!!

May I present to you .... Faith as St. Elizabeth Ann Seton!

Sick Days

2010-02-05T16:03:00.002-06:00

Ah the joys of being home with a sick child - a child who is too sick to go to school, but not to sick to do fun things! Today we have:

1) slept in
2) finished reading Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
3) watched the movie of the book three times
4) drunk hot chocolate
5) watched the city replace the mailbox that was taken out by the snowplow
6) read an entire People magazine from cover to cover without interruptions
7) taken a nap

Overall a very good day!

Awesome video!

2010-01-31T18:21:00.000-06:00

What a super message for all of us!

Celebrity Look-a-likes

2010-01-28T20:49:00.001-06:00

How funny - when I went to find my celebrity look-a-like for my Facebook picture - it kept giving me Laura Bush and Hillary Clinton. I'm not that old!!

Little Me

2010-01-25T22:47:00.003-06:00

OMG - Faith came out tonight after she was supposed to be in bed for about an hour. Not too big of a deal, this often happens when her music stops playing and it's just enough to wake her up.

But tonight she told me that she had been reading in her bed, under the covers with a flashlight since I had tucked her in over an hour before this. Like mother, like daughter!

Ramblings

2010-01-22T16:55:00.003-06:00

1. Just found out that our adoption portfolio is being looked at by a birthmom. She asked to see families that have been waiting for a "very long time" - that is certainly us!

2. Faith is showing her mom's logic. They had to pick a saint to research for school. I (knowing what the other parts of the project were) was dreading which saint she selected. She came home and told me that she had chosen St. Elizabeth Ann Seton because she was interesting, she has almost exactly Faith's same middle name, and that we already had a costume that would work for Faith to wear. That's my girl!

3. Stayed up all night on Sunday night reading the final book in Sara Donati's Wilderness Saga. I kept telling myself to go to bed but it was just so darn good! I was able to last the entire next day watching my girlfriend's kids, but then it took three full nights of extra sleep to completely catch up - I think I'm too old for all nighters!

4. I was reminded that any unusual behaviors should be checked out. My friend's mom had been acting off and the family took her to the doctor. They discovered a brain tumor - very large, very fast growing, very malignant. If she hadn't have been checked out, she might have been gone in just a few more days. Now they are hoping for a few more months or years. Hard to wrap your mind around when you've been expecting a few more decades.

5. There really is a change in interests for many boys and girls about age 8. Faith used to play happily with my friend's boys - no issues, no drama. On Monday, she kept talking about American Girl and they kept talking about Go-Go's (no clue). They finally found common ground in snow forts.

6. I am determined to embrace the craziness of Catholic Schools Week this year and NOT let it stress me out and drive me crazy. Hopefully just letting go of the idea that we might accomplish anything and then being impressed when we actually do will make it work this time around - well, and ear plugs for the 8th grade vs. Faculty Volleyball game.

Christmas 2009

2009-12-27T16:06:00.045-06:00

Well - our Christmas celebrations are officially over! It was a crazy, busy enjoyable time with lots of people we love!

Faith was a reader in our
Christmas pagent!

All the kids at Mass were able to join Father on the altar.

We had a fun time celebrating on Christmas Eve at my dad's house.

Then Christmas Day at our house!

Apparently my house is set up perfectly for a game of chase.

Then some of my friends from high school came over with their kids and we hung out and had lunch.

It's been a busy few days - I'm looking forward for a little quiet time before going back to school in January!

Third Grade Projects

2009-12-20T13:44:00.006-06:00

So far third grade has been the year of school projects.

We have the "Sense of Wonder" project.

And the "Planet Project."

Plus the "Traditions" project.

Faith is such a procrastinator combined with perfectionism that we usually end up about ready to kill each other by the time we are done. Daddy got to do the space project - that's his thing - and they had an even harder time working together than she and I did. And I keep hearing that she's just like me and that's why we have a hard time????

Twelve Days of Christmas

2009-12-19T13:19:00.003-06:00

The Christmas onslaught is upon me. Having officially started Christmas break at 11:15 yesterday with a trip to the dentist (Faith and I need to floss more), we are being embraced by the frantic preparations at our house.

I will be hosting the Christmas Day gathering for the first time because of my mom's move into a condo. This means that I should be: cleaning, wrapping presents, organizing all the piles of junk around my house, cleaning, writing thank-you notes to my students, double checking that all my shopping is done, cleaning...

Instead I have been: reading, watching Nanny McPhee, ignoring the grading I still need to do, thinking about report cards, ignoring the grocery shopping I need to do, buying things on E-bay that I desperately hope will be here by Thursday, surfing all the blogs and websites I haven't had time to look at in the past few weeks, tweaking the layout of this blog, and best of all...

REPEATEDLY listening to my daughter sing the following

On the twelfth day of Christmas,
my true love sent to me
Twelve drummers drumming,
Eleven pipers piping,
Ten lords a-leaping,
Nine ladies dancing,
Eight maids a-milking,
Seven swans a-swimming,
Six geese a-laying,
Five golden rings,
Four calling birds,
Three French hens,
Two turtle doves,
And a partridge in a pear tree!

She has a lovely singing voice, but heaven help us all by the twelfth day, Jan. 6th!

J-K Chronicles

December Reading List

A Day in the Life of...

November books

October Books

School Year Reading Log September

Summer Reading Challenge Weeks 11 and 12

Summer Reading Challenge Weeks 9 & 10

Summer Reading Challenge week #8

Summer Reading Challenge Week #7

Summer Reading Challenge Week #6

Summer Book Challenge week #5

Summer Book-a-Day Challenge week #4

Summer Book-a-Day Challenge week #3

Summer Book-a-Day Challenge week #2

Book a Day Challenge - Summer 2011

Speech to WI Senate hearing

To My Fellow Teachers and Staff of MMSD

New videos

A Sleeping Giant Wakes in Wisconsin

Wisconsin's Radical Break

By WILLIAM CRONON

Published: March 21, 2011

Chris Silas Neal

A version of this op-ed appeared in print on March 22, 2011, on page A27 of the New York edition.

More Amazing video

I Want My Party Back

What WouldJesus Cut?

Another Great video link

Open Letter to the People of Wisconsin

Eight Civics Lessons

Don't Hate Me Because I Care About Others

You Can NOT Have My State

New links

From a friend

I am a Wisconsinite.

Another great video

Wisconsin You are Winning

Les Mes flash mob

video of sleeping at the capitol

Budget Repair Bill Facts

Other links

http://vimeo.com/20277863

Video of Madison Rallies

High paid teachers

What if we treated doctors the way we treat teachers?

And then they came for me...

One response to my email

My buget email

Thank you!

In Loco Parentis

In Loco Parentis: “Why aren’t the teachers doing their jobs today?”

2010 Cybil Award Finalists

Oh I wish...

Another thought on teaching

Letter to Santa

Please read this!

Father's Day 2010

Crazy back to school

AMAZING video!

Thanks for the put-up Connie!

The Span

Back to School

Danger Will Robinson!

OOPS!!

Rolling over!

Growing Up

Super video!

20 Things You Will Never Hear Me Say

20 Things You Will Never Hear Me Say

20 Things You Will Never ...

Back to School Anxiety

Sounds of Summer Silence

Thankful -

Happy Independence Day!

Humane Society

Happy Father's Day

Random thoughts.

Joy's homework by Faith

My Girls!