French resources for elem literacy and numercy

Judy A wants me to remind teachers about the Min of Ed and TFO eWorkshop web page of online resources (including video resources) that  support literacy and numeracy. French page <here> and English page <here>.

And I am attaching a recent bibliography of books in French for French language teachers. Teachers may contact the library to borrow them.

FrenchTeacherResources

Rowan

Suspensions and expulsions (Tor Star series)

Sandra Contenta,  of the Toronto Star, is writing an interesting series on the impact of suspensions and expulsions on students in TDSB and TCDSB.  She superinposes the numbers of students from geographic areas who are expelled with the geographic areas of individiuals who are incarcerated and finds an overlap.  She looks atthe reasons that certain students become “repeat offenders” and the role of principals and the system in creating extended suspension periods that put the students even further behind. 

These kids are a lot of work, require super flexability and a lot of effort/resources to graduate (heck, to even get through the front doors).  Where does the role of the school begin and end? What responsibility does the student have in playing the game and conforming? What happens when they don’t or can’t ?  What happens if the student has no advocate? What is the impact of letting the student disappear or slide through the cracks? 

Read these articles in the eduction section of  the  Toronto Star parent central page.

Rowan

Read, Write, Think

This is a fabulous web site for any K-12 teacher who teaches litercy and language arts. Read, Write, Think has been created by the NCTE and IRA (reading not Ireland) and includes a wealth of resources including interactive tools that can be used and downloaded, like bio cubes or book covers , story maps, comic creator.

It has 4 main sections: lessons/units (hundreds), standards (ok, it is American), web resources (really good, and not just American), and Student Materials (interactive tools).

Rowan

A place for old and used electronics

On the heels of Earth Day, Ontario anounced a program whereby residents can unload their unwanted TVs, computers, printers, fax machines, cell phones and the like. Ontario residents can take this e-junk to specific  sites and know that it will be diverted from land fills and disposed of according to  North American environmental standards.  Check out the web site ‘dowhatyoucan‘ for more information and a list of the sites.  It even includes a Teacher Resources page with links to eco and environmental web pages.

Rowan

Family Literacy and Robert Munsch

Today is Family Literacy Day and  CBC Radio Metro Morning announced this morning they were going to interview Robert Munsch.  Between my shower and eating brekky I must have missed it and I can’t seem to open/hear it on my workplace computer.  It looks as if RM is going to take a break – from touring, or visiting schools, or writing??  Maybe you’ll have better luck than me when you listen to it.

I still can’t read Love You Forever without getting misty (my kids laugh about it) and the Paperbag Princess is a great gift to give to parents with a baby girl. I love it when the Princess tells the Prince he is a BUM!

CBC Sunday interviewed RM, very interesting and heartening. The interview stesses the importance about reading and literacy for children and adults. Any parent who has a child with learning disabilities should listen to the interview and visit RM’s official web page.

Rowan

Ontario Curriculum Unit Planner (OCUP)

Hi Everyone, I hope you had a great December break. Christmas is the one vacation from which I like to return:  too much food and wine,  sitting around,  late nights and sleeping-in etc.  Beached whale syndrome.  It is always nice to return to a routine. But then, I am a librarian!

So, today, I was looking for info about Special Ed in Ontario.  Our copy of the 1981 Ministry Handbook had gone astray, which as was  pointed out to us by the patron who has lost the book – who cares, it is too old.  While that is not the overdue point, it is certainly correct in relation to the usefulness of this book.  But do you think I could remember the title of the newer edition?

Anyhoo, I Googled <ontario ministry education “special education” > (remember to Google your way around the Min of Ed web page as it is the only way you’ll find anything short of being gifted or psychic), and  found my way to the Sp.Ed. page, and got the link to the newer (2001) handbook, titled Special Education, A Guide for Educators. We  have a print copy on the shelf, too.

So that got me thinking about the Teacher Companion to Special Education (a series of online guides that were fabulous sources of practical ideas) and were available via the Ontario Curriculum Unit Planner web page.  I went to the OCUP page,  only to see that it was went off line effective November 1st 2008.  If you read the page, it explains the reasons why it was cancelled ( is there  verb to describe when a web page ceases?).  There are links to the resources that have been transferred to other web pages, including the Teaching Companions, which are now on the MoE web page. You are going to have to know where on the MoE website they are located (read the note on the OCUP page). It would have been nice if it had become a link on the Special Ed page, but no, it is buried under the Teachers tab ->teaching tools ->Website links ->Resources from the Ontario Curriculum Unit Planner website.  There is a great Companion for ESL too.

One more thing for my brain to remember (it won’t happen).

Rowan