snow!

"The heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky above proclaims His handiwork." Psalm 19:1


Woke up this morning to snow...

There's something beautiful about uninterrupted morning snow

View from my back patio

Birds peacefully flittering about the tree.
(Birds? I don't see birds?!  Trust me they were there!)

view from my front stoop...a winter wonderland
(This photo makes it seem like we got LOTs of snow...when in reality it was only about 4 inches!)

When shoveling the driveway, I measured a good 4 inches everywhere (yes, that's 4 inches on TOP of the glaze of ice)
Some places had 6 inch drifts.

Who's ready for spring?  Meeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!

Ice Storm

A quote from KSDK, "It was 29 years ago to the day [January 30] that the News Channel 5 viewing area was his with a snowstorm that left 13.9" of snow in St. Louis and some areas with more than two feet. Now another and potentially bigger storm is headed this way."

The weather forecasters were saying this could be the snow of '82 and the ice of '06. Watch out world!

"Snowmegeddon 2011"
"Snowpocalyse"
Many other names were given...

Regardless what you call it, this was quite a blizzard in the midwest.

School closed for three days in a row.


Waterloo didn't get the snow that was predicted, but boy did we get the ice!




My driveway...I had to iceskate to the mailbox!




A bush in my front yard



Same bush, another angle

 

Look at this!




My plant is encased in ice




One of the evergreens in my backyard



The photo doesn't give it justice.  This weeping willow was sparkling in the sun...so pretty!




grass popsicles

 

more crunchy grass (aka "exploding grass")




bricks glazed in ice



BIRD!!!

When the "birds of prey" assembly was at school, I got the chance to have a bird fly to me! 
A once-in-a-lifetime experience!

Check it out...

http://missliefer.blogspot.com/2010/11/birds-of-prey-assembly.html

Making Math Fun

Making Math Fun!
That was the title of my presentation today at the 26th Annual ICTM Conference on Teaching Mathematics in Carbondale, IL.
It went really well. AND surprisingly, I wasn't as nervous as I thought I would be!

YIKES! My name as a conference speaker!
Session 2. 10:10.

My blurb in the program to get people to come...
"Want some fun ideas to help your students practice basic skills? This session will provide innovative, hands-on math activities to engage all learners."


The sign with my name outside the "Illinois Room" where you could find me!

Close up shot of the sign!


whew! I make it!

my outline for the speech:

I. Introduction

II. Games Philosophy

III. No Supplies Needed
a. Multiplies
b. Riddles
c. Comics

IV. Calculators
a. Problem Solving
b. Checking Answers
c. “Beat the Calculator”

V. Dice and Cards
a. Place Value Predicting
b. Card Addition
c. Subtraction Target Practice
d. Spill the Beans
e. Name that Number
f. Top-it (war) *my favorite*

09.09.09

Make it a memorable day!
:)

Spinning Shoes

About a year and a half ago (almost two years) I started spinning/cycling class at the YMCA.

I'm hooked. To quote a friend, "Oh you're one of those people." Yes I am. I love it. It's a great workout. The music makes the time go by fast. My instructor is great.

Up until last week, I went to class wearing my regular tennis shoes. I'd strap my shoes into the "cages" on the foot pedal. Most of the regulars had special shoes, but I thought that I'd wait and see if I really was dedicated enough and liked it enough to make the purchase. When I'd talk to people, they would rave about the benefits of wearing the shoes. I was a little skeptical at first, but the more I heard it, the more I wanted to try it out for myself.

So, I finally took the plunge. I went to the cyclery store and got my feet measured (I don't ever remember having a salesman measure my feet before! Sidenote, I'm a size 37--yeah, they don't come in US sizes).

To wrap up the story--I LOVE the new shoes. AND I've seen amazing results in my numbers during class. Case and point...

last class with old shoes: I biked 17 miles; 300kcal

first class with new shoes: I biked 18.4 mi; 428kcal

Yeah! Going approximately the same distance, I was able to get the watts up higher and burn over 100 extra kcal. Now I can see how people are getting up to 500 kcal in a class. Before, I was curious how they did it! I think the shoes are key! ;)

I do wish that they would've had the black shoes in recessed clips--but oh well. I didn't want to order them or wait for them to be shipped from some other store. When he measured my foot--the salesman was like "wow you have tiny feet" and I was thinking "oh no! they won't have any in my size" but thankfully they did have two pairs. I picked the black onces with a little pink.

Antz

Be warned: Animated and PG Ratings aren't automatic indicators that the movie is "Safe" for kids. It's really sad.

Today I watched the movie Antz. Here's my movie review and thoughts:

~Turning it on, I knew nothing about the movie other than it was an animated one that I haven't seen. I love animated flicks (yes, my dream is to be a Disney animator).

~I read the Netflix quick summary and learned, "In this animated hit, a neurotic worker ant (Woody Allen) in love with a rebellious princess (Sharon Stone) rises to unlikely stardom when he switches places with a soldier (Sylvester Stallone). Signing up to march in a parade, he ends up under the command of a bloodthirsty general (Gene Hackman) who's leading a war against a termite army. The all-star cast includes the voices of Anne Bancroft, Jennifer Lopez, Christopher Walken and Danny Glover. "

~I was puzzed by the title "Antz" why not call it "Ants" (why does the media purposely choose to spell things wrong?) After watching the movie, I do have to admit that I LOVE the purposeful misspelling. The movie is about an ant named Z!

~I love the name "Insectopia" (it reminds me of shoetopia and flowertopia---the islands I create for my students each year during our map-making fun)

~At the beginning of the script, the ants are bringing their ant babies to get their vocation determined. It brings up an interesting concept of having your future determined for you and tracking kids at a very young age into that profession.

~The plot takes on interesting topics such as individualism, conformity, and teamwork.

~OKAY, BUT THE REAL REASON I'M BLOGGING ABOUT AN ANIMATED MOVIE....
I WAS HORRIFIED BY THE AMOUNT OF "mild language" THAT WAS IN IT.
(The PG rating was for "mild language and menacing action." PG meant it was "ok for kids 8+")
I'm sorry but movie makers do NOT have to include certain words in a show whose primary audience is kids. You can still get across the point that he was a "bad guy" or "really mad" without using choice phrases. After watching the show, I went to screenit.com (great movie site--it can tell you lots!) and here's what I mean...

According to screenit,
there are at least 4 damns, 2 hells, 2 craps, 1 ass and 2 uses of "Oh my God" as exclamations.
AND it includes these phrases that kids could imitate: "Geez," "For crying out loud," "Come hell or high water," "Idiot," "What are you bitching about?," "Losers," "Nuts" (crazy), "Let's kick some termite butt," "Creep," "Twerp," "Bite me," "Bagging" (other ants talk about Z "bagging" Bala), "Buzz off," "Who the hell is that?," "Tight ass," "Freak" and "Ungrateful maggot."

YEAH. I DID A DOUBLE TAKE ON A FEW OF THOSE! I ASKED MYSELF, "DID THEY REALLY JUST SAY WHAT I THOUGHT THEY SAID?!?!?" (and me being the nerd that I am, I'm watching it with closed captions, so it confirms my disbelief.)

~Call me old fashioned, call me a prude, call me overly sensitive, but I was offended. If I was a parent, I would seriously consider the film's appropiateness. I know kids hear much worse and are exposed to much worse, but I wouldn't feel comfortable showing this in my classroom. It's sad.

~Bottom line: it's unfortunate that animation can be morally questionable entertainment. Look at the Simpsons. Look at Family Guy. Those are animated, but definately directed toward adults, not kids.