Testing?
An interesting article about the history of testing ran in today’s Washington Post. I like the Socratic method, myself!
Archive for November, 2006
Nominate your favorite book!
I first read about the Cybils (The 2006 Children’s and YA Bloggers’ Literary Awards) on Jen Robinson’s Book Page, and I’ve been following their development with interest. I’m continually impressed with how just a small group of passionate people can harness the internet and spread their idea like the season’s latest flu bug. Case in point: the Cybils, a literary award program that is only months old, were featured last week in the Children’s Bookshelf section of Publishers Weekly (an esteemed industry newsletter/magazine).
Cooler than all that though? I’ve been asked to help judge the non-fiction picture book category, along with a number of fine folks who read and/or write books: fellow homeschooljournal blogger Carrie, chocolate milkshake expert and fruit envier Tim, children’s librarian Andi, and author Jennifer Armstrong who has been on a whirlwind book tour for her book, Once Upon a Banana. Jennifer also penned The American Story: 100 True Tales from American History. Heading up this group is fellow homechooling parent and book author Chris Barton, whose first book, The Day-Glo Brothers will be published in 2008 (have I mentioned that the publishing industry can try one’s patience?).
If you haven’t nominated your favorite book yet, you still have time! Entries close on November 20 so you have a week left to bone up on your 2006 children’s books and enter your choice in the following categories:
- Fantasy and Science Fiction
- Fiction Picture Books
- Graphic Novels
- Middle Grade Fiction
- Non-Fiction (MG and Young Adult)
- Non-Fiction Picture Books
- Poetry
- Young Adult Fiction
PS: Thanks to the kind soul who nominated Great Colonial America Projects in the NF category - but it didn’t count because you didn’t include your name/email address. Ten points for the effort, though!
Yay for Andrea!
We have been going back and forth for a couple of weeks, trying to figure out why my sidebar widget was wonky. After much head scratching and codes that I didn’t understand, she finally figured it out. Whew! I was afraid I’d be stuck reading the same books that showed in my sidebar over and over. Thanks, Andrea! (and thanks, Ron, for letting her take a break from floor work!)
Another fun runaround weekend
Fun, but tiring! NEXT weekend, we just get to take it easy. This past weekend, B attended a couple of workshops at an ukulele and slack key guitar institute and came away inspired to “strum like the wind” (the title of one of his courses). The workshop was in Waimea, far enough from home that we made a day of it.
E and I did some small town shopping and actually came away with much holiday shopping completed. At the fun Parker Ranch Store, I picked up this shirt for my dad (who has a small farm more so than a ranch, but the attitude is definitely his). I also picked up gifts for my mom and my sister. I treated myself to a gingerbread latte and maple scone, and E had an apple turnover. Mm. From there, we headed across the island (didn’t we just do this??) to attend a 60th birthday bash on Sunday. Our favorite hotel was booked, so our overnight experience wasn’t as much fun as usual, but we did have time to explore some areas that we’d wanted to visit. We cruised through Pahoa and Kalapana, where a lava flow in 1990 claimed the community, and happened across a view of steam rising from where lava is currently flowing into the ocean. Of course, we hadn’t planned this, so we were there without hiking shoes and left to just wish that we were prepared enough to walk closer for a better view. We guessed that the steam was about 5 miles away.
We took some back roads through Kapoho, a beautiful, lush, oceanside community and passed this self serve fruit stand. Sellers count on the honor system to work.
At the flea market/farmer’s market in Pahoa, we picked up some star fruit (10 for $1!) and I snapped this picture of what I think is a wild orchid.
Our Day’s Handiwork
Festivities are going on all week for the Kona Coffee Cultural Festival. We’re taking advantage of as much as we can. Today we went to a lauhala weaving workshop where we made these bracelets:
Aren’t they cool?? I’m so excited that we made these ourselves. The boys thoroughly enjoyed this, as did I. I found out that there are classes that we can attend to learn to make lauhala baskets [insert joke about underwater basket weaving here]. So now I’m on the hunt for a hala tree so that I can collect materials. I’ve been trying to figure out a nice little hand project that I can do to de-stress and I’m not a knitter or crocheter. This is perfect! Lauhala bracelets for everyone!
We also made fishies out of coconut fronds:
And while we were milling about sniffing freshly roasted Kona coffee, B landed himself an impromptu ukulele lesson from a local guy that was thrilled to share his knowledge with my little music sponge.
It was a great day!
Transit of Mercury - Today!
If you have a astronomy buff at home, you might want to check this out:
On November 8, 2006, Mercury will slowly slide across the face of the sun during an event known as a transit. A transit of Mercury is relatively rare—there are only about a dozen in a century.
Watch it streaming live on the Exploratorium site.
Me on Martha Stewart Radio!
Ahem. Yes, you read that right (and those of you who know me, just nevermind that my house and its lack of decopauge and gilding would shock Martha!).
Ever wonder why the Pilgrims are portrayed wearing all black? Or just how many people were at the feast that we now call the first Thanksgiving? I’ll be talking on the radio about some common Thanksgiving myths and misconceptions within the next few weeks. Here are the dates and times so far:
- WMAS 1450 in Springfield Mass/Hartford, CT - Nov 18, 10 am EST
- Martha Stewart Radio (available on Sirius) - Nov 21, 2:00 pm EST
- Maniatv/Wake the Hell up! - Nov 22, 10:30 am EST
A non-partisan political vent
Nothing to incite a riot here, just a vent. Politicians of every shape and color are out campaigning for their cohorts. Do these people not have jobs to do?? They are getting paid with tax dollars to be President or Vice President or congress person or representative. I assume these are not easy jobs, and yet these men and women are able to fit campaign dinners at $2,000 a plate and speeches that have essentially nothing to do with their job description into their day. I’d even bet that the expenses for their appearances and Secret Service personnel are being covered by tax payers. Sheesh. I can’t wait until Wednesday.
/vent
Taiko and Coffee and Parades, oh my!
The 36th annual Kona Coffee Cultural Festival kicked off this weekend with a lantern parade on Friday night. It was a small parade this year, but we enjoyed it. Parade participants carry Japanese paper lanterns and a few had oversized paper lanterns. But, my favorite part of the parade is always the taiko drummers. Many of the drummers are kids who are part of a taiko group and they are impressive! I’m trying to upload a brief video. If I am successful, I’ll add it here.
After the parade there was a concert of sorts. It’s the 100th anniversary of filipino immigration to the Hawaiian islands, and a dance troop performed a lengthy dance sequence. We were surprised at the Arabian feel of the music and movement. My picture is fuzzy, but you can see the costuming for yourself.
Following this, a hula halau from Tokyo performed several hula dances complete with chanting. We left before the slack key quartet started, but it was a very multi-cultural evening!
Say it ain’t so!
Lego is short on bricks this holiday season. According to this article, they’ve actually turned down store orders, which could mean a shortage of stock for retailers. I think this is the first year that my boys’ wish lists haven’t been dominated by the word “lego”, but if your kids are wishing for some, you might want to shop early!
