I stand on the shoulders of praying mothers and grandmothers. I sit on the knee caps of soldiers marching for freedom. I echo the voice of civil rights' leaders. I rally behind the backs of my brothers and sisters for equality and against injustice. 

Single Girl...EATS! Food Chronicles pt. 6

Of course it would be a play on Single Girl Gems! I'd been having a taste for fresh, steamed green beans and fish...that I make! Paired it with rice, along with an optional cream sauce or remoulade, and there you have it! Pretty PHAT heaven on Earth! 

 Before

After

Before

After

Before 

After

....and finally Wah La!

After! 

Happy Summer Lovin', Cookin', and Eating!

xoxo

Road tripping~Gone Wrong

When road tripping goes wrong...just imagine a hundred and something mile ride, roughly two hours, to a beautiful resort...

You want no sounds, except that of the R. Kelly station you have playing. You're riding and you're rolling, rolling and riding. You would have placed the address into the gps, only the resort, initially, didn't come up on the grid. You're told that signs will be everywhere anyway, so you're good...so you think! 

A nostalgic collection of music playing and sing-along anthems belted, easy breezy traffic flow (exceptional actually) and two and a half hours later you're asked, "Where are you?" "What time did we leave the house?" Then told, "Look for exit 25."

YIKES!! 

Looking at the sign ahead it reads exit EIGHTY-SIX! 86! Ocho y sies! Yes! 86! Not 25, not even close to 25 if you round! Not even the vicinity, not even close to the same city! 

Yes! That's the story of my life. I drove an hour out from the resort! A nice evening relaxing by the pool that should have began at 6:30...the latest! Didn't begin until 8:30- after I'd arrived! It was dark! It was night! What do you do with lemons? Make lemon drop martini's!! #SingleGirlGem

Late night jacuzzi lounging...a night cap...and bed! The next day would be better! It had to be, right? I was already AT the resort! 

Happy road tripping!

Teaching Tid-bit

TWEET board for student responses, exit tickets, or as an alternative to a mail box! This makes for an awesome student-centered learning tool. Post-it notes and pencils should be assessible to students at all times. 

To address a particular lesson question stem or open-ended question where individual student responses are required: each student receives the question stem, along with a post-it to TWEET the teacher their response. 

When using as an exit ticket, use the same procedure except; students TWEET as the exit the classroom!

Take it a step further and create an actual classroom twitter account and take student responses to the net! 

It helps keep students accountable for their learning, engaged in the student expectation, gives you immediate feedback in short chunks, and bridges social media aspects to the classroom! 

Not a threat...a promise!

Knowing what you want, how you want it, and the time-frame in which you want it is not a threat! It's setting smart goals! It's making and keeping a promise. Defining your life in stages is not placing ultimatums or vice grips on anyone else.  If you don't define yourself for yourself or know what you want when you want it, or have goals in place and measureable timelines...someone else is going to do it for you and then you'll really be in bad shape. It is a variation of an Audre Lord quote in which she says, "If I didn't define myself for myself, I would be crunched into other people's fantasies for me and eaten alive." She was speaking the absolute truth, and I'm fairly certain you may be familiar with the quote. 

If someone feels threatened by your definition or expectations for your life tell them to move around. You don't have time to be confined or manipulated to feel as if you're doing something wrong by mapping out your life, goals, and aspirations. Just putting this out there for the dazed and confused...or as a reminder for those on target and mastering...

Great luck in life! Today is June 3rd! We're mid-year and it's time to SELF-CHECK!

xoxo

My Educational (Career) Journey

At no-years in, a mere 11 years ago, I began substitute teaching as a means to an end when I thought I wanted to pursue a higher degree in corporate law. Racked with an exuberant amount of passions and an even greater abundance of decisions; I chose the path of least resistance (to say the least) and chose to get a certification in grades 4-8 since that was the grade-level I had been subbing and was most comfortable. 

I started the career as a NEW teacher leading a cross-curricular team of veteran teachers and boy did I get a crash-course in teacher-parent-student connections professional development! The hiring principal at the time stated, "Oh, being a team leader won't be so bad. You'll just have to spend an extra hour of your Mondays with me after school." Ok! She lied! BUT...she did take it easy on me. All I truly did was relay messages from this Type-A personality principal to the other members on my team and Wha La! What do you know? I'm a first-year teacher with a distinguished title among educators around the nation. I gain a close relationship with the principal, remaining administration, leaders on the campus, and my peers which would follow me for ten full years until I receive my second Service Award. (You get a Service Award every five years.)

Fast forward today, I'm offered, applied, interviewed, and accepted a position as Science Academic Coach. Who knew that my time in the classroom as a science teacher and team leader all these years, additional certifications later, two campuses, four principals, an internship, professional and personal victories and defeats all would be preparing me for this transfer...this moment. Who knew that I would be a valuable asset to a campus all because of my leadership skills, integrity, work ethic, qualifications, experience, relationships, effectiveness, positivity, and professional standing? I'm excited for the change, and open to all it will bring. Boots on and strapped tight as I embark on this next chapter that I've been told, "is seeing education in an entire different light!"

I'm all set with my idealistic views of what instructional/academic coaching looks like and feels like. 

Bring it on!

Cinco de Mayo!

I love participating in the Cinco de Mayo celebrations around the city! As of late, I've been restaurant hopping to get maximum exposure and FUN! 

Little bit of a history lesson: 

It's the fifth of May celebrated annually by Mexicans, Americans, and other mixed nationalities. It's celebrated in honor of the Mexican army's victory over the French in the Battle of Puebla! They were considered the underdog and triumphed! 

In essence, my celebration of Cinco de Mayo is about achievement through obstacles!