Bibliosphere

Tomorrow, September 1, marks the beginning of Childhood Cancer Awareness Month. So, for the month of September, I will be changing to color of my blog from green to gold. Some Childhood Cancer facts (courtesy of Candlelighters acco.org) Every year in the US 13,400 children (ages 0-19) are diagnosed with cancer. That equates to 46 children a day. Another way to approach this number: 1 in 330 children will get cancer. Childhood cancer is the leading cause of disease related death. About 1 in 5 children diagnosed with cancer will die as a result of their cancer. Over 60% of those who do survive suffer moderate to severe complications, including infertility, diabetes, heart disease, and secondary cancers. The most common childhood cancers are leukemias, followed by brain and CNS tumors. The average age for a childhood cancer diagnosis is 10 years old. 80% of children has a metastic cancer (meaning the disease has spread and is therefore harder to treat and survive), as compared ...

So, Saturday marked my last day at my job (swim teacher/lifegaurd) until I come home in December. That means that I had to bid all of my students farewell :(. So, in honor of all that I have learned from teaching, I have compiled Steffi's list of tricks to teach small children (in no particular order). Get down to their level: kneel, sit or crawl so that you can look them in the eye. Make them learn when they think it's only a game. This is the best learning. Kids love to play games. Get creative. Use their imaginations. Remember their names and things about them. This helps you bond with your students and gets them to trust you. Talk to them. Ask them about their favorite colors and things to do. Be happy. Laughter, fun and joy are all contagious. Don't be afraid. Be calm. Don't show fear. Be safe (duh). Listen. Mix it up. Repeat skills. Don't do the same exact thing weeek. But don't mix it up too much. Routines are good, and they help kids remembe...

Even though August has just begun, school is coming soon. I leave for college in less than a week, and I am super excited. Class schedules and textbook prices fly through my head daily, and my list of needed supplies dwindles as I spend my paychecks on school supplies. So, happy school supply shopping to everybody!

Some more interesting books I've read in July: Electrified Sheep  by Alex Boese Shadow of the Titanic  by Andrew Wilson Time Machine  by HG Wells (a classic in sci-fi). In this same catagory:  20000 Leagues Under the Sea  by Jules Verne A movie, and a little dated (also rated R): "Children of a Lesser God". More to follow. happy reading!