Axiom Home Page Forums General Discussion The Water Cooler Please wish my wife good luck my Axiom friends!

Man, you sure know how to work it, don't you. On a serious note, though, congratulations and good luck to your wife. We all know just how much this country needs great teachers. Send my thanks to your wife for being one of them.

Randy, Your wife got to this level because of who she is. She must be a tremendous lady, so my take is that all she needs to do is keep being Karen, and things will work out just fine.

As for the speech she has to give - tell her to imagine the audience is in their underwear. That will calm her nerves ...

Loads of luck to your wife, Randy! My sister-in-law is also a reading specialist at an elementary school (in Iowa City). In fact, it's at the same school that my brother & I attended! I didn't realize the importance of reading teachers until she became one. It's great that your wife is being recognized for her specialty!

OT...but I was looking at your profile and saw your hobbies included Ryukyu Kempo Karate. My mother is from Okinawa. So not only do we have Iowa in common, a reading specialist in the family, but Okinawa as well (but in my family, no one knows Karate!).

Congratulations to your wife!
Mary

The problem is that I'll be in the audience also Craig, now that I'm in my late 30's, she doesn't seem to see me much in my Fruit of the Looms like she used to

Hey what ever happened to my 6 pack

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Hey what ever happened to my 6 pack

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Randy, tell you upgraded to a full KEG !

thanks everyone ....

thanks Mary, it sure is a small world. In regards to the Karate stuff, I really need to get back into it, I've been out for a year or so busy with a bunch of kid activities and remodeling my basement for the new HT , you know the important stuff. My Master's Master is Taika Oyata who is now pushing 80, but you would not know it, I've watched him toss these Americanized TKD so called black belts around the room like rag dolls. There is definately a difference between Americanized Martial Arts that is geared towards preparing for tournaments, and a true Life Protection Art that provides techniques that could actually kill an attacker.

The art is actually called RyuTe that Taika founded but because he is from the RyuKyu Islands, most of us refer to it as RyuKyu Karate.

Thanks, again...Randy

Great teachers are likely the most important influence on a child's life outside of their family. Congrats to your wife on being one of those outstanding influences, regardless of the outcome of the statewide prize.

Congratulations and best of luck to Karen as she moves foward in the process. I hold the highest admiration for teachers. My wife told me I have to. You see, she is a one. As a matter of fact she is a Reading Recovery teacher. I don't know if your familiar with that program in Iowa.

She teaches only first grade students who are at risk. (way behind other first graders) She pulls them out of regular class and works with them 1 on 1 for about an hour a day. She starts with a battery of tests to identify the children most at risk. Most have some form of LD, emotional problem or they are from families of lesser means or homes where little english is spoken at all. Many of her students tell her there are no books in the house. Based on what the childs particular problem is she works out her lesson plan. Most of the children she works with are reading at class level or above by the time she is through with them. But it is the ones that she never seems to reach that haunt her and at the same time make her the teacher she is. She is a life time student, always learning new tools and strategies so that she can be the best at what she does. She is very dedicated to her students. She makes learning fun and when the child finally learns to read and works through the different levels most of them absolutely love to read. Generally the child has a favorite book by the time they have worked through the levels. The children that tell her there are no books in the house get their favorite book as a gift for their accomplishment. The school will not approve this method but my wife covers the cost of the book. During one of my tightwad moments one time I stated that this was costing us a lot of money. She told me it was well worth it to see the look on the childs face when they come in with this proud look on their face and say "Miss Bernadette, I took the book home and read it to my parents." She knows in many of these cases the parents probably understood very little of it.

Best of luck to Karen. I hope she gets all the recognition I know she deserves.
oz

Thanks again everyone...

Oz, sounds very similar to my wife's current job as 1st Grade Reading teacher, I will have to talk to her tonight to get the actual job specifics, but it sounds very similar to what you described, especially the one on one stuff.

She is off getting her interview haircut right now for Friday's interview with the Iowa Board of Education.

Many, Many thanks to everyone....I'll keep ya posted..Randy

Hey, man, congrats to your wife. We're all rooting for her, I'm sure!