Luigi, Mount Rushmore and me

Posted on September 3, 2012 by AOE636

It all started last year. My husband Lou Del Bianco and I had just returned from a trip to Mount Rushmore where he presented his grandfather Luigi’s story to visitors to the mountain on the busiest days for tourism, July third-fourth.

Lou’s grandfather Luigi, an Italian immigrant, was the chief carver on the mountain from 1933-1940 and served as the sculptor who made designer Gutson Borglum’s faces “come to life”.

The staff, administrators and audiences who heard Luigi’s story for the first time were fascinated and moved.

“Why haven’t we heard of Luigi Del Bianco and his contribution to the making of Rushmore?” they all asked.

The whole experience was invigorating and Lou and I left determined to spread the Luigi “gospel”. First Lou wrote a screenplay, then we collaborated on an historic novel.

While awaiting feedback from production companies, publishers, we decided to self-publish In The Shadow of the Mountain on amazon.com. Then we tried it out on my adult ESL students and in local fifth and eighth grades with the help of teaching colleagues,.

Just before Christmas 2011 came a wonderful breakthrough. The popular reality show CakeBoss wanted to feature Luigi’s story and make a Mount Rushmore cake to celebrate Luigi Del Bianco Day in his adopted hometown Port Chester, N.Y. You can check out the episode on YouTube; it’s called Presidents, Peanut Butter and Pop-ins.

That’s not all, this summer we wrote a children’s book I Want to Tell You About My Grandfather and a reader’s theater version of In the Shadow of the Mountain which we will test in classrooms this school year….

Are those enough excuses for not keeping up with my blog???

WORDS, WORDS, WORD!!

Posted on July 12, 2012 by AOE636

There’s a wonderful character in the musical, My Fair Lady, a Cockney flower girl named Eliza Doolittle. Eliza is chosen by a professor of English to be his protégé. He bets a colleague that he can teach Eliza proper English in a short period of time. After a few weeks, Eliza is exhausted and frustrated with her rigid learning schedule. She sings, “Words, words, words, I’m so sick of words”

Not my ESL students.

They can’t get enough.

One of the most energizing ways to develop a stronger vocabulary is through the study of roots. It uses our most advanced powers of comprehension and analysis.

Since 75% of the English language is rooted in Latin, it gives Latino students a “heads up”, but it also confuses them when they can’t recognize the different sounds evoked by the same letter combinations. Here’s the way we do it.

MODEL: READ. WRITE. Create a booklet called A Root Alphabet. For each letter of the alphabet, list a root and its meaning. Then list five words that derive from that root. BIO – (Latin root meaning “Life)

(1) biography – life writing – a writing about someone’s life

(2) biology – life study – the study of life forms

(3) biodegradable – life that can be broken down

(4) antibiotic – against life – the life is dangerous and has to be destroyed

(5) bionic – life bearing – able to have life from non-life

PRACTICE: SPEAK. LISTEN. Without using the dictionary, identify synonyms for the root words and analyze how each word’s meaning reflects the root’s meaning. Words in italics are from our class’s teacher-student interaction. Identify each new root word’s part of speech: biography, biology are both nouns and end in –y.

SPEAK. LISTEN. WRITE. Brainstorm additional words and list them underneath the five sample root words. Brainstormed words…biodiversity, autobiography

ENRICH: RESEARCH. READ. WRITE. As a daily follow up, become a root detective and search for roots in classroom reading assignments and the daily newspaper. List newly discovered root words in A Root Alphabet booklet.

Like a healthy plant, one small root (word) can help your vocabulary garden grow.

“As I pronounced it to you…”

Posted on June 20, 2012 by AOE636

“As I pronounced it to you.”

“Suit the action to the word.”

In Shakespeare’s Hamlet we find excellent advice on how to communicate effectively in the speech Hamlet makes to a troupe of actors. “Speak the speech, I pray you, as I pronounced it to you trippingly on the tongue.” “Suit the action to the word, the word to the action.”

We use both pieces of advice in two language exercises that enhance our listening skills, break down inhibitions and involve four of our five senses.

We call these exercises Parrot Tag (named by Michiyo) and Act it Out.

PARROT TAG: “As I pronounced it to you”

MODEL: SPEAK. LISTEN. Teacher looks directly at one student and speaks a complete sentence using one of the new vocabulary words. The student must repeat the sentence word for word. Members of the class raise their hands if they hear any difference in the way the student spoke the sentence compared to the teacher.

PRACTICE: SPEAK. LISTEN. Student looks directly at fellow classmate and speaks a complete sentence using one of the new vocabulary words. It must be different from one used by the teacher. The classmate must repeat the sentence word for word. Members of the class raise their hands if they hear any difference in the way the classmate spoke the sentence compared to the student.

ENRICH: SPEAK. LISTEN. Repeat the process described in MODEL, PRACTICE. Add additional vocabulary words to make the sentences more complex. Practice speech dynamics of loudness, pacing and emphasis.

ACT IT OUT: “Suit the action to the word.”

MODEL: SPEAK. ACT IT OUT. Teacher and students identify verbs that are unfamiliar from class reading or outside reading assignments. Students define the verb and its present, past and future forms. Teacher asks students to invent an action that shows the verb’s meaning without speaking (sign language)

PRACTICE: SPEAK. ACT IT OUT. Students practice different actions for their new verb-vocabulary. Examples: The colonists landed in Virginia in 1607. Landed can be acted out as a plane landing, but it means the same thing as the sentence implies.

ENRICH: ACT IT OUT. SPEAK. To review new verbs learned, students act out each verb at the beginning of the next class. Classmates guess which verb they are acting out. This can become an ongoing competition or a “Charade” like game.

ArtofEnglish Guest Bloggers Four

Posted on January 4, 2012 by AOE636

ArtofEnglish Guest Bloggers

Students from my BOCES ESL class post their favorite writings from Fall Session 2011.

My Fourth Guest:

Khosrow Nassiri. Khosrow is a former police administrator from Iran who is now a U.S. citizen and a daily participant in our ESLclass. His wisdom and understanding are an inspiration to us all.

—Can you guess which one he is?

Khosrow chose this essay as his blog post. We read it aloud the last day of the Fall Session and had tears in our eyes after the last line. Khosrow who was in class with his daughter and son-in-law opened his heart to everyone; knowing intuitively that we are all one extended family.

The Last Paper of the Year (December 16^th 2011)

I registered my name in Carver Center. My teacher is Mrs. Camille. She is the best teacher that I have had during my life. She loves her students. She is coming earlier than the students and is going out later than others. She gives us courage and energy to study. The shape of our class is fantastic. Every student could see the teacher and look at her mouth for learning the correct pronunciation. She practices with us many times.

She teaches us about American History and famous men and artists. She is a teacher that loves to teach her students and respond to the students’ questions. She brings different books and gave to student for to read. She tries to learn how to think and imagine the subject. At the end of the term she invites us to celebrate the Christmas party. We went there, all of the classmates were happy to be there. The decoration of the house was beautiful and artistic harmony. We put the gifts under the Christmas tree. Her husband is named Lou Del Bianco. He is handsome man and attractive singer. The situation of the party was very warm and lovely because everyone look each other with pure love. We celebrate the ceremony and read about SinterKlass.

Now this is the last paper of this term. I used to come five days a week to this class. I learned many things during the 10 weeks from my lovely teacher and dear classmates. I don’t want to say goodbye. I like to say see you soon with love.

ArtofEnglish: Guest bloggers Three

Posted on December 27, 2011 by AOE636

ArtofEnglish: Guest bloggers:
Students from my BOCES ESL class post their favorite writings from Fall Session 2011.

My Third Guest: Hermogenes Sanchez
Hermogenes is a quiet, thoughtful Peruvian gentleman who has been in my class for two years. He enjoys learning new words and has become a “living” dictionary for many of his classmates. We are always impressed by the insights he expresses so beautifully in his second language. Here are his selections.

Assignment: Look at Paul Revere’s etching of the Boston Massacre and write from the point of view of one of the people in the picture.
British Soldier: Today seems like no other. I can see a lot of people in the square, a bunch of rabble rousers trying to make us angry. In a few minutes my regiment is going to face those protestors and in a good way we are going to tell them to disperse. (One hour later) Listen up, people. This place is not right for you to do this kind of expression against the government. So, all of you have five minutes to leave the square in peace. If not, we are going to take action no matter what. My captain is very angry and disappointed by this kind of behavior. Think about it, go home, please.

Assignment: Interpret the words “All men are created equal”
I agree with this saying because I think this is about how a man and woman get together and for natural law create a new offspring; this is the same for everybody. But we have to know that our society is going to effect the behavior, education and all those complex things that make a human being successful through his whole life. I can say that family plays an important role in the education and makes one excel in this society.

Assignment: Write about – What is beauty?
Beauty is what makes you happy, impresses your senses in the way that makes you wonder what you see or feel; it’s a moment of excitement that can stay forever or vanish. It could be colors, nature, animals, art, cosmos, people, love. It’s a complicated topic because ir depends on the person who is seeing and the way of interpretation and its point of view on the moment. Our culture most of the time gets confused about the meaning of beauty and it’s focused just in external appearances just for commercial advertisement which means money. Beauty is the inspiration of many artists. They capture that feeling and they are able to transform it into another kind of beauty that could even be music.

ArtofEnglish Guest bloggers Two

Posted on December 17, 2011 by AOE636

ArtofEnglish: Guest bloggers:

Students from my BOCES ESL class post their favorite writings from

Fall Session 2011.

My Second Guest:

Michiyo Soga: Michiyo is a lively, enthusiastic Japanese woman who recently discovered her talent for writing poetry; a talent she inherited from her mother. She started our class in early 2011 and is in this picture

Assignment: Write about a day you felt really happy to be in this country.

Every morning I open the door
Children are playing on the ground with cheerful voices
A man is sweeping the floor, humming a Spanish song.
I enter the classroom.
Familiar faces welcome me as usual.
People I love and the best teacher in the world.
This is New York.
There are many places to go.
There are many things to see.
But I go to the class every morning
Because I know this is precious time.
The time I talk to the people from around the world.
The time I feel connected with these friends.
Although my English is poor, our feelings are one.
Today I go to the class as usual.
A lot of “good mornings” shine my day.
Thank you, Camille.
Thank you, everyone.
Thank you, America.

On the sidewalk,
Holding a coffee cup, showing up white breath,
Walking to the station, in heavy boots.
In a rush, but not too much rush.
She tries to cross the road.
Her eyes cross my eyes in the car,
She smiles and I smile.
She starts crossing, holding up her hand.
Her mouth moves.
Without hearing, her voice reaches me,
Warming my heart in the crisp air

Driving along I-95
Up north…aimlessly 60 mph
The road stretches for miles away
It melts into the May sky.
Wrapped up by the vast azure
Humming Pink with 102.7
I go through the State line.
My heart glides in the bright sunshine.

ArtofEnglish: Guest bloggers One

Posted on December 7, 2011 by AOE636

Students from my BOCES ESL class post their favorite writings from Fall Session 2011.

My First Guest: Anonymous

(My first guest blogger wishes to remain anonymous.)

She is from Taiwan, has studied English in different places and has been in our class at Carver Center, Port Chester since September. She is in the picture.

Assignment: Write about a day you felt really happy to be in this country.

A Day in My Life: Happy to Be Alive

Light penetrated through the window and woke me up with bright warmness. The birds were singing and the squirrels were chatting. They seemed to welcome me to a new day. The aroma of coffee filled the air. It was a seductive morning call.

The newspaper was lying on the table waiting for me to browse. All of this cheered up the beginning of my day. My senses were alert and satisfied. I kissed my husband and kids and watched them leave home to go to work and school. Emotions were swirling in my heart. This is what I have always dreamt of. A family, happiness and health. I felt so content and thankful to be alive surrounded by people I love. And they love me very much too.

Assignment: Write a story that your parent or grandparent told you. (Her grandmother)

She wears a long dress, the wind blows through her golden blond hair and she misses her lover. Where has her lover’s boat gone? There is no information at all.

Has his boat met stormy weather? That makes her worry, but there is no one she can tell. She can only tell all her troubles to the wind, but the wind is heartless and teases her saying she is a fool. The wind doesn’t know first love with a trembling heart.

She misses her lover at the same time she misses her father. After twenty years she still doesn’t know who and where her father is. She misses her father and would like to meet him, but the only information she has is a golden cross he had left for her mother. Her mother told her that she was born out of wedlock. When she thinks about it sadness comes up in her mind. She doesn’t know whether her father is still alive or not. She only knows he is a Dutch ship doctor.

She thinks about both her mother’s and her own life. She misses and hates her father at the same time, especially when she sees some people who are close to their parents and she is the only one raised by a single mother. Today she is young and lonely and standing here waiting for her lover hoping that one day her lover’s boat will return to the harbor of An-Bing.

There is Miss Gold waiting till she hears the horn of the returning boat.

This is a Taiwanese legend.

Thanksgiving Address Greetings to the Natural World

Posted on November 21, 2011 by AOE636

Adapted from Native American prayer by Camille Linen

THE PEOPLE: Today we have gathered and we see that the cycles of life continue. We have been given the day to live in balance and harmony with each other and all living things. So now, we bring our minds together as one as we give greetings and thanks to each other as PEOPLE.

THE EARTH MOTHER: We are thankful to our Mother, the Earth, for she gives us all that we need for life. It gives us joy that she continues to care for us as she has from the beginning of time. To our MOTHER, we send greetings and thanks.

THE WATERS: We give thanks to all the Waters of the world for quenching our thirst and providing us with strength. Water is life. We know its power in many forms – waterfalls and rain, mists and streams, rivers and oceans. With one mind, we send greetings and thanks to the spirit of WATER.

THE FOOD PLANTS: With one mind, we turn to honor and thank all the Food Plants we harvest from the garden. Since the beginning of time, the grains, the vegetables, beans, and berries have helped the people survive. Many other living things draw strength from them too. We gather all the Plant Food together as one and send them a greeting and thanks.

THE ANIMALS: We gather our minds together to send greetings and thanks to all the Animals life in the world. They have many things to teach us as people. We see them near our homes and in the deep forests. We are glad they are still here and hope that it will always be so.

THE TREES: Now we turn our thoughts to the Trees. The earth has many families of trees who have their own instructions and uses. Some provide us with shelter and shade, others with fruit, beauty and other useful things. Many people of the world use a Tree as a symbol of peace and strength. With one mind, we greet and thank the TREES.

THE SUN: We now send greetings and thanks to our eldest brother, the SUN. Each day, without fail, he travels the sky from east to west bringing the light of the new day. He is the source of all fires of life. With one mind, we send greetings and thanks to our brother.

THE FOUR WINDS: We are all thankful for the powers we know as the FOUR WINDS. We hear their voices in the moving air as they refresh us and purify the air we breathe. They help to bring the change of seasons. They come from four directions bringing messages and giving us strength. We send greetings and thanks to the FOUR WINDS.

GRANDMOTHER MOON: We put our minds together and give thanks to our oldest GRANDMOTHER, the MOON. She lights the nighttime sky. She is the leader of women all over the world, and she governs the movement of the ocean tides. By her changing face, we measure time, and it is the MOON who watches over the arrival of children here on earth. With one mind, we send greetings and thanks to our GRANDMOTHER, the MOON.

THE BIRDS: We put our minds together as one and thank all the BIRDS who move and fly about over our heads. The Creator gave them beautiful songs. Each day they remind us to enjoy and appreciate life. The Eagle was chosen to be their leader. To all the BIRDS, from the smallest to the largest, we send our joyful greetings and thanks.

THE ENLIGHTENED TEACHERS: We gather our minds to greet and thank the ENLIGHTENED TEACHERS who have come to help throughout the ages. When we forget how to live in harmony, they remind us of the way we were instructed to live as people. With one mind, we send greetings and thanks to those caring TEACHERS.

THE CREATOR: Now we turn our thoughts to the CREATOR, or Great Spirit and send greetings and thanks for all the gifts of Creation. Everything we need to live a good life is here on this Mother Earth. For all the love that is still around us, we gather our minds together as one and send our choicest words of greetings and thanks to the CREATOR.

CLOSING WORDS: We have now arrived at a place where we end our words. Of all the things we have named, it was not our intention to leave anything out. If something was forgotten, we leave it to each individual to send such greetings and thanks in their own way.

Where Did Thanksgiving Go?

Posted on November 15, 2011 by AOE636

Have you noticed how we happily jump from Halloween to Christmas?

What happened to Thanksgiving?

The month of November used to be filled with legends of Pilgrims and Indians and school plays, Squanto. Miles Standish, Priscilla Alden.

Though their stories have turned out to be more fiction that fact, Thanksgiving was always a major part of the end of the year holiday count-down.

Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas.

But, where did it go?

I’m afraid it’s been gobbled up by the flat screen.

The truth is in the year 2011, 390 years after it was first celebrated, Thanksgiving means television, television and more television:

We watch the Macy’s Thanksgiving Parade in the morning, football bowl games in the afternoon and evening and squeeze the “traditional” feast somewhere in between. There’s narry an Indian or Pilgrim in sight…

And to add insult to injury, Santa is the star of the Thanksgiving parade and everyone tunes in just to see and hear a range of performers from the latest Broadway musicals to the country’s top high school bands. I’m not complaining because our Port Chester High School Marching band was chosen to march in the parade and even starred in the re-make of Miracle on 34th Street!

But, how did Thanksgiving, that most American of all holidays, get lost in the media shuffle? Maybe it was too young and immature to fight back.

Unlike the ancient feasts of All Hallows Eve and The Festival of Lights which have both been Christianized, Thanksgiving is a very recent holiday. Abraham Lincoln proclaimed the fourth Thursday in November a national holiday in the middle of the Civil War, 1863.

And the traditional Thanksgiving feast varies as much as the people who prepare it. My German grandmother made bread stuffing for her turkey, my Italian grandmother used a more spicy sausage for hers.

The logical conclusion; Thanksgiving is as American as you can get, a melting pot of feasts that interpret and define cultures from all over the world. Of course it’s overshadowed by the media, it’s personal and familial, just as it was during the fall harvest of 1621 when a staunch group of English settlers welcomed the native people into their settlement. First, the colonists thanked the natives who helped them survive their first winter; half of the original group died. Then together, natives and pilgrims thanked their Creator for a bountiful harvest.

Over the years, I’ve tried to get our family to recreate that spirit by introducing a Native American Thanksgiving prayer for everyone to read aloud before the feast. They did it to please me…but they weren’t thrilled. If you want a copy, it’s in the next two blogs.

In our family, like so many others, Thanksgiving traditions work better when it comes to food. We usually say what we’re thankful for and love to sing together, but I always get to make the candied sweet potatoes. Amen!

Earth Spirit – Carlos Nakai Flute Evokes Feelings

Posted on October 13, 2011 by admin

Students were asked to write what they felt as well as what they saw. Notice that with feelings there are more similarities than with images. A good question to ask adult ESL students is why emotional responses are more alike than image responses.

I feel a little cold because of the weather. It makes me think many things and feel strange. Marvin

I can associate this with other experiences that I had receiving therapeutic massage. They used to use the same kind of music combined with relaxing sounds. Carlos

It seems so familiar and a little sad to me. The peaceful melody calms me down. Ting

It’s like I’m dreaming, but after a few minutes I feel a little bit sad. Latifa

The common feelings are security, appreciation and peace. This music gives me positive energy. Yuko

I can feel relaxed and nostalgic. I’d like to listen to this music before I go to bed,
I guess I can get rid of my daily stress and sleep very well. Izumi

The music makes my mind clear and relaxed. Mayumi

I feel that his sound is for my heart gently. Setsuko

When I listen to this music I feel peaceful. It is like I just woke up and opened the window of my bedroom. Clara

Feelings of peace, comfort, community, always in a circle. The life circle in song.
Listening makes you a member of the circle. Feelings of peace. Camille