Greetings!
I hope you are all well- and not too many of you fall victim to cruel April Fool's jokes! Ryan's sister, Erika, will celebrate her birthday on the 1st of April, so a Happy Birthday to you, Erika, if you are reading this! We continue to pray for Erika as she recovers from her surgery, but as far as we know, all seems to be going well. Thank you to everyone who has been remembering Erika in their thoughts and prayers.
Otherwise, Ryan and I have started back at school after having a week and a half off for the Easter holidays. We had thought about traveling, but decided to stay home and enjoy some local touring, thinking the weather would be nice. Unfortunately, although it was warmer and extremely humid, it was not sunny at all, and we had many days of prohibitively heavy rain. At least we could just stay home, do laundry, and bake!
We enjoyed a beautiful Easter sunrise service at Christ Temple at To Fung Shan Christian Center, followed by communion at their big cross which looks over the modern city of Sha Tin. It was misty and a little surreal that morning, with all the sky scrapper lights still glowing in the early hours of dawn... then we had a full Scandinavian breakfast prepared by the Ascension House ministry team (four young Scandinavians) at their cute little cottage near the cross. A good time was had by all, and we left with full bellies (well, I have to confess I can't manage much food that early, but the others seemed to be stuffing their faces with the pancakes and home-made Scandi bread and toppings!).
As for Katrina's birthday celebrations (I am now a quarter of a Century old!) we kept it simple at home. We were considering some fancy restaurants, but then I decided we would just make the food I wanted to eat at home- because I have to confess, I know I can do a better job than most, I have control over the ambiance, the bathrooms are always cleaner, and I prefer the bill! :)
We had a lovely Salad Nicoise with huge sardines that were first grilled with carrots, onions, tons of garlic, capers, herbs, etc., a shaved potato, french beans, organic lettuce (what a find!), more capers, spinach, and fresh lemon juice and olive oil dressing (and fresh pepper and more herbs... probably other stuff too that I just can't remember, but it was delicious!). We had some home made herbed pita bread with it, with huge pieces of rock salt that really pulled it together, and a great tomato sauce to dip it in... yummy....
For dessert, Ryan had baked two goodies: a light lemon cake (sort of scone like, but lighter), and a thin but dense chocolate brownie-type cake which was not sweet but very satisfying (baking gluten-free/dairy free is always an insane adventure!). We had them together with Rice Dream Hazelnut Vanilla Fudge ice cream which we had been lucky in finding at an expensive health food store in Central--- but we got a few pints on sale for dirt cheap! Let me tell you the Rice Dream tastes so much better when you buy it at a fraction of the original cost... and it was just as good as an dairy dessert. They have definitely improved their recipe since I first tried the stuff years ago....
I am such a foodie! Anyways... at least now you have a better idea of what we have been up to- or at least, what we have been eating!
Love to all of you,
Katrina and Ryan
Monday, March 31, 2008
Notice our HUGE American fridge?
Hi!
If you have scrolled down to see the new pictures we posted below, you may have noticed the HUGE American fridge that came with our apartment. Or, perhaps if you are American and have one of these beasts yourself, you did not take note. Well, it is something very special to have such a large fridge in other parts of the world... indeed, our little British fridges could never compete with this big baby, and our neighbors here are all jealous.
But I digress... my point is this: we have a big fridge and we have some magnets, and if you send us pictures or postcards we promise we will put them up on the fridge and admire you every day. We don't have a printer, though, and it is more fun to get mail, so sending us one in the mail may be better than sending us an attachment... (e-mail us if you don't have our postal address, or contact somebody who does- like my parents!) ;)
We can send you a postcard from Hong Kong as well...
Peace and love,
Katrina and Ryan
If you have scrolled down to see the new pictures we posted below, you may have noticed the HUGE American fridge that came with our apartment. Or, perhaps if you are American and have one of these beasts yourself, you did not take note. Well, it is something very special to have such a large fridge in other parts of the world... indeed, our little British fridges could never compete with this big baby, and our neighbors here are all jealous.
But I digress... my point is this: we have a big fridge and we have some magnets, and if you send us pictures or postcards we promise we will put them up on the fridge and admire you every day. We don't have a printer, though, and it is more fun to get mail, so sending us one in the mail may be better than sending us an attachment... (e-mail us if you don't have our postal address, or contact somebody who does- like my parents!) ;)
We can send you a postcard from Hong Kong as well...
Peace and love,
Katrina and Ryan
Using Jeopardy in teaching
Hi everyone!
I am at work right now, and just completed writing up the following activity for possible submission in our ELCA Asia ESL network newsletter. I thought I would post it on the blog because it would give you some more insight into our ESL teaching. Using Jeopardy-style games in a language classroom is not an innovative idea, both Ryan and I have played similar games for review before an exam, but this worked extremely well for us and so I wanted to share it with others.
ESOL class Jeopardy:
Many of you may be familiar with the American game show, Jeopardy, and perhaps you have played an adapted version as a review game in school. We hope this activity might be helpful for you in your ESOL teaching, if you haven't already discovered the joys of Jeopardy!
We played “Jeopardy” in our ESOL classes this semester instead of having a traditional mid-term examination. The students responded extremely well. They enjoyed being able to work in groups and teach each other, and we were impressed with how the students made sure their whole team was following and understanding both the questions and the answers, with the result being that the teachers didn't have to explain anything beyond the game's instructions! It was fantastic to see. Our classes also felt that they learned and benefited from this activity, and it worked surprisingly well with the different levels and cultures of our context.
Categories and Language Functions :Listening/ Speaking/ Group work/ Review game/ Exam option
Level: All levels possible (vary the questions and categories as appropriate for your class context and mixed level groups or “teams” are also possible in a class with a wide range of English language abilities)
Time: Variable, depending on the number of categories and how strict you are about the response time from the teams, but allow for approximately 60 minutes or more if you have longer class periods (it may take longer than you expect!)
Materials: A blackboard/white-board and writing tools (multiple colors are helpful to create the game show ambiance). The class should all be able to see the categories and point options available to them.
Before Class: The teacher must prepare “Jeopardy” style categories with appropriate questions from the course material covered in class and in the reading/homework. Some category examples might be grammar you have covered together, or reading comprehension, or you may also be more specific, focusing entirely on verb conjugation in one category, for example. We had five categories with five questions in each category, varying from more simple questions (for 100 points) up to more complicated questions (worth 500 points), with the points increasing by 100 with each increasingly more difficult question.
Coming up with fair and manageable questions and assigning their varying level of difficulty, and thus worth, was the most challenging part of the preparation work. After you have done that, it gets really fun!
If possible, draw the “game show” grid on the blackboard before class, listing the category at the top and the points (ex: 100-500) in each square. Otherwise, do it as soon as possible when class begins.
In Class:
Divide the class into a few small groups or “teams” (you can decide if it would better if you form teams of varying levels beforehand or if it is appropriate to have teams formed at random on the day).
Ask the students for them to chose a name for their team (we had different Biblical heroes!) and write them on the board next to where you will be keeping track of their scores.
Explain the game to the class.
Playing the game: One team will start and they may select a category and a question, for example, “Verb Conjugation for 200 points.” The teacher will be the game show host, and will read the corresponding question to the team and the class. The team can deliberate together, quietly, and then give their answer (you can decide if you want a strict time limit for their response). If they give the correct answer, then they get the points, and another team continues in the same manner. If the first team does not get the answer correct, then the next team in order has an opportunity to give the answer and receive those points. However, if they also do not get the answer then it would go on to the third team. (Different from the TV version, each team only has the chance to chose and answer one question at a time, even if they give the correct response.) Continue playing, going in rounds, until all questions have been asked (If every team gives the incorrect answer then no team gets the corresponding points, and you continue where you left off).
Note: We gave students time to explain the questions and answers to others on their team who were struggling with comprehension or did not have mastery of the material. We tried to make the questions fair, and wrote them in basic English, however, a few students have much lower levels than the rest of the class. Our students were very happy to share with their classmates.
Evaluation: Although not appropriate for every class or context, we did not carefully evaluate individual students during this activity. We told our class that what was important was their coming to class and participating to the best of their abilities, however, we did ask them to review for this game and to be prepared to answer questions based on all the material we had covered thus far in the term.
We are fortunate as teachers because we know where all of our students are in terms of their levels and their learning pace, thanks to small class sizes, regular in class or homework assignments, weekly small conversation groups, and our close knit seminary community. Thus, we can easily monitor our students' progress, so we don't need traditional individual evaluation methods to the same extent.
Variations: This game can also be used as an excellent review activity for a situation where individual exams are expected or more appropriate. The categories and questions can always be rewritten, so the game has endless possibilities! As long as everyone is learning and having some fun!
We hope you enjoy!
Katrina and Ryan
I am at work right now, and just completed writing up the following activity for possible submission in our ELCA Asia ESL network newsletter. I thought I would post it on the blog because it would give you some more insight into our ESL teaching. Using Jeopardy-style games in a language classroom is not an innovative idea, both Ryan and I have played similar games for review before an exam, but this worked extremely well for us and so I wanted to share it with others.
ESOL class Jeopardy:
Many of you may be familiar with the American game show, Jeopardy, and perhaps you have played an adapted version as a review game in school. We hope this activity might be helpful for you in your ESOL teaching, if you haven't already discovered the joys of Jeopardy!
We played “Jeopardy” in our ESOL classes this semester instead of having a traditional mid-term examination. The students responded extremely well. They enjoyed being able to work in groups and teach each other, and we were impressed with how the students made sure their whole team was following and understanding both the questions and the answers, with the result being that the teachers didn't have to explain anything beyond the game's instructions! It was fantastic to see. Our classes also felt that they learned and benefited from this activity, and it worked surprisingly well with the different levels and cultures of our context.
Categories and Language Functions :Listening/ Speaking/ Group work/ Review game/ Exam option
Level: All levels possible (vary the questions and categories as appropriate for your class context and mixed level groups or “teams” are also possible in a class with a wide range of English language abilities)
Time: Variable, depending on the number of categories and how strict you are about the response time from the teams, but allow for approximately 60 minutes or more if you have longer class periods (it may take longer than you expect!)
Materials: A blackboard/white-board and writing tools (multiple colors are helpful to create the game show ambiance). The class should all be able to see the categories and point options available to them.
Before Class: The teacher must prepare “Jeopardy” style categories with appropriate questions from the course material covered in class and in the reading/homework. Some category examples might be grammar you have covered together, or reading comprehension, or you may also be more specific, focusing entirely on verb conjugation in one category, for example. We had five categories with five questions in each category, varying from more simple questions (for 100 points) up to more complicated questions (worth 500 points), with the points increasing by 100 with each increasingly more difficult question.
Coming up with fair and manageable questions and assigning their varying level of difficulty, and thus worth, was the most challenging part of the preparation work. After you have done that, it gets really fun!
If possible, draw the “game show” grid on the blackboard before class, listing the category at the top and the points (ex: 100-500) in each square. Otherwise, do it as soon as possible when class begins.
In Class:
Divide the class into a few small groups or “teams” (you can decide if it would better if you form teams of varying levels beforehand or if it is appropriate to have teams formed at random on the day).
Ask the students for them to chose a name for their team (we had different Biblical heroes!) and write them on the board next to where you will be keeping track of their scores.
Explain the game to the class.
Playing the game: One team will start and they may select a category and a question, for example, “Verb Conjugation for 200 points.” The teacher will be the game show host, and will read the corresponding question to the team and the class. The team can deliberate together, quietly, and then give their answer (you can decide if you want a strict time limit for their response). If they give the correct answer, then they get the points, and another team continues in the same manner. If the first team does not get the answer correct, then the next team in order has an opportunity to give the answer and receive those points. However, if they also do not get the answer then it would go on to the third team. (Different from the TV version, each team only has the chance to chose and answer one question at a time, even if they give the correct response.) Continue playing, going in rounds, until all questions have been asked (If every team gives the incorrect answer then no team gets the corresponding points, and you continue where you left off).
Note: We gave students time to explain the questions and answers to others on their team who were struggling with comprehension or did not have mastery of the material. We tried to make the questions fair, and wrote them in basic English, however, a few students have much lower levels than the rest of the class. Our students were very happy to share with their classmates.
Evaluation: Although not appropriate for every class or context, we did not carefully evaluate individual students during this activity. We told our class that what was important was their coming to class and participating to the best of their abilities, however, we did ask them to review for this game and to be prepared to answer questions based on all the material we had covered thus far in the term.
We are fortunate as teachers because we know where all of our students are in terms of their levels and their learning pace, thanks to small class sizes, regular in class or homework assignments, weekly small conversation groups, and our close knit seminary community. Thus, we can easily monitor our students' progress, so we don't need traditional individual evaluation methods to the same extent.
Variations: This game can also be used as an excellent review activity for a situation where individual exams are expected or more appropriate. The categories and questions can always be rewritten, so the game has endless possibilities! As long as everyone is learning and having some fun!
We hope you enjoy!
Katrina and Ryan
Sunday, March 30, 2008
Time enough!
Hi family and friends!
I can't believe I have managed to go this long without posting a blog! It is always something on my 'to do' list, but somehow the immediate needs of my job and my body seem to take precedence! (Yes, imagine that... I prioritise eating, sleeping, running, etc., over spending time on the Internet).
Ryan and I are always thinking about (and praying for) all of our loved ones back in the US (or in other locales, such as Katrina's brother, Olav, who is currently studying abroad in Paris!) but we don't seem to translate the thoughts into actions.
Thankfully, we will see many of you in a few weeks time when we return to Fairfax, Va, and Cary, NC, for Ryan's Dad's joyful wedding. This will allow us to catch up in person, and for us to share some of the stories that haven't made it into the blogging sphere... but I know still many of you will not get the chance to visit with us, so I promise I will try my best to give you some satisfying stories between now and my departure in two weeks time.
Also, many of you may notice that we have added some new pictures (finally!!!!) so you can visualise our world a little better (and see more of our beautiful faces- in case you don't remember what we look like!). These date from several months ago to just the other week, which explains our slightly different looks. Those pictures of both Ryan and I were taken by either my Mom or my sister, Corie, while they were visiting in late December/early January (Thanks guys-- it's hard when you are a couple to get many pictures of yourselves!).
I hope these next posts will help to update you on our lives and mission here in Hong Kong.
Peace and love to all of you in this Easter season,
Katrina and Ryan (in the kitchen, making brown rice milk from scratch- what a man!)
I can't believe I have managed to go this long without posting a blog! It is always something on my 'to do' list, but somehow the immediate needs of my job and my body seem to take precedence! (Yes, imagine that... I prioritise eating, sleeping, running, etc., over spending time on the Internet).
Ryan and I are always thinking about (and praying for) all of our loved ones back in the US (or in other locales, such as Katrina's brother, Olav, who is currently studying abroad in Paris!) but we don't seem to translate the thoughts into actions.
Thankfully, we will see many of you in a few weeks time when we return to Fairfax, Va, and Cary, NC, for Ryan's Dad's joyful wedding. This will allow us to catch up in person, and for us to share some of the stories that haven't made it into the blogging sphere... but I know still many of you will not get the chance to visit with us, so I promise I will try my best to give you some satisfying stories between now and my departure in two weeks time.
Also, many of you may notice that we have added some new pictures (finally!!!!) so you can visualise our world a little better (and see more of our beautiful faces- in case you don't remember what we look like!). These date from several months ago to just the other week, which explains our slightly different looks. Those pictures of both Ryan and I were taken by either my Mom or my sister, Corie, while they were visiting in late December/early January (Thanks guys-- it's hard when you are a couple to get many pictures of yourselves!).
I hope these next posts will help to update you on our lives and mission here in Hong Kong.
Peace and love to all of you in this Easter season,
Katrina and Ryan (in the kitchen, making brown rice milk from scratch- what a man!)
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
