Fall Semester

My class this semester is going to be rad. This is my 4th semester teaching speaking and listening and I previously taught it as a speech class like I had in college. I realize that English learners don't yet need to learn how to give a traditional speech - they first need to learn to speak. So this is what I have in store for fall:

1. Mandatory public library cards - student will have to prove by week 2 that they each have their own public library card. I will put them in groups of five and each week one of them will have to get a children's book from the library to bring to class and read aloud to their group. They will each read twice during the semester. I will instruct them to practice at home by reading to kids, relatives or roommates. I'm most excited about this and think it has the most potential to fail.

2. Write and perform a skit - we will probably do this during our "heroes in literature" unit. They will get into different groups and write a skit, details to be provided later. Then they will have to practice and memorize to perform for the whole class. I got the idea from Mitch Hedberg: "Put it in a play."

3. Sales pitch - this is carried over from previous semesters because I like it so much. With a group they will have to create a company in a 3rd world country and make a pitch for microcredit. This is nice because they have to think about their audience and the needs of the world to be persuasive.

4. Debate - no idea how I'll do this yet. It will be the hardest part. I think we'll do it during our environmental unit. I don't really know much about debating so I'll have to do some research. Suggestions welcome. I've only ever done it through writing with a class before and it was really successful then so we'll see.

500 Days of Summer

Let me start here: I learned in grad school that with numbers, one can write the numerical symbol only in the middle of a sentence, but not at the beginning. This movie title is therefore ungrammatical.

Don't you just hate going to see a movie with a friend and during the movie you think, oh that character is so me! and then at the end of the movie your friend, who is so not the same, says, that character was so me! That's the worst. You think you're special and unique and then your friend tries to pretend she's the same way. It turns out movies are written to do just that - relate to a lot of people and make them feel unique. This movie is no exception. While I watched it, instead of thinking - I'm similar to that, I decided to think - these are the ways I'm not like that. Not sure how it worked out.

One guy I dated, who I thought was pretty compatible with me, told me I was completely not unique and that everyone thinks they are special so no one is. At first I was mad - how could he not see how awesome I was? But then I realized that it's so true. People are so not special. Everyone has their quirks and their favorite bands and their weird t-shirts. Just because you find someone who has a similar weird t-shirt doesn't mean you're soul mates. It just means you're both pretentious. It makes me feel good to know that in the end I'm not unique at all and that I actually fit in to society because I am under the illusion that I'm unique.

Did anyone else go on this train of thought after seeing this movie? BTW, Best Part: when Tom sees his "reflection" in the car window.

Me and Myself

I've always talked to myself. I know it's a common trait for thinking people to talk to themselves - it helps to work out difficult problems (carry the one), or remember directions (turn left at the light) or keep lists (remember to get bread, milk, paper towels), but I feel like I've always had a much different way of talking to myself, so much so that "myself" has almost become a separate entity from "me."

When I was a child I would talk to myself as a friend. I would tell myself about my day or role-play with myself. For example I would pretend to be Barbie and myself would be Barbie's stern mother. I would look at myself in the mirror and chat like a friend was listening and responding.

Now that I live alone I feel like it's developing in a new way. I ask myself for advice (should I go to the movies today or should I ride my bike?). I'll ask myself for an opinion (which do you like better, the blue or the yellow?). I'll even watch TV with myself (did you know Jennifer Aniston was in this?). But I think what keeps me sane is that myself will answer me in the same way that I would answer anyone with a dumb question (of course I didn't know, we're the same person!) As soon as I lose that grip on reality I will stop functioning in society.

It is nice to have someone I can talk to who appreciates my jokes and likes the same things as me, but every once in awhile myself will tell me a joke wasn't funny or the skirt I want to wear isn't as cute as I think it is.