Friday, March 31, 2023
Thursday, March 30, 2023
Wednesday, March 29, 2023
Tuesday, March 28, 2023
Exploring Phase 1 and 2 of the Research Design Cycle
Taking into account that our Juniors are in the process of preliminary research, Team EE provided a session on the Research Question at yesterday's Core 11. Subject teachers were present to expand and deepen the input by, yours truly (BA Teacher Librarian). This is one example of a collaborative work between teachers and the school's librarian.
A Research Question is informed by knowledge. Background knowledge. Prior knowledge. Knowledge from a varierty of sources and references. Crafting a RQ requires skill. Language skills, yes. In this case, language is used both as a tool and knowledge. The student is then expected to apply knowledge of content and language to write a RQ.
In the breakout sessions, students had consultations with subject teachers to discuss subject specific requirements; expectations on Criterion A; and possible directions of the research.
Check the link of the slides here: -> EE Core Phase 1 and 2
Sunday, March 26, 2023
Friday, March 24, 2023
Thursday, March 23, 2023
The Lighthouse Diary #46: Mind Maps as Thinking Tools
There are three tasks that students need to accomplish at this stage: topic selection; craft a research question; define a research method. In between and among the completion of these tasks are sub-tasks that involve the application of skills learned in the lower years. Close reading; writing summaries; annotations; making a reference lists; strategic search skills; evaluation of sources; seeking feedback and organizing one’s work and schedule. On top of this, students need to know and make decisions of the information they initially harvested from their preliminary research which would also entail a recognition of gaps in research and knowledge.
It is tough. It is not easy to teach. It is not for the faint of heart. It is exhausting.
Curriculum and pedagogy matters. And so is collaboration. Empathy too. An understanding that, at the end of the day we all are human. No bot or AI can compare to the dynamic and personal engagement that happen between a listening adult and an eager or confused child explaining his/her current state of mind.
There is no assurance that students won’t turn to a bot or an outside tutor though: But there are moments when student and teacher learn together with the aid of paper, pen or a pencil and the good old mind map.
Thank you very much, Tony Buzan.
All in a day’s work!
Tuesday, March 21, 2023
Monday, March 20, 2023
Book Review: Duyan Pababa sa Bayan
From last week's lecture by Dr. Danilo Baylen at the 43rd GAB Lecture Series, I posted my takeaways and reflections in the blog.
Here now is a book review of Duyan Pababa sa Bayan using elements of Visual Literature, namely color and texture. I will only focus on one spread from the book that I think encapsulates the theme and message of the story.
The story centers on the ingenuity of Filipinos living from too far a medical facility, like a hospital and an ambulance. What device the community put together is a hammock to carry the sick and/or the injured down from the mountains. The patient has to be carried in a hammock by two people along slopes and slippery roads till they reach the hospital. What seemed like a frightening experience for the child who needed medical care became a story of empathy and a community that values life and human rights.
The spread I chose presents these values from the use of colors in blue and green that suggest life and hope. Surrounded by foliage, the characters of the story are in one corner below the lower left side of the spread. A mother hugs and kisses her injured child as the strong hands of her husband is laid on her back in assurance of the safe though long travel that is ahead. The deep blue that is placed above the teeming plant life looks foreboding. Such use of colors provide tension.
Add to this depiction of love and anxiety are the lines of the leaves that criss-cross each other. Will the forest conceal them or will the trees serve as barriers to their journey in seeking medical care for the injured child? Indeed, this spread is one that I enjoyed looking at for a few minutes savoring the comfort it brings at the same time, prompting me to predict possible scenarios - worse, I was worried.
But Gigi Constantino and Enid Din know their children's literature. Inserting humor that helps ease the tension, the story remains a hopeful read for the child and the child at heart.
One may argue that, in real life, going down from the mountain in such a fashion is never an exciting journey filled with laughs and empathy. Here is where picture books for children come into fullness. That even in moments of despair, the human spirit can persevere. In most cases, it prevails.
Rating: 5 Bookmarks
Sunday, March 19, 2023
Saturday, March 18, 2023
At the 22nd Grand Assembly and Induction of Officers of PNULISAA
I am mighty proud of the officers of PNULISAA, past and present! Look at where the alumni association is now. Like all organizations, it is not free of flaws. It has its share of ups and downs, failures and triumphs but 22 years after, we are still here carrying the torch. Keeping it alight and ablaze well into the next generations of LIS graduates of PNU.
Who would have thought that the “kuwentuhan” we had all those years ago of building a community of LIS alumni would come to this - a vibrant and hopeful community of librarians, archivists, media specialists, teachers, professors and information professionals. I am humbled to be this year’s inducting officer and appreciative of the honor and respect received from my peers and colleagues today.
I raise my glass to Ate Nora Conti (+) whose leadership and mentorship steered us, the founding officers of PNULISAA, into the right direction during the alumni association’s early years. We will continue to make our Inang Guro proud!
Friday, March 17, 2023
Wednesday, March 15, 2023
The Lighthouse Diary #45: Teaching and Learning Academic Writing
I had an engaging session with our grade 11s during our research skills session. Giving you a glimpse of how it looked like on Jamboard. Now that we are back on campus, I am meeting students individually and in small group sessions to continue the discussion on academic writing.
From their responses, topics and skills on source selection, evaluation and documentation will be taken up as well as the unpacking of an academic essay that makes use of varied sources. This is evidence of mutli-voiced writing. Also, prerequisite skills to writing academically would be source knowledge and the ways on using them. How strong are the foundation skills in referencing and research taught in the middle grades? This learning experience will reveal the extent and expanse of research skills instruction from grade 4 to grade 10.
As guide, I sent our grade 11s questions for them to think through as they prepare for the crafting of a research question and statement of inquiry.
Guide questions:
1. How would one know that sources are credible and that, the selection of sources meet the needed information or that, it answers an inquiry? It is therefore important to review the skills and knowledge on sources and how sources are used across different subjects.
2. Read the academic essay (courtesy of our English Teacher and Learning Support Teacher). Take note that context is first established, followed by a thesis statement and an identification of sources cited and attributed in-text. Also, pay attention to the tone of the writer. Notice the writer's voice.
- When is it merging with the source authors' voices?
- When does it rise above them that it asserts its own opinion as informed by a well done research?
- What words, sentences and paragraph signal that it is the writer's voice and it is the writer merging with the source authors' voices?
There will be a part 2, and 3 and onwards. This is fun, for me. The challenge is how to make it fun for a 16-17 year old high school student?
Tuesday, March 14, 2023
The 43rd GAB Lecture: On Visual Literacy and Visual Literature
I still remember how the news dropped on our laps last year. At school, we were quick to roundup a set of guidelines for transition to Blended Learning and Work From Home modality. What we thought was a three week or a month long suspension of on-campus activities dragged on. Our mental health and personal relationships were greatly affected. It was a traumatic experience.
Surviving the three year lockdown is no mean feat. It has given me so many things to be grateful for despite the grief and loss I still carry every day.
And so, to find myself in UP Diliman at UP SOLAIR, attending the 43rd Gabriel Bernardo Lecture was an emotional moment. For the first time in a long while, I cried while singing UP Naming Mahal. I am proud of my UP ID number but I still yet to earn a Sablay. There you go. This is reason to move forward; to go on and to keep hope alive. There is also that trip to South Korea I promised myself and the ARMY daughter.
There were plenty of good stuff going around from Dr. Danilo M. Baylen's lecture on Visual Literacy yesterday.
1. Children's books published by our local publishing houses were used as the media of analysis. Thank you UP SLIS and PATLS for supporting the local Philippine Book Industry, especially the Children's Book Industry. Libraries of all kinds MUST HAVE CHILDREN'S BOOKS in their collection. Why? I will save that for another post.
2. The concepts presented by Dr. Baylen on Visual Literacy and Visual Literature are not entirely new to me. These are concepts we take on in Language and Literature, Visual Arts and Design in the IB Program. How to apply them in other important aspects of school library services and programming is the challenge.
Does the space and organization of the physical library follow the VL concepts so that the community find meaning and order when they partake and commune with others?
How are we designing our signages in a way that messages are clear and aesthetically appealing?
What VL concepts am I applying in the selection and review of resources?
Congratulations, UP SLIS and PATLS!
VL is a way of knowing; of seeing; of perceiving and taking meaning of the world around us. How am I making use of this knowledge and skill to communicate, create and analyse critically the deluge of information I get everyday from all formats of media?
As a teacher librarian, I resolve to include VL principles in teaching comprehension and in the design of reading programs for children and young adults.
3. Since I am in between book projects this year, I put my full trust on my illustrators, layout artists and book designer who make writing and book creation more palatable to the naked eye. We keep forgetting that the book is a technology. It is media. It is an artifact. And those who make this media, this technology, this artifact co-create and collaborate.
4. I really can use those VL principles and concepts in my art journaling!
5. Lastly, the book review activity is nakakakilig!
And that is part 2 of my post on Visual Literacy and Visual Literature! Come back again in the blog for my review of Duyan Pababa sa Bayan (Anvil, 2020) by Gigi Constantino.
Sunday, March 12, 2023
Meet Titas of BTS @WGN Morning News
Last Friday night, March 10, I had the pleasure of being with Demai Sunio-Granali, founder of Titas of BTS and Jabba Tantay, admin of Titas of BTS for an interview over on WGN TV Morning News, Chicago, Illinois. It was a 5 minute interview - almost and for Filipino Aunties, we know how short that is, right? We wanted to say so many things!
I wanted to say so many things on top of their music being very good and their discography being amazing!
Here are seven more things I love about Bangtan that centers on their discography based on lyrics and themes of their songs.
1. Kim Namjoon believes in the galaxy of each and every ARMY. That is an indicator of exceptional leadership.
2. Kim Seokjin strives to touch the sky because he is inspired by his six brothers. He takes the role of the mathyung seriously. A leadership role that helps Kim Namjoon steer the group into the desired path and achievement of goals.
3. Min Yoongi may be scared of the demons that wait in the wings but he recognizes them as part of his identity. This is where loving oneself begins - when we accept the shadows and the lights that dwell in our consciousness, our dreams and waking moments.
4. Jung Hoseok jumped out of the box and convinces us that it costs nothing to be kind. He sings and dances on the street and it is always for us!
5. Park Jimin offers himself as light to ARMY and at the same time, he encourages us to be our own light. Relationships are reciprocal. A promise fulfilled!
6. Kim Taehyung is happy to acknowledge "my boy, my boy is gonna change". Yes, V. We will nurture the child in us because, together, we are young!
7. As for JK, the youngest of the seven, he wants us to stay gold!
And so, we will! Borahae! ApoBangPo!
Saturday, March 11, 2023
The Lighthouse Diary Entries 2022
It's already March and it's only now that I had the time to roundup entries in the Lighthouse Diary. Well, better late than to have none at all.
The Lighthouse Diary #34 - The Research Design Cycle 2022
We kicked off Research Season this month of February with a day devoted for the Extended Essay and Senior Project. Students in grade 11 had orientation sessions while grade 12 students had a write-shop. The library, being an integral component of the research process in general, and a valuable learning support system for senior high school students in academic writing is always given a schedule to introduce the Research Process and library services in support of research.
The Lighthouse Diary #35: What I Learned from Being an Impresario for the Library
Of course I enjoy organizing literacy and bookish events for the learning community!
These activities and events are in part relevant to school library programming. Last November, we had an Author Visit and this February, we will have a POP Talk. From these experiences, I learned to respect the author's and the content creator's work. One of the things I added in the process of organizing a library event is the Author/Content Creator Agreement.
The Lighthouse Diary # 36: When Language Expands and Limits Our World
There is a favorite quote I have of Uncle Iroh in Avatar: The Last Airbender. He said this to Zuko while teaching him how to bend thunder: It is important to draw wisdom from many places. If we take it only from one place, it becomes rigid and stale. This quote comes to mind at the heels of two teacher trainings and professional growth activities at work and in my learning communities. By the later I mean the BTS fandom known as ARMY.
The Lighthouse Diary # 37: Back to Beacon on Hybrid Learning
It means several things. One, students who chose to go on campus for face to face learning have a space in the classroom and in school, in general. Two, students who chose to stay at home for online distance learning have access to learning experiences and resources. Three, the Academy has put in place a thorough adherence to health protocols following DepEd guidelines and WHO research based protocols. Previous to this, the school leadership had FGDs with all the members of the community; consultations with stakeholders, lawyers, doctors and medical practitioners; and countless meetings with the team assigned for this transition of ODL to Hybrid Learning. Needless to say, the school leadership made sure that they can be trusted and that this movement to Hybrid Learning is a shared responsibility.
The Lighthouse Diary #38: Take What You Need
We have had an online visit from librarians of St. Scholastica's College. We had three days of orientation and easing into hybrid learning routines that included the strict compliance to health protocols. We have identified work to prioritize in the library with the new working arrangements. And, given our practice of close shelf library procedures, we are getting continuous book requests and reservations for online consultations from teachers and students.
The Lighthouse Diary #39: Review and Evaluation
While the Academic Team is wrapping up the remaining tasks and requirements for Academic Year 2021-2022, my staff and I are preparing for summer in-service training, an inventory work that is two years in the making and the design of instructional plans for hybrid learning in AY 2022-23.
The Lighthouse Diary #40: The Brilliance of Youth
We had our 10th Commencement Exercise last June 9, 2022. It was a hybrid set up, of course. Many of us, faculty and staff were present on-site attending the graduation rites. We were able to achieve this milestone with grit, resilience and teamwork.
The Lighthouse Diary #41: Back in BA! Virtus et Ars!
The week began with an assembly headed by our Head of School. For the past two years, we have done this ritual online and reverting to face to face work made this experience bitter sweet and meanungful indeed. This school year, we are focusing on the theme of SHARED RESPONSIBILITY giving emphasis on how the pandemic has greatly affected our lives, our relationships and the ways we view the world.
The Lighthouse Diary #42: Welcome Home, Griffins!
We welcomed back our Griffins this week. We welcomed them back home.
We are in the middle of our Foundation Day this week and the nervous excitement is palpable. We are all coming out of the pandemic with mixed feelings. One thing is for sure, we are ready to teach, to learn and to grow depsite the loss and the trauma brought by COVID-19. Meeting the students on the first day back, especially my advisees was bittersweet. I have had two library orientations since yesterday and man, I missed it so much! Tomorrow, I will be giving another session with the grade 10s plus, a scavenger hunt!
The Lighthouse Diary Entry #43: Research Month at the Academy (1 of 2)
The Personal Project, a requirement for the 10s as they complete the final year in the MYP, kickstarted during the Founday Day for which the library was given a half day orientation with the MYP students. We value academic research as well as the development of skills building. The library plays an important role in this journey.
The Lighthouse Diary Entry #44: Research Month at the Academy (2 of 2)
Taking note of three wonderful things that happened last September regarding research skills instruction.
1. My student whom I supervise in writing the Extended Essay took the long way round in her research journey. We kicked off the term unsure of a topic to explore and her research question needed to be revised. In this case, I made her review her notes and the research plan she drew up last months ago. It was like leading a horse to water. With patience, she came back with an annotated bibliography that reflects her understanding of the topic of investigation and the required analysis specific to the subject.
Thursday, March 9, 2023
Wednesday, March 8, 2023
Academic Writing
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What I whipped up for our Grade 11 students embarking this season unto their first academic writing journey.
Monday, March 6, 2023
Saturday, March 4, 2023
My Author Visit at the Valenzuela City Library
My first Author Visit post lockdown age was at the Valenzuela City Library! I had the pleasure of meeting a small number of young readers. They were thirsty for books and face to face experiences of reading aloud and storytelling. I met the brave and the wonderful staff of the ValACE, met an ARMY and Ms. Rochelle Silverio, colleague and kindred spirit.
Thank you, Lampara House for hosting and sponsoring this event last Sunday, February 26, 2023!
Thank you, Mayor Wes Gatchalian and Madame Tiffany Gatchalian for giving me this opportunity to serve your community! Mabuhay!
@djahjumma Happiness! The daycare kid’s preferred to listen to a read aloud and interactive storytelling! Tech fatigue? #authorvisit #storytelling ♬ original sound - TitaZee
Friday, March 3, 2023
Book Blog Tour: Interview with Marissa Bañez (3 of 3)
Thank you very much, Ms. Bañez! We truly appreciate your time and generosity in sharing your expertise, experience and knowledge. Wishing all the best in all your bookish endeavors and writing adventures!
1. What are your 5 tips for young writers?
Let me preface my response by saying that I’m nothing
if not practical. I worry about young
people unwittingly getting into something that may land them in long-term
financial and other trouble. I’m not
going to sugarcoat anything because that would be more harmful than
helpful.
At the same time, let me be perfectly clear: For those who respond to the calling of being a writer, rest assured that there is no experience more gratifying or more humbling than learning that your hard work has reached and touched someone. The world needs your ideas and perspectives – your truths – in order to keep evolving and improving through discourse and intellectual development. It is a noble aspiration. I don’t mean to deter or discourage anyone from pursuing their writing dreams with the following practical tips. I just want everyone to be smart about the way they pursue their dreams by being realistic, pragmatic, and prepared before just jumping in with both eyes closed behind rose-colored glasses and only fingers crossed.
a. Read and
internalize the messages within Hope and Fortune. I don’t say this blithely. And, this is not just to have people read the
book. I truly believe in and try to live
by as many of those ideals as possible.
The messages are meant for all readers, young and not-so-young, of all
walks of life but young writers in particular – because they will face numerous
enormous challenges – will need the fortitude, reassurances and encouragement
provided by the Fortune Fairies. BONUS: They will actually get 12 tips for the price
this one tip.
b. Identify
your primary purpose in writing.
Why are you writing? Chances are,
you won’t get wealthy from writing so if your primary purpose is to get rich
from your endeavors, writing is probably not for you. If, however, your primary purpose is to
simply share your thoughts and ideas with the world for the sake of the truth
that lies within them, then writing may be for you. But, as I point out below, there are many difficult
hurdles in getting your work out and you need to go into this line of work with
eyes wide open and a huge bucket of cold-water realism. Today’s publishing industry is for neither the
faint-hearted nor the starry-eyed idealist.
c. Identify
your audience(s) and “voice your work” accordingly. Confession: I just made up the phrase “voice your work”
as a shorthand way of saying what I want to convey – i.e., give your
work (the language in the text, artwork for the cover and illustrations or
pictures in the story, if any) a voice that is relatable to your targeted
audience(s). I’m not giving advice
on creative writing, as there are others more qualified to do that. This is a piece of marketing advice.
In my case, I wanted to write a children’s illustrated book, but also
more than just a children’s illustrated book.
Obviously, I needed to target children as readers, but I also wanted to
target their parents and adults generally, who will be reading the book to the
children and, quite frankly, will be the book buyers.
For the child, I wanted to write a book that I hoped would grow with the
child. So, I voiced my work in different
ways:
i.
My first hook is the beautiful illustrations, intended
to attract a younger child who doesn’t read or comprehend too much yet.
ii.
My second hook is the rhyming dialogue for the
importance of phonemic awareness.
iii.
My third hook is the message of the story, which an
older child will hopefully appreciate with age.
At my
recent reading at a local library in New York, a 7-year-old boy was so taken
with all three elements that he personally thanked me, told me he now wants to
write his own book someday, and convinced his father to buy the book.
For my adult
audience, I wanted to write and illustrate things that could resonate with
their own experiences in life and give them the chance to share those
experiences with a child. I
intentionally inserted some adult-oriented words and concepts, as well as a
diverse cast of illustrated fairies that reference other cultures, races,
ideals, etc. The adults will
understand those words, concepts, and references, giving them the opportunity
for explanations and further discussion (and more bonding) with the children.
(As an aside, please
visit https://www.marissabanez.com/books/hopeandfortune for the
page in my website (https://www.marissabanez.com/) that
discusses the various concepts and references underlying each of my
illustrations. There’s more to each
illustration than meets the eye.)
I also intended for
the reader to be part of the story, not a simple bystander. I used the protagonist (Esperanza) as a mere
conduit to introduce the Fortune Fairies and their messages. The illustration of each fairy features only
the fairy and their individualized curated surroundings, accompanied by the
text of their respective messages. In
this way, the reader becomes the recipient of the fairies’ messages and a
connection may be formed between the reader and the fairy whose message speaks
to the reader’s own life experiences.
As a result,
numerous reviewers have said that the book should be read by adults for
themselves and not just for children.
And, several have expressed their wish that they had a similar book for
themselves when they were younger.
d. Be
realistic and practical so you can be prepared mentally, emotionally, and
financially to meet the inevitable challenges. As I said above, you cannot be faint-hearted
or starry-eyed as a current-day author. Writing
your story is just the first step in this “thousand-mile journey.”
The second step is trying to figure out what to do with this magnum
opus. Clearly, you want to get it
published, right? Well, don’t think that
the publishing world will now automatically come knocking at your door. Quite the contrary. You must do all the door-knocking . . . and a
lot of those doors won’t open at all.
So what are the options?
· Self-publishing
· “Vanity
publishing”
· Semi-traditional
publishing
· Traditional
publishing
I won’t go into how
each of these option work because that’s easily gleaned from other
sources. Instead, I want to focus on
what happens to your work with each option after publication.
The next step after
publication is marketing and promoting your work.
Self-publishing or so-called “vanity publishing” will likely get you
only so far – about as far as just your family and friends – because reaching other
readers will be very difficult. Most
bookstores won’t carry self-published or vanity published books so all the
marketing will be all on you. Let me be
blunt: marketing and promoting yourself
and your book is time-consuming, soul-sucking, nerve-wracking, and expensive. Realize too that whatever amount of money is
spent in self-publishing or vanity publishing (because of course that’s neither
free nor inexpensive) may not be recouped by sales. Yes, there’s the internet but that’s a very
crowded and noisy marketplace, with at least a million similarly situated
authors vying for the same attention and the same elusive peso, dollar, etc.
Small publishing houses like my own publisher will help with some of the
labor, time and expense of marketing and promoting but a lot will still fall on
you. You must become an ardent and
shameless self-promoter and marketer. It’s
only marginally less time-consuming, soul-sucking, nerve-wracking, and
expensive.
If you’re lucky and an agent gets you into a big traditional publishing
house that has a dedicated marketing and publishing department, they will do a
lot of the leg work for you, but you still must do your part with appearances
for book signings and other engagements.
And don’t forget that the cost of all that work by the agent and the
publishing house comes off the top of your sales and royalties.
Keep in mind that publishing your work is not the end but rather just
the beginning of an arduous journey to a reader.
e. Keep
your (or get a) “day job” and be ready to work a lot. The vast majority of authors won’t strike it
rich from their books, regardless of how many they’ve written and how many
awards and accolades have been bestowed upon them. They may get famous (within some circles at
least) but fame is fleeting and, more importantly, won’t fill your stomach or
put a roof over your head.
For example, I know someone who won a coveted and prestigious Tony award
for producing a famous long-running Broadway show, but he continues to work at
his day job.
The same goes for a good friend who is a best-selling author in his
genre and has written 4 books. He currently
has three full-time jobs (in addition to his chores at his farm): his day job, his writing, and the marketing/promoting/selling
of his books. Sleep is a luxury.
One of my good friends essentially gave up his lawyer’s work to attend a
creative writing/poetry program several years ago. He is now is a very well-received published
poet with poems that have been published in prestigious poets’ publications,
has readings from his first book at least once a month at various venues, and
is currently almost finished with his second book. Still, he continues to work doing document
reviews and analyses in support of litigators.
I didn’t become a published children’s author until after I worked as a lawyer for 40 years. I’m still working as a lawyer and intend to do so for as long as I can. While I don’t consider my writing as a mere “side hustle,” the royalties pale to the point of almost inconsequence in comparison to my salary as a lawyer. And I like to eat.
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