Behind the Scene at the Creative Reading Activities Workshop

Here are some wonderful stories I encountered during my week long stay in Naga City, CamSur for the Educo and Adarna House sponsored teacher training workshop.

Mr. Peralta proves himself a leader and mentor.

1. I met the teachers I had trained for the Sa Aklat Sisikat (SAS) Read-athon Teacher Training Workshop in Donsol, Sorsogon (2009) in the Creative Reading Activities Workshop (EDUCO and Adarna House). Mr. Arnold Peralta was then a principal in Donsol. He is now a district supervisor. He is still the same jolly guy I met six years ago who asked all the silly questions and joked through the Pinoy Henyo game we had. In this workshop, he proved himself a trooper once more. He worked with his groups mates, he created a mini-book with a partner, and read the story out loud for everyone to hear. In a short personal conversation I had with him, we both agree how transformational the SAS workshops were to his teachers. He was transferred to another school after the SAS workshop but he recognized and saw the impact it had on his teachers who attended the Gurong Kaakbay Conference in the Ateneo De Manila Univeristy in 2012. It was the last Gurong Kaakbay Conference.

With Teacher Irish of Donsol, Sorsogon

One of Mr. Peralta's teachers, Teacher Irish, who was also a SAS Workshop participant in Donsol, is now a master's degree holder. She has a specialization in Music Education. She completed her MA from the Bicol University. Her thesis is a compilation of Bicol and Donsol folk songs for children.

I met school leaders from Nabua, CamSur who know my grandaunt. This prompts me to think of visiting the region once again. This would mean planning a trip to may parents' provinces: Tuguegaro, Iriga and Nabua sooner and not later.

I let my hair down during the cultural night. Teacher Pam, Teacher Michelle and myself sang "Kahit Maputi Na Ang Buhok Ko", with matching choreography. There is a video of this "amazing" number that brought the house down. As of writing, it is an exclusive property of Adarna House. Until Teacher Pam gives her consent to have it on public viewing, for now, a picture of us three will have to do.

Workshop facilitators by day, performers by night: Lower photo: L-R Lea S. Eugene Domingo and Jennylyn Mercado

Bibliotherapy @ the SAS Gurong Kaakbay Pilipinas Conference

It's Day 3 of the SAS Gurong Kaakbay Pilipinas Conference at the Science Education Complex, ADMU. The morning began with Audie Gemora as plenary speaker on Theater and Art. Teaching involves performance and yes, dramatics. After this, teachers went ti their breakout sessions/workshop for the morning.

 Part 1 of my Bibliotherapy workshop ended a forty-five minutes ago and the input session involved activities that exposed teacher participants to reading, writing, speaking and listening activities with in the context of my topic. The participants will be back at 1:45 for the second half of the workshop where they will actually do developmental Bibiliotherapy.

 Day 2 of the conference proved to be a workshop fiesta on writing stories and the teaching of reading and writing skills. Thanks to my friend, Dr. Luis Gatmaitan who sent a text message saying that the experience had been a delight for speakers and participants. Children's Literature connoisseur Lina Diaz de Rivera and poet Rayvi Sunico gave plenary speeches and workshops were led by leading writers of Filipino stories for children and expert literacy teachers.

This morning, participants of my workshop came in all smiles because of two things: 1) happy that Day 3 of the conference is upon them; and 2) optimistic at the promise of another insightful day.

Bibliotherapy with Teachers and Librarians

I have to thank PAARL for inviting me last year to do a bibliotherapy workshop. It multiplied!

Last week, I did a bibliotherapy session for public school teachers during the Sa Aklat Sisikat-Petron Gurong Kaakbay Conference at Far Eastern University. I simulated a typical bibliotherapy session using Shel Silverstein's The Giving Tree. They were an emotional bunch. They were touched at the story of the tree who gave everything. A good number of teachers cried a lot reliving memories and experiences of giving and receiving, and learning how to love in the process. Afterwards, I gave an input on bibliotherapy especially tackling tips, models and samples of  implementation. To end the session, I did a run of book talks on books that can be used for bibliotherapy.

I worked on the same format and structure for the Philippine Association of School Librarians Inc. (PASLI) Summer Conference here in Baguio City. But librarians are a different lot. No tears. More laughter and a thankful heart. On May 19-20, PAARL has invited me once more to do another bibliotherapy workshop. This time around, I will focus on the role of librarians as bibliotherapist and present technical preparations to building a "well-being" collection.

Below is the PowerPoint presentation I have been using in all my bibliotherapy workshops.

Bibliotherapy pasli

View more presentations from Zarah Gagatiga.

Live Blogging: SAS-HSBC Kinder K(C)ollege Conference Day 4

Today is the fourth day of the Sa Aklat Sisikat (SAS)-HSBC Kinder K(C)ollege Conference. Last week, the whole Sunday was spent learning and relearning educational theories and psychology concepts that are essential to preschool instruction. Ms. Germelina Salumbides did a great job at encapsulating important concepts and pedagogy for preschool teaching.

On this last day of the conference Teacher Ria Tirazona of Playschool International, is providing a session on the different learning styles and strategies to understand and appreciate children with special needs. What made me sit up and listen was her presentation on the essentials of play. Here are my notes from her discussion --

Play stimulates the brain. With out play, higher thinking is impossible to achieve.

Play encourages holistic development as it covers mental and cognitive challenges; emotional and social responses; and physical experiences that contribute to good health.

There are many kinds of play - free play, guided play and directed play.

Children go through stages of play - solitary play, onlooker play, parallel play, associative play.

Responses to the different kinds and stages of play is an indicator of the child's current mental, emotional, social and developmental maturity.

Play is THERAPY.

I look back at my own childhood and recall the amount of play I did. It's never too late to catch up on lost play time.

Live Blogging: SAS HSBC Kinder K(C)ollege Conference

I'm emceeing for Day 2 of Sa Aklat Sisikat's Kinder K(C)ollege Conference. Ms. Germs Salumbides, educator and consultant, facilitated an engaging session on Piaget and basic educational theories earlier. Now, the participants are doing small group discussions on the theories, both psychological and philosophical that has an implication in education specially, preschool level. What's effective about Ms. Germs is her practical approach to teaching backed up by theories.

Some ideas I got from her this morning --

Teach kids how to think so they can READ. Teach them how to THINK so they can read.

TV is the biggest stumbling block in symbolization. It discourages hypothesis building. Hypothesizing is essential to critical thinking.

The most human act is hypothesizing.

There are many ways to teach reading.

Use the child's vocabulary if coverage of textbook is far from his or her own experience.

The SAS- HSBC Kinder K(C)ollege Conference supports the DepEd's preschool program. The participants are fifty preschool teachers from selected public schools in the National Capitol Region (NCR).

Children's Books as Instructional Materials

In the recently concluded Teacher Training Workshop of the Sa Aklat Sisikat (SAS) Foundation at UP Diliman, teacher participants eagerly listened to their group facilitators (GFs) during a session on the Framework of Reading. The GFs presented one activity each for Pre-reading, During Reading and Post Reading.

These activities help in establishing a purpose for reading; arousing schema; making connections; building meaning; and creating constructs. What's cool is that local books by Filipino writers for children are used in the program. There's more to these books than mere enjoyment. These books can be used as instructional materials too.


GF Rommel shows the cover of The Crying Trees to his group. He is a public school teacher of Kalawaan Elementary School, Pasig City. He's been with SAS since 2006.


GF Cynthia explains the many values embedded in the book, Alamat ng Ampalaya. She shares how research into writing stories and a side trip to the back story of a book help in understanding the story as a whole. Cynthia teaches Reading-Grade 7 at the Grade School Department of Miriam College. She is a writer and moderator of Merry Pens, the school newspaper of Miriam Grade School.


GF Mariecar enunciates the beautiful play of words and symbols in Bruhaha! Bruhihi!. Mariecar is the coordinator of CENTEX (Ayala Foundation), a program for public school students who are identified as gifted.

Was it ever the author's intent to write stories for use in the classroom? I don't think so. A book is one of the best instructional materials in town. Textbooks, however, are another story.

Live Blogging: The 2009 Petron Gurong Kaakbay

Today is the last day of the Petron Gurong Kaakbay (GK) Conference. It's a yearly teacher training conference for public school teachers run by Sa Aklat Sisikat. It boasts of an array of experts in the field of education.

This morning, I facilitated a workshop on Creating Classroom Resource Centers. I had a mixed batch this year so the result was both enriching and empowering. Responses from those who have not created a classroom library were very positive. They were inspired to adapt and adopt the tips and techniques discussed in the workshop. For teachers who have existing classroom libraries, they were glad to be affirmed that what they were doing was the right thing.

I could only thank them for making my work, as a librarian, more meaningful.

At 1PM, Dr. Ricardo Abad gave valuable techniques to be more engaging and animated in class. According to Dr. Abad, the best visual aid in the classroom is still the teacher. Technology is a support for the teacher. He left us all with CAMEL - Build a COMMUNITY of learners; Involve learners in ACTIVE learning; Use MULTIPLE learning strategies; Be EXPRESSIVE in voice and body movement; and LOVE teaching!

Right now, Aris Lim, HR manager and trainor continues to animate and infuse teachers with coaching and mentoring activities.

Air, Land and Sea

The Sa Aklat Sisikat (SAS) Teacher Training Workshop (TTW) in Capul, Northern Samar has to be the most adventurous TTW yet.

The team for this TTW is composed of Cats Alcaraz, Reading Coordinator, Jojo Pagsibigan, Group Facilitator, and yours truly, Master Trainer. We started out early for a flight to Catarman, Northern Samar via Cebu Pacific. I am always awed at the beauty of blue. Sky and sea. Flecks of white clouds peppered the sky and the sun loved us back. When the plane touched ground, I nearly fell on my knees in homage.

This is my first time to reach Visayan soil. Though married to a full blooded Waray, I felt strange to be in an island far away from Luzon. Hearing the dialect of my in-laws did not help the feeling of alienation. Yet, the adventurer in me surfaced when Cats asked where to have lunch. I dropped the proposal of eating in the nearest Jollibee, the most popular fast food chain in the Philippines. Yes, Von Totanes, every nook and cranny of the Philippines is littered with Jollibee. Very soon, the President might just proclaim Jollibee as the national insect of this banana republic! Hey, if Carlo Caparas is National Artist, it's not impossible for Jollibee to join him in GMA's roster of the president's national choices.

Going back to Catarman, we ate at a local restaurant named Ron-Ron. Move over Lavander Brown! We Filipinos know our nicknames to heart but we know better when to change consonants to call those we hold dear. The lunch was superb! Simple but superb! We ordered big shrimps. Hilabos swimming in buttery sauce with pepper and ginger. The fish tinola was delicious, but a film of oil layered on top of the swordfish in the soup. It stuck in the lips and around the mouth that eating it was like applying grease in the face. The swordfish was meaty and that salvaged the dish. And of course, the kinilaw na tanigue was the star of our lunch date at Ron-Ron! Ang SARAP! I suddenly missed my mother-in-law who could make the best kinilaw na tanigue in our part of the metro. Lesson learned -- when in a new town, eat the local food to experience the flavor of its culture and way of life. Ginger, pepper, onions and garlic. The Warays know how to mix these falvors well with a dose of sweetness using coconut milk or sugary butter. It shows in their disposition and life style!

The hearty meal was immediately digested an hour and half when we reached Allen, Northern Samar. The jeepney ride was long and hot that riding the boat to Capul excited the three of us. It was a relaxing experience to be out there in the open sea. The surface of the water was coated with cellophane. Mt. Mayon seem to stand like a guardian in the south. San Antonio, an island north of Capul, was a mysterious mass of land. It looked dark green from a distance. Pirate ships and galleons patrolled these waters for centuries. And here we are now, visiting Capul like missionaries of long ago.

Finally, we hit dry land in Capul. I tell you, reaching the island was not the end of the journey. The scooter ride beat out the plane, the jeepney and the boat! I was squeezed between manong driver, my luggages and Jojo Pagsibigan on the scooter going to our rented beach house. It was like riding the caterpillar at your local carnival. My last motorbike ride was with my father twenty-eight years ago. No point of comparison. Let's just say that I trust my father when it comes to driving a motorbike.

At the end of the day, we waded in the beach till twilight, enjoying the warm water and white sand at low tide. It was my first to see and touch see grass. The three of us had other interesting discoveries. I'll save them for tomorrow's post! Promise!

It's pretty late. I need to sleep or else have the electrically powered lights run out on me. There are small lamps powered by solar energy around the house, but a city slicker like myself worships the power of MERALCO. I miss the hubby. I miss the kids. Tomorrow is another day.

Live Blogging: At Terminal 3 Leaving for Catarman

No wifi connection at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport, Terminal 3 so I'm doing this via 3G technology. The flight to Catarman will take one hour and a half plus, a jeepney ride and a boat ride to Capul. Cats Alcaraz of Sa Aklat Sisikat Foundation tells me how rustic the place is. I'll take as many photos as I can.

We will be training twelve teachers and as far as my SAS experience go, this has to be the least number of teachers I will be working with. We hope to finish early on Sunday. From the photos of Capul seen in the web, it looks like there are great places to see and visit.

Will keep you posted!

Photos from Donsol

You can view them in my personal blog, The Coffee Goddess.

Live Blogging: SAS Teacher Training - Read-A-Thon

The day started with a session on Experience Stories conducted by Jojo Pagsibigan. Participants were encouraged to cull out songs, poems, folk tales, local history, family and cultural stories unique to Donsol and their own experiences. In the absence of printed materials to read and use for instruction, Experience Stories can be used as tool and strategy to teach literacy skills. Participants performed the songs, stories and dances after te input session.

The Art of Questioning and Lesson Planning was taken up as well. It was a pretty heavy morning.

In the afternoon, the SAS Team did a skit of the Read-A-Thon. The participants finally had a more concrete idea of how the SAS reading program is implemented. In the photo, Cats Alcaraz played the part of Project Monitor while Divine David portrayed the role of the teacher. Jojo Pagsibigan was the Principal.

Right now, Jojo Pagsibigan and Divine David are conducting the last session for the day which is Storytelling and Read Aloud. It's graduation at 4.30PM. This concludes the 45th Teacher Training Workshop of SAS. A new Read-A-Thon program will commence in Donsol, Sorsogon on June 15, 2009.

Live Blogging: Day 2 of the SAS Teacher Training In Donsol

The teacher participants are early today. It's 7:45AM and the hall is almost filled. And yes, the nervousness has ebbed. I feel calm and relaxed like the placid sea this morning.

We ended the day yesterday with a fun activity, Dress the Character. Jojo Pagsibigan effectively handled the session while the participants responded in full force. Today, we'll have more activities since it's output day. Pictures to follow. Promise!

Live Blogging: Day 1 of the SAS Teacher Training In Donsol

It's been a fruitful morning. The theories presented during the session this morning elicited many comments, questions and responses from the teachers. Their principals are very supportive as well. The SAS Team conducting the training were impressed at how engaged the teachers are, so far.

Four schools from the Donsol Central district are taking part in the training session. Their active learning journals provided us with a status of their participation and engagement. I'm hoping to carry on the momentum until tomorrow. Today is theories day while tomorrow is application and practice day. Jojo Pagsibigan and Divine David, group facilitators for this training workshop has been both superb! But I am still nervous since my input sessions will run until 4PM today.

Right now, the teachers are reading the books in the SAS Collection. It is important that they know the books available for them and their students because these books will be used in the Read-A-Thon. More about it on future live blogging posts.

Live Blogging: SAS Teacher Training In Donsol

The flight to Legazpi was on schedule despite the cloudy skies and gloomy weather in Manila. Family and friends sent text messages of heavy rains and a storm brewing up in the North last night. But it's a sunny day here in Donsol, Sorsogon and the SAS Teacher Training is all set to begin forty minutes from now.

It is a far cray from the physical set up that Petron and SAS organize in Manila, but that does not matter. The Read-A-Thon is a grass roots program that includes teacher training so they can implement the month long reading program that SAS has developed since 1998.

It's my first time to be lead trainor without the presence of the senior master trainors. I am nervous.

Will blog about more of our Donsol adventures later.

SLIA Blog Advisory

I've been running a series of teacher training seminars for the past weeks and I will fly to Donsol, Sorsogon for yet another teacher training seminar sponsored by CEMEX and Sa Aklat Sisikat this week. By Monday next week, I will be in the Philippine Association of School Librarians (PASL) National Seminar at Teacher's Camp, Baguio City.

I'm in a roll so blogging will be put on hold until I surface and catch my breath.