Nag-NCBD ka na ba?

Bilang pagpupugay sa lahat ng mga Pilipinong sumusulat, naglalarawan at gumuguhit ng mga librong pambata, ipinagdiwang namin ang ika-27 National Children's Book Day o NCBD ngayong Hulyo 20.

Lubos akong nasiyahan dahil sa kauna-unahang pagkakataon ay naipagdiwang ko ang NCBD bilang isang guro. Noon ay sumasapat na sa akin ang panonood ng mga pagkukuwento at pagpapapirma ng mga libro sa mga manunulat at ilustrador tuwing ika-20 ng Hulyo.

Pananabik ang unang dumapo sa akin nang mabuo sa isip ko ang mga maliliit na selebrayson na maari naming gawin sa klase. Sumidhi pa ito nang malaman kong nabigyan ang aming paaralan ng limang makukulay na poster para sa naturang pagdiriwang.


Kanina ay ipinagdiwang namin ito. Isang matamis na huni sa akin tuwing maririnig kong binabati ng mga bata ang sarili nila ng "Happy NCBD!"

Sa intermediate level (Baitang 4-6), ginanap namin ang Finals ng Book Trivia Quiz Show. Ang mga katanungan ay nagmula sa mga librong nagkamit ng PBBY-Salanga at Alcala Prize at Palanca Award. Ibinukas ko sa lahat ang maliit naming silid-aklatan (na nasa aming silid-aralan) upang lahat ay makapagbasa ng mga naturang aklat.

Hindi mapapantayan ang ligayang nadama ko tuwing nakikita kong nagbabasa ang mga estudyante namin. Pakiramdam ko, nagawa ko na ang tungkulin ko bilang isang guro ng Pagbasa.

Narito ang ilan sa mahigit 35 katanungan na naisulat ko:

A. Ano ang pangalan ng pinsan ni Raquel na may pambihirang buhok?
B. Saang bayan naninirahan sina Ampalaya at iba pang gulay?
C. Ayon sa kuwentong Xilef, ano daw ang dapat gamitin upang mapigilan ang mga titik sa paglipad?
D. Sino ang sumulat ng aklat na Unang Baboy sa Langit?
E. Ilang dagang-bukid ang nanirahan sa puno sa kuwentong May Alaga akong Puno?


Bukod sa trivia quiz show, nagkaroon din kami ng patimpalak sa pagrerebyu ng mga aklat-pambata. (Ilalahatla ko dito ang ilan sa mga gawa nila.)

Sa high school level naman ay nagsagawa din sila ng boom trivia quiz show mula sa mga pamosong libro ng kanilang henerasyon gaya ng mga gawa ni Bob Ong, Stephenie Meyer,J.K. Rowling at iba pa.

Mapalad ang mga bata dahil mas napapayaman ng mga ganitong pagdiriwang ang kanilang kabataan. Sana, sa mga gawaing tulad nito ay nahimok silang patuloy na mahalin ang pagbabasa. Na sa edad nila ay masabi at mapatunayan nila na "Ang nagbabasa ng libro, laging panalo".

I Can't is Dead

During the first week of school, we had this one-of-a-kind funeral in our classroom. Pupils from other levels and sections were intrigued when my advisory class pupils told them that there was something dead in our room.

I got the idea from this site. I tried it and so far, the results are good. I modified some parts. Instead of burying it into dirt, I put it at the top of our shelf, so they(my pupils) would always see the box/coffin. I also asked them to offer letters and flowers. We also had a procession ( we went up to the third floor of our building) where four male pupils carried the very "heavy" box of papers.

My pupils' favorite part is the post-burial rite. I gave them chocolate-wafer sticks.

The Wordpecker

We have a pet bird in our room (Grade 4- Saint Peter)--the ever-hungry wordpecker. It's fun thinking of the food (unfamiliar words) we'll be feeding to it. The bird isn't choosy at all. It eats almost anything. It's been feeding on English words for almost a month. I think, he needs to balance his food intake with Filipino words. Hmmm...

The wordpecker's area is our version of a classroom word wall.

This is For You

Hi world wide web!

Thanks for the warm welcome.

You really made me feel that I have entered the digital age. That this generation is the generation of tech-savvy learners. Of kids who check their facebook account before or after doing their homework. Of pupils who google the answers to their homework. Of students who (deliberately) come to school without doing their homework because there was a blackout the night before.

Before, the television was the archenemy of teachers. Children come to school with their eyes and minds half-opened and assignments undone. But with the advent of the computer and the internet, the one-eyed babysitter is now second only to the personal computer. Some pupils tend to spend long hours in front of the monitor and have grown oblivious to its adverse effects.

Now, to help them gain a fresh perspective on how computers can make learning more exciting and more up-to-date, I have decided to create a blog where my pupils may read and critique each other's works.

I know it would be an extra work for me. Encoding their works and moderating this account. And yes, it would be outside my official work hours. But I'm also aware that my pupils deserve the best from me. And yes, this blog is for them.

They might not remember some of the lessons that I'd be sharing. I/They might misplace some of the papers marred with red marks. But the 'fossilized' versions of their magnum opus would be eternally available here in your portals, www.