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Welcome to the new blog site of Eagle Café.  As you may already know, Eagle Café is a classroom laboratory where deaf high school students with special needs learn about food preparation and food service.  I have the pleasure of working with your students and seeing the growth through hands-on activities that my classroom provides. 

 

Eagle Café is located at California School for the Deaf (CSD) in Fremont.  CSD provides many different ways you, as parents can get involved.  I am sure you have heard about the Parents Supporting Parents training and hope you will attend this informational day of learning and supporting.  This training will take place this weekend.  More information can be found at CSD Outreach Department.  Another way you can get involved is to join Association of Parents, Teachers, and Counselors at CSD.  More information about APTC can be found on the CSD APTC Website.  The officers are energetic and motivated.  They welcome more parents to join and help make the team a dynamic one.  One of their goals is to raise funds to be used to support the school.  They hope to provide scholarships for students interested in attending summer camps with focus on math, science, art and academy.  They also hope to support instruction programs at the school. 

 

You may notice the increased use of technology in the classrooms at CSD.  As you know, deaf students are visual learners.  They are also kinesthetic learners.  Technology as part of instruction enhances student learning. Keep in mind that technology does not replace teachers or textbooks, but to help make classroom learning effective.  Technology is not the only way to learn standard contents, but also gives the students opportunity to get their hands on technology use to gain experience.  Technology use skill is essential in many of the future careers, and will be an asset to have when applying for a job.

 

Every classroom teacher has a wish list.  I am no exception.  What would really work in my classroom that enhances student learning is a Flip video camera.  There are so many ideas on the usage of a Flip camera in an educational setting.  They can be found at this website, Ideas to Inspire. See a PowerPoint demonstration of different ideas of how the pocket video camera is used at Many Ways to Use Flip Video Cameras in the Classroom.  Two examples are provided here to illustrate how the use of pocket video camera could be applied in my classroom.  Using a pocket video camera would record student activities in the kitchen.  Demonstration on food preparation can be filmed and shown to other students who otherwise can’t read recipes or directions.  Teachers can use a pocket video camera as an assessment tool.  Before a lesson plan is taught, students are asked pre-test questions.  Their answers as signed in American Sign Language are filmed.  After having the class going through a unit, they are asked post-test questions which are the same.  The students will be able to see for themselves how much they have learned, and how they are able to answer more questions after a lesson.  The devices are available at Flip for Education. 

 

Another wish list device is a MacBook laptop to be used as an editing tool for the videos produced with the pocket video camera.  It also has many other functions such as word processing, spreadsheet, Internet, and a built in camera.  With the built in camera, students can narrate.  Their signed language can be recorded and assessed.  Various types of instructional software can be installed in this powerful laptop.  It is available at a discounted educational price from Apple. 

 

Student learning can go further with the aid of amazing technology.  With your involvement at APTC, together we could make possible to purchase the needed teaching tools to make instructions very effective.  Please feel free to post comments and questions here on the blog.  We would like to see a discussion about this topic going on. 

 

Barret, T. Many Ways to Use Flip Video Cameras in the Classroom.  Retrieved from https://docs.google.com/present/view?id=df6bwk2v_458hfn94kfd

 

California School for the Deaf Outreach Events Spring 2011.  Retrieved from http://csdeagles.com/outreach/events.php

 

California School for the Deaf APTC.  Retrieved from http://www.csdeagles.com/aptc/

 

Education Apple Store.  Retrieved from http://store.apple.com/us-k12

 

Flip for Education.  Retrieved from http://www.theflip.com/en-us/buy/educators.aspx

 

Flip Videos.  Retrieved from http://www.theflip.com/en-us/Products/

 

Warner, M. 45 Interesting Ways to use your Pocket Video Camera in the Classroom.  Retrieved from http://www.ideastoinspire.co.uk/pocketvideo.htm

 

DISCLAIMER: This blog is an assignment for an educational technology course at National University.  It is not a real fundraising blog. 

Zambians do take their holidays seriously. Even though the 2009 International Women's Day was on Sunday, Zambians took the day off on Monday. I had the great pride and honor to participate in the march along with fellow teachers from Munali High School (www.munaligirls.hs.zm). A few weeks earlier, we were given a piece of fabric, called chitenge. Each of us went to our favourite tailor and had our clothes made. I had a shirt with collar, buttons, and pockets put together for me. It was so much fun to see what each person designed. The march was a few kilometer long. Each contingency had the same fabric. The spirits were very high. I was wondering how women handle carrying huge heavy handbags and marching in high heel shoes. We ended up at a conference center where we watched dance show and few speakers including the president of Zambia speaking. The president said in honor of this day, he cooked for his wife. That made me wonder if it is the only time of the year he does something for his wife. After the march, we returned to high school and had our own party in the staff room. There were food, drinks, music, dance, and laughter.

Two weekends in a row, Frank taught HIV/AIDS information at the Male Circumcision workshop. 140 and 200 deaf community members were in attendance at both workshops which were sponsored by the Deaf Bible Baptist Church.

extending his Peace Corps service in Lusaka, Zambia for two more months. His new official end-of-service date is now July 31st, 2009. After long and hard consideration, he decided that it's the best plan to make. He does misses being with his family and friends in the United States. Yet, he enjoys so much his work with the deaf pupils at Munali Girls High School (www.munaligirls.sch.zm) and has projects going on. One of the reasons taken into consideration is the fact that he will be unemployed for a few months if he was to return to the United States in May. He has applied for a job at California School for the Deaf. If he is offered a position, it won't start until mid-to-late August, and the first paycheck won't be until a month later. The other reason is that when Francis gets his student visa, he won't be allowed to travel to the United States earlier than 30 days before the start of his course of study. Ohlone College in Fremont, CA opens late August, and he will be allowed to enter the country after July 26th.

Some of you have offered to send something for Frank's students. He is still accepting offers, and number one item on the wish list is dictionary. His students want to have such paperback reference book of their own. Getting one in Zambia is expensive. Getting one in the United States is cheap. (Hint: Dollar Store, Thrift Shop and $2.99 at Amazon.com). Email him if you want shipping instructions. So far, two people have graciously sent boxes of dictionaries, and two other people are working on them. He had to give dictionaries to those who score the highest on the weekly quiz that he gives out. Dictionary is a GREAT motivator and really gets the students to take their studying seriously. Dictionary is a keeper and will last a long time. Frank's goal is to give a dictionary to every one of his 250 deaf students at Munali Girls High School. Kindly help him reach that goal.

Although he is far away, cyber world is small. He'd enjoy hearing from you. Short or long. With or without news.

In case you are wondering where I work, here's the link to the school website. http://www.munaligirls.sch.zm/

If you go to the tab "Meet Our Students", you will find Francis there.

Enjoy and thanks for visiting.

The Two F's on a minibus. Both are wearing the shirt they got in Kenya.


Chatting and relaxing with deaf friends in Nyimba, Eastern Province


Francis and his teacher from primary school he attended as a child. The teacher is the one who helped refer Francis to a school for the deaf after he lost his hearing.


Frank in front of Magwero School for the Deaf near Chipata, Eastern Province, Zambia


Afuniko, Frank, and Charles after a failed road trip due to rain and mud


Pupils at Magwero School for the Deaf

Fran2 (name created to combine Francis and Frank) in front of Mount Kilimanjaro in the beautiful tiny Kenyan town of Loitokitok.


Fort Frank. Oops, Frank at Fort Jesus in Mombasa.


Sam and Francis at the Mombasa Port


Frank and Sam in Mombasa. Sam is a friend I knew during my service in Kenya. We reconnected, and he graciously took us on a walking tour.


Fran2 feeling freshened after three weeks of fun-filled fiesta. Sitting in a Kenya Airways 737 on our way back to Lusaka, Zambia.

Francis' first ever airplane trip. Photo taken at Lusaka International Airport in front of Kenya Airways 767



Francis' first ever fun dip in any ocean, this one is the Indian Ocean off of Watamu on the Kenyan Coast.



Francis' first encounter with an African outside of Zambia. This one is a Maasai lady.

It's a servant house located behind a main house tucked away in a quiet neighborhood near the University of Zambia campus. Do come and visit!

A dear friend in San Francisco sent three boxes full of goodies for me to give to my students. What a very generous well-wisher Dan is! I know the dictionary will be appreciated by all the lucky receivers. Writing instruments and other supplies will be very useful. The yarns will go to a different school that I don't work at. The deaf students there receive vocational training.