Teaching with fashion

Nursery Rhymes with Lyrics and Videos part 1

2009-06-27T08:51:00.000-07:00

Baa, baa, black sheep
Baa, baa, black sheep
Have you any wool?
Yes sir, yes sir, three bags full.
One for my master,
One for my dame,
And one for the little boy
Who lives down the lane.

Hey, diddle, diddle
Hey diddle, diddle
The cat and the fiddle.
The cow jumped over the moon.
The little dog laughed
To see such sport.
And the dish ran away with the spoon

Hickory, dickory, dock
Hickory, dickory, dock
The mouse ran up the clock.
The clock struck one,
The mouse ran down.
Hickory, dickory, dock!

Humpty Dumpty
Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall,
Humpty Dumpty had a great fall.
All the king's horses and all the king's men,
Couldn't put Humpty back together again.

Jack and Jill
Jack and Jill went up the hill
To fetch a pail of water.
Jack fell down and broke his crown,
And Jill came tumbling after

Little Miss Muffet
Little Miss Mufeet sat on a tuffet
Eating her curds and whey
Along came a spider
That sat down beside her
And frightened Miss Muffet away

Different Types of Dad

2009-06-24T09:06:00.000-07:00

1. 80’s Dad
The father that still believes he can fit into the leather pants he has hanging at the back of his closet years years ago. He loves Rock & Roll music.

2. The Hip-hop Dad
He doesn’t believe in interfering in his children’s lives, they will live and learn from their own mistakes. He is a happy-go-lucky one.

3. The Conventional Dad
Rules and regulations are around the place. He works hard to keep everything orderly and to help provide things for his family. He likes to relax and listen to soothing music.

4. The Rugged Dad
The father who is rough and manly. A strong man who believes that children are the woman’s responsibility. He lives his life fast and loud, which is how he likes his music.

5. The Typical Dad
The father that simply survive to where he is. He gives little rules but not necessarily to follow. He tries to live care-free and enjoy everyday of life.

6. The Sports Loving Dad
The father who will ignore you when there is a game on. He is a macho man who believes sports are his life. His mood changes with the game.

7. The Slightly Gay Dad
The father who always emotes and is confused to choose between pink and blue. He has a feminine side and is not scared to explore it. He is sensitive and caring. He cares for himself very much. He enjoys the sweet sound of music and isn’t afraid to sing out-loud along with the music.

What ever kind of father we have, they are still our father. And this is the best day to show our positive reception for having them. I admit that not all of us were blessed with a father whom we like and we are not permitted to choose one. But one thing we have to put in mind is “there is no perfect man to be a father”. What makes them perfect is the acceptance and love of a family.

Happy Father’s Day!!

POOR BOY FROM CAGAYAN MAKES IT BIG IN SILICON VALLEY

2009-06-20T01:28:00.000-07:00

How can the Philippines leapfrog from being an exporter of labor, garments and bananas into a technology powerhouse that can outshine India as exporter of innovative new products and software? When will Philippine economic news shift from the usual foreign loans, new taxes, and high budget deficit to technological breakthroughs and the export world-class products?

A former poor boy from Cagayan province and now a Filipino technology tycoon in Silicon Valley recently granted us an exclusive interview in his Tallwood Venture Capital office building beside Wells Fargo Bank and near Stanford University. In 1997, Philippine-born Diosdado "Dado" Banatao was honored with the prestigious "Master Entrepreneur of the Year" award sponsored by the Ernst & Young global accounting giant, Inc. magazine and Merrill Lynch. Every year, Banatao funds Filipino-American scholars studying engineering or science courses in top schools all over the US. He also funds a special program that takes University of the Philippines professors to work with University of California in Berkeley professors for one year, hoping these UP professors can bring to the country newest ideas and technologies.

UP president Dr. Francisco "Dodong" Nemenzo said, "Dado Banatao is richer than Ayala." Though Banatao admitted that he owns two private jets and drives a Porsche sports car, and that he once earned and lost $350 million dollars in a single day at the US stock market, he requested that our interview focus more on economic issues rather than on his personal wealth.

A businessman who respects Dado Banatao is Ayala conglomerate CEO Jaime Augusto Zobel de Ayala who said, "Dado has a tremendous mind." He invited Banatao to be a director of Ayala-controlled Integrated Microelectronics Inc. (IMI). In 2000, Ayala Group invited Banatao to be a partner in its information technology and Internet businesses.

The soft-spoken Banatao is founder and managing director of Tallwood Venture Capital, which focuses on semiconductors and semiconductor-related technologies. As an engineer, he has developed several key semiconductor technologies and is today regarded as a Silicon Valley visionary. As an investor, he has a keen business sense of trends and opportunities involving technology solutions for computing and communications. He has a BS Electrical Engineering degree (cum laude) from the Mapua Institute of Technology in Manila and an MS in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science from Stanford University. Last May, the University of California in Berkeley invited him to speak on what it takes to succeed in Silicon Valley.

When the world’s most powerful mainframe computer was the IBM 360, Banatao’s innovative new chip-set design produced 10 times more power at a thousandth of the cost. His other technological innovations include: developing the first single-chip; the 16-bit microprocessor-based calculator while working for Commodore International in ‘76; the first single-chip MicroVAX while working for Digital Equipment; the first 10-Mbit Ethernet CMOS with silicon coupler data-link control and trans-receiver chip; getting 3Com into the Ethernet PC add-in card business while at Seeq Technology in early ‘80s; the first system logic chip set for the PC-XT and the PC-AT while at Mostron in ‘84 and Chips & Technologies in ‘85); the first enhanced graphics adapter chip set while at Chips & Technologies in ‘85); pioneering local bus concept for PC while at S3 in 1989, and the first Windows accelerator chip while at S3 in ‘90.

Here are excerpts from our three-hour conversation with the Silicon Valley visionary:

PHILIPPINE STAR: Are the reports in the US media true that you earned and lost $350 million in a single day at the US stock market?

DADO BANATAO: (laughs) That’s what happens when one plays big. That’s all part of risk-taking in business. You just have to make sure that you’re still ahead. Since my companies Chips & Technologies and S-3 went public, I have continuously looked for new challenges, investing in multiple companies.

About 3,000 Filipinos leave the Philippines everyday. What is your opinion about what people describe as a brain drain?

I disagree when they say there’s a brain drain when top engineers, scientists or doctors leave the Philippines. It becomes a brain drain only if the economy or society you’re leaving is supporting and utilizing the brains that are leaving. The professionals leave because they are underutilized and not given full support to develop and flourish, so where’s the so-called brain drain? This is just a symptom of a greater problem. I recommend that our leaders treat the real disease, not the symptom.

Do you think the Philippine economy has the capital to finance new technology ventures, since we do not have your Silicon Valley or your huge US stock market?

I think the Philippines – the government and private sector – has the money, but not enough entrepreneurs are willing to fund risky new ventures in technology. More than the availability of money, the reason Silicon Valley here in northern California is the world leader in technology is because we’re willing to risk money here everyday on new ventures, new ideas. Also, please do not forget that Silicon Valley is not all about big money and glamour. I hope you remember the hard work we put in. When I started out, I was literally not sleeping every night due to working and thinking. It takes years to build a company; it’s not an overnight success; there are no shortcuts. In fact, it’s hard work that I usually emphasize hard work more than brains. Real success comes due to hard work.

But you are an engineering graduate of Mapua and you studied in Stanford, you had distinct advantages.

In the Philippines, success in business, technology or other fields depend more on hard work rather than on brains alone. In terms of absolute brilliance, I’m way below the curve. In fact here at Silicon Valley, I envy all the smart people. I really believe it is the effort and hard work that matter more than pure brilliance.

What is your answer to people who attribute much of success to luck – your moving from Mapua, becoming a Philippine Airlines pilot trainee in Boeing USA, which led you to Stanford and Silicon Valley success?

You make your own luck. I remember a guy once telling me about his pilot training at Philippine Airlines, that it was fun, so I applied there. Then Boeing in 1967 offered me a job in the Washington State in the US. Then I ended up in Stanford. Believe me, you have to make your own luck.

How do you assess the technology industry of the Philippines?

The Philippines has most of its capabilities in manufacturing. There are some design and software work. IMI and Ionics are doing some work on the system side. Unfortunately, I don’t know if there’s semiconductor chip design there in the Philippines. There’s big space in software. If there are any, they are small and not so innovative. China is much cheaper and very innovative in semiconductors, while India is leading all of Asia in software development. I hope the Philippines can become like India in the future. But if the current thinking process there is still the same – not a lot of risk-taking or investments in technology – then the Philippines will never get there. If there is no change in thinking, then it will absolutely never happen.

What are the numerous companies you are involved in right now here in Silicon Valley?

Before forming Tallwood Venture Capital, I was a venture partner at the Mayfield Fund. I co-founded three technology startups – S3 (SBLU), Chips & Technologies (INTC), and Mostron. I also held positions at National Semiconductor, Seeq Technologies, Intersil and Commodore International. Today, I am chairman of SiRF Technology (SIRF) and other Tallwood portfolio companies. I also served as chairman and led investments in Marvell Technology Group (MRVL), Acclaim Communications acquired by Level One (INTC), Newport Communications acquired by Broadcom (BRCM), Cyras Systems acquired by Ciena (CIEN), and Stream Machine acquired by Cirrus Logic (CRUS).

Is it true you grew up in a rural farming barrio in northern Luzon, where you used to walk treadbare along dirt roads to school?

Yes, I grew up in Malabbac barrio of Iguig municipality in Cagayan province. It is about an eight-hour drive from Manila, a sleepy little barrio. My late father was a small rice farmer. I came from a humble family. The whole town was a farming community and so simple.

Do you speak Ilocano or Ibanag?

My native dialect is Itawes, one of the two top dialects of Cagayan province. Yes, I also learned to speak Ibanag and Ilocano. You know, our provincial capital of Tuguegarao is actually half Itawes-speaking and half Ilocano-speaking in population.

Have you returned to your hometown and to your old school?

Yes, I’ve visited Iguig four times. I studied in Malabbac Elementary School, a small public school. In the 1990s, we built a computer center there. Today, it’s probably the only public elementary school in the Philippines that has 20 of the most modern computers on networks.

What do you recommend government should do to help students become world-class in technological skills?

It is important for the Philippine economy to be strong in technology. I hope government will emphasize better education in math and sciences, because now the Philippines is not very competitive in those fields.

What is your reaction to Philippine society looking up mostly to lawyers, politicians and showbiz stars, not to entrepreneurs and engineers?

It is tragic that in the Philippines, there’s so much glorification of other professions like law or politics – if you can call it a profession (laughs) – which I think is a huge mistake. Look at the China economic miracle. Look at India. They’re educating their kids to be good in math, the sciences and English. There’s a cultural difference. It is sad that the Philippines glorifies other things, but not engineering. In the Philippines in the last 20 years, a lot of kids of the elite were encouraged to study business management courses and MBAs here in the US, but when they went back, there was nothing for them to manage. They might not agree with my views, but I have my own on how the Philippines can improve. Look at the world’s most advanced economies. They’ve gone beyond agriculture. Their economies use a lot of the best technologies. A lot of their national incomes are derived from technologies. For the Philippines to advance economically, the country should be capable of creating a lot of technologies and globally competitive products. The Philippines has to go back to basics, make sure kids are being educated well in sciences and engineering. We cannot keep on blaming others. We Filipinos should change our educational emphasis, our cultural outlook.

How does it feel to be the only Filipino major player in Silicon Valley?

Actually, I have mixed feelings. Of course, I am proud that someone from the Philippines has made it here, but I really wish there were more Filipinos here in this level.

Were you named after the Pampanga politician Diosdado Macapagal?

No, (laughs) it’s just a coincidence that my first name is Diosdado.

Have you met President Gloria M. Arroyo? What did you talk about?

Yes, I met her during her visit here two or three years ago. She asked me if I could help and I said yes.

What is your advice to her on how to solve the many economic problems of the Philippines and how to turn around the whole situation?

Obviously, I’m the wrong person to ask advice from. I’m not a politician. My advice is to put the Philippines in a position where the country can really create globally competitive products.

credits : Willson Lee Flore, 2004

Swine flu vaccine could be ready by end of June

2009-06-17T22:15:00.000-07:00

Agence France-Presse
First Posted 04:17:00 05/23/2009

Filed Under: Swine Flu, Health, Diseases, Epidemic and Plague, Pharmaceuticals

GENEVA -- The World Health Organization said Friday it was hopeful that the pharmaceutical industry would be ready to produce an anti-swine flu vaccine by the end of June or early July.

"We're hopeful that by the end of June by the beginning July this will be the time that commercial companies will be in a position of being able to make a vaccine," said interim Assistant Director General Keiji Fukuda.

However, Fukuda said experts were still mulling whether to give the go ahead for production as this may reduce or halt the manufacture of vaccines for seasonal flu.

"We will hold off on making this decision for a little while," he added.

Production of up to 4.9 billion doses a year of a vaccine against the new influenza A(H1N1) virus would be possible, according to a forecast presented to vaccine makers this week.

Apart from weighing the impact of the new virus against that of seasonal flu, issues like dosage and safety testing also have to be settled.

"There will need to be fast tracking of some of these studies," Fukuda said.

The WHO hopes to send candidate virus samples to drug companies by the end of this month to serve as a reference in making the vaccine.

Thirty vaccine makers from 19 industrialized and developing countries were invited by the WHO to a meeting on Tuesday to discuss production of a vaccine against swine flu.

A key issue for the meeting was the cost of the vaccine and its availability in the most vulnerable and poor countries.

The WHO is seeking funding from the World Bank and international health funds or foundations to help finance vaccine supply in such nations.

Fukuda underlined that a vaccine was one of the key steps to ward off a potential swine flu pandemic as the new virus spreads around the world, despite its relatively mild symptoms for now in most cases.

How do you prepare your kids to school?

2009-06-13T05:05:00.000-07:00

Schooling for kids is fun but on the first day they find it scary, confusing and sometimes traumatic. That’s only because they don’t have any idea what will happen to them in school. They have a lot of questions in mind such as Who will be their teachers?, Are their classmates friendly?, How many hours will they stay inside the classroom without their parents?, etc.

So, it’s the elders’ duty to help these kids realize that schooling is really fun from the first day of classes to the end of the school year.
Hence, I have some tips that hopefully can help parents and teachers.

1. Prepare their things for school together. Your children’s excitement will be doubled if you show them the things they will use in school and let your child organize their things inside their bags.

2. Share the good experiences you had in school. As you share your positive experiences when you were studying, children imagine themselves in the same situation that unexpectedly they want to happen in reality or if it is an achievement they want to reach it as well.

3. Give them idea of what will happen in school. This tip is most appropriate for first timers or transferees. Since they are a little hesitant to come to school on the first day, it’s better to know what to expect in school.

4. Give them assurance. Safety is the first thing you have to assure the children. Tell them that teachers are good, classmates are friendly, different activities will be given and that’s fun, you can also tell them that you are just around (despite the reality that you will be in the office).

5. Make them busy and happy. The teachers’ duty is to provide different activities that will surely make children forget their home for a while. (This will be successful only if parents will cooperate, they have to leave for the teacher to fully take charge of their children).

Teachers On the Move!

2009-06-05T09:48:00.000-07:00

When we have visitors we prepare a lot for them; food, beddings, list of places where they will enjoy their stay, etc. This is only because as a host we want to impress them. Thus, we are giving them the best of the best.

This situation is not so far from the teaching profession. As teachers we also want our pupils to receive the best education. Hence, administrators prepare seminars and workshops for the enhancement of teachers’ knowledge and invigorate the minds for the benefit of their clients: the young minds.

A week before the formal opening of classes teachers in every school attend different seminars that lead them to better understanding of their roles and duties to cater the holistic formation of the children. So hand in hand, all the people working in an institution will be of great help in their own little ways to assist both parents and children towards edification.

The main role of educators is to groom the youngster to real world with enough knowledge to understand the perplexed world and win over trials ahead without loosing values. But we should not overlook the important role of parents which is to follow-up and supervise their children at home and outside the premises of the school and at the same time the perseverance and self-discipline of the children to reach the goal.

Enrolment?

2009-05-22T01:22:00.000-07:00

After Recognition and Gradation days, parents are facing another year of schooling for their youngsters. For those who have 2nd - 6th graders, it’s very easy to enroll their children since they know already what to do…not mentioning the atmosphere that is so familiar to them and the comradeship they have built for the past years. If they’ll be attending the same school, they would simply bring their report cards and cash with them and alas! They’re enrolled. So easy isn’t it?

But for new students as well as transferees, it’s a bit different and uhmmm longer. First, they have to present the requirements being asked by the registrar such as:
1. *original (for verification) and photocopy of child’s Birth Certificate
2. *1x1 identical recent colored pictures
3. photocopy of F-138 showing the latest grades certified by the Principal
4. certificate of Good Moral Character
5. accomplished Recommendation Form
6. **Alien Certification of Registration or Special Study Permit
Pay for the testing fee and proceed to the testing area for written and oral examinations.

After the release of the test result, that’s the time a child can be assessed, pay and be enrolled.

Hmmmm, sounds easy, right? But above all these, parents have some matters to consider also like:
1. credibility of the school
2. assurance of their children’s holistic growth
3. affordability
4. location

Well, parents you better start seeking for the school that will meet your satisfaction and oooops! Schools should begin impressing these choosy parents.

Why not try our school, www.dps.edu.ph or call 0917-8173078 / 02-4273821

* for pre-school and 1st graders
** for foreigners

English is a crazy language

2009-05-14T12:06:00.000-07:00

Let's face it -- English is a crazy language!

There's no egg in eggplant nor ham in hamburger; neither
apple nor pine in pineapple.

English muffins weren't invented in England or French fries in
France. Sweetmeats are candies while sweetbreads, which aren't sweet,
are meat.

We take English for granted. But if we explore its paradoxes,
we find that quicksand can work slowly, boxing rings are square, and a
guinea pig is neither from Guinea nor is it a pig.

And why is it that writers write but fingers don't fing,
grocers don't groce and hammers don't ham? If the plural of tooth is
teeth, why isn't the plural of booth beeth? One goose, two geese.
So one moose, two meese? One index, two indices?

Doesn't it seem crazy that you can make amends but not one
amend, that you comb through the annals of history but not a single
annal? If you have a bunch of odds and ends and get rid of all but
one of them, what do you call it?

If teachers taught, why didn't preachers praught? If a
vegetarian eats vegetables, what does a humanitarian eat? If you
wrote a letter, perhaps you bote your tongue?

Sometimes I think all the English speakers should be committed
to an asylum for the verbally insane. In what language do people
recite at a play and play at a recital? Ship by truck and send cargo
by ship? Have noses that run and feet that smell? Park on driveways
and drive on parkways?

How can a slim chance and a fat chance be the same, while a
wise man and a wise guy are opposites? How can overlook and oversee
be opposites, while quite a lot and quite a few are alike? How can
the weather be hot as hell one day and cold as hell another?

Have you noticed that we talk about certain things only when
they are absent? Have you ever seen a horseful carriage or a strapful
gown? Met a sung hero or experienced requited love?

Have you ever run into someone who was discombobulated,
gruntled, ruly or peccable? And where are all those people who ARE
spring chickens or who would ACTUALLY hurt a fly?

You have to marvel at the unique lunacy of a language in which
your house can burn up as it burns down, in which you fill in a form
by filling out and in which an alarm clock goes off by going on.

English was invented by people, not computers, and it reflects
the creativity of the human race (which, of course, isn't a race at
all).

That is why, when the stars are out, they are visible, but when
the lights are out, they are invisible. And why, when I wind up my
watch, I start it, but when I wind up this essay, I end it!

(This essay has been attributed to Richard Lederer.)

Happy Mother's Day!

2009-05-09T08:44:00.000-07:00

I don’t have pupils without their parents especially their mothers who unconditionally love these children. For all the mommies who support their children to gain knowledge from school and help develop their talents, these short messages are dedicated to you:

A mom is God’s love in action
She looks with her heart,
And feels with her eyes.
A mom is the bank
Where her children deposit
All their worries and hurt.
A mom is the cement
That keeps her family together
And her love lasts a lifetime.

Great mothers smile in trouble,
gather strength from stress,
and grow brave by reflection and prayers.

Motherhood is a tough 24-hour job:
No pay, no day-off
Most often unappreciated
And yet resignation is impossible.

Your existence gives hope to one person.
Your smile maybe a pearl for someone.
Your presence might be the desire of the one who loves you.

Blessings are plenty for people like you who live with love, kindness and thoughtfulness…

Styles of Education Reform

2009-05-09T02:39:00.001-07:00

Many educators became interested in a wave of new education theories that offered new insights into the way students learn and retain knowledge. Some of these theories, including constructivism and multiple intelligence theory, continue to grow in popularity today. Yet the application of these new theories have not always gone so smoothly: as we shall later see in the debates over whole language and whole math, the enthusiastic rush to apply new theory into practice has not always met with the best results.

Professionals, schools and teachers are asserting more control over education management decisions. Non-profit charter schools and for-profit education management organizations offer students public school learning environments that break away from the traditional state-run system. Through school choice, parents can choose to take their students out of poorly run schools and place them into other institutions - including parochial schools in some cases. And an increasing number of families are choosing to reject classrooms altogether and adopt homeschooling instead.

Each attempt to take charge in school reform has come with ever-increasing calls for accountability. As will be seen, determining how to assess accountability and who should be held accountable for failing students is far from cut and dry.

source: edwebproject