Volume VII
Hi, folks. We're anticipating a big snow
and/or ice storm here in New England (weathermen can't make up their minds,
exactly). Well, 'tis the season. Children are snuggled tight in their beds
listening for the patter of ice crystals on their window ledges, in hopes
that soon there will be a huge swell of voices shouting NO SCHOOL TODAY.
Hey! was that a teacher or two I heard joining in? Maybe -- maybe not.
In anticipation of Christmas I'm offering a fun educational program as a
free software download this month. Interactive Night Before
Christmas will take your kids through the popular seasonal
poem. In place of the Teacher Humor section this
month, I've included a cute poem that is just for teachers and is a parody
on The Night Before Christmas. Hope you enjoy it. A
Paintbrush for words? Sure, why not. I'll give you a simple
tutorial for using this little known tool in many word editing software
programs. In Famous Quotations a few thoughts are
offered by famous people from the past and present. Writer's
Almanac alerts you to some writers who were born in the month
of December. You will also be happy to know that at Baggetta_Ware we now
offer two new Literary Test Generators. One for The Lord of the Flies,
and another for an assortment of popular poems: Classic Poetry Test
Generator.
Hope you have a happy month of December teaching, and a well-deserved holiday.
Send your emails to abaggetta@comcast.net. Read on and see what this rambling is all about.
Hope you have a happy month of December teaching, and a well-deserved holiday.
Send your emails to abaggetta@comcast.net. Read on and see what this rambling is all about.
Have a great
month.
Best,
Al Baggetta
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Important News: Baggetta_Ware now supports instant downloads when you order programs using Pay Pal or your credit card via Pay Pal. Now you don't have to wait to get your programs. Click "RETURN TO MERCHANT OR RETURN TO BAGGETTA_WARE" and you will be delivered to a page from which you can download your purchase immediately.
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Famous Quotations
(Give these quotations to your students. If they don't know who the authors are, have them look them up) Also, drop by our main web page www.baggetta.com to get a new quote for each day.
Misfortune shows those who are not really friends.
Aristotle (384 BC - 322 BC), Eudemian Ethics
A positive attitude may not solve all your problems, but it will annoy enough people to make it worth the effort.
Herm Albright (1876 - 1944)
Nearly all men can stand adversity, but if you want to test a man's character, give him power.
Abraham Lincoln (1809 - 1865)
Training is everything. The peach was once a bitter almond; cauliflower is nothing but cabbage with a college education.
Mark Twain (1835 - 1910), Pudd'nhead Wilson (1894)
I don't know the key to success, but the key to failure is trying to please everybody.
Bill Cosby (1937 - )
Mistakes are the portals of discovery.
James Joyce (1882 - 1941)
Best,
Al Baggetta
The Week Before Christmas
By Joyce Luke
By Joyce Luke
'Twas the week before Christmas and all through the school
Not a pupil was silent, no matter what rule.
The children were busy with paper and paste;
The mess that they made with it couldn't be faced.
The teacher half frantic and almost in tears,
Had just settled down to work with her dears,
When out in the hall there arose such a clatter
up sprang the kids to see what was the matter!
Away to the door they all flew like a flash;
The one who was leading went down with a crash.
Then what to their wondering eyes did appear
But a green Christmas tree! (To decorate I fear!)
When the teacher saw this, she almost grew sick.
She knew in a moment it must be Old Nick!
She ran to the door (all her efforts were vain)
But she shouted, and stamped, and she called them by name;
"Now Tommy! Now Sandy, Now Judy and Harry!
Stop Billy! Stop Robert! Stop Donny and Sherry!
Now get to your places get away from the hall
Now get away! Get away! Get away all!
As leaves that before the wild hurricane fly
The pupils, pell mell, started scurrying by.
They ran to the blackboard and skipped down the aisle;
Their faces were shining and each had a smile.
First came a basket of popcorn to string
-Then came the Christmas tree (menacing thing).
As the tree was brought in there arose a great shout;
The pupils were merrily romping about.
The state they were in could lead to a riot;
The teacher was sure, if allowed, they would try it.
Her nerves how they jangled! Her temples were throbbing!
The rush of her breath sounded almost like sobbing!
The lines of her face were as fixed as a mask;
It was plain that she didn't feel up to her task.
The look in her eye would have tamed a wild steer,
But the children ignored it; they did every year.
A tear from her eye and a shake of her head
Soon led me to think that she wished she were dead.
She spoke not a word but went straight to her work,
Strung all the popcorn which broke with a jerk.
But at last it was finished and placed on the tree;
Then came the bell and the children were free.
Their shrill little voices soon faded away
And peace was restored at the end of the day.
As she looked at the Christmas tree glistening and tall,
She smiled as she whispered, Merry Christmas to all!
Not a pupil was silent, no matter what rule.
The children were busy with paper and paste;
The mess that they made with it couldn't be faced.
The teacher half frantic and almost in tears,
Had just settled down to work with her dears,
When out in the hall there arose such a clatter
up sprang the kids to see what was the matter!
Away to the door they all flew like a flash;
The one who was leading went down with a crash.
Then what to their wondering eyes did appear
But a green Christmas tree! (To decorate I fear!)
When the teacher saw this, she almost grew sick.
She knew in a moment it must be Old Nick!
She ran to the door (all her efforts were vain)
But she shouted, and stamped, and she called them by name;
"Now Tommy! Now Sandy, Now Judy and Harry!
Stop Billy! Stop Robert! Stop Donny and Sherry!
Now get to your places get away from the hall
Now get away! Get away! Get away all!
As leaves that before the wild hurricane fly
The pupils, pell mell, started scurrying by.
They ran to the blackboard and skipped down the aisle;
Their faces were shining and each had a smile.
First came a basket of popcorn to string
-Then came the Christmas tree (menacing thing).
As the tree was brought in there arose a great shout;
The pupils were merrily romping about.
The state they were in could lead to a riot;
The teacher was sure, if allowed, they would try it.
Her nerves how they jangled! Her temples were throbbing!
The rush of her breath sounded almost like sobbing!
The lines of her face were as fixed as a mask;
It was plain that she didn't feel up to her task.
The look in her eye would have tamed a wild steer,
But the children ignored it; they did every year.
A tear from her eye and a shake of her head
Soon led me to think that she wished she were dead.
She spoke not a word but went straight to her work,
Strung all the popcorn which broke with a jerk.
But at last it was finished and placed on the tree;
Then came the bell and the children were free.
Their shrill little voices soon faded away
And peace was restored at the end of the day.
As she looked at the Christmas tree glistening and tall,
She smiled as she whispered, Merry Christmas to all!
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Important News: Baggetta_Ware now supports instant downloads when you order programs using Pay Pal or your credit card via Pay Pal. Now you don't have to wait to get your programs. Click "RETURN TO MERCHANT OR RETURN TO BAGGETTA_WARE" and you will be delivered to a page from which you can download your purchase immediately.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Famous Quotations
(Give these quotations to your students. If they don't know who the authors are, have them look them up) Also, drop by our main web page www.baggetta.com to get a new quote for each day.
Misfortune shows those who are not really friends.
Aristotle (384 BC - 322 BC), Eudemian Ethics
A positive attitude may not solve all your problems, but it will annoy enough people to make it worth the effort.
Herm Albright (1876 - 1944)
Nearly all men can stand adversity, but if you want to test a man's character, give him power.
Abraham Lincoln (1809 - 1865)
Training is everything. The peach was once a bitter almond; cauliflower is nothing but cabbage with a college education.
Mark Twain (1835 - 1910), Pudd'nhead Wilson (1894)
I don't know the key to success, but the key to failure is trying to please everybody.
Bill Cosby (1937 - )
Mistakes are the portals of discovery.
James Joyce (1882 - 1941)
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Important News: Baggetta_Ware NEVER charges for UPGRADES. If we fix or improve a program you can
download it for free with proof of purchase. Most companies thrive on the money they make from upgrades, but we feel you should have the security of a well running program from the start, so we offer upgrades and fixes at no charge. Hey! We make mistakes like everyone else, but we also make amends.
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A Paintbrush For Word(s)?
If you use Microsoft Word (or many other of the Microsoft products for working with text) you'll find a handy little tool that makes another job a bit easier. It's called the Paintbrush. It is usually located up on the toolbar that is at the top of an editing window. It actually looks like a paintbrush.
So what is this for? Well, let's say you have a long passage of text you pasted into your document from a website. It's fraught with all kinds of fonts and variations on the fonts, and you just want the whole passage to show in Arial, size 12. You could go through the entire passage, highlight, and change each section individually, but it would be so much easier to use the Paintbrush tool.
Here's how it works. Go to a section of your text that has Arial 12 (or whatever you prefer) and highlight the section. It could be only one or two words or one or two letters. You are only highlighting a sample. Then slide the mouse pointer up to the Paintbrush icon on the top of the editing window and LEFT click it.
Your cursor will change to an I bar. Now, holding the left mouse button down, drag over the entire passage you pasted in (the passage you want to set to Arial 12). When you have reached the end of the passage, release the LEFT mouse button you were holding down.
Wham! The entire passage changes in an instant. This is so much easier than going through the offending passage and changing one bit at a time, and with a little bit of practice you'll have this down in no time at all. I'm sure you'll find many uses for this technique once you master it.
Interactive Night Before Christmas-- Free Program of the Month
Just in time for the holidays!
Fun to use and free from Baggetta_Ware this month. Go to our main page www.baggetta.com to download. Your students are probably familiar with this famous poem, read to them every Christmas season, but now you can use it as a reading assignment to see just how familar they are with its contents. Place it on your Windows PC's in your room or in your lab and let your classes have a go at it. It makes for a fun and educational project for groups of two or three around a computer. It's for Windows PC, and it doesn't cost anything. Just download from our main page: www.baggetta.com
WRITER'S ALMANAC
This is a partial list of some of the more well-known people born in the month of December. Familiarize your students with them and have them look up details from their biographies. Here's an interesting approach. Instead of having them go on line to search for the information, take your students to the library and see what they can find out there -- in printed matter.
Important News: Baggetta_Ware NEVER charges for UPGRADES. If we fix or improve a program you can
download it for free with proof of purchase. Most companies thrive on the money they make from upgrades, but we feel you should have the security of a well running program from the start, so we offer upgrades and fixes at no charge. Hey! We make mistakes like everyone else, but we also make amends.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
A Paintbrush For Word(s)?
If you use Microsoft Word (or many other of the Microsoft products for working with text) you'll find a handy little tool that makes another job a bit easier. It's called the Paintbrush. It is usually located up on the toolbar that is at the top of an editing window. It actually looks like a paintbrush.
So what is this for? Well, let's say you have a long passage of text you pasted into your document from a website. It's fraught with all kinds of fonts and variations on the fonts, and you just want the whole passage to show in Arial, size 12. You could go through the entire passage, highlight, and change each section individually, but it would be so much easier to use the Paintbrush tool.
Here's how it works. Go to a section of your text that has Arial 12 (or whatever you prefer) and highlight the section. It could be only one or two words or one or two letters. You are only highlighting a sample. Then slide the mouse pointer up to the Paintbrush icon on the top of the editing window and LEFT click it.
Your cursor will change to an I bar. Now, holding the left mouse button down, drag over the entire passage you pasted in (the passage you want to set to Arial 12). When you have reached the end of the passage, release the LEFT mouse button you were holding down.
Wham! The entire passage changes in an instant. This is so much easier than going through the offending passage and changing one bit at a time, and with a little bit of practice you'll have this down in no time at all. I'm sure you'll find many uses for this technique once you master it.
Interactive Night Before Christmas-- Free Program of the Month
Just in time for the holidays!
Fun to use and free from Baggetta_Ware this month. Go to our main page www.baggetta.com to download. Your students are probably familiar with this famous poem, read to them every Christmas season, but now you can use it as a reading assignment to see just how familar they are with its contents. Place it on your Windows PC's in your room or in your lab and let your classes have a go at it. It makes for a fun and educational project for groups of two or three around a computer. It's for Windows PC, and it doesn't cost anything. Just download from our main page: www.baggetta.com
WRITER'S ALMANAC
This is a partial list of some of the more well-known people born in the month of December. Familiarize your students with them and have them look up details from their biographies. Here's an interesting approach. Instead of having them go on line to search for the information, take your students to the library and see what they can find out there -- in printed matter.
William Lloyd
Garrison
Emily Dickinson
Chet Huntley
Kenneth Branagh
John Milton
Thomas P. 'Tip' O'Neill
Mary, Queen of Scots
Jean Sibelius
James Thurber
UPDATE ALERT -- We found a problem with our Windows PC program called Vocabulary On Demand Test Generator. It seems that some of the words and definitions were out of order, the fix has been done and anyone who purchased the program can download the updated version immediately. Just send me an email baggetta@comcast.net along with your purchase information, and I'll send you the link.
Emily Dickinson
Chet Huntley
Kenneth Branagh
John Milton
Thomas P. 'Tip' O'Neill
Mary, Queen of Scots
Jean Sibelius
James Thurber
UPDATE ALERT -- We found a problem with our Windows PC program called Vocabulary On Demand Test Generator. It seems that some of the words and definitions were out of order, the fix has been done and anyone who purchased the program can download the updated version immediately. Just send me an email baggetta@comcast.net along with your purchase information, and I'll send you the link.
