2023年1月23日 星期一

五分鐘英語練習- 024

 .....................................................................................................五分鐘英語練習 (024)

"Five minutes English practice" (024)

Listen & Practice - 聆聽和練習

Let’s get started.

.............................................................................................. 
legend [ˈledʒənd] n. 傳說;傳奇人物
league [liːɡ]
colleague [ˈkɑːliːɡ]
college [ˈkɑːlɪdʒ] n. 大學;學院

Which photo is related to ''league''?
哪一張照片與 ''聯盟" 相關?
The answer is : A
How to spell it?

What about the etymology of "League"?
"League" 的辭源呢?

= tie;bind,表示"捆綁;聯合;約束"

通常以gue結尾的單詞中 ue 都不發音。例如: 
League,Catalogue, Intrigue,  Plague, Rogue

catalogue [ˈkætəlɔːɡ] n. 目錄

intrigue [ˈɪntriːɡ] n. 密謀

plague [pleɪɡ] n. 瘟疫

rogue [roʊg] n. 流氓

若一個音節中有兩個母音字母,通常第一個母音字母發長音(字母音),而第二個母音字母不發音。takerain
因此,league 和 colleague 有二個發音重點:
1.  ue 不發音。
2.  ea 只發 字母音 e;a 不發音。

league 和 colleague 的字根 = leag
而 leag 是 lig 的變形,
lig = tie;bind,表示"捆綁;聯合;約束" 
然而,
legend 或 college 的字根
並非 leag 或 lig,而是一個
意義與 lig 完全不同的字根 leg
1. leg = law,表示 "法律"
2. leg = speak;read,表示 "講、讀、說"

League of Legend
傳說聯盟(英雄聯盟)












There are three mistakes you should never make at your workplace.

1. Never think that your colleagues are your friends, they are not they are just doing a job.

2. You should never reveal your personal life to your colleagues.

3. When you are disagree with your company policy, never share it with any of your colleagues. Keep it to your self, anything you share with your colleagues can and will be used against you.

在你的工作場所,你永遠不應該犯三個錯誤。
1. 永遠不要認為你的同事是你的朋友,他們不是他們只是在做一份工作。
2. 你永遠不應該向你的同事透露你的個人生活。
3. 當您不同意公司政策時,切勿與您的任何同事分享。 把它留給你自己,你與同事分享的任何東西都可以而且將會被用來對付你。


Case closed.
結案。
That's it, case closed, nothing more.
就這樣,結案,沒別的了。

A colleague said to me one time, "They don't pay me to like the kids. They pay me to teach a lesson. The kids should learn it. I should teach it. They should learn it. Case closed."

一次有個同事跟我說,「我的職責不是喜歡那些孩子們。我的職責是教書。孩子們就該去學。我管教課,他們管學習。就是這麼一回事 - 結案。」
..............................................................................................
演講稿中英對照:






Well, I said to her, "You know, kids don't learn from people they don't like."


然後,我就跟她說,「你知道,孩子們可不跟他們討厭的人學習。」

(Laughter) (Applause) (笑聲)(掌聲)

She said, "That's just a bunch of hooey."

她接著說,「一派胡言。」

And I said to her, "Well, your year is going to be long and arduous, dear."

然後我對她說,「那麼,親愛的,你這一年會變得十分漫長和痛苦。」

Needless to say it was. Some people think that you can either have it in you to build a relationship or you don't. I think Stephen Covey had the right idea. He said you ought to just throw in a few simple things, like seeking first to understand as opposed to being understood, simple things like apologizing. You ever thought about that? Tell a kid you're sorry, they're in shock.


事實也果真如此。有些人認為一個人或者天生可以建立一種關係或者不具有這種能力。 我認為Stephen Covey(美國教育家)是對的。 他說你只需要做一些簡單的事情,比如試著首先理解他人,而不是想要被理解,比如道歉。你想過嗎?跟一個孩子說你很對不起,他們都驚呆了。

I taught a lesson once on ratios. I'm not real good with math, but I was working on it. And I got back and looked at that teacher edition. I'd taught the whole lesson wrong. (Laughter)

我有一次講比例。 我數學不是很好,但是我當時在教數學。然後我下了課,翻看了教師用書。我完全教錯了。(笑聲)

So I came back to class the next day, and I said, "Look, guys, I need to pologize. I taught the whole lesson wrong. I'm so sorry."


所以我第二天回到班上說,「同學們,我要道歉。我昨天的課都教錯了。我非常抱歉。」

They said, "That's okay, Ms. Pierson. You were so excited, we just let you go." (Laughter) (Applause)

他們說,「沒關係,Pierson老師。你當時教得非常投入,我們就讓你繼續了。」

(笑聲)(掌聲)

I have had classes that were so low, so academically deficient that I cried. I wondered, how am I going to take this group in nine months from where they are to where they need to be? And it was difficult. It was awfully hard.How do I raise the self-esteem of a child and his academic achievement at the same time?


我曾經教過程度非常低的班級,學術素養差到我都哭了。我當時就想,我怎麼能在9個月之內把這些孩子提升到他們必須具備的水平?這真的很難,太艱難了。我怎麼能讓一個孩子重拾自信的同時他在學術上也有進步?

One year I came up with a bright idea. I told all my students, "You were chosen to be in my class because I am the best teacher and you are the best students, they put us all together so we could show everybody else how to do it."

有一年我有了一個非常好的主意。我告訴我的學生們,「你們進了我的班級,因為我是最好的老師,而你們是最好的學生,他們把我們放在一起來給其他人做個好榜樣。」

One of the students said, "Really?" (Laughter)

一個學生說,「真的嗎?」(笑聲)

I said, "Really. We have to show the other classes how to do it, so when we walk down the hall, people will notice us, so you can't make noise. You just have to strut." And I gave them a saying to say: "I am somebody. I was somebody when I came. I'll be a better somebody when I leave. I am powerful, and I am strong. I deserve the education that I get here. I have things to do, people to impress, and places to go."

我說,「當然是真的。我們要給其他班級做個榜樣,當我們走在樓道里,因為大家都會注意到我們,我們不能吵鬧。大家要昂首闊步。」我還給了他們一個口號:「我是個人物。我來的時候是個人物。我畢業的時候會變成一個更好的人物。我很有力,很強大。我值得在這裡受教育。我有很多事情要做,我要讓人們記住我,我要去很多地方。」

And they said, "Yeah!"

然後他們說:「是啊!」

You say it long enough, it starts to be a part of you.

如果你長時間的這麼說,它就會開始變成事實。

And so


(Applause) I gave a quiz, 20 questions. A student missed 18. I put a "+2" on his

paper and a big smiley face.

所以-(掌聲)我做了一個小測驗,20道題。一個孩子錯了18道。我在他了卷子上寫了個「+2」和一個大的笑臉。

He said, "Ms. Pierson, is this an F?"

他說,「Pierson老師,這是不及格嗎?」

I said, "Yes."

我說,「是的。」

He said, "Then why'd you put a smiley face?"

他接著說,「那你為什麼給我一個笑臉?」

I said, "Because you're on a roll. You got two right. You didn't miss them all." I said, "And when we review this, won't you do better?"

我說,「因為你正漸入佳境。你沒有全錯,還對了兩個。」我說,「我們複習這些題的時候,難道你不會做得更好嗎?」

He said, "Yes, ma'am, I can do better."

他說,「是的,老師。我可以做得更好。」

You see, "-18" sucks all the life out of you. "+2" said, "I ain't all bad." (Laughter) (Applause)

大家看,「-18」讓人感覺想死。「+2」意味著,「我沒有那麼糟。」 (笑聲)(掌聲)

For years I watched my mother take the time at recess to review, go on home visits in the afternoon, buy combs and brushes and peanut butter and crackers to put in her desk drawer for kids that needed to eat, and a washcloth and some soap for the kids who didn't smell so good. See, it's hard to teach kids who stink. And kids can be cruel. And so she kept those things in her desk, and years later, after she retired, I watched some of those same kids come through and say to her, "You know, Ms. Walker, you made a difference in my life. You made it work for me. You made me feel like I was somebody, when I knew, at the bottom, I wasn't. And I want you to just see what I've become."

好多年了,我看著我媽媽利用課間休息時間批改作業,下午去家訪,買梳子、刷子、花生醬和餅乾,把他們放在自己的抽屜里給那些餓了的孩子們吃,還有為那些髒孩子們準備了一條毛巾和一些肥皂。看吧,教那些發臭的孩子是困難的一件事。而孩子們有時也是比較「殘忍」的。所以她把這些東西都放在她的抽屜里,然後過了很多年,在她退休以後,我看到一些當年的孩子們回來告訴她,「您知道,Walker老師,您改變了我的生活。您讓它有了意義。您讓我覺得我是個人物, 雖說在心底我知道我不是。我就是想讓您看看,現在成為了個什麼樣的人」

And when my mama died two years ago at 92, there were so many former students at her funeral, it brought tears to my eyes, not because she was gone, but because she left a legacy of relationships that could never disappear.

當我媽媽兩年前以92歲高齡去世的時候,有好多好多的以前的學生來參加了她的葬禮,我哭了,不是因為她去世了,而是因為她留下了這些永遠不會消失的各種聯繫。

Can we stand to have more relationships? Absolutely. Will you like all your children? Of course not. And you know your toughest kids are never absent. (Laughter) Never. You won't like them all, and the tough ones show up for a reason. It's the connection. It's the relationships. And while you won't like them all, the key is, they can never, ever know it. So teachers become great actors and great actresses, and we come to work when we don't feel like it, and we're listening to policy that doesn't make sense, and we teach anyway. We teach anyway, because that's what we do.

我們真的可以有更多的關係嗎?當然可以。你會喜歡你所有的學生嗎?當然不。你也知道那些最難搞的孩子總是很難甩掉。(笑聲)永遠不會。你不會喜歡每一個人,然而難搞的那幾個的出現也是有理由的。這就是聯繫,是關係。當你不會喜歡他們每一個人的時候,關鍵就是他們永遠也不會知道這一點。所以老師們變成偉大的演員,我們得強迫自己工作,我們得聽從那些毫無道理的政策,我們還得上課。我們還得上課,因為這是我們的責任。

Teaching and learning should bring joy. How powerful would our world be if we had kids who were not afraid to take risks, who were not afraid to think, and who had a champion? Every child deserves a champion, an adult who will never give up on them, who understands the power of connection, andinsists that they become the best that they can possibly be.

教學和學習應該是讓人愉快的事情。我們的世界會變得多麼的強大如果我們的孩子都不害怕接受挑戰,不害怕思考,都贏得了一個冠軍?每個孩子都可以成為一個冠軍,一個成年人要永遠不放棄他們,懂得聯繫的強大力量, 堅信他們可以變成那個最好的自己。[ tronest註:每個孩子都需要一個堅定的支持者/強大的後盾支持,一個永不放棄他們的成年人,一個懂得情感聯絡重要性的成年人,一個堅信他們可以成為最好的自己的成年人。(成為這樣一個成年人,我們教育者責無旁貸)]

Is this job tough? You betcha. Oh God, you betcha. But it is not impossible. We can do this. We're educators. We're born to make a difference.

這個職業很艱巨不?當然。上帝,毫無疑問。但是這不是不可能的。我們可以的,因為我們是教育家。我們天生就是重塑他人的。

Thank you so much.

非常感謝大家。
.............................................................................................. 
I have spent my entire life either at the schoolhouse, on the way to the schoolhouse, or talking bout what happens in the schoolhouse. Both my parents were educators, my maternal grandparents were educators, and for the past 40 years I've done the same thing. And so, needless to say, over those years I've had a chance to look at education reform from a lot of perspectives. Some of those reforms have been good. Some of them have been not so good. And we know why kids drop out. We know why kids don't learn. It's either poverty, low attendance, negative peer influences. We know why. But one of the things that we never discuss or we rarely discuss is the value and importance of human connection, relationships.
James Comer says that no significant learning can occur without a significant relationship. George Washington Carver says all learning is understanding relationships. Everyone in this room has been affected by a teacher or an adult. For years, I have watched people teach. I have looked at the best and I've look at some of the worst.
A colleague said to me one time, "They don't pay me to like the kids. They pay me to teach a lesson. The kids should learn it. I should teach it. They should learn it. Case closed."
Well, I said to her, "You know, kids don't learn from people they don't like."

(Laughter) (Applause) (笑聲)(掌聲)

She said, "That's just a bunch of hooey."

Needless to say it was. Some people think that you can either have it in you to build a relationship or you don't. I think Stephen Covey had the right idea. He said you ought to just throw in a few simple things, like seeking first to understand as opposed to being understood, simple things like apologizing. You ever thought about that? Tell a kid you're sorry, they're in shock.

I taught a lesson once on ratios. I'm not real good with math, but I was working on it. And I got back and looked at that teacher edition. I'd taught the whole lesson wrong. (Laughter)

So I came back to class the next day, and I said, "Look, guys, I need to pologize. I taught the whole lesson wrong. I'm so sorry."

They said, "That's okay, Ms. Pierson. You were so excited, we just let you go." (Laughter) (Applause)

I have had classes that were so low, so academically deficient that I cried. I wondered, how am I going to take this group in nine months from where they are to where they need to be? And it was difficult. It was awfully hard.How do I raise the self-esteem of a child and his academic achievement at the same time?

One year I came up with a bright idea. I told all my students, "You were chosen to be in my class because I am the best teacher and you are the best students, they put us all together so we could show everybody else how to do it."

One of the students said, "Really?" (Laughter)

I said, "Really. We have to show the other classes how to do it, so when we walk down the hall, people will notice us, so you can't make noise. You just have to strut." And I gave them a saying to say: "I am somebody. I was somebody when I came. I'll be a better somebody when I leave. I am powerful, and I am strong. I deserve the education that I get here. I have things to do, people to impress, and places to go."

And they said, "Yeah!"

You say it long enough, it starts to be a part of you.

And so

(Applause) I gave a quiz, 20 questions. A student missed 18. I put a "+2" on his

paper and a big smiley face.

He said, "Ms. Pierson, is this an F?"

I said, "Yes."

He said, "Then why'd you put a smiley face?"

I said, "Because you're on a roll. You got two right. You didn't miss them all." I said, "And when we review this, won't you do better?"

He said, "Yes, ma'am, I can do better."

You see, "-18" sucks all the life out of you. "+2" said, "I ain't all bad." (Laughter) (Applause)

For years I watched my mother take the time at recess to review, go on home visits in the afternoon, buy combs and brushes and peanut butter and crackers to put in her desk drawer for kids that needed to eat, and a washcloth and some soap for the kids who didn't smell so good. See, it's hard to teach kids who stink. And kids can be cruel. And so she kept those things in her desk, and years later, after she retired, I watched some of those same kids come through and say to her, "You know, Ms. Walker, you made a difference in my life. You made it work for me. You made me feel like I was somebody, when I knew, at the bottom, I wasn't. And I want you to just see what I've become."

And when my mama died two years ago at 92, there were so many former students at her funeral, it brought tears to my eyes, not because she was gone, but because she left a legacy of relationships that could never disappear.

Can we stand to have more relationships? Absolutely. Will you like all your children? Of course not. And you know your toughest kids are never absent. (Laughter) Never. You won't like them all, and the tough ones show up for a reason. It's the connection. It's the relationships. And while you won't like them all, the key is, they can never, ever know it. So teachers become great actors and great actresses, and we come to work when we don't feel like it, and we're listening to policy that doesn't make sense, and we teach anyway. We teach anyway, because that's what we do.

Teaching and learning should bring joy. How powerful would our world be if we had kids who were not afraid to take risks, who were not afraid to think, and who had a champion? Every child deserves a champion, an adult who will never give up on them, who understands the power of connection, andinsists that they become the best that they can possibly be.

Is this job tough? You betcha. Oh God, you betcha. But it is not impossible. We can do this. We're educators. We're born to make a difference.

Thank you so much.


字根(root)

tract - 拉

contract [ˈkɑːntrækt] n. 合同;契約,v. 簽合同;訂契約

a contract of employment

僱用合同

I was on a three-year contract that expired last week.

我簽訂的三年期合同已於上週期滿。

contract [kənˈtrækt] v. 簽合同;訂契約

You can contract with us to deliver your cargo.

[ju kæn kənˈtræk wɪð ʌs tu dɪˈlɪvər jʊər ˈkɑrˌɡoʊ.]

你可以跟我們簽訂送貨合同。

contract [kənˈtrækt] v. 收縮;縮小萎縮

As it cooled, the metal contracted.

金屬冷卻後收縮了。

In spoken English, "do not" often contracts to "don't".

在英語口語中,do not 常常縮略成 don't。

a contracting market 萎縮的市場

動詞 contract 的現在分詞 contracting 轉化為形容詞

contract [kənˈtrækt] v. 染(重)病

He contracted AIDS from a blood transfusion.

他因輸血感染了愛滋病。

contractor [kənˈtræk] n. 承包商

a building contractor

建築承包商

subcontractor [sʌbˈkɑntræktə(r)] n. 分(轉)包商

subtract [səbˈtrækt] v. 減去;扣除

Subtract means: 「to remove a number from another number」.

Subtract 係指:從 "另一數" 扣除 "一數"」。

for example

10-4=6 的中文是:10減4,等於6。

10-4=6 的英文有兩種說法:

1. 使用 minus

Ten minus four equals six.

2. 使用 subtract from

Subtract four from ten equals six.

Four subtracted from ten equals six.

4 "被" 移除,從 10,等於 6。

這是和中文結構迥然不同的。










2023年1月22日 星期日

五分鐘英語練習- 023

五分鐘英語練習 (023)
"Five minutes English practice" (023)

Listen & Practice - 聆聽和練習

Let’s get started.

.............................................................................................. 
affect and effect
有共同的字根 fect=do;make

affect [əˈfekt] v. 影響
字首 af 是 at 的變形,變形的原因是為了「發音」的順暢。
亦即,af=at=to;toward
因此,affect=朝著某方向去做,引申為影響」的意思。

effect [ɪˈfekt]  n. 結果;效果影響
字首 ef 是 ex 的變形,變形的原因也是為了「發音」的順暢。
亦即,ef=ex=out;away
因此,effect=做出來,引申為結果;效果→(產生)影響」的意思。

Affect with an ‘a’ is a verb. It means ‘to influence’.
Effect with an ‘e’ is usually a noun, and it means ‘the result of something’.
Affect 帶有“a”是一個動詞。 它的意思是“影響”。
Effect 帶有“e”通常是名詞,意思是“某事的結果”。

effective是“有效的”,side-effect是“副作用”。

perfect [ˈpɜːrfɪkt]
defect [dɪˈfekt]
infect [ɪnˈfekt]

Your opinion will not affect my decision.
你的意見不會影響我的決定。
They want to see what the effects will be.
他們想看看會有什麼效果。

Everyone in this room has been affected by a teacher or an adult. For years, I have watched people teach. I have looked at the best and I've look at some of the worst.

在座的各位都曾經被一位老師或者一個成年人影響過。這麼多年,我都在看人們怎麼教學。我看過最好的也看過最差的。

..............................................................................................
演講稿中英對照:




A colleague said to me one time, "They don't pay me to like the kids. They pay me to teach a lesson. The kids should learn it. I should teach it. They should learn it. Case closed."

一次有個同事跟我說,「我的職責不是喜歡那些孩子們。我的職責是教書。孩子們就該去學。我管教課,他們管學習。就是這麼個理兒。」

Well, I said to her, "You know, kids don't learn from people they don't like."


然後,我就跟她說,「你知道,孩子們可不跟他們討厭的人學習。」

(Laughter) (Applause) (笑聲)(掌聲)

She said, "That's just a bunch of hooey."

她接著說,「一派胡言。」

And I said to her, "Well, your year is going to be long and arduous, dear."

然後我對她說,「那麼,親愛的,你這一年會變得十分漫長和痛苦。」

Needless to say it was. Some people think that you can either have it in you to build a relationship or you don't. I think Stephen Covey had the right idea. He said you ought to just throw in a few simple things, like seeking first to understand as opposed to being understood, simple things like apologizing. You ever thought about that? Tell a kid you're sorry, they're in shock.


事實也果真如此。有些人認為一個人或者天生可以建立一種關係或者不具有這種能力。 我認為Stephen Covey(美國教育家)是對的。 他說你只需要做一些簡單的事情,比如試著首先理解他人,而不是想要被理解,比如道歉。你想過嗎?跟一個孩子說你很對不起,他們都驚呆了。

I taught a lesson once on ratios. I'm not real good with math, but I was working on it. And I got back and looked at that teacher edition. I'd taught the whole lesson wrong. (Laughter)

我有一次講比例。 我數學不是很好,但是我當時在教數學。然後我下了課,翻看了教師用書。我完全教錯了。(笑聲)

So I came back to class the next day, and I said, "Look, guys, I need to pologize. I taught the whole lesson wrong. I'm so sorry."


所以我第二天回到班上說,「同學們,我要道歉。我昨天的課都教錯了。我非常抱歉。」

They said, "That's okay, Ms. Pierson. You were so excited, we just let you go." (Laughter) (Applause)

他們說,「沒關係,Pierson老師。你當時教得非常投入,我們就讓你繼續了。」

(笑聲)(掌聲)

I have had classes that were so low, so academically deficient that I cried. I wondered, how am I going to take this group in nine months from where they are to where they need to be? And it was difficult. It was awfully hard.How do I raise the self-esteem of a child and his academic achievement at the same time?


我曾經教過程度非常低的班級,學術素養差到我都哭了。我當時就想,我怎麼能在9個月之內把這些孩子提升到他們必須具備的水平?這真的很難,太艱難了。我怎麼能讓一個孩子重拾自信的同時他在學術上也有進步?

One year I came up with a bright idea. I told all my students, "You were chosen to be in my class because I am the best teacher and you are the best students, they put us all together so we could show everybody else how to do it."

有一年我有了一個非常好的主意。我告訴我的學生們,「你們進了我的班級,因為我是最好的老師,而你們是最好的學生,他們把我們放在一起來給其他人做個好榜樣。」

One of the students said, "Really?" (Laughter)

一個學生說,「真的嗎?」(笑聲)

I said, "Really. We have to show the other classes how to do it, so when we walk down the hall, people will notice us, so you can't make noise. You just have to strut." And I gave them a saying to say: "I am somebody. I was somebody when I came. I'll be a better somebody when I leave. I am powerful, and I am strong. I deserve the education that I get here. I have things to do, people to impress, and places to go."

我說,「當然是真的。我們要給其他班級做個榜樣,當我們走在樓道里,因為大家都會注意到我們,我們不能吵鬧。大家要昂首闊步。」我還給了他們一個口號:「我是個人物。我來的時候是個人物。我畢業的時候會變成一個更好的人物。我很有力,很強大。我值得在這裡受教育。我有很多事情要做,我要讓人們記住我,我要去很多地方。」

And they said, "Yeah!"

然後他們說:「是啊!」

You say it long enough, it starts to be a part of you.

如果你長時間的這麼說,它就會開始變成事實。

And so


(Applause) I gave a quiz, 20 questions. A student missed 18. I put a "+2" on his

paper and a big smiley face.

所以-(掌聲)我做了一個小測驗,20道題。一個孩子錯了18道。我在他了卷子上寫了個「+2」和一個大的笑臉。

He said, "Ms. Pierson, is this an F?"

他說,「Pierson老師,這是不及格嗎?」

I said, "Yes."

我說,「是的。」

He said, "Then why'd you put a smiley face?"

他接著說,「那你為什麼給我一個笑臉?」

I said, "Because you're on a roll. You got two right. You didn't miss them all." I said, "And when we review this, won't you do better?"

我說,「因為你正漸入佳境。你沒有全錯,還對了兩個。」我說,「我們複習這些題的時候,難道你不會做得更好嗎?」

He said, "Yes, ma'am, I can do better."

他說,「是的,老師。我可以做得更好。」

You see, "-18" sucks all the life out of you. "+2" said, "I ain't all bad." (Laughter) (Applause)

大家看,「-18」讓人感覺想死。「+2」意味著,「我沒有那麼糟。」 (笑聲)(掌聲)

For years I watched my mother take the time at recess to review, go on home visits in the afternoon, buy combs and brushes and peanut butter and crackers to put in her desk drawer for kids that needed to eat, and a washcloth and some soap for the kids who didn't smell so good. See, it's hard to teach kids who stink. And kids can be cruel. And so she kept those things in her desk, and years later, after she retired, I watched some of those same kids come through and say to her, "You know, Ms. Walker, you made a difference in my life. You made it work for me. You made me feel like I was somebody, when I knew, at the bottom, I wasn't. And I want you to just see what I've become."

好多年了,我看著我媽媽利用課間休息時間批改作業,下午去家訪,買梳子、刷子、花生醬和餅乾,把他們放在自己的抽屜里給那些餓了的孩子們吃,還有為那些髒孩子們準備了一條毛巾和一些肥皂。看吧,教那些發臭的孩子是困難的一件事。而孩子們有時也是比較「殘忍」的。所以她把這些東西都放在她的抽屜里,然後過了很多年,在她退休以後,我看到一些當年的孩子們回來告訴她,「您知道,Walker老師,您改變了我的生活。您讓它有了意義。您讓我覺得我是個人物, 雖說在心底我知道我不是。我就是想讓您看看,現在成為了個什麼樣的人」

And when my mama died two years ago at 92, there were so many former students at her funeral, it brought tears to my eyes, not because she was gone, but because she left a legacy of relationships that could never disappear.

當我媽媽兩年前以92歲高齡去世的時候,有好多好多的以前的學生來參加了她的葬禮,我哭了,不是因為她去世了,而是因為她留下了這些永遠不會消失的各種聯繫。

Can we stand to have more relationships? Absolutely. Will you like all your children? Of course not. And you know your toughest kids are never absent. (Laughter) Never. You won't like them all, and the tough ones show up for a reason. It's the connection. It's the relationships. And while you won't like them all, the key is, they can never, ever know it. So teachers become great actors and great actresses, and we come to work when we don't feel like it, and we're listening to policy that doesn't make sense, and we teach anyway. We teach anyway, because that's what we do.

我們真的可以有更多的關係嗎?當然可以。你會喜歡你所有的學生嗎?當然不。你也知道那些最難搞的孩子總是很難甩掉。(笑聲)永遠不會。你不會喜歡每一個人,然而難搞的那幾個的出現也是有理由的。這就是聯繫,是關係。當你不會喜歡他們每一個人的時候,關鍵就是他們永遠也不會知道這一點。所以老師們變成偉大的演員,我們得強迫自己工作,我們得聽從那些毫無道理的政策,我們還得上課。我們還得上課,因為這是我們的責任。

Teaching and learning should bring joy. How powerful would our world be if we had kids who were not afraid to take risks, who were not afraid to think, and who had a champion? Every child deserves a champion, an adult who will never give up on them, who understands the power of connection, andinsists that they become the best that they can possibly be.

教學和學習應該是讓人愉快的事情。我們的世界會變得多麼的強大如果我們的孩子都不害怕接受挑戰,不害怕思考,都贏得了一個冠軍?每個孩子都可以成為一個冠軍,一個成年人要永遠不放棄他們,懂得聯繫的強大力量, 堅信他們可以變成那個最好的自己。[ tronest註:每個孩子都需要一個堅定的支持者/強大的後盾支持,一個永不放棄他們的成年人,一個懂得情感聯絡重要性的成年人,一個堅信他們可以成為最好的自己的成年人。(成為這樣一個成年人,我們教育者責無旁貸)]

Is this job tough? You betcha. Oh God, you betcha. But it is not impossible. We can do this. We're educators. We're born to make a difference.

這個職業很艱巨不?當然。上帝,毫無疑問。但是這不是不可能的。我們可以的,因為我們是教育家。我們天生就是重塑他人的。

Thank you so much.

非常感謝大家。
.............................................................................................. 
I have spent my entire life either at the schoolhouse, on the way to the schoolhouse, or talking bout what happens in the schoolhouse. Both my parents were educators, my maternal grandparents were educators, and for the past 40 years I've done the same thing. And so, needless to say, over those years I've had a chance to look at education reform from a lot of perspectives. Some of those reforms have been good. Some of them have been not so good. And we know why kids drop out. We know why kids don't learn. It's either poverty, low attendance, negative peer influences. We know why. But one of the things that we never discuss or we rarely discuss is the value and importance of human connection, relationships.
James Comer says that no significant learning can occur without a significant relationship. George Washington Carver says all learning is understanding relationships. Everyone in this room has been affected by a teacher or an adult. For years, I have watched people teach. I have looked at the best and I've look at some of the worst.
A colleague said to me one time, "They don't pay me to like the kids. They pay me to teach a lesson. The kids should learn it. I should teach it. They should learn it. Case closed."
Well, I said to her, "You know, kids don't learn from people they don't like."

(Laughter) (Applause) (笑聲)(掌聲)

She said, "That's just a bunch of hooey."

Needless to say it was. Some people think that you can either have it in you to build a relationship or you don't. I think Stephen Covey had the right idea. He said you ought to just throw in a few simple things, like seeking first to understand as opposed to being understood, simple things like apologizing. You ever thought about that? Tell a kid you're sorry, they're in shock.

I taught a lesson once on ratios. I'm not real good with math, but I was working on it. And I got back and looked at that teacher edition. I'd taught the whole lesson wrong. (Laughter)

So I came back to class the next day, and I said, "Look, guys, I need to pologize. I taught the whole lesson wrong. I'm so sorry."

They said, "That's okay, Ms. Pierson. You were so excited, we just let you go." (Laughter) (Applause)

I have had classes that were so low, so academically deficient that I cried. I wondered, how am I going to take this group in nine months from where they are to where they need to be? And it was difficult. It was awfully hard.How do I raise the self-esteem of a child and his academic achievement at the same time?

One year I came up with a bright idea. I told all my students, "You were chosen to be in my class because I am the best teacher and you are the best students, they put us all together so we could show everybody else how to do it."

One of the students said, "Really?" (Laughter)

I said, "Really. We have to show the other classes how to do it, so when we walk down the hall, people will notice us, so you can't make noise. You just have to strut." And I gave them a saying to say: "I am somebody. I was somebody when I came. I'll be a better somebody when I leave. I am powerful, and I am strong. I deserve the education that I get here. I have things to do, people to impress, and places to go."

And they said, "Yeah!"

You say it long enough, it starts to be a part of you.

And so

(Applause) I gave a quiz, 20 questions. A student missed 18. I put a "+2" on his

paper and a big smiley face.

He said, "Ms. Pierson, is this an F?"

I said, "Yes."

He said, "Then why'd you put a smiley face?"

I said, "Because you're on a roll. You got two right. You didn't miss them all." I said, "And when we review this, won't you do better?"

He said, "Yes, ma'am, I can do better."

You see, "-18" sucks all the life out of you. "+2" said, "I ain't all bad." (Laughter) (Applause)

For years I watched my mother take the time at recess to review, go on home visits in the afternoon, buy combs and brushes and peanut butter and crackers to put in her desk drawer for kids that needed to eat, and a washcloth and some soap for the kids who didn't smell so good. See, it's hard to teach kids who stink. And kids can be cruel. And so she kept those things in her desk, and years later, after she retired, I watched some of those same kids come through and say to her, "You know, Ms. Walker, you made a difference in my life. You made it work for me. You made me feel like I was somebody, when I knew, at the bottom, I wasn't. And I want you to just see what I've become."

And when my mama died two years ago at 92, there were so many former students at her funeral, it brought tears to my eyes, not because she was gone, but because she left a legacy of relationships that could never disappear.

Can we stand to have more relationships? Absolutely. Will you like all your children? Of course not. And you know your toughest kids are never absent. (Laughter) Never. You won't like them all, and the tough ones show up for a reason. It's the connection. It's the relationships. And while you won't like them all, the key is, they can never, ever know it. So teachers become great actors and great actresses, and we come to work when we don't feel like it, and we're listening to policy that doesn't make sense, and we teach anyway. We teach anyway, because that's what we do.

Teaching and learning should bring joy. How powerful would our world be if we had kids who were not afraid to take risks, who were not afraid to think, and who had a champion? Every child deserves a champion, an adult who will never give up on them, who understands the power of connection, andinsists that they become the best that they can possibly be.

Is this job tough? You betcha. Oh God, you betcha. But it is not impossible. We can do this. We're educators. We're born to make a difference.

Thank you so much.









......................................................................................................

字根(root)

綴 - 縫補;連結;裝飾之義。

詞綴(affix)

前綴(prefix)

後綴(suffix)

詞根和詞綴叫構詞語素。也就是說,單詞一般由三部分組成:詞根、前綴和後綴。詞根決定單詞意思,前綴改變單詞詞義,後綴決定單詞詞性。

詞類(英語:part of speech、word class),或稱詞性,詞類(英語:part of speech、word class),或稱詞性,英文詞性八大詞類:

1. 名詞 (Noun):做主詞,(動詞與介係詞的)受詞補語。

2. 代名詞 (Pronoun):如同名詞,做主詞,受詞,補語。

3. 動詞 (Verb):表動作,存在,狀態。

4. 連接詞 (Conjunction):連接字,片語,子句。

5. 形容詞 (Adjective):(1) 修飾名詞與代名詞 (2)做補語。

6. 感嘆詞 (Interjetion):表喜、怒、哀、樂等情緒之詞。

7. 副詞 (Adverb):修飾動詞,形容詞,其他副詞。

8. 介系詞 (Preposition):放在名詞或代名詞之前,用來表示它後面的「受詞」與句子中其他字之間的關係。這種關係通常跟位置、方向、移動、或時間有關。


【和「拉」有關的字根 - tract=to draw】


tractor [ˈtræktər] 拖拉機;牽引器

a motor vehicle with large back wheels and thick tyres, used on farms for pulling machinery

具有大後輪和厚輪胎的機動車,用於農場牽引機械

【example sentence】

We had to use a tractor to pull the car out of the mud.

我們不得不用拖拉機把車子從泥淖裡拉出來。

The tractor is at work in the field now.

拖拉機正在田裡工作。


attract [əˈtrækt] v. 吸引

Attract means to pull someone or something towards them.

"Attract" 指將某人或某物拉向他們.

【example sentence】

These flowers are brightly coloured in order to attract butterflies.

這些花朵都有著鮮艷的色彩以便能夠吸引蝴蝶。

The circus is attracting huge crowds.

馬戲團吸引了大批的觀眾。


後綴決定單詞詞性

動詞 attract + 表形容詞的後綴 ive

attractive [əˈtræktɪv] adj. 有吸引的;有魅力的

Marilyn Monroe was an attractive girl.

瑪麗蓮夢露是一個有魅力的女孩。

後綴決定單詞詞性

動詞 attract + 表名詞的後綴 ion

attraction [əˈtrækʃn] n. 吸引力

tourist attraction 旅遊景點

distract [dɪˈstrækt] v. 使分心;分散(注意力)

Distract means prevent (someone) from concentrating on something.

Distract 意味著阻礙(某人)專注於某事。

Don't allow noise to distract you from your work.

不要讓噪音分散您的工作注意力。

Distract means divert (attention) from something.

Distract 意味著轉移對某事的注意力。

It was another attempt to distract attention from the truth.

這是又一次試圖轉移人們對真相的注意力。

動詞 distract 的過去分詞轉化為形容詞

distracted [dɪˈstræktɪd] adj. 思想不集中的;心煩意亂的

distracted walking 走路分心的


distraction [dɪˈstrækʃn] n. 心煩意亂;苦惱無聊

His lessons bore me to distraction.

聽他講課我打不起精神來。










......................................................................................................

五分鐘英語練習- 022

五分鐘英語練習 (022)
"Five minutes English practice" (022)

Listen & Practice - 聆聽和練習

Let’s get started.

.............................................................................................. 
drop out [drɑːp aʊt]:退出;輟學
He dropped out of the race after two laps.在跑了兩圈後他退出了比賽。You'd be crazy to drop out.你要退學真是發瘋了。
poverty [ˈpɑːvərti]
peer [pɪr]
當名詞用時:peer=equal
當動詞用時:peer=look closely
She enjoys the respect of her peers.
她受到同儕的尊敬。
He peered closely at the photograph.
他聚精會神地端詳著相片。
We know why. But one of the things that we never discuss or we rarely discuss is the value and importance of human connection, relationships.

我們知道為什麼。但是我們從未討論或者極少討論的是人和人之間的那種[情感]聯繫的價值和重要性,這就是「關係」。

Some of those reforms have been good. Some of them have been not so good. 
一些改革是有成效的。而另一些卻收效甚微。
And we know why kids drop out. 
我們知道孩子們為什麼輟學。
We know why kids don't learn. 
我們知道孩子們為什麼學不下去。
It's either poverty, low attendance, negative peer influences.
原因無非是貧窮,低出席率,同齡人的壞影響。

significant [sɪɡˈnɪfɪkənt] 
字根 sign=mark
字尾 ify(v) ificant(adj) = 致使...的
significant = 致使要做記號的=重要的;顯著的

比起important, significant更多地強調對未來的影響。
having an important effect or influence, especially on what will happen in the future. 
具有重要的效果或影響,尤其是對未來將要發生的事情。

There has been a significant increase in the number of women students in recent years.
近年來,女學生的人數有了顯著增加。

James Comer says that no significant learning can occur without a significant relationship. George Washington Carver says all learning is understanding relationships. 

Everyone in this room has been affected by a teacher or an adult. For years, I have watched people teach. I have looked at the best and I've look at some of the worst.


James Comer (美國著名兒童精神科醫師)說過,沒有強有力的聯繫,學習就不會有顯著的進步。George Washington Carver(美國著名教育學家)說過,學習就是理解各種關係。在座的各位都曾經被一位老師或者一個成年人影響過。這麼多年,我都在看人們怎麼教學。我看過最好的也看過最差的。

..............................................................................................
演講稿中英對照:




A colleague said to me one time, "They don't pay me to like the kids. They pay me to teach a lesson. The kids should learn it. I should teach it. They should learn it. Case closed."

一次有個同事跟我說,「我的職責不是喜歡那些孩子們。我的職責是教書。孩子們就該去學。我管教課,他們管學習。就是這麼個理兒。」

Well, I said to her, "You know, kids don't learn from people they don't like."


然後,我就跟她說,「你知道,孩子們可不跟他們討厭的人學習。」

(Laughter) (Applause) (笑聲)(掌聲)

She said, "That's just a bunch of hooey."

她接著說,「一派胡言。」

And I said to her, "Well, your year is going to be long and arduous, dear."

然後我對她說,「那麼,親愛的,你這一年會變得十分漫長和痛苦。」

Needless to say it was. Some people think that you can either have it in you to build a relationship or you don't. I think Stephen Covey had the right idea. He said you ought to just throw in a few simple things, like seeking first to understand as opposed to being understood, simple things like apologizing. You ever thought about that? Tell a kid you're sorry, they're in shock.


事實也果真如此。有些人認為一個人或者天生可以建立一種關係或者不具有這種能力。 我認為Stephen Covey(美國教育家)是對的。 他說你只需要做一些簡單的事情,比如試著首先理解他人,而不是想要被理解,比如道歉。你想過嗎?跟一個孩子說你很對不起,他們都驚呆了。

I taught a lesson once on ratios. I'm not real good with math, but I was working on it. And I got back and looked at that teacher edition. I'd taught the whole lesson wrong. (Laughter)

我有一次講比例。 我數學不是很好,但是我當時在教數學。然後我下了課,翻看了教師用書。我完全教錯了。(笑聲)

So I came back to class the next day, and I said, "Look, guys, I need to pologize. I taught the whole lesson wrong. I'm so sorry."


所以我第二天回到班上說,「同學們,我要道歉。我昨天的課都教錯了。我非常抱歉。」

They said, "That's okay, Ms. Pierson. You were so excited, we just let you go." (Laughter) (Applause)

他們說,「沒關係,Pierson老師。你當時教得非常投入,我們就讓你繼續了。」

(笑聲)(掌聲)

I have had classes that were so low, so academically deficient that I cried. I wondered, how am I going to take this group in nine months from where they are to where they need to be? And it was difficult. It was awfully hard.How do I raise the self-esteem of a child and his academic achievement at the same time?


我曾經教過程度非常低的班級,學術素養差到我都哭了。我當時就想,我怎麼能在9個月之內把這些孩子提升到他們必須具備的水平?這真的很難,太艱難了。我怎麼能讓一個孩子重拾自信的同時他在學術上也有進步?

One year I came up with a bright idea. I told all my students, "You were chosen to be in my class because I am the best teacher and you are the best students, they put us all together so we could show everybody else how to do it."

有一年我有了一個非常好的主意。我告訴我的學生們,「你們進了我的班級,因為我是最好的老師,而你們是最好的學生,他們把我們放在一起來給其他人做個好榜樣。」

One of the students said, "Really?" (Laughter)

一個學生說,「真的嗎?」(笑聲)

I said, "Really. We have to show the other classes how to do it, so when we walk down the hall, people will notice us, so you can't make noise. You just have to strut." And I gave them a saying to say: "I am somebody. I was somebody when I came. I'll be a better somebody when I leave. I am powerful, and I am strong. I deserve the education that I get here. I have things to do, people to impress, and places to go."

我說,「當然是真的。我們要給其他班級做個榜樣,當我們走在樓道里,因為大家都會注意到我們,我們不能吵鬧。大家要昂首闊步。」我還給了他們一個口號:「我是個人物。我來的時候是個人物。我畢業的時候會變成一個更好的人物。我很有力,很強大。我值得在這裡受教育。我有很多事情要做,我要讓人們記住我,我要去很多地方。」

And they said, "Yeah!"

然後他們說:「是啊!」

You say it long enough, it starts to be a part of you.

如果你長時間的這麼說,它就會開始變成事實。

And so


(Applause) I gave a quiz, 20 questions. A student missed 18. I put a "+2" on his

paper and a big smiley face.

所以-(掌聲)我做了一個小測驗,20道題。一個孩子錯了18道。我在他了卷子上寫了個「+2」和一個大的笑臉。

He said, "Ms. Pierson, is this an F?"

他說,「Pierson老師,這是不及格嗎?」

I said, "Yes."

我說,「是的。」

He said, "Then why'd you put a smiley face?"

他接著說,「那你為什麼給我一個笑臉?」

I said, "Because you're on a roll. You got two right. You didn't miss them all." I said, "And when we review this, won't you do better?"

我說,「因為你正漸入佳境。你沒有全錯,還對了兩個。」我說,「我們複習這些題的時候,難道你不會做得更好嗎?」

He said, "Yes, ma'am, I can do better."

他說,「是的,老師。我可以做得更好。」

You see, "-18" sucks all the life out of you. "+2" said, "I ain't all bad." (Laughter) (Applause)

大家看,「-18」讓人感覺想死。「+2」意味著,「我沒有那麼糟。」 (笑聲)(掌聲)

For years I watched my mother take the time at recess to review, go on home visits in the afternoon, buy combs and brushes and peanut butter and crackers to put in her desk drawer for kids that needed to eat, and a washcloth and some soap for the kids who didn't smell so good. See, it's hard to teach kids who stink. And kids can be cruel. And so she kept those things in her desk, and years later, after she retired, I watched some of those same kids come through and say to her, "You know, Ms. Walker, you made a difference in my life. You made it work for me. You made me feel like I was somebody, when I knew, at the bottom, I wasn't. And I want you to just see what I've become."

好多年了,我看著我媽媽利用課間休息時間批改作業,下午去家訪,買梳子、刷子、花生醬和餅乾,把他們放在自己的抽屜里給那些餓了的孩子們吃,還有為那些髒孩子們準備了一條毛巾和一些肥皂。看吧,教那些發臭的孩子是困難的一件事。而孩子們有時也是比較「殘忍」的。所以她把這些東西都放在她的抽屜里,然後過了很多年,在她退休以後,我看到一些當年的孩子們回來告訴她,「您知道,Walker老師,您改變了我的生活。您讓它有了意義。您讓我覺得我是個人物, 雖說在心底我知道我不是。我就是想讓您看看,現在成為了個什麼樣的人」

And when my mama died two years ago at 92, there were so many former students at her funeral, it brought tears to my eyes, not because she was gone, but because she left a legacy of relationships that could never disappear.

當我媽媽兩年前以92歲高齡去世的時候,有好多好多的以前的學生來參加了她的葬禮,我哭了,不是因為她去世了,而是因為她留下了這些永遠不會消失的各種聯繫。

Can we stand to have more relationships? Absolutely. Will you like all your children? Of course not. And you know your toughest kids are never absent. (Laughter) Never. You won't like them all, and the tough ones show up for a reason. It's the connection. It's the relationships. And while you won't like them all, the key is, they can never, ever know it. So teachers become great actors and great actresses, and we come to work when we don't feel like it, and we're listening to policy that doesn't make sense, and we teach anyway. We teach anyway, because that's what we do.

我們真的可以有更多的關係嗎?當然可以。你會喜歡你所有的學生嗎?當然不。你也知道那些最難搞的孩子總是很難甩掉。(笑聲)永遠不會。你不會喜歡每一個人,然而難搞的那幾個的出現也是有理由的。這就是聯繫,是關係。當你不會喜歡他們每一個人的時候,關鍵就是他們永遠也不會知道這一點。所以老師們變成偉大的演員,我們得強迫自己工作,我們得聽從那些毫無道理的政策,我們還得上課。我們還得上課,因為這是我們的責任。

Teaching and learning should bring joy. How powerful would our world be if we had kids who were not afraid to take risks, who were not afraid to think, and who had a champion? Every child deserves a champion, an adult who will never give up on them, who understands the power of connection, andinsists that they become the best that they can possibly be.

教學和學習應該是讓人愉快的事情。我們的世界會變得多麼的強大如果我們的孩子都不害怕接受挑戰,不害怕思考,都贏得了一個冠軍?每個孩子都可以成為一個冠軍,一個成年人要永遠不放棄他們,懂得聯繫的強大力量, 堅信他們可以變成那個最好的自己。[ tronest註:每個孩子都需要一個堅定的支持者/強大的後盾支持,一個永不放棄他們的成年人,一個懂得情感聯絡重要性的成年人,一個堅信他們可以成為最好的自己的成年人。(成為這樣一個成年人,我們教育者責無旁貸)]

Is this job tough? You betcha. Oh God, you betcha. But it is not impossible. We can do this. We're educators. We're born to make a difference.

這個職業很艱巨不?當然。上帝,毫無疑問。但是這不是不可能的。我們可以的,因為我們是教育家。我們天生就是重塑他人的。

Thank you so much.

非常感謝大家。
.............................................................................................. 
I have spent my entire life either at the schoolhouse, on the way to the schoolhouse, or talking bout what happens in the schoolhouse. Both my parents were educators, my maternal grandparents were educators, and for the past 40 years I've done the same thing. And so, needless to say, over those years I've had a chance to look at education reform from a lot of perspectives. Some of those reforms have been good. Some of them have been not so good. And we know why kids drop out. We know why kids don't learn. It's either poverty, low attendance, negative peer influences. We know why. But one of the things that we never discuss or we rarely discuss is the value and importance of human connection, relationships.
James Comer says that no significant learning can occur without a significant relationship. George Washington Carver says all learning is understanding relationships. Everyone in this room has been affected by a teacher or an adult. For years, I have watched people teach. I have looked at the best and I've look at some of the worst.
A colleague said to me one time, "They don't pay me to like the kids. They pay me to teach a lesson. The kids should learn it. I should teach it. They should learn it. Case closed."
Well, I said to her, "You know, kids don't learn from people they don't like."

(Laughter) (Applause) (笑聲)(掌聲)

She said, "That's just a bunch of hooey."

Needless to say it was. Some people think that you can either have it in you to build a relationship or you don't. I think Stephen Covey had the right idea. He said you ought to just throw in a few simple things, like seeking first to understand as opposed to being understood, simple things like apologizing. You ever thought about that? Tell a kid you're sorry, they're in shock.

I taught a lesson once on ratios. I'm not real good with math, but I was working on it. And I got back and looked at that teacher edition. I'd taught the whole lesson wrong. (Laughter)

So I came back to class the next day, and I said, "Look, guys, I need to pologize. I taught the whole lesson wrong. I'm so sorry."

They said, "That's okay, Ms. Pierson. You were so excited, we just let you go." (Laughter) (Applause)

I have had classes that were so low, so academically deficient that I cried. I wondered, how am I going to take this group in nine months from where they are to where they need to be? And it was difficult. It was awfully hard.How do I raise the self-esteem of a child and his academic achievement at the same time?

One year I came up with a bright idea. I told all my students, "You were chosen to be in my class because I am the best teacher and you are the best students, they put us all together so we could show everybody else how to do it."

One of the students said, "Really?" (Laughter)

I said, "Really. We have to show the other classes how to do it, so when we walk down the hall, people will notice us, so you can't make noise. You just have to strut." And I gave them a saying to say: "I am somebody. I was somebody when I came. I'll be a better somebody when I leave. I am powerful, and I am strong. I deserve the education that I get here. I have things to do, people to impress, and places to go."

And they said, "Yeah!"

You say it long enough, it starts to be a part of you.

And so

(Applause) I gave a quiz, 20 questions. A student missed 18. I put a "+2" on his

paper and a big smiley face.

He said, "Ms. Pierson, is this an F?"

I said, "Yes."

He said, "Then why'd you put a smiley face?"

I said, "Because you're on a roll. You got two right. You didn't miss them all." I said, "And when we review this, won't you do better?"

He said, "Yes, ma'am, I can do better."

You see, "-18" sucks all the life out of you. "+2" said, "I ain't all bad." (Laughter) (Applause)

For years I watched my mother take the time at recess to review, go on home visits in the afternoon, buy combs and brushes and peanut butter and crackers to put in her desk drawer for kids that needed to eat, and a washcloth and some soap for the kids who didn't smell so good. See, it's hard to teach kids who stink. And kids can be cruel. And so she kept those things in her desk, and years later, after she retired, I watched some of those same kids come through and say to her, "You know, Ms. Walker, you made a difference in my life. You made it work for me. You made me feel like I was somebody, when I knew, at the bottom, I wasn't. And I want you to just see what I've become."

And when my mama died two years ago at 92, there were so many former students at her funeral, it brought tears to my eyes, not because she was gone, but because she left a legacy of relationships that could never disappear.

Can we stand to have more relationships? Absolutely. Will you like all your children? Of course not. And you know your toughest kids are never absent. (Laughter) Never. You won't like them all, and the tough ones show up for a reason. It's the connection. It's the relationships. And while you won't like them all, the key is, they can never, ever know it. So teachers become great actors and great actresses, and we come to work when we don't feel like it, and we're listening to policy that doesn't make sense, and we teach anyway. We teach anyway, because that's what we do.

Teaching and learning should bring joy. How powerful would our world be if we had kids who were not afraid to take risks, who were not afraid to think, and who had a champion? Every child deserves a champion, an adult who will never give up on them, who understands the power of connection, andinsists that they become the best that they can possibly be.

Is this job tough? You betcha. Oh God, you betcha. But it is not impossible. We can do this. We're educators. We're born to make a difference.

Thank you so much.