(Here’s the result of following Forrester’s advice. I’m not sure if I pulled it off well, so you be judge.)
It all started with a deceptively simple question, this passion for writing.
“Why do you want to be a teacher?” our professor in Principles of Teaching asked us at the first meeting of the class. We were turn in the essay, she told us, by next meeting. It meant, of course, that we only had one day to write what we think was the reason why we enrolled in Education.
The question got me thinking. Indeed, what is it that compelled me to want to be a teacher? For a while I thought of many reasons. Money? Definitely not. Fame? Only few teachers became famous. Some, who lived an epic life, died unsung. Prestige? Other professions such as medicine and law are far more prestigious than teaching.
After mulling over the question, I was able to fashion out a fairly decent essay. As I was about to read it in front of my classmates, I felt anxious. Would they like it? Would I be able to deliver it without stammering? But my anxieties turned out to be worse than the result. After I read my work, my classmates applauded me. My professor thought it was inspiring. “If Arvin’s essay did not inspire you,” she said, “I don’t know what will.”
However faint that praise was, an idea struck me. If this essay were inspiring, I thought, why not send it to Youngblood, a section in the Philippine Daily Inquirer where young people can send their essays. If the essay’s good enough, it will be published. I’ve been meaning to send to Youngblood, but never did attempt to do so. Or was it because I didn’t have some sensible things to say? But now, bolstered by my professor’s comment, I’ve finally mustered the courage to try to send an essay, hoping that it would inspire others the way it inspired my classmates. read more…
I caught up Finding Forrester at TV5 many days ago. I think it’s a must-see for a novice writer and even for those who have been writing for so long a time but whose well of creativity has now dried up. For it’s replete with lines on how to go about writing, and indeed living. But the one line that has stuck in my mind is that which William Forrester (Sean Connery) told to Jamal Wallace (Rob Brown):
No thinking – that comes later. You must write your first draft with your heart. You rewrite with your head. The first key to writing is… to write, not to think!
I don’t know how many writers have tried it and came out successful. But since I’m a sucker for writing tips and wouldn’t let one pass without trying it, I tried Forrester’s advice. I tried to write the first draft with my heart; the second draft with my head.
The result: a 2,000 plus-word essay chronicling my first foray into writing and blogging. Then on the second draft, I cut it down to about 1,600 words.
I will publish it soon. Maybe tomorrow, or the day after tomorrow.
To stoop when a bullet passes by is not cowardice. It is worse to defy it, only to fall and never to rise again. —Pilosopo Tasio.
If you don’t know Pilosopo Tasio, go read one of Rizal’s novels, Noli Me Tangere.
“Every book you pick up has its own lesson or lessons,” wrote Stephen King in On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft, “and quite often the bad books have more to teach than the good ones.”
Indeed, reading bad prose is sometimes better than reading a good one—it boosts your confidence and also makes you feel superior. That’s what I felt when some months back I was reading the school paper of a nursing college in Davao City.
I’ve really made the right choice when I picked up that paper. I know now how not to write well.
The nearest thing to a law of success is that if you are committed, you will succeed. The strength of commitment can even be quantified—in terms of the time and effort you allocate to your goals, not in sporadic burst, but in a steady state. —Blas Ople, The Work Ethic and the Law of Success
Ok, allow me to make one more post before I’ll go.
Starting today until Saturday, I’ll be leaving the blogosphere to attend the annual Student Assistant Scholars Organization (SASO) retreat at the Benedictine Retreat House, Ulas, Davao City.
The objectives of this retreat are (1) “to strengthen our relationship with God and with one another, and (2) to recharge for us to become more effective in our workplace.”
To me, however, there is one more objective: To catch up some sleep and live like a señorito even just for three days.
When I read Dan Brown’s novels, I thought that the man was so intelligent that he could fashion out anagrams. But Dan Brown is actually no genius, and everyone can do what Dan Brown did. Anagram Genius makes that possible. I tried entering it with names whose anagrams I want to see. See the results:
Arvin Antonio Villarosa Ortiz – “Razor as innovational vitriol”
Gloria Macapagal Arroyo – “I am a crap or a loyal aggro.” (How genius is this Anagram Genius!)
Joseph Ejercito Estrada – “Reject hot jeopardise as.” (You got it right.)
Bayani Fernando - “Annoy deaf brain.”
Mikey Arroyo – “Okay! Oi! Merry.”
Loren Legarda – “Old, rare angel.”
Richard Gordon – “Grr! Rancid hood.”
Noynoy Aquino – “Annoy IQ on you.”
Mar Roxas – “Marx or as.”
Update: Merceditas Gutierrez - “Cauterize direst germ.” (That’s too harsh.)
Are you a Values Education teacher? Are you a Values Education teacher whose overarching concern is to instill values among the students? Are you a Values Education teacher whose overarching concern is to instill values among the students, but is hard put to do so?
If you’re all of the above, don’t worry. Take heart. There are many teaching strategies you can use that could aid you in accomplishing your task. Why not use film viewing? Not only will it save your time, it will also help your students absorb values without them knowing it.
The upside of it is that films, especially animated films, teach lessons so graphically, entertainingly, beautifully that they don’t appear like lessons at all. Which is what students like because, in truth, they prefer watching entertaining films to listening to a nagging teacher. Which is also what teachers like because, in truth, teachers will go hammer and tongs to avoid making lesson plans and visual aids.
As for what kind of films you will use, pick among these tried and tested ones:
- The Lion King
- A Bug’s Life
- Ice Age
- Spirit
- Mulan
- Prince of Egypt
- Joseph, King of Dreams
After showing each film, be sure to pose the following guide questions:
- Which among the scenes has caught your attention? Why?
- What particular dialogue you find most meaningful for you? Why?
- Who among the characters you like most? Why?
- What values/lessons can you gain from the story?
The corner behind the Circulation section of the HCDC-H.S. Library is one place that’s frequented by students. Their reason, I guess, is not so much to look for some good reads as it is to hide from the watchful eyes of the librarian and the student assistants.
One dull afternoon, I went there not to scold some noisy students, but to look for a book that could while my time away.
Tom Wolfe’s “Bonfire of the Vanities” is there as well as such literary gems as Gertrude Stein’s “Lucy Church Amiably,” Albert Camus’ “La Peste” (The Plague), and Graham Greene’s “The Captain and the Enemy.”
After going over one book after another, I settled for “The Grand Complication” by Allen Kurzweil.
Is my taste so bad that I bypassed Camus or Greene or Stein for Kurzweil? read more…
