comment tu sais

How do y0u know? what a simple little question, yet with it comes a great deal of knowledge about how the questioned thinks. We have begun reading comprehension and so it is necessary to demand of the student who gives an answer that he or she also provide an explanation. After all, if I simply say "give two words that describe Kephna" after we have read a short passage, the words will vary from quotation of one word or a sentence to a great deluge of English cacophony. But once the students realized that I demanded proof of their answers I began only to hear the incessant murmur of those who never participate. It has been a rather good week. I think that the students were shocked at the nadir to which their grades had fallen and decided to give more than their normal percentage of care to the tasks at hand. I was able, as a result of this newfound, and shortly lived, focus to teach the great skill of reading critically. Although it is actually not that critical. We read "I helped my mother when I got home from school and then I did my homework." What is one word to describe Acha, the man to whom the first person personal pronoun refers? Well, on the first day I heard that heis "home from school" he "did her homework" and other such. The next day, after patient teasing out, I began to hear "he is travailleuse" and then I forced the student to actually use the English "he is hardworking" Excellent. And suddenly we were off. "he is helpful, kind, generous" And with the rest of the story explaining that he becomes a doctor I also heard that he is smart and famous and handsome. This last came because their is a picture in the book--although I rather disagree for the fellow is dour faced and shifty-eyed. I hope that we can continue this great advanced study on how we know--although if I am too successful I shall soon be hearing the following dialogue:

Me: "How do you know?

Student: "How can I know when what I do know is that I know nothing."

now there is a pleasant fear to have.

My ma sent me a card and I got it yesterday, the seventh of October. It was sent on September 14th, so that will give you a nice idea of the amount of time letters take. It cost ninety-eight cents to send and provided a great deal of entertainment at the dinner table for me, Mia, and Phil. We go out every Friday to eat and for me to tell all the trials and tribulations and small feats of mastery of my week. The card was particularly nice because it contained a few cut-out comic strips from the Argus Leader including an Agnes in the spirit of Calvin and Hobbes wherein the young child says "Hello, Miss Beckerich...I will study so hard this year that my skull might split from the influx and retention of so much smartness! When and if this happens you could find me dead in a pool of blood, brain meat and fun facts...don't blame yourself for the fiasco."

The comics were tucked behind a postcard of a skiing family in the snow. Wow, snow, that is something I haven't seen for a long time and won't see for a long time.

Should you, dear reader, also like to receive a shout-out in this blog you can elicit it through sending mail to:

Christian Lehmann

BP 111

Ngaoundere

Cameroon

West Africa

and then I will tell everyone about the comics that are sent.

I put together another exam today. This one is very very serious as it is going to actually affect the students' grades. You can try it too:

Name:________________

Class:_________________

Part I: Reading Comprehension. 10 Points

Read the following passage and then answer the questions in complete sentences.

Kepha’s grandmother brought him up and taught him to read and to write. Kepha did well in school, and he won a scholarship to study in France. When he got to France, he was scared because everything was so different. He felt clumsy and was very unhappy. He missed his family. Soon he overcame his fear and made many friends. He began to write stories and poems about his life in Douala. They were very popular, many people read them, and they made Kepha famous. One day he got a phone call from his sister. She said that his grandmother was sick. Kepha returned home to take care of his grandmother.

1) Who brought up Kepha?

2) Why was Kepha scared in France?

3) What two nouns do the underlined pronouns replace?

4) Why did Kepha return home to Douala?

5) What did Kepha do in France that made him famous?

Part II. Grammar. 5 points

Look at the picture and then answer the questions with the correct preposition.

the picture is Van Gogh's "Bedroom at Arles"

1) The chair is _______ the door. [in front of, on, under]

2) The desk is _______ the window. [under, above, behind]

3) The mirror is ________ the towel and the window [under, in front of, between]

4) The bed is _________ the photographs. [under, between, behind]

5) The towel is ________ the wall. [on, next to, above].

Part III. Vocabulary. 5 Points.

Translate the following words.

le poulet:____________________ boire:____________________

le pain:____________________ porter:_______________________

les haricots:____________________ heureux:_____________________

l’œuf:____________________ une chemise:__________________

le demain:____________________ un costume:___________________

And on a last note, I was looking through old examinations that the government sends out to test mastery of English. Here is one section, and it is rather worrisome.

Replace the italicized word(s) with a synonym from the list of words.

1) We did not have to insist much before she agreed. (pressure)

2) The error could be caused by a number of facts. (due to)

3) The incidence of rape goes up in this country every year. (increases)

4) Women do not know what they desire until they are coerced. (wish for)

you can draw your own conclusions from this, I trust.

Government elections tomorrow; do you all have your voting cards?