Thomas Jefferson and the New American Nation Essay

Thomas Jefferson and the New American Nation - Essay Example Usage of terms such as â€Å"necessary† creates an impression of the strong need for the Americans to take the proposed action, which is well connected to their human nature. The line, â€Å"One people† can be translated to send a strong message that the Americans and the British were different people brought together politically and breaking the â€Å"political bands† which was a necessity for the survival of the Americans. This choice of words was intended to capture the attention of America’s friends (Dolbeare & Cummings 49-52). However, there is one line in the Declaration that gathers much controversy and debate. The usage of the line, "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among them are Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness† poses an intention that could have well been deeply thought to bring a diverse interpretation by the Americans, the British and possible allies who could assist the Americans in their quest for independence. This line consists of a group of principles pertaining to human rights that are naturally and rhetorically read and interpreted together. The principles brought out include: of equity; inalienability of the rights; examples of the rights; and an implication of the necessity that the government should secure these rights and the right of the people to abolish abusive governments (â€Å"Declaration of Independence†). It can be said that Jefferson’s Declaration of Independence wills not only the freedom but the establishment of an equal footing within the American soil once the colonial powers are put to rest. However, the sound and uplifting message of such line â€Å"†¦ that all men are created equal†¦Ã¢â‚¬  is, in one way, problematic up to this day.  

Senior High School English Teachers’ Roles Under the New English Curriculum Essay Example for Free

Senior High School English Teachers’ Roles Under the New English Curriculum Essay He teaches in the society in accordance with his special responsibilities he takes and with the roles he plays. Therefore he is required to be quite sensitive to its expectations and perform rightly and appropriately with his due roles and to change his role rightly and timely with the development of the society and with the changes of his specific responsibility he takes. The educational reform in China requires the study of teacher’s roles. The reform of senior high school education in China at present has been leading to a radical change of educational beliefs which are certain to demand a great change of teacher’s roles. In China, the reform of senior high school education has widely aroused peoples attention. In order to promote the implementation of the new curriculum, experts and researchers of teaching have begun their study of changing teaching methods. Therefore, this thesis dedicates to the research of how the senior high school English teachers today should change their role under the condition of the New Curriculum, and hopes to bring up some new ways apt in teaching. 2 The significance of New Curriculum 2. Embodiment of the Essence of Education The course of education is a course of ideality. Its essence is to strengthen the spiritual power of human beings. Plato wrote in his most famous book Utopia the true notion of education through a metaphor told by Socrates: The â€Å"True Education† is to guide people, its soul, and spirit to reach an authentic world, from darkness to brightness, from an opinion-based world to a truth-based world (Socrates 129). This guidance of spirit is in f act the guidance of one’s living. Knowledge and skills are the ladders by which the soul could climb to a higher level. Our ancient classical book The Great Learning penetrates so straight to the point that â€Å"The way of achieving great learning started with one person’s knowing of the morality, carrying on by performing nice to the other people, and having the goodness in one’s heart. † ( 15). The purpose of learning is to reveal the morality in one’s heart, to make a fresh start of one’s life, and to keep a person’s mind in the stage of best morality. Apparently, in modern or ancient times, in China or elsewhere, almost all the great masters of education believed that the essence of education is to perfect the spiritual world of human beings. And the Curriculum standards must be responsible for the developing and growing of students. In the examination-oriented education system, a student is no more than a container of text-book knowledge. The duty and responsibility of a student is to process knowledge no matter how much it actually relates to reality. The actual use value of the knowledge has been ignored; the activeness of the students has been killed. Paper mark is an evaluation tool for every thing. The Ma Jiajue event of a school boy murdering his three roommates made us feel chilling and begin altering. May I ask how this type of students could have a positive attitude towards the challenges in society? How could they cooperate with people and pursuit a further development?! There is an old Chinese saying â€Å"To teach a student six years, a teacher must foresee his sixty years of life. This is the social responsibility of a teacher. To educate students, a teacher must not only make them masters of the textbook knowledge, but also masters of the method and strategies of learning. A teacher would form a positive mental attitude and active desire of the students and guide them enjoying the happiness through the pursuit of success, build up the student’s sense of accomplishment, and make it the motivation of making prog ress. New curriculum standards proposed a â€Å"tool† (an effective tool for high school English teacher to guide the students) and â€Å"humanism† (the new curriculum put humanism as its core) is the unification of the basic characteristics of English courses. The purpose of the study by English students is to improve the English literacy and lifelong learning for students and lay the foundation for the development of personality. Here, â€Å"exploring ability† and â€Å"personality development† received full attention. And the ability to understand and get to the point of the curriculum integration, appreciation, nderstanding, development, innovation has become a real purpose. Evidently, the new course is surprising, it really practices a â€Å"people-oriented† concept of education, reflects the nature of the education. 2. 2 Reflection of the Policy of Education The New Curriculum reflects the actual need to fully carry out the guiding principle on educ ation. We should establish accurate values on education and fully carry out the guiding principle on education in order to bring up quality talents of a new era. The values on education of a lower gradation are to educate individuals and pay too much attention to the chase of making a living or angling for material profits and prestige, but to neglect or depreciate the values of a deeper gradation formed by a full development of individual characteristics and magnificent states of mind. As the human being itself has a potential of many-sided development, the mission of education is to turn the students potentials into developing reality. Its not only the fundamental concept of democracy but the basic right of every student that all of them could develop themselves. The principle to evaluate the standard of lessons reflects two Faces-firstly, face the fully rise of students qualities and secondly, face the entire group of students. This kind of education can make every student develop himself more completely, which is stipulated by the guiding principle on education and also the intrinsic reflection of carrying out ability oriented education. 3 Suggestions on Senior High School English Teaching During a live observation on English teaching in senior high school, it seems common that the teaching materials are making use of teachers, rather than the teachers are using teaching materials. Needless to say, this phenomenon will definitely affect the quality of English teaching in senior high school and as a result, were not able to achieve the goal of English learning which is brought up by ability oriented education. What should senior high school English teachers do to deal with this phenomenon? 3. 1 New Educational Concepts as the Guidance The new education concept refers to the changing from giving undue mphasis to English language techniques into paying close attention to the development of students entire personality and cultivating their positive attitudes as well as encouraging them to learn how to get information and use it creatively. While in the process of senior high school English teaching, the English teachers should transfer from purely emphasizing instructing s tudents in the complex, troublesome and dull English knowledge in books, into providing basic and various information connected with real life for the students, in order to widen their field of view and make English study more effective and interesting. While talking about the manner of the senior high school English teacher, the new concept requires the teachers changing from teaching knowledge of isolated courses into connecting different but related courses with each other and encouraging students to study by experience, investigation and introspection. With respect to the senior high school English teaching evaluation, the new concept suggests the education transferring from emphasizing distinguishing good from bad, selection in contest, demarcating ranks, etc. nto promoting every students improvement of capability and respecting the diversity of personalities and levels of understanding, so as to help them all gain the feeling of success. And with respect to aspect of the relationship between teachers and students, the new concept suggests the shifting from centering on teachers into considering students main, seeking the equal conversation between teachers and students and joint improvement in interaction. 3. 2 Renewal of the Education Capacity The English teaching ability refers to the English teachers structure of knowledge and ability and they should not only have basic knowledge and ability of English language, but also multiple elements consisting of education, psychology, management, art of literature, philosophy and so on, which will make a composite effect. Owing to this composite effect combined with knowledge of various courses, the senior high school English teachers should renew his/her education capacity. He/she should not only make creative use of new teaching materials, organize fully directed English teaching contents and instruct students lessons effectively according to the education principle. He/she should teach according to ones ability. Whats more, they should inspire the students motivation of learning to the full extent and ensure their healthy study in order to achieve the final goal of cultivating the students ability to learn throughout their life. 3. 3 Building-up of the Self-development Approach Teachers arent able to renew knowledge, learn throughout their life and search for self-development. Through lack of approaches to development subjectively, as well as objective reasons such as busy work of teaching or a heavy burden of housework, some teachers have to live on their own limited fat gained in school and without doubts, its difficult for them to adapt to the continuous development of the situation of educational reform. A number of senior high school teachers complain about the new edition text-book and the general requirement of the new curriculum. They used to teach in a traditional way. They as well feel indifferent to the new material in the textbook and don’t know how to teach it to the students. In order to make full use of the new teaching material and raise the quality of English education, theres no doubt that firstly we should establish a new modern educational concept. 4 New Classroom Roles of Senior High School English Teachers What roles should the 21st century senior high school English teachers have? The society informationization and knowledge economy development of the 21st century propose our education on the intense transformation request; the traditional way of study is transformed to the innovative study. This request the teachers to change from the traditional 40-minute teaching role to the shepherd, the organizer, the participant during the educational process, the teacher must have bigger compatibility and flexibility. With the social development today, the science and technology developed rapidly, the computer and the information technology also have a widespread application in teaching. The relationship between the teachers and students is already not completely the simple transmission and acceptance pattern, sometimes the student may acquire knowledge from other channels, they even know in certain aspects comparable more than some teachers do. Teachers authoritative status has been threatened; the teacher and students relation becomes more and more complicated. The teachers role also multiplies. Having the ability to form the fine personality and the multiplex knowledge tructure of the students, and mastering many skills while specializing in one are requirement for teachers today. The teacher must have rich knowledge and many kinds of abilities. Moreover, it is also the duty of a teacher to form the students’ spiritual world, fills the instructive and the creative essence. In the modern society, the teacher has not only changed with the traditional performers basic function, but also has to transmit the experience directly. The students must participant the learning activity. The teacher must guide the students to explore in the environment which he carefully designs. The teacher is no longer a pure transmitter, but also students’ companions, activity organizer, the supporter and helper in the process of students’ learning activity. I will discuss the teachers role mainly in the following part. 4. 1 Teacher as Organizer As is said by Doll, an American expert in education, the teachers status in the relationship between teachers and students is â€Å"a chief in equality† (Doll 191). This conversion requires teachers to step down from the altar filled with â€Å"teachers respect†. And the teachers ought to interact and explore with the students standing on the same flat and help them grow up, mature and become worthful. To organize means to form into a whole with mutually connected and dependent parts. The success of many activities depends on good organization and on the students knowing exactly what they are to do. To be an organizer, senior high school English teachers have to organize the activities and teaching stages successfully in the classroom. Teachers organizing of the class roughly includes two parts— psychological organization and the organization of activity. The central idea of psychological organization is to stimuli students motivation. The main aim of the teacher when he organizing an activity is to tell the students what they are going to talk about, and to give clear instructions about what exactly their task is, get the activity going, and then organize feedback when it is over. For example, for the topic discussion, the teacher can assign students to groups. Jeremy Harmer (1983) noted that the organization of an activity can be divided into three main parts. First the teacher gives a lead-in. Like the lead-in for presentation or for the treatment of receptive skills this will probably take the form of an introduction to the subject. In senior high school English classrooms, teachers can tell students what they are going to talk about during this period. The teacher and students may briefly discuss the topic in order to start thinking about it. He/She should give clear instructions. When the lead-in stage has been accomplished the teacher instructs. This is where he explains exactly what the students should do. Finally the teacher initiates the activity, which is to get the activities going. He gives a final check that students have understood. So the teachers job is to organize the activity as efficiently as possible, frequently checking that the students have understood. Once the activity has started the teacher will not intervene unless it is quite necessary for gentle correction or promptness. During the first year of teaching senior high school English, role play helps the students to use the language flexibly. While students play their roles on their own, the teacher may walk around the classroom to listen to their talks. When necessary, the teacher can also give guidance and advice. After role play, the teacher can ask students to perform in class, and then make comments on their work. 4. 2 Teacher as Guide As is said by ancient people, Teachers are the people who spread logic, teach lessons and solve confusion. The new standard of lessons requires a conversion from â€Å"teaching lessons† to guiding the students to participate in English activities actively, think by themselves and cooperate in investigation, which aims to develop the students abilities to gather and cope with information in English, to gain new knowledge, to analyse and solve problems and to communicate and cooperate. The basic requirements of a teacher as a guide are as follows: 1) To help students to set up right and feasible goal, both long and short term. Once the short goal within the long-term goal is reached, students may be filled up with happiness of success which further motivates them forward. 2) To make classroom activities interesting and meet the needs of the students. The teacher can present language in meaningful contexts, elicit language from students, make instructions clear to everyone by using a variety of techniques (cards, texts, ICT, open questions), manage pairs and groups to maximize practice, monitor individuals and groups, stand back and view the whole class, try to meet the needs of all irrespective of gender or ability, praise warmly, correct when appropriate, confirm and welcome good use of the target anguage, smile and enjoy their job, with general qualities of sensitivity, flexibility, humor, enthusiasm and stamina (similar to those required by the average parent). Moreover its particularly important to separate the role of the motivator from the role of the expert. Teachers often easily play the role of expert often; hence miss the chance to motivate their students. 4. 3 Teacher as Participant To be a participant means that a teacher may take part in the classroom activities. A teacher might join simulations as a participant. However, the teacher should be careful not to dominate, although the students will both allow and expect this to happen. Instead of being the dominating authority in the classroom, the teacher facilitates the communicative process among all the learners and between the students and the various tasks, giving guidance and advice when necessary. Furthermore, teachers may act as independent participants within the learning-teaching group. Any unnecessary intervention on the teachers part may prevent learners from becoming genuinely involved in the activities and thus hinder the development of their communicative skills. Once a teaching activity is in progress, it is still the teachers obligation to develop the students potential through external direction. Although the teacher may be nondirective in general, it is still the teachers responsibility to recognize the distinctive qualities in the students (Han 1979) and to help the students develop those qualities. In senior high school English class, in different settings, students may be asked to attend different activities. Teacher should not be afraid to attend these activities. It can improve the atmosphere in the class. For example, when students talk about current events, students are willing to listen to different peoples opinions on the topic. Sometimes when the whole class takes part in a debate, teachers can also act as a chairperson, or offer students help when it is needed. 4. 4 Teacher as Trainer We used to say that the teachers should have a bucket of water in order to give the students a glass of water. However, this idea should also be changed, which demands the teachers not to limit themselves to knowledge and experience in their mind, but according to the demands of the students, to choose and exploit English teaching resources, design and launch kinds of English teaching activities, open up the room for teaching, guide the lessons into a larger range, strengthen the relation between the English language learning and social life reality. In short, the teachers should help the students to carve out the source of knowledge. As strategy trainers, the teachers describe, model, and give examples of potentially useful strategies; they elicit additional examples from students based on the students own learning experiences; they lead small group or whole class discussions about strategies including activities designed to raise students awareness of strategies and the learning process as a whole, as well as activities designed to teach students how to use a specific strategy. It is a fact that some senior high school English teachers already use many activities in their classes that can be considered â€Å"strategies-based†. However, what seems to be missing is the awareness on the part of the students of what those strategies are or how to get those strategies to work for them. Effective strategy use is often associated with better students, those who have already â€Å"mastered† the learning process. Thus teachers may well be making a real contribution to facilitating the learning process by discussing selected strategies explicitly in the classroom. In class, senior high school English teachers can explain the purpose of the language activity, or call attention to how the teacher has organized the course materials e. g. laying out the range of possible strategies for reading a text in order to summarize it, addressing the many strategies associated with writing a coherent summary. 4. 5 Teacher as Creator of a Positive Environment This is a change of the teachers role in nature. This conversion requires that the teachers should â€Å"push the students forward† instead of â€Å"pulling them along†, and motivate the students instead of â€Å"pressing them†. Whats more, the teachers should help the students to establish a proper goal for English learning, confirm and correct their paths chosen to achieve this goal, and inspire them to develop themselves actively by means like spur, encouragement and commendation. Senior high school English teachers should provide positive classroom environment for students. Classroom climate refers to the atmosphere of the classroom, its social, psychological, and emotional characteristics (DunkinBiddle, 1974). The importance of lassroom climate as it relates to motivation derives from the notion that teaching is leadership intended to affect classroom behaviors. Classroom climate is often described using such terms as warm, cold, permissive, democratic, autocratic, and learner-centered. The climate in the classroom is largely established through teacher-student interactions. In China, teachers teach students English in non-target environment, which is different from those in the natural environment. The refore it is more important to create a good learning environment. Teachers here play an important role in providing a supportive environment that encourages students motivation, self-confidence, curiosity and desire to learn, and input and production. According to the findings in the investigation, this role also has positive effects on students achievements. The investigation shows that Teacher A provided the best language environment among the three classes. From the classroom observation, it can be found that As English is excellent. This shows that the teachers ability of creating the positive environment has much to do with the teachers language proficiency. In order to provide positive environment, the teacher has to: 1) Be capable of speaking fluent English. 2) Give students as many opportunities as possible to practice English. 5 Conclusion This thesis aims at analyzing classroom roles of senior high school English teachers under the requirement of new English Curriculum. This thesis firstly introduces the significance of the new curriculum from two aspects: new curriculum embodies the essence of education, at the same time; it reflects the policy of education. Secondly, according to the new curriculum, the author gives three suggestions on senior high school English teaching. The suggestions aim at bringing out new concepts on high school English teaching as well as renewing the teachers education capacity and building up self-development approach. Thirdly,in order to set up the roles as scientifically as possible, the author investigates students’ expectation and analyzes the relationship between the teacher’s roles and the students’ achievements. The author makes a profound analysis of each role and gives further suggestions. With limited study and knowledge, the explanations in many places are rather weak. The study can only be considered as a start for further insightful researches and findings.

Impact On The Natural Environment Construction Essay

Impact On The Natural Environment Construction Essay The building sector has a significant impact on the natural environment. It consumes almost 33 of the worlds natural resources, including 40 of its energy and up to 12% of its water. These estimates do not consider embodied energy (i.e. the energy used to obtain, manufacture, use and dispose of building materials), which can represent a significant proportion of a buildings lifetime energy consumption. The building sector is also responsible for 40% of global green-house gas (GHG) emissions and 40% of the waste which ends up in the landfills (World Green Building Council, 2006). The consumption of natural resources, particularly none-renewable energy sources, is an important factor in the economy of many nations. Authorative reports show such trends in many parts of the world. In the United Kingdom, for instance, the building sector consumes almost 50% of all the countrys energy. While in the United States, about 40% of the total national energy production and almost 70% of electrici ty production is used in the building sector, as well as 28% in transportation a factor which is partly influenced by urban design. The building sector in China currently accounts for 19% of the countrys total energy consumption. This relatively small percentage is due to energy intensive industrial production. The same scenario occurs in the rich oil-producing areas of the Gulf Corporation Council Countries (GCCC). For example, the building sector in Kuwait account for nearly 45% of the yearly electric energy consumption, whilst in Saudi Arabia this sector consumes about 70% of the total electricity consumption. In Bahrain, the smallest country within the GCCC, buildings account for 83% of the national consumption of electricity (EIA, 2010). Apart from its energy consumption, the building sector is also one of the largest contributors to changes in the environment and atmosphere: firstly, building construction, raw material processing and product manufacturing overall are the largest sources of GHGs. They account for some 40% of the world GHGs emissions. The building sector creates the most waste, habitat destruction and is responsible for the most pollution. Second, GHGs, particularly CO2, are the main by-product of fossil fuel energy consumption, and as buildings are, in total, among the largest consumers of energy, they are also the major contributor to the increase in CO2 emissions and hence global warming. While most available data related to these contributions are for the developed world, reports show that, on the whole, these contributions are worse in developing countries such as the GCCC. These countries have become major GHGs emitters. According to the International Panel of Climate Chang (2007), the GCCC are amongst the top countries in terms of CO2 emissions per capita. Recent statistics show an increase of CO2 emissions due to excessive energy consumption in different GCCC sectors, particularly the building sector. The increase in CO2 emissions had been within the range of 30-35% between 1997 and 2006. The GCCC are found to contribute two and half per cent of the global GHG emissions (United Nations Statistic Division, 2007). One of the main principles of the GCCC is to enhance the economic and environmental actions related to the adoption of policies and unifying environmental laws as well as the conservation of natural resources (GCC, 2008). Within this context a two-fold policy aims at promoting energy regulations and sustainable developments has been adopted. A major role has been given to the building sector, with a special focus on the important role that efficiency regulations can play in reducing energy consumption and protecting the environment. On the ground, some actions have been taken by the GCCC in order to achieve sustainability in buildings, such as the implementation of green building regulations. Most of these regulations are based on the USAs Green Building Councils (US GBC) Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) rating system, with modifications made to account for the local environmental conditions. In terms of green construction, many attempts have been made in different parts of the GCCC. Examples can be seen in the Bahrain World Trade Centre in Manama, the large-scale Masdar City in Abu Dhabi, the campus of King Abdullah University of Science and Technology in Saudi Arabia and the Energy City in Qatar. These projects incorporate several efficiency techniques and green materials. A consideration of these huge, costly projects shows that three parties can benefit from such developments: governments and owners can save energy and protect the environment, thereby gaining a favourable image; contracto rs and suppliers can sell green products and developers can use the affirmative image as a positive marketing tool. However, in his article The Business of Green Elsheshtawy (2010) claims that some green and LEED certified buildings in the GCCC end up consuming much more energy than the evaluators predicted due to poor energy practices. Coupled with this is the economics of energy efficiency and green buildings. Cost of building green A great number of available projects, such as those mentioned above, shows that if building green is a target at the outset of the design process and material selection then the cost of the green building is competitive. In a commercial setting, such projects can result in reduced energy consumption, saved environment, improved occupant health and comfort and reduced capital costs. Many rigorous assessments show that the overall cost of these projects is no more than that of any equivalent conventional project. Increases in first cost are reported within the range from five-ten per cent. During the construction phase the use of the green strategies, such as downsizing of costly mechanical, electrical and structural systems can increase the saving in initial costs, while during the first two decades the increases due to the use of green technologies will result in a savings of at least ten times the initial investment in operation costs for utilities such as electricity. In rental pro perties, owners are concerned only with the initial cost, especially in the cases where tenants are paying the bills. Governments and some owners, however, can realise the energy savings and so are willing to pay more for minimising the operation cost and reducing the environmental impact. The trade-off between economic costs and environmental benefits can stimulate people on the basis that adoption of green technologies will have environmental and social benefits outside the margin of cost consideration. Although the concept of eco-efficiency, in many cases, does not take into account the social benefits, such an approach can balance environmental design with cost-effectiveness. To achieve eco-efficiency in the building sector, it is necessary to apply an integrated approach with the assistance of a team of professionals across different areas. This is realised in what is called the whole building approach. This approach represents a key factor in the design and construction of green buildings, especially with the advance of technology and increased complexity of constructional systems. The incorporation of the whole building approach at the projects conceptual design phase enables the evaluation of a buildings design, materials and systems from the perspectives of all the project team members as well as from the perspectives of owners and occupants. A principal advantage of this approach is the coordination and mutual dialogue between project team members, which represent a cornerstone for any successful projects. By applying the whole building approach initial and other cost savings can be realised, energy efficiency evaluated and environmental impact asse ssed. The role of cladding systems in making buildings green Green buildings are generally designed and built in an ecological and resources-efficient manner. They often respond to their local environment and, therefore, different building designs are found in different regions. In any region, however, the ultimate target of green buildings is to provide a comfortable environment in an economic way. The buildings skin, particularly building facade, represents the connection between the internal environment and the outside conditions, and hence a key function of the building facade is to reduce the need to modify the indoor environment as little as possible in response to the environmental load from the outdoor climate. Sometimes, a building facade fails to meet its objective due to one or more reasons, such as the insufficient design of wall systems or the inappropriate selection of cladding materials that probably make it impossible for any specific level of comfortable environment to be achieved. Then, it is necessary to rely upon electrical and mechanical systems to achieve comfort. This reliance leads to higher cost which is translated into bigger capacity requirements for lighting and mechanical equipment and higher capital costs for such equipment as well as larger amounts of energy consumption by the lighting system and heating, ventilation and air-conditioning (HVAC) system. In contrast, efficient environmental design and appropriate selection of green cladding materials can result in a comfortable inside environment, reduced project initial and running costs and a building that is energy and resource-efficient with lower operating costs than conventional buildings. Practitioners have demonstrated that the implementation of green strategies contributes to a buildings comfort, economic and energy performance. The use of green cladding systems, in particular, is able to make a significant impact on the thermal and operational performance of green buildings. Reports show that when green cladding systems are taken in to account at the conceptual design phase, significant improvements in the energy performance can be achieved (Radhi and Sharples, 2008). Aside from their influence on building operational energy, the external wall systems and cladding materials are major contributors to changes in the natural environment. The production of construction materials such as precast and aluminium increases atmospheric concentrations of GHGs. The environmental impact starts with the chemical reactions during the production phase, where such materials represent one of the largest source of CO2 emissions and other GHGs. Then, the transportation of the materials to construction sites consumes considerable amounts of primary energy and generates high levels of GHG emissions. At the installation phase these materials generate different types of waste, whilst at the operation phase some of them influence the interior and exterior spaces by producing unhealthy components into the air. Some construction materials have relatively short useful lives and, consequently, the disposal and manufacture of replacement materials occurs, thereby generating mo re GHGs and waste. Research experts have shown that a careful selection of low environmental impact components and materials reduces the CO2 emissions by up to 30%. Some cladding materials are reported to have the capacity to reduce ozone emissions and other sources of pollutants such as CO2 (Radhi, 2010). How can the eco-efficiency of cladding systems be measured? The World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD, 2000) terms eco-efficiency as the synthesis of economic and environmental efficiency in parallel. Within this context, eco-efficiency in the building sector can be determined by three broad objectives: Reduce natural resources consumption by minimising the use of embodied and operational energy, raw materials, water and land as well as enhancing recyclability and material durability Reduce environmental impact by minimising GHGs emissions, waste disposal, water discharges and the dispersion of toxic substances, as well as encouraging the use of renewable resources. Increase the value of materials and systems by providing more benefits through material functionality, flexibility and modularity. In the light of these objectives the important question is how the eco-efficiency of cladding systems can be measured. Significant scientific work has been addressing this issue by introducing suitable assessment methodologies and rating systems. This is best seen in the environmental life cycle assessment (LCA) and life-cycle cost (LCC) approaches developed by the international standards for LCA principles and framework ISO 14040 (ISO14040, 2006). Assessment is performed in four phases, including goal and scope definition, inventory analysis, impact assessment and interpretation. Two main approaches are available to classify and characterise environmental impacts. The first is the problem-oriented approach (mid-point). The second is the damage-oriented approach (end-point). A great number of methods have been developed under these two approaches such as the critical volumes (weighted load) and ecological scarcity (eco-points) systems in Switzerland, environmental priorities system in Sweden, eco-indicator 99 in Netherlands and the environmental problems system in the United States. The use of such methods makes it possible to select building systems and materials that achieve the most appropriate balance between environmental and economic performance based on certain values of the building team. Case study: assessing eco-efficiency of cladding systems in Bahrain The current assessment, based on the LCA of residential buildings (Radhi and Sharples, 2012), is performed to characterise the eco-efficiency of cladding systems in Bahrain. Bahrain is chosen as many of its building construction approaches and techniques are typical of those found in the GCCC. The production, construction, use and disposal of a 75 m2 front facade of a typical Bahraini house (Fig. 24.1), formed the basis of this assessment. Technically, the building facade consisted of two main components that included the wall system and cladding layers. The wall system is generally classified as cavity wall, barrier wall or mass wall (National Institute of Building Sciences, 2012). The cavity wall (sometimes called the screen wall system) is the preferred method of construction in many climatic regions due primarily to its ability to achieve pressure-equalisation. The barrier wall is an exterior wall system of assembly. The principal difference of this system is its ability to integ rate the surfaces of outermost exterior wall and construction joints, which can offer resistance to bulk moisture ingress. The mass wall relies principally upon a combination of wall thickness and storage capacity. Some fundamental differences exist among these systems such as the thermal performance, fire safety, moisture protection, acoustics, maintainability and material durability, and so consequently their impact on the environment. In terms of cladding, it is the exterior finish layer that is installed to cover wall systems and/or support structures. This finish layer serves several functions, including improving appearance, optimising thermal and environmental performance and keeping undesirable outdoor elements away. Today cladding systems are available in many forms and materials, which are often chosen based on economic and aesthetic factors. Structurally, the use of any alternatives of cladding determines the type of wall system and vice versa. The mass wall system, for example, can form structural elements or finished cladding systems. This system is commonly associated with plaster and masonry cladding systems. On the other hand, the barrier wall is used with precast concrete spandrel panels and some types of metal cladding systems such as composite and solid metal plate as well as with exterior insulation and finish systems (EIFS). With the advance in building technology and construction materials, many alternatives of cladding systems are now available in the market. Examples are studied in the current work, namely, stucco, masonry veneer, marble, ceramic tile and the EIFS. Stucco is a hard, dense, thick and non-insulating material, such as cement plaster, that can be used to cover exterior wall surfaces. Both Portland cement and masonry cement are used with sand for the base and finish coats of stucco exterior walls. Unlike the ordinary stucco system, the EIFS (also known as synthetic stucco) is a lightweight synthetic wall cladding that includes foam plastic insulation and thin synthetic coatings. The masonry veneer is made from a mixture of Portland cement and aggregates under controlled conditions. It provides cladding and resists transferring wind and heat loads to the building support structure. The marble cladding system is a natural stone, while the ceramic tile cladding system consists of a mixture of clay and other ceramic materials. To improve environmental and thermal performance, recycled windshield glass is often added to the ceramic mix (Brookes and Meijs, 2008). These five cladding systems are assessed under real construction and thermal scenarios with the same wall system (mass wall), as illustrated in Fig. 24.2. To provide each scenario with the basic systems quantities per functional unit, the existing facade parameters and wall materials of the typical house are considered as a reference scenario, in addition to the operational aspects that are influenced by the building facade. Data inventory of cladding systems The LCA method and LCC technique are integrated to deliver a complete and detailed assessment of the overall potential impact of the typical house. An important point to note is that system and material selection based on a single impact could obscure other factors that might cause equal or greater damage. Therefore, the adopted LCA methodology takes a multidimensional life-cycle approach, in which multiple environmental impacts are considered over the entire life of the assessed cladding systems. To balance the assessment, the LCC is performed over a 60 year life span, and is based on published data and methods outlined in (Radhi 2010). Categories of expenditure typically include costs for purchase, installation, maintenance, repair and replacement. Measuring the economic performance is relatively straightforward by using real cost data collected through a field study. The data in question are the real cost data that occur and the subsequent cost, which will occur in the future. Normalisation is carried out in this work in order to present a more useful scale of measurement and to make comparisons of various systems simpler. Normalisation is an optional step in impact assessment and can be described as a form of benchmarking, where the flows of each environmental impact are first summed and then divided by fixed Bahraini scale impact values. This can yield measures that are placed in the context of Bahraini activity contributing to that impact. The placing of each measure in the context of its associated Bahraini impact measure makes it possible to reduce different values to the same scale and allows the comparison across impacts. The resulting performance measures are, thus, expressed in non-commensurate units. For credibility, the commercially available BEES model (National Institute of Standards and Technology, 2007) for building construction materials coupled with the international inventory data (Hammond Jones, 2011) were used to compare and check. The BEES model is generally used to measure the environmental and energy performance of building products and facade materials using the life cycle assessment approach outlined in ISO standard 14040. Environmental impact assessment Given the desire to link environmental and economic performance through the concept of eco-efficiency, the ideal way is to base the eco-efficiency indicators on international agreement as far as possible. According to the framework of the United Nations (2006), the assessment of eco-efficiency includes various generic environmental issues such as energy use, global warming contribution, water use, ozone depletion substance and waste. From these indicators, energy consumption and CO2 emissions, water use and ecological toxicity are of the greatest relevance for this study. Fig. 24.3 compares these indicators with respect to the five studied cladding systems. Some of these systems, such as the marble cladding, have significant impacts on water use but moderate impacts on global warming and embodied energy. Other systems, such as stucco, have a significant impact on both the energy consumption and global warming but a minor impact on water use. The others, such as the EIFS, have a minor impact on different generic environmental issues. From the illustration, the EIFS system seems to be the best performer, followed by the ceramic tiles, marble and finally the brick. Stucco is found to be the least effective system in terms of energy consumption and ecological toxicity as well as in relation to CO2 emissions. This can be related to the large amounts of CO2 emissions during cement production, which is the main component of the plaster cladding system. Environmental versus economic When the overall environmental impact of the examined systems is considered, a different scenario occurs. The overall environmental performance is illustrated in Fig. 24.4. Two main observations can be highlighted: firstly, the overall environmental performance ranking of the five systems is different from single measures such energy use and global warming. The EIFS cladding system is the best environmental performer, whilst the ceramic tile system is the worst performer. The difference is more than 24 points. As systems with lower scores are greener, the EIFS cladding system is greener because it contributes, on average, 0.1% of annual per capita Bahrain environmental impacts, whilst the marble contributes a larger share, 0.35%. Secondly, the environmental performance ranking is different from that of the economic performance. The illustration shows that the economic impacts of cladding systems are various and different from the environmental impacts. For example, the stucco claddin g is illustrated as the best economic performer, but it is not in terms of the environmental performance. The difference in score is significant, being almost 11 points. This can be also seen in the case of the ceramic tile cladding. In contrast, the marble cladding achieves a high overall environmental performance and a low economic performance with a difference that reaches almost 21%. The EIFS cladding seems to have a balanced environmental and economic status. The same ranking occurs when both environmental and economic performance are estimated. By using the multi-attribute decision analysis technique, environmental indicators and the economic performance are combined into an overall performance measure (National Institute of Standards and Technology, 2007). It is important to mention that the overall performance scores in this work are not indications of absolute performance. Rather, they are reflecting proportional differences in performance and representing relative performance among system alternatives. By following this procedure, these scores can be changed when the number of system alternatives are increased or reduced. The potential overall performance of the studied systems shows different scenarios when compared with the environmental and economic performances. The stucco cladding seems to be the most eco-efficient systems in spite of its poor environmental performance, followed by the EFIS system with a score of 29%, with the masonry veneer coming next. In contrast, the ceramic tile cladding is found to be the wor st with almost 50%, in spite of its moderate economic performance. Overall, different cladding systems have different environmental and economic performances. Some cladding materials improve the environmental performance, but provide a moderate influence in terms of economic performance, and vice versa. Others positively improve the environmental performance and can optimise the economic performance. Therefore, a careful eco-efficiency assessment should be undertaken in selecting wall cladding systems. Such an assessment can benefit the appraisal of green cladding systems and hence into the design decisions made in developing various scale of green buildings. Conclusion Todays modern buildings systems, particularly cladding system, are often selected and assessed based on aesthetics and cost rather than their environmental performance or their overall potential impact. The concept of eco-efficiency introduced in this book balances the environmental performance with economic aspects. This chapter presented a systematic eco-efficiency assessment of cladding systems and explored its role progressing a green future in the building sector. The interrelation between environmental indicators and economic performance was examined by comparing various cladding systems, considering both overall environmental impact indicators and life cycle cost. The differences in environmental indicators of various cladding systems, namely, stucco, masonry veneer, marble, ceramic tile and the EIFS systems, are generally significant. The ranking of these systems in terms of environmental and economic performance are different. Some of the cladding systems, such as the marble cladding, reduce energy consumption and CO2 emissions, but provide a minor reduction in terms of the life cycle cost, and vice versa. Others, such as the EFIS system, impact positively upon the environmental indicators and can optimise the overall potential impact. This system has the ability to reduce energy consumption and CO2 emissions; however, other aspects, such as maintenance and life expectancy, should be considered at the time of system selection. The scope of the current study focused on the eco-efficiency of representative residential cladding system in a developing country. Consequently, the outcome of this assessment may not be applied to buildings in countries with different economic and environmental situation. In spite of this shortcoming, this assessment approach may provide useful quantitative and qualitative information for cladding design decisions. Therefore, it is important to highlight some general notes: New green building technologies, such as the exterior insulation and finish systems (EIFS), are effective cladding systems in promoting a green future in the residential building sector. To improve the overall potential impact, wall cladding systems in desert climate regions, such as Bahrain, can be designed as exterior insulation and finish systems. Every building is unique in both design and operation. Academic experts and practitioners benefiting from this work should consider the impact of related variables, and therefore a careful assessment must be performed during the selection process in order to achieve eco-efficiency in the building sector. In addition to its ability to assess building cladding systems, the eco-efficiency concept can be used with various other systems, materials and innovative applications. It can yield a precise assessment in the case of multifunctional problems in relatively short times and at relatively low cost. In the near future the concept of eco-efficiency will become more important in the context of the green built environment in order to show which design process, building systems and renewable technologies are more favourable than other alternatives.

Lord Of The Flies: Summary :: essays research papers

Lord of the Flies: Summary By: Wiliam Golding Main Character Description Piggy: A large kid, one of the older ones. He was made fun of and teased about his weight and it drove him crazy. He met Ralph first. Piggy wore glasses, which later proved vital for fire making. The best way to get to Piggy was to take away his â€Å"specs† because without them, he couldn't see a foot away from anything. He is later killed in the book. He falls fourty feet onto solid rock and his head splits open. Ralph: Ralph is chief of the group on the very first day. He was voted above Jack and his small band of kids. Ralph is one of the oldest. He first meets Piggy and was the original founder of the Conch Horn. Ralph comes up with many useful ideas during the novel, like the shelters on the beach. He is hunted right before they are rescued. Jack: Has his own band of kids that he later names, his â€Å"hunters.† In the group, they are responsible for the hunting of the pigs of the island; to bring in meat. Otherwise, the only thing they had to eat was the fruit of the island. Later on in the novel, Jack leaves the group of kids to be on his own. Simon: Quiet, out-spoken by everyone, Simon is one of the hardest-working of them all. He helps Ralph with the shelters and the little ones with fruit. He is later killed in the novel. Sam ‘n Eric: Sam and Eric are twins. They help in various problems during the novel and survive until the end of the novel. Neither of them play a vital role in the novel. Chapter Summary Chapter 1- In the first chapter, the time is right after the plane has wrecked and they all wake up from the crash. Ralph and Piggy meet each other, walk around and soon look for other people on the plane. Ralph soon finds the Conch shell and uses it like a horn to beacon the others. The survivors eventualy find themselves together in a group; Ralph, Piggy, Jack and his hunters, Sam ‘n Eric and Simon included. They vote Ralph the chief of the group, make a few rules (like, whoever has the Conch Shell has the right to speak) and designate Jack and his band as the group's â€Å"hunters.† Ralph, Simon and Jack explore the island and climb it's pink mountain to see if the place they were at is trully an island. They find it is. Chapter 2- An idea is formed for the group.

Coffee Shop Business Plan

Java Culture coffee bar is determined to become a daily necessity for local coffee addicts, a place to dream of as you try to escape the daily stresses of life and just a comfortable place to meet your friends or to read a book, all in one. With the growing demand for high-quality gourmet coffee and great service, Java Culture will capitalize on its proximity to the University of Oregon campus to build a core group of repeat customers.Java Culture will offer its customers the best prepared coffee in the area that will be complimented with pastries, as well as free books that its patrons can read to enjoy their visit. The company will operate a 2,300 square foot coffee bar within a walking distance from the University of Oregon campus. The owners have secured this location through a three-year lease with an option for extending. The have also provided $140,000 of the required $170,000 start-up funds. The remaining capital will be obtained through Bank of America commercial loans.The c ompany is expected to grow sales revenue from $584,000 in FY2001 to $706,000 in year three. As Java Culture will strive to maintain a 65% gross profit margin and reasonable operating expenses, it will see net profits grow from $100,000 to $125,000 during the same period. 1. 1 Objectives Java Culture’s objectives for the first year of operations are: Become selected as the â€Å"Best New Coffee Bar in the area† by the local restaurant guide. Turn in profits from the first month of operations. Maintain a 65% gross margin. 1. 2 Keys to Success The keys to success will be:Store design that will be both visually attractive to customers, and designed for fast and efficient operations. Employee training to insure the best coffee preparation techniques. Marketing strategies aimed to build a solid base of loyal customers, as well as maximizing the sales of high margin products, such as espresso drinks. 1. 3 Mission Java Culture will make its best effort to create a unique place where customers can socialize with each other in a comfortable and relaxing environment while enjoying the best brewed coffee or espresso and pastries in town.We will be in the business of helping our customers to relieve their daily stresses by providing piece of mind through great ambience, convenient location, friendly customer service, and products of consistently high quality. Java Culture will invest its profits to increase the employee satisfaction while providing stable return to its shareholders. Company Summary Java Culture, an Oregon limited liability company, sells coffee, other beverages and snacks in its 2,300 square feet premium coffee bar located near the University of Oregon campus.Java Culture’s major investors are Arthur Garfield and James Polk who cumulatively own over 70% of the company. The start-up loss of the company is assumed in the amount of $27,680. 2. 1 Company Ownership Java Culture is registered as a Limited Liability Corporation in the state o f Oregon. Arthur Garfield owns 51% of the company. His cousin, James Polk, as well as Megan Flanigan and Todd Barkley hold minority stakes in Java Culture, LLC. 2. 2 Company Locations and Facilities Java Culture coffee bar will be located on the ground floor of the commercial building at the corner of West 13th Avenue and Patterson Street in Eugene, OR.The company has secured a one-year lease of the vacant 2,500 square feet premises previously occupied by a hair salon. The lease contract has an option of renewal for three years at a fixed rate that Java Culture will execute depending on the financial strength of its business. The floor plan will include a 200 square feet back office and a 2,300 square feet coffee bar, which will include a seating area with 15 tables, a kitchen, storage area and two bathrooms.The space in the coffee bar will be approximately distributed the following way–1,260 square feet (i. e., 55% of the total) for the seating area, 600 square feet (26%) fo r the production area, and the remaining 440 square feet (19%) for the customer service area. This property is located in a commercial area within a walking distance from the University of Oregon campus on the corner of a major thoroughfare connecting affluent South Eugene neighborhood with the busy downtown commercial area. The commercially zoned premises have the necessary water and electricity hookups and will require only minor remodeling to accommodate the espresso bar, kitchen and storage area.The coffee bar’s open and clean interior design with modern wooden decor will convey the quality of the served beverages and snacks, and will be in-line with the establishment’s positioning as an eclectic place where people can relax and enjoy their cup of coffee. The clear window displays, through which passerby will be able to see customers enjoying their beverages, and outside electric signs will be aimed to grab the attention of the customer traffic. Products Java Cultu re will offer its customers the best tasting coffee beverages in the area.This will be achieved by using high-quality ingredients and strictly following preparation guidelines. The store layout, menu listings and marketing activities will be focused on maximizing the sales of higher margin espresso drinks. Along with the espresso drinks, brewed coffee and teas, as well as some refreshment beverages, will be sold in the coffee bar. Java Culture will also offer its clients pastries, small salads and sandwiches. For the gourmet clientele that prefers to prepare its coffee at home, Java Culture will also be selling coffee beans.The menu offerings will be supplemented by free books and magazines that customers can read inside the coffee bar. 3. 1 Product Description The menu of the Java Culture coffee bar will be built around espresso-based coffee drinks such as lattes, mochas, cappuccinos, etc. Each of the espresso-based drinks will be offered with whole, skimmed, or soy milk. Each of t hese coffee beverages is based on a ‘shot’ of espresso, which is prepared in the espresso machine by forcing heated water through ground coffee at high pressure.Such espresso shots are combined with steamed milk and/or other additives like cocoa, caramel, etc. , to prepare the espresso-based beverages. Proper preparation techniques are of paramount importance for such drinks. A minor deviation from the amount of coffee in the shot, the size of the coffee particles, the temperature of milk, etc. , can negatively affect the quality of the prepared drink. 3. 2 Sales Literature Two thousand flyers will be distributed in the adjacent neighborhood, on the University campus, at the malls and in the selected office buildings within two weeks prior to the opening of Java Culture.Subsequently, free postcards with Java Culture endorsement will be printed to increase the company visibility among the patrons. Market Analysis Summary U. S. coffee consumption has shown steady growth, with gourmet coffee having the strongest growth. Coffee drinkers in the Pacific Northwest are among the most demanding ones. They favor well-brewed gourmet coffee drinks and demand great service. Eugene, OR, with its liberal and outgoing populace and long rainy winter, has traditionally been a great place for coffee establishments.Java Culture will strive to build a loyal customer base by offering a great tasting coffee in a relaxing environment of its coffee bar located close to the bustling University of Oregon campus. 4. 1 Market Segmentation Java Culture will focus its marketing activities on reaching the University students and faculty, people working in offices located close to the coffee bar and on sophisticated teenagers. Our market research shows that these are the customer groups that are most likely to buy gourmet coffee products.Since gourmet coffee consumption is universal across different income categories and mostly depends on the level of higher education, proximity to the University of Oregon campus will provide access to the targeted customer audience. 4. 2 Target Market Segment Strategy Java Culture will cater to people who want to get their daily cup of great-tasting coffee in a relaxing atmosphere. Such customers vary in age, although our location close to the University campus means that most of our clientele will be college students and faculty. Our market research shows that these are discerning customers that gravitate towards better tasting coffee.Furthermore, a lot of college students consider coffee bars to be a convenient studying or meeting location, where they can read or meet with peers without the necessity to pay cover charges. For us, this will provide a unique possibility for building a loyal client base. 4. 2. 1 Market Needs General trend toward quality among U. S. consumers definitely plays an important role in the recent growth in gourmet coffee. Additionally, such factors as desire for small indulgencies, for something m ore exotic and unique, provide a good selling opportunity for coffee bars.4. 3 Industry Analysis Coffee consumption has shown a steady 2. 5% growth rate in the United States over the last decade. In 1994, total sales of coffee were approximately $7. 5 billion with gourmet coffee representing 33% (or $2. 5 billion) of that. The retail coffee industry is flourishing in the U. S. Pacific Northwest. The local climate, with a long rainy season, is very conducive for the consumption of hot non-alcoholic beverages. At the same time, hot dry summers drive people into cafes to order iced drinks.Further, coffee has really become a part of the lifestyle in the Pacific Northwest. Its discerning coffee drinkers are in favor of well-prepared, strong coffee-based beverages, which they can consume in a relaxing environment. 4. 3. 1 Competition and Buying Patterns Competition According to the 1997 Oregon Food service Statistics (NAICS 72), Eugene had 45 established snack & non-alcoholic beverage bar s (NAICS 722213) with total sales of $14. 2 million. Among other establishments that offer coffee drinks to their customers are most of Eugene’s limited- and full-service restaurants.Java Culture’s direct competitors will be other coffee bars located near the University of Oregon campus. These include Starbucks, Cafe Roma, The UO Bookstore, and other Food service establishments that offer coffee. Starbucks will definitely be one of the major competitors because of its strong financial position and established marketing and operational practices. However, despite of Starbuck’s entrenched market position, many customers favor smaller, independent establishments that offer cozy atmosphere and good coffee at affordable prices.Cafe Roma is a good example of such competition. We estimate that Starbucks holds approximately 35% market share in that neighborhood, Cafe Roma appeals to 25% of customers, The UO Bookstore caters to another 10%, with the remaining market shar e split among other establishments. Java Culture will position itself as a unique coffee bar that not only offers the best tasting coffee and pastries but also provides home-like, cozy and comfortable environment, which established corporate establishments lack.We will cater to customers’ bodies and minds, which will help us grow our market share in this competitive market. Buying Patterns The major reason for the customers to return to a specific coffee bar is a great tasting coffee, quick service and pleasant atmosphere. Although, as stated before, coffee consumption is uniform across different income segments, Java Culture will price its product offerings competitively. We strongly believe that selling coffee with a great service in a nice setting will help us build a strong base of loyal clientele.

Short and Long Vowel Lesson Plan

Short and Long Vowel Lesson Plan Often times students have a hard time differentiating short vowels from long vowels, and there are certain things teachers can do to help them master this skill. A solid lesson plan to teach this topic is an important first step, and this one might be exactly what you need. This vowels  lesson plan  is designed to help students recognize and remember vowels, as well as be able to produce the sounds of both a short vowel and a long vowel. Materials Songs for teaching grammarLetter cards for teaching vowels Learning the Differences The first step to mastering the vowel sounds is to understand the difference between both short and long vowels. Long vowels are the easiest of the two for students to learn because they have the same sound as their name. For example, the long o sounds like the o in the word ocean, and the long a sounds like the a in the word acorn. Short vowels are much more challenging for students to understand because they sound very similar to one another. For example, the short i in the word big sounds very similar to the short e in the word beg, and the short o in the word cop sounds similar to the short u in the word cup. Children need to be able to recognize and produce these sounds before they are able to learn the rules for reading and spelling them. Short Vowels: Short vowels have a curved symbol above them ÄÆ', Ä•, Ä ­, Ã… , Ã… ­. Here are a few examples of a short vowel: bun, bop, bed, bin, bat. Long Vowels: Long vowels have a straight line above them Ä , Ä“, Ä «, Ã… , Ã… «. Here are a few examples of a long vowel: face, even, lie, toe, use. Procedure for Lesson Follow this procedure to ensure students understand how to recognize and pronounce each vowel in the alphabet. Review the letter names a, e, i, o, and u. Discuss that the letter y is sometimes used as a vowel. This might be confusing for students to understand at first.Display each vowel letter card and ask students what vowel they hear when you say the following words: baby, beef, ride, rose, unicorn. Explain to students that it is easy to hear the vowels in the words that say their name, these vowels are the long vowels.Call upon students to come up and take turns drawing a straight line over each vowel that you go over together. For example, write the letter a on the board and call upon a student to draw a straight line over the a and say, A long a sounds like the word ape. Do this for each vowel.Teach students the long vowel song to help them remember. Often using creative learning experiences, like song, can better engage students in the lesson and help them retain the information more easily and for longer periods of time.  Next, go over short vowels. Display each letter card on the b oard and explain that sometimes vowels dont say their name and have a different sound. Ask students what vowel they hear when you say the following: apple, bed, pig, frog, bug. Call upon students to come up and take turns drawing a curved line over each vowel that you go over together. For example, write the letter a on the board and call upon a student  to draw a curved line over the a and say A short vowel sounds like ah in alligator. Continue to do this for each vowel sound.Next, teach the students the short vowel song to help them remember. You might try alternating the two songs - the short and long vowel songs - to keep students thinking and challenge them more.To help students remember short and long vowels continue to practice the songs each day until they have memorized them. If your students have an online learning portal, you might consider video taping their best performance to post. This way, you can share the film with parents, and also use it as a tool to remind students of the lyrics if they start to forget.   Edited by  Stacy Jagodowski