southphilly

= Mrs. C's Business =

Introduction
My name is Mrs. Cowans and I am a Business Teacher at @Camden High School in Camden, NJ. I have taught several subjects including Office Systems 1 & 2, Business Law, Personal Finance, Entrepreneurship, and Accounting. One thing I love about my job is that I am rarely bored because I teach so many different things. That can be a problem when you have to some up with several lesson plans each week, however. I make it work, though.

Favorite Things
To quote a line from an old musical, "These are a few of my favorite things..."
 * family and friends
 * my "Church family"
 * reading
 * baseball, especially my Phillies
 * ‍movies that end "happily ever after"‍

Burning Question
**Why Can't My Students Sign Their Names?** I understand that some think that cursive writing is not high on the list of things we need to teach 3rd graders, but there are definitely times when cursive, especially signing one's name, is necessary. I learned this sad fact when I taught my students to write checks, a possibly outdated skill, but useful in teaching about checking accounts. Many states do not feel it important, given the emphasis on technology. The following video discusses some of the pros and cons of teaching children to write cursive:

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Your signature is a way you can express who you are in addition to being required on certain documents.The ones who could not sign their names were truly embarrassed. Experts like Dr. Willam Klemm say that cursive writing enhances brain development. Because they couldn't write cursive, some of students that wanted to forge their parent's name on AUP forms or other school documents were unable to do so. Hmm. Maybe that's not so bad.

Maybe I am old fashioned, but I want students to learn cursive.
 *  What do you think? **

Online Slideshows? Why Not!
Using Voicethread to put together this slideshow was not as much of a problem as I thought it would be. Once you have your proper attribution for the photos in Flikr, you are home free. There are many websites where you can get helpful instructions on Voicehtread. Here is on I made of my trip to Europe.

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If your internet connection is good and you have a lesson where you would normally incorporate PowerPoint, I encourage everyone to try an online slideshow.