The computer-based CBEST is available during 12 testing windows annually on a first-come, first-served basis. Each window contains five or six days available for testing. The paper-based test is offered six Saturdays per year. In the first few days of registration for the new computer-based option, nearly 300 individuals registered.

“If the inaugural response is an indication of the popularity of this new option, test-takers will want to register as early as possible to ensure a place,” remarked Dr. P. David Pearson, Chair of the Commission.

Testing locations are in the following cities in Pearson Professional Centers:

Anaheim
Roseville
Fresno
San Diego
Gardena
San Francisco
Oakland
San Jose
Ontario
Santa Maria
Pasadena
Westlake Village
Redding
Oregon
Beaverton
Medford
Salem

Registration for computer-based testing is available on the Internet by selecting “Register Now” on the CBEST Website: http://www.cbest.nesinc.com/.

Test takers who opt for the convenience of taking the computer-based CBEST exam will pay a bit more. The fee for the computer-based exam option is $105. The additional cost covers such benefits as the more flexible administration schedule, the ease of using state of the art computers and a comfortable testing environment, and the smaller proctor to examinee ratio. The examinee cost for the paper-based CBEST administration remains unchanged at $41.

Solving distance problems is an important skill to have for the CSET Multiple Subjects exam. Distance problems usually form a geometric shape when you draw the diagram. Once you recognize the geometric shape, you then apply the appropriate formula to solve.

In this lesson we will solve two distance problems. We will then watch a video on the more advanced distance, rate, and time problem. Please note that due to .html limitations, we will be using the radical sign √ to mean the “square root” of.

Problem 1

A woman starts at home, jogs 4 miles east, and then 5 miles northwest. How far is she from home?

Step 1:
Draw a diagram of the problem:

Step 2:
Setup the equation a² + b² = c²
Notice that both a and b are on the same side of the equation so which side you choose as “a” and which side you choose as “b” is not important. What is important is that side “c” (the hypotenuse) is correct. In this case, side c is 5. So we set our equation as:
4² + b² = 5²

Step 3:
Now solve:
4² + b² = 5²
16 + b² = 25
-16          -16
b² = 9
b = √9
b = 3
So she is 3 miles from home.

Solving the surface area of a cylinder problem is something you need to know how to do for the CSET Multiple Subject exam. In this lesson we will jump right in and solve a surface area problem and then watch a video.

Problem: Suppose a water tank in the shape of a right circular cylinder is sixty feet long and sixteen feet in diameter. How much sheet metal was used in its construction?

We need to calculate the surface area of the water tank. The total surface area of the tank will be the sum of the surface areas of the sides and of the ends.

If the diameter is sixteen feet, then the radius is eight feet. The surface area of each end is given by the area formula for a circle with radius r:
(there are two end pieces, so we must multiply this by 2)
The surface area of the cylinder is the circumference of the circle, multiplied by the height:

Knowing how to calculate the area of a triangle is key for the CSET Multiple Subjects exam. In this lesson we will jump right in by solving two types of triangle problems you are likely to see on your CSET exam. You will then watch two videos on the subject.

Problem #1: If the height of a triangle is ten inches less than the length of its base, and if the area of the triangle is 100 square inches, find the base and the height.

The area of a triangle is given by the formula:

Where “b” is the base and “h” is the height (or “altitude”). We are given that the height is ten inches less than the base, therefore:
h = b – 10

Since we are given that the area is 100 square inches, we can plug our h formula into the area equation:

Frederick Douglass is a key figure in U.S. History and someone you need to study if you are going to take the CSET English or the CSET Multiple Subjects exam. For the CSET English exam, expect to see a Frederick Douglass question on Subtest IV: Communications: Speech, Media, and Creative Performance, specifically in the debate and persuasive speech sections. For the CSET Multiple Subjects exam, expect to see a Frederick Douglass question on Subtest I: History section.

In this lesson you will first read about Frederick Douglass. You will then read the Wikipedia article on Frederick Douglass. Finally, you will watch 8 videos on the life of Frederick Douglass.

Frederick Douglass

Frederick Douglass (February 14, 1818 – February 20, 1895) was an American abolitionist, editor, orator, author, statesman and reformer. Called “The Sage of Anacostia” and “The Lion of Anacostia,” Douglass was one of the most prominent figures of African American history during his time, and one of the most influential lecturers and authors in American history.

Frederick Douglass, was born a slave in Talbot County, Maryland near Hillsboro. He was separated from his mother, Harriet Bailey, when he was still an infant. She died when Douglass was about seven years old. The identity of Douglass’ father is obscure; Douglass originally stated that his father was a white man, perhaps his master, Captain Aaron Anthony, but later said that he knew nothing of his father’s identity. When Anthony died, Douglass was given to Mrs. Lucretia Auld, wife of Captain Thomas Auld; the young man was sent to Baltimore to serve the Captain’s brother, Hugh Auld. When Douglass was about twelve, Hugh Auld’s wife, Sophia, broke the law by teaching Douglass some letters of the alphabet. Thereafter, as detailed in his Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave (published in 1845), Douglass succeeded in learning to read from white children in the neighborhood in which he lived, and by observation of writings of the men with whom he worked. Douglass later referred to the lessons he received from Sophia Auld in his first abolitionist speech.

In 1837, Douglass met Anna Murray, who sold a poster bed to buy sailor’s papers needed for Frederick Douglass’s escape. Douglass escaped slavery on September 3, 1838 boarding a train to Havre de Grace, Maryland dressed in a sailor’s uniform and carrying identification papers provided by a free black seaman. After crossing the Susquehanna River by ferry boat at Havre de Grace, Douglass continued by train to Wilmington, Delaware. From there Douglass went by steamboat to “Quaker City”—Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. His escape to freedom eventually led him to New York, the entire journey taking less than twenty-four hours.

Douglass later became the publisher of a series of newspapers: North Star, Frederick Douglass Weekly, Frederick Douglass’ Paper, Douglass’ Monthly and New National Era. The motto of The North Star was “Right is of no sex–Truth is of no color–God is the Father of us all, and we are all Brethren”.

Douglass’ most well-known work is his autobiography, Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave, which was published in 1845. Critics frequently attacked the book

In this lesson I will define what independent, dependent, and relative clauses are. Next, you will look at the comma splice and the appositive. You will then learn what simple, compound, and complex sentences are. You will then watch six videos. Finally, you will take a CSET practice test on clauses. The answer key will follow at the end of this lesson.

Independent Clauses

An independent clause consists of a subject and a predicate. A subject is essentially the topic of the clause, and a predicate says something about the topic. Consider these examples (with predicates underlined):

The assistant weighed the samples.
Our supervisor submitted the proposal.
The computer has two parallel ports.
Phyllis is one of our best engineers.

In each case, we have a subject (the assistant, our supervisor, the computer, Phyllis), and in each case we say something about the subject (what they did, or what they’re like). Thus, each of the four examples above is an independent clause containing a subject and a predicate.

Dependent Clauses

Another term for dependent clause is subordinate clause: this means that the clause is subordinate to another element (the independent clause) and depends on that other element for its meaning.

A dependent clause is a clause which cannot exist on its own; it needs a main (or independent) clause to go with it. For example:

Because it was raining, I took my umbrella.

This sentence contains two clauses, “Because it was raining” and “I took my umbrella”. The first clause does not mean anything on its own. If you say “Because it was raining”, and nothing

Teacher Cover Letter

What is a teacher cover letter? A teacher cover letter is a letter that you send with your resume when you apply for a job, whether advertised or when you are sending an unsolicited application. A good teacher cover letter can make the difference in getting your resume noticed.

In many cases, your teacher cover letter for a job in a school will receive more attention than would cover letters in most other occupations. Administrators view your teacher cover letter as an indication of your enthusiasm for teaching and of how well you can communicate.

The 3 Secrets To Writing a Blockbuster Teacher Cover Letter

1) Show that you are interested in applying to that particular school district. Do a little Internet research about that school district (have they won a Blue Ribbon award?) and include what you find in your teacher cover letter.

2) Express your enthusiasm for teaching, for working with young people and/or for the particular grade level or subject you will teach.

3) Highlight your two or three strengths as a teacher - and reflect your unique experiences as a teacher.

Cover Letter Video 1

Adding and Subtracting Fractions

To add or subtract fractions, the denominators must be the same. You then add or subtract the numerators.

Example:

But how do we add or subtract fractions that do not have the same denominator?

You must make the denominators the same by changing to equivalent fractions. If you multiply both the numerator and denominator by the same number, the value of the fraction does not change.

What number should I choose as the common denominator?

Choose a common multiple of the original denominators. Choose their lowest common multiple.

Examples:

Religions Quick Notes

Buddhism

Founder: Siddhartha Gautama, called the Buddha, in the 4th or 5th century B.C. in India.
Central Figure: Budda = enlightened one
Number of God(s): None
Holy Book(s): The most important are the Tripitaka, the Mahayana Sutras, Tantra, and Zen texts.
Teachings: The Four Noble Truths – suffering exists, desire makes us suffer, end desires = end suffering, follow 8-fold path to end desires. When enlightened, one reaches nirvana, no more reincarnation.
Locality: Many Asian countries.

Introduction to Buddhism Video

This is the final part in our 2 part lesson on the Russian Fairy Tale.

We continue with our next Russian Fairy Tale The Tsarevna Frog, and we conclude the lesson with Prince Ivan and Grey Wolf.

The Tsarevna Frog

AN an old, old Russian tsarstvo, I do not know when, there lived a sovereign prince with the princess his wife. They had three sons, all of them young, and such brave fellows that no pen could describe them. The youngest had the name of Ivan Tsarevitch. One day their father said to his sons:

“My dear boys, take each of you an arrow, draw your strong bow and let your arrow fly; in whatever court it falls, in that court there will be a wife for you.”

The arrow of the oldest Tsarevitch fell on a boyar-house just in front of the terem where women live; the arrow of the second Tsarevitch flew to the red porch of a rich merchant, and on the porch there stood a sweet girl, the merchant’s daughter. The youngest, the brave Tsarevitch Ivan, had the ill luck to send his arrow into the midst of a swamp, where it was caught by a croaking frog.

Ivan Tsarevitch came to his father: “How can I marry the frog?” complained the son. “Is she my equal? Certainly she is not.”

“Never mind,” replied his father, “you have to marry the frog, for such is evidently your destiny.”

In this lesson we will review what all fairy tales have in common. Next we will try and define what exactly the Russian Fairy Tale is. Next we will read about the Russian Fairy tale Baba Yaga and watch a video. Finally we will read the famous Russian Fairy Tales: Fenist the Bright Falcon, The Tsarevna Frog, and Prince Ivan and Grey Wolf.

What All Fairy Tales Have In Common

Fairy tales are very old stories of magical events often passed down by word of mouth.

Characters: Typical fairy tale characters often include the following: princess, peasant, youngest sister, cruel older sisters, simpleton, cruel stepmother, giant, witch, talking animals, and magical helpers.

Settings: Typical fairy tale settings include: castles, cottages, mountains, rivers, forests, and gardens.

Fairy tale plots include:
Hero (or heroine) heroine has bad luck
Hero (or heroine) must perform impossible tasks
Hero (or heroine) must fight a villain
Hero (or heroine) meets magical helpers
Hero (or heroine) is treated badly
Hero (or heroine) is in danger
Magic spells
Transformations—animals turn into humans or humans turn into animals or objects such as trees or buildings.
Villain is punished.
Hero (or heroine) is rewarded with wealth
Hero (or heroine) is rewarded with a happy marriage
Things happen in threes (three battles, three tasks)

Russian Fairy Tales

So what are Russian Fairy Tales? The Folk-tale in general, and the Skazka in particular. They

In this article http://www.acethecset.com/blog1/teachers-resume/ I gave you a Word template to use to build your resume along with lots of tips and pointers for creating your resume.

This article is going to provide you with a few sample teacher resumes that will get you noticed. Remember, the main purpose of your resume is to get you the job interview. Your resume is not going to get you the job, it’s the job interview that will do that. This is probably the biggest mistake I see job seekers make: trying to do to much with their resume.

Listed below are the sample teacher’s resumes. Each sample teacher resume is in its own PDF for you to download to your computer. You can choose any of these sample teacher resume templates for your own use.

Sample Teacher Resumes

Sample Teacher’s Resume 1 - Example Elementary Teacher Resume

Sample Teacher’s Resume 2 - Example of Another Elementary Teacher Resume

Sample Teacher’s Resume 3 - Example English Teacher Resume

Sample Teacher’s Resume 4 - Example Math Teacher Resume

Remember, your resume will only have a few seconds to capture the reader’s attention. You have to strike while the iron is hot and capture their interest right away, in the first sentence they lay their eyes on. Having a quote at the top of your resume followed by a testimonial (see Sample Teacher’s Resume 1, above) is really hot and is highly effective.

The President of CareerJimmy, explains:

There are two, little-Known, job search mistakes that keep most job seekers ‘Stuck In The Mud.’

1. Nothing happens, and I mean NOTHING HAPPENS(!) until YOUR telephone rings for the job interview.” Landing the job interview… getting your “foot in the company door” is ALL that matters! (Read that again, it’s where your focus MUST be).

2. Resume Magic: A simple, well-written resume seasoned with a few special ingredients can flood your calendar with top job interview requests, easier and faster than you can ever imagine. Why? Because truly amazing resumes are not resumes at all… they are sales letters! Did you get that? Your resume is an opportunity for you to “sell” yourself into a job interview.

A well written resume can double as a fantastic sales letter and the vast majority of job seekers do not understand this fact.

With 367 people all applying for the same teaching position as you, the pile of resumes and cover letters to sort through was massive, and your application, like 95% of them, was treated like an old newspaper and tossed right into the recycle bin.

Why? Because your resume and cover letter did nothing to stand out and grab the attention of the employer!

One “typical” resume can KILL months of your precious time, producing little or no results, costing you thousands of dollars in lost income while providing you with nothing but anxiety, stress and frustration in return.

One brilliantly-worded resume can change your life overnight.

Click here to discover what a brilliantly-worded resume looks like and to read more from Mr. Sweeney

By Karen McDonald
http://www.ACEtheCSET.com

Chinua Achebe’s Things Fall Apart

Chinua Achebe (November 16, 1930 - still living) is one of the most well-known contemporary writers from Africa, specifically, Nigeria.

Achebe was born in Ogidi, Nigeria and attended University College in Ibadan. During the Nigeria-Biafra war of 1967 to 1970, he worked for the Biafran government as an ambassador, an experience that inspired him to write the poem Refugee Mother and Child.

Achebe is considered the father of the African novel in English as well as one of the world’s most acclaimed writers. His modern African classic Things Fall Apart, published in 1958, has sold over 10 million copies around the world and has been translated into fifty languages.

He is currently Charles P. Stevenson Professor of Languages and Literature at Bard College in Upstate New York. He is married to Professor Christie Chinwe Achebe, with whom he has 4 children.

In 1990 he was paralyzed from the waist down in a car accident.

Read the Wikipedia article on Chinua Achebe then return to this lesson:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chinua_Achebe

This lesson is comprised of a review of key concepts, two videos to watch, a CSET Convert Fractions practice test, and finally the answer key.

What Is An Improper Fraction?

An improper fraction has a numerator (top number) larger than or equal to the denominator (bottom number).

Examples:

5/4 or 4/3

Converting Improper Fractions to Mixed Fractions

To convert an improper fraction to a mixed fraction, follow these steps:

1. Divide the numerator by the denominator.
2. Write down the whole number answer
3. Then write down any remainder above the denominator.

Example: Convert 5/4 to a mixed fraction.

Divide: 5 ÷ 4 = 1 with a remainder of 1
Write down the 1 and then write down the remainder (1) above the denominator (4), like this:

You can check to see if you converted the improper fraction to a mixed fraction correct by doing this:

In this lesson we will first watch a short video on the American Revolution to establish historical context. Next, we will learn what broadsides are. Finally, we will close the lesson by reading the text of a broadside.

Broadsides and the American Revolution

American Revolution: The Causes

Broadsides are notices written on disposable, single sheets of paper printed on one side only, intended to have an immediate impact on readers.

Broadsides did have an impact in colonial America. They delivered the latest news and much more: government proclamations, public service announcements, opinion papers, advertisements, and entertainment updates. Broadsides address virtually every aspect of the American Revolution. What most people don’t know is that the Declaration of Independence was known as the Dunlap Broadside.

Read this Wikipedia article on the Dunlap Broadside then return to this lesson:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dunlap_broadside

Colonial printers of newspapers and almanacs often printed broadsides as a source of extra income, in addition to other jobbing work, and some printers sold books and stationery supplies as well. Essential late-breaking news was transmitted as broadside “Postscripts” or “Extras” to the weekly newspapers. Official government business and notices of meetings were disseminated by broadsides; they were used to preach morality and to demonstrate the consequences of wrongdoing; but ballads and verse were also popular and plentiful. Illustrations were difficult to design and time-consuming to cut from wood, so most printers accumulated a supply of “stock” woodcuts for repeated use.

Revolutionary leaders used widely-circulated newspaper extras to publicize colonial solidarity

The most important holiday in China is the New Year, also known as the Spring Festival. It falls in late January or early February, the actual date being determined by the Chinese lunar calendar. The celebrations last for 15 days, although in modern times most families celebrate for only five. Perhaps the most popular event of the festivities is a colorful parade through the city streets. It features a huge, undulating cloth dragon and prancing lions, which make their way through the flurry of excited spectators amid frequent bursts of firecrackers.

The Spring festival celebrates the earth coming back to life, and the start of ploughing and sowing. In the past, feudal rulers of dynasties placed great importance on this occasion, and ceremonies to usher in the season were performed.

Preparations for the New Year festival start during the last few days of the last moon. Houses are thoroughly cleaned, debts repaid, hair cut and new clothes bought. Doors are decorated with vertical scrolls of characters on red paper whose texts seek good luck and praise nature, this practice stemming from the hanging of peach-wood charms to keep away ghosts and evil spirits. In many homes incense is burned, and also in the temples as a mark of respect to ancestors.

On New Year’s Eve houses are brightly lit and a large family dinner is served. In the south of China sticky-sweet glutinous rice pudding called nian gao is served, while in the north the steamed dumpling jiaozi is popular. Most celebrating the festival stay up till midnight, when fireworks are lit, to drive away evil spirits. New Years day is often spent visiting neighbors, family and friends.

The origin of the Chinese New Year is too old to trace; but the tales about it are quite interesting. Legend has it that there was a beast called Nian (which means “year” in Chinese) that would come to China the night before the new year began (according to the Chinese Calendar) and prey upon the people. One of the legends has it that Nian had a very big mouth

Helen Beatrix Potter was the author and illustrator of a popular series of children’s books that includes The Tale of Peter Rabbit (1902), The Tailor of Gloucester (1903) and The Tale of the Flopsy Bunnies (1909).

She lived a lonely life at home, being educated by a governess and having little contact with other people. She had many animals which she kept as pets, studying them and making drawings (she was an excellent illustrator who learned to draw by observing and sketching her environment and she most often did pencil sketches and watercolor drawings).

A typical Victorian family, the Potters lived in a large house with several servants. Beatrix was cared for by a nurse, and she spent long hours alone, only seeing her parents at bedtime and on special occasions.

Her parents took her on three month summer holidays to Scotland, but when the house they rented became unavailable, they rented Wray Castle near Ambleside in the Lake District. Beatrix was 16 when they first stayed here.

For the next 21 years on and off, the Potters holidayed in the Lake District, staying once at Wray Castle, once at Fawe Park, twice at Holehird and nine times at Lingholm, by Derwentwater, famous now for its rhododendron gardens. Beatrix loved Derwentwater. She watched squirrels in the woods, saw rabbits in the vegetable gardens of the big house and made many sketches of the landscape.

Frederick Warne published ‘The Tale of Peter Rabbit’ in 1902. In 1903 Beatrix bought a field in Near Sawrey, near where they had holidayed that year. She now had an income from her books, Peter Rabbit having now sold over 50,000 copies. In 1905 she bought Hill Top, a little farm in Sawrey, and the next 8 years she spent writing more books. In 1909 she bought another farm opposite Hill Top, Castle Farm. Seven of her books are based in or around Hill Top. Hill Top is now the most visited literary shrine in the Lake District.

Beatrix Potter married William Heelis and spent most of her time a Lakeland farmer, writing little.

When she died on 22 December 1943, Beatrix Potter left fourteen farms and 4,000 acres of land

Poe’s source of happiness was writing poetry, but he also raised the short-story to an art form and was one of the first to write detective stories. His dark, gothic tales of mystery and imagination had heavy influence on the modern thriller. Among his most famous works in poetry are: Ulalume, The Bells, The City in the Sea, and The Raven. Among his many short stories, The Tell Tale Heart, and The Cask Of Amontillado, are two of his most popular works.

Poe developed a theory of composition that he applied to both his short stories and his poems. Its most basic principle was that insofar as short fiction and poetry were concerned, the writer should aim at creating a single and total psychological/spiritual effect upon the reader. The theme or plot of the piece is always subordinate to the author’s calculated construction of a single, intense mood in the reader’s or listener’s mind, be it melancholy, suspense, or horror. There are no extra elements in Poe, no subplots, no minor characters, and no digressions except those that show the madness of deranged first-person (”I”) narrators.

Read the Wikipedia article on Edgar Allan Poe and then return to this lesson:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edgar_Allan_Poe

Edgar Allen Poe Videos

The Raven- Edgar Allen Poe

Thomas Stearns Eliot (September 26, 1888 – January 4, 1965) was an American (naturalized British) poet, dramatist and literary critic, whose works, such as The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock, The Waste Land, The Hollow Men, and Four Quartets, are considered defining achievements of twentieth century Modernist poetry. In 1948, he won the Nobel Prize for Literature. He was one of the most influential poets of the 20th century.

Read this Wikipedia article about T.S. Eliot then return to this lesson:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/T._S._Eliot

In Modernist poetry, the speaker himself is uncertain about his or her own ontological bearings. The speaker of modernist poems characteristically wrestles with the fundamental question of “self,” often feeling fragmented and alienated from the world around him. In other words, a coherent speaker with a clear sense of himself/herself is hard to find in modernist poetry.

Such ontological feelings of fragmentation and alienation, which often led to a more pessimistic and bleak outlook on life as manifested in representative modernist poems such as T.S. Eliot’s The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock (1917), were prompted by fundamental and far-reaching historical, social, cultural, and economic changes in the early 1900s. These changes transformed the world from one that seemed ordered and stable to one that felt futile and chaotic.

Modernism, which flourished from the 1890s to 1939, arose from a set of occurrences — cultural, scientific and material — that changed the nature of modern life. Modernism altered perceptions while capturing the imagination of patrons and publishers and worrying the stalwarts of the establishment. Some of its more flamboyant creations intrigued, frustrated, inspired and even enraged the public.

The Modernists reformed all of the arts — architecture, dance, literature, music and painting — by appropriating the great technological breakthroughs of the period into the fields of artistic endeavor and cultural production.

The epic poem the Ramayana is thought to have been composed more than 2500 years ago, and like the Iliad and the Odyssey, was originally transmitted orally by bards. The full poem contains more than 24,000 verses, and was and continues to be a somewhat mutable work. Tellers of the epic add and delete pieces of the story, or localize the action by entering recognizably regional place names. The poem also changes as it is translated and reconstituted in each of India’s many different languages, taking on the new sounds and poetic structures of each language. While details main change, particularly through these processes of localization and translation, the main tenets of the story remain intact, and it continues to be used as an example of correct behavior by living one’s dharma.

The foundation the Ramayana is its use as a tool for instructing past, present and future generations in the code of right and moral behavior. This foundation is one of the main reasons why a story that was composed several millennia ago has survived, and still plays an important role in Indian society today. These lessons are put forth through the long string of moral conundrums that all of the story’s main characters encounter. The path that each character follows when confronted with these dilemmas is directly connected to the Hindu concept of dharma. Dharma includes both good and righteous behavior according to one’s role in society, and the correct performance of one’s role in society in any given situation. Following one’s dharma will result in the consistent and correct performance of one’s duties, according their responsibilities and station in life. The answers- both positive and negative- to the dilemmas presented in the Ramayana are clearly delineated in the behavior of the nearly binary cast of characters: Rama, as a good character, always follows dharma and makes the right choices, while Ravana, as an evil character, fails to follow dharma and always makes the wrong choices.

A predictable component of the Ramayana can be found in the repeated and reinforced lessons of dharma. The presence of the lessons of dharma in each episode of the story give a focus

From tanka’s long history - over 1300 years recorded in Japan- the most famous use of the poetry form of tanka was as secret messages between lovers. Arriving home in the morning, after having dallied with a lover all night, it became the custom of well-mannered persons to write an immediate thank-you note for the pleasures of the hospitality. Stylized into a convenient five lines of 5-7-5-7-7 onji, the little poem expressing one’s feelings were sent in special paper containers, written on a fan, or knotted on a branch or stem of a single blossom. These were delivered to the lover by personal messenger who then was given something to drink along with his chance to flirt with the household staff. During this interval a responding tanka was to be written in reply to the first note which the messenger would return to his master.

During Japan’s Heian period (794-1185 A.D.) it was considered essential for a woman or man of culture to be able to both compose beautiful poetry and to choose the most aesthetically pleasing and appropriate paper, ink, and symbolic attachment—such as a branch, a flower—to go with it.

Most tanka poetry deals with gentle, passionate, wistful, new or lost love, and intense pain or sadness.

Tanka have changed and evolved over the centuries, but the form of five syllabic units containing 31 syllables has remained the same.Topics have expanded from the traditional expressions of passion and heartache, and styles have changed to include modern language and even colloquialisms.

In Japanese, tanka is often written in one straight line, but in English and other languages, we usually divide the lines into the five syllabic units: 5-7-5-7-7. There should be two separate divisions, the dominant pattern being 5-7-5 / 7-7, as if the last two lines acted as commentary on a haiku.

The fine point of a Japanese poem in almost any form is the point where the poem “pivots.” In

For most people, buying a computer does not have to be as stressful as buying a car. Nor does it have to be as expensive. If you’re like most teacher candidates, and you have a limited budget for buying a computer, then you need to try to buy a computer for as cheap as possible.

Here are 6 simple ways to save money when you buy a computer:

1) Shop around for the best deal. Thanks to the Internet, you can shop for a computer in about 5 seconds. Here are the results of a Google comparison of the best deals on computers listed side by side:
Buying A Computer Cheap, Google Comparison List For The Best Deals

Sounds pretty obvious. But many people don’t realize they don’t need the fastest, most expensive computer with the most “extras”. In fact, if you are already using an older computer, even the least expensive new computer will be a big upgrade.

2) When you buy a computer, how are you going to finance it? Are you going to put it on a credit card or pay cash? There are many new computer financing options available. One of the most popular is the one by Dell. Dell offers computer financing with no interest for 6 - 12 months based on the type of computer you buy. The monthly payment is usually around $20 per month. Another financing option when you buy a computer is with Purchasing Power. If Dell turns you down for their credit card because of bad credit, Purchasing Power does not do a credit check. You can qualify for Purchasing Power based on your job, not your credit score.

3) Install your own “extras”. When you buy a computer, the computer store will try and get you to buy as many “extras” as they can. This might convenient, but you are usually paying more than you have to for this convenience. You should shop around for your own software. For example, it will cost you about $250 extra to have the computer store put Microsoft Office on your computer. You can save this $250 by installing the free Microsoft Office work-a-like. Check it out here: http://www.openoffice.org/ It can do everything Microsoft Office can do plus a little more and it’s totally free!

But don’t do this with anti-virus or anti-spyware software. Your security is too important to

Crockett was born in a cabin near the Nolichucky River in Greene County, Tennessee (not on a mountaintop).

There is no historical record that Crockett killed a bear when he was three years old.

Crockett stood about 5 feet 10 inches (1.78 m) tall and weighed approximately 190 pounds (86 kg). He was engaged to marry Margaret Elder, and although the marriage never took place, the contract of marriage (dated October 21, 1805), has been preserved by the Dandridge, Tennessee courthouse. It is well-documented that Crockett’s bride-to-be ran out on the wedding and married someone else.

On September 24, 1813, he enlisted in the Second Regiment of Tennessee Volunteer Mounted Riflemen for ninety days and served under Colonel John Coffee in the Creek War. He was discharged from service on March 27, 1815. Crockett won the election of lieutenant colonel of the Fifty-seventh Regiment of Militia on March 27, 1818.

On September 17, 1821, Crockett was elected to the Committee of Propositions and Grievances. In 1826 and 1828 he was elected to the United States House of Representatives. As a Congressman, Crockett supported the rights of squatters, who were barred from buying land in the West without already owning property which made in popular among the “common folk”.

Crockett was a staunch opponent of wasteful government spending, another popular position among common folk.

On October 31, 1835, Crockett left Tennessee for Texas, writing “I want to explore Texas well before I return”. He arrived in Nacogdoches, Texas, in early January 1836. On January 14, Crockett and 65 other men signed an oath before Judge John Forbes to the Provisional Government of Texas for six months. “I have taken the oath of government and have enrolled

Selling Your Used Car

Tip #1 - Sell your car at the right time of year. If you can help it, do not sell your car around Christmas time. No one has any money at this time of year. Also, during most holidays, people are out of town or on vacation.

Tip #2 - Try to sell your car on a week-night. Selling your car on the weekend is what everybody does. The problem with this is that buyers are off from work and so they are able to shop for used cars all day. This means they will be comparing your car to many other cars. If you sell your car on a week-night, your potential buyers will have less time to compare your car to other cars which will work in your favor.

Tip #3 - Make a good first impression. Clean all the junk out of your car, wash your car, vacuum your car, and hang a nice smelling car deodorizer in it. You also should use armor all car wash wipes. Armor all car wash wipes gives everything a sort of wet, shiny look which hides lots of scratches on interior services. For the outside of your used car, fix auto scratches by buying a tube of Fix It for $20. Fix It is the fastest scratch remover that safely removes scratches, dings, and nicks from your car’s finish quickly and easily. Don’t worry about spending the $20, you will be able to easily sell your car for $300 more by doing this.

Tip #4 - Have your paperwork ready. Be prepared by putting your paper work into a folder that prospects can look at. Have your keys and spare keys ready as well. People purchase used cars on impulse. You want to make it as easy as possible for them to purchase your used car on impulse. If they have to stand around waiting for you to find the keys or the paper work, the impulse factor begins to fade and they may just tell you, “I’ll get back to you.” When someone says, “I’ll get back to you,” it usually means no.

Used Car For Sale Free Advertising

Tip #5 - Make a sign and stick it in your car window. This is free advertising on wheels and you need to do this, especially if you are still driving the used car you want to sell around town. If

We will study permutations, then combinations, watch a few videos, and close the lesson with a CSET practice test. You will also be given a permutations and combinations calculator that you can use to test the solution of your own problems. The most effective way to use the permutations and combinations calculator at the end of this lesson is to grab a paper and pencil and create your own permutations and combinations problems. You then use the calculator at the end of this lesson to check your answers.

Permutations

Permutations are for calculating the number of ways a task can be arranged or ordered.

When you need to count the number of ways you can arrange items where ORDER is important, then you can use permutation to count.

The factorial symbol is the exclamation point: !

When you are asked to solve 3! what this means is: (3)(2)(1) = 6

The Permutation Formula

An ORDER of arrangements of r objects, without repetition, selected from n distinct objects is called a permutation of n objects taken r at a time, and is denoted as:

Example: In how many ways can the 3 letters A, B, and C be arranged?

But for most of us, this is the only way we can afford to go to school and so we bend over and grab our ankles in front of the private bankers to get a student screwool loan. If you are looking for a screwool loan, be aware that there are many different types of loans. Try to find the student loan that fits you the best. For example, there is a loan called the Federal Stafford Loan. The Federal Stafford Loan is the most widely used loan in the student education loan program.

What Is A Deferment?

If for some reason you are unable to meet your monthly payments, consider a college loan deferment. A deferment is a suspension of payments for special reasons. Usually, those who borrowed their first Stafford Loans after July 1, 1993, are eligible to defer payments if they are enrolled in at least half-time at an eligible school, unemployed, in a graduate fellowship program, in a rehabilitation training program for people with disabilities, or suffering economic hardship.

How I Got In Trouble With My Student Loan

I consolidated my Federal Stafford Loan with Wells Fargo. Back in 1999, interest rates were high and so I was locked in at 8.5%. The reason I consolidated my loan was to have one easy payment. Bad reason! What Wells Fargo didn’t tell me is that once I consolidated my loan, that was it for life. I could not later refinance the loan at a lower interest rate because the Department of Education prohibits that. What a bunch of bull. You can refinance a car, a home, but not your student loan?! If a finance company can pay off my student loan and then I borrow

Wikipedia writes: “Her home life was stable and loving, although she encountered racial prejudice in her neighborhood and in her schools. She first attended Hyde Park High School, a leading white high school, before transferring to all-black Wendell Phillips. Brooks eventually attended an integrated school, Englewood High School. Her enthusiasm for reading and writing was encouraged by her parents. Her father provided a desk and bookshelves, and her mother took her, when she was in high school, to meet Harlem Renaissance poets Langston Hughes and James Weldon Johnson.”

Her 1949 book of poetry, Annie Allen, received a Pulitzer Prize in 1950, the first won by an African American. In 1968, she was made Poet Laureate of Illinois. Other awards she received included the Frost Medal, the Shelley Memorial Award, and an award from the American Academy of Arts and Letters. Brooks was awarded more than 75 honorary degrees from colleges and universities worldwide.

Her poetry is rooted in the poor and mostly African American South Side of Chicago. Her poems range in style from traditional ballads and sonnets to blues rhythms in free verse, and her characters are often from the poor inner city. Her bluesy poem We Real Cool is often found in school textbooks. She is seen as a leader of the Black Arts movement.

We Real Cool’s beauty, strength, and power are rooted in its effective use of line breaks and enjambment (running over from one line of poetry to the next without a stop). Brooks’ strategic choice of line breaks affects virtually every aspect of the poem: its pace, rhythm, mood, tone, characters, sound, and meaning.

Read this Wikipedia article on Gwendolyn Brooks then return to this lesson:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gwendolyn_Brooks

WARNING: Do not miss the video at the end of this article! Did you know you can find out what coupons are coming in your Sunday paper BEFORE Sunday? Find out this and much more in the grocery coupon video by SavvySaver007 at the end of this article.

Tip #1. Grocery sales fliers come out every week in the paper and online. Look through them and plan your shopping list. The best way to save big money off your grocery bill is to plan your menu for the week based on the sales ads. Look for a combination of sales items that can work together to make a meal. For example, if chips and refried beans are on sale, plan to have nachos one night. Don’t go crazy on this concept. This does not mean that I’m suggesting you have to eat nachos every night of the week, but it should be on your menu. If potatoes are on sale, have potatoes with a couple of meals.

Tip #2. Use Grocery store coupons. Using coupons to save money is a good idea but becareful. Don’t just purchase a product that you aren’t going to use just because you have a coupon. Also always check out the other brands of a product before purchasing the item you have the coupon for. Store or generic brands can be cheaper than name brand products on sale, even with a coupon.

Tip #3. Shop for items BEFORE you run out of them. If you run out of an item you’ll have to pay whatever the store is charging that week.

Tip #4. Make a grocery list and plan your spending to avoid impulse buys. Only buy what’s on your grocery list.

Tip #5. Due to volume discounts, larger grocery stores are usually cheaper than smaller ones. Avoid trips to the small mini-mart or 7 Eleven.

Jane Eyre is a classic romance novel. When Charlotte Bronte set out to write the novel Jane Eyre, she was determined to create a main character who challenged the notion of the ideal Victorian woman.

Bronte’s determination to portray a plain yet passionate young woman who defied the stereotype of the docile and domestic Victorian feminine ideal most likely developed from her own dissatisfaction with domestic duties and a Victorian culture that discouraged women from having literary aspirations.

Historical Context

During an era when etiquette guides circulated freely, empire waists gave way to tiny-waisted corsets, and tea parties grew in popularity, it might seem incongruous that realistic novels would set the Victorian literary trend. Perhaps the socially conscious novel may have been a result of the belief of the rising middle class of Victorian England in the possibility for change, since they had witnessed such economic changes in their lifetimes.

Even though the Industrial Revolution opened up new venues for lower-class women, offering them new factory jobs in place of household work, it did not do much good for the middle class. A single woman at this economic level still had only one option for respectable employment: working as a governess. Although a woman could maintain a decent living with this job, she could also anticipate “no security of employment, minimal wages, and an ambiguous status, somewhere between servant and family member, that isolated her within the household”. Before 1848, no women’s colleges existed, and even if they had, a woman could not have improved her professional prospects by attending one. The precarious lifestyle of the governess remained all that a middle-class, single woman could strive for.

Tip # 1. Empty the Temp directory regularly. After a while, the temp directory fills up with hundreds of temp files that gets scanned when Windows starts up and when programs launch. This slows everything down. This is why the longer you have a computer, the slower it gets. It is not something you have to live with. Many people think that their computer just slows down because it is old and so it is something they just have to live with. Not true.

Close all your open programs. Then go to your temp folder. Nothing should be there. If you do have files there, delete them.

To delete Temp files, make sure NO programs are open, and…

a. In Windows 95, 98 or Me, go to C:WindowsTemp and delete everything inside the Temp folder.

b. In Windows 2000 or XP, it is a little trickier. First, make sure that you can see hidden folders. Double-click My Computer. Click on the Tools pull-down menu, and then on Folder Options. Click on the View tab. Scroll down and click on Show Hidden Files and Folders. Click Ok. If you have Windows XP service pack 2, go to your local hard drive which is usually C. Then go to Documents and Settings. Then go to the folder with the name of your computer that you used when you first installed Windows XP. Mine is called LanceJ. Now go to the Local Settings folder. Next go to the folder called Temp. Select all the files and then delete. If you get an error that a temp file is in use so it will not delete all your files, make sure every open program is closed. Then select all the files then de-select the temp file that is giving you this error and then delete the rest. A few files in your Temp folder is not a problem. Hundreds of files is the problem. Delete what you can and don’t worry if you have a few files that won’t delete in your Temp folder.

Tip #2. Empty the Temporary Internet Files regularly. To empty Temporary Internet Files, go to your Control Panel and double-click the Internet Options icon. Choose to Delete Cookies, and to Delete Files. This will clear all of your Temporary Internet Files.

Tip #3. Check your hard disks for problems.

a. For Windows 95, 98, or Me, double-click My Computer. Right-click the C-drive and click on

James Langston Hughes (February 1, 1902 - May 22,