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MEMOIRS OF A "___ " TEACHER - WHY YOU SHOULD WRITE YOUR MEMOIRS - CAMP's - NGO JOURNEY

Updated: 2 days ago


HELP US CHOOSE A TITLE for our next MEMOIR book:
memoirS of A VETERAN TEACHER in America

By T. A. Terga, "Ms T" AS STUDENTS CALLED HER


which title sounds best?

  1. memoirs of a "re-tired" teacher,
  2. MEMOIRS OF A "MAD" TEACHER,
or 3. memoirs of a ________ teacher,

FILL IN THE BLANK

Let us know- Choose a title for our new book.

In this blog:


I. What's going on in education?

Should our schools introduce empathy as a standard of human development?


Plus...


II. EXCERPTS from Angela's teacher memoirs

(she taught everywhere all the time until she didn't.)

When Life offers AN ADVENTURE YOU CAN'T REFUSE: "The metamorphosis of an idea"


and...


III. WHAT WE HAVE BUILT SO FAR .....

tat productions and conscious arts media productions

From STORY TIME TO THE BIG FIVE: The Legend of Spiderwoman Taharai, the Eco Queen who gave rise to a publishing and speaking business.


  1. Published book by client authors

  2. T.A. Terga books revenue go directly to CAMP

  3. Peace Talk & Conscious Art Workshop


IV. SHOULD you write your memoirs

We will guide you every step of the way.


Call Angela (863-434-6989)


I. What's going on WITH TEACHER PAY?


IF WE WERE PAID $100 EVERY TIME A POLITICIAN SAYS "WE HAVE TO PAY OUR TEACHERS MORE," WE WOULD HAVE OVER TEN MILLION DOLLARS.


If teachers once had the respect of society, they are now the second-to-last income rung on the professional ladder. Society compensates those who have more. Before committing to a profession, it's necessary to analyze the long-term financial situation and be prepared to make lifestyle adjustments that will last a lifetime. For example, a teacher is not able to make it on one salary, making having a partner necessary.

  • In the U.S., fewer people are earning bachelor’s degrees in Education than in previous decades.1 

  • More than three-quarters of U.S. states are experiencing a teacher shortage.13 

  • 82,621 people earned their Bachelor’s degree in education in 2021.15

  • 77% of public school teachers were female, and 23% were male in 2020–21. 6

  • On average, teachers work 53.3 hours a week teaching and doing school-related work. 9

  • The average teacher will impact more than 3,000 students throughout the course of their career. 8

  • The U.S. had around 36,500 teacher vacancies at the start of the 2022-23 school year. 8

  • Elementary and secondary public school teachers in the United States are considerably less racially and ethnically diverse as a group than their students. 7

  • During the 2017-18 school year, 15% of all U.S. public school teachers were under the age of 30. 1

Teachers need an upgrade in pay and working conditions: When the average rent in a "nice" neighborhood takes over half a paycheck, you realize how stuck you are because the other half is barely enough to cover the rest of the cost of living. Forget about vacations and investments. When you are a single-salaried household with kids, that makes it triple hard.


Teachers get a laborer's salary but are denied after-hours pay and over time.

Teachers summer "vacation" pay is actually a layoff that denies teachers unemployment benefits.


Teacher are being used as digital pushers which denies students human engagement.



  • Even with record-level increases in some states, average teacher pay has failed to keep up with inflation over the past decade. Adjusted for inflation, on average, teachers are making 5% less than they did 10 years ago.

  • At 4.4%, the increase in starting salary represents the most significant increase over the 15 years NEA has been tracking increases in starting teacher pay. However, due to a 3.0% inflation rate, this year’s real salary growth was only 1.5%, resulting in inflation-adjusted starting salaries that are now $3,728 below 2008-2009 levels.

  • The union advantage: Teachers earn 24% more, on average, in states with collective bargaining, and education support professionals earn 7% more.

$46,526

WHEN IT SHOULD BE

$72,030


The Psychology Behind Prosocial Behaviours

Psychology shows us that prosocial behavior, actions intended to benefit others, is influenced by both empathy and compassion. Engaging in these behaviours not only promotes connectivity in social groups but also benefits one’s own psychological wellbeing. In fact, Michelle Connolly, a seasoned educational consultant, asserts, “By teaching empathy and fostering prosocial behaviors, we’re not just creating kinder individuals, we’re enhancing the social fabric of our schools and communities.”


II. EXCERpTS FROM Memoirs of a Mad Teacher

Quitting your job of 22 years

At the time, I was in a great school for museum education at an excellent location, and my sons were young adults when the yearning to become an artist, writer, filmmaker, got hold of me.


But I felt I couldn't breathe in my skin. I became angry and frustrated. I wanted out. I didn't want to end up like the rest of my colleagues at retirement age without having experienced the "real world" and changed the adage from "those who can't do, teach," to "teachers can do."


The calamitous teaching conditions the profession has already been forced to assimilate: 1. No teacher aides, 2.No supplies, 3. No planning periods, 4. Embarrassingly low wages for a professional with so much responsibility, 5. Expensive and inadequate health/dental insurance, 6. Professional restrictive clauses, like penalties for a leave of absence and for changing districts, not to mention transfers to another State. It got worse with technology, not easier.


So I jumped off the education bandwagon thinking I could start a new career and fell hard. Some see it as a midlife crisis. I think it was an act of despair. I had always twirled with the idea of being a writer, but had no idea how it would happen. It soon turned into filmmaking and became an obsession after participating in film festivals and hanging out with other wannabe filmmakers, actors, and cinematographers.


It was then or never, I thought. So I went back to school for film, MFA in screenwriting, rearranged my job place to free up money, and produced a feature film based on a story I wrote when I started teaching. Before I could figure out more, the coronavirus froze everything. I had three contracts before the pandemic, none after.


Becoming the ME I always wanted to be was quite frightening. I ended up on a surgery table getting double hip replacement surgeries. Coming out of that, the mad teacher, turned burgeoning writer, had an idea, and the metamorphosis of that idea is still in development.


People who knew me thought I had gone mad. When I explained I wanted to be a writer, they'd scorn,"Have you made any money yet?"


Sometimes students refer to a teacher as mad. It is not necessarily negative. A teacher can 'get mad.' A teacher can also be a little different or act a little crazy. Like the good actress that a teacher is, a teacher can pretend to be 'crazy about something' or choose to do something so different that they might say it is 'crazy.' Everybody loves a crazy teacher; they're unusual, have personality quirks, and are downright fascinating.


I still love teaching, and I'm a natural. I've been practicing since childhood. I had my first pretend class in second grade. But my real journey started at a private school in Latin America where I taught English to kids from Pre-K to 6th grade, using a program provided by the school. I added theatre and other kinetic activities. Kids loved it.


I have had the most remarkable experiences teaching at every grade level from Kindergarten to college since I was 18, and have never stopped teaching until the coronavirus hit in 2019.


Teaching taught me so much bout human nature, individuality, ethnicity, culture, and how to help people learn to accomplish a task. Learning is like peace, you have to practice learning to learn, just like you have to practice peace to be peaceful. I read that in other countries, teaching empathy is part of the curriculum.


We need more empathy in our world. However, 'Empathy' is not a standard of human development recognized in our educational goals.


Kids are great! They will make your day; it is also stressful to be with kids all day M-F. After a certain number of years, change is necessary and sometimes inevitable.


The worst thing about teaching was having no time during the day for yourself and too many things to do after hours. In the private schools I taught, the load was much less, there was more help, and lower per-pupil ratios. There may even be a teacher assistant.


III. jump into the void:

from teacher to screenwriter to author, ghostwriter& publisher


After learning how to copywrite and freelance on several platforms for a few clients, self-publishing and selling books seemed the next phase IN the metamorphosis of an idea. Nothing is impossible, reads the marquee at the Pentecostal church I attended, where I was baptized in the Holy Spirit again. However, not "everything" is possible.


These are the books we have published at TAT Productions and CAMP (Conscious Arts Media Productions). Please try one. Leave a review, tell us what you think. We depend on your empathy and support.


By other writers

Part of our new Peace Education initiative "Peace Talk & Art-Shop

My Cousin Leonor, Mi Prima Leonor, by Dr. Ismael Santos Cabrera

Décimas, Tenths, by Jose de J. Arias


These are the screenplays we want to/need to sell. Help us pitch them.

I Am Sojourner Truth - Biopic

Isabel III - Historical Romantasy

Max and the Rock Children's TV Show

The Utopians, SciFi Series


Books by T.A. Terga




CAMP is a plea to the world asking, Will you help an artist get ready to compete at the next level?

The nonprofit for conscious arts I started could build the foundations for present and future artists struggling to see their work shine, put it in the right eyes, and get a return on their investment. Artt matters. Art is consciousness. We defend that when we support artists. CAMP is a verified 501c3 organization. This is our website: camp1.org


If you would like to donate your tax dollars to an artist (it doesn't have to be me or one that is already onboard), you can create a fund for them and the donations will go to them minutes with a ten percent de


What a teacher could do

After creating a 54-minute film, which was the best time of my life, I learned I was in a room with no doors or windows. Knocking them down was the beginning. Artists must create their own path in the wilderness.

We created websites with very little help and a lot of trial and error.

Cosncious Arts Media Productions CAMP - www.camp1.org

We are a 501c3 organization giving artists the opportunity to open their own FUND and campaig for THEIR FUNDING at $0 cost. for a small 10% fee. We will publish your book at $0 cost, too, and CAMP will retain 30% of the royalties for the first 3 years of publication.


TAT Productions www.angelaterga.com

  1. Founded by a former teacher who continues to value education: Master's in Media Management, Master's in Screenwriting for Feature films. But education doesn't guarantee DO what it takes to make it.

Text or call us, we will share our insights and help you navigate through your children's book, memoir, novel, or screenplay. We also write content and partner with freelancers to design your website. We work with AI tools to help us improve but the creativity is 100 percent human.


Our websites prove we have a presence in the arena. We are a sole proprietorship and a nonprofit organization. We offer a variety of digital services. We create and publish campaigns. We keep learning and we keep doing. Even without an investment there is hope when there is will.


We are working on increasing traffic and ranking on search engines. We do not use paid ads or purchase emails. We are organic.


We help individuals and organizations achieve their goals, here is how:


Our services: We will ....


  • ghostwrite

  • rewrite

  • edit

  • proofread

articles, scripts, novels, nonfiction, creative nonfiction, children's books.

  • Review any book GENRE (free if exchange)

  • Beta read any genre manuscript

(free if exchange)


  • create literary ADAPTATIONs

  • translate content


  • break down screenplay & create schedule (EP software)

  • budget a screenplay with

SCREENPLAYS (EP software)


  • writing coach: memoir, NOVEL, CHILDREN'S BOOKS, nonfiction

  • PUBLISH YOUR BOOK ON KDP, APPLE BOOKS, INGRAM SPARK


  • PEACE TALK & CONSCIOUS ART WORKSHOP

CAMP's Talks & Workshops WILL

  • MOTIVATE AUDIENCES IN THE PRACTICE OF PEACE

  • CREATE A CONSCIOUS ART EXPRESSION

  • TEXTBOOK AND MATERIALS (KEYWORDS FOR PEACE BOOK BY ISMAEL SANTOS CABRERA; WEEKLY PATH TO PEACE JOURNAL AND PEACE MEDITATIONS BY CAMP; CRAFT PAPER


Everyone wants more peace, joy, and fulfillment in their lives. Perhaps the answer is learning how to practice peace through keywords and making conscious art to express the personal meaning and expression of one of the keywords.


Peace Talk and Conscious Art Workshops ignite a culture of connection and calm with CAMP’s  PEACE PRACTICE TALK & WORKSHOP. This transformative experience activates artistic expression through a guided conscious arts activity utilizing Keywords For Peace book and meditations journal.


Our workshop is sequenced the following way:

First we talk about the purpose and reasoning behing our program. We introduced the work of Dr. Isamael Santos Cabreara, a Cuban-based psychoanalyst who surveyed responses to the question: "Is peace possible?" Based on the results, Dr. Santos composed a list of fifteen keywords whose meaningful application in reasoning our feelings lead to THOUGHT -ACTION -THOUGHT patterns created by the habit of responding through fear and preconceived judgements.


Self-awareness of how we influence our surrounding, our future, and the world with our thought-action-patterns can lead to intentional peace creation desires when we feel stressed out and unmotivated.


These fifteen keywrods are simple everyday terms whose profound meaning can guide our thoughts-action-patterns bringing our cosciousness to a higher plane of awareness by actually influencing our response mechanisms for the better. We call this healing, peace of mind, inner peace, and will translate to blioss if we continue to control our thourght-action-pattern on the basis of peace keywords that provide the gateway for your body to react when life challenges us.

Keywords For Peace, by Dr. Ismael Santos, and CAMP’s own Pe

ace Meditations Journal, the workshop.


and Understanding By Design (UBD) strategy. 


Move from reflection to action—through mindfulness, creativity, and the language of peace. Book CAMP’s Talk & Workshop!                    



talk workshop peace ed

  • THE SOURCE TEXT FOR THIS WORKSHOP


  • OUR MATCHING WORKBOOK FOR THIS COURSE

    a peace journal
    This weekly planner has the best of both worlds: a meditation guide for peace, a weekly planner, a monthly calendar on each page, and quotes by famous individuals on the keywords for peace that Dr. Ismael Santos's book Path to Peace: Keywords for peace introduces as a course on peace. It is different from its sister in that it contains the monthly calendars on each weekly planner page, month by month. Try it and never miss another appointment, plus meditate on your weekly goals and how to be in peace with yourself and the world.

we coach your memoir(s)



a book to help you learn howto write your memoir

This isn’t just another book about writing.


It’s a bold, honest guide for people who want to turn real life into meaningful story—without polishing the truth or performing for the crowd.


Write What You Lived walks you through every stage of memoir writing with clarity, compassion, and zero fluff. You’ll learn how to find your story’s soul, structure it organically, write with vulnerability, and shape your truth into something that lasts.

  • THE SUPPORTING TEXT FOR WRITING YOUR MEMOIR(S) WORKSHOP, Write what you lived, an eBook guiding your thoughts towards the way of your truth in a natural light.

  • non-resistance writing


why should you write your memoirs:


Check us out on LinkedIn

Here are three compelling reasons for writing your memoirs, each with an explanation:


1. Preserve Personal and Family History


Writing your memoirs helps document your life experiences, cultural background, and family stories for future generations. Memories fade with time, but a written memoir becomes a lasting legacy that allows your children, grandchildren, and others to understand their roots, values, and shared history. It turns ordinary experiences into a treasure trove of meaning.



2. Find Meaning and Healing Through Reflection


Memoir writing is a powerful tool for self-reflection and healing. As you revisit key moments in your life—both joyful and painful—you begin to process your experiences, make sense of your journey, and even find peace with the past. This act of storytelling can foster emotional growth and resilience, turning hardship into insight.



3. Inspire and Educate Others


Your life story might carry lessons, triumphs, or perspectives that others can learn from. By sharing your journey—the challenges you’ve faced, the wisdom you’ve gained, and the values you’ve upheld—you can inspire readers, offer guidance, and even serve as a role model. Memoirs often connect people across generations and cultures by showing the universal truths in personal stories.


Let me know if you want YOUT BOOK tailored to a specific age group, audience, or purpose (e.g., educational, cultural, therapeutic).


We will coach you on how to write your memoirs and how to write a novel the holistic way. We are great at coaching writers and giving them the tools to craft a story without the MFA.


Storytelling is more important than rocket science. Society is shaped by how it is prompted to perceive a product and according to the environment in which it is perceived.

There is a story with a moral in you, wanting you to tell the tale that must be told. If you have heard its voice and seen its face inside, it will never let you go until you release it.



The cover of a book that teaches how to write a novel, the holistic way
Writing a novel is not as hard as you might think. You can start with a story. Then break it up into chapters. Finally, you can add the cntent. The tricky part is developing characters that breathe through the paper. You can create notes to yourself as you go and go back to those specific areas until you get it right. When you writer a novel you can start in the middle of thesotry or in the end. You're the conductor. It's in your hands to shape the clay of your imagination.

But in this book, you will get a simple organic storytelling telling plan that writing teachers use with reluctant writers with blockages. It all starts with a simple tale. That tale can be broken up into characters, settings, problems, goals, obstacles, and outcomes after taking action. Like a map, your story takes shape. Then you have others read it and their feedback gives you more ideas. You edit, polish, rewrite, and finally say, "I'm done."


WHAT IS CONSCIOUS ARTS?

For conscious arts, intentional art, art that matters, creates bridges, and joins cultures. Any artist who meets our criteria as a conscious artist may apply for a fund. The fund will cost $0 to the artist. The artist may advertise on the platform and seek donors. For more information, reach out to us here.


We publish books for free. If we like your book, we will translate it, format it, edit it, and publish it on our platform on Amazon and its affiliate bookstores like Goodreads and Barnes & Noble. The author retains copyright and shares royalties with CAMP fairly.


We are school teachers, screenwriters, poets, translators, producers, copywriters, publishers, bloggers, and marketers.

We won't desist. We love it here. AND WE HOPE YOU WILL TOO ONE DAY AND SUBSCRIBE TO OUR BLOG to receive the free eBook on how to write a novel the holistic way.


We DON'T SPAM, remember, we're random sequentil. By surprising you, we hope to put a smile on your face. We want your input as to what you think cultural blogs should be about. If you think this is a cultural blog, let us know why or why not?


THE LATEST ON OUR CHILDREN'S BOOKS

MAX & ROBBIE THE STONEY METEORITE AGES 8-12

We are looking to pitch again. This IV-Part book, contains both fiction and nonfiction parts. It is a magical realism chapter book for middle grades. It features a TV show script, a Science article, and Social studies article. It is Multicultural and Cross-genre. Yea, I'm looking for a publisher.


Number of pages__Number of words: Reading Level: ___


"Zoom Zoom We're Going To The Moon" is a finished draft. Looking to get SEVERAL Reviews and a Beta read. Exchanging SERVICES with another children's book artists - review or beta read in exchange for the same.

Number of pages - Number of words : Reading Level: __Read Aloud 1-3 Reading level 2nd - 5th grade


Two more children's books are on the burner- one about germs and the last book we started is one about routines. "Miss Sneze Cough Goes to Town" has a first draft finished.


the new kid on the book:

the Talk & Workshop:

  1. Path to Peace Talk & Workshop - Speech

    1.a. Path to Peace Conscious Arts Workshop - eBook and Activity

  2. Why and How to Write a Memoir - Speech

    2.a. Tell your Story Workshop - e-Book and Activity

  3. Write a Novel the Holistic Way - Speech

    3.a. How to Write a Novel the Holistic Way - eBook and Activity


    What's next for CAMP?

    Well, while we complete the above tasks, get all our ducks in a line, we look into competitions and querying agents.

    That's our next horizon.

    SUBMIT our stories to agents and film producers

    almost forgot:

    We are featured on a CBS podcast - stay tuned - sooN


    our biggest challenge: creating the podcast
    "camp's reading room"


    LET'S SEE HOW FAR WE CAN GET, STAY TUNED AND CONSIDER PURCHASING OUR BOOKS, EXPERIENCING OUR PEACE TALK AND CONSCIOUS ART WORKSHOP PROGRAM, AND USING OUR EXPERTS TO WRITE, PUBLISH, AND MARKET YOUR BOOK.


    SUBSCRIBE TO OUR BLOG HERE










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