should be writing final essays... i have 24 hours to finish this last major one up... but google distracts me!

http://www.1000000monkeys.com/

Something to look into later...

Redefining literacy: literacy has been defined by printing press, but modes of communication have evolved, new shift, new components that define literacy today. MIT.

-threat versus challenge
-when you get low self-esteem, you start trying to manage a whole different set of issues
-anxiety is such a driver in the way someone learns
-how narrow is the definition of success in each classroom
-ignorance is a doctor thinking penicillin is good for everyone, and we find that a lot in education
-talking about your own life gives teachers an affective HOOK
-good teaching is a co-creation/co-construction between teacher and student

In ht100 the other day, our guest speaker mentioned how she made children feel safe in a clinical context by her word choice and behavior, making the kids feel like she was on their side.

As I review articles for an essay in that class, I am thinking about word choice when talking to kids about lack of reading skills...

"You are a poor reader"
"You aren't a very good reader"
"You can't read well"
"You can't read well yet"
"You don't read well"
"You don't have good reading skills"
"You don't have good reading skills yet"

A few minutes later, all was well and the experiment proceeded. I felt (and looked) like an idiot. And yet for the first time in weeks, I felt great about being a teacher. I had been able to ignore the crap that all teachers on the front lines face. I had done everything I could to help someone. I didn't do it particularly well, but the effort was there. I thought to myself that if I could care so much about teaching that I didn't even realize my hair was burning, I was moving in the right direction. From that moment, I resolved to always teach like my hair was on fire.


Excerpt: 'Teach Like Your Hair's On Fire'

by Rafe Esquith

hecka cool!

Can you imagine this as a writing activity for an english class? I could easily design an art activity around it...

Here I go:
Students will choose a major city, locate three art galleries or museums and mark on google map. In the notes of each location, the student will highlight two artists whose work is featured in that gallery/museum and explain their relevance, history, and connection with other artists they have chosen.

Thanks Abby! I am now an official supporter of Harvey Dent!

After reading about this viral marketing scheme and a few others, I started thinking about the CONFLIX game we read about last week. It seems like the same goal. You want this fictional (or learning) situation to pervade students' lives. As was said about CONFLIX, the important stuff wasn't even going on in the classrooms, it was happening in the hallways and lunchroom and after school via text messages.

It would be great if this were an overt goal of our education system... that what we teach is so relevant and taught in such an engaging way that the learning spreads to every nook and cranny of a child's life.