Education Buzz Carnival #7

Another edition of the Education Buzz Carnival #7 is up and running at Bellringers! Don’t miss out on all the fun! See what is going on in the Edusphere. My article on How Long is there but there are lots of other great articles to read too! See you there and don’t eat too much cotton candy!

Posted on the Successful Teaching Blog by loonyhiker (successfulteaching at gmail dot com).

Original image: Carnival by Pat Hensley

A Special Book

 

This week’s topic from the Fall Blog Challenge by Melanie Holtsman, is about a special book.

“What Book Made the Biggest Impact on Your Life? Was there a book you read or was read aloud to you that you have always remembered or that has impacted your life? Tell us about the book and why it touched you so deeply.”

This may sound crazy but the first book I remember reading (and I’m sure I read others and had others read to me) is The 500 Hats of Bartholomew Cubbins by Dr. Seuss. Maybe it was the first one I had ever read on my own but I remember it being a big milestone in my life. It must have been for me to remember this more than 45 years later. At the time, I think 500 was as much as a trillion in my young eyes. I couldn’t imagine owning that much of anything. I remember thinking that someday, I wanted to own 500 books that were all my own and not borrowed from the library. If I had that many books, I would not only be rich but I’d be very smart and could do anything I wanted in my life. I knew that reading books was the key to whatever I wanted. Since my mother was an avid reader, I’m sure she instilled that in me with her words as well as her actions. The fact that everyone in my family made sure I had access to the library whenever I wanted or needed books was another way I saw that reading books was important. I remember the praise my family gave me when I read this book on my own and then out loud to them. That was proof that I was a reader and my life was just beginning!

Posted on the Successful Teaching Blog by loonyhiker (successfulteaching at gmail dot com).

Original Picture: The 500 Hats of Bartholomew Cubbins by Dr. Seuss

Dark Clouds or Sun?

I found another great blog post “ Which Are You? Transmitter or Transformer? Light or Dark? by TJ Shay.

He asks, “So, which are you..... The dark rain cloud, or the light?”

When I first read this, I immediately thought that I wanted to definitely be the light all of the time. I mean, let’s face it; no one likes the dark clouds. And I don’t want people to see me as a dark cloud, right? I want everyone to see me as the sunny positive person all of the time.

But in reality, I know that it isn’t possible. I want to be the sunny person most of the time. I want to have a positive outlook on the future. I want to hope that I am making a difference by sharing my knowledge and expertise with others. Hopefully, this positive outlook will be infectious to others and grow like a ripple in the water.

Yet, at times it is necessary to be the dark cloud. Just like in nature, without the dark clouds, we wouldn’t appreciate the sun as much. Sometimes we need the dark clouds to make us realize where we need to improve or what we need to change. Real life isn’t sunny all of the time. Being the dark cloud can put the big picture into perspective. Nothing is perfect and there is always something that can be changed to improve the current situation.

I see the dark cloud part of me as the part that questions and doubts what I hear, see, or read. I should not just be accepting of what is shown to me or told to me. This is the part where I need to use my critical thinking and analyze what is being given. Eventually I might decide that what I am learning is worth believing in or it clarifies my thoughts better, but by blinding believing everything, is not what is best for anyone. The dark cloud does not have to be seen as a negative force in my life.

I need to make sure that the dark cloud is not THE driving force that gives my life direction. There needs to be a balance between dark clouds and light. Too much of anything is not good for anyone. I guess that is why I like living in the south so much because I feel nature has this balance that influences my life.

Posted on the Successful Teaching Blog by loonyhiker (successfulteaching at gmail dot com).

Original image: 'Retreating thunder'
http://www.flickr.com/photos/28734213@N00/2966962033 by: Niklas Sjöblom

Master Naturalist Class Day 10

(For more pictures, click HERE.)

Hi! I’m Benny the Beaver, here at Lake Conestee Nature Park. I just wanted to thank the Upstate Master Naturalists for coming to visit my home this week.

This area is known as an Important Bird Area but we also have copperheads and timber rattlesnakes here. The lake was established when it was dammed up to give power to the local mill. At the time, Greenville was becoming a great textile center.

Ranger Tim led the group through the different areas of the park. First they stopped in an area that was the edge of an agricultural area going through some advanced old field succession. This ecotone had lots of diversity here and the group heard many different birds. Ranger Tim also showed the group the honey locust tree which grows in the Piedmont and has really long thorns. He also showed a wild cherry tree, a pecan tree, wisteria and a Bradford pear tree.

As they walked further into the forest, they came into a young forest which was obvious by the young trees they saw. There were mostly poplars and sweet gums all around. The soil was made up of sand and minerals because flooding took most of the organic material away.

Two ferns seen were ebony spleenwort (the stem is ebony colored and it grows in mineral soils) and Grape Fern. Ground Cedar was also abundant.

When they arrived at the lake, they saw Pickerel Weed and Spatterdock (the leave stays above the water and has a yellow flower) which makes for a great fish habitat. They also saw Parrotfeather which has a green feather like leaf that stays above the water also. Mosquito fern is the smallest fern in the park and looks like pink or rust colored flowered on the surface of the water. At one overlook, they got to see closer up at the beautiful dams that my family and I have built around. We really work hard and them and make the area look pretty too.

After leaving the lake, the group saw Box Elder which is the only compound leaf maple in North America. You can make maple syrup from its sap but it takes a lot of sap since it doesn’t have the same sugar content as sugar maple. Sycamore and Black Willow were also peeking out from the forest. On the ground were puffball fungus that were little round brown balls.

Of course the resident poison ivy was in full autumn color along the trail. More than 30-40 species of birds love these berries.

Luckily someone spotted a giant silk moth before everyone stepping on it. It was a beautiful lime green with red spots and a yellowish green line down the sides. After much investigation in the guide book, they decided that this was a luna moth. Ranger Tim reminded everyone that fuzzy caterpillars are moths but not all moths are fuzzy.

During lunch, Erica Hollis from Upstate Forever talked to the group and after lunch Dr. Jeff Beacham talked about wetlands. He mentioned that there are three criteria for a wetland: hydrology, vegetation, and soil.

All in all, I think everyone had a nice time visiting my habitat.

(It is much more interesting to talk in first person as a resident of a habitat rather than just spitting out boring facts. Students could be encouraged to do this as an animal or person to share information. Have you done this in your classroom? If so, please share!)

Posted on the Successful Teaching Blog by loonyhiker (successfulteaching at gmail dot com).

Useful Information In and Out of the Classroom 10/22/10

Here are some interesting sites that I’ve found this week, thanks to my PLN. As a teacher, I feel we have to keep up to date concerning research in our field and current issues in the education system. I hope some of these inspire you, inform you, and even have you asking questions. Thank you for coming by and visiting!

Braingle – “Brain Teasers, Riddles, Trivia, Brain Exercises, Games, Forums and more...”

US History Tours – using Google Earth

Gapminder – “…by using the Google Gadget called Motion Chart. It allows everyone to make a Gapminder-like bubble graph that you can publish on your web-page or blog.” Or you can look at the graphs that they offer. These would be great to use in a presentation or to show information to a class.

Plus Magazine – free, “Plus magazine opens a door to the world of maths, with all its beauty and applications, by providing articles from the top mathematicians and science writers on topics as diverse as art, medicine, cosmology and sport. You can read the latest mathematical news on the site every week, browse our blog, listen to our podcasts and subscribe to our fortnightly email newsletter.”

Good Typing – free online typing program to help students to learn how to use their keyboard

Posted on the Successful Teaching Blog by loonyhiker (successfulteaching at gmail dot com).

Original image: Tools by Pat Hensley