Things That Should Kick the Bucket Before I Do

In 9+ things that will disappear in our lifetime from Blue Skunk Blog, Doug Johnson lists 9 things that will disappear in our lifetimes from K-12 education. Then he asks,

“What's on your list of things that will (or should) disappear from your school before you kick the bucket?”

Of course, I couldn’t resist so here are my answers:

1. Lecture type teaching - I hope that students will learn by collaborating doing some kind of project based learning where the teacher is more of a facilitator than a lecturer. I hope there is more active learning rather than passive learning.

2. Teacher vs. Parent mentality - I hope that eventually teachers and parents can work as a team to help students be more successful. Many parents are discouraged from being a part of the school and I hope this will change.

3. Excessive paperwork - I can’t begin to tell you how much data I am asked to input into a computer only to be asked at the end of the year to fill out a paper report on the same data. There is way too much paper being used in schools!

4. Fear of being sued - Too many times I am told that things can’t be done because of liability possibilities. I think people sue others for things that could be settled easily out of court.

5. Fear of cell phone use - many students have smartphones now and can be used as a great tool in the classroom. Unfortunately many teachers still don’t have these and don’t know how to use them.

6. Homebased instruction with a tutor - I hope that students who are at home due to some discipline reason will have to attend classes using Skype or some kind of technology from home. They will not be allowed to watch TV and have fun because they are suspended but rather still have to participate in class only from a different venue.

7. Expecting students to fit the mold - All students are different and should be recognized and applauded for their individuality. Instead of teaching special ed students with individualized learning, allow all students to be taught this way. Maybe once we stop expecting all students to be the same, students can learn more tolerance for those who are different.

What things would you add to this list? Please share!

Image: 'bucket'
http://www.flickr.com/photos/16215823@N06/4227534087

Valentine’s Day

Valentine’s Day is tomorrow and my husband and I talk about all the commercialism surrounding this “Day of Love.” While in line at the store, the lady in front of me and I talked about how expensive Valentine’s Day presents have become (yes, I talk to just about anyone who talks back to me!).

I started to think about ways to give a present without costing too much money. Here are some of the ideas that I came up with.

1. Make your own Valentine’s Day card. There are lots of samples on line for cute sayings. Use candy hearts with sayings on them and glue them in place of a written word.

2. Make your own coupon for a chore that the other person hate’s doing and offer to do it yourself. Or in your homemade card, list the things you plan to do for that person today.

3. If the other person has a hubby, find ways to enjoy the hobby with them for the day. My husband loves model trains so I offer to take him to the NC Transportation Museum in Spencer, NC (which is free).

4. Make someone breakfast in bed.

5. Find some items around the house that symbolize why you love this person. Put it in a basket or container with a list of what each one is and what it symbolizes.

Here are some sites that I found with crafting ideas:

Making Friends Valentine’s Day Crafts

Kaboose’s Valentine’s Day Crafts

Martha Stewart’s Valentine’s Day Crafts

Family Fun Valentine’s Day Crafts

Do you have any other ideas? Please share!

Image: 'Vintage Valentine's day Postcard'
http://www.flickr.com/photos/66974474@N00/356517644

Useful Information In and Out of the Classroom 2/17/12

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!
Note: Each resource is labeled with a level and subject area to make it easier to use.

Levels: E: Elementary; M: Middle; H: High; G: General, all levels; SN: Special Needs; T: Teachers

Subject Areas: LA: Language Arts, English, Reading, Writing; M: Math; S: Science; Health; SS: Social Studies, Current Events; FA: Fine Arts; Music, Art, Drama; FL: Foreign Language; PE: Physical Ed; C: Career; A: All

Doodle for Google 2012 - “Welcome to Doodle 4 Google, a contest where we invite students in the United States to use their artistic talents to think big and redesign Google’s homepage logo for millions to see. This year we ask students to exercise their creative imaginations around the theme, "If I could travel in time, I'd visit…" One lucky student artist will see their artwork appear on the Google homepage and take home some cool prizes--and as a special bonus, the winning artwork will appear on a limited edition of Crayola's iconic 64 box!” (L: G; SA:A)

Find The Best - “At FindTheBest, we present you with the facts — stripped of any marketing influence — so that you can make quick and informed decisions. We present the facts in easy-to-use tables with smart filters, so that you can decide what is best.” (L: G; SA:A)

NASA Lunar Electric Rover App for iPhone and iPod Touch - “Welcome to the NASA Lunar Electric Rover (LER) Simulator. You don’t need a driver’s license, but you still need to buckle up as the LER Simulator gives you a glimpse of what it might be like to support the activities of a functioning Lunar Outpost. Get busy. You never know if your skills here will become a major part of the NASA Astronaut application process in the future. “(L: M, H; SA:S)

NASA Moonbase Alpha Simulation - “In Moonbase Alpha, you assume the exciting role of an astronaut working to further human expansion and research. Returning from a research expedition, you witness a meteorite impact that cripples the life support capability of the settlement. With precious minutes ticking away, you and your team must repair and replace equipment in order to restore the oxygen production to the settlement.” (L: H; SA: S, C)

Presidential Candidate Research - “Using C-SPAN’s Campaign 2012 Application, students will research and evaluate the Presidential Candidates’ positions on key policy issues. Through watching clips of candidate speeches, students will determine the candidates’ position on the economy, foreign policy, health care, immigration, and more. Then, students will compare and contrast the candidates’ views with their own view.” (L: H, SA: SS)

Original Image by Pat Hensley

Teaching Takes Courage

In The Courage to Teach from Angela Maiers Educational Services, Inc., Angela Maiers states,

“The heart of teaching is the teaching of the heart. In order to teach, we need courage to overcome our fears. Consider and reflect on the following statements of courage.

I have the courage to…

• ask brave and genius questions
• learn new, complex things and relish in the journey of the unknown and yet to be discovered
• yield trust and control to students by listening, honoring, and recognizing their unique contributions.
• engage in discussions that challenge our deepest convictions and ignite our hidden passions
• play with purpose and passion
• know YOU MATTER!”

I remember when I first started my student teaching. It suddenly hit me. What was I doing? Did I honestly think that I had anything in me to teach others? Was this a vision of grandeur? Maybe a power hungry moment? Then I had to be bold, gather my courage, and begin my teaching career.

It takes courage to know that as a teacher, I have a great influence on someone else’s life. It may be a good one or it could be a terrible one but I have that power in me to affect someone else for the rest of their life. I need to be able to find the right words and questions that will help them live productive adult lives.

It also takes courage to know that I don’t know everything. It is alright if I learn some new things from my students. It is alright to even let my students know that I don’t know everything. It takes courage to learn new things and open up to possible failures. My students will learn that I am making an effort to learn and they will also learn from me how I handle the results. If I fail, will I try again or will I give up. It takes courage to have my students observe my behavior and learn from it.

It takes courage to not always be in control. Sometimes it is good for students to learn control but have me there as a safety net in case something goes wrong. I remember when I had my first student teacher in my class and how hard it was to let him have control. I wanted to jump in and keep him from making mistakes but I realized that was how he was going to learn and remember not to do it again. When my children were little, I wanted to do the same things but it wasn’t healthy for them and it wasn’t right. The same works in my classroom. It is really hard for me because I know I am such a control freak!

Connecting with others online has really caused me to think about my beliefs and practices. I read many blogs and have built up my personal/professional learning network. I have learned new things that are really exciting! I’ve also learned things that I didn’t agree with or wasn’t my cup of tea. I believe this connecting has helped me grow so much in my personal and my professional life. But I have to admit, connecting was scary and hard for me. I’m pretty shy and scared of messing up. But slowly and with the help of my new “friends,” I have gotten more comfortable with connecting and sharing. Blogging was really scary for me when I started this almost five years ago. I was putting out my personal thoughts and ideas. I didn’t know if anyone would read them, or care. And then what if they disagreed with me or thought what I said was stupid? I bit the bullet and got up my courage to do it anyway and I’m glad I did.

I have many different hobbies and interests but I’m always thinking about the connection of them with teaching/learning. I love to hike, garden, travel, read, and knit but there are so many ways that I can connect them with my teaching which I also love.

Having the courage to teach has taught me that I do matter. I matter to the students I teach. By realizing that I matter to them, helps me realize how much they matter to me. They influence my life in many ways as much as I hope to influence their lives.

What do you think about Angela’s statements? Please share in your comments or write your own blog post (but please leave the link in the comments so I can read it).

Image: 'Courage'
http://www.flickr.com/photos/28430474@N05/6338621319

Using Available Tools

In She Isn’t Using Technology —from Tech Thoughts By Jen, Jennifer tells about a teacher at her school.

“She is a good teacher — NOT because she uses technology — but because she uses her resources.  Any and all — to make her classroom a great place to be!”

When I talk to some teachers, they are quick to let me know that they aren’t “into technology.” I am always amazed at how defensive they become when I mention some resources that I found online. I love to find resources and ideas online but I also get ideas from other places too. Sometimes I do more research online to find out a more detailed explanation about a new idea.

Teachers don’t have to “use technology” to be a great teacher. But I believe that teachers do need to know about resources that are available to be more effective. One of the resources is using technology. My students use technology and if they feel I am so out of touch with technology, I believe that they will think everything I am trying to teach them is obsolete too. I’m not saying that I need to know everything about technology, because I have learned a lot from my students. I don’t want to say I’m not “into technology” which can be interpreted to mean I really don’t care to learn about it. What if our students said the same thing about my teaching?

I have used technology to find other resources to help me in the classroom. Connecting with others, I have found a Skype Author network where authors can “come” into the classroom and talk to students. By searching the web, I have found great lessons to use in the classroom. When I want to do something and want to learn, I have watched YouTube videos to learn how to do this. When I needed an answer to a question, I have posted it on Twitter and Plurk and received lots of help from others, almost immediately.

I don’t feel that I necessarily need to use technology in the classroom to be more effective. But I feel I need to know how to find information and connect with others by using technology. I feel it is an important part of my personal and professional development. It is necessary for me to grow as a person and a professional. I feel it is important for me to get “into technology” to find out the resources that are available out there for me to be a better teacher.

Image: 'Clever Wall Mural in Yellow Springs, Ohio'
http://www.flickr.com/photos/22834654@N04/2499663609