The Business of Educating

In class, we did a project “Voyagers’ Idol: Middle...

Mon, 03 Oct 2011 21:35:16 -0400

In class, we did a project “Voyagers’ Idol: Middle East Edition” where the kids had to take 19 specific countries from the Middle East and turn them into a song to help remember their names and, hopefully, their location on the map. Here is the song I created, called “Edge of India” to the beat of Lady Gaga’s “Edge of Glory”….

Edge of India LyricsThere ain’t no reason to be in Egypt AloneTonight yea baby,Tonight yea baby.Or in Israel or Jordan tonight.
Maybe we should stay in Saudi ArabiaTonight yea baby,or Yemen, maybe?Out on the limits of Oman and UAE tonight.
Its hard to keep your feetIn Qatar’s desert heat.I’m going to sail right through the Persian Gulf with youUntil we reach the Arabian Sea
[Chorus]‘Cause I’m on the Edge of IndiaOn the border with Pakistan tooI’m on the edge of IranLooking out into Iraq and ooo…I’m on the Edgethe Edge (x7)I’m on the edge of India,Looking out into Pakistan too,I’m on the edge with you.
Close your eyes as we drive across the lineto Afghanistan baby,or Uzbekistan maybe?With a little luck we’ll be in Turkmenistan tonight.
Put on your shades ‘cause we’ll be in the desert flamesof Syria, babyor Lebanon maybe.It isn’t Kazakstan if anybody doesn’t know my name tonight.
It’s hard to keep upbeat,In Kuwait’s desert heat.I’m going to sail right through the Persian Gulf with youUntil we reach the Arabian Sea
[Repeat Chorus]

Oh… and here the Chipmonked Version…” Edge of India by michaelgrether

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Sun, 04 Sep 2011 20:46:24 -0400

I try to keep this thing fairly non-political…...

Wed, 03 Aug 2011 16:36:13 -0400

I try to keep this thing fairly non-political… however… yeah.

myth of the extraordinary teacher

Tue, 02 Aug 2011 21:08:43 -0400

myth of the extraordinary teacher

leilockheart: By electric.porcupine

Sun, 24 Jul 2011 10:00:05 -0400

leilockheart:

By electric.porcupine

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Sat, 23 Jul 2011 16:35:13 -0400

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Sun, 19 Jun 2011 06:53:58 -0400

… Yea. This is my classroom experience. More content...

Sat, 18 Jun 2011 10:18:21 -0400

… Yea. This is my classroom experience.

More content after returning from vacation.

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Sun, 12 Jun 2011 09:03:06 -0400

A tribute to those who are facing layoffs because of societal...

Sat, 11 Jun 2011 17:13:55 -0400

A tribute to those who are facing layoffs because of societal stupidity & greed…

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Fri, 10 Jun 2011 15:12:06 -0400

Book Review: 40 Ways to Look at Winston Churchill

Fri, 03 Jun 2011 15:19:12 -0400

Title: Forty Ways to Look at Winston Churchill Author: Gretchen Rubin

Summary: How is a life remembered? Is it by their positive actions? By their mistakes and failures? By their jobs? By their hobbies?

Gretchen Rubin tackles the task of creating a biography of Winston Churchill, which is no small feat given the sheer volume of work that has broached the same subject. Where Rubin differs is that she does not try to limit the story of Churchill to the facts that supports her view of him. Instead, Rubin masterfully uses the tool of perspective to look at Churchill in forty ways: hero and villain, family man and drunkard, raging success and colossal failure.

Her well rounded, multifaceted style gives a well rounded account of a great history figure. It also provides a refreshing and invigorating lens through which to view teaching social studies. How can we do a better job of giving students multiple perspectives of important people and powerful events?

Rating: 5*. This is an excellent book on my favorite historical character. I feel that I have a clearer picture of both his exceptional strengths as well as his glaring flaws. A must-read book for anyone who likes WWII, history, empires, Winston Churchill… or a well written book.

I think this picture about summarizes where I am at at this...

Fri, 03 Jun 2011 11:58:19 -0400

I think this picture about summarizes where I am at at this moment… Actually, he may be doing slightly better

Too perfect.

Wed, 01 Jun 2011 07:04:06 -0400

Too perfect.

Belated Happy Memorial Day. Thank you to those who have and...

Tue, 31 May 2011 22:24:54 -0400

Belated Happy Memorial Day.

Thank you to those who have and continue to serve our country. May we serve you as well as you have served us.

I find that my teaching style may be slightly too influenced by...

Mon, 30 May 2011 13:25:47 -0400

I find that my teaching style may be slightly too influenced by his creative approach to presenting history. Of course, I am not dropping F-Bombs every couple words… but I believe that this proves that History classes is not about the material, instead how the material is taught.

Monday Morning Questions: When Does the Love for Learning Die?

Mon, 23 May 2011 08:05:06 -0400

The block teeters and falls. With furrowed brow and determination, the architect’s tiny hands maneuver the toys, attempting a new scheme. As the block is gently placed down, a broad smile errupts. Success! She kicks her feet with joy from her accomplishment.

I sit and watch my six month old daughter with awe and wonder. How start of contrast this moment is from the hundreds of moments I experience each day in the classroom: pouting faces, frustration, anger, boredom, apathy… All of which are absent as Lillian attempts to stack her toys, one on top of the other, with passion and vigor. A question begins to form in my mind: When does the love of learning die? What happens? Where does it take place? Who is the culprit? With the assumption that most of my students start off remotely similar to my baby girl, what happens that causes learning to shift from being new, exciting and mesmerizing to being the bane of their young existence?

Albert Einstein said, “It is amazing that any creativity survives school.” Is it the school system that is to blame, with its shrinking lack of intellectual freedom and stressful testing? Is it the lack of purpose that overwhelms the young student’s life as they sit in their desk filling out worksheets that do not resemble anything that they see in real life? Or is there another villain… maybe the neurologically-altering video games and the constant media bombardment of consumerism? Maybe it is the parents? Maybe it’s…

What I do know is that the more important question is what can be done to right the ship and renew their seemingly innate sense of wonder.

My daughter’s attentions are now fully fixed on solving a new mystery: what did I do to make that noise and how do I replicate it? As she pursues this new quest with fresh zeal, I sit and watch with more questions than answers… hoping beyond all hope that she never loses it.

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Sun, 22 May 2011 19:38:29 -0400

Some how today just doesn’t feel complete without this...

Sat, 21 May 2011 11:49:09 -0400

Some how today just doesn’t feel complete without this song…

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Fri, 20 May 2011 22:16:53 -0400