Sunday's Reads

I noted yesterday morning that by 8 am I had amassed an amazing amount (look at that alliteration!  Dang!) of professional development from other teachers via Twitter.  All on a Saturday morning!  What I love most about Twitter is that I'm instantly in the conversation with other teachers who are as engaged and motivated as I am.

Here is a literacy lesson called You Are the Instructions.  This specific one won't work for me, but I love the idea.  I'm going to tweak it by having students first read a set of instructions to figure something out (if my budget allowed, I'd get them all basic lego sets and have them put them together). In the case of Lego, there are no words.  This would be fine.  I'd have students write the directions to go along with the illustrations.  Then we'd talk about all the key skills we're learning (facts, main ideas, context, inference, conclusion).

Then I'd charge them with creating a project of their own.  Maybe giving them all the same types of Legos and ask them to construct an object.  Then I'd have them write the directions down as they go.  Again, keeping in mind our key skills.

Finally, I'd collect the Legos and instructions from each group and then have them swap and see if the new group could follow the directions to create the object.  Then I'd have them rate the effectiveness of the instructions.

In place of Legos, I might just have to try the Marshmallow Challenge.

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Here is a great post form one of my favorite bloggers, Brain Pickings.  This one is devoted to 100 Ideas that Changed Art.

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Here's a Ted x Talk from one of my favorite people, Seth Godin.



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The under appreciated side of education: the importance of play.  These guys get it.

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Here is an interesting read, and one that goes well with the Seth Godin book I'm loving every single page of now, Linchpin.  The title of this Forbe's piece says it all: "Creating Innovators: Why American's Education System is Obsolete." 

As an educator, all I have to say is, Well, of course it is!  You're preaching to the choir.  Convince the legislators of this and stop them cramming the one-size-fits-all standardized testing craze down our throats.

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Oh these millennials!  They are just narcissists.  And their damn technology only confirms that.  Or does it?

I don't know about you, but I was a teenager.  I have helped raise two.  I have spent thousands of hours teaching and coaching them.  Do you know a teenager that isn't in some way, shape, or form a little bit interested in themselves?

Yes, their technology makes it easier for that than it did back in my time.  But I see plenty of adults falling prey to that too.

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This usually would fall under the topic "Today's Stupid."

A sad instance of a teacher making fun of her students . . . on Facebook.  The sad fact too is that the teacher has horrible punctuation and grammar.  I can understand a teacher venting.  I'm not saying I'm condoning it.  But I can see them venting.  But to phrase it in such a stupid way?  Really?  How can anyone ever take you seriously as an educator ever again?