StReSsEd = DeSsErTs :)

I am sitting at home on a Friday night...........eating a piece of leftover birthday cake!


Nonetheless I am working on school work (for my kiddos and myself).  It has been a long week however  the weeks seem to be passing fast.  I feel quite stressed as if I have so many things that need to be done.  I wonder if I will get it all done.....  I feel like things will calm down eventually.  I do better if I get ahead and stay ahead.  This year at school has been quite different.  We have had three meetings during this week, leaving little time to prepare for my students during my planning time.  This group of students is very challenging and not like one I have had in the past.  They are teaching me how to eat, talk, and play all the while I am trying to teach them how to spell, read, and write.  I wonder if we will end in June with everyone being taught a little more about ourselves!?

Art Show

Chowan University Faculty Art Exhibition 

Fall 2011

*There were many different pieces on display - graphics, pottery, floor art, painted pieces.  I enjoyed this field trip and it forced me to look more into why I like certain pieces of art

I chose to reflect on the following piece:
     The Wishing Tree
          by Jennifer Groves
     Acrylic on Masonite

The title reminded me of Shel Silverstien's book The Giving Tree.  This is one of my favorite children's books for its meaning.
I also chose this piece because of the title.  At this time in my life there are several things I wish for.
I did a free hand sketch of this picture, however to share that with you would do the art justice, compared to what I saw in person.

Marc Prensky article

Digital Natives, Digital Immigrants 

by Marc Prensky

When I first read the title of this article I really felt as though I was going to be reading about people native to a certain land and those that were coming in as immigrants.....however I saw the word 'digital', so I wasn't sure that was correct...

After further reading I grasp this:  "Digital Natives" are the children we teach that have grown up with all things related to technology.  We as teachers are the "Digital Immigrants" that consider some of these pieces of technology a foreign piece to our teachings.  

When I think back to 26 years ago when I was in first grade and six years old, all I can say is, "My the times have changed!!!!"  I remember a cassette player and an overhead and big desktop computers with a big floppy disk.  My students would be lost in a world that only contained these items...they are so accustomed to CD Players (hardly knowing what a cassette is), cell phones, iPods, iPads, Laptops, Playstations, Jump drives, SMART boards, Projectors, flat screen TV's, and field trips on the computer.  Do these children know how lucky they are to have so many different things to learn from?  I now must wonder where we will be in the next 26 years when I will be retired?  

Not growing up with these cool technological pieces can make us uneasy to learn how to use them.  But we must remember that this is what our children know and this is the language our students speak.  We need to speak this language to get on their level and educate them.

The second sentence in this article stood out as I began reading.  Prensky (2001) strongly states, "Our students have changed radically.  Today's students are no longer the people our educational system was designed to teach."

Jeffrey Golub's article on the Common Core

I found this article very easy to read and well written.
I have heard a lot about the Common Core Standards through our graduate classes and a little bit through our district and school.  I enjoyed Golub's analogy of comparing the CC to the library sinking.  Sometimes we take on so much as teachers and try to do our best, but are not able to be well grounded becuase we are too loaded down.

As I read this article I looked at each of his aspects and how I felt about them.

1.  I think this is true, even with our NCSCS.  I think the CC could be beneficial with students that may move from school to school.  It seems we always hear this but then again are still required to teach certain things and in a certain way.
2.  Yes, reading comprehension does involve more then just reading the text.  Is this where we as teachers have to 'read between the lines' of the CC and continue to teach that which we know is important (such as comprehension, engagement, and experiences through reading)?
3.  We have seen evidence of this statement through some of our previous readings and classes.  We all know things have changed since we were in school.
4.  True - We continue to prepare for the future "test" that we miss out on opportune times to take advantage of teachable moments and teaching from our heart.  Those are some of the best and most enjoable moments in my classroom.

This article allowed me to think about teaching in general a little bit more.
I do agree with most of what Golub has to say about the Common Core Standards and enjoyed seeing his point of view.

Task 3: Infographics

What in the world is an infographic!  I have never heard of this before.  Now I am kind of feeling like my grandparents when I would mention the World Wide Web or Internet and they gave me a dumbfounded look!

Infographics – (my definition) a visual tool to present lots of information in an interesting way in the classroom (or even office).   Through the video it looks like they are giving examples similar to Thinking Maps, Word Webs, Graphic Organizers.  This seems to be a very technological way to get the meaning across through media and art. 

Teaching with infographics could offer visual support to those types of learners.  It seems to me that the writing process or scientific method could be represented through infographics. Sequencing a story …….  Study guides to break down information need to know for a class or test ……  Showing important events in ones life.

How long have these been around?   If this is the new thing….I bet we hear more about them!

Task 1: Tragic Events: Remembering 9/11

I teach first grade and honestly find it difficult to discuss 9/11 with students.  Discussing any tragedy can be hard.  But when we do talk about tragedy I try to be as honest with them as possible and talk about it on their terms with words they understand.

When 9/11 first happened I did have an open discussion with my students.  We would discuss what happened, the good and the bad of it, the students would color a picture of the American Flag, and I had a story that was written specifically about 9/11 from Scholastic (I think).  We even made a red, white, and blue chain to hang in the halls of our entire school.   For a couple years after that we would continue to discuss it within our classroom and school.  As it is now ten years past, we don’t do so much with it anymore.  I do still think it is important to remember what happened that day and how we can help one another ten years later.  However, when 9/11 happened my students this year were not even born until four years later.  I don’t think I will discuss it and have to explain it all to six year olds that might come up with many questions and not really interpret the actions of that day (with no living memory).  I think they may do better learning about it through a history class as they get older. 

I agree to the eSchools article about maybe having a discussion about 9/11 in high school where students were about eight or nine at the time and may not be emotionally connected to the situation.  Although I would think this might especially be hard if you were a teacher in a high school in one of the places where the 9/11 tragedy took place and the students did have an emotional connections, (whether they knew someone part of the tragedy or witnessed it close to their homes or schools).  I would think you would have to choose words and activities carefully to not make any student have a traumatizing experience remembering the events.

Reading the other resources posted were very eye opening and made me think a little bit about teaching 9/11 differently.  I think this would be an appropriate time in school to discuss bravery, honesty, friendship, peace, and conflict and at the same time give honor to 9/11 and its heroes and victims in a different remembrance way.  I liked some of the lessons I found under one resource.  It honored 9/11 by teaching students about culture and the American Flag,