Joel, over at So You Want to Teach, has put together a list of 50 Teaching Tips. Some are pretty universal -- "Choose your battles," "Establish a constant routine" -- and some are much more specific -- "You need to teach fundamental technique before you can presume to teach musicality." But all of them are worth a perusal and possibly a usal.
Also, I'm a bit late on this one, but the newest Carnival of Education is up (and has been since Wednesday) at Bellringers! I forgot to submit anything for inclusion, but there are still lots of great articles there, worth your perusal. (and possibly usal)
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Showing posts with label Joel. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Joel. Show all posts
Monday, October 18, 2010
Tuesday, February 16, 2010
So You Want to Teach?
Sorry, Joel, totally, ripped off your blog's name here.
But, I received an email from Wendy Graham the other day, linking to a post that she put together recently. The post is called 100 Reasons to be a Teacher, and it's worth checking out.
I might not agree completely with the entire list, but there are some good ones on there.
Number 8 -- Holidays and Weekends – Having this time off is a gift that teachers take for granted too often
Number 46 -- Students – Molding Minds – The age old idea of teaching someone something they need to know
Number 80 -- Problem solving – Large and small problems occur and are addressed daily
But, I received an email from Wendy Graham the other day, linking to a post that she put together recently. The post is called 100 Reasons to be a Teacher, and it's worth checking out.
I might not agree completely with the entire list, but there are some good ones on there.
Number 8 -- Holidays and Weekends – Having this time off is a gift that teachers take for granted too often
Number 46 -- Students – Molding Minds – The age old idea of teaching someone something they need to know
Number 80 -- Problem solving – Large and small problems occur and are addressed daily
Thursday, July 02, 2009
11 things you can do to save money this summer
As most of you probably know, my good friend Joel, over at So You Want to Teach? is very, very (very times a million) fond of lists. That fact, combined with the fact that I am running low on things to blog about have merged to fit this blog post.
A couple of days ago, Joel wrote a post called "10 things you can do to spend less money this summer." I thought to myself, "Self, since there is a conspicuous absence of Olympic Games this summer, let's come up with our OWN competition. Let's one-up one of Joel's lists!"
And with that compelling argument from Self, I had no choice but to do this. Joel's post is great, it lists 10 cheap things to do over the next few months.
This one goes to 11.
1) Rewatch your favorite movies from your own DVD collection in the comfort of your own home. Repeat until you can write the entire script from memory.
2) Learn a new skill that requires nothing but items from around the house. Juggling might take you the whole summer to learn. Once mastered, try calligraphy, then daguerrotyping.
3) Tackle Pi. Keep a running record of the pesky number, adding on at least 4 decimal places every day. 3.14159 -- that should get you started.
4) Keep a tape recorder by your phone and record calls from telemarketers. Try to be as ridiculous and absurd as you can. See how long you can keep them on the line.
5) Save on food costs by introducing yourself to new neighbors. Knock on their door and say, "Hi there! I'm (insert your name here)! Nice to meet you! Something smells great -- what are we having for dinner??"
6) When you DO go grocery shopping, stick to the dollar stores. They sell food now! Believe me, a one dollar steak tastes exactly as good as you would think!
7) Make those expensive drinks last longer! When you feel like orange juice, coke, or even tequila, stretch out that bottle by adding water to your glass. I recommend 14 parts water, 1 part drink of choice.
8) Forget expensive vacations to faraway locales! Take a local tour that will run you only the price of gas (even better --ride a bike!). Be sure to bring your camera so you can take pictures to remember things such as your neighbor's foot-tall weed, the incredible barking dog, and the unforgettable "Truck parked across two spots at the 7-11."
9) Summer is a great time to catch up on reading, but don't go out and BUY any books. Just make a daily trip to your local bookstore and sit for a few hours, reading all the new novels. Pretty soon, the staff will recognize you as a regular. They love it when people do that.
10) Ditch the hired help when it comes to lawn maintenance. In fact, don't spend time or money on a lawn mower or any other pricey equipment. Just go out and get a goat! Once you're past the initial investment (cheaper if you can score an aging high school mascot), there will be no more expenses, and your lawn will be the best chewed on the block.
11) Hours of absolutely free entertainment can be had by plunking yourself down on YouTube. See the freaky dancing toddler, Bret Michaels getting busted in the face, and of course Professor Darth Vader.
And there's the list. Again, thanks and apologies in advance to Joel. Check out his list, and you'll have a Blackjack of ideas.
A couple of days ago, Joel wrote a post called "10 things you can do to spend less money this summer." I thought to myself, "Self, since there is a conspicuous absence of Olympic Games this summer, let's come up with our OWN competition. Let's one-up one of Joel's lists!"
And with that compelling argument from Self, I had no choice but to do this. Joel's post is great, it lists 10 cheap things to do over the next few months.
This one goes to 11.
1) Rewatch your favorite movies from your own DVD collection in the comfort of your own home. Repeat until you can write the entire script from memory.
2) Learn a new skill that requires nothing but items from around the house. Juggling might take you the whole summer to learn. Once mastered, try calligraphy, then daguerrotyping.
3) Tackle Pi. Keep a running record of the pesky number, adding on at least 4 decimal places every day. 3.14159 -- that should get you started.
4) Keep a tape recorder by your phone and record calls from telemarketers. Try to be as ridiculous and absurd as you can. See how long you can keep them on the line.
5) Save on food costs by introducing yourself to new neighbors. Knock on their door and say, "Hi there! I'm (insert your name here)! Nice to meet you! Something smells great -- what are we having for dinner??"
6) When you DO go grocery shopping, stick to the dollar stores. They sell food now! Believe me, a one dollar steak tastes exactly as good as you would think!
7) Make those expensive drinks last longer! When you feel like orange juice, coke, or even tequila, stretch out that bottle by adding water to your glass. I recommend 14 parts water, 1 part drink of choice.
8) Forget expensive vacations to faraway locales! Take a local tour that will run you only the price of gas (even better --ride a bike!). Be sure to bring your camera so you can take pictures to remember things such as your neighbor's foot-tall weed, the incredible barking dog, and the unforgettable "Truck parked across two spots at the 7-11."
9) Summer is a great time to catch up on reading, but don't go out and BUY any books. Just make a daily trip to your local bookstore and sit for a few hours, reading all the new novels. Pretty soon, the staff will recognize you as a regular. They love it when people do that.
10) Ditch the hired help when it comes to lawn maintenance. In fact, don't spend time or money on a lawn mower or any other pricey equipment. Just go out and get a goat! Once you're past the initial investment (cheaper if you can score an aging high school mascot), there will be no more expenses, and your lawn will be the best chewed on the block.
11) Hours of absolutely free entertainment can be had by plunking yourself down on YouTube. See the freaky dancing toddler, Bret Michaels getting busted in the face, and of course Professor Darth Vader.
And there's the list. Again, thanks and apologies in advance to Joel. Check out his list, and you'll have a Blackjack of ideas.
Thursday, April 09, 2009
Posts of the Week
So Joel of So You Want to Teach got me hooked into Darren of Problogger's 31 Days to Build a Better Blog (aka: Who Wants to Be a Bloggy Idol?). Day 2, which I'm only slightly behind on, had a challenge to write a link post. My man Joel is of course the guru of link posts, but I figured I needed to make an attempt if I was going to keep up.
Having said that, here are some fantastic posts, coming directly from several blogs that I enjoy frequenting.
Carnival of Education: The Day to End All Days -- I had to start the list here, because this week, Joel has put together an amazing Carnival. Chock full of relevant links, as always, this one has the distinction of being tied together by a really fun story, of which I am proud to say that I am a major character! According to sources, my character actually died heroically at the end of the original draft, but it didn't score well with test audiences, so I got to live instead.
What's the Word Wednesday: "Something" Happens -- Probably not what you would expect the "Something" to be, but still something that I probably shouldn't post on my blog. This post from the Scholastic Scribe talks about the dangers of a careless (or non-existant) spell check.
Why Bill Nye the Science Guy and I Will Never be Friends -- Mimi at It's Not All Flowers and Sausages (one of my new faves since April 1st) posts hilariously about her lack of a green thumb in the classroom. I can totally relate.
The Cornerstone Accolades for March -- Angela Powell, author of The Cornerstone for Teachers, has put together her own Carnival-esque links post of great posts around the web for the month of March. Is me linking to her links like looking into an endless line of reflections in a Funhouse mirror??
Having said that, here are some fantastic posts, coming directly from several blogs that I enjoy frequenting.
Carnival of Education: The Day to End All Days -- I had to start the list here, because this week, Joel has put together an amazing Carnival. Chock full of relevant links, as always, this one has the distinction of being tied together by a really fun story, of which I am proud to say that I am a major character! According to sources, my character actually died heroically at the end of the original draft, but it didn't score well with test audiences, so I got to live instead.
What's the Word Wednesday: "Something" Happens -- Probably not what you would expect the "Something" to be, but still something that I probably shouldn't post on my blog. This post from the Scholastic Scribe talks about the dangers of a careless (or non-existant) spell check.
Why Bill Nye the Science Guy and I Will Never be Friends -- Mimi at It's Not All Flowers and Sausages (one of my new faves since April 1st) posts hilariously about her lack of a green thumb in the classroom. I can totally relate.
The Cornerstone Accolades for March -- Angela Powell, author of The Cornerstone for Teachers, has put together her own Carnival-esque links post of great posts around the web for the month of March. Is me linking to her links like looking into an endless line of reflections in a Funhouse mirror??
Poverty Stresses Kids' Brains -- In this post by Joanne Jacobs, she notes a recent Washington Post article that says that living in poverty actually affects children's memories. I work at a Title I school, and a lot of my kids can't seem to remember basic math facts, so I would tend to agree with this research.
Tuesday, April 07, 2009
One Blogging Moment
Alack and alas, March Madness is officially over. The Tournament has ended, with the dreaded North Carolina making it a lopsided, and incredibly boring, victory. However, this was good news for Joel of So You Want to Teach, who correctly picked UNC as the winner. His "Mariachi Madness" entry in the ESPN pool has won him the History Channel DVD set! Joel, I'll send that spinning your way sometime in the next few weeks.
Even more exciting than that, CBS must have read my letter and listened, because the One Shining Moment video was great! It was by far the best one I've seen in over a decade, marred only slightly by the croaking of Clark "Frosted" Kellogg at the end. Thank you, CBS!!
Today was the 5th grade math TAKS test, and it was an INCREDIBLY long day for someone who had to monitor the exam. Like me.
I'm going to watch One Shining Moment one more time, then I'm going to bed.
Even more exciting than that, CBS must have read my letter and listened, because the One Shining Moment video was great! It was by far the best one I've seen in over a decade, marred only slightly by the croaking of Clark "Frosted" Kellogg at the end. Thank you, CBS!!
Today was the 5th grade math TAKS test, and it was an INCREDIBLY long day for someone who had to monitor the exam. Like me.
I'm going to watch One Shining Moment one more time, then I'm going to bed.
Friday, January 02, 2009
The Great Guest Fiasco of 2009!
I have a very special treat for everyone today. No, it's not your own Toyota Camry -- who do you think I am, Oprah Winfrey?
Rather, I am pleased to present the very first Guest Blogger on Learn Me Good, well, EVER, I think! But certainly in January of 2009!
Today's Guest Blogger is Joel, of So You Want to Teach? Joel writes about The Great Fish Fiasco of 2008.
___________________________________________________________________
Okay, so maybe it wasn't quite as monumental as the title makes it sound, but it was tremendous, memorable, and pivotal by most accounts. In fact, I remember next to nothing else about the day. But I'm getting ahead of myself.
It all started Tuesday morning. Well actually it started two weeks before. Well actually it started in November. We'll call her Fish Girl, not because she looks like a fish or smells like a fish. Not even because she breathes like a fish. The name will become self-evident as the story progresses.
So Fish Girl is the first chair trumpet player in my band. I've been encouraging her some and trying to help her our quite a bit this year. Back in November, she decided to begin asking me for mariachi music. She asked every day for almost a week before I finally gave in and copied some music for her. She decided she didn't like it because it looked too hard.
She comes into the band hall every day now after lunch to practice. She comes in before school. She comes in after school. It seems that I am quickly becoming her favorite teacher. In fact, she gets mad and jealous when other students say that I'm their favorite teacher; even moreso when they hint that they might possibly be my favorite student. There's a little bit of background.
Fast-forward.
'Twas the Tuesday before Christmas break. Fish Girl comes into the band hall proudly carrying a brand new beta fish she bought at Wal Mart. She tells me that he can live on my desk and be our fish. "Great," I think, "the Christmas gifts have already begun coming in. This is going to be a crazy year!"
Mind you, this fish is not in your regular run-of-the-mill fish water. This is bright blue water. She said it came like that when she bought it at Wal Mart. I look over and notice that she is still messing with it when she opened the lid and decided the water smelled funny. She decided she was going to go change the water. We warned her that doing so could be harmful to the fish's health.
The first bell then rang and I left my office to get set up for first period. After the tardy bell rang, I noticed that Fish Girl and Friends were nowhere to be found. I asked and someone told me they want to go feed the fish. Whatever, it's time for rehearsal.
A couple of minutes later, they all walk in, fish in hand. The water is clear. When asked about this, she told me that she had changed the water because it smelled bad. When I looked at it, it was there lying at the bottom of the bowl just there. Floating food adorned the top of the water, but none was to be eaten.
Later in the day, the other band director decided to email the faculty to ask if anyone else had an aquarium so that we could get water from it since the tap water wasn't seeming to make him all too happy. We got a few offers for us to use vases, but nobody seemed to have an inhabited aquarium.
Just after I returned from lunch, I noticed that she fish was gone. Right then, I looked at the door and saw a group of three or four students coming in with a full-size aquarium full of water, with my fish swimming up a storm. I emailed the faculty and thanked them for their help and thanked the people who had donated the aquarium.
A little later, I noticed that the fish had stopped swimming. I then asked the other director where they got the water, and he told me he figured they got it from the bathroom.
Ugh.
He emailed the faculty and told them that we had stopped performing CPR on the fish, and that he had flatlined.
Emails began flooding in. The history department sent a picture of a flag at half-mast. Tech ed made memorial badges. People asked when services would be held and where flowers could be sent.
Shortly after school, we got an email that said the English department would be bringing breakfast Wednesday morning. I replied to the staff that the band department would be providing fishsticks. Expressions of shock came in. As did questions about who would serve tartar sauce. All told, there were something like 25-30 emails that were sent to the entire staff in reference to this whole incident.
Late in the afternoon, our principal emailed us and told us that he appreciated that we could converse with each other, but that the excessive emails were wasting district resources. He also noted that some of the teachers had sent emails during periods when they had students in their classrooms.
I am once again reminded why I don't keep plants or fish in my office.
___________________________________________________________________
I want to thank Joel very much for kicking off the January of Guest Blogging with style, and I welcome anyone else who is interested to drop me a line and get a spot on the calendar!
Rather, I am pleased to present the very first Guest Blogger on Learn Me Good, well, EVER, I think! But certainly in January of 2009!
Today's Guest Blogger is Joel, of So You Want to Teach? Joel writes about The Great Fish Fiasco of 2008.
___________________________________________________________________
Okay, so maybe it wasn't quite as monumental as the title makes it sound, but it was tremendous, memorable, and pivotal by most accounts. In fact, I remember next to nothing else about the day. But I'm getting ahead of myself.
It all started Tuesday morning. Well actually it started two weeks before. Well actually it started in November. We'll call her Fish Girl, not because she looks like a fish or smells like a fish. Not even because she breathes like a fish. The name will become self-evident as the story progresses.
So Fish Girl is the first chair trumpet player in my band. I've been encouraging her some and trying to help her our quite a bit this year. Back in November, she decided to begin asking me for mariachi music. She asked every day for almost a week before I finally gave in and copied some music for her. She decided she didn't like it because it looked too hard.
She comes into the band hall every day now after lunch to practice. She comes in before school. She comes in after school. It seems that I am quickly becoming her favorite teacher. In fact, she gets mad and jealous when other students say that I'm their favorite teacher; even moreso when they hint that they might possibly be my favorite student. There's a little bit of background.
Fast-forward.
'Twas the Tuesday before Christmas break. Fish Girl comes into the band hall proudly carrying a brand new beta fish she bought at Wal Mart. She tells me that he can live on my desk and be our fish. "Great," I think, "the Christmas gifts have already begun coming in. This is going to be a crazy year!"
Mind you, this fish is not in your regular run-of-the-mill fish water. This is bright blue water. She said it came like that when she bought it at Wal Mart. I look over and notice that she is still messing with it when she opened the lid and decided the water smelled funny. She decided she was going to go change the water. We warned her that doing so could be harmful to the fish's health.
The first bell then rang and I left my office to get set up for first period. After the tardy bell rang, I noticed that Fish Girl and Friends were nowhere to be found. I asked and someone told me they want to go feed the fish. Whatever, it's time for rehearsal.
A couple of minutes later, they all walk in, fish in hand. The water is clear. When asked about this, she told me that she had changed the water because it smelled bad. When I looked at it, it was there lying at the bottom of the bowl just there. Floating food adorned the top of the water, but none was to be eaten.
Later in the day, the other band director decided to email the faculty to ask if anyone else had an aquarium so that we could get water from it since the tap water wasn't seeming to make him all too happy. We got a few offers for us to use vases, but nobody seemed to have an inhabited aquarium.
Just after I returned from lunch, I noticed that she fish was gone. Right then, I looked at the door and saw a group of three or four students coming in with a full-size aquarium full of water, with my fish swimming up a storm. I emailed the faculty and thanked them for their help and thanked the people who had donated the aquarium.
A little later, I noticed that the fish had stopped swimming. I then asked the other director where they got the water, and he told me he figured they got it from the bathroom.
Ugh.
He emailed the faculty and told them that we had stopped performing CPR on the fish, and that he had flatlined.
Emails began flooding in. The history department sent a picture of a flag at half-mast. Tech ed made memorial badges. People asked when services would be held and where flowers could be sent.
Shortly after school, we got an email that said the English department would be bringing breakfast Wednesday morning. I replied to the staff that the band department would be providing fishsticks. Expressions of shock came in. As did questions about who would serve tartar sauce. All told, there were something like 25-30 emails that were sent to the entire staff in reference to this whole incident.
Late in the afternoon, our principal emailed us and told us that he appreciated that we could converse with each other, but that the excessive emails were wasting district resources. He also noted that some of the teachers had sent emails during periods when they had students in their classrooms.
I am once again reminded why I don't keep plants or fish in my office.
___________________________________________________________________
I want to thank Joel very much for kicking off the January of Guest Blogging with style, and I welcome anyone else who is interested to drop me a line and get a spot on the calendar!
Friday, January 25, 2008
Guest who?
Yours truly is the guest of honor over on another blog today --So You Want To Teach? Joel has graciously allowed me to post a top 10 list over there. It's the Top Ten Rejected Meanings of TAKS.
Coming soon, to a T-shirt near you.
Wednesday, January 02, 2008
The Carnival that Wants to Teach
Happy Wednesday, people!
This week's Carnival of Education is hosted by Joel over at So You Want to Teach? The good fellow even put my Christmas update in as his number 2 choice of the week! It's good to be number 2.
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