One Spot, Thousands of Resources

Did you ever wish you could have everything in one spot without having to search multiple sources to find what you need? Your wish has now come true, at least for federal educational resources. Put together in an easy to use series of links, free teaching resources from all federal agencies are now in one spot. Get primary source material from the Library of Congress. Get beloved childhood literature. Get access to videos from NASA. Find lesson plans and more!  It sounds like an ad, doesn't it? Thankfully, it won't cost you a penny more than the taxes you've already paid, so be sure to take advantage of it. You may be surprised at what's out there!

Here's a link to the site: Federal Resources for Educational Excellence

Bubble Up

I just came across a splendid tool that is free and easy to learn. Bubbl.us allows students and teachers to brainstorm, establish hierarchal webs, and much more. It's simplified format makes it great for students to use, yet the text buttons can be customized to fit a variety of tasks. Plus, it's easy to embed in your website or other documents. Sounds like an ad, doesn't it? Really, I'm just enthused about how I'll use it in my classroom. I'm thinking that plot sequencing and web diagrams are perfect applications. Let me know what you're doing with it!

Here's the link to Bubbl.us: https://bubbl.us/

Giving the Gifted an Education

With state budgets under fire and no quick recovery in sight, programs are being slashed at a rapid rate. Sadly, as The New York Times recently reported, gifted education programs are at the forefront of the chopping block. Some argue that the gifted students will do just fine, even if they are not offered specialized programs. After all, these are students who already manage to do well in regular classes, and they are certainly achieving on standardized tests. Yet if we are to respond to President Obama's Sputnik challenge, we clearly need to develop the inherent creativity of our brightest students, preparing them to respond to the unknown challenges of the future. Even Howard Gardner, in his recent book Five Minds for the Future, notes that this mindset of creativity needs to be nurtured. Cutting the programs that challenge our gifted students to think outside the box and beyond the ordinary does everyone a disservice, yet it is a reality that educators must overcome.

So, what can be done? Certainly, keeping these gifted programs intact is a worthwhile venture. By challenging our intellectually gifted students, we keep them engaged in the learning process, and we avoid the classroom management issues that result from bored students. Moreover, we can prepare the innovators who will tackle the rough problems ahead. However, where programs no longer exist, it is up to the individual educator to make that difference for one's students. Thankfully, in an atmosphere where differentiated instruction is valued, the efforts to challenge each student at his or her own level have enormous benefits. Research has shown that what works for the gifted works for all. The key is to actually offer the challenges that stimulate academic growth and creative thinking. If we work to serve all our students with the necessary challenges for their growth, we help our best and brightest while still serving the academic needs of the majority of our students. We owe it to our future to give all our students the academic challenge they deserve. Let's give our students the gift of good education!

Here are links to Howard Gardner's book and The New York Times article that got me thinking.


Gifted Programs Go on Block as Schools Must Do With Less

I'm Learning Like SpongeBob

I've always loved the SpongeBob cartoons! SpongeBob is one of those ineffable characters that means something different to each person. To me, SpongeBob is the ultimate learner. He is fully aware of his lack of knowledge, and yet that doesn't daunt him as he plunges forward to soak up the knowledge that others around him offer. He doesn't care that he doesn't know everything. It doesn't hold him back from trying new things, no matter how great the risk of failure. Throughout, he remains upbeat and kind to his friends, bringing them along for his intellectual forays.

Even when the going is tough, SpongeBob keeps on trying. I'm still not sure if SpongeBob ever got his driver's license, even though he must have taken the test over 15 times. Despite the frustration of his teacher, he still applied effort with enthusiasm. After all, if a goal is truly important, it's worth repeated efforts to accomplish it. Mastery is worth the effort!

I think SpongeBob is a great example that we all can emulate. We shouldn't be afraid to take on new educational risks, but should relax and enjoy the challenge before us. Like SpongeBob, we should soak in all the information around us, process it, and squeeze out the wonderful juice of knowledge. Look for the knowledge others have to offer. Read the attachments for presentations you were unable to attend. Follow up on the links that others share. There's a wealth of information for the taking, and your friends have already narrowed down the pool to the really worthy material. Take advantage of these gifts that are offered to you. Don't shrink from the challenge, but explore your world and your discipline with the childlike enthusiasm of SpongeBob. You'll swell up in no time!

Keep it Moving!

I just attended some great workshops this past weekend at the NJEA convention in Atlantic City, NJ. Two were particularly inspiring: "I'm the Write Teacher" by Joseph Pizzo and "The Kinesthetic Classroom" by Mike Kuczala. Mr. Pizzo brought new energy to classroom pedagogy with his integration of fun activities that accomplished the same tasks as a boring lecture. I particularly enjoyed his impromptu poetry slam made up with teacher-supplied excuses. It was a fun exercise that also demonstrated parallel structure, a win-win strategy!  Mr. Kuczala showed some simple ways that movement can increase cognitive processing, class cohesion, and just plain fun. He managed to get over 150 teachers moving, laughing, and agreeing that these were worthwhile activities.  I plan to purchase his book that offers more background on the research and many practical applications of movement for all disciplines.

My point? Our classrooms don't need to be boring to be effective.  We need to work on developing energized environments that appeal to all learners and keep them engaged. Humor, movement, and just plain silliness are great assets for teachers.  Let's remember that if we're bored, our students are probably asleep.  Plan for movement. Plan for group interaction. Plan for laughter and silliness.  You'll be glad you did!

Here's a link to Mike Kuczala's book:

Inspiring Future Teachers

Why teach? This is the question that many ask. Given the rigorous academic standards, the difficult credentialing process, and the demands of the profession itself, the question of whether to teach or not may seem like an open and shut case of "No." Nonetheless, for those driven to interact with our youth and to develop the next generation of leaders, teaching is the shining light that beckons from afar. However, there are some who just need to know a bit more about the process before they commit to this rewarding career, and that is where teach.gov comes in.

Teach.gov is a comprehensive site prepared by the federal government to inspire future teachers and to ease the transition into teaching. It provides video testimonials, checklists for the educational and job search process, and many resources, no matter what stage of the process you are in. It even includes job postings! While the site can be a little cumbersome to navigate, it's still a worthwhile venture. Note that you have to explore several levels of menus in order to see the full breadth of offerings. I encourage you to roam its pages and to become a bit more inspired yourself.

Check it out here:
Teach.gov

Celebrating Banned Books Week, Sept. 25-Oct. 2nd, 2010

They banned that?! WHY? This is the comment that I received from students, colleagues, and friends when I taught a lesson on censorship as part of this year's Banned Books Week. It may be hard to believe, but even in this enlightened America, the Land of Free Speech, there are still many challenges to great literary works. When I say banned, I'm not talking about the marching band at football games. No, I'm talking about removing literature, film, art, and other media from publicly accessible libraries, museums, schools, and websites simply because some find their content offensive. 

We all need to remember that banning books has disastrous consequences. It denies an author a voice and risks cutting off the cry for help from oppression. It allows others to make choices, instead of allowing one to make decisions for oneself. It necessarily stifles the creative juices of genius, limiting our citizens to a mediocre, generally accepted existence. I don't mean to say that all censoring is bad. No, some is clearly needed to protect young children from sexually explicit material, and there are other instances where it's appropriate as well. Rather, I'm suggesting that we think twice before removing literature from our schools and libraries. What is offensive to one person may be totally acceptable to another. My students were amazed that Captain Underpants was a challenged book. They appreciated the goofy antics and the language of their peers (elementary school bathroom talk). My friends were amazed that the Harry Potter series was at the top of the list for challenged books when it has received such widespread acceptance and huge movie deals. I, too, was astonished that one of my favorite young adult novels by Sherman Alexie, The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, was banned from a Stockton, Missouri high school library this month even though it was adopted as a required summer read by a New Jersey high school. Nonetheless, if you take a look at the American Library Association's list of challenged and banned books, you'd be hard pressed not to find some novel that you have read.

So, take some time to celebrate our literary freedom. Read a great work, perhaps one that's been banned. Let others know that we don't take our freedom of speech for granted!

Here's a link to the ALA's list of the top 100 banned/challenged books for the last decade:

ALA (American Library Association

Here's a link to some lesson plans for Banned Books Week by ReadWriteThink.org:

ReadWriteThink.org

Here's a link to Sherman Alexie's book on Amazon.com: