Thursday, June 11, 2009

The End of the Road

Well, we are almost there. Another year is winding down. Boxes are being packed, grades calculated, whiteboards wiped clean. Has it been a good year? It has in many respects. We were faced with a lot of challenges.


I had three goals for the year:
  • Teach one main concept. By now I hope you hear it in your sleep (tell a story to an audience!). There is a ton of learning theory (and practical examples) that advocates teaching less content and staying on message. This is why we don't teach out of the book (the other reason is we don't have a book...). Does it cause frustration? Yes. Does it force you to solve problems? Yes. And, thankfully, it caused you to produce good work. You have produced the best work since I have came here three years ago. We did something right.
  • Learn how to twitter. I'm still working on this. But I learn from many teachers. In a room without windows I am getting constant updates from dozens of educators about what they are reading, planning, and producing. The work that others do helps me plan our lessons and it is where we get most of our reading assignments. I advocate you getting a twitter account for your learning (use texting or other things for more social things).
  • Get you to read more. I tried to find interesting and fun stories that would connect you to what is going on in the world. Be informed!
Today: either scramble (Oh my God--I need to graduate!), finish (computer didn't work yesterday), or relax quietly (phew!). Maybe play a game. Grades will be posted throughout the day after blog posts are done.

Best so far (based on your votes): cwyskiel, nfeliciano, cgallo, tmorrow. I also like the use of the green screen (Gshackett, JPowell). Check them out.

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