January 2012
1 tag
Science Fair Wrap-Up
Display boards all graded
47 papers left to grade
4 out of the top 5 projects came from my classes, including the first place finisher
12 of the 20 projects moving on to the county science fair came from my classes
And so I agreed to work the county fair, which is on a Saturday morning
I screwed up the project numbers for my classes somehow, which really threw a wrench in M’s carefully...
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Butterscotch Fiasco.: Electron configuration, or... →
butterscotchfiasco:
One of my favorite things to teach is electron configuration. I feel like I do a pretty good job of breaking down a relatively abstract topic and making it something they can relate to. I give the “bus seat” example for Hund’s Rule: I explain how antisocial passengers(electrons) will not pair up…
I love hearing about kids inspired to nerdiness. Keep up the good work!
6 tags
Rick Santorum: Left uses college for... →
girlwithalessonplan:
somepolitics:
Republican presidential candidate Rick Santorum said Wednesday that “the left” uses universities to indoctrinate young people for the purpose of “holding and maintaining power.”
After saying “we’ve lost, unfortunately, our entertainment industry,” Santorum told a Naples, Florida, audience that “we’ve lost our higher education, that was the first to go a...
3 tags
Favorite Song Friday (just in time!)
Unguided by...
Opting out of Grading →
world-shaker:
As an educator who abolished grading in 2004 and initiated a Grading Moratorium, I have an acute understanding for how grading sabotages learning. Because of this, I have drafted this letter for my daughter’s future teachers.
Dear teacher,
Kayley loves to learn and is very excited to start school this year.
Because the case against grades has a wealth of anecdotal evidence...
Science fair is today.
Finally.
My kids saw me in anxious mode today, and I didn’t like it.
One of the things I like about myself and my teaching is that students have a very difficult time reading me. When I am tired or nervous or cranky or angry, they can’t tell. This is great because on the days when a kid does get to me none of them can tell, and on days when I feel really overwhelmed and stressed out the kids...
2 tags
allisonunsupervised replied to your post: Personal Business
It’s not being a grown up, it’s being a teacher. If you had a desk job, you could do it first thing. And then take a bathroom break, just for kicks.
My first bathroom break today was at like 3:30 in the afternoon.
Personal Business
One of the things that sucks about being a grown-up is that there’s just no time to take care of personal business.
Example: There is some seriously weird shit going down with my student loan stuff right now, the kind of thing that I am not going to be able to solve on the interwebz. I’m going to actually need to call these financial people to figure out what is going on. When will I...
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“Why do proponents want to pull down the fence and let school districts wander...”
– SB 89 and Creation Science: Fanaticism and ignorance is forever busy and needs feeding
I have fallen in love with Masson’s blog. Any of you Indiana readers should add it to your RSS.
(via girlwithalessonplan)
Tumblr Teacher: Girl with a Lesson Plan: Indiana... →
tehsunshine:
abaldwin360:
courierpress.com - An Indiana Senate panel has approved a bill that would allow creationism to be taught in Indiana’s public schools.
The Times of Munster reports (http://bit.ly/yKZdgN) the Republican-controlled Senate Education Committee voted 8-2…
Dear Student, I Don't Lie Awake at Night Thinking... →
This is why I grade. Questions by writing the amount of points the student earned (i.e., “+3”) instead of how many they missed (i.e, “-2”). They earn the grade.
3 tags
I have an administrative mid-year evaluation...
Found out about it yesterday.
Haven’t prepped yet.
Don’t remember what bureaucratic bullshit I wrote down for my official goals.
And therefore have not chosen any artifacts yet.
But it’s at 7:45AM so I can deal with it when I get to work tomorrow.
Three months ago this would have terrified me. Now I’m like, “Oh, that. Meh.” Guess I’m growing up.
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nicoleprima reblogged your photoset: addicted2cinema: If 2012’s Oscar-nominated Movie…
Wait, what’s the last one?
Tree of Life.
3 tags
Second Date
First kiss was awkward.
But we both acknowledged that it was awkward and then had a more successful do-over, so I guess that counts for something.
Note to self: Find things to talk about that aren’t my classroom, my students, or education policy.
Dating is difficult and time-consuming. I want to skip to the part where you get to just chill on the couch in PJs and watch TV together while...
11 tags
Write a letter - Stop the Pennsylvania Asset Test... →
privilegedwhitegirl:
Right now the PA state government is considering implementing an asset test to receive food stamps.
“Specifically, the Department of Public Welfare said that as of May 1, people under 60 with more than $2,000 in savings and other assets would no longer be eligible for food stamps. For people over 60, the limit would be $3,250.
Houses and retirement benefits would be...
Nearly walked in to meet Engineering Boy still wearing my teacher badge.
I’m occasionally a little unnerved by how much my profession has taken over my life.
“We have to transform the way we think about data from a hammer that’s going to...”
– Aimee R. Guidera, executive director of the Data Quality Campaign in States should make better use of academic data, study says (via gjmueller)
Planning my outfit for tomorrow
It needs to be appropriate for:
A day of teaching
An educator open house at a nature center that may or may not involve mild hiking
A date
My closet is not this versatile.
1 tag
I’ll watch SOTU until I can’t stay awake, or until these moronic “news analysts” make me completely nuts.
I forgot SOTU was tonight.
I should watch it. Informed responsible citizen, etc.
But I just don’t have the mental energy. Sorry, POTUS. Love you; catch you on YouTube later.
This was my first 12 hour day at school in a long...
And I was not pleased about it, because it was not even for planning/grading/organizing—it was all science fair logistics.
I mean, necessary. But I am so glad that I already planned for the rest of the week, because by the time I finally said, “Eff you, science fair” and left school, I was completely burnt out.
Didn’t even bother to bring my bag home and pretend burnt...
“None came from wages, the primary source of income for most Americans.”
– Mitt Romney releases tax returns - The Washington Post (via adventuresinlearning)
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A Daring Seating Chart
Putting the identical twins one right in front of the other.
I will finally learn to tell them apart. I will! It’s been four months—I need to get this figured out.
I always feel terrible when I get them mixed up. I’m pretty sure I am their favorite teacher—they’re always so excited to see me and they’re super engaged in class. But they are actually identical,...
Oh, good. Another science fair drama e-mail.
I just…I just am so over this whole thing.
Not a damn thing I can do. And it sucks, and I get that, and I’m sorry that it happened in my class and under my watch, but I can’t hold their hands on weekends.
Sorry for your luck. Really.
But I can’t fix this.
5 tags
Somehow,
throughout an entire genuinely productive teacher workday—I worked pretty steadily from 8 to 5—I managed to do everything except tomorrow’s lesson plan.
Tumblr, my calendar for February makes me sad. I am so swamped; it looks like September all over again.
And Engineering Boy is penciled in (writing in the planner FTW) for Date #2 on Wednesday. Why did I think this was a good...
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“A white college student from a private college goes into a poor neighborhood and...”
– Dr. Patricia Hill Collins quoting Public Allies CEO Paul Schmitz in her talk Answering the Call to Community Service. (via sexartandpolitics)
A microcosm of one of the fundamental issues with the non-profit industrial complex.
(via myflagisblackandred)
I need to read more about this, because this...
Full list of things Leslie Knope is Pro →
davidsilver:
Making it illegal to refuse a hug
Yes.
Hanging out on GoogleDocs with a Student
Kind of cool and hip.
Kind of weird.
I’m tired.
1 tag
Considering applying for a summer program that I...
One of the free response questions on the application reads as follows:
Due to the nature of expedition travel, we never know when a polar bear will appear on the ice, or when we will be visited by a pod of dolphins or whales. As such, shipboard travel requires everyone to be flexible. As a Fellow, you may be asked to create activities on the fly that will help small groups of young travelers...
We've Got A Diem to Carpe: Teaching Regions! →
adiemtocarpe:
In the 4th grade, students learn about our country’s regions. It’s my favorite thing to teach.
My first unit was on the Southwest, and I followed what was in the book and I was bored to tears. After researching some ideas, I came across this fabulous teacher’s website on how she teaches…
Cool teaching = automatic reblog
1 tag
Matt Damon and Mother Reject Union's Award because... →
thanksandyes:
We’re officially in Wonderland.