Happy Valentine's Day

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Best Friends

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Tomorrow is Valentine's Day. The following video is what love and friendship are all about. I think we could all learn a lesson from this unlikely couple.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d79ArrL8VRg

Great Backyard Bird Count

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The Great Backyard Bird Count is this weekend, February 12-15. This is a great activity for families and for classrooms. The four-day event gives a real-time snapshot of where birds are.

And it's simple, fun, and free. Just count the number of birds you see in a time period. How many cardinals are at the bird feeder in a fifteen minute time period? How many mourning doves are in your yard during the day? Are there any owls or woodpeckers or finches?

The following is copied from the official website for the event (http://www.birdsource.org/gbbc/howto.html)

1. Plan to count birds for at least 15 minutes on one or more days of the count. You can count for longer than that if you wish! Count birds in as many places and on as many days as you like—one day, two days, or all four days. Submit a separate checklist for each new day. You can also submit more than one checklist per day if you count in other locations on that day.

2. Count the greatest number of individuals of each species that you see together at any one time. You may find it helpful to print out your regional bird checklist to get an idea of the kinds of birds you're likely to see in your area in February. You could take note of the highest number of each species you see on this checklist.

3. When you're finished, enter your results through our web page. You'll see a button marked "Enter Your Checklists!" on the website home page beginning on the first day of the count. It will remain active until the deadline for data submission on March 1st.

Sources:

http://www.thehawkeye.com/story/Bird-count-020910

http://www.birdsource.org/gbbc/

The Best Lesson I Ever Learned

Tweet It happened early in my teaching career. A student came into class and accidentally knocked another student's books onto the floor. Instead of doing the right thing and picking the books up, he just kept walking to his desk like nothing had happened. The other student was upset. He could have picked up his own books, but didn't feel like he should have to, since it was the first student's fault. Needless to say, he asked the first student to pick them up. Again, the first student could have done that, but instead, decided to say that he wasn't going to. Before it was over, the incident escalated into a verbal fight and almost became a physical fight.

During the incident, I did my best to keep it from turning into a big fight, but I was inexperienced and just kept telling them to stop. I tried to reason with both of them, but there was no listening to reason. I thought the student who knocked the books off should pick them up and asked him to, several times. As it turned out, I ended up sending both students to the office where they were both punished with an in-school suspension and detention.

Later, the assistant principal came to talk to me about the incident. She wanted the details so that she could explain to the students' parents why their children were in detention. I went through the entire incident. When I was done, she just looked at me and said "Why didn't you just pick up the books?"

I was floored. Suddenly the fight between the students had become my fault. I was upset that she was blaming me and it evidentally showed on my face. She explained that the students would get their punishments and that they should have controlled their behavior in the classroom. But she also explained that if I had just picked up the books at the first sign of trouble, there would have been no problem. There would have been no verbal fight. There would have been no students sent to the office. There would have been no incident reports to write. There would have been no punishments. Class could have continued and learning could have taken place.

I'll tell you, I didn't like it. And even though I hated to admit it, she was right. It would have been such a simple thing for me to do that. That's all I had to do. Just pick up the books and avoid the whole situation.

The next time a similar incident happened, I took the assistant principal's advice. The whole episode was over in a matter of seconds. Both students apologized to me and said that I shouldn't have had to pick up the books. No one got in any trouble. Class started. Students learned.

And I learned that I didn't always have to punish students for misbehavior. I learned that I could correct their misbehavior in much simpler ways. It was a lesson that stayed with me for the next thirty years. It was probably a more valuable lesson than all those I had learned in college. And it was so simple.

My Dog Ate My Homework

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My neck hurts. It's hurt for about two weeks and now hurts down my right arm and into my hand. When I type, my neck hurts. When I click the mouse on the computer, my neck hurts. Now, I could use this as an excuse for not blogging, but I refuse. As a teacher I have heard so many excuses over the years, I refuse to use them myself. Some of them, however, are pretty good. Here are the ten that I heard most often.

1. My sister got sick and we were in the emergency room all night.

2. I was at my dad's over the weekend and I left all my books and papers there.

3. My homework is in my friend's locker and he's home sick today.

4. My tutor can't help me until next week.

5. I had a game last night and I left my books on the bus.

6. I asked another teacher for help and she confused me.

7. Our power went out last night and I couldn't see to do my work.

8. My mom cleaned my room and threw out a bunch of papers I needed.

9. I spilled coffee all over my homework and didn't have time to recopy it.

10. I got called into work and didn't have time to do my homework.

Amazingly, not one student, ever, used the excuse that his dog had eaten his homework. I, on the other hand, had a cat that like to chew the edges of paper. He would put bite marks all along all four edges of a piece of paper. They were messy perforations and occasionally, he would get hold of a student's paper, one that I was checking. Yes, there were several occasions when I handed back a paper to a student and had to say, "I'm sorry, but my cat chewed your paper." And that was the truth, not an excuse.

Dieting is Hard

Tweet Today Michelle Obama gave a speech about childhood obesity. In fact, everyday, someone is lecturing about America's problems with weight. There are thousands of diet books, millions of magazine articles, and dozens of television spots all dedicated to helping people get fit and trim. And they all make it sound so easy. But the truth is, it's one of the hardest things a person can accomplish.

A tobacco user can stop smoking or chewing. An alcoholic can stop drinking. A drug addict can stop using. A gambler can quit gambling. But an overeater can't stop eating. S/he must learn to deal with food in some other way.

And it's not like we don't know what to do. The rules are simple. Eat fewer calories. Eat lots of fruit and vegetables. Eat whole grains. Eat less red meat and replace it with more legumes and healthy fish. Eat much less sugar, salt, and saturated fat. Eat more fiber. Exercise more.

And yet, we keep getting fatter and fatter, myself included.

So what's the problem? One part of the problem is time. After working all day, who wants to have to spend time fixing a meal when fast food is so convenient, cheap, and easy to clean up?

A second part of the problem is motivation. Most of us can be motivated to eat healthy for a while. But lifetime motivation is a whole other story.

A third part of the problem is cost. The foods we're supposed to be eating are the most expensive. It's not right that a huge, greasy hamburger from a fast food joint should taste so good and cost so little. Preparing a meal at home of salmon, steamed broccoli, brown rice, and apple slices will take much more time to prepare and will cost much, much more. And if you're like me, there will be a huge mess in the kitchen to clean up.

I know that obesity is dangerous. The list of medical conditions attributed to overeating gets bigger everyday. There's diabetes, cancers, fatty liver disease, sleep apnea, high blood pressure, heart disease, high cholesterol, and more. And these are showing up in young children. Just yesterday, I heard that when autopsies of toddlers who've died in accidents are performed, there's already the start of plaque build-up in their arteries.

There's also the social stigma that every overweight person deals with. People watch what you put in your grocery cart. They watch what you eat in restaurants. They'll whisper and laugh behind your back, or worse, right in front of you. This is an unimaginable burden for school-age children whose peers can be so rude.

When I was in high school, the "fat" girl in class weighed about 180 pounds. Today, she's likely to weigh 300 or more. I remember how embarrassing it was for one of my students who could not fit into a desk and had to sit at a table instead. There's just not anything that can be said to make that situation better.

So what can be done? Well, like I said, there are already a countless numbers of resources out there and we already know what we need to do. It really comes down to how much a person is willing to take before he or she is willing to change. How many medical conditions can be suffered through? How much ridicule can be stomached? How long is a person willing to sit on the sidelines while his or her friends play the game?

When overweight people have had enough, they'll make the change. Unfortunately, by that time it may be too late. The best thing is to never let obesity start.

And all of this is so much easier said than done. Dieting is just hard.

On Track For Graduation

Tweet I went to the hairdressers today for color and a cut. The person working on my hair (and with my hair, it is work) has a daughter who is a senior in high school this year. A few weeks ago, the girl, and then her mother, discovered that she was behind in credits and will not have enough to graduate.

What a shock! Fortunately, in the school where she attends, online courses are offered for students who need to make up credits. There is also a community college that offers correspondence courses. Well, the daughter signed up for several online courses in order to get those credits.

Last week, the mother discovered that her daughter wasn't keeping up with the online courses. Needless to say, mother was more than a little upset and from what I could tell today, I do believe the daughter will be getting those courses finished and will be earning those credits (whether she wants to or not).

My advice today is for all students to make an appointment with their counselors and check on credits. Make sure you are on track to graduate on time. If not, find out what you can do to get on track. Don't get yourselves in a situation where you have to make up credits three months before graduation. It's not a fun place to be.

Chisenbop

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Today I was thinking about a method of adding and subtraction using your fingers. I saw a classroom of children do this on television years ago. They were so fast, much faster than the adults sitting there with calculators. The method is called Chisenbop. The following videos explain it well, but don't really show the speed that one can attain.

The first video is of a teacher explaining Chisenbop. The second video is of a five-year-old boy using it to add. It really is pretty amazing.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FJx7GSLhOro

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=prT6o40CBWg

It Has To Be Done

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I can't believe it.  I forgot to write today.  I got busy doing other things and it completely slipped my mind.  

This used to be one of my greatest fears when I was in school.  I was always afraid that I wouldn't have my homework done or that I'd forget the due date of a major project, lab, or paper.   I can remember being up all night making sure that work was completed and turned in on time.

I think that's one of the things that amazed me most when I started teaching.  There are students who don't care if  assignments are turned in at all, let alone turned in on time.  After all the years I taught, I never did understand that attitude.  I still don't.

That's why I'm writing this at midnight.  I can't help it.  It's got to be done.  And it's got to be done on time, even if it's at the very, very last minute...which this is.

Hunger and Fullness

Tweet Dwayne Johnson, The Rock, was on the Oprah show today. During the interview, he made a statement that really made me think. I may not have this quoted exactly, but he said "If you've never been hungry, you can never be full."

It made me think of so many of the students I taught, as well as a couple of my relatives. These were children who were given everything they ever wanted without having any responsibilities. They had all the best toys and the latest fashions. They went to every movie and concert. They were always over-indulged. They were never "hungry" for anything.

Now, as adults, they're never full. They're not full of an education or a desire for knowledge. They're not full of a job or any kind of motivation to get one. They're not full of any kind of gratitude, always thinking the world and their parents owe them. They're not full of any kind of accountability, always blaming others for their misfortunes. They are depressed, miserable adult children who have never learned to be adults.

I believe a little "hunger" earlier in their lives would have been a good thing. Perhaps it would have created a desire in them for fullness, instead of the emptiness they currently have in their lives. I'd like to think that something in their lives will eventually spark that desire and give them the fullness in life that every person should have. I still have hope for them.

I Feel Smarter with Google

Tweet A teacher friend of mine (we are both retired now) was one of the most intelligent people I have ever known. She could remember almost everything and her brain contained an amazing amount of information and trivia.

I used to marvel at her ability to discuss almost any subject that came up in the classroom, the teacher's lounge, or in faculty meetings. From mathematics to social studies to cooking and cleaning, she seemed to know it all. I longed for a brain like hers.

My brain, on the other hand, remembered much less than hers. My advantage was that I always remembered where I had learned something, whether it was an encyclopedia, the Internet, a particular magazine or book, or even a television program. I might not remember the actual piece of information or trivia, but I always remembered where I could look it up.

But now, with the Internet and search engines, I almost feel like I'm on equal footing with those super-intelligent people. I don't even have to remember (although I still do) where to look something up anymore. I just have to search. I am constantly amazed at the amount of information available to me by just typing a few words on my keyboard.

However, even with all the information available to me at my fingertips, I still won't play Trivial Pursuit with her ... unless I have access to Google. Something, however, tells me that that's probably against the rules.

Facebook Impressions

Tweet I have quite a few teacher friends on Facebook. The other day I was looking through some of their profiles and photos. Most of them have pictures of their children or vacation sites, but there were a couple whose photos showed them at parties.

Now, I know these teachers and I know that they do not party all the time. They are hard-working, concerned educators who would do anything to see their students succeed. And yet their photos would give the impression that all their free time is spent consuming beer and posing for silly photos. There was one set of photos where the teacher had a beer in her hand in almost every picture.

I'm a firm believer that a teacher should be able to live his or her private life in whatever manner they choose, but posting photos on Facebook suddenly makes a person's private life very public. And if the teacher has chosen to "friend" any of his or her students, those students are going to have a very different impression of their teacher.

I know how students talk about their teachers. They're always trying to find out about their teachers' private lives and share the information with their classmates, friends, parents, and family. One student I had in class about 5 years ago worked at the local grocery store. On one occasion, I had purchased a box of Garlic Mashed Potatoes. She waited on me and evidently thought Garlic Mashed Potatoes was an odd choice for a teacher because she announced to the entire class the next day. Even today, when I see her at the store, she'll check my cart to see if there are any Garlic Mashed Potatoes.

If she was this concerned about one box of instant potatoes that a teacher had in her grocery cart, imagine what the student say about a teacher whose every photo shows him or her drinking. I personally think it should be the teacher's private affair, but once it's on Facebook, it's public. Teachers across the nation have been fired or asked to resign because of incidents like this.

All teachers should please rethink the items they post on Facebook. They should also reconsider "friending" students. It's a dangerous combination that could cost a teacher his or her job.

Happy Groundhog Day

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The Groundhogs are in conflict. If a groundhog sees his shadow, it means six more weeks of winter. If he doesn't see his shadow, then there will be an early spring.

• Punxsutawney Phil (Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania) ~ saw his shadow
• Chattanooga Chuck (Chattanooga, Tennessee) ~ saw his shadow
• Staten Island Chuck (New York) ~ did not see his shadow
• Shubenacadie Sam (Nova Scotia) ~ saw his shadow
• Wiarton Willie (Ontario) ~ saw his shadow
• Jimmy the Groundhog (Sun Prairie, Wisconsin) ~ did not see his shadow
• General Beauregard Lee (Atlanta, Georgia) ~ did not see his shadow
• Dunkirk Dave (Dunkirk, New York) ~ did not see his shadow
• Malverne Mel and Malverne Melissa (Malverne, New York) ~ saw his shadow
• Brandon Bob (Brandon, Manitoba) ~ saw his shadow
• Balzac Billy (Balzac, Alberta) ~ did not see his shadow
• Gary the Groundhog (Kleinburg, Ontario) ~ did not see his shadow
• Spanish Joe (Spanish, Ontario) ~ saw his shadow
• Sir Walter Wally (Raleigh, North Carolina) ~ announced at noon
• Octoraro Orphie (Quarryville, Pennsylvania) ~ stuffed animal, does that count?
• Holtsville Hal (Holtsville, New York) ~ saw his shadow
• Buckeye Chuck (Marion, Ohio) ~ did not see his shadow
• Manitoba Merv (Winnepeg, Manitoba ) ~ did not see his shadow

I think what all this means is that we will have an early spring ..... in about 6 weeks.

Just Keep Smiling

Tweet Today, for a short period of time, the sun was out. The temperature was almost 40 degrees. Everybody seemed to be in a good mood.

I was grocery shopping and everyone was smiling. It was kind of weird because everyone has been pretty grumpy lately. Today even grocery shopping was enjoyable.

And tonight we just got another inch of snow.

What can I say?

Keep smiling! Winter is half over!