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Thursday, February 28, 2013
Some Teaching Ideas For Gifted, Social Studies, Humanities, or Anyone Wanting to Think!
Here are a couple of ideas that can be good discussion generators and
studies. Thank you to Otto for always sharing great things!
The Words We Use
Many newspapers call the revolutions in the Middle East the "Arab Spring".
The people of Tunisia, where it all started, don't take too kindly to this
label. They would prefer to call it "Dignity Revolution". If it is a "spring"
then what do people think was happening during the "winter"? Was there an "Arab
Winter" from which the people emerged?
Discussion:
Why would we just accept the "Arab Spring" term so readily and easily
without thought of the meaning? What impression do the words leave with us?
Should we be more critical of the term.
How do perhaps pompous, somewhat over-exaggerated titles affect people who
read or hear the words?
5 Ways to Fool People:
Former US President George W. Bush once called the invasion of Iraq an
attempt to produce "shock and awe". Definition of awe: A
feeling of reverential respect mixed with fear or wonder:
Is
that the reaction that anybody wants from people whose lives and countries are
destroyed? Is that a fair response to expect of the people being bombed and
killed?
Operation Wrath of God (Would God, if asked, really condone people
taking over the role of providing retribution for Him?)
Preemption and "Just" War
Names of World Military Operations
News Items explaining the name change of an operation
The Laws of War
What the Bible says about War
Just War Theory
Educational Challenges and Opportunities for Gifted
Students
Free online university level courses
Wednesday, February 27, 2013
Banning Technology in Our House
I have made a decision in our household that starts today.
Today my children are banned from the iPad and electronics. They are glued to these tablets all the time. It is driving me nuts when I ask them to do something else and my son cries because he does not know what to do.
So, I am taking our family into technology rehab. Starting today no electronics allowed while at home except for phone call, emergency text, and a bit of TV here and there. This goes for me as well.
We are addicted to our electronics. I check my phone almost nonstop at home except when reading. I am bad and my example is what probably leads my children to be the same way. My daughters are not as bad as Aiden, but the habit is growing.
So, the blog might be a bit sparse over the next week. If I cannot get it done during school, then it won't happen.
This could be a tough 7 days. Let us hope we all make it out alive.
Today my children are banned from the iPad and electronics. They are glued to these tablets all the time. It is driving me nuts when I ask them to do something else and my son cries because he does not know what to do.
So, I am taking our family into technology rehab. Starting today no electronics allowed while at home except for phone call, emergency text, and a bit of TV here and there. This goes for me as well.
We are addicted to our electronics. I check my phone almost nonstop at home except when reading. I am bad and my example is what probably leads my children to be the same way. My daughters are not as bad as Aiden, but the habit is growing.
So, the blog might be a bit sparse over the next week. If I cannot get it done during school, then it won't happen.
This could be a tough 7 days. Let us hope we all make it out alive.
Ironman Training Slump: What is going on?
I am currently in week 3 of a 6 week bike focused block of training. This comes after my 14 week out season where I made huge strides in the bike and run. However, I have fallen apart big time the last three weeks only working out a few times, battling an injury, and having zero desire to train and workout.
What is going on?
I honestly don't know. I have a lot on my plate, but so does everyone else. I have been incredibly tired lately. Actually, fatigued is more like. I feel exhausted all the time feeling tired down to my bones. Amanda suggested seeing a doctor. That might be in the cards if I don't shake this soon. Not sure what is going on, but it needs to change.
It will change. We have our ups and downs. I have plans for a big season this year, but right now I am struggling just to find energy to make it through the day.
So, that is where I am. It is where I have been and the reason my training updates have not been around.
Time to find myself and resolve some issues and hopefully get back on track.
What is going on?
I honestly don't know. I have a lot on my plate, but so does everyone else. I have been incredibly tired lately. Actually, fatigued is more like. I feel exhausted all the time feeling tired down to my bones. Amanda suggested seeing a doctor. That might be in the cards if I don't shake this soon. Not sure what is going on, but it needs to change.
It will change. We have our ups and downs. I have plans for a big season this year, but right now I am struggling just to find energy to make it through the day.
So, that is where I am. It is where I have been and the reason my training updates have not been around.
Time to find myself and resolve some issues and hopefully get back on track.
Tuesday, February 26, 2013
Coffeechug Sources 02/27/2013
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Class size, Gonski and schools funding: what are the facts?
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All that we know is an artificial pupil teacher ratio which simply divides all Equivalent Full Time (EFT) teaching staff (including non teaching principals, Assistant Principals, welfare officers, psychologists, special educators, librarians, ESL specialists etc.) into the total number of students.
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Monday, February 25, 2013
Book Review: Dan Pink - To Sell Is Human
To Sell Is Human offers a fresh look at the art and science of selling. As he did in Drive and A Whole New Mind, Daniel H. Pink draws on a rich trove of social science for his counterintuitive insights. He reveals the new ABCs of moving others (it's no longer "Always Be Closing"), explains why extraverts don't make the best salespeople, and shows how giving people an "off-ramp" for their actions can matter more than actually changing their minds.
Along the way, Pink describes the six successors to the elevator pitch, the three rules for understanding another's perspective, the five frames that can make your message clearer and more persuasive, and much more. The result is a perceptive and practical book--one that will change how you see the world and transform what you do at work, at school, and at home.
My Review
Before I begin I will state that this is an overview of my thoughts. I have been blogging and dissecting the book in greater detail on my blog by infusing my thoughts, questions, and ideas. You can access these blog posts in the sidebar of my blog - http://coffeeforthebrain.blogspot.com/
This review is to go over the general thoughts of the book. When I started reading the book I found it slow and not real intriguing. However, I have read all of his other works and think he is groundbreaking with his research and concepts. Once I got about 40-50 pages into the book I was hooked.
I read this book right after reading Susan Cain's book Quiet. IT was a good mix as Dan Pink discussed ambiverts so I was able to connect with what I had just read. Like previous books by Pink he creates a very intriguing look at an idea(in this case we are all salesmen) and breaks it down into research and stories. He structure is easy to understand, but enough facts to keep the heavy hitters happy.
Once gain Dan Pink has written a book that I will reference and utilize in my daily work as a teacher, parent, and spouse. I have several pages bookmarked, highlighted, and locked into my brain to think about and investigate further.
Dan Pink does not let us down with his latest book and should be another MUST READ of the year!
Book Review: Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can't Stop Talking
The book that started the Quiet Revolution
At least one-third of the people we know are introverts. They are the ones who prefer listening to speaking; who innovate and create but dislike self-promotion; who favor working on their own over working in teams. It is to introverts—Rosa Parks, Chopin, Dr. Seuss, Steve Wozniak-- that we owe many of the great contributions to society.
In Quiet, Susan Cain argues that we dramatically undervalue introverts and shows how much we lose in doing so. She charts the rise of the Extrovert Ideal throughout the twentieth century and explores how deeply it has come to permeate our culture. She also introduces us to successful introverts–from a witty, high-octane public speaker who recharges in solitude after his talks, to a record-breaking salesman who quietly taps into the power of questions. Passionately argued, superbly researched, and filled with indelible stories of real people, Quiet has the power to permanently change how we see introverts and, equally important, how they see themselves.
Now with Extra Libris material, including a reader’s guide and bonus content
My Review
I have been blogging about this book by breaking down all my highlights and underlines to really discuss this book in greater detail. All of these insights are on my blog - http://coffeeforthebrain.blogspot.com/
This post is just a review. I am not going to go into my thoughts and the specific facts and ideas of the book. Rather I am reviewing it as a whole.
Overall, this is a MUST READ! It is important for people to understand introverts. It is beyond being shy or socially awkward. There are many misconceptions about being an introvert as is there are many misconceptions about many things in our world today. This book helps to break down the information and explain the world of introverts and how they fit into our American society that strives on being an extrovert.
This book was an important read for me personally as it helped me to understand myself a bit more clearly. It was vital for me as an educator to remember how different people respond and react to situations in life. It was important that as an educator I meet their needs as well. It was vital for me as a parent as I have children at both ends of the verts - introvert and extravert.
The book flows very well. There are a ton of research studies shared and discussed. There were a few spots that I glossed over as I just did not see the need to spend time on the issues being discussed. However, 90% of the book was very solid and I marked my book up with so many notes, thoughts, and highlights.
This is probably one of the most important reads I have read in the past 5 years. If you have not read it, please do and let it lead to some reflecting and discussions with others.
Book Review: Michael Connelly Black Box
I read my first Harry Bosch book by Michael Connelly with the reading of the latest novel in the series, Black Box.
And I really enjoyed the book.
Here is quick overview from Amazon.com
In a case that spans 20 years, Harry Bosch links the bullet from a recent crime to a file from 1992, the killing of a young female photographer during the L.A. riots. Harry originally investigated the murder, but it was then handed off to the Riot Crimes Task Force and never solved.
Now Bosch's ballistics match indicates that her death was not random violence, but something more personal, and connected to a deeper intrigue. Like an investigator combing through the wreckage after a plane crash, Bosch searches for the "black box," the one piece of evidence that will pull the case together.
Riveting and relentlessly paced, THE BLACK BOX leads Harry Bosch, "one of the greats of crime fiction" (New York Daily News), into one of his most fraught and perilous cases.
This is the 19th book in the Harry Bosch series. What I like about this series is that it is real time. Michael Connelly has aged and created this world in real time where each book ages one year at a time. I had the privilege of meeting Michael Connelly as part of the Sony VIP Book Club and it was very interesting to hear him speak about his writing and these characters. You can read about my thoughts here.
Back to the book. This book held my interest. There was an interesting case. Along with the case I felt compelled to learn more about the characters. I wanted to know more about the story of their lives. Despite jumping into the series very late I did not feel left out. I was able to connect with Harry right away. The two plots were interesting and I read this book very quickly. I have not read a book this quick in quite some time. I am not a crime book reader. This is not my genre. However, I would like to go back and read the rest of the books in the series.
If you are looking for a good crime story with a cop with a flawed past, then this is for you. He does not bring in unnecessary facts. He writes about what is needed to know and takes you on a journey with a character that you can't help but like despite the flaws.
Sunday, February 24, 2013
Coffeechug Sources 02/25/2013
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Does skipping a grade help gifted students, or harm them? | Edutopia
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You’ve Found a Global Project. Now What? | The Global Classroom Project
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eT@Lking: Augmented Reality - Educators' Guide to Innovation
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Spelling "Magic" Will Blow Your Kids' Minds With This Awesome Card Trick | GeekDad | Wired.com
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The Newspaper Clipping Image Generator - Create your own fun newspaper
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Learning Creative Learning: Week 2 Reflection
This week was a busy week and my reading and videos and thoughts were scattered among the chaos of many things colliding all at once. The two questions we were to think about and answer for this week were the following:
If you are interested in what I read and viewed to get to thoughts that I am sharing please go to my Evernote page to see the listing
https://www.evernote.com/shard/s31/sh/1e647339-9761-477d-977e-4169021710c1/db0658cc7e5b1586136bc6a00eaeeded
I did not take much away from the videos this week. I took away a few thoughts that were the following:
"If you understand the structure of what the expectations are, what the achievements are, how you get recognized, it really is not that hard to conform if you feel like doing that." How true is this? 100% true. I know it is true because I teach. If you just show up, breathe, smile, nod, it is impossible to fail. You have to work harder to fail than to succeed.
Onwards to the readings
What did you find most surprising in the readings?
The following statement stood out to me personally as I am working towards a new vision of our gifted education program in our school district. This is taken from the Ito's blog Formal vs Informal Education
"I wonder how many people there are like me who can't engage well with formal education, but don't have the mentors or access to the Internet and end up dropping out despite having a good formal education available to them."
With gifted education I wonder how many students are left out because of a lack of support structure that did not fit the model of our public education? How often do we label these kids as lazy, problem, talkative, loner, etc. Do we provide a wrong label for something that is not their fault? The bigger question is how do we find the necessary information out to meet their needs?
Public education is not for everyone. I am starting to think that at times it is not even for me as a teacher. Our hands are so often tied up with little details that have such a huge impact on our teaching. I am stuck with kids of the same age....not ability. I am stuck teaching to the confines of 42 minutes....where it sometimes takes me 20-30 minutes to get in a groove personally. I am stuck teaching to the confines of an ABCDF grading system.....not a learning progress. I see issues from both perspectives and understand why there are students who do well in school and others who don't. I see the issues as a teacher where certain kids just don't care no matter what opportunities are provided them and what do you do then? It is cycle of questions that don't always have answers and after so long you plop in your chair and question what is right or wrong because there are times I don't know anymore.
These questions all flow into a thought pattern that just so happens to be discussed in the next blog post Dubai and Learning about the Unknowable. This post reminds me that I am immersed in education and learning and trying to figure out how to prepare for the next wave in education. In the end none of us know, but we try like crazy every single day of our lives to figure it out. In many ways, educators are living a full out project based learning project by figuring out the best approach to reach the next generation. We have the variables of socioeconomic status, parent influence(or lack thereof), job creation(or job loss), and what will be the next important skill to stay one step ahead of the competition.
With no direct thought connection I still had another takeaway from the next blog post
Reading Joi Ito blog post Reading the Dictionary,
All I want to share about this without going crazy is that I connect. My son watches Minecraft videos for hours to teach himself how to do something. It is amazing how he self teaches himself when it comes to something he enjoys. He does not do this for anything else, but with PASSION he will make it happen. Now my daughter is involved in this game and it is amazing listening to them talk, teach one another, and develop strategy on how the accomplish certain feats.
Last, I cannot help but be fatigued by my thought for my assignment
Read Seymour Papert’s essay on the “Gears of My Childhood” and write about an object from your childhood that interested and influenced you. Share your story in the group.
I am going to give this assignment to my students. I am intrigued by the ideas that develop from a middle school standpoint. I am struggling. I don't know that I had an object that influenced me. I was lucky enough to have a life of many tangible objects. I have my choices narrowed down, but none have really completely connected. I will think more on this. I feel like this is an important assignment for self discovery and one in which I feel like I am overlooking something with significant value. I will take the late penalty(I know there is really not one), to stay hungry and do this assignment right so I can discover some self discovery that perhaps is really needed with my swirl of thoughts.
What did you disagree with or have questions about?
I don't have anything specific, but I think my thoughts on public education or just education in general fits this question. I keep thinking of the idea of creating my own school free from rules, regulations, and standard thinking. Instead I would have this atmosphere that would do nothing more than prepare students for self awareness and preparing them for the real world. No schedule, no textbooks, no "set" curriculum, but in the end or should I say graduation they are ready to be one of the best candidates for whatever they want to accomplish. It would not be for everyone. Some people enjoy and are designed to follow rules and always be told what to do. You have to have these people to keep society working, but this school would be for the people who create the jobs for these rule followers. Crazy thoughts, but at the moment all things that feel very real and burning my brain with infusion.
Saturday, February 23, 2013
Our Words Matter - A Personal Example
I am sorting through my Gmail account trying to get back to an empty inbox and organized online and real world life. As I was sorting through all these links, emails to myself(I send myself emails all the time), and just general decluttering I was reminded of a very special and cool moment for me.
Vicki Davis a.k.a. Cool Cat Teacher who is an education extrodainer and someone who has really helped me find my passion for flattening classrooms and making global connections bookmarked one of my projects via her Diigo account. I know not a big deal as many people do this, but her words mean so much
Here is the link to her blog and this page - http://coolcatteacher.blogspot.com/2013/01/daily-education-and-technology-news-for_22.html
If you don't follow Vicki, then you have missed out on some integral thoughts, visions, and ideas that can really help you as a teacher.
A few days before this she had posted a really insight blog post - http://coolcatteacher.blogspot.com/2013/01/3-characteristics-of-people-builder.html
I left a comment in regards to her post because I felt that I needed to. Her words spoke to me. What stood out was her taking time to respond and I cannot tell how good her words felt to me.
I am not sharing this to toot my own horn. I am showcasing this to get to an even more important idea.
OUR WORDS MATTER!
It might be that one sideline comment that students overhears or that one little phrase that we don't think twice about that can make all the difference - good or bad. Her words helped me. They still help me and still hold a place in my mind(obviously here I am writing about it a month later). It is a reminder about how we phrase our words and statements to students, family, friends. Are we really delivering the true message that we want to get across?
Sometimes we need these little positive urges to continue our journey. There are times where I question why I am up late working and up early prepping for the day. I question if it is all worth it when I sit and converse with educators and other professionals around the world to find something to make me better in my classroom. I connect and hear positive things and I am reminded that it is worth it. I always go back to my own kids and what would I want? I would want that teacher always striving to be their best and expecting the same for their students and my own children. I want my kids to come home and tell me that their teacher(s) have a burning passion for what they do. I want to provide this same feeling as an educator.
This weekend I will return the favor of positive words. I am going to handwrite a few positive notes to people and send out. I need to remember how important these words from Vicki were to me and return the favor. Maybe, just maybe, that is all that person needs to keep the journey alive with whatever their passions might be.
And maybe sharing this will spawn others to do the same.
Have a good weekend.
Vicki Davis a.k.a. Cool Cat Teacher who is an education extrodainer and someone who has really helped me find my passion for flattening classrooms and making global connections bookmarked one of my projects via her Diigo account. I know not a big deal as many people do this, but her words mean so much
Here is the link to her blog and this page - http://coolcatteacher.blogspot.com/2013/01/daily-education-and-technology-news-for_22.html
If you don't follow Vicki, then you have missed out on some integral thoughts, visions, and ideas that can really help you as a teacher.
A few days before this she had posted a really insight blog post - http://coolcatteacher.blogspot.com/2013/01/3-characteristics-of-people-builder.html
I left a comment in regards to her post because I felt that I needed to. Her words spoke to me. What stood out was her taking time to respond and I cannot tell how good her words felt to me.
I am not sharing this to toot my own horn. I am showcasing this to get to an even more important idea.
OUR WORDS MATTER!
It might be that one sideline comment that students overhears or that one little phrase that we don't think twice about that can make all the difference - good or bad. Her words helped me. They still help me and still hold a place in my mind(obviously here I am writing about it a month later). It is a reminder about how we phrase our words and statements to students, family, friends. Are we really delivering the true message that we want to get across?
Sometimes we need these little positive urges to continue our journey. There are times where I question why I am up late working and up early prepping for the day. I question if it is all worth it when I sit and converse with educators and other professionals around the world to find something to make me better in my classroom. I connect and hear positive things and I am reminded that it is worth it. I always go back to my own kids and what would I want? I would want that teacher always striving to be their best and expecting the same for their students and my own children. I want my kids to come home and tell me that their teacher(s) have a burning passion for what they do. I want to provide this same feeling as an educator.
This weekend I will return the favor of positive words. I am going to handwrite a few positive notes to people and send out. I need to remember how important these words from Vicki were to me and return the favor. Maybe, just maybe, that is all that person needs to keep the journey alive with whatever their passions might be.
And maybe sharing this will spawn others to do the same.
Have a good weekend.
Teacher Thoughts: Daniel Pink - To Sell Is Human Part 3
I am reading Daniel Pink, To Sell Is Human. As I read I have marked down some passages that I think are worth discussing. I am trying to read this book from the mindset of an educator and coach. As I read I am trying to figure out ways in which his ideas can be applied to teaching and coaching. I will do my best to explain my thoughts, questions, insights, etc. the best I can in hopes that it creates some dialogue to pursue further.
I will admit that at first I was not really digging the book. I have read his other books and loved them! This one did not quite grab me at first. However, when I started to look at the stories, examples, and ideas through the lens of education it really changed things and I really found the book to be powerful.
As I continue to type up my notes and ideas from the book I come to the next place that I marked to discuss.
Discussion Map
On page 92-93 he discusses doing a Discussion Map where you chart all the interactions of a meeting. I think that at my next team meeting or in service meeting I am going to chart the interactions. I would like to do this time and time again without getting caught(that would be the challenge) to see the ebb and flow of our staff and team meetings. I think this will provide some insight and answers to the dynamics of each session. I really think that whoever does the talking has a great impact on the mood, tone, and energy of meetings. You feel this with certain people. Some enter a meeting and the mood is relaxed and people open up. Other times a person can kill everything with a negative tone or fear of sharing because that person might attack the speaker. Teaching now for almost 10 years you can see how the dynamics of meetings based on the people take on whole new life or loss of life. This might be a professional development plan idea for next year! I need to remember this.
Self Talk
I talk to myself all the time. I have the most amazing conversations in my head and then wonder why I cannot fall asleep at night. I am not going to go into all the facts and research on self talk and how it can impact us for performance(one of my many preachings as a basketball coach), but I want to focus on a part of the book that discusses the framework of our self talk. Talking to oneself with an ASKING approach vs. a TELLING approach. What is striking or cool about this is when we ask or question our self talk we accomplish more because that framework expects an answer. By asking yourself a question it will cause you to dig deep. This is so true. Before my first ever presentation I asked myself if I was ready? I talked to myself out loud in my hotel about all the reasons why I was ready. During this I reaffirmed my belief in myself while calming down and going through all my facts one more time. It worked!
Next there is the idea that intrinsic motivation is more powerful than the extrinsic pressure. This is a no brainer especially if you have read his previous work and we should all know this from life experience. Common sense, but often overlooked as we try to motivate ourselves and others and fail with extrinsic rewards.
I will admit that at first I was not really digging the book. I have read his other books and loved them! This one did not quite grab me at first. However, when I started to look at the stories, examples, and ideas through the lens of education it really changed things and I really found the book to be powerful.
As I continue to type up my notes and ideas from the book I come to the next place that I marked to discuss.
Discussion Map
On page 92-93 he discusses doing a Discussion Map where you chart all the interactions of a meeting. I think that at my next team meeting or in service meeting I am going to chart the interactions. I would like to do this time and time again without getting caught(that would be the challenge) to see the ebb and flow of our staff and team meetings. I think this will provide some insight and answers to the dynamics of each session. I really think that whoever does the talking has a great impact on the mood, tone, and energy of meetings. You feel this with certain people. Some enter a meeting and the mood is relaxed and people open up. Other times a person can kill everything with a negative tone or fear of sharing because that person might attack the speaker. Teaching now for almost 10 years you can see how the dynamics of meetings based on the people take on whole new life or loss of life. This might be a professional development plan idea for next year! I need to remember this.
Self Talk
I talk to myself all the time. I have the most amazing conversations in my head and then wonder why I cannot fall asleep at night. I am not going to go into all the facts and research on self talk and how it can impact us for performance(one of my many preachings as a basketball coach), but I want to focus on a part of the book that discusses the framework of our self talk. Talking to oneself with an ASKING approach vs. a TELLING approach. What is striking or cool about this is when we ask or question our self talk we accomplish more because that framework expects an answer. By asking yourself a question it will cause you to dig deep. This is so true. Before my first ever presentation I asked myself if I was ready? I talked to myself out loud in my hotel about all the reasons why I was ready. During this I reaffirmed my belief in myself while calming down and going through all my facts one more time. It worked!
Next there is the idea that intrinsic motivation is more powerful than the extrinsic pressure. This is a no brainer especially if you have read his previous work and we should all know this from life experience. Common sense, but often overlooked as we try to motivate ourselves and others and fail with extrinsic rewards.
What Are You Reading?
I know this question is over asked online, but what is everyone reading
this weekend or what is a recent good read? I just wrapped up Quiet by
Susan Cain about introverts which was a great read and Dan Pink's To
Sell is Human which was also great material to process.
Both reviews coming this weekend.
Both reviews coming this weekend.
Friday, February 22, 2013
If students designed their own schools...
Love this! And guess what, this is part of the vision we are looking at bringing into our schools. May not look identical, the idea is the same. Awesome!
Brainstorming Power Needed!
We have a cool showcase night in the works to broadcast our students knowledge and expertise of their independent study projects. We are working on a way to to bridge all 30 of our projects together. Our current idea is to have each student provide us(teachers) one fact/question that they want each person who visits their station to walk away with as the most important fact. Our current plan is to take these 30 facts and create a handout mystery/scavenger hunt paper to give each person who attends our showcase. Our theme is bald eagles so each presentation is focused on bald eagles in some capacity.
What we need are some ideas to create cool interactive approach to the community finding answers to these 30 questions. We want it to be more than just a piece of paper with questions.
Any thoughts?
What we need are some ideas to create cool interactive approach to the community finding answers to these 30 questions. We want it to be more than just a piece of paper with questions.
Any thoughts?
TEDxTC - Peter Benson - Sparks: How Youth Thrive.
Love this video. Just watched it for the first time. What is MY SPARK? I need to define my SPARK so that I can ask students what their SPARK is! This is a great presentation that gives some food for thought.
Wednesday, February 20, 2013
Coffeechug Sources 02/21/2013
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Stump The Teacher: Innovation Day 2011
I want to develop this at my school!
Teacher Thoughts on Dan Pink: To Sell Is Human Part 2
I am reading Daniel Pink, To Sell Is Human. As I read I have marked down some passages that I think are worth discussing. I am trying to read this book from the mindset of an educator and coach. As I read I am trying to figure out ways in which his ideas can be applied to teaching and coaching. I will do my best to explain my thoughts, questions, insights, etc. the best I can in hopes that it creates some dialogue to pursue further.
I will admit that at first I was not really digging the book. I have read his other books and loved them! This one did not quite grab me at first. However, when I started to look at the stories, examples, and ideas through the lens of education it really changed things and I really found the book to be powerful.
As I continue to type up my notes and ideas from the book I come to the next place that I marked to discuss.
This next segment comes from after a week of reading so I have had time to process some of my thoughts.
This is so weird that Daniel Pink is discussing"Ambivert" while I just started reading Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can't Stop Talking. Here he discusses people who are a bit of both. As I read Quiet I keep going back to something in this book by Pink, "The notion that extraverts are the finest salespeople is so obvious that we've overlooked one teensy flaw. There's almost no evidence that it's actually true."
Ambiverts are those that sit roughly in the middle between introverts and extraverts. Ambiverts are able to find that happy medium of listening and also taking action as needed. The good news is that most of are ambiverts. I don't know where I fall. I would like to assume that I am more closely aligned with this notion of ambiverts since I have been working on my introvert skills over the years and feel like I have moved more towards the middle. I don't know how to best gauge this, but this is my gut feeling. Or perhaps I have always been in the middle and as I age and become wiser(this is debatable) perhaps I am more comfortable in my skin.
I love the notion of the best conversation starter is, "Where are you from?" I actually used this tactic while flying out to LA this past weekend. It works so well as people just open up and start talking. It is comfortable and allows the responder to answer at a level of comfort as they so desire.
I don't want to go into all the details of this concept, but I am very intrigued by this whole notion of mimicry and to mimic the actions of others while communicating. The reading on this concept is very interesting to me. I need to follow up with some more research as well as test things on my own.
The last thing that I want to discuss/share is the Jeff Bezos(Amazon.com) and his wonderful meeting idea. When he has meeting he leaves one chair empty to remind the people of the meeting that the most important person of the meeting is the customer. I think this would be a good strategy to use as teachers. We have meetings that sometimes lose focus and become more a complain fest. However, if we had this subtle reminder that this could be a student in the meeting I wonder if things would change? I know that if a real student was sitting in on the meeting we would stay the course for sure! With any meeting how do we stay on track? It can so easy to lose focus. We have all been in meetings that you left and felt like you just spun your wheels. This can wear people out especially in this day and age when businesses and schools meet all the time. It goes back to the ideas of Quiet, are we better off just working solo or online? Would that make things better so that when we did meet in person(perhaps less often) would more get done? I don't know the answer, but it is one worth exploring.
This is enough to chew on for now. I will post my next installment tomorrow.
I will admit that at first I was not really digging the book. I have read his other books and loved them! This one did not quite grab me at first. However, when I started to look at the stories, examples, and ideas through the lens of education it really changed things and I really found the book to be powerful.
As I continue to type up my notes and ideas from the book I come to the next place that I marked to discuss.
This next segment comes from after a week of reading so I have had time to process some of my thoughts.
This is so weird that Daniel Pink is discussing"Ambivert" while I just started reading Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can't Stop Talking. Here he discusses people who are a bit of both. As I read Quiet I keep going back to something in this book by Pink, "The notion that extraverts are the finest salespeople is so obvious that we've overlooked one teensy flaw. There's almost no evidence that it's actually true."
Ambiverts are those that sit roughly in the middle between introverts and extraverts. Ambiverts are able to find that happy medium of listening and also taking action as needed. The good news is that most of are ambiverts. I don't know where I fall. I would like to assume that I am more closely aligned with this notion of ambiverts since I have been working on my introvert skills over the years and feel like I have moved more towards the middle. I don't know how to best gauge this, but this is my gut feeling. Or perhaps I have always been in the middle and as I age and become wiser(this is debatable) perhaps I am more comfortable in my skin.
I love the notion of the best conversation starter is, "Where are you from?" I actually used this tactic while flying out to LA this past weekend. It works so well as people just open up and start talking. It is comfortable and allows the responder to answer at a level of comfort as they so desire.
I don't want to go into all the details of this concept, but I am very intrigued by this whole notion of mimicry and to mimic the actions of others while communicating. The reading on this concept is very interesting to me. I need to follow up with some more research as well as test things on my own.
The last thing that I want to discuss/share is the Jeff Bezos(Amazon.com) and his wonderful meeting idea. When he has meeting he leaves one chair empty to remind the people of the meeting that the most important person of the meeting is the customer. I think this would be a good strategy to use as teachers. We have meetings that sometimes lose focus and become more a complain fest. However, if we had this subtle reminder that this could be a student in the meeting I wonder if things would change? I know that if a real student was sitting in on the meeting we would stay the course for sure! With any meeting how do we stay on track? It can so easy to lose focus. We have all been in meetings that you left and felt like you just spun your wheels. This can wear people out especially in this day and age when businesses and schools meet all the time. It goes back to the ideas of Quiet, are we better off just working solo or online? Would that make things better so that when we did meet in person(perhaps less often) would more get done? I don't know the answer, but it is one worth exploring.
This is enough to chew on for now. I will post my next installment tomorrow.
Tuesday, February 19, 2013
Teacher Thoughts on Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can't Stop Talking Part 3
I am in the process of reading Quiet:The Power of Introverts in a World That Can't Stop Talking. Instead of going off on one big rant I am breaking my thoughts, questions, concerns up into smaller bite size bits of wisdom.
You can check out the earlier thoughts over in the sidebar of the blog.
I shared this image on Instagram the other day, but I did not take time to talk about it.
This passage has me stuck in neutrel. I keep coming back to this sentence and reading it over and over. This really speaks volumes. Here we have Stanford Business School showing that they really think that verbal fluency(speaking) and sociability are the top two predictors. Is this the case? What do you think?
I don't know. I guess I never gave pause before to really think about what is needed to be successful specifically. As a teacher we strive on the notion that students need to work and develop the tools needed to work in groups with people who differ from you in all types of levels from intelligence, gender, race, quiet, loud, etc. The key in school is to get them working with people who are not part of their circle of friends. I know we all have said at one point or the other when issues arrive at the table that students need to learn to work through it as in the real world. But, I don't know that we specifically teach verbal fluency and sociability.
Should we?
In our school we have speech class and students give presentations and such, but I don't know that we teach specifics of verbal fluency. Sociability is one that I am not quite sure you can teach.
Or perhaps I am overthinking this completely because another part of me believes that times have changed. You might not be the best verbal speaker and maybe lack social skills, but with technology and being able to hide behind a computer screen(like I am doing right now) we can come out of our shells while still being introverts. We can do things needed to be successful while not really needing these skills. Is this an old way of thinking? Is it an old way of thinking that just looks different today and we can now make ends meet through technology?
I told you my brain was spinning and I am only to page 48!
Teacher Thoughts on Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can't Stop Talking Part 2
I am in the process of reading Quiet:The Power of Introverts in a World That Can't Stop Talking. Instead of going off on one big rant I am breaking my thoughts, questions, concerns up into smaller bite size bits of wisdom.
You can check out the earlier thoughts over in the sidebar of the blog.
I shared this image on Instagram the other day, but I did not take time to talk about it. This statement really stood out to me. I think as a general population this statement rings true. We tend to follow the more outspoken people whether that is in a staff meeting, concert, parties, etc. We gravitate towards these people because they have the confidence to share their thoughts and ideas. What I find striking is that there is no data to support this stereotype or should I dare say misconception(or possible misconception as some are really bright and intelligent).
As an educator of gifted children I know firsthand this to be true. I have students who rarely speak and have a very hard time talking and engaging in conversation. It is sometimes hard to not wonder if they are as gifted as the numbers and data show, but you know deep down there is something amazing inside. The key is to find ways to bring these wonderful ideas and insights to the surface. The goal here is not to make them something they are not, but to help understand and develop tools to held aid them in engaging with others so that perhaps their creative outlets can bring positive change to the world.
I am curious about your thoughts about this statement? What do you think, do you perceive talkers as smarter?
You can check out the earlier thoughts over in the sidebar of the blog.
I shared this image on Instagram the other day, but I did not take time to talk about it. This statement really stood out to me. I think as a general population this statement rings true. We tend to follow the more outspoken people whether that is in a staff meeting, concert, parties, etc. We gravitate towards these people because they have the confidence to share their thoughts and ideas. What I find striking is that there is no data to support this stereotype or should I dare say misconception(or possible misconception as some are really bright and intelligent).
As an educator of gifted children I know firsthand this to be true. I have students who rarely speak and have a very hard time talking and engaging in conversation. It is sometimes hard to not wonder if they are as gifted as the numbers and data show, but you know deep down there is something amazing inside. The key is to find ways to bring these wonderful ideas and insights to the surface. The goal here is not to make them something they are not, but to help understand and develop tools to held aid them in engaging with others so that perhaps their creative outlets can bring positive change to the world.
I am curious about your thoughts about this statement? What do you think, do you perceive talkers as smarter?
Monday, February 18, 2013
Sony VIP Book Club Trip to LA Slideshow
Here are some photos from my wonderful trip to Los Angeles for the Sony VIP Book Club Reader Program. It was amazing and I sure hope they give me another opportunity to be part of something like this.
Teacher Thoughts on Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can't Stop Talking Part 1
I am in the process of reading Quiet:The Power of Introverts in a World That Can't Stop Talking. I am about 100 pages in the book and I feel the need to stop and talk about what I have read. This book is really spinning me around quite a bit because I feel like I am reading this at a pivotal time in my teaching career. As a whole, I am an introvert. I have strived very hard to work on "introvertness" to come out of my shell and take on the traits of extroverts. I feel like I have made some pretty huge strides. Reading this book is helping me to understand that perhaps who I am is okay!
Secondly, we live in a world that stresses teamwork, communication, sociability, group activities, etc. I see this in schools and in the real world. Reading this book is a good reminder that there are times that this does not always serve the main goal at hand. There are times and situations where being an introvert is better or at least acceptable.
Third, without going on a major rant because I know my longer posts rarely get read all the way, but this book hits me right on the head as we look at how we go about screening for our gifted education program and this is giving me pause to stop and rethink things a bit before shaking things up.
Enough of my personal thoughts with the reading. I will break these thoughts down into smaller, simpler chunks than this long rant that I am currently on.
So, for now the beginning of the book opens with some key examples of important works of art, ideas, and influence all from introverts.
dd
Secondly, we live in a world that stresses teamwork, communication, sociability, group activities, etc. I see this in schools and in the real world. Reading this book is a good reminder that there are times that this does not always serve the main goal at hand. There are times and situations where being an introvert is better or at least acceptable.
Third, without going on a major rant because I know my longer posts rarely get read all the way, but this book hits me right on the head as we look at how we go about screening for our gifted education program and this is giving me pause to stop and rethink things a bit before shaking things up.
Enough of my personal thoughts with the reading. I will break these thoughts down into smaller, simpler chunks than this long rant that I am currently on.
So, for now the beginning of the book opens with some key examples of important works of art, ideas, and influence all from introverts.
ddMy question for you is twofold:
1. What are your general thoughts about introverts?
2. What other important elements of life, history, arts, etc. have come from introverts that are not on this list above?
Sunday, February 17, 2013
Michael Connelly: What I Learned From Meeting Him
This past weekend I had the opportunity to fly out to Los Angeles and meet the author Michael Connelly. I am part of Sony eReader VIP book club that allowed me this amazing opportunity. If you already follow me on Twitter (@coffeechugbooks) or on Instagram (coffeechug) then you have seen more photos than you probably care to view. This post will not be about the trip as that will be another post soon. Instead I want to get down what I took away from listening to Michael Connelly speak.
I am trying to write from memory without going back to Twitter or Facebook. If you want to see everything that he shared you can check out hashtag #sonyreader to back read.
As a teacher what I took away most was that with anything in life you have to have a passion for what you do. Connelly has a passion for his writing and in particular his character Harry Bosch. Listening to him talk I gained the sense that Harry Bosch is as real and important in his life as any real person. I don't say that like he is crazy or off the beaten path, but as he was written about Harry in real time for 20 years it has played a huge role for him. When I teach and I coach I share these same ideas. The idea that you have to find your passion and once you find it you have to go after it. Connelly spent his life writing from not publishing his first two books that even his mother has not read to improve his craft. As a teacher I bust my butt everyday to improve and learn to become better in my field. This message will once again go back to my students and my players. If you are good at something, then you have to put time into your passion to get better. Does this sound like Gladwell and his book Outliers?
Another thing I really enjoyed was all the back stories to events in the book. When I read crime fiction I don't go reading them for deep insight. I read them to escape major thinking and to escape life. Connelly shared many things about the details in the book that made me even more impressed with what I read. Whether it was the backstory of a jazz player and how that connected to plots in the story to planting seeds for future stories I found that I gave fiction writers a deeper sense of appreciation after this chat.
Next was finding what works for you. Connelly writes on a laptop, not paper. He writes with the light blocked from the room with no clocks available and the same light shining over his right shoulder that he has used for years. Some may find his weird, but I don't. I love this. We all have our own systems of operation. I have a routine for drinking coffee in the morning before beginning my 5 am training workouts. It was great that he shared this. It is important that we find out what works for us. I know I am an introvert. I can only handle so much people time before I must enter the nerd cave and be left to my nerdiness with no people. It recharges me to be away from human beings. My son is this way. My daughter is not and feeds off people. I listened to another author speak a few weeks back and he uses paper and takes notes in a blackbook. Completely different Connelly and that is okay.
Three more short things that stood out to me that I shard on Twitter
Cliches are cliches because there is a sense of truth.
John Greens mom likes Harry Bosch
I am trying to write from memory without going back to Twitter or Facebook. If you want to see everything that he shared you can check out hashtag #sonyreader to back read.
As a teacher what I took away most was that with anything in life you have to have a passion for what you do. Connelly has a passion for his writing and in particular his character Harry Bosch. Listening to him talk I gained the sense that Harry Bosch is as real and important in his life as any real person. I don't say that like he is crazy or off the beaten path, but as he was written about Harry in real time for 20 years it has played a huge role for him. When I teach and I coach I share these same ideas. The idea that you have to find your passion and once you find it you have to go after it. Connelly spent his life writing from not publishing his first two books that even his mother has not read to improve his craft. As a teacher I bust my butt everyday to improve and learn to become better in my field. This message will once again go back to my students and my players. If you are good at something, then you have to put time into your passion to get better. Does this sound like Gladwell and his book Outliers?
Another thing I really enjoyed was all the back stories to events in the book. When I read crime fiction I don't go reading them for deep insight. I read them to escape major thinking and to escape life. Connelly shared many things about the details in the book that made me even more impressed with what I read. Whether it was the backstory of a jazz player and how that connected to plots in the story to planting seeds for future stories I found that I gave fiction writers a deeper sense of appreciation after this chat.
Next was finding what works for you. Connelly writes on a laptop, not paper. He writes with the light blocked from the room with no clocks available and the same light shining over his right shoulder that he has used for years. Some may find his weird, but I don't. I love this. We all have our own systems of operation. I have a routine for drinking coffee in the morning before beginning my 5 am training workouts. It was great that he shared this. It is important that we find out what works for us. I know I am an introvert. I can only handle so much people time before I must enter the nerd cave and be left to my nerdiness with no people. It recharges me to be away from human beings. My son is this way. My daughter is not and feeds off people. I listened to another author speak a few weeks back and he uses paper and takes notes in a blackbook. Completely different Connelly and that is okay.
Three more short things that stood out to me that I shard on Twitter
Cliches are cliches because there is a sense of truth.
John Greens mom likes Harry Bosch
it is always time to write.
This line about cliches stood out to me. I was not expecting it and when he said it the word stuck. It is true, but I never gave it much thought. I will be coming back to this at some point in the future because it is messing with my brain, but for now I will just share it.
John Green is my hero. He is fantastic or should I say AWESOMESAUCE! To know his mother likes Connelly and that he knows John Green just made him all the more cooler. Plus he played poker on Castle, the tv show.
The last line connects to earlier ideas, but he said there is always time to write. This goes back to the idea I always share with my students and players. Don't make excuses. That is easy to do. Rather find the time. If you reallly want something bad enough you won't make excuses. IT was great to hear that from someone successfully like Connelly.
This was a wonderful opportunity. I would have liked to sit around with a cup of coffee and just talk more, but I cannot be greedy. I thank Sony for the opportunity and would gladly love another one or something similar(not that I am greedy or anything).
I will share pictures and more thoughts soon. It is now time to enjoy people watching at the airport while I wait to fly home.
Thursday, February 14, 2013
Learning Creative Learning: MIT Online Class Week 1 Thoughts
I came across this awesome online class that MIT is experimenting with called Learning Creative Learning. You can find the link here
I missed the registration, but am participating in Google+ and still trying to stay current with discussions, blog posts, readings, videos, etc.
Today I had a chance to watch the introduction video and read the reading for week 1
The reading was All I Really Need to Know (about Creative Thinking) I Learned (by Studying How Children Learn) in Kindergarten, by Mitchel Resnick of the MIT Media lab. This was the suggested reading for the first session of the Learning Creative Learning online course.
I won't give a summary as you can read it for yourself, but here are some of my take aways from the reading.
I missed the registration, but am participating in Google+ and still trying to stay current with discussions, blog posts, readings, videos, etc.
Today I had a chance to watch the introduction video and read the reading for week 1
The reading was All I Really Need to Know (about Creative Thinking) I Learned (by Studying How Children Learn) in Kindergarten, by Mitchel Resnick of the MIT Media lab. This was the suggested reading for the first session of the Learning Creative Learning online course.
I won't give a summary as you can read it for yourself, but here are some of my take aways from the reading.
- I like the idea of the spiral learning of Imagine, Create, Play, Share, Reflect, and back to imagine that they lay out in the article when discussing kindergarten. This whole idea is intriguing and one that I need to reflect upon more and see if it exists in my classroom enough throughout the days, weeks, and months and more importantly how to chart and analyze while working to create a better learning environment.
- I agree that kindergarten is losing out on the essentials. So weird to read this as I just made comments like this to other people about my daughter. Kindergarten is no longer just a place to learn to be creative and work with others. There is more emphasis on reading, writing, math, etc. I don't think this is a bad thing, but it has shifted the way these classrooms look and operate. I am quite glad that my daughter does not have homework. My son had homework in kindergarten and that drove me nuts. 5 and 6 year olds should not have homework.
- "In a society characterized by uncertainty and rapid change, the ability to think creatively is becoming the key to success and satisfaction, both professionally and personally." AMEN! Wake up schools as this is why we need to rethink how we operate in certain aspects.
- Kindergarten repeats the whole spiral learning process over and over and I cannot help but think of my son playing Minecraft. I know video games get a bad rap(still not sure why, but that is another discussion), but my son does Imagine, Create, Play, Share, Reflect, and back to Imagine in Minecraft several times a day. When he explains his world it is amazing to hear his articulation and thinking. If only I could get that incorporate into his sentence writing in school we would be set. The transfer or should I say passion is not quite there yet.
- Another line that really stood out to me - "..."little c" creativity - that is, creativity within one's personal life - not big "C".........The goal is not to nurture the next Mozart or Einstein, but to help everyone become more creative in ways they deal with everyday problems."
- This next one has me thinking about the general idea in terms of education. "I am sure that designers and engineers at the toy companies learn a great deal while creating these toys, but I doubt that children learn very much while interacting with the toys." Applying this notion to education I think about how much I loop ideas in my brain to create the next great lesson or unit. I mean I work like mad to perfect the teaching moment. I sometimes wonder if the students use their brains as much as I did to prepare the unit. I don't know how to measure the levels of thinking, but if I can create environments of learning that generate as much thought and reflection as I do into my lessons, then I have something good!
Those are my thoughts which are plenty for one day!
Teacher Thoughts on Dan Pink: To Sell Is Human Part 1
I am reading Daniel Pink, To Sell Is Human. As I read I have marked down some passages that I think are worth discussing. I am trying to read this book from the mindset of an educator and coach. As I read I am trying to figure out ways in which his ideas can be applied to teaching and coaching. I will do my best to explain my thoughts, questions, insights, etc. the best I can in hopes that it creates some dialogue to pursue further.
I will admit that at first I was not really digging the book. I have read his other books and loved them! This one did not quite grab me at first. However, when I started to look at the stories, examples, and ideas through the lens of education it really changed things and I really found the book to be powerful.
For example, there is a passage about the shifting of knowledge. He uses the examples of car salesman and how times have changed. The buyer now has the information up front and online and can come to the dealership with more information than the salesman. Dan Pink states that today the salesman is no longer the source of information, but they have become "curators and clarifiers of it." They go on to add that today they need to have empathy and make the customer feel like you care.
Think about that in education........
As teachers we are no longer needed to be the know it all source of information. This is not a new idea. The teacher no longer needs be the master of the domain. Rather, it is our job to help curate the information, help students process and understand all the facts and data that are now currently available to students, and figure out what to do with it all. I like to envision us as puzzle masters. We see the big picture as teachers. The students see all the pieces scattered. It is our job to help guide, teach, mentor the students to figure out how to place all the pieces so that they can see the big picture as well.
And how do we do that? Empathy
We have to care. We have to have a passion for teaching. Not just a passion for our subject area, but a passion for helping kids see what we see. Not every student wants this. I hate to admit it, but some just flat out will never care. That does not mean that we don't care as professionals. Rather, we have to understand that we cannot reach every students. That is why students to travel to 8-10 teachers a day and see new teachers each year. All it takes is for one person to get through. It may not be me. It may not be you, but unless we all try who knows what doors can be unlocked.
My favorite line from this particular chapter and passage comes from one of the salespeople used to tell a story. She says, "You can't train someone to care." Either you care or you don't. It is that simple. I see this every single day as a teacher. I see it every basketball season as a coach. No matter what you say or do, some people will never care. We as teachers have to care. If we don't care and don't have empathy, then someone needs to remove us from this field of work. This job requires a passion and burning desire to challenge ourselves so that we can challenge our students.
I will admit that at first I was not really digging the book. I have read his other books and loved them! This one did not quite grab me at first. However, when I started to look at the stories, examples, and ideas through the lens of education it really changed things and I really found the book to be powerful.
For example, there is a passage about the shifting of knowledge. He uses the examples of car salesman and how times have changed. The buyer now has the information up front and online and can come to the dealership with more information than the salesman. Dan Pink states that today the salesman is no longer the source of information, but they have become "curators and clarifiers of it." They go on to add that today they need to have empathy and make the customer feel like you care.
Think about that in education........
As teachers we are no longer needed to be the know it all source of information. This is not a new idea. The teacher no longer needs be the master of the domain. Rather, it is our job to help curate the information, help students process and understand all the facts and data that are now currently available to students, and figure out what to do with it all. I like to envision us as puzzle masters. We see the big picture as teachers. The students see all the pieces scattered. It is our job to help guide, teach, mentor the students to figure out how to place all the pieces so that they can see the big picture as well.
And how do we do that? Empathy
We have to care. We have to have a passion for teaching. Not just a passion for our subject area, but a passion for helping kids see what we see. Not every student wants this. I hate to admit it, but some just flat out will never care. That does not mean that we don't care as professionals. Rather, we have to understand that we cannot reach every students. That is why students to travel to 8-10 teachers a day and see new teachers each year. All it takes is for one person to get through. It may not be me. It may not be you, but unless we all try who knows what doors can be unlocked.
My favorite line from this particular chapter and passage comes from one of the salespeople used to tell a story. She says, "You can't train someone to care." Either you care or you don't. It is that simple. I see this every single day as a teacher. I see it every basketball season as a coach. No matter what you say or do, some people will never care. We as teachers have to care. If we don't care and don't have empathy, then someone needs to remove us from this field of work. This job requires a passion and burning desire to challenge ourselves so that we can challenge our students.
Training Put On Hold
I don't know what I did, but Tuesday night after coaching my basketball game my right ankle started to bother me a bit. By the end of the night it was hurting pretty good. I have no idea what happened or what caused it as I did not do anything.
Wednesday morning when I woke up I planned to get my bike workout done, but I could barely walk. My ankle was on fire and hurt something fierce. Throughout the day it just got worse, started to swell a bit and the pain moved to my heel and calf.
Today the pain is still there. I am taking another rest day and the pain is now more the heel, but if I rotate my ankle it hurts and the swelling has also increased.
So, I was back on track, but have a little setback. I need to get to the doctor so hopefully Monday I can make a quick trip over to see as I am busy today and out of town all weekend. The joys of getting old.
Wednesday morning when I woke up I planned to get my bike workout done, but I could barely walk. My ankle was on fire and hurt something fierce. Throughout the day it just got worse, started to swell a bit and the pain moved to my heel and calf.
Today the pain is still there. I am taking another rest day and the pain is now more the heel, but if I rotate my ankle it hurts and the swelling has also increased.
So, I was back on track, but have a little setback. I need to get to the doctor so hopefully Monday I can make a quick trip over to see as I am busy today and out of town all weekend. The joys of getting old.
Wednesday, February 13, 2013
Liberty and Justice 2.13.13 - Intruder Alert
Yesterday was some action packed scenes in the nest. I had the cam going throughout the afternoon and there was a time period where the eagles appeared to be not too happy. There was a lot of screeching and at one point you can actually see another bird perch on a tree nearby. This put them in a bit of what appeared to be a protective state of mind.
Above are some images from yesterday.
Below is a link to some video footage I was able to capture so you can hear them screech and move about. I hope you enjoy following Liberty and Justice as much as I have as along with the students. It has been one exciting learning experience so far.
Here is the video link - http://youtu.be/gCUTe9bVg14
Bald Eagle Eating Fish In Nest
On Monday I was able to watch one of the eagles(not sure if Liberty or Justice) eat a pretty nice sized fish.
I was not able to capture any audio, but you can watch the process of eating.
http://youtu.be/9XPZmZFlV-o
Give a few seconds. I was scrambling to find a way to record the screen at school without my own computer. I quickly have to get on Google Hangout. It is not perfect video quality due to the way I recorded, but you can still see the cool eating process.
Here are two other links that I have shared before. This one is Liberty and Justice sharing egg duties. T
his one has audio
http://youtu.be/Q9Wm2INRUGs
This one was the first time I heard the eagle communicate back and forth.
http://youtu.be/tz0Dq9tFCmo
You can check out our project here - http://eagleeyecamera.wikispaces.com/
I was not able to capture any audio, but you can watch the process of eating.
http://youtu.be/9XPZmZFlV-o
Give a few seconds. I was scrambling to find a way to record the screen at school without my own computer. I quickly have to get on Google Hangout. It is not perfect video quality due to the way I recorded, but you can still see the cool eating process.
Here are two other links that I have shared before. This one is Liberty and Justice sharing egg duties. T
his one has audio
http://youtu.be/Q9Wm2INRUGs
This one was the first time I heard the eagle communicate back and forth.
http://youtu.be/tz0Dq9tFCmo
You can check out our project here - http://eagleeyecamera.wikispaces.com/
Bald Eagle Project - Will There Be A Third Egg?
http://eagleeyecamera.wikispaces.com/
Today we find out if we will have 2 or 3 eggs in the nest. Keep an eye out on the nest today!
I will sharing some video footage soon that I have gathered the last few days.
Today we find out if we will have 2 or 3 eggs in the nest. Keep an eye out on the nest today!
I will sharing some video footage soon that I have gathered the last few days.
Tuesday, February 12, 2013
Run Focus Block: Week 1, Day 2 Run
Today is the second day of the 6 week run focused block of my training. I did not need to do the 5K run test as I just tested last week to end my NOS. Instead I had a 2 x 1 workout at Zone 4. My new Zone 4 pace is 6:43.
5k test for vDOT. WU: 15' including 4 x 30" at 5k pace.
MS: Run a 5k Time Trial. Find a relatively flat course (or track) for your test. Goal is to hold a pace you can sustain for the full duration of the test without blowing up and without having a lot left to kick at the end. The ideal course is one you can test on repeatedly. CD: Walking, jogging as needed, etc.
Note: If you don't NEED to test, do 2 x 1 mile (4') as your workout.
I decided to finally suck it up and run outside. I have not ran outside this year so I thought it was time to get outdoors. IT was not too bad out. I was cold the first 10-15 minutes, but as I continued to run I warmed up just fine. I started off nice and easy running a 8:16 pace to get loose for about 11 minutes. I then moved to a stretch of road perfect to start the mile interval. I was spot on running the mile in 6:42.
I took the four minute rest going nice and easy to recover. My legs were heavy after this point, but it was soon time for the second mile interval. You can see below I ran that one in 6:36 so a bit faster. This was due to being properly warmed up and also probably a bit of small downhill descent to start the run. This helped to set the pace. I felt really good during this mile and actually overran a bit to run 1.17.
I was pretty tired and my legs were fatigued. I decided to run two more miles nice and easy to begin to build up some base and slowly expand my time on my feet. I have not ran long in a long time due to the focus being on speed. It is time to begin to slowly build.
I love my new watch! Look at all this cool data and this is not even all of it! So worth the purchase. Very happy I splurged. I hit my groove and realized I need to to work on my run. I am glad I chose the run focus because it is needed.
5k test for vDOT. WU: 15' including 4 x 30" at 5k pace.
MS: Run a 5k Time Trial. Find a relatively flat course (or track) for your test. Goal is to hold a pace you can sustain for the full duration of the test without blowing up and without having a lot left to kick at the end. The ideal course is one you can test on repeatedly. CD: Walking, jogging as needed, etc.
Note: If you don't NEED to test, do 2 x 1 mile (4') as your workout.
I decided to finally suck it up and run outside. I have not ran outside this year so I thought it was time to get outdoors. IT was not too bad out. I was cold the first 10-15 minutes, but as I continued to run I warmed up just fine. I started off nice and easy running a 8:16 pace to get loose for about 11 minutes. I then moved to a stretch of road perfect to start the mile interval. I was spot on running the mile in 6:42.
I took the four minute rest going nice and easy to recover. My legs were heavy after this point, but it was soon time for the second mile interval. You can see below I ran that one in 6:36 so a bit faster. This was due to being properly warmed up and also probably a bit of small downhill descent to start the run. This helped to set the pace. I felt really good during this mile and actually overran a bit to run 1.17.
I was pretty tired and my legs were fatigued. I decided to run two more miles nice and easy to begin to build up some base and slowly expand my time on my feet. I have not ran long in a long time due to the focus being on speed. It is time to begin to slowly build.
I love my new watch! Look at all this cool data and this is not even all of it! So worth the purchase. Very happy I splurged. I hit my groove and realized I need to to work on my run. I am glad I chose the run focus because it is needed.
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