Late Night Learning?

Friday was the start of football season so You know who went to the 1st game? ME!  The next morning I was thinking back & came up with something worthy of blogging, comparing the 1st day of school to a football game.
RED= game
BLUE= school

You walk in & you feel extremely late because there are about 10 big circles of kids you know but you don't want to budge in so you just walk around a bit.

You walk in & feel very strange the 1st day because everything is new and nothing is the same as last year.  Some of your friends moved away or are not in your classes anymore.

After 30 min. of walking & wandering you find someone you know & haven't seen forever that also doesn't have a group & is with people she doesn't like but, doesn't want to stand out for being alone.

Around the 3-5th day you have a group of 3-5 people that are in some of your classes & welcomed you to their lunch table.

after 1/2 time you are comfortable with your surroundings & are having fun with the people you've found.

You know more about your teachers & the way they operate.  Everyone in the class has a position (shy kid in the back, know it all, class clown, etc...)

There's only 25 min. left of the game & you feel like you just got here & you're having a blast!

Things are gliding by & everyone but you wants school to end so they can leave.

Do you feel the same way?  Was this a good comparison?

Full Of Everything

I have not written in a while, shame on me!  I am trying to get into a regular routine now that summer has come to an end.  A part of my daily routine will be blogging more unlike this summer. Also now as summer comes to an end it is time to reflect, here goes nothing!

June:  It wasn't realistic that it was all ready summer and it felt like there was so much time left to do everything. Wrong!  June was the beginning of my volunteering services for the library, farmers market, VBS, & the school.  I also started to have 2 guest bloggers here, they have been great!

July:  I vacationed & watched a friends house while they were away.  It was also a great month for biking & mowing.

August: I ended the summer with lots of helping at school, a party at the library, & the start of the Ambassadors at school.

For me this was not a typical summer because not once did I ever say "I'm bored."

Could You Make It?

I think middle school is full of opportunities!!! I think middle school is a great thing...the teachers are amazing, you aren't stuck in one room for 8 hours, how could it be better. Well, everything can get better, right?? I think middle school passing periods need to become longer. The teachers expect you to go to the restroom, get to your next class, and go to your locker (if needed) in 4 minutes. For me that is NOT enough time. I think 6 minutes would be better. Maybe that's just me.....but it's not long enough!!!

I Inspired Him

After screwing around with my technology to be able to write this blog post I have lost my momentum. Please excuse the lack of clarity and perfection.

The 411: I am at a sleepover with my best friend. He is playing video games, & I never was one for video games so I went outside to read my newly started novel "Beat The Street".  After about 5 minutes he came up and asked what I was reading so I told him the synopsis of the book.  

After about another 5 minutes he asked, "Hey that looks good could I read a couple pages?"

Of course I handed over my book immediately because this is a kid who has a hate towards reading & would NEVER pick up a book by choice or force, even during school!
 
Why was I able to get him to read when everyone else failed?  Was that truly the power of friendship or boredom?

What do faces do 4 u

Living in an ever-changing, globally connected world can be difficult.  When sending a MMS message to someone across town or chatting with someone across the continent you are communicating, like it or not.  Since talking to someone face to face seems to be a thing of the past how can you know how they are feeling? FACES, of course! How can you make faces online while emailing or MMSing?  As Americans we have unofficially nationalized the alphabet of faces and emoticons.  Do you find yourself using these way too often?

If yes, how can we find a way around them? What else can we do? One company has found a solution. Who will be the next?
  
What do faces do for you?

Twitter in 2 words

Now that I have been using Twitter for approximately 2 months I feel like I am able to reflect about the service and what it brings to the world.

In 2 words I feel like I can describe Twitter, Life-Changing.

I wasn't at all sure what I was getting myself into when I signed up for Twitter but I believe it was well worth it.  I have come up with lists about Twitter that I believe are worth sharing.

What It does great:

• Connects teachers and anyone to people across the globe that they never would have met.
•  Spreads a little upbeat joy to everyone.
• An easy way to find some neat web apps and cool sites. (especially from @shannonmmiller)
• An easy way for anyone to get news updates on weather to a crash on the interstate.

What makes Twitter great for me:

• I can interact with others who have the same passion and understanding as me. In general people I am constantly around get very tired of always hearing about the library.
• A quick way to get answers for just about anything from what camcorder should I buy, to how can I add pizazz to my blog, to What is a PLN?
• A place to put my thoughts where I feel like people are listening.
• A place for me to build my PLN 15 years in advance! ;)  At that point in time I'm not sure if my Personal Learning Network will be outdated.  I'm truthfully not sure what I am going to use my group of educators I have gathered (PLN) for at this moment. (Note to self: tomorrow's blog post)

Some actual reflecting now...

Earlier I said that Twitter is Life-Changing so here is why in my perspective... Twitter has changed my life by connecting me to the world.  You don't have to wait until the 6:00 news to know that the fireworks display was canceled, or have to wait for the Thursday paper to learn what happened LAST week. You can access the news & people & updates specifically about things YOU like ANYTIME.

  Lets face it... The only bad things about Twitter is that it is  addicting, time consuming, & has too many whale carrying birds!

What does Twitter do to help you? How do we use Twitter effectively? When do we know we are using Twitter effectively?

Good or Bad?!?!?!?

Today my mom came to me and said,
"Go sit on the couch for a little family meeting."

I was extremely nervous!!!! Last time she said that it was we're moving to Omaha, Nebraska. I was hoping it wasn't anything like this again. Then my dad leaves and turns the corner to get into a drawer in the desk. He comes back with two boxes. He gave one to me and one to my sister. At tht point I knew it was a phone!!! He gave me pink and my sister red. My mom could tell the look on my face wasn't good. He had mixed up the colors. My parents both know that I can't stand the color pink. So I got red, thank goodness.

My friend before had given me a whole list of numbers of my friends to text when I got a phone. So I started immediately. My sister didn't have any numbers so she was just figuring out a whole bunch of things th phone could do. You would think I would have been telling her how to do all this stuff, but nope...it was her!!

We Care About What We Learn

As I arrived at the Downtown Farmers Market this morning to volunteer at the Pioneer Hi-Bred Tent I was overwhelmed with excitement.  I get very excited when I can make a connection from what I've learned in the classroom or what any of my Tweeps are talking about.  Back to the story...!  Johnny (My Dad's friend) was teaching this one guy about planting corn.

This guy was very interested in what he was learning from this guy he never met!  He had questions, Johnny had answers.  I was really wishing I had my iPod Touch or a computer with me to blog about it while happening and record the conversation for you but it was farmers market. What could I expect? That goes to show that learning can happen anywhere.  "Learning Is Life, Education Is A System." as Russ Goerend says.

What would happen if this were to happen in a classroom? If we were able to learn about what we loved? Would youth enjoy coming to school more because they would learn about what they wanted?

Back To 6th Grade...

This probably wasn't the best title but it seemed like the best I could think of at this point in time.  Last night I was mentally reflecting about something very stupid that I said and for one reason or another this random event popped into my mind.  I am writing to perhaps figure out why I had thought of this.  Anyways here it goes...

It was just an ordinary in the spring of 2010.  We walked into science all 5 of our possy just as loud, rambunctious, and annoying as always.  You see we had science right after lunch so it wasn't that huge of a deal as long as we were quiet by the bell.  Our teacher had us write in our planners, get out our assignment from last night, and be ready for today's lab experiment.  I could see it coming from the front of the room,
 
"Johnny and Sally please finish your conversation", Said the teacher. 


I couldn't believe that is was just a warning!  Now to the actual part that sticks with me.


The same 2 people were whispering back and forth to each other while the teacher was reading. They were in the back of the room and sat right next to each other probably thinking no one would notice them or care.  Then just out of no where


"Write up your minor", Said the Teacher to Sally.


Lindey was closest to the middle row where she was noticeable.  Now my favorite part! I could see it in Johnny that it was really bugging him that they were both at fault but only one was punished.  She started reading aloud again.  That is when Johnny raised his hand and was called on.


He stuttered, "I was talking too..."


I could see that The Teacher was proud of him for standing up and taking his punishment.  It was almost like she did that on purpose to see what he would do.  Johnny did get a minor just like Sally but both of them never talked again...At least in that class.

"How do you change the world?"

"One Act of Random Kindness." ARK

If you've seen Evan Allmighty he does it a lot better than I can.

Passing Period to Remember

When I have thought recently about Middle School, one thing just keeps coming back to me.

There is this math teacher on the Orange Team.  On the first day of school everyone keeps there schedule/map in one hand and there books/binder in the other. So when I was looking at my schedule it read:
Period 2: P.E./Computer
I knew it was an A Day so I had P.E. The thing that always comes back to me is the I asked the math teacher where the gym was and he did a few weird steps to the left and said go straight. I felt so stupid that I could practically see the gym from where I was standing.
I think he remembers me asking him that because he always looks at me and talks to me funny in the halls. I feel embarrassed every time I see him like what is he gonna say?!?!?
It sounds kind of stupid, but I felt so weird after I left. Now I could do that with my eyes closed!