How To Handle Pesky, Advantageous Inattentiveness Smart Classroom Management

How To Handle Pesky, Advantageous Inattentiveness Smart Classroom Management

How To Handle Your Students' Smart Phone Withdrawal Smart Classroom Management

How To Handle Your Students' Smart Phone Withdrawal Smart Classroom Management

Beware the Ides of March!

 

Shakespeare's Julius Caesar with John Wilkes Booth (l) playing Marc Antony and brothers Edwin (c) and Junius playing Brutus. Maybe Edwin played Cassius.

March 15 used to be the day untenured teachers received noticed they were being let go. The irony was not not lost on anyone.

Here is Marcus Brutus played by Marlon Brando (1953.) There are many excellent film productions of the play; I saw it at the Old Globe in San Diego. As usual, Shakespeare is too cool. 

Friends, Romans, Countrymen, Lend Me Your Ears  

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=101sKhH-lMQ

The Easiest Classroom Management Strategy With the Greatest Benefit Smart Classroom Management

The Easiest Classroom Management Strategy With the Greatest Benefit Smart Classroom Management

Cheesy Jokes and Serious Thoughts for St. Patrick's Day

 

We're all Irish on St. Patrick's Day--and since the Irish diaspora was over  600 years long, and the Irish lived long and prospered wherever there was a Catholic church worldwide--it's probably true we're all Irish. Geneticists say that Genghis Khan was the foremost contributor to Y chromosomes worldwide, followed by O' Neill of the Nine Hostages (Irish).
My grandmother was completely Irish, her mother immigrating from the Old Sod, so I have been successfully indoctrinated about the Isle of Saints and Scholars. Trust me, no demeaning stereotypical jokes about the Irish in my growing up. Sister Francis Eileen, O.P., was the principal of St. Louis Bertrand's School in Oakland, California, and her lilting Irish brogue came over the P.A. system every morning. She was cool, all the nuns I had were cool; I never had a negative experience in parochial school. Many were from Ireland, many were Irish Americans like my sainted grandmother. And I was in that school both when John F. Kennedy ran for president, was elected, and was assassinated. Powerful stuff.

I am so thankful I didn't have to unlearn prejudice and bias--my Oakland elementary school was perfect. The only almost-bias I had to unlearn was that not everyone was from my church.

http://www.tolerance.org/hiddenbias

I was stunned when I heard my first negative joke about the Irish. Didn't they realize we saved western civilization?
http://www.randomhouse.com/features/cahill/irish.html 

The Isle of Saints and Scholars-to be sure

And I didn't even say, "Pog Mo Thoin." Which shows a lot of maturity and restraint.

Ethnic jokes and teasing are a form of bullying--so kids and adults really need to knock it off. Are we that desperate to feel superior? The quiet kid in the back of the room won't be able to stand up for herself in the midst of  biased-based laughter. Bullying includes those jokes about physical appearance, churches, where you're from, and let's throw in sports teams since kids are so sensitive about them. Kids should have the right to be in school without bullying or humiliation of any type. Grown-ups, too.

 So, anyway, here are the jokes. (That's pretty Irish of me:  stick up for the underdog and then tell jokes.) 

Green, and Garfield provides the orange

How did the leprechaun get to the moon?

In a shamrocket.

Why is Ireland like a bottle of wine?

Because it has a Cork in it.

What would you get if you crossed a leprechaun with a Texan?

A pot of chili at the end of the rainbow.

No relation to Bono. Or the Edge.

What kind of music does a leprechaun band play?
                                      Shamrock and roll.


What do you call a leprechaun's vacation home in Fort Lauderdale?

A lepre-condo.

 Love Irish music. O'Sullivan's March, The Chieftans.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mpkrr0-qut4
My gggrandmother (later immigrated to Kansas)  was a Sullivan leaving from Cork in 1844, and who survived a coffin ship to Grosse Isle Quebec.

Cheesy Jokes and Serious Thoughts for Valentine's Day

 

What did the boy bird say to the girl bird?

Garfield is one of my closest friends. The alarm goes off around 4:30 am, I reach for the laptop and see what Garfield is up to. As a substitute teacher, I would bribe the class with his jokes. I'd draw his picture on the board, put the questions to the riddle up and tell the kids I wouldn't give them the punchline unless...the whole class could be complete 15 minutes of work, or be good until recess, or clean up the class. Whatever needed to be done. The rascalliest students really wanted the joke, so everyone would cooperate. I told them I wasn't sure if it was even legal to keep a punchline from them, it seemed like cruel and unusual punishment (but I never had to withhold a punchline ever.) Humor is a great break in the authoritarian regimen; and puns do teach language arts in their multiple meaning words. Oh, the punchline: let me call you Tweetheart. Maybe to be current I should change the riddle to, 'What did the boy bird text to the girl bird?'

Let me call you Tweetheart.

http://med.stanford.edu/ism/2012/january/reiss.html
 “Humor is a very important component of emotional health, maintaining relationships, developing cognitive function and perhaps even medical health,” said Allan Reiss, MD, who directs the Center for Interdisciplinary Brain Sciences Research at Stanford. Most of us know the ancient proverb, 'A merry heart doeth good like a medicine.' Leave it to Stanford to use an MRI to prove it! They hooked up kids and showed them funny and nonfunny material. I wonder how these jokes would do.

If you don't like cheese, don't read these!

Here is some more silly:

Did you hear about the romance in the tropical fish tank?
It was a case of guppy love.

Why was the rabbit so happy on Valentine's Day?

Because some bunny loved him.

What did one piece of string say to the other piece of string?
Please be my valentwine!

What did one volcano say to another on Valentine's Day?

I lava you.

What did the French chef give his wife for Valentine's Day?
A hug and a quiche.

What did the farmer give his wife for Valentine's Day?
Hogs and kisses.

What did Frankenstein ask his girlfriend?
Won't you be my Valenstein?

What is serious about this holiday is that some of our students are in difficult circumstances due to stressors in their families. They can't write a valentine to mom or dad or other relatives. They may be in the middle of a family break up, in foster care, or suffered a great loss. Our job is to be aware of this, first of all, and maybe have an additional activity to take the edge off the intensity of the student's actual life. Maybe valentines to mail to troops overseas, or to a local nursing home or hospital. Maybe a writing project to write an anecdote of  a time someone showed kindness and love to the student. This could be emotional, but also cathartic. Life is tough, and the facade of the perfect family life is very difficult at times for many kids. Recalling a time of warmth and stability can be a positive moment on a dark day. I've had unique class situations where we could share such a writing project in discussion, and the other students were very supportive.

                                             

Thanks, Garfield and other silly souls for keeping it real. Real silly.

Education Links 1/21/25

 

What the Edutopia Community Taught Me About Teaching Shakespeare

https://www.edutopia.org/article/teaching-shakespeare-high-school-tips-teachers

CLASSROOM INSTRUCTION RESOURCES OF THE WEEK

https://larryferlazzo.edublogs.org/2025/01/21/classroom-instruction-resources-of-the-week-484/?fbclid=IwY2xjawH9WCVleHRuA2FlbQIxMQABHb0gGhqV8vu7_xkLXGrrYkgYuRq0OASkae5bb1I8EjfgRoCuYqqIxDpokg_aem_cF9XixMguqr8Ak2RDIwLGA

Autism in Girls: Why Signs of Neurodivergence are Overlooked

https://www.additudemag.com/autism-in-girls/

Boys Face Unique Challenges. Here’s How to Help Them Thrive

https://www.kqed.org/mindshift/65110/boys-face-unique-challenges-heres-how-to-help-them-thrive

One Thing We Get Wrong About Teaching Math (and How to Fix It)

https://www.edweek.org/teaching-learning/opinion-one-thing-we-get-wrong-about-teaching-math-and-how-to-fix-it/2025/01