Educational Links 3/12/17

'Everyone wants schools to teach everything – to the list we must now add compulsory sex education'

https://www.tes.com/news/school-news/breaking-views/everyone-wants-schools-teach-everything-list-we-must-now-add

The Best Videos For Learning About The Scientific Method

http://larryferlazzo.edublogs.org/2017/03/10/the-best-videos-for-learning-about-the-scientific-method/

How Bullying Looks to Teens

http://www.gse.harvard.edu/news/uk/17/03/how-bullying-looks-teens

10 Skills Modern Teachers Need

http://www.edudemic.com/10-skills-modern-teachers-need/

What We Lose With the Decline of Cursive

https://www.edutopia.org/article/what-we-lose-with-decline-cursive-tom-berger

Whether or Not You’ll Be Successful in School Comes Down to One Surprising Factor 

http://www.specialneedsdigest.com/2017/03/whether-or-not-youll-be-successful-in.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+blogspot%2FLUdSt+%28Special+Needs+Digest%29

When 'Highly Qualified' Teachers Aren't

http://www.edweek.org/ew/articles/2017/03/08/when-highly-qualified-teachers-arent.html?cmp=SOC-EDIT-FB

Recent research confirms that America's most vulnerable children are being taught by the least-qualified teachers. In 2016, the National Conference of State Legislatures noted that "most state education systems are falling dangerously behind the world. ... At this pace, we will struggle to compete economically against even developing nations, and our children will struggle to find jobs in the global economy."

Women's History Month: Women Scientists--Here are Some Great Posters

Minimalist Posters Celebrating Six Pioneering 

Women in Science

 One designer’s homage to Marie Curie, Jane Goodall, Rosalind Franklin, Grace Hopper, Rachel Carson, and Sally Ride.

http://www.brainpickings.org/index.php/2012/09/26/hydrogene-women-in-science-posters/ 

 

 

Polish winner of two Nobel Prizes

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marie_Curie 

  

American Naval Officer, Computer Scientist http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grace_Hopper 

First American Woman in Space http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sally_Ride

Marine Biologist and writer who sparked the Environment Movement thttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rachel_Carson 

 

Discovered structure of DNA

 http://www.livescience.com/39804-rosalind-franklin.html

 

 

English Primatologis http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jane_Goodallt  

Teachable Moment: Danny Boy, The Soul of Melancholy, The Soul Of Ireland

 

Danny Boy - Finbar Wright 

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xlzWRQ5e4qg

 Oh Danny boy, the pipes, 
the pipes are calling.
From glen to glen, 
and down the mountain side.

The summer's gone, 
and all the flowers are falling.
'Tis you, 'tis you 
must go and I must bide.

But come ye back 
when summer's in the meadow,
Or when the valley's hushed 
and white with snow.

And I'll be here
in sunshine or in shadow.
Oh Danny boy, oh Danny boy,
I love you so.

But if you come, 
and all the flowers are falling.
And I am dead, 
as dead I might well be.

You'll come and find 
the place where I am lying.
And kneel and say 
an "Ave" there for me.

And I will hear, 
though soft your tread above me.
And all my grave 
will warmer sweeter be.

And you will bend 
and tell me that you love me.
And I shall sleep
in peace until you come to me. 

But if I live,
and should you die for Ireland,
Let not your dying thoughts 
be just of me.

But say a prayer to God 
for our dearest Ireland.
I know she'll hear
and help to set her free.

And I will take your pike 
and place my dearest,
And strike a blow, 
though weak the blow may be.

T'will help the cause 
to which your heart was nearest 
Oh Danny Boy, Oh, Danny boy 
I love you so.

Educational Links 3/11/17

Flipping Lesson Design: Moving The Learning Objective To The End

http://www.teachthought.com/pedagogy/flipping-lesson-design-moving-the-learning-objective-to-the-end/?utm_content=buffer5ba31&utm_medium=social&utm_source=facebook.com&utm_campaign=buffer

The fastest way to failure for kids

http://www.raepica.com/2017/03/09/fastest-way-failure-kids/

5 IDEAS FOR USING GAME-BASED LEARNING IN YOUR CLASSROOM TODAY

http://www.coolcatteacher.com/05-5-ideas-using-game-based-learning-classroom-today/?nabe=6224726523641856:0&utm_content=buffer4ab99&utm_medium=social&utm_source=facebook.com&utm_campaign=buffer&utm_referrer=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2F

Neurodiversity: What You Need to Know

https://www.understood.org/en/friends-feelings/empowering-your-child/building-on-strengths/neurodiversity-what-you-need-to-know?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=understoodorg

Don't Use Inclusion as an Excuse for Bad Behavior

http://jewishspecialneeds.blogspot.com/2017/03/dont-use-inclusion-as-excuse-for-bad.html?m=1&utm_content=buffer15fe7&utm_medium=social&utm_source=facebook.com&utm_campaign=buffer

13 Things All Teachers Should Know About Type 1 Diabetes

https://www.weareteachers.com/13-things-all-teachers-should-know-about-type-1-diabetes/?utm_source=FB&utm_campaign=JDRF_1702_LeadProgram&utm_medium=Social&utm_content=Article_01

Be Human When Providing Accommodations For Your Students

http://www.teachthought.com/pedagogy/human-providing-accommodations-students/?utm_content=buffera644a&utm_medium=social&utm_source=facebook.com&utm_campaign=buffer

Our biases against accommodations make us believe that in order to be fair in a classroom of students everyone has to be given the same set of tools. Yet if we took away the individualistic mandates to measure success and instead looked at the class as a society working towards a common goal, do accommodations seem unfair? Do you really care the individuals in a company made your car, sofa, or TV.  You rarely think about how someone mastered the art of the products you purchase. Did someone on the assembly line have one arm? Did someone use a calculator while someone else did not?

Women's History Month: Mona Lisa

Mona Lisa, Leonardo Da Vinci

Mona Lisa is the most famous painting in the world. It is said it was Da Vinci's favorite. Aside from the extreme beauty and skill of the painting, there is something fascinating in her smirk, oh sorry, wistful glimmer of a smile. The mystique of womanhood teasing with a secret, maybe. Sitting in the Louvre, where so many fancy French queens had lived, there she is--the only royalty left in France.

Previously, only sacred pictures were commissioned regularly--and there are plenty of interesting Da Vinci saints and madonnas. But Mona is Every Woman--confident, relaxed, knowing who she is--without halo or crown. Like us.

Mona Lisa Song by Nat King Cole

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EG-A_qTAKEI

Mona Lisa

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mona_Lisa 

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.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vffqnYUyFVQ
My gggrandmother (later immigrated to Kansas)  was a Sullivan leaving from Cork in 1844, and who survived a coffin ship to Grosse Isle Quebec.

Top o the mornin' to ya, from Betty O'Boop

Educational Links 3/10/17

A Toolkit for Students in Crisis

https://www.edutopia.org/article/when-students-act-out-toolkit-ryan-wheeler

In Favor of the Slow Learning Movement

https://pernillesripp.com/2017/03/06/in-favor-of-the-slow-learning-movement/

Finding the Voice of English Learners

https://www.teachingchannel.org/blog/2017/03/06/finding-the-voice-of-eng-learners/

Introducing Writing Skills to Very Young Children

http://www.bamradionetwork.com/student-centric-strategies/4287-introducing-writing-skills-to-very-young-children

A Teacher's Pursuit of Imperfection

http://www.edweek.org/tm/articles/2017/03/07/a-teachers-pursuit-of-imperfection.html?cmp=SOC-EDIT-FB

Teaching Strategies: Videos as Visual Writing Prompts

http://www.teachhub.com/teaching-strategies-videos-visual-writing-prompts

Trump Education Adviser Wants 'Robust Portfolio of Options' For K-12 Students

http://blogs.edweek.org/edweek/campaign-k-12/2017/03/trump_education_adviser_wants_.html?cmp=SOC-EDIT-FB

Jason Botel, a top adviser to President Donald Trump on education issues, sees school choice as a vehicle for furthering educational equity for all students. And he thinks a new pilot program in the Every Student Succeeds Act could help districts expand those student choices.

Women's History Month: Malala

Malala is a young teenager who has come to international fame over the last two years by writing about her experiences in seeking an education as a girl in Pakistan. 

She was attacked in October 2012 by the Taliban and almost killed. Currently,  Malala and her family reside in England where she receives medical care 

As she was discharged from the hospital, she said: "Today you can see that I am alive. I can speak, I can see you, I can see everyone and I am getting better day by day. It's just because of the prayers of people. Because all people – men, women, children – all of them have prayed for me.  

The Malala Fund has been set up to support her campaign for the right to education for children across the world. She is the youngest winner of the Nobel Peace Prize.

Malala Yousafzai - Facts

http://www.nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/peace/laureates/2014/yousafzai-facts.html 

Malala Yousafzai

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Malala_Yousafzai 

Pakistani Activist Malala Yousafzai Nominated For Nobel Peace Prize

http://hollywoodlife.com/2013/02/06/malala-yousafai-nobel-peace-prize-2013-girls-education-taliban-shooting/ 

Malala, Pakistani teen shot by Taliban, leaves hospital after stunning recovery

http://www.cnn.com/2013/02/08/world/europe/malala-hospital-release/index.html 

Wounded Pakistan teen is now face of girls education movement

http://articles.latimes.com/2012/oct/13/local/la-me-malala-education-20121014 

Malala Defies Taliban to Take World Stage

Nine months after being singled out and shot, 15-year-old addresses the UN

 http://www.aleteia.org/en/world/news/malala-defies-taliban-to-take-world-stage-2531001

Malala at U.N.: The Taliban failed to silence us

http://www.cnn.com/2013/07/12/world/united-nations-malala 

I am Malala: Story of the 16-yr-old who stood against Taliban

http://ibnlive.in.com/news/i-am-malala-story-of-the-16yrold-who-stood-against-taliban/411113-40-100.html 

Book News: Malala, Girl Shot By Taliban, Calls Books 'Weapons That Defeat Terrorism'

http://www.npr.org/blogs/thetwo-way/2013/09/04/218816267/book-news-malala-girl-shot-by-taliban-calls-books-weapons-that-defeat-terrorism

 

Malala Yousafzai addresses United Nations Youth Assembly 

 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3rNhZu3ttIU

  

Festival of Irish Arts and Music Day 4

You couldn't make up this story, and wouldn't believe it if it weren't so obviously true. I am a Special Education teacher, so I can say that frequently I have believed handicapped kids have many more thoughts than they can communicate, but the story of Christy Brown is mind-blowing. The autobiography and later film of the same name surpasses anything you've ever read or seen.

Of course, there's Helen Keller's marvelous story--but I would like to mention that the teacher who brought Helen out of her 'dark night' was Irish. Annie Sullivan. Not that you must be Irish to be an amazing teacher, but apparently it helps. 

Christy Brown painting.

 The family in Christy Brown's story submerged him in love and acceptance, which is a hallmark of Irishness, I think. Stubborn love. Relentless love. The result was a brilliant mind being released to express itself in prose and art. 

Daniel Day Lewis and Brenda Fricker

Daniel Day Lewis won an academy award for his portrayal of Brown. It is said he remained in character throughout the shoot, in the wheelchair, etc., but unlike Christy Brown, could return to his unhandicapped life when the movie was finished. 

 Portions of the autobiography are frequently included in textbooks at the high school level. It is very well worth sharing with your classes.

Educational Links 3/9/17

Equality Starts With Education: Why the Tech Industry Should Help Lead the Way

https://www.edsurge.com/news/2017-03-08-equality-starts-with-education-why-the-tech-industry-should-help-lead-the-way

Real Performance Assessment

http://www.bamradionetwork.com/edwords-blog/real-performance-assessment

How Maker Mindsets Can Be An Easy Fit For Rural Schools

https://ww2.kqed.org/mindshift/2017/03/08/how-maker-mindsets-can-be-an-easy-fit-for-rural-schools/

Online or Outside? Redefining child safety and risk.

http://movingtolearn.ca/2017/online-or-outside-redefining-child-safety-and-risk

Upcoming Documentary Explores Brain-Targeted Teaching Model

http://teachthought.com/learning/upcoming-documentary-explores-brain-targeted-teaching-model/?utm_content=buffer82216&utm_medium=social&utm_source=facebook.com&utm_campaign=buffer

‘Why I came to distrust differentiation’

https://www.tes.com/news/school-news/breaking-views/why-i-came-distrust-differentiation

Play as a Test Prep Tool

https://www.edutopia.org/blog/play-with-standardized-test-prep-matt-levinson

What?! The prevailing wisdom is that standardized testing drains the life out of a classroom, saps students of interest and engagement, brings on unnecessary and at times crippling stress, and limits the view of what students are really learning in school.

Teaching to the test is a problem, for sure. But using the format of a standardized test as a teaching tool can enhance student learning—the question is how to do this in a way that captures students’ interest.

Women's History Month: Boudicca

Boudicca's statue in London--put up for Queen Victoria, who fancied herself  a namesake.

This woman was a Celtic Queen in Britain during the Roman occupation. Her husband was the independent king of the Iceni, collaborating with the Romans. When Prasutagus died, things went downhill fast. Enormous debts became due, the Romans took over his kingdom, flogged Boudicca and raped her daughters.

It is what Boudicca did next that sets her apart in history. She led a rebellion against the Romans (the Romans!) and just about encouraged the Emperor Nero in Rome to withdraw from Britain. No Cleopatra, this one.

The army Boudicca led was 100,000. (100,000!) She successfully overtook several cities, which she methodically demolished, also overtaking the infant city of London and burning it down, slaughtering anyone who had not evacuated. Take no prisoners nor collaboraters.

The Romans finally prevailed. Boudicca, it is reported, killed herself.

Painting by John Opie. The Victorians loved her.

The Roman historians said of Boudicca that she was "possessed of greater intelligence than often belongs to women." Understatement. Not even mentioning leadership, courage, and badassedness. Pardon my French.

I can't think of a more amazing general opposing the Romans.

Here is more information about Boudicca:

Boudica
 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boudica

This is awesome.

Horrible Histories - Boudicca 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1LhT7rCC6O8

 

'You must conquer or die. This is a woman's resolve.'

Boudicca (died c.AD 60)

http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/historic_figures/boudicca.shtml

Here is a full documentary.

BOUDICA - THE ICENI REBELLION 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ega3dbE6b08 

 

This one is a little dated--shows 'amazing' video game tech. 

History Channel Decisive Battles E10 Boudicca Warrior Queen

Alex Kingsley as Boudicca

https://www.youtu bmE be.com/watch?v=4QVppKwGz-0 

Boudicca: Warrior Queen of the Iceni

http://www.livescience.com/37061-boudicca.html 

Warrior Queen (film)

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0338806/ 

  Boudica Warrior Queen 2003 (Alex Kingston) - FULL COMPLETE M

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=poJXSZZ-bmE

Celtic Circle of Joy--Living Your Dream

The Irish culture embraces delight, melancholy, whimsy, rage--the full human experience.

 Here is a lovely piece of music inspired by Irish heritage and instruments. As I listen, I can see the spirits dance in the faery rings of the forest.

Lisa Lynne - Circle of Joy 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7_sPqL60az8 

  Here is Lisa's story and how she lives her dream.

Lisa Lynne Vblog #30 - My passion in life.. 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cfs0RE-nKuc 

 Love this rendition by two musicians who are at the beginning of living their dreams.

circle of joy 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4MB3arVYf9I