An Old Sheriff is Back in Town

After taking my first weekend off from blogging (my weekends last about 5 days) I return with a plethora of information that has been stuffed into my head via a number of sources important to my current life. In order to truly hear what my fingers have to say I invite you to click on the video below. Science has shown that whatever a person is doing when they listen to a Sheriff song, they will perform with more passion, understand in more depth, and retain 100% of the information experienced during the duration of the song. The sole side effect is that you will want to marry the very next person you interact with. Let the blog begin:

Three Things to keep up with the youth of today:

1)  You must understand the youth of today.  They are physically lazy and if you are going to use tech be aware of their lazy tendencies such as LARGE PRINT ON THE SCREEN because kids tend to lean back in their chairs when they read a computer screen.  Want more?  If so then you must not be a teen.
http://www.wired.com/culture/lifestyle/news/2005/02/66514

2)  http://www.icivics.org/   We were informed this past weekend at a Social Studies Conference for teachers that kids...get this....like to play games!!  Not just any games, but highly interactive ones.  Not just highly interactive ones, but ones that allowed the player to build points and become a more powerful player.  Not just games that allow you to earn points and become a more powerful player....well, yes just that.  ICivics has come up with a way to take what surveys say is the core of the child video game blitz and create several games with these intrinsic qualities, but with the US government as the subject matter.  Want to memorize the 27 amendments to the constitution?  Play yourself a little bit of "Do I have a right?" and you will be well on your way.  64% of students who were introduced to this game at school continued playing outside of the classroom.  Now that's smarts!!

**Sheriff break** - wait 15 seconds while you restart the song and get back into the mood

3)  The WSOP!!  Or better known to the young math geniuses as the World Series of Poker.  A mega event in which thousands of everyday people pay $10,000 for a shot at millions and instant celebrity.  If you ever teach probability in your math classes, here is a great way to relate to your kids.  Also mention the November Nine and how happy you are that the "Brat" was knocked out again this year and they will think you are soooooo cool.  If they don't think so, then just reply with "Your face" and there will be no problem.

Three things I learned about Teaching:

1)  Unit Plans are the easiest idea in the world to come up with, but the hardest thing in the world to accomplish.  Collaborating with others, connecting one central theme to 6 different subjects, putting them all on a timeline and then coming up with one "Enduring Question" that will last with the students forever???  That's a lot to ask, but man are the benefits awesome to watch when it works well.  Luckily ehow.com has put together a nice generic step by step process for the novice (NOT).
http://www.ehow.com/how_2099500_create-unit-plan-outline.html

2)  Social Studies is complex.  Very very complex.  I always thought is was called HISTORY.  But alas, it covers several topics that I love to talk about (Maps, traveling, economics, etc), love to teach, and love to experience.  Now only if we could get more than 50 minutes a school day to do it!!

3)  A great way to organize your thoughts about a lesson plan is to write it up using what is called an OTSA.  It clearly helps you define the Objective of the lesson and  the Assessment strategy.  Then takes you step by step through what the Teacher is going to ask of the students and what the Students actually do.  Pretty slick if I may say so myself...and it is my blog so I guess I'm saying it to.....myself?

100% random things I learned today:

1)  Another Hollywood couple separate!  Monica from Friends and the guy who plays Jack in The Land of the Astronauts split up after 11 years together.  They obviously hadn't been introduced to Sheriff (feel free to restart the song again here.

2)  The San Francisco Giants are heading to the NLCS.  This is big news of you are a true Seattle baseball fan as one of own, Tim Lincecum, who attended Liberty High in Renton is the Ace of the Giants staff.  If they win the World Series, free IHOP pancakes for everyone!!  What's that?  No?  Oh, alright.

3)  Deion Branch of the Seahawks has been traded back to wence he came.  In return, the Seahawks accept a 4th round pick.  Funny, I didn't even know he still played for the Hawks.

Funny for the day:

The early bird might get the worm, but the second mouse gets the cheese.