Continuing the conversation

You can make a difference with a click of a button!

2008-12-02T21:11:00.000-08:00

As I was doing the reading for this class, I found something in chapter 9 that I was interested in. The author gave a couple of sites where we could make a difference in the world just by clicking a button on a site:

www.thehungersite.com
www.therainforestsite.com
www.theanimalrescuesite.com
www.thechildhealthsite.com
(on the top, there are tabs that lead you to other topics such as breast cancer and literacy)

On each website, there is a button where you can click once a day and sponsors give money to that specific need.This is what shows up after I clicked the button for animal rescue:

-Thank You — your click has been counted!
You've given the value of .6 bowls of food to rescued animals.

I just bookmarked these sites and I plan to click the button once a day. You can help the hungry, the rainforest, animals, and children just with a click of a button. How awesome is that!

The "First" Thanksgiving

2008-11-30T20:43:00.000-08:00

This article was in my town’s newspaper. It was about the Deerfield Pre-school, where I attended school. The pictures are of the students re-enacting the first Thanksgiving. The funny thing is that this is exactly what we talked about in class, two weeks ago, about how the first thanksgiving is not told correctly. I find it so shocking that this is a tradition at the pre-school, one which I participated in when I was a preschooler, which is not true at all. This is another part of history that is taught wrong to students. I was just wondering if anyone else participated in an event such as this, or remember learning information that we now know to be false

Single-sex Classrooms

2008-11-30T20:25:00.000-08:00

Rules ease restrictions on single-sex schools
Bush administration describes them as tools; critics see segregation

Single-sex classroomsOct. 25: In schools that have divided classes based on gender, grades shot up, and disciplinary problems fell. It was enough evidence to make the Education Department approve divided classrooms, even whole schools, in the public system nationwide. NBC's Martin Savidge reports.

WASHINGTON - The Bush administration is giving public schools wider latitude to teach boys and girls separately in what is considered the biggest change to coed classrooms in more than three decades.

After a two-year wait, the Education Department issued final rules Tuesday detailing how it will enforce the Title IX landmark anti-discrimination law. Under the change taking effect Nov. 24, local school leaders will have discretion to create same-sex classes for subjects such as math, a grade level or even an entire school.

“Some students may learn better in single-sex education environments,” said Education Secretary Margaret Spellings. “These final regulations permit communities to establish single-sex schools and classes as another means of meeting the needs of students.”

Here is the link to read the rest of the article: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/15400717/from/ET/

This article really threw me for a loop. I could not imagine teaching to a single-sex class. I feel like it is not an accurate representation of society. I am interested to know what your thoughts are-let me know!

How could single-sex classrooms affect education? Pros? Cons? What is your opinion? How would this change the future of education or society? Is this really 'meeting the needs' of students?

Great new resource for teachers

2008-11-25T19:48:00.001-08:00

The above photo, taken in 1942, shows a Japanese American man and his grandsons waiting to be evacuated during a forced removal to an internment camp during World War II.

This photograph is one of 2 million from the archives of Life magazine that are now available online via a partnership between Life and Google (here is a link.) There are lots of amazing photos, taken from the 1860s through the 1970s, and most are large, high-quality scans which could be used as full-screen shots in a PowerPoint slide show. It's a good site to bookmark for future use.

Are you smarter than....an elected official?

2008-11-23T20:44:00.001-08:00

This from the blog, The Daily Kos:

"US elected officials scored abysmally on a test measuring their civic knowledge, with an average grade of just 44 percent, the group that organized the exam said Thursday.

Ordinary citizens did not fare much better, scoring just 49 percent correct on the 33 exam questions compiled by the Intercollegiate Studies Institute (ISI)."

You can find the quiz here. I scored an 82% -- 27 out of 33. Doesn't seem that good for a social studies teacher, but according to the test-makers the average for all college instructors is just over 55%. The test itself seems too heavily weighted on economics questions to me, but it's still worth taking, I think. See how you do. If you beat me you automatically get an A in the class.

Just kidding. But you do get bragging rights.

Community/Public Service

2008-11-19T19:41:00.001-08:00

So as I was looking for an interesting article to post, I found a list of public service needs in our school district's communities. The list is from The Daily Herald- http://www.dailyherald.com/story/?id=251369&src=107. Some of the items on the list include blood drives, book drives, committe members, volunteers for different events, etc.

I think that as community members we need to try to take care of each other. I know that we all experience tough times, but I strongly support helping others if at all possible. Even giving a small amount of time, some old clothing, or a small donation, can help someone in need.

I was wondering what you thought about promoting community service in your classrooms. Do you think it is worthwhile? Easy? Necessary? In my opinion, I think that as teachers we can promote small projects like a food drive or sending letters home to bring mittens, coats, hats, etc. to school to donate. I feel that if students are immersed in this at an early age, they will be more likely to carry it through their lives. Let me know what you think!

Back to reality?

2008-11-16T11:28:00.000-08:00

This photo shows a charred cross that was burned on the lawn of a couple in Hardwick Township, N.J.. The couple had placed a banner congratulating President-elect Barack Obama on his election victory in their yard and found the banner wrapped around the charred cross on Nov. 6.

Incidents like this are a reminder that, even though the election of Barack Obama was a historic, landmark event, racial prejudice and racism are still part of the American landscape. In fact, according to this article, race-related bias crimes have been on the increase since Obama's election November 4.

Where do you see our country in terms of race relations? How far have we come? And what can we do as teachers to teach against racism?

Reactions Around the World

2008-11-13T21:38:00.000-08:00

When I received Greg's email with the link in it to the Huffington Post's slideshow that showed reactions around the world, I immediately went to the website. When I was looking through the pictures, I found myself grinning at my computer screen. The images in that slide show were nothing short of amazing. I couldn't help but think of the hole we have been digging ourselves the past 8 years not only in our own country, but around the world. I agree with what was mentioned in class, that one man cannot be our savior, but it feels nice to once again have that feeling that there is hope, light at the end. I also couldn't help but notice the sense of unity that I was feeling when looking at those pictures. There were people of all different backgrounds, beliefs, religions, etc, that were all excited to see a new leader in our country. There were two pictures that really stuck out to me, the one with the children in Indonesia and the one from Philadelphia, PA. The one with the child holding up the picture of Barack really made me think of how other countries must have viewed the US. If children that would not even be old enough to vote in the election are that elated that we have a new leader, he must really stand for something. I was awestruck by the picture from PA. There is such a great range of emotions in that picture. People are dancing, hugging, and crying, but no matter what they are doing, they are happy. I can only imagine the feeling in Grant Park that night, if I was moved by just looking at pictures. Obama now has some big shoes to fill, a lot of people have very high expectations of him.
Did you have any reactions to the slideshow? How are you feeling about the recent election?

A Whole New World

2008-11-12T19:27:00.000-08:00

Now that we have been in our middle school placements for a while I wanted to hit on something that I find shocking to me every day I walk into my school, the involvement of gangs. Within two days of being in my school, I found that gang presence was something everyone was looking out for and was brought up nearly everyday. Whether a student was wearing a certain combination of colors, drawing certain figures, wearing their clothes in a certain way (one sleeve up and one down, one pant leg up and one down, rubber bands on clothing, ect.) the school dean or police officer is informed. Growing up in the area my whole life, I never was aware that this part of town had gangs or the extent to which there are. My mentor teacher informed me that their first staff meeting at the beginning of the year dealt with gangs education to make teachers aware of what to look out for. For me this is a whole new world and only about 7 miles away from my home. It is a new concept for me that my students who seem so innocent and bright can either be invovled in or have to worry about gangs. Knowing this makes me want to become more informed an as a teacher always be aware of and understanding that I can never truly know what my students have to go home to.

I tried to look a little further into gang involvment in middle schools and found a PDF that discusses why children join gangs, what it means to be in a gang, certain well known gangs and their signs, and how to determin what students may be headed in the wrong directing and how to redirect them.

http://www.merrillville.in.gov/applications/DocumentLibraryManager/upload/Gang_information.pdf

"The Truth About the First Thanksgiving"

2008-11-11T20:09:00.000-08:00

After reading "The Truth About the First Thanksgiving" article, I was completely shocked. I did not know that this celebration only dates back to 1863. That date is not even close to 1620. "The Pilgrims had nothing to do with it; not until the 1890s did they get included in the tradition." I was also shocked about the plague and the grave robbing. I did not learn any of this in my classrooms.

Was there anything in the article that struck you? Do you think you will use this article in your future classrooms?

A broader, bolder approach to education reform

2008-11-09T08:06:00.001-08:00

Well, we have a new President, and if Barack Obama follows through on his campaign rhetoric, that's going to mean a change in direction for education policy. So which way should we go? One proposal that's been put forward by a group of educators is called the Broader, Bolder Approach, and its authors insist that, if we really want to close achievement gaps, we can't only look inside schools at things like teacher quality and curriculum. Those things are important, they say, but to really bring about changes inside schools, we have to think in terms of the bigger picture, and look at how what's happening outside schools impacts what goes on inside them.

Take a look at their position statement and see what you think.

How did it feel to be there?

2008-11-08T07:45:00.000-08:00

Kelly asked how it felt to be at the Obama rally Tuesday night in Grant Park. It's hard to describe, but it was more powerful and emotional than I even expected. The moment that it came up on the Jumbotron that CNN was projecting that Obama would be elected President, the emotions just poured out. It's a moment I'll never forget. Here's some video of the moment -- not shot be me, but by someone else in Grant Park that night, and it definitely gives the flavor of what it was like:

Sarah Palin: Africa is a country after all

2008-11-05T19:03:00.000-08:00

UPDATE: It now appears that this story may have been a hoax, though the final verdict isn't in yet as far as I can tell. I'll leave it up for the time being, but if it turns out to be fake, I apologize for falling for it.

Thought you might find this story from The Huffington Post interesting in light of one of the topics from our last class:

Now that the 2008 election is over, reporters are spilling all the juciest, and previously off the record, gossip from the campaign trail....perhaps one of the most astounding and previously unknown tidbits about Sarah Palin has to do with her already dubious grasp of geography. According to Fox News Chief Political Correspondent Carl Cameron, there was great concern within the McCain campaign that Palin lacked "a degree of knowledgability necessary to be a running mate, a vice president, a heartbeat away from the presidency," in part because she didn't know which countries were in NAFTA, and she "didn't understand that Africa was a continent, rather than a series, a country just in itself."

Live from Grant Park

2008-11-04T18:39:00.000-08:00

Hi everybody. I'm at the Obama rally in Grant Park about 100 yards from the stage. Just wanted to say hello.

Is "teaching for social justice" dangerous?

2008-10-30T17:32:00.001-07:00

I thought some of you might be interested in this article from the current issue of Education Week magazine. In it, several critics claim that "social justice teaching" -- an approach exemplified by many of the articles we've read, and one that I embrace -- is a harmful and even dangerous idea. The article mentions Bill Ayers, who has written a great deal about teaching for social justice, and quotes Bill Bigelow, one of the editors of Rethinking Schools (the source of several articles I've assigned). Give it a read and see what you think.

Phase 2

2008-10-29T19:27:00.000-07:00

Now that we are all in middle school placements, I'm curious as to the new experiences everyone is having with social studies and social issues. Many of us have very different diversities in the classroom, are now teaching social studies and/or are working with a very different age group. What experiences would you like to share? (I realize this is very broad, so maybe we can start some sort of focus or branch to more posts...?)

I was personally surprised by the excitement over Snowflake (drug awareness program). It's not everyday you hear a 13 year-old excited for "warm fuzzies" or voluntarily making glitter posters for the hallway.

Another shock I had was seeing time-out rooms for in-school suspensions. At my middle school, that would have been done in the principal's office on rare occasions. Everyday I pass by these rooms and they are full. Plus, they are at the front of the building. What are the social implications of punishment on display for a middle schooler?

What Would You Do in This Situation????

2008-10-24T20:15:00.001-07:00

As we all know, the election is getting closer and closer every day. In high anticipation for this election, my home school (Field) decided to show a video about the presidential candidates that was taped from a Nickelodeon program. After my fifth graders watched the video, my mentor teacher gave the directions of writing the prompt of "Who would you vote for and why? If you do not know who, why don't you know and what are some resources you could use in order to educate yourself further?"

After the students write, my mentor teacher and I were collecting the papers and a student of mine says loudly, "Hey Mrs. Clancy (my mentor), You know how I know who my dad is voting for?" My mentor teacher replies with, "How?" "Because my dad has this picture of Sarah Palin sitting in a chair while Barack Obama is shining her shoes." After I overheard this, I looked at her in astonishment, and I was interested in what her response was and she said, "Sit down____" She said the students name.

If you were in this situation what would you say? I had such a blank stare at the student because I did not how to handle this situation? Any ideas if this situation or something similar happens??

Education Debate

2008-10-21T17:34:00.001-07:00

I watched the Education Debate tonight online and it was definitely interesting to hear each of the candidate's points of view. Like Greg said, we have not heard much about their stance on education in their debates, and this was a good way to hear more about what changes we could expect in our student's education. Tonight I learned Obama's and McCain's plans for the future and it was interesting. They discussed standards, assessments, community service, and research, among many other topics. One of the most interesting things I heard tonight was in regards to health care. I was shocked when Linda Darling-Hammond, Obama's education advisor, said that health care was important to our student's education. She said that because some students do not have health care, they miss school which can put them even farther behind. I had never really thought about health care playing an important role in our students' education. Did anyone else hear anything that stuck out to you during the education debate that was on www.edweek.org? I am curious to hear what you all thought about the debate and how that impacted your decision to vote. Did anything you hear make your decision easier or more difficult, and why? Thanks everyone!

The complexity of race

2008-10-21T05:36:00.000-07:00

Here's a link to a website that you may find interesting, and that you may be able to incorporate into a lesson someday as well.

If we're honest, many of us will admit that we sort people into racial categories based on physical appearance. We think we know whether someone is "Black," "White," Asian," "Latino," or "Native American" just by looking at them. You may have heard people say things like, "Oh, he/she doesn't look Black (or Latino, or Asian, or whatever)."

We also often oversimplify race. Hardly a day goes by without Barack Obama being casually identified as "Black," but most of us know that he had one parent who identified as Black and one as White.

Race is more complex in a lot of ways than many of us think. In fact, "race" does not even exist as a biological concept. Scientifically, there are not identifiable "races" of people. Race is, however a social reality: because we all think it's real, it has real consequences on people's lives.

This activity on this website asks you to look at the faces of 20 people and to try to sort them by what "race" you think each person is. Then you can check to see how, in fact, each person self-identifies. See you you do -- then tell us what you think.

Should teachers be able to wear political buttons?

2008-10-13T09:12:00.001-07:00

I think we talked in class a little bit last time about whether it's OK for teachers to openly express support for one political candidate or another. Read this short article about a current controversy surrounding this issue in NYC and see what you think. Is this a matter of freedom of speech? Should that freedom be curtailed in this case?

UFT Sues N.Y.C. Over Political Buttons
New York City teachers have taken to federal court their fight against a school district policy that bans teachers from wearing campaign pins in schools, saying it violates their rights to free speech and political expression.
The United Federation of Teachers today filed the complaint in U.S. District Court in Manhattan seeking a temporary restraining order against the policy, which, according to the UFT, has been on the books but has not been followed for decades. But on Oct. 1, city schools Chancellor Joel Klein asked principals in an e-mail to enforce it.
UFT President Randi Weingarten told reporters today that “it doesn’t matter whether you support Democratic Senator Barack Obama or Republican Senator John McCain. As voters, we all should have the right to express our views."
There have been similar incidents in other districts: Just last week, teachers in Soquel, Calif., were asked to leave their political buttons behind when entering classrooms. But the issue raises interesting questions about freedom of expression for teachers....
(taken from Education Week)

Does Zinn matter?

2008-10-08T07:13:00.000-07:00

We've spent a good bit of time so far this semester with Howard Zinn's A People's History of the United States (and the young people's version, which your Powerpoint presentations will be based on). So I'm wondering: Do you think Zinn is relevant for elementary teachers? Is there anything -- in terms of his approach to history, the content of the chapters you've read, the voices that are heard in his text -- that will be useful for you as a teacher of social studies in K-8 classrooms? Even if you wouldn't use A People's History with your students, has it taught you anything worthwhile? Or do you think the class time we've spent on Zinn would have been better utilized reading about/discussing methods or strategies that are specifically geared for elementary teachers?

Whatever your opinion, be honest. Don't just say what you think I want to hear.

Book share

2008-10-08T07:10:00.001-07:00

Please post your book share here, including:
1) Title, author, year of publication
2) Appropriate grade level(s)
2) A brief summary of the book (you don't need to include your lesson ideas)

Racist mascots?

2008-09-18T19:57:00.000-07:00

Most of you are familiar with the controversy surrounding Chief Illiniwek, the former "mascot" at the U of I that was finally "retired" last year after over a decade of protests. But many of you seemed not to be aware of the former team name of Pekin High School -- the Pekin Chinks. The name was changed in 1980, but apparently you can still find memorabilia (t-shirts, mugs) in some shops in Pekin. And according to James Loewen, author of Sundown Towns, many residents still defend the name and insist it was a compliment. Some say it is a reference to Peking -- now Beijing -- China, which is supposedly where Pekin got its name, but others dispute that origin. Anybody want to do a little research?

Indian Reservation

2008-09-17T19:01:00.000-07:00

I wanted to continue Greg's post with the political cartoon, but take it in another direction. I found the cartoon to be an excellent representation of my beliefs on immigration. As everyone read in the Columbus passage, Native Americans suffered greatly to let immigrants into this country and have not faired well since.

The past two years I have visited Cherokee, NC and each time I go, I cry. The Cherokee people are well known and considered some of the most prosperous Native American tribes in existence; but, what I have seen is a group of people commercialized just to survive. Those who have attempted to assimilate into American society live on roads that drip with poverty and depression. Others live on a reservation that can be easily found by the giant billboards and tourist booth nearby.

Today, we continue to have immigrants come in to our country, many whom suffer greatly. It seems to me that throughout history some groups of people prospered without major struggles and some have/continue to struggle their way to some form of equality. I'm wondering if there are common characteristics of those two groups. What are your thoughts?

(I have attached some photos of the commercialization that I describe. Unfortunately, I do not have photos of the living conditions.)

Perspectives

2008-09-16T18:01:00.001-07:00

Multiple perspectives should be used in all grade levels. It is important to start the concept of perspective during the primary grades. The viewpoint of the Native Americans when Christopher Columbus landed on San Salvador can be shared with children using the picture book "Encounter" by Jane Yolen. Then there are articles that describe Christopher Columbus in a more explicit manner. These texts/articles can be shared appropriately with high school students. The picture book is more basic and shares feelings while the adult text is very detailed and explains how violent the crew was towards the Native Americans. During my elementary school years I was never taught to look outside the viewpoint of our history books. When I had encountered texts in high school from different sources and viewpoints I was almost convinced that history never was that way. Also, every individual in the classroom has different experiences. It is important to allow perspectives where each student can react, relate, and interact with one another to share ideas and feelings about topics. In my opinion perspectives make a lesson more engaging and exciting! :)

And now, for a little historical perspective...

2008-09-14T22:08:00.001-07:00

Editorial cartoons can be a great resource to use with 4th-8th grade students when examining current issues. How might you use this cartoon in a social studies class? Or, alternatively, what do you think of the point of view about immigration that is being expressed by the cartoonist? Do you think his point is a valid one?

Many ways to see the world

2008-09-09T21:03:00.000-07:00

Welcome to the blog, everybody.

This past week in class we viewed a slide show of different map projections of the earth, and watched a clip from the film Bowling for Columbine called "A Brief History of the United States." We discussed in class that both of these are examples of the use or emphasis of multiple (or at least non-traditional) perspectives, and I emphasized how important I think it is to bring various perspectives into your social studies classroom.

Do you agree that this is one of the foundations of good social studies teaching? Why or why not? What are some specific ways you might introduce multiple perspectives or points of view to students in the grade level you hope to teach? Are these concepts only appropriate for older (4th-8th grade) students, or for primary students as well?