(Consider this a preview for my opening activity tomorrow.)
BURNING QUESTIONS:
This activity from chapter 5 in our Gallagher text seemed important to me. I think that so much of learning needs to come from asking questions. The deeper understanding of any concept can only be reached once we ask and then explore further what WE want to know. I decided it would be fun to post some burning questions of my own. For a topic, I chose Notre Dame football. For those who don't follow sports or college football, Notre Dame is 7-0 (at least at the time of this post) and have been in the conversation as one of the best teams in the country for the first time in more than a decade. Still, they have more to prove as the season goes on and I have some burning questions regarding the Fighting Irish.
1) Will Everett Golson step up and be a consistent leader at the Quarterback position?
2) Our defense is good, but are they SEC good? ( Alabama, Florida, LSU,etc.)
3) Will all of the Notre Dame haters finally give ND their due if they beat Oklahoma this weekend on the road?
4) Will Notre Dame finished undefeated and play for the national championship?
5) Does Manti T'eo have a real chance at winning the Heisman even though no true defensive player has won since the late 90's?
I could on for much longer but I feel that the non-sports fans might fall asleep. The next step would be for me to pick one question and then reflect on it in my writer's notebook. Stay tuned for my next post which will reflect on one of my questions above!
My Godson Keegan
Tuesday, October 23, 2012
Tuesday, October 2, 2012
Inform and Explain: 3 Favorite Activities
Kelly Gallagher makes a great point at the beginning of Chapter 3. No matter what we do in our lives, we all have to write to either inform or explain. It can come in any form, but like it or not we all eventually have to explain ourselves and inform others. I found all of the activities in Chapter 3 of the Gallagher reading to be both practical and creative. I decided to pick 3 that I could see myself using and explain why.
1) Congrats, newly minted ________
I think this writing activity is great for several reasons. First of all, it allow students to have a choice of what they are going to write about. They can choose any topic and write a detailed sarcastic list that I think will certainly appeal to a secondary student's sense of humor. Secondly, it forces them to explore a topic and write about in detail. This may seem basic, but I think the "analyze and explain" skill set is important for many types of writing. Lastly, the end goal is to take a sarcastic list and turn it into a positive list. The student example shown goes transforms from "How to Get Sent to Boarding School" into "How to Be a Model Teenager". This is a clever twist as it removes the humor and forces students to really think about how to be a good doctor, teacher, cop, nurse, scientist, etc.
2) I Was a Witness
One of the reason's I love this idea is because it touches on my second favorite subject, history. Reading and writing are so important because they touch upon an infinite number of topics and subjects, such as historical events. In this case, the student will read an actual eyewitness account of a historical event. (This is likely much more exciting than what is in their history textbooks.) I think this is a great way of modeling writing for students. Students can build upon their own reflections to inform and explain what they saw. This strengthens the idea that events in their life are important and should be reflected on and discussed.
3) Unwritten Rules
This activity asks students to consider the unofficial and unwritten rules in their lives. I like this because it forces students to think critically and allows the teacher to get to know some of the ins and outs of their daily lives. Much like the first activity mentioned, this type of writing allows for a certain sarcasm that seems to fit with young writers. It also explores the facets of life that aren't often discussed in the classroom. It points out that certain things are understood even if they are not explicitly explained by authorities or society in general. This exercise calls for students to think deeply about norms within groups, whether those consist of baseball games or high school bands. While reading about this exercise, I couldn't help but think about our social or cultural norms. I think these lists of rules can help a teacher explore norms that students have within their peer groups in and outside school. It would be interesting to compare and contrast the responses that students come up with.
1) Congrats, newly minted ________
I think this writing activity is great for several reasons. First of all, it allow students to have a choice of what they are going to write about. They can choose any topic and write a detailed sarcastic list that I think will certainly appeal to a secondary student's sense of humor. Secondly, it forces them to explore a topic and write about in detail. This may seem basic, but I think the "analyze and explain" skill set is important for many types of writing. Lastly, the end goal is to take a sarcastic list and turn it into a positive list. The student example shown goes transforms from "How to Get Sent to Boarding School" into "How to Be a Model Teenager". This is a clever twist as it removes the humor and forces students to really think about how to be a good doctor, teacher, cop, nurse, scientist, etc.
2) I Was a Witness
One of the reason's I love this idea is because it touches on my second favorite subject, history. Reading and writing are so important because they touch upon an infinite number of topics and subjects, such as historical events. In this case, the student will read an actual eyewitness account of a historical event. (This is likely much more exciting than what is in their history textbooks.) I think this is a great way of modeling writing for students. Students can build upon their own reflections to inform and explain what they saw. This strengthens the idea that events in their life are important and should be reflected on and discussed.
3) Unwritten Rules
This activity asks students to consider the unofficial and unwritten rules in their lives. I like this because it forces students to think critically and allows the teacher to get to know some of the ins and outs of their daily lives. Much like the first activity mentioned, this type of writing allows for a certain sarcasm that seems to fit with young writers. It also explores the facets of life that aren't often discussed in the classroom. It points out that certain things are understood even if they are not explicitly explained by authorities or society in general. This exercise calls for students to think deeply about norms within groups, whether those consist of baseball games or high school bands. While reading about this exercise, I couldn't help but think about our social or cultural norms. I think these lists of rules can help a teacher explore norms that students have within their peer groups in and outside school. It would be interesting to compare and contrast the responses that students come up with.
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