How to Prevent Another Leonardo da Vinci

… continue teaching school like it is 1890. “Blinding ignorance does mislead us. O! Wretched mortals, open your eyes!” -LEONARDO DA VINCI Here it is from Kris, a 15 year-old former student, “How to Prevent Another Leonardo da Vinci“. I think this post should be mandatory for every student teacher to read before they graduate. […]

Blogging with students requires biting your [digital] tongue

In my last post about my Science Alive wiki, I mentioned that our Renaissance Fair Project was starting, (here is the assignment). I also mentioned that with our lousy computer lab, I wouldn’t be blogging again as I did last year. Well, I decided to go ahead anyway! I can’t use our useless communal teacher […]

Wikis in the classroom: a reflection.

Well here it is, my completed Science Alive Wiki. After an incident delayed getting feedback from my students until last Monday, things got extremely busy with preparation for the Renaissance Fair and my Grade 5 Transition Retreats [the subject of a future post]. All this included 3 afternoons out of my classroom at other functions… […]

“Who Have You Helped Today?” – Developing Empathy

Prelude Two Brothers, Craig and Marc Kielburger, are my modern day heroes. Tonight Marc is having dinner with Oprah Winfrey. The brothers’ US office is hosted by Oprah. They have had an audience with Mother Teresa. They have been featured on Oprah, CNN, CBC, BBC, and 60 Minutes. They are sought after speakers that have […]

A Giant Teaches Me About SUCCESS: a “what are your secrets to a successful life” meme

I’ve been tagged with a “what are your secrets to a successful life” meme by Kelly Christopherson. To be honest, I was dreading being tagged by a meme… I knew it was going to come eventually, but my writing process, my flow, seldom lends itself to creating lists… they are too linear for my big […]