Powerpoint Be Gone... You Too Prezi! or Diary of a Colloquium Instructor #7

Am I the only one sick of Powerpoint*? Prezi, which used to be a fun alternative (still is more fun than  Powerpoint) is almost as bad. Ask a bunch of students to create a project and tell them to be creative, they make a Powerpoint with colorful slides, either that or dizzying Prezi presentation.  This semester, I have my students working on one small group project. It is their job to present to the class, the content in one chapter of a dry, research-based text. They're encouraged to be creative and discouraged from using Powerpoint, and I quote directly from the project sheet:

"NO boring PowerPoints! Be creative."


Apparently, most of them interpreted this to mean they could use Powerpoint as long as it wasn't a boring one. I ask you, how many Powerpoint presentations have you seen that weren't boring? Yeah, that's what I thought. Tonight was the last of three nights of presentations, and I guess our class saved the best for last. The first group didn't even boot up the computer! They had a character, some humor, handheld cards with websites everyone could get more information on the idea they were speaking about. And they did a ton of outside research. They took the macro scale of the research and statistics in the book, and made it all tangible by applying it to things here locally. Everyone was laughing throughout their performance, and it was the most engaged I've seen the class throughout three nights and seven presentations. 

The other two things so notable about their presentation was how obvious it was they worked together on the whole presentation. They had to have gotten together at least a few times to put it altogether. It wasn't a Powerpoint where they each worked separately on slides and sent them all to one person to put it together. They had a script that fully integrated all their parts, and though they read from it quite a bit, it's not a theater class so I don't expect them to memorize all their lines. It truly presented as a collaborative project. The second thing, is they clearly practiced the time management aspect. The first night all the groups were running over so the remaining three nights we said we'd set a timer and we did. They were the only group who did not go over time, and after they told me they had practiced to make sure. WOW! Their presentation was great all around. Great content, great delivery, great group work. I felt proud.

Lesson learned for next semester: Change the wording in the syllabus to Absolutely no Powerpoint.



*P.S. While searching for the image, I found this article. I borrowed the image from the author.

Numbers

This is my 270th post on this blog (holy moly!). When I started out on January 1st, my intention was to write one every single say for a total of 365 at the end of the year. I will have 365, but the plans kind of changed a long the way. Life got in the way, and I was busy and stressed at various points. Who isn't, right? Some months back, I decided to give myself a break, cut myself some slack. My obligations became overwhelming, and my writing started to feel like just that, an obligation. This blog has certainly help me keep to my goal of writing daily, but I had to make some adjustments. Some days I can't write. Either time gets away from me, or my brain stops functioning coherently. Instead of freaking out or giving up, I have adapted by making up posts, and on some days I write two. On occasion, I've even written three in one day. Anyway you slice it, on December 31st, I will have a full year- 365 posts. I'm not usually a  numbers person, but I couldn't help myself. I wanted to take a look back. Here are some numbers that make me feel pretty good:

• I have (now) written 270 blog posts on this blog alone
• As of the last two days somewhere, I have has over 5000 hits to this blog! That's more than any other blog I've written.
• My most widely read post was I Believe I Would, a poem about my husband. It got 118 hits.
• My second most widely pos was also about my husband, it was about our 20th anniversary and it got 98 hits. I guess people love to read about love!
• I've written 29 posts about my work.
• I've written 19 posts about my son.
• I've written 23 posts with a number in the title.
• I've written 72 poems.

I'm Gonna Miss This

I'm going to miss this...

Swim meets and awards nights

three-person family dinners

random hugs and I love you's. 

What's for dinner? and 

Can you make enchiladas this week?

Mom, this is better than in any restaurant.

Early morning wake-up calls

piles of dirty laundry and dishes

belongings strewn about the living room.

Technology current events

inventions and industry certifications 

discussions about new discoveries.

Reddit posts and dog memes

Youtube videos and games

phone and device hacks.

Sushi nights, the two of us

laughing fits over silly little jokes

movie lines and song lyrics.

I can go on forever,

the days seem long and tiring

but time seems to pass too quickly

I just know I'm going to miss this...

all of it.

Kids

Resilient.
I can't think of a better word
to describe children living in chaos.
It's as if the instability prepares them,
it's as if they're unfazed.
And I think for a moment, maybe they are.
Maybe it's the rest of us who are distraught,
concerned for them with aching hearts,
worried about what will happen to them.

Not so.

Kids are good at hiding tumult.
Their minds and hearts find ways to cope,
that is, until they can't.
So you wonder
when the giggles will turn to sobs
when the playing will turn to fighting
when the coping will turn to destructing.
And you try to protect them.

Sometimes you can.

They need to feel safe and secure.
So you feed them and hug them,
you clothe them and you love them.
And you read with them and play games,
and tell them how wonderful it is
when they complete a jigsaw puzzle,
or button a shirt or tie a shoe all on their own.
You struggle with them through homework.

You tell them you love them.

They're resilient alright.
But they are not immune to abuse and neglect.
They are not old enough to find their way on their own.
They are not bulletproof.

They deserve better.

A Halfway Hiatus

A couple of weeks ago, I decided I needed a hiatus from Facebook. It wouldn't have been Facebook specifically, but social media in general, except Facebook is the only social medium I use with any kind of regularity. I found that I was feeling angry and frustrated. Most of the time I would log on specifically to interact with my writing group on our closed page, and then before I could even get into the page I would be confronted with an image or a remark that would make my blood boil.

At first I thought it was people with specific opinions that I didn't necessarily agree with, and I supposed that would be a bit childish. Then I realized it didn't matter what anyone's opinion was. Trump or Hilary haters and supporters; Colin Kaepernick and other non-national anthem singers; police shootings and anti-police garbage; racists and Black Lives Matter; 2nd amendment rights and accidental shootings; how we should and should not remember 9/11; teachers suck and parents are no better. I could go on and on, both sides of every issue were flooding my news feed and I decided I couldn't take it anymore.

I never comment on any of the posts, whether I agree with them or not. I just choose not to put my beliefs about everything out on social media for online arguments. I wouldn't have most of the arguments face to face, why would I spend my time doing it online? For awhile I tried cruising by and ignoring the inflammatory posts. Scroll right on by to the adorable photos of my friends' kids or an interesting essay from the The New Yorker, I'd tell myself. Then I stopped looking completely. I left my computer open to my writing group's page and I quickly navigated there when I was on the phone version. I simply could not take it anymore.

A few days went by and I had to remind myself not to get on. Don't do it, I told myself. I had to remind myself of the reason I decided to take a break in the first place. Within a week I didn't miss it. Within a couple, I still didn't miss it. And within the third week, I found I was better able to log in to see my writing group and just spend a minute or two here or there to see if there was anything of quick interest. And I think I'm back to a healthier habit.

I'm not hung up on whether someone knows I missed their birthday on FB. I'm not worried about posting every little thing me and my family do. I'm not worried I'm missing anything. If I'm on and I catch it, great. If not, oh well. And to be clear, this isn't some holier than thou preachy thing about FB being a waste of time. For me it never really was. It was a way to use downtime and catch up. A way to share and interact informally with friends and family.

For me, cutting my FB time has resulted in one intended consequence: I do not find myself needlessly angry or frustrated about other people's opinions or rants, especially those I care so very little about.

Less time on Facebook has made me happier!

Observations

As writers, we are observers. Some of our greatest mentors remind us that writers look at the world differently than others. We study people and things, inquire about places and customs. The entire world is a dynamic pool of ideas for writing. I revisited an old article this morning about how we are in such a rush to live all the time. The writer suggested we live our lives for our resumes and not for our eulogies. The reference was to the things people celebrate and honor each other for in a eulogy, as opposed to the things listed on our resumes. Simply put, after someone is gone we celebrate his ability to make anyone laugh, or the honest way in which she loved. We don't celebrate the promotion to Vice President of marketing or how many cases were won in court. It reminded me to slow down a little, take in my surroundings. I decided with a pretty laid back schedule today, I was going to concentrate on observing my surroundings this morning. Here is what I noticed in a few short hours.

Observations

People have strange affection and attachment to famous people they likely never met. I pulled up behind a Cadillac this morning. It was a fairly new and nice looking car, if you like Caddies. I looked it up when I got home, and if it's the car I think it is, it starts at $53,000. What struck me about it is on the back there was a license plate frame that said Dale Earnhardt. Maybe it's just because I'd never put something like that on my car, but I though it was strange. People love famous people like family.

**

Driving down the road on my way out this morning I noticed a pink fire engine. It said something on the side. I think it was Supporting Women, Raising Awareness. Why do we always make pink the color of women's issues? I'm not a big fan of pink. And fire engines look weird in pink.

This isn't the one I saw, but it's pretty close.

**

Just because you're courteous to someone, doesn't mean they will return the courteousness. I went to get my haircut this morning, and pulled into a big shopping plaza. As I pulled past a stop sign in front of Publix, I rolled slowly for a couple of twenty-something guys crossing toward the store. I really didn't need to stop, as they were several feet away as I approached.  But there was a long line of cars behind me, and I try to be safe and courteous in busy parking lots (See this post). As I sat there, with all those cars behind me, those guys were taking their time, looking behind them and not moving along. I stopped a lot of traffic for them, and they were just lollygagging. They never even threw out a thank you wave. No big whoop, I had a/c and a good song on the radio. I just noticed they didn't appreciate my courtesy.

**

Fried chicken is one of the yummiest foods in the world. Forget that it's not healthy, the only thing that might be better is the smell of fried chicken cooking. Not so at 9:00 am.

**

It's 90 degrees plus outside on a daily basis here in Florida. We have no signs of fall at all except for pumpkin spice everything in every restaurant and fast food joint, and shoe stores trying to convince us to buy boots. But I noticed today, you can still find plenty of us in jeans and a surprising number of people in long sleeves and hoodies. I saw a guy on his bike at a stop light, in long pants and a hoodie. I thought there's no way he can arrive anywhere without stinking like holy hell when he gets there. Maybe it's for safety, in case he falls.

**

Since my son started driving, if there are any police lights or other emergency vehicles within miles of my home, or his school, or his job, and I happen to pass by, my heart sinks and starts racing. I know I'll always be worried about his well-being. Will it subside when I can't see where he is all the time?

Look Out, Here I Come!

I suppose there is balance in the universe, even when we don't feel it. Is it possible when something starts to feel good for one person, there's someone else suffering in some way? That is a pretty stupid question, as there are always people celebrating and others who are suffering. But I wonder if there is one to one correspondence. Maybe, maybe not. All I know is I was prepared to write about how upbeat I was feeling about some things in my life that I'm starting to see more clearly, steps down a path I wasn't so sure which way to go. Then I found out a dear friend is struggling with some major upheaval in her life. Is it random, or is that the way the universe works? I will keep my friend in my thoughts and prayers while I try to work out my own place in the universe.

I have been on a confusing journey since I finished my doctorate degree. Throughout my studies and my dissertation I felt such a strong sense of what was important to me and what I wanted to do. I felt like I was taking steps to get there, carefully placed footing up the side of a mountain. Then something happened, it was as though my foot slipped and I lost my way. I was hanging by a couple of cables and a carabiner, feet dangling, looking to the top and down below for answers. It took awhile, but I think I've regained my footing and I'm climbing back up.

I've dug deep. I've done a lot of reading and a lot of thinking. Through teaching, I am learning. I'm reaffirming my sense of place and I'm starting to see what my next move is. I'm no longer blaming circumstances, and I've decided what to do next. I've got a plan for a study, and I'm working on my literature review. I will not let my dissertation be the only time I'm published. I'm ready to jump back in and become a part of the research community. I'm ready to be back where I belong.

Where I'm From

I have been researching a new project, reading various media sources about place and sense of place. Like so many online research sessions, I happened upon a website that led to a blog, that led to another blog, and then a Youtube video. I couldn't help myself. I knew right away when I read Kentucky Poet Laureate, George Ella Lyon's poem, I would use it as a mentor poem. I read it several times, then found the video from The United States of Poetry episode posted below, and listened to her read it aloud. I had to try my own "Where I'm From" poem.  Writers and teachers, I encourage you to visit her blog. There are lots of golden nuggets to be found in the pages, and the home page says, "Welcome Word-Weavers!" She uses the spiderweb as a metaphor for writing. How can you not love that?

Here she is, yes George is a woman, reciting "Where I'm From."

Where I'm From
by Laurie J. Kemp

I am from eat-in kitchens
from records and 8-track tapes.
I am from the giant weeping willow in the backyard
(Expansive and shaggy,
a great place to pout.)
I am from the colonial porch
the almost back deck
which never got built
because our family fell apart.

I'm from kugel and matzoh balls
     from Isador and Esther
I'm from the wise-asses
    and the big mouths
from give it a rest! and go to your room!
I'm from Shema Yisrael
     Adonai Eloheinu
     and dozens of Hebrew prayers

I'm from small town Long Island,
fresh deli and the best bagels.
From a family of four I lost
     to a divorce
when my mom and dad called it quits.

In my closet were boxes and piles
filled of memories and photos,
a collection of my childhood artifacts.
I am without those moments
lost in the packing when we left
faded memories in the back of my head.

What Kids Need

Fuck reform. Fuck Accountability. Fuck all the bullshit buzzwords in the conversation about today's schools. When are we going to just stop spewing out pseudo-intellectual vocabulary terms, and start talking about kids? Research-based strategies, evidence-based practices, when are we going to wake up and realize it's all just a made up framework to defend the crazy policies pushed down from the top?

No one, not a single educator I know, is against improvement (reform) or responsibility (accountability). We all just want to improve the quality of the educational experience for our students and be held responsible for reasonable expectations. What if our Congressmen and policymakers were held accountable for good policy, backed widely accepted theory in child development, cognition, and learning? What if we were "accountable" for children's mental and physical health needs the way were are for their learning. Maybe something would change.

Kids need to eat enough.
Kids need to interact with nature.
Kids need developmentally appropriate space to learn in.
Kids need developmentally appropriate learning expectations.
Kids need to move.
Kids need social interaction.
Kids need undirected play time.
Kids need music and art and theater.
Kids need flexibility.
Kids need time to discover what interests them.
Kids need to be thought of as human beings and not just test scores and data and game pieces.

Teachers know what kids need.

Things I Could Write a Book About

I'm going to continue to add to this. I know it'll be a running record, but it's about time I started generating this list somewhere other than in my head.

Transforming School Culture (My dad says I should write a textbook)
Growing Up Jewish
Marrying Your High School Sweetheart
Interfaith Marriage
The Amazing Women I Know
Stories from the Classroom
Surviving & Thriving After Your Parents' Divorce
Raising an Only Child
Common Sense Parenting (My friend Annmarie says I should write this one)
Writing with Women
Teachers Who Write
Nature and Education
Advice for Doc Students
A Travel Book About Sunsets- (I'd love to do the research for this one)

It's Back!

My love of teaching is back. I suppose it never really left, but perhaps went dormant for awhile. It's funny how you can talk yourself into and out of things when the drama around it has you overwhelmed and frustrated. That's where I was last winter. But not anymore.

I have expressed in parts and pieces over the past few years, that my love for teaching has changed. Don't get me wrong, I loved the years I spent with little ones in 4th grade and my high school students. But at this point in my life, at this time in my teaching career, my love of teaching surfaces when I'm teaching college. I love the feel of a college campus, I enjoy the interaction with undergrads, and I really enjoy the content at this level.

There's this belief that college instructors want the graduate school classes. There's a level of prestige, I guess, having the credentials to be able to teach graduate school. I can see how down the line I might begin to feel that way. Although, the truth is, I have the credentials to teach graduate classes and I've taught a couple of them. But I so enjoy the undergrads!

It's time I figure out a way to do what I love all the time. There's nothing wrong with my job, and I love the agency I work in. But I don't spend the majority of my day doing what I most want to be doing. And that's gotta change.

I'm working on a plan.

Diary of a Colloquium Instructor #6

Saturday, September 17, 2016

The only field trip semester that I had never been on before, was today's destination. We drove down to Fort Myers Beach to the Estero Island Historic Cottage and the Matanzas Pass Preserve. This was a lovely little journey into the history of the history of the island of Estero. There used to be a lifetime resident, named Jo, who would address the students and tell personal stories of her life growing up on Ft. Myers Beach. She has since aged into her nineties and moved off the island. She is not in good enough physical health to make the trip anymore. However, there was a wonderful docent who presented a slideshow and told us the history of Jo and her family. The museum is a quaint little cottage, an original structure built from cypress and Florida pine. Like many other historical structures, being inside it really places you back in time. Besides the rich family history and the timeline of the fishing and building in Estero, the structure itself was fascinating. The docent explained it was just the right type of structure to survive the hurricanes of South Florida, and the fact it's still standing is evidence she's right.

After our talk in the museum, we were guided by our student naturalist, Taylor, down the boardwalk through Matanzas Pass Preserve. It's similar to several other preserves in SW Florida, loaded with mangroves and their surrounding ecosystems. People seem to vastly underestimate the importance of the mangroves for filtering high winds and protecting land from hurricanes. On one of the lookouts, we saw nine-pointed starfish in the shallow water around the mangroves. While most of my students were fascinated, the naturephobe was "freaked out" because he thought it looked too much like a spider. It's funny, the mangrove crabs maybe, but the starfish... not so much. Besides we were several feet above it one raised boardwalk platform. Oh well. He's been trying. He said he felt better on this trip than the last two, because we were up on the boardwalk and it wasn't terribly hot. The was a breeze off the bay.

I had fun on the bus ride back, chatting it up with a few of my students. I got an earful from them about how much they aren't a fan of the textbook. I am really looking forward to their presentation this week. They are orchestrating some kind of debate. It should be entertaining and much more engaging for the class than another boring Powerpoint. The group is made up of some students who are very interested din the course content and seem very intelligent. I'm really looking forward to it.

Another field trip in the books.

Diary of a Colloquium Instructor #5

September 15, 2016.

This is about the time in the semester when things start to get interesting. The nerves of the new semester and a new class of students has worn, and they are now focused on planning for the most engaging and interesting lessons as possible. One of the course texts, which I'm considering changing for next semester, is a difficult read for a lot of students. The readability is very high, and it is also a bit dry. It reads a lot like a thick bound research paper. There is an entire chapter for works cited at the end. Additionally, it does have a doom and gloom mood, which is not what I believe is the most effective and impactful way to teach students about sustainability and global responsibility. A new book has been added to the instructor selection list, and I will be reviewing it this week to make the decision.

That being said, right now the text is required and to switch things up and make it a bit more digestible for the students, I borrowed a class assignment from a fellow instructor. This semester, all the students read the first chapter and we discussed it collectively. Then in small groups, they have been assigned a chapter to read with more depth and they are to create a presentation for the class to help generate discussion about the content. Tonight's class was the first night of presentations. Two notable things happened:

Before I get into the happenings, I'd like to note here that I don't force groups on students. I know many students work and live in various places, so I allow them to choose their own groups. I want there to be no outside excuses about why students couldn't make a group project work. Allowing them to work with who they choose typically makes the group dynamic less of a factor. Eventually, as students group up, there are always stragglers. Some fours organically group up, and pairs pair up for fours. In the end, whoever is left usually ends up grouped with whoever was absent that day. The story below is about one of those throw together groups- three guys who chose each other and a girl who was absent from class the day we all grouped up.

First:
Upon entry into the classroom, one of my students approached me with some concerns about her work. She was in one of the groups scheduled to present today and she had little contact with her group over the couple of weeks they were supposed to be preparing. She wasn't sure if any of them would be ready to present, and she had only worked with one of them. She assured me her part was done and was concerned their lack of work would impact her grade. I assured her I had things in place to ensure she got to say her peace and I would learn about the inner workings of the group. There is a group evaluation survey  as part of the grade. She felt better and waited to see what would happen with her group.

All three of them showed up but two of them didn't say anything; the third came up to speak with me. He told me he had been sick with a stomach virus and he couldn't get his work done. I asked him if he had a doctor's note. He said no. I asked him if he had been in contact with his group. He said no. I was already feeling very little sympathy for him, and a whole lot for the young lady who came up at the start of class. When I asked if he had spoken with his group, he turned back and looked at the rest of them. At this point, armed with the story from the female student, I asked them all if they were prepared to present. She shook her head yes, the guy at the front with me said no, and one of the other guys said yes. He seemed overconfident and was getting a suspicious look from the his female counterpart. I asked the last of the four sitting as well. He gave me some convoluted story about how he read the wrong chapter so he didn't have the right stuff done.

True or false didn't matter. There's no excuse for a college student to not know what his project was (it's posted online in the course and it was reviewed in class). It was clear this group had failed all aspects of communication. If they had been talking all along, there was no way he wouldn't have realized he was on the wrong chapter. I would have to figure out what to do with the two who obviously were not prepared to present. The others would present and hope for the best. They did great and I felt a lot better. The other two I would deal with after class. I was just blown away by the behavior of these guys. This presentation is worth 10% of their course grade. Not only had they screwed up, but they acted so entitled toward me... like I was a bitch for not accepting the excuses. Really? Not reading the right chapter and not realizing during a three week period with which to work on the presentation, in my opinion is inexcusable. And having the stomach flu? Whether he did or not, remains a mystery. But, he definitely didn't have it for three weeks, and the fact that he never made contact with his group is not acceptable. It's college. Get with the program.

Second:
Despite the above mentioned situation, I was energized by class this night. This is the period in the semester I start to recognize several of the misconceptions I made about my students. I start to recognize first impressions might last, but they are not impenetrable. The course is about four months long, and that's plenty of time to change what I think about them. By week four, some of them have done started to do just that.

Case in point, the student who admittedly is "not very comfortable around nature," has now been on two field trips with little whining. Though he's vocal about his discomfort, it's matter of fact. He isn't complaining as much as explaining, and he's managing to work through it as he's forced to spend time outside. Tonight he gave an outstanding presentation about alternative forms of renewable and sustainable energy. He was one of the few who don't read off slides but actually spoke and he jumped through the creativity of a Prezi. It was clear he understood the reading, and likely did outside reading to further inform his knowledge base. He was really impressed. I had to cut him off because he was so enthusiastic he got long-winded and we almost ran out of time for his partner to do her part. He may have discomfort with being out in nature, but he's still embracing the course content and in his written work is making it very clear he understands the importance of what we're learning. Score!

There are a few others who are beginning to show more of who they are, and I love it! First impressions may be important, but what's more important is that as a teacher I give my students time to show who they really are. The lasting impression is really what matters most.

Paint Me a Picture

Paint me a picture of your paradise
watery streams of pinks and purples
across a blue sheer cottony sky
silhouettes of palm tree tops
and pencil line birds.

Paint if you can the warm breeze and salty air,
the sound of the receding tide
along the Gulf Coast shore
traces in the sand of scurrying crabs
and pecking plovers.

Paint the picture of you and me
companions hand in hand
under nature's sunset palette
footsteps between the seashells
and soft gentle kisses.

Great Way to Start My Day

Have you ever read a story about a person doing something really considerate or special for a random person? I read them all the time, and I think how nice it would be to brighten someone's day with a random act of kindness. Then, I don't ever seen to think of anything randomly. Yes, I make donations to charitable organizations and volunteer my time. But those things aren't so random. Today was different. I'm not going to get into the specifics of what I did, as my purpose here is not to brag about my kindness, but rather to share how I felt because of it.

This morning, I made a random act of kindness to a random person- someone I never met, someone I'll likely never see again. And it felt really cool. At first I felt strange. What will the other person think? Will she wonder who I am and why I'm doing something nice for her? Then I went about my day. And let me just tell you how good I felt! It was like I had pep in my step all day. I felt upbeat and light. I've done a few good deeds in my life, but this random act was different. No glory, no reward, no chance fro even a thank you. Just me, knowing I did something nice for someone. And it felt great.

Great way to start a day. I think I'll make a point of doing it more often.

Hal-a-Vah Treat

Do you have one of those foods? You know, one you grew up eating because it was part of your culture and everyone in your family ate it? Maybe, like me, you know any effort to offer it to others might result in turned up noses, or at least polite No, thank you's. Truth is, if you are Jewish, and you like Jewish food, this is a response you're likely quite familiar with. Have you seen gefilte fish? Even I turn my nose up at what my sister calls mini fish meatloaves. Yuck.

But there's one food, seemingly innocuous based on a list of appealing enough ingredients, that I love and have been hard-pressed to find someone outside my family to enjoy with me. Described on the package as "a sesame treat," Halvah, is a delicious confection with a long history. Popular throughout Europe and Asia, in the Mediterranean and the Middle East, growing up, Jewish kids in New York were eating it in local delis and at their Bubbies' houses during the holidays. It is made from mostly ground sesame paste and sugar. Halvah is packaged or served in bars or blocks. It looks a lot like a block of fudge, but it is not smooth and creamy the way chocolate and dairy fudge are. It has a unique flavor and texture, difficult to describe. The sesame certainly stands out.

I was walking through Publix over the weekend, and as I perused the kosher section and picked up a couple of Israeli candies for my son, I came across the Halvah. A quick glance at the package brought  an undeniable craving. I hadn't had any in a very long time. I playfully snapped a photo and sent it to my mom asking her if it was weird that I had a craving for it. She sent me back a text message. I could hear her laugh with the tone of the message telling me, "You are your mother's daughter." Then she told me she had a bite every day while she was in Israel a few months ago on vacation and has bought some twice since she's been home. Then she added a note, "Bubbie liked it too!"

Family culture is a wonderful thing. I brought my Halvah home and enjoyed it almost as much as the memories it brought of my childhood, and the reminder from my mom how the littlest things connect us right back to the ones we love.

Image retrieved from menially.com

A Feeling Hard to Describe

I remember when I was a little girl, traveling from New York to Florida on vacation. We would often spend the afternoon flying, and land in Ft. Lauderdale after dark. As we exited the airport, the waft of warm air and the glow of the streetlights cast over the palm trees was unmistakable. Florida. We would rent a car, or my grandparents would meet us at the airport. The drive to their condo had our little faces flattened against the windows. It was the same but oh so different. Restaurants and gas stations, banks and stores. Gusty breezes bringing tropical mist, not bitter cold and snow. I remember that feeling, though I can hardly find the words to describe it. It was nighttime and we weren't sleeping, we were walking down lit paths, eyeing the pool and the shuffleboard court for tomorrow. This wonderland seemed like a full time vacation.

Driving home tonight, the same hour, the same scene, only now I am a resident. The feelings are the same though. It's okay that we work and not only play. It's okay that we save the beach for the weekend, because there is school. How lucky we are to live in such a beautiful place. Four, fourteen, forty-three, the feeling is still the same. And I still can't describe it.

Don't Tell Me

Image retrieved from 911memorial.org

Don't Tell Me

by Laurie J. Kemp

I don't need to be told never to forget,

it is impossible not to remember.

A young mother, a young teacher

I stood before a group of teenagers

a high school class of mostly boys.

She came up from the office, 

a co-worker and friend

she whispered in my ear.

A plane hit the twin towers

they think it might be a terrorist attack.

What? I looked at her in awe.

Reactions to shocking news

sometimes create a lapse in judgement.

We turned on the classroom TV.

And within seconds, I exposed them.

Their young and idealistic eyes

watched the second plane.

The first tower in smoke and flames,

the second one struck by a flying bomb

filled with innocent people.

Seven hundred fifty thousand pounds,

the airplane tore through the steel and glass

like they were play-doh and tinker toys.

A little boy, first or second grade

stopped by and peeked in the room.

"No fair- the high school is watching a movie!"

There was no movie, no special effects.

This was real, stunningly and horrifically real.

A day I will always remember in so much detail.

Phones ringing off the hook,

parents arriving off schedule in hysterics

the confusion, the worry, the sadness.

An empty classroom by noon.

A call to my husband in the field.

Terrorist attack? He hadn't heard a thing. 

Days of nothing on television 

except tragedy and sorrow

questions with no answers.

How could we concern ourselves with anything else?

We were in collective shock, 

in fear and in mourning.

A nation brought together in the worst way

brave and selfless acts of rescue

a declaration of united patriotism.

We lost so many, so much that day.

My parents had Kennedy and MLK

We had Reagan and the Challenger

All of us would now have September 11th

We must remember, they say

How can we possibly forget?

9/11

Importance of Experience

Several months back one of my writing group members posted a prompt on our blog inviting us to create an imaginary conversation with someone famous. I spent quite a bit of time agonizing over it, starting several pieces and scrapping them all. Finally, my writing buddy told me to let it go. She said I was probably forcing it and if it wasn't coming to me, just to let it go. So I did. We agreed it might materialize at some point. I guess this is sort of that point. The poem below is not a response to the prompt as it was presented, but I do think it's my version of what is to be. I suspected way back, even after trying several other people, that my conversation would be with John Dewey. This is not a conversation, but rather a finger walk through one of my favorite Dewey books. I revisited portions I underlined, marked, or made notes near. What follows is a sort of found poem, I suppose. Enjoy.

Experience

A found poem by Laurie J. Kemp

Genuine education comes about through experience,
yet not all experiences are genuinely or equally educative.
Everything depends upon the quality.
Just as no man lives or dies to himself,
so no experience lives and dies to itself.

Every experience takes up something from those before
and modifies in some way those which come after.
Each lives on in further experiences.
Select the kind of experiences that live fruitfully
and creatively in subsequent experiences.

What avail is it to win prescribed amounts of information
about geography and history, to win ability to read and write,
if in the process the individual loses his own soul:

loses his appreciation of things worth while
loses the values to which these things are relative
loses desire to apply what he has learned
loses the ability to extract meaning from his future experiences as they occur?

We always live at the time we live
and not at some other time.
Only by extracting at each present time
the full meaning of each present experience
are we prepared for doing the same thing in the future.

This is the only preparation which in the long run amounts to anything.
The mature person has no right to withhold from the young on given occasions
whatever capacity for sympathetic understanding her own experience has given her.

She must, if she is an educator,
have that sympathetic understanding of individuals as individuals
which gives her an idea of what is actually going on
in the minds of those who are learning.

To discover what is really simple and to act upon the discovery
is an exceedingly difficult task.


Work Cited:
Most of the these words are taken directly from
Dewey, J. (1938). Experience and education. Kappa Delta Pi.

There are some rearrangements, small omissions, and pronoun changes.

Scattered Mind and Split Devotion

My husband has long kidded with me that I have what he calls "career ADD." Some time ago, he noticed I seem to change jobs (or positions) about every 7 years. "Must be the seven year itch," he'd say to me when I'd start to look at job postings or mention the thought of moving on to something else. What I've realized, is I have interest in different things, and seem to want to make all of them part of my existence. Kind of like my mom used to say I was always at my best when I had too much on my plate. But I see it like this. Why not try as hard as you can to make your work and the things you are passionate about, one and the same? I'll tell you why...

My mind goes in so many different directions. I might be what some people call an idea person. I have so many things I want to do and wish to do, but most of them are ideas stuck in my head and written in my journals. And if you're thinking it's my own fault I don't make time for those things, or you want to give me sage advice that all great things take great sacrifice, I'm not buying it. I do have certain responsibilities, and I admit, a certain lifestyle I care to support. I simply have not found the right job, for the right income, that allows me to put my heart and soul into the things I really want.

My attention is divided. I want to write a book. I want to teach college. I want to spend more time traveling and being outside. I want more time to write. I want to learn photography. My mind goes in a hundred different directions, all the time. This can make it really hard to focus on getting down to business. I'm not afraid of work. G-d knows I've worked hard my while life, in work and in study. But in a perfect world, I guess I would have the financial freedom to move from project to project in the moment as my brain fired a spark of brilliance. In a perfect world...

Diary of a Colloquium Instructor #4

I'm always amazed when I mention the Campus Food Forest for the first time in class. Juniors and seniors look around, expressions of confusion on their faces. It's surprising to me you can be at a university for two or three years and not know about this student run brain child of a campus feature. Nonetheless, I am always happy to introduce my students to this totally natural, sustainable food source!

Located just inside the main entrance to campus, near the welcome center, the Food Forest was the idea of a group of students who wanted to start a student garden. You can read the story and watch a video clip about it here. http://fgcufoodforest.weebly.com  Our student naturalist once again met us for the tour. Though I reminded my students to wear long pants and closed shoes, several of them wore shorts, yoga pants, and sandals. Kristen, the naturalist told them they will get bug bites. But she was wearing shorts too! Not to worry though. In this photo, she is pointing out a green leafy plant whose ground up leaves make a paste that acts as a "natural Benedryl" she told them. She insisted it works even faster, and demonstrated by grinding a leaf into her hand in circles and then rubbing the extract on her leg. I've seen many people do this in the Food Forest, and everyone says it's effective. I only wish I could remember the name of the plant.

As we strolled through, it was clear some of the students were uncomfortable. It was very humid and very hot. We did get a bit of a jungle feel. With Kristen at the front leading and sharing, I stayed toward the back to keep everyone with us. I had the opportunity to chat with some students. Pictured below is D. She is the beloved lady referred to by he other students as "the older lady." She has great enthusiasm for everything. She tasted every plant Kristen told them about, and kept the branches of what remained after things were passed around for sampling. The guys and I in the back learned she has pet rats and loves to study them as subjects for her artwork. She mostly pastels because it's the quickest she said.

In the next photo you'll see the backs of the choir singer, the guy with the beard who is,not a big fan of nature, and a couple of others who hung toward the back with me. C, the naturephobe, was doing ok. He professed that he was much more comfortable in his 68 degree air conditioning, and we learned he is a chemistry major and likes very controlled environments. Makes total sense. He was pretty lighthearted about it all, and I joked with him about how much he'd grow from the experiences this semester. He laughed.

I'll admit, I was a bit disappointed the tour wasn't longer, but the grounds have been very wet and muddy from the rains, and the heat and humidity made many of them quite uncomfortable. At least they've learned about another very cool feature of their campus, and what a bunch of students can accomplish when they really have the drive to make something happen. That alone is lesson enough.

A Not So Pleasant Micro Memoir

I'm certain this little story does not fit into the theme of love all around us. Be that as it may, it is still a memorable moment in my word nerd history. Fewer words bring such shock and disgust as the word known to many as "the c-word." Someone blasting this word out of the verbal cannon, must certainly be offended by the behavior of the target of the ammunition, no?

I was in my very early twenties. I know this because I was already married, but I didn't have my son yet. I gave birth at 25. It was my early teaching career, and hired at about $18, 000 annual salary, I had to tutor after school to make ends meet. Late afternoon, I drove a couple of towns over to meet with a student at his house. I was a few minutes early and very thirsty, so I stopped at a local shopping center to grab a quick beverage. If you know South Florida, you can picture the parking lot, just like every other Publix shopping center in the state.  I pull into the giant lot and tried to take the perimeter lane around to the front, to avoid the afternoon shoppers as much as possible. As I made my way all the way around to the right, I found myself in front of the Publix in the lane next to the sidewalk, passenger side to the store.  It must have been a late fall or winter day, as I was driving with my window down. There was heavy foot and shopping cart traffic coming out of the store, so I slowed my roll. Pedestrians passed in front of me as I allowed the shoppers to make their way through the crosswalk. I could feel the vehicle behind me pull up quickly into a tailgate. "Honk! Honk!"  The driver was aggressively leaning on his horn, expressing disapproval of my courtesy to the walkers. I continued to wait, waving them across. He continued to honk. So I shot him a bird in my rearview mirror. Yup. I did. Stupid jerk. The shoppers crossed, kids in tow, and before I could even let off the gas, the driver pulled around my side. He stopped, rolled down the window, and yelled, "Fucking cunt!" Seriously? He was mad because I let some shoppers cross the road? I can only imagine the shock he must have seen on my face. I was just dumfounded. I didn't respond and he just sped off. He looked old enough to be my dad, maybe even grandpa. I didn't know grown men used that word. In fact, at that time, I don't even know if I had ever heard anyone say it out loud in my presence before. Actually, never have since. Jerk.

Feeding the Team

Sometimes you just want to be a mom. Even if your kid is almost 18. Like, screw the job and other worldly responsibilities, today I just want to be a mom. That's how I felt today.

I think often people don't realize that in addition to all the hard work and long hours and personal spending teachers/educators do, they... we also devote a tremendous amount of time to other people's children. The result sometimes is we give up time with our own. Years ago I suffered quite a bit of guilt over it. But I think my son understood. I think he liked that other kids thought his mom was special too.

Last night, after serving a big family meal, I realized I also made a commitment to feed the swim team before their meet today. I was caught in a bit if a conundrum. The food needed to be at school by 3:00 and there was no way to heat it up. That meant I couldn't send it in with my son in the morning or drop it off on my way to work.  What's a working mom to do? I asked my son if the parents who brought food last week brought it in at 3:00, if it was hot, if they were at-home moms? The guilt of earlier elementary days was kicking in. I know, sounds a little bit dramatic.

But, it's my son's senior year and quite possibly the last few months I'll have to be a swim mom. Then it will all be over. For good. I made a clear and definite decision. I would work a half day, leave at lunch, and come home to prepare the food for my son and his team. Then I could drop it off at 3, do a few errands and head to the pool for the meet. I don't take a lot of days off, and if my kid isn't a good enough reason, then what the heck is?

I worked from 7:30- 12:30, came home and made two trays of pasta. One for my son and others with a mature and discerning palate, with seasoned chicken, bacon, ranch, and avocado. The other, for the picky eaters, had red sauce and a sprinkle of mozzarella cheese. I dropped them off and got an "I love you." Then about 4:00 I got a text message, "The food is delicious." He even assured me the other kids liked it too. Yay!

When I got to the meet, one of the coaches said "Avocado! I almost took that whole tray and went home with it." One of the other boys told me they chowed down. My son, who is not much of a pasta eater, was grateful I made a tray of food with his taste in mind. And man did he have a great meet. Three first place races and one second place that he missed only by a touch. It felt good to drop everything and just be a mom for a couple of hours.

Sounds of Family

Many are the sounds of a holiday,
setting the table and cooking the meal
catching up with family members.

The chicken sizzles in the pan
the soft rock plays on the stereo
while thunder rolls a storm on in.

Soon the doorbell rings
greetings and longtime no sees
parents coaxing children inside

Kitchen timers sound
and children lift their apprehensions
thumping up and down the stairs

Giggling and screaming
competing for attention
who will be the leader of the pack

I love the sound of baby babble,
amidst a house of talking adults
and wild playing children

Sounds of mmm's and ooh's
as the family gathers round
and dinner is enjoyed by all

Diary of a Colloquium Instructor #4

September 1st was our third Thursday class. By now I know my students, and with the exception of mixing up two students with very similar features (long dark hair and glasses), I was able to take attendance in my mind perfectly. I received a last minute email from one student who wouldn't make it because he just had surgery. Hmm... interesting he never mentioned it before. I'll be waiting for his doctor's note. One student who thought she wouldn't make it and communicated it to me well in advance, had a change in a work obligation and was able to attend.

I started this class off with some housekeeping and a reminder the first paper is due next week. Then, I did something a little different. I gave them a quiz.

Brief Interlude:
Last semester I taught this course I had a class full of students who were fun and liked the field trips, but I could tell they were not keeping up with the reading. I got really frustrated with them mid-semester. It sucks trying to facilitate a class activity or discussion when the students are ill-prepared. One week I finally got disgusted and showed up with a pop quiz. There is no denying it, I did it to punish them. I am not a test person. I'm not into tricking my students either. But none of my soft approaches were convincing them the reading was important. When I announced it, they looked petrified, and with good reason. Mot of them would have failed. We scored them together and then discussed why I gave it. I told them I wasn't putting it in the grade book, but that I meant business. Things got better after that.

I announced at the beginning of the semester that we would do a lot of work in class and that's how they earned their assignment and attendance points. I am not a lecturer. One of the activities, I told them, would be an occasional quiz. I gave them that information in advance. I decided the night before class that I would give a quiz, five points for each of the two articles they were to read, for a total of ten points. The other ten class points would be earned through a partner activity they would do in class, after the quiz. When I asked them to clear their desks, and I approached the rows with the quiz, several of them looked like deer in the headlights. You know that look, we all do. Most of us have had the moment in a class at some point when we've wondered whether or not we were really prepared- a few perhaps when we knew we weren't.

Like me, some non-artists chose an acrostic.

I handed out the quiz, which had three multiple choice and one written response question for each article. I gave them twenty minutes to complete the quiz. I walked around the room, watching for cheating, hoping not to find any. They all seemed pretty clean. I collected them and asked the students if they wanted me to go over the answers. They were noncommittal. I decided to go over it, figuring it would be a good catalyst to discuss some of the important takeaways. That's exactly what went down.

I asked them to pair up for the next activity, and again I let them choose their partners. They already seemed to like regrouping with the people they worked with the previous week, and I was totally okay with that- even the love birds. As long as the students do good work and participate, what do I care who they work with? This week I gave them a poster and markers, and asked them to do a little research on some of the important concepts from the first module. I wanted to make sure they were grasping what they were reading, and not just reading for the sake of compliance. It was a chance to have a little fun and get creative. A good balance with the quiz from the first part of class.

One of the posters created to depict climate change.

As they worked on their posters, I graded their quizzes. I have to say, I was pleasantly surprised. Most of the students had clearly done the reading, and there were a lot of 90s and 100s. Just like grade school though, there was a handful of students who left the written response blank. Translation: they skimmed the reading enough to answer multiple choice questions, but didn't read closely enough to be able to analyze the issues and write in their own words. I had to wonder. Was this sheer laziness on the part of the students, or lack of preparedness from their multiple choice test-taking days in grade school? Maybe a combination of both. One of them pulled a classic (one I'm admittedly all to familiar with). He couldn't answer the question, but clearly did some of the reading. So he just ranted on, for all five lines provided, about other random stuff in the article. Hey, at least he cared enough to prove to me he read. A couple of the others just left them completely blank. I'm anxious to see what their first papers look like.

Anyway, I set the pace for the rest of the course. I don't know that I'll give another quiz for the entire semester. But at least now they know I could, and I might. Some professors give one at the start of each class, just to incentivize reading. Me, I hate quizzes. I'd rather listen to them discuss the issues in class and do mini PBLs. I'd rather see them create and listen to them debate. It's just another way I'm getting to know my students.

Diary of a Colloquium Instructor #3

August 27th was our first of five class field trips. The trips in this course are designed to enhance the students' sense of place while living in the Southwest Florida community. They are introduced to natural and historical landmarks. This semester the field trip schedule, which I had no control over, worked out just the way I like it. Our first field trip was an on campus field trip. We would meet up with a student naturalist who would take us to the campus nature trail and then on a guided sustainability walk around campus.

We met bright and early on Saturday at 8:00 am, a time not well received by most undergrads. Nonetheless, our day and time were set for us, and all but one student showed up. I could see right away some of them ignored my advice to wear long pants even when it was hot, but at least they all wore closed shoes. Many of them had water bottles and hopefully they all wore sunscreen, both necessities in the August heat and humidity on Florida.

I enjoy the first field trip of the semester because it's the first chance I have to interact informally with my students. We strolled our way to the campus trail and I learned that two of my students who seemed to be in their late twenties or early thirties, ( I'll call them M and F) welcomed this trip as a chance to get outside and away from their studies and work. Both were clearly balancing busy lives even without school. M is also a mom. In fact, through conversation we realized her daughter attended the school I used to work at, when I was there. F works a lot and takes early morning classes so he can work more hours. I knew their names would stick because they offered conversation immediately.

Students shuffled a little as they walked, and I got to talking with a few others about whether they were locals or if they came to SW Florida specifically to attend school here. Two of them moved here with their parents in recent years- one lives in Naples, the other close by in Fort Myers. I got their names too (M and C). I also learned that J is a biology major and a member of the university chamber choir. He smooth talked me into leaving early to go to a rehearsal he was missing. I obliged but I've got his number.

Among the younger crowd there is D and N, most certainly a couple. She doesn't leave his side at all, in class or on the field trip. Maybe they think I don't know, but it's really a no-brainer. Today we were standing by the entrance to the nature trail when our naturalist and a biology professor/wildlife specialist were discussing what he saw as he exited. He told us there was a ton of wildlife living on campus and around the trail, most notably several snakes that he was tracking for research. As everyone descended into the trail, D stood up on the hill looking down at the rest of the class. N smiled and waited for her to build up enough courage to join us. She stayed right by N's side.

The eldest and probably the most enthusiastic of all the students, D, was jotting away in her journal and snapping photos, in between asking questions and talking with the naturalist. She later told me how much she was enjoying the day, exclaiming, "This is the kind of tour people pay money for!"

The hike into the trail was limited. There had been heavy rains from a tropical system out in the Gulf and much of the trail was underwater. The trip was not planned as a wet walk, so no one was prepared for one. The naturalist spoke quiet a bit about the trees and plant species, and we saw a couple of different types of birds. Then we did an about face and started back toward the entrance. She pointed out poison ivy and cautioned the students to take note of its appearance so they can avoid any itchy encounters. We walked gingerly taking care not to get our shoes stuck in the mud, or to step in any deep water spots...

Remember the video game kid from my last diary entry? You know, the kid with the beard and a chip on his shoulder? He was walking ahead of me, climbing up the edges of the trail walking heel to toe like he was on a balance beam. He looked back at me and I smiled.
"You okay?" I asked.
"I'm just not very comfortable in nature," he said. No shit, I thought to myself. But you know, that's what this course is all about.
"Hopefully as we move through the semester, you'll start to feel differently, get a little more comfortable." He didn't respond, just turned back around and did his best Simone Biles beam walk out to the exit. Nothing impressive about his dismount.

Once off the trail, we walked back toward the main part of campus. I had more time to chat with other students, learn some more names. Two young women (S and T) and I talked about eating delicious healthy salads with leafy greens and homemade citrus salad dressing. We share a love of arugula! Two more names I learned.

We continued on our sustainability walk. I love it when students learn for the first time about all the great stuff going on at their university. Some of them admitted to hearing bits and pieces about it during pre-enrollment and freshman orientation sessions. Learning about the buildings on campus with LEED certification was an eye opener for all of them, as were the on-campus bike repair stations and public showers in some of the main buildings on campus. Both of these conveniences are provided to encourage students, faculty, and staff to bike to campus rather than drive. Other stops on the walk included the edible fruit plants available for picking in between classes, and the cooling system that dumps ice into vats that then pump ice water through tubes into the a/c systems throughout campus.
It's great for students to understand the design and structures from trash cans and recycle bins to the building rooftops and campus plant life, were all choices made with the environment, the university community, and sustainability in mind. It was the perfect start to our field trip calendar, and by the end of the day I knew the name of every student in my class.

Recipe for Relaxation

• Fall asleep on the couch on a Friday night about half an hour before your usual "bed time."
• Sleep in approximately 1 hour past the time you wake up during the week for work at a comfortable thermostat temperature of 76 degrees.
• Spend at least 20-30 minutes lazing in bed after awakening, eyes open is optional.
• Take the daily morning pee, wash up, and brush teeth.
• Be sure not to change out of pajamas, and tie hair up in a bun.
• Slowly and leisurely, walk downstairs and make a cup of hot dark roast coffee.
• Bring said coffee to the side table, and open the blinds to the lanai.
• Enjoy slowly sipping coffee while watching meandering birds in the rain-soaked preserve.
• Flip through emails and Facebook, while still sipping coffee.
• Play a couple of games on the iPad.
• Make a second cup of coffee.
• Sip second cup of coffee while grading papers and lesson planning on the couch, still in pajamas.
• Have a snack.
• Take a shower.
• Take all the panels and top off the Jeep.
• Go shopping with your loved one.
• Go to dinner with your loved one.
• Keep track of the Canes game on the radio/online mobile app (we don't have ESPN3)
• Come home at 8:30.
• Blog.
• Watch TV on the couch.
• When all is done and eyes are tired, repeat steps 1-4.

Diary of a Colloquium Instructor #2

Week 2 was fun. This is when we first start to get to know each other. I can attach names to faces, though I don't have them completely memorized yet. And my students start to get a feel for the kind of instructor I am. This is the first time I've taught this class when most of the students are younger than me. In other words, most of them are semi-typical college juniors and seniors. There is one woman, let's just call her D, who might be old enough to be my mom (maybe). There are a couple of thirty-somethings, and the rest are late teens, early twenties. It's a different feel than my last semester, which had just as many, maybe more adult students than "college kids."

Another significant difference is in my last section of this course, I had several students who were biology, environmental science, or engineering majors. Many of them were excited about being in nature and learning more about the local environment. This semester it's a mixed bag. I have some students who are crazy excited, like one who kayaks and camps regularly with her friends, and another who lives on the river and spends every morning sitting out on her dock observing and taking in her surroundings. I have a couple of natives, but mostly out of state students who are admittedly sick of the oppressive heat, and more concerned about the impending humidity and insects on the field trips than anything else.

The first reading for the class, due this week, was an excerpt from Richard Louv's national best-seller, Last Child in the Woods: Saving Our Children From Nature Deficit Disorder.  It was an introductory chapter about the power of interacting with nature, and how today's youth is largely disconnected from the natural world. He suggest that this is contributing to societal problems like childhood obesity, attention deficit disorder, and depression. If you're interested, I highly recommend you check out Louv's work. The class activity required the students in small groups to read one of six scenarios I gave them in which they were asked to be part of a task force in varying fields of work (businesses, schools, nursing homes, etc.). The scenarios asked them to apply the concepts they learned about in the Louv reading, and make suggestions for the project in question. For example, here is one of the scenarios:

The CEO of a large and highly successful company is concerned about the longevity of the company’s success and the potential for burn-out and employee turnover. The executive team has voted on extending the workday by 60 minutes, but mandating two flexible 30- minute break periods in the day. As an employee in the company, you have been asked to participate on a task force to provide input about how best to utilize the breaks and create a space on the property for employee “down time.”

Based on the Louv reading, what recommendations might you offer the design team for this new space, and the executive team for the break time? How will you explain to others, the benefits of utilizing this time and space during the workday? What do you see as the long-term benefits of the project?

As I walked about the room, listening to the conversations and reflections on the reading, a few things struck me. First, I could immediately tell who had done the reading and who was dependent on the book (I allowed them to use it) and the group. The second, was the instant camaraderie in the classroom, which come to find out was not based on previous relationships. Unless my adult students- and they are all adults, even the youngest ones- show me they can't handle it, I always let them choose their own partners and groups. Finally, I was able to get a feel for who the quick-fix-let's-get-this-over-with students were and which ones were there to interact and learn as much as they could.

I noticed one group had gotten done very early. They were positioned right in the middle of the room, four 18-20ish-year-old guys. Two of them had the affect they were doing me a favor by being there. They told me they were done, and then one of them stopped me. Longish hair and a beard, but still obviously young, he had a bit of a chip on his shoulder.  "I just don't agree with the idea that video games and TV cause ADD." Okay, I was thinking curiously. 

"I'm not certain that's what the author thinks either," I replied to him as the others watched our interaction. "I believe Louv was simply saying that this is an area of great interest in the research community." Louv did refer to some studies in the book. But this wasn't about the book. This was clearly a young boy making it clear to me that he likes video games and TV and no one is going to tell him it's bad for him. He came off as immature. I continued, "And for the record, I don't believe  those things either. I believe it has more to with the behaviors and parenting associated with those activities than the activities themselves." He backed down and nodded, as though he approved of my retort. I think he was impressed. I was not.

The task force reports shared out at the end of class were okay, some better than others. I was able to ascertain right away which ones included information from the reading, and ideas supported by the reading, as opposed to those which simply stated opinions. I did this activity last time I taught the class, almost exactly the same way, and the results were more impressive then. I do recall it was a little further in the semester, so I'm not losing hope. By the end of the class I knew most everyone's name and planned to test myself when I saw them all that Saturday on our first field trip. Still feeling great about the start of the semester.