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100 Day Project – Day 62 – Syllabi

November 21st, 2011 · 100 Days Project, College students, Education, My Goals, Teaching & Learning, Work

100 Day Project – Day 62 – 11:30 am

One of the workshops I went to at the NEFDC Conference recently was a workshop on creating syllabi of interest.  While there are several sections I must put in, I have a good deal of leeway about the rest.  Although I learned that at some institutions, the entire syllabi content is legislated by the administration.  But, I have leeway and what the presenter had to say was quite fascinating.  We deem it an important document, yet what we give them often has very little to do with the interesting and what we deem exciting material going to be covered during the semester.

I was really excited about it and I’m not about to give it all away here – but my students should stay tuned for an interesting change in my syllabus!  Here’s where I’d love to say something about my own administration, but I won’t.  Gramma said if you can’t say it in a nice way, don’t say it at all.  So I won’t!

Today I’m thinking about the what is going to be a fun task of creating new and interesting syllabi for next year.

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100 Day Project – Day 61 – Exhaustion

November 19th, 2011 · 100 Days Project, College students, Education, Teaching & Learning, Website of the Week, Work

Day 100 Project – Day 61 – 8:14 pm

Exhaustion.  This week was non-stop – all five days I was up before 6 am, and although I made it to bed most nights by 10, the days were so full, I practically ran through them.  Yesterday I finished the week by going to the NEFDC Conference in Worcester.  I did debate going, but I’m so glad I did.  I learned some great ideas for the classroom, and I think I’m going to try to write some of them up this next week.  This coming week, being Thanksgiving week, I expect to go a little slower; or at least be a little less full.  So today, I’m just thinking about having another weekend day of moving slower and trying to rest.  Exhaustion.

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100 Day Project – Day 60 – Transformation and Elephants

November 17th, 2011 · 100 Days Project, Children, College students, Education, Teaching & Learning, Work

100 Day Project – Day 60 – 7:18 pm

The first day of class they were shy.  The first day of class they said, almost in unison, oh no, not me: I’m not going to sing, dance, and play an elephant in front of my peers!  What do you want us to do?  No way!  Is there any way to pass this class and not do the participation part?

Today, I had the moment to say to them : Guess what?  You just weren’t shy.  You just danced in front of each other.  You just sang a song about being a mole in a hole and sang it loud!  You even asked to play the game again because you wanted a turn to be the elephant!

Today was the transformation – so visible and palpable by me and the students.  These are community college students – some brand new to the experience – taking a class in bringing creative experiences to the young child.  It means singing, dancing, playing and mucking about.

What a great day!  Personally it was exactly what I needed today to balance off a tough week.  Today I’m thinking about transformation and feeling proud that indeed I know how to teach teachers of young children.

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100 Day Project – Day 59 – Community College

November 16th, 2011 · 100 Days Project, College students, Teaching & Learning

100 Day Project – Day 59 – 9:02 pm

Just returned from the Greenfield Community College’s Annual Foundation Meeting where I heard Dr. Bumphus of the American Association of Community Colleges make a brief presentation.   My takeaway :  2 % of the philanthropic giving to colleges is given to community colleges where 46% of all college students enroll.   Something really wrong with that picture.  Today I’m thinking about the mission of our college and others:  access to excellence.

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100 Day Project – Day 58 – The Mad that you feel

November 15th, 2011 · 100 Days Project, Important People, Quote of the Week, Teaching & Learning, Work

This is all that I have to say today.  Today I’m thinking about being mad and what to do about it (by the way, it’s work related, not family).  Thank you, Mr. Rogers, you always know the most about being human and what that means to learning new things.

 

 

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