February 22, 2020February 22, 2020PodcastBy Troy Patterson

MSM 453: With No Objection, We Give You The Objective Builder of Joy!

Jokes:

I have a friend who has written a book. It’s on “how to fall down stairs”.

Yep, it’s a step by step guide.

I bought some new memory insoles for my shoes.

No more forgetting why I walked into the kitchen.

I ordered a chicken and an egg from Amazon.

I’ll let you know.

What did the patient say when informed by the Dentist that he had acute gingivitis?

Thank you.

Quick tip: If someone named “Ruth” quits, don’t go around referring to the workplace as “ruthless”.

Advisory:

Historical Differences

3. Playing Baseball in the Street

7. Rollar Skates with a key

8. Drive-in Movies

9. Bench Seats in cars

14. Sunday drives

15. One TV in the living room

17. TV sign off message

https://archiveproject.com/21-pictures-only-baby-boomers-will-understand/?ref=fbad2&fbclid=IwAR3K3sK9vjPpEs188Mr0qrmxnuc3qe5imxDIaN-iKiXdemCKPF4LfdwhFqA#annotations:7LmYFFG6EeqVYReLSHSihQ

Middle School Science Minute

by Dave Bydlowski (k12science or davidbydlowski@mac.com)

Middle School Science Minute: Outstanding Science Trade Books for 2020

I was recently reading the February, 2020 issue of “Science Scope” a magazine written for middle school science teachers, published by the National Science Teaching Association.

In this issue, they listed the Outstanding Trade Books for Students in K-12, as determined by the Children’s Book Council and the National Science Teaching Association.

In this podcast, the top 5 middle school (6-8) books are highlighted. They include:

* The Electric War: Edison, Tesla, Westinghouse and the Race to Light the World

* Beyond Words: What Elephants and Whales Think and Feel

* Undaunted: The Wild Life of Birute Mary Galdikas and Her Fearless Quest to Save Orangutans

* Dreaming in Code, Ada Byron Lovelace, Computer Pioneer

* The Poison Eaters: Fighting Danger and Fraud in Our Food and Drugs

From the Twitterverse:

Typical EduCelebrity @EduCelebrity

Do not feel guilty if a student fails your class. If admin doesn’t bump the grade up to inflate average GPA or graduation rates, the student will get the credits by taking a summer online course in which 95% of the grade is earned by successfully registering for the class.

Diane Ravitch@DianeRavitch

Susan Edelman: Bloomberg’s Test Score Con

Strange as it may seem, the best education reporter in New York City works for Rupert Murdoch’s New York Post. Her name is Susan Edelman, and she regularly reports on what is happening in the…

dianeravitch.net

DoInk Tweets @DoInkTweets

@PSD_EReichert

: This is an awesome new feature to an already excellent app! App smashes wonderfully into @Seesaw too! Hey @PennridgeSD teachers- who wants to play?!!? https://twitter.com/doinktweets/status/1230975557158002689 #doink #greenscreen #everyonecancreate

Eric Curts @ericcurts

Using Google AutoDraw for Sketchnotes, Infographics, Drawings, and More http://controlaltachieve.com/2017/04/google-autodraw.html #ControlAltAchieve

Don’t forget #mschat every Thursday at 8:00 pm EST. Look for your host, Todd Bloch, to have a middle school topic all ready to go! Make it a strategic part of your personal professional development.

Strategies:

Timelinely

Annotate videos. (Need to compare to H5P).

https://timeline.ly/

Resources:

3 Reasons Students Procrastinate—and How to Help Them Stop

https://www.edutopia.org/article/3-reasons-students-procrastinate-and-how-help-them-stop#annotations:l2yL3lM0EeqNOMPXWFxi1Q

Learning Objectives Builder

https://teachonline.asu.edu/objectives-builder/#annotations:c2NY0FGVEeqxkQPA-56fwg

Google Earth View

Wallpaper downloads available.

https://www.engadget.com/2020/02/19/google-earth-view-1000-new-images/?guccounter=1

100 Most Spoken Languages

Around the world, there are more than 7,000 regularly spoken vernaculars,

https://word.tips/100-most-spoken-languages/

Web Spotlight:

Why Sitting For Long Periods Can Affect Teens’ Mental Health

study finds that sitting still is linked to a higher risk of depression among teens, but even an hour of light physical activity every day reduces the risk of depression by 10%.

Kandola and his colleagues analyzed this data from when the children were 12, 14 and 16 years old. And they found that as these kids went through adolescence, they spent more time sitting.

https://www.npr.org/2020/02/17/806599794/why-sitting-for-long-periods-can-effect-teens-mental-health

Literacy Test

Spell backwards, forwards.

That may be a trick question. If you read it using normal syntax, you end up with the instruction to spell the word “backwards” forwards, which will give you the answer “b-a-c-k-w-a-r-d-s.” But, due to the comma, one could very reasonably read the command using a reversed syntax. In that case, the instruction would be to spell the word “forwards” backwards, resulting with “s-d-r-a-w-r-o-f.” Either answer is potentially correct — or, potentially, wrong.

https://slate.com/human-interest/2013/06/voting-rights-and-the-supreme-court-the-impossible-literacy-test-louisiana-used-to-give-black-voters.html

Gratitude and acknowledgement are more important than ever

“Dear audience members,

A couple of days ago, we commemorated the 100th anniversary of the birth of one of our greatest literary figures, Jaan Kross. In the beginning of a play staged at the Drama Theatre to mark the occasion, the author has the main character turn to the audience with the following address:

“If you really want to accomplish something in this world, start immediately! Not in the next minute, but the very instant the desire comes. Even if it’s in the middle of the night. Do it now, straight away. It doesn’t matter how – just begin. Anything started tomorrow will be completed only after you’re dead and gone.

“You don’t have to be in the theatre to imagine the crafty, playful gleam in the old master’s eyes accompanying those words. In essence, it’s the attitude of a child at play, for whom time still comes down to the here and now, with thousands of possibilities still open. Not someone in the throes of time constraints, but someone with mastery over time. Someone who is forever experimenting and examining, who rejoices in successes, who might shed some brief tears and then try, try again if at first, they don’t succeed.

Happy are those who embody this attitude.”

https://news.err.ee/1055597/kaljulaid-gratitude-and-acknowledgement-are-more-important-than-ever

Random Thoughts . . .

The Dities – Happy 30th Anniversary of the Restoration of Lithuanian Independence.

Click the Play button below to listen to the show!

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

February 15, 2020February 15, 2020MSM, PodcastBy Troy Patterson

MSM 452: Notification! Greek Out!

Jokes:

What kind of bagel can fly?

A plain bagel

Why did they call it the “dark ages”?

There were so many “knights”.

Why do EMTs travel in twos?

They are paramedics.

Advisory:

Notifications

Ziegarnik Effect

What can waiters, the TV series ‘Lost’ and the novelist Charles Dickens teach us about avoiding procrastination?

when people manage to start something they’re more inclined to finish it.

https://www.spring.org.uk/2011/02/the-zeigarnik-effect.php

Middle School Science Minute

by Dave Bydlowski (k12science or davidbydlowski@mac.com)

Why Can I See My Breath on Cold Days? (4 Minutes)

I was recently reading the January, 2020 issue of “Science & Children,” a magazine written for elementary school science teachers, published by the National Science Teaching Association.

In this issue, I read the “Science 101” section. The title of the article, within the section was “Why Can I See My Breath on Cold Days?,” written by Matt Bobrowsky.

Although this magazine is written for teachers of elementary students, the concept of condensation is really not introduced to students until 5th or 6th grade. So this topic is of interest to teachers of students at the beginning of middle school. When a gas changes to a liquid, that is called condensation

From the Twitterverse:

EL Magazine @ELmagazine

“If we create a culture where every teacher believes they need to improve, not because they aren’t good enough, but because they can be even better, there is no limit to what we can achieve.” —Dylan Wiliam ICYMI read “Take a Praise Walk!”

@barbphillips77

Josh Chin @joshchin

A photo from Caixin reporter Ding Gang of Wuhan doctors paying respects to Li Wenliang. 100% of my WeChat feed, from dissident lawyers to Huawei employees, is raging over Li’s death. Haven’t seen China unified like this since the Wenzhou train crash.

Typical EduCelebrity @EduCelebrity

This Valentine’s Day, spend this special evening with your passion: grading, lesson planning, and curriculum writing. Remember, there is no greater love than a labor of love.

Mike Roberts @BaldRoberts

To all the teachers who are fed up with Tik Tok… Trust me – This too shall pass. Sincerely, FortNite, Minecraft, PokémonGo, SnapChat, Fidget spinners, that cup thing from “Pitch Perfect”, Crocs, Silly Bandsz, and all the members of One Direction.

Fixing Education@FixingEducation

Why Are Teachers Leaving The Profession? •Inadequate preparation for new teachers •Lack of support •Class sizes •They are worked to the bone •Low salaries •Little to no recognition •Their time isn’t respected •Better opportunities elsewhere MUST DO BETTER #EdChat

Typical EduCelebrity @EduCelebrity

I probably shouldn’t be saying this, but word is that Trump, if re-elected, will appoint me as the new Secretary of Education. I hope you factor that into your decision of how to vote in November…

Typical EduCelebrity @EduCelebrity

If students should not have to answer questions that they can get from Google, then teachers should not have to write lesson plans that they can get from Teachers Pay Teachers.

Strategies:

Resources:

Greeking Out! Podcast

This podcast is creatively written to catch your middle school social studies students’ attention.

https://www.espn.com/espnradio/feeds/rss/podcast.xml?id=27807607

The 1619 Project – Update

Princeton History professor Allen Guelzo says it “is not history; it is conspiracy theory. The 1619 Project is not history; it is ignorance” Guelzo goes on to say that it is a polemic rather than an historical account. Chicago Public Schools has ordered 200-400 copies for distribution to schools.

https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2019/08/14/magazine/1619-america-slavery.html

https://www.city-journal.org/1619-project-conspiracy-theory

Web Spotlight:

Earth Day

Please spread the word to teachers that middle schools can Sign up for Earth Day.

Since 2004, the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy, the Michigan Department of Natural Resources, and the Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development have hosted the annual Earth Day Celebration at Constitution Hall in Lansing, offering conference style session rotations. This year’s event has been modified to spotlight hands-on, interactive lessons that align with Next Generation Science Standards for middle school students.

Schools are invited to participate in the 2020 Earth Day Event, Poster Contest and the new Environmental Service Award competition. Visit www.michigan.gov/earthday for contest rules, deadlines, and application information. The attached email highlights school group opportunities and registration for the event. Schools can now register online to attend. Please see the attachment for event information and the registration link.

We are looking forward to celebrating the 50^th Anniversary of Earth Day focusing on climate action.

What do Teachers Want

The fastest-growing categories of requests are “warmth, care, and hunger,” health and wellness, and character education.

http://blogs.edweek.org/teachers/teaching_now/2020/02/an_analysis_of_almost_2_million_donorschoose_requests_shows_funding_inequities.html#annotations:87Fz_kzhEeqXuO8piBuRTQ

Random Thoughts . . .

Math Follow Up

Loved the example of 8% of 25 being the same as 25% of 8. I thought this was so cool (you mentioned it previously two weeks ago) I have told others, but then I mentioned this to a math teacher. She said, oh yes, that is the commutative property of math. It works for every pair of numbers.

https://www.mathwarehouse.com/dictionary/C-words/commutative-property.php

She was the only one to mention it. I don’t think any other of my friends remembered this property. 🙂

Lotus Seed Pops

Completely random item. They’re delicious. Wonderful snack. Strange enough your students won’t steal them off of your desk. Just sayin’.

Find them here: Lotus Seed Pops

The Cost of Free

We are stewards of student information. Do we have a responsibility to understand why something is free?

Click the Play button below to listen to the show!

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

February 8, 2020February 8, 2020MSM, PodcastBy Troy Patterson

MSM 451: 10 Star Worthy, Annotate the Sourdough

Jokes:

Just a thought, if you take six and drop the s, you get more, 9.

If they make another Fast and Furious and don’t call it Fast 10: Your Seatbelts, someone needs to be fired.

Why is dark spelled with a K and not a C?

You can’t see in the dark

I have a friend who has started a new band. The name of the band is Duvet.

They’re a, wait for it, cover band.

Stephen King has a son named Joe. I’m not joking, but he is.

How do you make a waterbed bouncy?

Put Spring water in it.

I never trust stairs.

They are always up to something.
Then they bring you down.

Eight

Tolerate

I have a friend who tried to take a selfie in the shower. It came out all blurry.

Yep, my friend has selfie steam issues.

What has four letters, occassionally has twelve letters,

always has six letters but never has five letters.

In a job interview, the candidate was asked can you perform under pressure?

He responded, no but I’ll give Bohemian Rhapsody a go.

Advisory:

Fun Facts:

The word “helicopter” has two components. They aren’t “heli” and “copter”. They are “helico” and “pter”.

“Helico” (helix) and “pter” (wing, like with “pterodactyl”)

Words that are spelled the same but pronounced with emphasis on different syllables is actually indicative of the part of speech it is. Stress on the first syllable is a noun. Stress on the last syllable is a verb. Examples: CON-tract and con-TRACT. The former is a noun ( sign this contract) whereas the latter is a verb (the muscles contract). Same with record, address, impact, object, and a few others.

Everyone has seen shows or movies about traveling circuses, mainly in the 1930’s or 1940’s. During the Depression, running away to join the circus was a semi-reasonable option.

Many people scoff at the Florida law you must feed the meter where you park your elephant.

Those circuses had a travel season that heavily relied on summer and warmer months. They would spend the winter in Florida until the next travel season.

Potatoes didn’t arrive in Europe until the 16th century.

It’s so ubiquitous, you’d think it would’ve been a part of English culture since 10,000 BC.

I love that it took a huge scam just to get people to eat them.

French botanist and chemist Antoine-Augustin Parmentier planted a huge field full of potatoes and stationed armed military guards to protect it. However the guards were instructed to take any and all bribes. So people see this field full of potatoes under military guard and figure “they must be good if its worth protecting” and started bribing the guards to snag a few thus creating a new love of carbs.

You don’t actually bite down. You bite up because of your lower jaw.

World Wide Web contains fewer syllables than its intended short form – WWW, thus making the shorter version longer to say.

You know that old statistic that the average person eats 3 spiders in their sleep each year?

That was an intentionally made up statistic by a journalist to elicit the point that people will believe any “statistic” the media will tell them.

Percentages are reversible. 8% of 25 is the same as 25% of 8 and one of them is much easier to do in your head.

40% of all sick days taken by white-collar employees are on a Monday or a Friday. … not because people are trying for 3-day weekends, but because Monday and Friday account for 40% of all weekdays.

Middle School Science Minute

by Dave Bydlowski (k12science or davidbydlowski@mac.com)

Middle School Science Minute: Sourdough Citizen Science

I was recently reading the January, 2020 issue of “Science Scope,” a magazine written for middle school science teachers, published by the National Science Teaching Association.

In this issue, I read the “Citizen Science” section. The title of the article, within the section was “Sourdough Citizen Science,” written by Jill Nugent.

Sourdough Citizen Science provides the opportunity to learn more about microbial influences on bread, including rise and flavor. For more information, please visit:

Sourdough for Science

From the Twitterverse:

Charles Mok 莫乃光@charlesmok

Chinese students in Australia who could not get back to Oz can’t access Google Scholar for remote school. I wonder if they objected to the Great Firewall before. Gotcha now! 【武漢肺炎】澳洲封關逾10萬中國留學生禁回澳，學生爆怒：無法瀏覽Google遙距上課！

Judy Bowling@jlbowling

Favorite new website of the day! Work with PDFs online. Great for Chromebook users. https://pdfcandy.com

@wagnerlearning @t_wallace92 @jasonsiko @AnupaminMI

China Commission@CECCgov

Chairs extend their condolences to the family & friends of Dr. #LiWenliang. He was silenced by the police for raising the alarm about the #Wuhan #CoronaVirus & tragically died from it yesterday. He is rightly being hailed as a hero by the #Chinese people.

Sotiri Dimpinoudis@sotiridi

#Breaking: Just in – Unconfirmed report of an uprising in #Kazakhstan, of insidious people in the region burning down Chinese restaurants and shops duo to the #Coronavirus.

Library Girl@jenniferlagarde

Y’all. I just learned today that the audible book for #FactVSFiction is now available on @audible– and I might be freaking out just a little bit! https://adbl.co/2vi8Jqs cc: @dhudgins #luckylibrarian

Strategies:

Hypothesis

https://web.hypothes.is/

Resources:

Stanford psychology expert: These are the top 3 things kids need—but most parents fail to provide

https://www.cnbc.com/2020/02/05/stanford-psychologist-3-things-kids-need-but-parents-fail-to-provide.html#annotations:WKK7SEiQEeqtEi8_Ii6_vQ

Web Spotlight:

Alfie Kohn vs Dwight Schrute

https://www.schooltube.com/media/Alfie-Kohn-vs-Dwight-Schrute/1_qwxjq9ym

Kryptos Sculpture

https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2020/01/29/climate/kryptos-sculpture-final-clue.html

Why Innovation is Crucial in Education

https://connectedprincipals.com/archives/24283

Random Thoughts . . .

Sightings:

Personal Web Site

Click the Play button below to listen to the show!

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

February 1, 2020February 1, 2020MSMBy Troy Patterson

MSM 450: Smile, It’s the Stupidity Opera

Jokes:

Out of all the inventions of the last 100 years, the whiteboard may be the most remarkable.

***

The alphabet is really pretty terrifying

– A bee sea?

No thank you.

***

I did some mechanics work today.

I put a rear end in a recliner.

***

I just developed a thought-controlled air freshener.

It makes scents when you think about it.

***

A friend of mine just bought an empty hanger.

You can buy tickets for it now. It’s an “air and space” museum.

***

***

I’ve been walking to work lately. Every day the same bike tries to run me over.

It’s a vicious cycle.

***

What do you call a snake that is 3.14 meters long?

A python

***

Carpenter ants are just like regular ants except rainy days and Mondays always get them down.

Advisory:

Tale of Two Monks and a Woman

The tale of two monks and a woman is a well-known Buddhist parable. The story goes that two monks were traveling together, a senior and a junior. They came to a river with a strong current where a young woman was waiting, unable to cross alone. She asks the monks if they would help her across the river. Without a word and in spite of the sacred vow he’d taken not to touch women, the older monk picks her up, crosses, and sets her down on the other side.

The younger monk joins them across the river and is aghast that the older monk has broken his vow but doesn’t say anything. An hour passes as they travel on. Then two hours. Then three. Finally, the now quite agitated younger monk can stand it no longer: “Why did you carry that women when we took a vow as monks not to touch women?”

The older monk replies, “I set her down hours ago by the side of the river. Why are you still carrying her?”

The story is a reminder to not dwell on the past in a way that interferes with living in the present moment. I’m glad to have remembered it today — I’m feeling much better now.

https://kottke.org/20/01/the-story-of-two-monks-and-a-woman

School Pictures

Have the kids demonstrate their school picture pose. Pull yearbooks from the archive if possible. Have kids compare them over the years (if you are at a newer school, find some from the oldest school around).

Discuss “visual culture”.

http://people.eecs.berkeley.edu/~shiry/projects/yearbooks/yearbooks.html

100 Inspiring Questions That Make You Think About Your Life

Useful resource of basic questions. These are grouped by area.

https://www.lifehack.org/859346/questions-that-make-you-think

Middle School Science Minute

by Dave Bydlowski (k12science or davidbydlowski@mac.com)

Middle School Science Minute: The Post-Truth Era

I was recently reading the January, 2020 issue of “Science Scope,” a magazine written for middle school science teachers, published by the National Science Teaching Association.

In this issue, I read the “From the Editor’s Desk” section, written by Patti McGinnis, the editor of Science Scope. The title of the article was “Scientific Literacy in the Post-Truth Era.” In this article, we learn about the need for our students to be able to gather, read, and synthesize information from multiple appropriate sources and assess the credibility, accuarcy and possible bias of each publication and methods used, and describe how they are supported or not supported by evidence.

From the Twitterverse:

Diane Ravitch @DianeRavitch

Peter Greene: The Meteoric Rise and Disappearance of Michelle Rhee

In thinking back over the past decade, Peter Greene realized that Michelle Rhee was one of its defining figures. For a time, she was everywhere. The media lover her stern and angry visage. She grac…

dianeravitch.net

Will Richardson @willrich45

Try this: Keep a running count of how many questions students ask in class today that signal that they want to learn more about whatever is being discussed. Then do a little math to see how often that happens. Then think about the result. Is it what you want? #justaskin

Will Richardson @willrich45

“It may be easier to assess whether students can add and subtract two-digit numbers than whether they are effective collaborators, but our learners deserve a system based on what is important to asses, not just what is cheap and easy.” https://buff.ly/30URRlt Yup.

Amber Mac @ambermac

Creative bunch: “Running your defrosters for awhile will loosen the suction cups… Other students suggested blocking the GPS signal… at least one student realized the device has an unlimited SIM card on it and used it to tether his phone to the internet”

https://driving.ca/auto-news/news/students-defeat-new-barnacle-parking-boot-skip-fines-and-get-free-internet

MindShift@MindShiftKQED

RT@NextGenLC

Research-backed advice for building effective developmental relationships with kids in schools, with easy ways to get to know them. @mindshiftkqed #teaching #studentcentered

https://www.kqed.org/mindshift/55144/relationships-are-important-how-do-we-build-them-effectively-with-kids

Catlin Tucker @Catlin_Tucker

Rethink Your Grading Practices – https://catlintucker.com/2017/12/grading-practices/ #edchat

Rethink Your Grading Practices

Strategies:

Resources:

We asked teenagers what adults are missing about technology. This was the best response.

Social media makes us feel seen.

https://www.technologyreview.com/s/614897/youth-essay-contest-adults-dont-understand-kid-technology/#annotations:uGDlGj3gEeqMkEsUkDpVqw

Charting Politics in an Election Year – Electoral-Vote.com

Here’s an online resource to help keep track of the primary voting cycle and then the general election.

https://electoral-vote.com/

The Wormeli Archive

You’ve been looking for an article by Rick Wormeli, but he’s so prolific you can’t remember where you saw it

https://www.rickwormeli.com/articles?fbclid=IwAR0tFx0oTPCoS6iqg9tmaVBzgZJNAgkgK2jwqXhtKm8PxVfyZ-luH6D7rAo

Web Spotlight:

The Case For Professors of Stupidity

But what exactly is stupidity? David Krakauer, the President of the Santa Fe Institute, told interviewer Steve Paulson, for Nautilus, stupidity is not simply the opposite of intelligence. “Stupidity is using a rule where adding more data doesn’t improve your chances of getting [a problem] right,” Krakauer said. “In fact, it makes it more likely you’ll get it wrong.”

https://getpocket.com/explore/item/the-case-for-professors-of-stupidity

Just for fun: The Incompetence Opera

Oneteen and Twoteen

“Teen” simply means “ten more than,” and of course, the prefix is self-explanatory.

In short, “11” is not “oneteen” and for that matter, “12” is not “twoteen.” What is going on here?

https://nowiknow.com/oneteen-and-twoteen/#annotations:9WcmbkI6Eeq8d3vNBQWrpw

Bonus: “Twelve plus one” is an anagram of “eleven plus two.” (And for whatever it is worth, “twoteen plus one” is an anagram of “oneteen plus two,” obviously.)