MSM 678: Socratic Mentorship

Summary:

Shawn and Troy go through the process of using AI to create a chatbot for special education students. Dave gets the picture of storybooks. 

Jokes:

Time flies like an arrow, Fruit flies like a banana


Them: Name as many animals as you can in one minute

Me: (Pointing at the squirrels out the window) Gerald, Billie, Andrew, Jonโ€”

Them: No that’s not what I meant

Me: Well maybe you should have said what you meant


Ordered โ€œHow to Accept Rejectionโ€ online. 

  • They never shipped it.

I just bought a new television remote control with fifty buttons.

I was quite surprised they allowed me to pay with buttons.


I threw away a permanent marker the other day. Today it showed up on my desk again with the word “permanent” slightly bigger and underlined


I give respect to everyone that I meet.

Itโ€™s up to them to keep it.


Middle School Science Minute  

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

K12Science Podcast:  Middle School Picture – Books

I was recently reading the September-October 2025 issue of โ€œScience Scopeโ€, a publication of the National Science Teaching Association.

In this issue, I read the section, โ€œInterdisciplinary Ideasโ€ written by Katie Coppens.  She wrote an article entitled, โ€œEnhancing Understanding Through Science-Themed Picture Books.โ€

Embedding a high-interest, science-themed picture book into a unit enhances studentsโ€™ ability to learn vocabulary and visualize scientific concepts.  The approachable style and ability to convey information visually makes picture books an engaging learning tool for students of all ages.

https://k12science.net/middle-school-picture-books/

Reports from the Front Lines 

The Social Web

National Park Service  @NatlParkService

When hiking, the early bird gets the face full of spider webs. Bring a tall friend and let them lead.

Susie Dent  @susie_dent

Word of the Day is โ€˜tandsmรธrโ€™, from Danish. It describes bread that is buttered so thickly you can see tooth marks in it after every bite. Its literal translation? โ€˜Tooth butterโ€™.

Resources:  

Angel Studios – Somebodyโ€™s Gotta Do It

โ€œMike Rowe’s Somebody’s Gotta Do It brings viewers face-to-face with men and women who march to the beat of a different drum. In each episode, Rowe visits unique individuals and joins them in their respective undertakings, paying tribute to innovators, do-gooders, entrepreneurs, collectors, fanatics-people who simply have to do it. This show is about passion, purpose, and occasionally, hobbies that get a little out of hand.โ€

https://www.angel.com/shows/somebodys-gotta-do-it

Googleโ€™s Gemini Platforms for Kids and Teens Pose Risks Despite Added Filters, Common Sense Media Reports Find

https://www.commonsensemedia.org/press-releases/googles-gemini-platforms-for-kids-and-teens-pose-risks-despite-added-filters-common-sense-media-reports

Portrait of a Graduate

Web Spotlight: 

Shade Map

https://shademap.app/@42.33102,-83.04605,16.84972z,1760044344044t,0b,0p,0m!1760009963956!1760050901341,qRGV0cm9pdCwgbWk=!42.3314!-83.04622

How to Get Kids to Give Up Social Media on Their Own

https://www.wsj.com/tech/personal-tech/how-to-get-kids-to-give-up-social-media-on-their-own-dc863027

OR

https://archive.is/MQSh0

Photos celebrate the glory of girls on ‘International Day of the Girl’

https://www.npr.org/sections/goats-and-soda/2025/10/11/g-s1-92962/photos-celebrate-the-glory-of-girls-on-international-day-of-the-girl

Random Thoughts . . .  

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