Chapter 5
Same Questions
posted by Barney Slowey at 5:50 PM
Tuesday, July 19, 2005
Contributors
Previous Posts
- chapter 4
- chapter 3
- Questions for each chapter
- From Fear to Flow/Teen Brain:Under Construction
- Introductions
5 Comments:
Hi Jenny...some thoughts ...I don;t think we can become the food police yet I think we can send home gerneric that emphasize what your concerns are...on school I was working in had healthy snacks for kids(apples in season, celery and carrot sticks,etc...Eric Jensen also says those are things kids should have access to when taking tests(especially standardized tests) and yes...water, water, water!!! Each student should have his /her own water bottle...it makes the brain go!...great insights! Barney
Sorry about the spelling errors...have to remember to preview before I publish...I think you get my gist
Good morning...I have tried to come up with a way in which I could respond to all of your reactions to the readings but with 23 of you I find it difficult...If yu have suggestions let me know...How did Dr Eggers do it?...For now I have taken some notes and would like to respond generally except where there was a specific question...like a tribes book for primary levels...My scouts tell me that if you are looking for activities the Tribes book has K12 examples...In the brainstore website they have books that have positive activities to do to build teambuilding as well...I think someone asked about or commented on the physical activity aspect of brain research and there is a great book called Brain Gym by Chris Hannaford that has super ideas and activities that you do in your classrooms before they get ready for a test, some before they read, do math etc...They are a super way to get the blood flowing to the brain...I use them in workshops for breaks...Before I go any further I attended workshops by Eric Jensen and if you ever get a chance GO! I went for five days and besides learning alot about the brain and learning, he models how one should teach in a brain based way...I came away with these ingredients for all learning; 1) choice 2) relevance 3) interest 4)emotion 5)physical activity 6)reflection...These 6 things must be in each lesson you give if you want kids to learn...Think about what you like to do outside of work...your hobby or whatever...How did you learn how to fish,quilt,garden,etc. I will bet that all 6 ingredients were involved...Outside of English teachers, how many of us remember what a past pariciple is or what the formula is for solving certain math problems...You probably passed a test on this and other trivia but unless you use it in your job everyday you probably won't remember...yet I know carpenters, mechanics, doctors etc that struggled with math for example until they had to use it everyday...So keep those six things in mind...By the way when we we in La Jolla at the Salk Institute on a tour they brought out a neuroscientist who indicated that they just discovered how new brain cells grew...two things had to be involved...the brain had to be challenged and there had to PHYSICAL ACTIVITY...So John, your thoughts on sports, music, drama were right on...Another book that speaks to the importance of PE, music, drama and the other arts is called Teaching With the Arts in Mind...super book and every board member and administrator should read it before they even consider cutting them from the budget...Some ideas I have accumulated over the years that tie in with your comments on the chapters...Greet kids at the door everday with a handshake. or some other form of positive touch...an 8th grade teacher I know shook hands with her students every day for the first semester as they came into her room...she thought they were tired of it and suspended doing it 2nd semester ...On the kids evaluations at the end of the year, nearly everyone asked her why she quit doing it and they said it made them feel good each day...I had a similar response from a high school history teacher...True! true! true! Great teachers have been doing a lot of this stuff intuitively...Family Circles each day is very important and helps student's productivity and behavior ...I am on the Barron County Restorative Justice Board and one of the programs we have is a Restorative Discipline model that all 8 schools in the county have been trained in...The Barron Middle School is a model that many schools are investigating as they have thrown out their handbooks with all the rules and have adopted the RJ program...Suspensions dropped from hundreds to 3 last year. Our director has trained schools all over the country and I know she just finished training Mc Farland...It's astonishing what has been accomplished...but Barron ms has circles everyday and teachers will tell you the rest of the day goes by great...By the way just 3 years ago in the words of a parent the school was a "pit"...I think I will quit for now and continue tomorrow...Please remember to go back and read comments you haven't read yet as we still have people coming into class...Have a great weekend...Barney
Three years ago Rice Lake Middle school had terrible absenteeism because of illness so the next year the teachers bought big bottles of that soap you just wipe on and rub in...Their absenteeism plummeted like you wouldn't believe...The kids would come in every class and immediately go to the bottle and squirt some in their hands and then went to their desk...I thought is was amazing...
Regarding TRIBES and information, training,etc...I sat next to a man at a training recently who was employed by the CESA in Janesville and he sounded like the guru for Tribes in that area...Many people were asking him about trainings and advice so you might call that Cesa office and ask for the man who does Tribes training...i think he has a social worker background as well...
Post a Comment
<< Home