Jo Ann Nash

“It is as if we change the whole course of life by changing our attitude towards it.”  Ralph Waldo Emerson

I ask my high school students to think of that middle school romance.  Now – how is that going?  Things change, right?  It is equally as difficult to predict a post-high school path.  One thing I know to be true, more education = more income =more career opportunities.   Check out:

http://www.learnmoreindiana.org/careers/exploring/Pages/RealWorld.aspx

Plus there are some pretty cool college courses like Underwater Basket Weaving - Seriously!

For example:  iPhone Application Programming @ Stanford University

"The coolest thing about the course is that there is a live version, called CS193P, which can be downloaded off of iTunes U. The course has become the fastest to reach the 1 million milestones in the history of iTunes U, which hosts offerings from hundreds of colleges and universities around the world."

And The Science of Harry Potter – Philosophy and Star Trek – Learning From YouTube

Not to mention the standard study abroad and international programs!

How to pay?  $30 BILLION is allocated EVERY YEAR  for scholarships and grants - check out:
www.students.gov and http://studentaid.ed.gov/PORTALSWebApp/students/english/index.jsp
Check out the librarian's links http://www.teacherweb.com/TX/RoundRockOpportunityCenter/Blumberg/t.aspx
and on my Handouts/Documents

Accepted! : 50 successful college admission essays
         Tanabe, Gen S.
“The writer will also discover surprises in the process of editing and the writer should delight in them.” Don Murray A Writer Teaches Writing

Friday Night Lights - "Underdogs" 
Full episode available on iTunes or http://www.netflix.com
Check out the script of Tyra writing her essay on Handouts/Documents
SAT/TAKS/College/Career
TAKS prompts
Write an essay explaining how solving a problem can be a learning experience.

“There is only one time when it is essential to awaken.  That time is now.” Buddha

John Legend  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iJgxJ6JrPkc
Wyclef John  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YtoynGOwtdg

"Wake Up Everybody" lyrics  - Harold Melvin

Wake up, all the teachers
Time to teach a new way
Maybe then they'll listen
To what'cha have to say

'Cause they're the ones who's coming up
And the world is in their hands
When you teach the children
Teach 'em the very best you can

http://edu.learnit-teachit.org/videoembeds/Dan_Meyer_V_ideo

http://www.edutopia.org/stw

http://www.teach.gov/

http://www.metacafe.com/watch/5248993/waiting_for_superman_exclusive_clip/


                              Happy Birthday to my Tech Muse
 

 

 

 

"No one has yet realized the wealth of sympathy, the kindness and generosity hidden in the soul of a child. The effort of every true education should be to unlock that treasure."  Emma Goldman

Burro genius : a memoir
    Villaseñor, Victor.

"From one of America's most beloved authors comes a raw and unnerving memoir that explores the transformation of an angry young man into the bestselling author we know today.When Victor Villaseñor stood at the podium and looked at the group of teachers amassed before him, he became enraged. He had never spoken in public before. His mind was flooded with childhood memories filled with humiliation, misunderstanding, and abuse at the hands of his teachers. With his heart pounding, he began to speak of these incidents. To his disbelief, the teachers before him responded to his embittered recollection with a standing ovation. Many could not contain their own tears.So begins a touching memoir of an extremely angry adolescent. Highly gifted and imaginative, Villaseñor coped with an untreated learning disability (he was finally diagnosed with extreme dyslexia at the age of forty-four) and the frustration he felt growing up Latino in an English-only American school system that had neither the cultural understanding nor the resources to deal with Hispanic students.Often beaten by his teachers because he could not speak English, Villaseñor was made to feel ashamed about his heritage, and even questioned the core values prioritized by his tight-knit family. Villaseñor's dyslexia, and growing frustration over not fitting in, fueled his dream to one day become a writer. He is now considered one of the premier writers of our time.With his signature passion, his gift as a storyteller, and his own incredible story, Villaseñor allows readers into the soul of a young life touched by insecurity yet encouraged by a personal sense of artistic destiny. Burro Genius, a complex and inspiring coming-of-age story, is certain to become an American classic. " http://ibistro.roundrockisd.org/uhtbin/cgisirsi/sWWexopa2x/RROC/274871343/88
   You are suddenly the keynote speaker.  What is the speech you'd give about your educational experience? 

“Funny it seems, but by keeping its dreams, it learned to breathe fresh air.
Long live the rose that grew from concrete when no one else ever cared.” Tupac Shakur

“Concrete Angel”  Martina McBride

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KtNYA4pAGjI

Concrete Poetry Mentor Text:
Crank & Tricks (see handouts)  - Ellen Hopkins - Keynote Speaker at Austin Teen Book Festival
http://austinteenbookfestival.com/
Blue Lipstick - John Grandits 

 “The Apple”  - S.C Rigg

LED Art
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D2FX9rviEhw

“What lies before us and what lies behind us are small matters compared to what lies within us.  And when we bring what is within us into the world, miracles happen.”  Ralph Waldo Emerson

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BGODurRfVv4

Mentor Text and Love That Dog by Sharon Creech 

Readers Theater - TeachingBooks.net

http://www.teachingbooks.net/spec_athr.cgi?pid=732

“If you talk to a man in a language he understands, that goes to his head. If you talk to him in his language, that goes to his heart.”  - Nelson Mandela

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hN8CKwdosjE
         Grateful Hugs, Mr. Payne!

AAAWWUBBIS – Say What? 

Clause/Phrase/Dependent/Independent

Readers Theater – TeachingBooks.Net

Intro Love That Dog Sharon Creech

"A poem is never thought to begin with.  It is at its best when it is a tantalizing vagueness.  It finds its thought and succeeds or it doesn't find it and comes to nothing."  - Robert Frost

Reminds me of our "Newspaper Blackout" lesson last week:
http://newspaperblackout.tumblr.com/

check out this video of the day:
http://www.tvkim.com/watch/464/kims-picks-a-dog-and-dolphin-make-friends

"The Red Wheelbarrow"  -William Carlos Williams
Create a 16-word poem "So much depends upon..."

"O me! O life!... of the questions of these recurring; of the endless trains of the faithless... of cities filled with the foolish; what good amid these,
O me, O life?
Answer. That you are here - that life exists, and identity; that the powerful play goes on and you may contribute a verse."
    Walt Whitman
Leaves of Grass

Dead Poets Society clip
What will your verse be?

 

"The foolish and the dead alone never change their opinions."  James Russell Lowell
"Try Walking in My Shoes" lyrics and song by Depeche Mode
See Handouts.
Visuals are a powerful representation of thought.  After listening to song and reading lyrics, create a visual that represents the theme or big idea of this song.  Include a title and/or caption. 
Also complete Wordle, Blog, Kernal Essay.

Thanks to Central Texas Writing Project Consultant Ms. (LL) Stroud for another great lesson.