|
Education Department
News, please address questions
or comments to David Stoloff, Ed. Department Chair also
found at http://www.easternct.edu/depts/edu/newsindex.html
on the WWW |
Words of Inspiration
The 2002 collection appears as http://www.easternct.edu/depts/edu/news/words02.html
.
Introducing an occasional
addition to this newsletter of selected words of inspiration which you might
find helpful for reflection. Please consider sending in your
own favorite selections as a contribution to an online resource of words
which help one get through difficult times.
*******
It is never too late to be what you
might have been.
George Eliot
quoted by Associate Dean Carol Williams,
posted on
shared by Patti Fusco of the
Patriots' Day Resources on the Web
As we commemorate
the events of
I've put together this list
of resources, but urge you to review each one carefully to make sure it's
appropriate to present to your intended audience -- especially younger
students.
·NAESP - Remembering September
11
This sitewhich
was created for the National Association of Elementary School Principals
may be a good place to begin your study. The link to Teacher Tips and Memorial
Do's and Don'ts are both very well done, and should be looked at before
you plan any activity. They were created by the Association of School Psychologists.
http://www.naesp.org/sept11anniv02.htm
·Teaching
http://www.teaching9-11.org/If you follow the link for lesson plans and syllabi,
you will find many grade appropriate lessons and resources.
·Preparing for Sept. 11
This website has links to news articles
on 9/11, and is probably more appropriate for older students.
http://www.poynter.org/web/080902jon.htm
·Project
This website gives advice on how to
cope for those who are still grieving. Pamphlets are also available in
Spanish.
http://www.projectliberty.state.ny.us/educational.htm
·
This website provides links to articles
to help children (and adults) understand and deal with the terrorist attacks.
There are also articles in Spanish.
http://www.ed.gov/inits/september11/
·Remember September 11th
The Remember September 11th site was designed by the NEA to the most
complete
resource site for teachers and education support personnel in the
respectful commemoration of the first anniversary of that tragic day.
The site contains over 80 Lesson Plans - divided by grade level. In the
weeks that follow Sept. 11th, the site will evolve into an ongoing resource
for teachers in helping students and themselves to handle times of crisis,
tragedy and remembrance. It brings together in one place an abundance
of ideas, lesson plans, discussion points, and much more to help young
people learn from the September 11 tragedy.http://neahin.org/programs/schoolsafety/september11/materials/lessonhome.htm
·REMEMBER 9/11 BOOKMARKS:
Download and print these bookmarks for students to share with penpals, to keep for their own reading purposes, or
to exchange with another classroom in your school.http://a.chtah.com/a/hA9b0IhAIq2tRAJXsAzAD4Zo0.AIwhPVH7/cf1m9
·
Be sure to put a positive note on your remembrance activities. This
site offers printable flags, journal ideas and templates to express emotions,
poem forms to celebrate heroes, and coloring pages on patriotic symbols.http://a.chtah.com/a/hA9b0IhAIq2tRAJXsAzAD4Zo0.AIwhPVH7/cf1m10
·UNITED WE STAND POSTERS:
Download these mini-posters to mount on your class bulletin board
to remember the events of 9-11. These do take a few minutes to download
and require Acrobat Reader, which most of you should have.
http://a.chtah.com/a/hA9b0IhAIq2tRAJXsAzAD4Zo0.AIwhPVH7/cf1l11
·HEROES WEBQUEST:
Students are challenged to define, "What makes a hero?" and using
online resources, to select whom they would choose as Hero of the Past
Century. Their completed pro-
jects will include a Hero Want Ad, an
essay, and a PowerPoint presentation. Use the 2nd URL above for a link
to Amelia Earhart, the 3rd for John Glenn,
and the final link to learn about Michael Jordan and his astonishing career.
Those could serve as a stepping stone to discussion and learning about
more local heroes.
http://a.chtah.com/a/hA9afwhAIq2tRAJhwKwAD4Zo0.AIwhPVu5/cf1m5
http://a.chtah.com/a/hA9afwhAIq2tRAJhwKwAD4Zo0.AIwhPVu5/cf1m6
http://a.chtah.com/a/hA9afwhAIq2tRAJhwKwAD4Zo0.AIwhPVu5/cf1m7
http://a.chtah.com/a/hA9afwhAIq2tRAJhwKwAD4Zo0.AIwhPVu5/cf1m8
·CHARACTER COUNTS WEEK
To honor
the memory of those lost in the attacks, and to celebrate
http://www.charactercounts.org/acw.htm
·HANDPRINT UNITY WREATH:
Children will cut out and paint their hand prints, and then create
a collage-style wreath with a dove for peace in the middle, to remind your
students that they are not alone.http://a.chtah.com/a/hA9b0IhAIq2tRAJXsAzAD4Zo0.AIwhPVH7/cf1l7
·PENCIL FLAGS:
Memorials can be created with these printable pencil toppers. The
American flag in this case includes an insert of the twin towers, with
the word "Remember".
http://www.pencilflag.com/remember.htm
posted on Labor Day,
Logs of Wood
http://www.diversitydtg.com/thoughts/thought_mnu.html
quoted at President Carter's Creative Advance,
Six human beings by happenstance
Were trapped in
a bitter dark cold.
Each had in his hand a piece of wood
So the story goes.
The dying fire was in need of wood
But a woman held hers back
For as she gazed at the faces round the fire
She saw that one was black.
A second man searched the gathering
And saw none from his church
So he could not bring himself to give
The fire his piece of birch.
A third man sat in ragged clothes
And he gave his coat a hitch.
"Why," he said, "should I
Give my log to the idle rich?"
The Black man's was full of revenge
As the fire was fading from sight.
He kept his log to punish them all,
The rich, the poor, the white.
The last man of the forlorn group
Did nothing except for gain.
He only gave to those who gave to him
That's how he played the game.
So the logs were found in death stilled
hands
As a testament to human sin.
They did not die from the cold without.
They died from the cold within.
Nathan Perry, a black inmate serving
time in an
Contributed by Eloise Farmer
- mailto:eloise@cssaonline.net
I received
this from Bob Sampl, head science teacher
at my high school.
Objection overruled, or
You can always go to law school if things don’t
work out
By Taylor Mali - http://www.taylormali.com/products.cfm
He says the problem with teachers
is, “What’s a kid going to learn
from someone who decided his best option in life was to become a teacher?”
He reminds the other dinner guests that it’s true what they say about
teachers:
Those who can, do; those who can’t, teach.
I decide to bite my tongue instead of his
and resist the temptation to remind the dinner guests
that it’s also true what they say about lawyers.
Because we’re eating, after all, and this is polite company.
“I mean, you’re a teacher, Taylor,” he says.
“Be honest. What do you make?”
And I wish he hadn’t done that
(asked me to be honest)
because, you see, I have a policy
about honesty and ass-kicking:
if you ask for it, I have to let you have it.
You want to know what I make?
I make kids work harder than they ever thought they could.
I can make a C+ feel like a Congressional medal of honor
and an A- feel like a slap in the face.
How dare you waste my time with anything less than your very best.
I make kids sit through 40 minutes of study hall
in absolute silence. No, you may not work in groups.
No, you may not ask a question.
Why won’t I let you get a drink of water?
Because you’re not thirsty, you’re bored, that’s why.
I make parents tremble in fear when I call home:
I hope I haven’t called at a bad time,
I just wanted to talk to you about something Billy said today.
Billy said, “Leave the kid alone. I still cry sometimes, don’t you?”
And it was the noblest act of courage I have ever seen.
I make parents see their children for who they are
and what they can be.
You want to know what I make?
I make kids wonder,
I make them question.
I make them criticize.
I make them apologize and mean it.
I make them write.
I make them read, read, read.
I make them spell definitely beautiful, definitely beautiful, definitely
beautiful
over and over and over again until they will never misspell
either one of those words again.
I make them show all their work in math.
And hide it on their final drafts in English.
I make them understand that if you got this (brains)
then you follow this (heart) and if someone ever tries to judge you
by what you make, you give them this (the finger).
Let me break it down for you, so you know what I say is true:
I make a goddamn difference! What about you?
posted on
The Blueberry Story: The teacher gives
the businessman a lesson
Contributed
by Ruth Ettenberg Freeman, M.S.W. – mailto:positiveparent@earthlink.net
by Jamie Robert Vollmer - http://teachers.net/gazette/JUN02/vollmer.html
"If I ran
my business the way you people operate your schools, I wouldn't be in
business very long!"
I stood
before an auditorium filled with outraged teachers who were becoming angrier
by the minute. My speech had entirely consumed their precious 90 minutes
of in-service. Their initial icy glares had turned to restless agitation.
You could cut the hostility with a knife.
I represented
a group of business people dedicated to improving public schools.
I was an
executive at an ice cream company that became famous in the middle1980s
when People Magazine chose our blueberry as the "Best Ice Cream in
I was convinced
of two things. First, public schools needed to change; they were
archaic selecting and sorting mechanisms designed for the industrial age
and out of step with the needs of our emerging "knowledge society".
Second,
educators were a major part of the problem: they resisted change, hunkered
down in their feathered nests, protected by tenure and shielded by a bureaucratic
monopoly.
They needed
to look to business. We knew how to produce quality. Zero defects! TQM!
Continuous improvement! In retrospect, the speech was perfectly balanced
- equal parts ignorance and arrogance.
As soon
as I finished, a woman's hand shot up. She appeared polite, pleasant -- she
was, in fact, a razor-edged, veteran, high school English teacher who had
been waiting to unload.
She began
quietly, "We are told, sir, that you manage a company that makes good
ice cream."
I smugly
replied, "Best ice cream in
"How nice,"
she said. "Is it rich and smooth?"
"Sixteen
percent butterfat," I crowed.
"Premium
ingredients?" she inquired.
"Super-premium!
Nothing but triple A." I was on a roll. I never saw the next line coming.
"Mr. Vollmer,"
she said, leaning forward with a wicked eyebrow raised to the sky, "when
you are standing on your receiving dock and you see an inferior shipment
of blueberries arrive, what do you do?"
In the silence
of that room, I could hear the trap snap?. I was dead meat, but I wasn't
going to lie.
"I send
them back."
"That's right!"
she barked, "and we can never send back our blueberries. We take them big,
small, rich, poor, gifted, exceptional, abused, frightened, confident, homeless,
rude, and brilliant. We take them with ADHD, junior rheumatoid arthritis,
and English as their second language.
We take
them all! Every one! And that, Mr. Vollmer, is why it's not a business.
It's school!"
In an explosion,
all 290 teachers, principals, bus drivers, aides, custodians and secretaries
jumped to their feet and yelled, "Yeah! Blueberries! Blueberries!"
And so began
my long transformation. Since then, I have visited hundreds of schools.
I have learned that a school is not a business. Schools are unable to control
the quality of their raw material, they are dependent upon the vagaries
of politics for a reliable revenue stream, and they are constantly mauled
by a howling horde of disparate, competing customer groups that would send
the best CEO screaming into the night.
None of
this negates the need for change. We must change what, when, and how we teach
to give all children maximum opportunity to thrive in a post-industrial society.
But educators cannot do this alone; these changes can occur only with the
understanding, trust, permission and active support of the surrounding
community.
For the
most important thing I have learned is that schools reflect the attitudes,
beliefs and health of the communities they serve, and therefore, to improve
public education means more than changing our schools, it means changing
America.
SEND THIS
TO A TEACHER!
Deb
Posted on
***
From the Milken Family Foundation http://www.mff.org/newsroom/news.taf?page=325
New Report
Compares Teaching in
The professional in-service
training, requirements and responsibilities of American K-12 teachers outweigh
those of teachers in many developed nations, according to Teachers’ Professional Lives – A View from Nine Industrialized
Countries, a new report compiled by the Schools Around the World (SAW)
program of the Council for Basic Education and funded by the Milken Family Foundation.
Study findings were released
today at the SAW symposium, International Perspectives on Teacher Quality
in an Age of Accountability.
The professional climate and
circumstances of teachers in Australia, the Czech Republic, France, Germany,
Hong Kong SAR, Japan, Portugal and the United Kingdom were compared to
those in the U.S. in an effort to uncover policies and practices that support
teacher success and student achievement.
Pre-service teacher training
and qualifications are emphasized in the eight foreign countries, while
professional development is deemed less important. Typical pre-employment requirements
abroad include rigorous academic and pedagogical study and certification
processes, supported by strong practice teaching and induction programs.
By contrast, pre-service training
and certification requirements of
Each of the eight international
countries has a national or state curriculum that dictates what must be
covered in each class and guides teaching. Only in the
Secondary-level teachers in
the
Teaching is considered
a life-long career choice in most surveyed countries. Attrition rates in all but the
Many nations face overwhelming
numbers of retirements as the teacher population ages; however due to slowing
population growth, all but
In countries where teaching
is prestigious, educator salaries are competitive and student achievement
is high.
- Teacher candidates in
- Japanese law requires compensation
for teachers to be higher than that of other public servants with
similar academic backgrounds.
- In
In most surveyed countries, teacher
salaries are lower than other professions, and decline over time in comparison
to other occupations. In those nations, teaching has seen a corresponding
decline in status and appeal.
- The
- The 2-3% of British math majors who
enter teaching programs are rarely high-achieving
students from top universities.
- In
Overseas, teachers are rarely held
accountable for student achievement. Although most school systems conduct
regular teacher assessments, these evaluations do not cover student achievement.
Results are primarily used as an advisory
tool for promotion and professional development. The single exception
is in the
Holding teachers and schools accountable
for student learning is an emerging trend in the
The Council for Basic Education (CBE)
advocates high academic standards for all students and exemplary teaching
in our nation’s public schools.
Its Schools Around the World (SAW)
program is an international partnership to further understanding of what
constitutes higher levels of student achievement in science and mathematics.
Posted on
Welcome to Walking Weekend in
The Last Green
Valley
<!--[if !vml]--> <!--[endif]-->
http://www.thelastgreenvalley.org/
The Quinebaug
and
Two hundred years ago, Timothy Dwight,
president of
Posted on
*****
From Theodore S. Sergi,
Connecticut’s Commissioner of Education in a school opening letter "2002 - 2003: The
Best Year Ever in Connecticut Public Schools" - http://www.state.ct.us/sde/remembrance2.PDF
“Our key
role is in teaching – hope; optimism; a love of our country, its history
and its ideals; each person ’s duty
to others;
and an understanding of other countries and their people.
I borrowed
from John Donne, the 17th century author, for my back-to-school message
for August 2001,when I
said, “No
school is an island.” This powerful message is even more relevant
to our September 11 thoughts :
“No man
is an island …entire of itself …any man ’s death diminishes me …never send
to know for
whom
the bell tolls; it tolls for thee.”
As the bells
ring across our state and country on September 11,I believe they will
be reminding us that all
humankind
is interconnected, calling each of us to be a better person, and inspiring
us to more relentlessly
pursue success
for each student.
In spite
of the present international conflicts and the economic recession, I believe
that this will be
Posted on
*****
3 days after Dan Rothermel’s “health incident” at Eastern
Time Like These
Perhaps we’re best at times like these:
we know we need each other;
we reach out without thinking,
we reach out for our brother.
Our sisters, too, mean more to us
than we’ve realized up til then –
when all hell breaks loose and shows
us
how to live and love again.
Our day-to-day jolted,
we’re reminded of what means
the most to us and Life itself
is all that matters, so it seems.
I used to ask, why can’t it be
each day that we survive,
why can’t we live as if today
may be our last alive?
But that might be too much to ask
of our bodies and our soul,
to live each day so sensitive
to Life’s pinches, peaks, and pulls.
Nonetheless, it’s times like these
my heart beats strong and true;
each beat is a reminder:
lifeblood is friends like you.
With more appreciation than words
alone can convey –
Hannah
Posted on
Happy Halloween!!
“We at Education
Planet [http://www.educationplanet.com/articles/halloween.html]
have three favorite Halloween Books, each of which is sure to delight your
children. The first is Barn Dance by John Archambault
(Henry Holt & Co. 1986), which is the magical story of a boy who awakes
in the quiet of the night to find a rollicking hoe down going on in the
family barn. With the wonderful rhyming cadence and beautiful illustrations,
this story is sure to be a hit! The second is The Biggest Pumpkin Ever
by Steven Kroll (Scholastic 1984). This is the story of two mice who learn
that teamwork is the best way to reach your goals, even if your goal is
to grow a giant pumpkin! The third is The Ghost-Eye Tree, by Bill Martin,
Jr. (Henry Holt & Co. 1988). This one is the spooky story-poem of a
brother and sister sent out on a stormy, cloudy autumn night to get a pail
of milk. You can almost feel the icy wind at your back! This is a wonderful
story for anyone who's ever been afraid of the dark. Each of these books
is wonderful for Grades K-3.”
Posted on
****
“There is an historical advantage
to ambiguity.”- Professor Ann Higginbotham, as past chair of University
Curriculum Committee, during a University Senate discussion, Tuesday, November
5, 2002
“The whole university builds
a teacher.” Dean Charles R. Duke, Appalachian
Posted on
****
“Life isn’t about finding
yourself. Life is about creating yourself.” – George Bernard
Shaw (http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/g/q109542.html) . Posted at Career Day
2002,
Posted on
“American Education Week 2002
- Join us November
17-23 and reach out to your neighborhood schools.
This year's theme "Making Public
Schools Great for Every Child!" reflects the cooperation and hard work of
all education staff, parents, community members, and businesses who help
students achieve. These collaborative relationships are important.
American Education Week (AEW) aims
to deepen the involvement of all adults in a community — particularly
at local levels.”
Posted on
*****
FOR
ALL OF THOSE TEACHERS AND PARENTS OUT THERE:
Her name was Mrs. Thompson and his was 'Teddy'. As she stood in front
of her 5th grade class on the very first day of school, she told the children
a lie. Like most teachers, she looked at her students and said that she
loved them all the same.
But that was impossible, because there in the front row, slumped in
his seat, was a little boy named Teddy Stoddard.
Mrs. Thompson had watched Teddy the year before and noticed that he
didn't play well with the other children, that his clothes were messy
and that he constantly needed a bath. And Teddy could be unpleasant.
It got to the point where Mrs. Thompson would actually take delight
in marking his papers with a broad red pen, making bold X's and then putting
a big "F" at the top of his papers.
At the school where Mrs. Thompson taught, she was required to review
each child's past records and she put Teddy's off until last. However,
when she reviewed his file, she was in for a surprise.
Teddy's first grade teacher wrote, "Teddy is a bright child with a
ready laugh. He does his work neatly and has good manners ... he is a joy
to be around."
His second grade teacher wrote, "Teddy is an excellent student, well
liked by his classmates, but he is troubled because his mother has a terminal
illness and life at home must be a struggle."
His third grade teacher wrote, "His mother's death had been hard on
him. He tries to do his best, but his father doesn't show much interest
and his home life will soon affect him if some steps aren't taken."
Teddy's fourth grade teacher wrote, "Teddy is withdrawn and doesn't
show much interest in school. He doesn't have many friends and he sometimes
sleeps in class".
By now, Mrs Thompson realized the problem
and she was ashamed of herself. She felt even worse when her students
brought her Christmas presents, wrapped in beautiful ribbons and bright
paper, except for Teddy's. His present was clumsily wrapped in the heavy,
brown paper that he got from a grocery bag. Mrs
Thompson took pains to open it in the middle of the other presents.
Some of the children started to laugh when she found a rhinestone
bracelet with some of the stones missing, and a bottle that was one quarter
full of perfume. But she stifled the children's laughter when she exclaimed
how pretty the bracelet was, putting it on, and dabbing some of the perfume
on her wrist.
Teddy Stoddard stayed after school that day just long enough to say,
"Mrs. Thompson, today you smelled just like my Mom used to." After the
children left she cried for at least an hour.
On that very day, she quit teaching reading, and writing, and arithmetic.
Instead, she began to teach children.
Mrs. Thompson paid particular attention to Teddy. As she worked with
him, his mind seemed to come alive. The more she encouraged him, the faster
he responded. By the end of the year, Teddy had become one of the smartest
children in the class and, despite her lie that she would love all the children
the same, Teddy became one of her "teacher's pets."
A year later, she found a note under her door, from Teddy, telling
her that she was still the best teacher he ever had in his whole life. Six
years went by before she got another note from Teddy. He then wrote that
he had finished high school, third in his class, and she was still the
best teacher he ever had in his whole life.
Four years after that, she got another letter, saying that while things
had been tough at times, he'd stayed in school, had stuck with it, and
would soon graduate from college with the highest of honors. He assured
Mrs.Thompson that she was still the best and
favorite teacher he ever had in his whole life.
Then four more years passed and yet another letter came. This time
he explained that after he got his bachelor's degree, he decided to go a
little further. The letter explained that she was still the best and favourite teacher he ever had. But now his name was
a little longer - The letter was signed, Theodore F. Stoddard, MD.
The story doesn't end there. You see, there was yet another letter
that spring. Teddy said he'd met this girl and was going to be married.
He explained that his father had died a couple of years ago and he was wondering
if Mrs. Thompson might agree to sit in the place at the wedding that was
usually reserved for the mother of the groom. Of course, Mrs Thompson did.
And guess what? She wore that bracelet, the one with several rhinestones
missing. And she made sure she was wearing the perfume that Teddy remembered
his mother wearing on their last Christmas together. They hugged each other,
and Dr. Stoddard whispered in Mrs.Thompson's
ear, "Thank you, Mrs. Thompson, for believing in me. Thank you so much
for making me feel important and showing me that I could make a difference."
Mrs. Thompson, with tears in her eyes, whispered back. She said, "Teddy,
you have it all wrong. You were the one who taught me that I could make
a difference. I didn't know how to teach until I met you."
Warm someone's heart today ... pass this along. Please remember that
wherever you go, and whatever you do, you will have the opportunity to
touch and/or change a person's outlook. And please try to do it in a positive
way.
Contributed by Ellen Wiess, also found at http://www.silverliningnews.com/story.asp?pid=4
*****
Like Lilly Like
By Taylor Mali
I'm writing the poem
that will change the world,
and it's Lilly Wilson
at my office door.
Lilly
the worst I've ever seen.
So, like, bad the whole
eighth grade
started calling her
Like Lilly Like Wilson Like.
ŒUntil I declared my
classroom a Like-Free Zone,
and she could not speak
for days.
But when she finally
did, it was to say,
Mr.
Now I have to think
before I . . . say anything.
Imagine that, Lilly.
It's for your own good.
Even if you don't like
. . .
it.
I'm writing the poem
that will change the world,
and it's Lilly Wilson
at my office door.
Lilly is writing a research
paper for me
about how homosexuals
shouldn't be allowed
to adopt children.
I'm writing the poem
that will change the world,
and it's Like Lilly
Like Wilson at my office door.
She's having trouble
finding sources,
which is to say, ones
that back her up.
They all argue in favor
of what I thought I was against.
And it took four years
of college,
three years of graduate
school,
and every incidental
teaching experience I have ever had
to let out only,
Well, that's a real
interesting problem, Lilly.
But what do you propose
to do about it?
That's what I want to
know.
And the eighth-grade
mind is a beautiful thing;
Like a new-born baby's
face, you can often see it
change before your very
eyes.
I can't believe I'm
saying this, Mr.
but I think I'd like to
switch sides.
And I want to tell her
to do more than just believe it,
but to enjoy it!
That changing your mind
is one of the best ways
of finding out whether
or not you still have one.
Or even that minds are
like parachutes,
that it doesn't matter
what you pack
them with so long as
they open
at the right time.
O God, Lilly, I want
to say
you make me feel like
a teacher,
and who could ask to
feel more than that?
I want to say all this
but manage only,
Lilly, I am like so
impressed with you!
So I finally taught
somebody something,
namely, how to change
her mind.
And learned in the process
that if I ever change the world
it's going to be one
eighth grader at a time.
from http://www.taylormali.com/index.cfm?webid=15
Posted on
The Starfish
Paraphrased From: The Star Thrower
by Loren Eiseley
Submitted by: Cristy Smith
http://www.whoohoo.net/starfish/
Once upon a time there was a wise
man that used to go to the ocean to do his writing.
One day he was walking along the shore.
As he looked down the beach, he saw a human figure moving like a dancer.
He smiled to himself to think of someone who would dance to the day.
So he began to walk faster to catch up.
As he got closer, he saw that it was
a young man and the young man wasn't dancing, but instead he was reaching
down to the shore, picking up something and very gently throwing it into
the ocean.
As he got closer he called out, "Good
morning! What are you doing?"
The young man paused, looked up and
replied, "Throwing starfish in the ocean."
"I guess I should have asked, why
are you throwing starfish in the ocean?"
"The sun is up and the tide is going
out. And if I don't throw them in they'll die."
"But, young man, don't you realize
that there are miles and miles of beach and starfish all along it.
You can't possibly make a difference!"
The young man listened politely. Then bent down, picked another starfish and threw it into the sea, past the breaking waves and said,
"It made a difference for that one."
There is something very special in
each and every one of us, and we must each find our own starfish.
You have been gifted with the ability
to make a difference in this world and if you follow your heart -- the
world will indeed be blessed!
Posted on
****
A quote for finals’ week
–
Education is what survives
when what has been learned has been forgotten.
B. F. Skinner http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/aso/databank/entries/bhskin.html
Posted on
****
A quote for the shortest
days of the year -
"There are two ways
of spreading light: to be the candle or the mirror that reflects it."
-- Edith Wharton http://www.creativequotations.com/one/50.htm
Posted on
****
“Nations have recently been led to
borrow billions for war; no nation has ever borrowed largely for education.
Probably, no nation is rich enough to pay for both war and civilization.
We must make our choice; we cannot have both.” Abraham Flexner http://www.teachervision.com/ce6/people/A0818923.html
Posted on
****
“If you can’t be a pine on the top of a hill
Be a scrub in the valley—but
be
The best little scrub
on the side of the hill,
Be a bush if you can’t
be a tree.
If you can’t be a highway
just be a trail
If you can’t be the
sun be a star;
It isn’t by size that
you win or fail—
Be the best of whatever
you are.”
From Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King,
Jr.’s
The Three
Dimensions of a Complete Life
Delivered at New
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/mlk/king/words/completelife.html
*****
Computer
Haiku
In
Each only 17 syllables, in the 5 7 5 format.
A file that big?
It might be very useful.
But now it is gone.
The web site you seek
Cannot be located but
Countless more exist.
Chaos reigns within.
Reflect, repent, and reboot.
Order shall return.
Aborted effort:
Close all that you have worked on.
You ask way too much.
Windows NT crashed.
I am the blue screen of death.
No one hears your screams.
Yesterday it worked.
Today it is not working.
Windows is like that.
First snow, then silence.
This thousand dollar screen dies
So beautifully.
With searching comes loss
And the presence of absence:
"My novel" not found.
The Tao that is seen
Is not the true Tao, until
You bring fresh toner.
Stay the patient course.
Of little worth is your ire.
The network is down.
A crash reduces
Your expensive computer
To a simple stone.
Three things are certain:
Death, taxes, and lost data.
Guess which has occurred.
You step in the stream,
But the water has moved on.
This page is not here.
Out of memory.
We wish to hold the whole sky,
But we never will.
Having been erased,
The document you're seeking
Must now be retyped.
Serious error.
All shortcuts have disappeared.
Screen. Mind.
Both are blank.
From http://www.funny2.com/haiku.htm,
attributed by Linette Branham, CEA-Student Program Coordinator
*****
Excerpts from
Educators undeterred
by loss of Columbia
By Natalie Singer
Just 11 days before
the shuttle was destroyed, NASA kicked off — for the second time in its
history — a nationwide recruitment campaign to find teachers to join its
next astronaut class, the Class of 2004. The first program, in which New
Hampshire social-studies teacher Christa McAuliffe flew, was shuttered
after the loss of her shuttle, the Challenger, in 1986.
As of yesterday, more
than 3,600 teachers had applied, including 95 from
The wave of responses
to the program after last weekend's shuttle accident reflects the resilient
spirit of Americans and the resolute desire to explore the last frontier,
said NASA spokesman Bob Jacobs. "Now more than ever, teachers and students
want to be involved," he said. "You'd be hard-pressed to find many students
who don't dream of being an astronaut."
"Learning
science by doing science is a way to get teachers excited about it," said
Wayne Sukow, who works with the National Science
Foundation to develop teacher training programs. "It's the ultimate opportunity
to teach," said Gerry Wheeler, executive director of the National Science
Teachers Association. Wheeler helped form the guidelines for the new NASA
program. "These teachers are going to bring life to the textbooks."