Reflect to Redirect

Well, the end is near.

OK – so not a real end, but one that has wizards and muggles drowning their sorrows in their butterbeer.  Harry Potter fans have looked forward to this week as much as they’ve dreaded it. All of us mark the bittersweetness of the end of the Potter films in different ways.  I wanted to throw a big Harry Potter party but never seemed to pull it together.  Thus, I will have to settle on celebrating the Deathly Hallows.

The story of the Deathly Hallows was truly brilliant. Each time I reread the books I appreciate the many layers to this fantastic story. Everyone would agree that the Harry vs. Voldemort story is epic. But I believe there is a timeless appeal of the deathly hallows storyline.  Thus, I’d like to mark the end of the films by considering how I might use each of the hallows, both for personal gain and for the good of others.  (I know, I know.  Someone worthy of the hallows wouldn’t use them for personal gain.  But this is my blog post and I am giving myself permission to be greedy.)

The Wand of Destiny

Personal – If the “Death Stick” was in my possession, I’d use it to cook and clean.  I know the wand is intended to be so powerful that it could defeat any enemy.  Well, that’s my enemy.  I don’t think my family would argue with this one at all!

Good of Others - I’d wave it around the world Teddy Roosevelt style.  I really think the dark world needs a big bad dog to scare them into acting less like bulldogs and more like poodles.

The Resurrection Stone

Personal – This is easy.  I’d bring my mom back long enough for a good chat.  She died last July 23rd and there’s so much I should have said.  While she knows everything I’d say, it would be so great if I could just see her face when I say it.

Good of Others - I could bring back Teddy Roosevelt to wave the big stick around.  But I think I’d rather bring back Thomas Jefferson.  I think he’d have a lot to say about today’s state of affairs and might offer just the suggestions we need to get ourselves heading toward the best possible future – both as individuals and a nation.  Plus, it would be a hoot to see him play with an iPhone.

The Cloak of Invisibility

Personal - I’d use it to scare folks who like to scare kids on Halloween.  That would be funny.

Good of Others – Talk about the best use ever.  I’d go to Washington and do my rounds.  I’d start with Congress and make my way all around town.  My mission would be to inform the public what is really going on behind closed doors.  I’d be the most mysterious whistleblower ever.  I’d be like Spiderman and Superman – always there BUT no one would ever see me.  They’d count on me to keep the suits in line.  And somehow I wouldn’t allow myself to get drunk with the power.  Wow…. No wonder Harry kept the cloak.

So what might you do with the Deathly Hallows?  Would love to hear from my fellow Potter fans also celebrating the end.

Several years ago I was searching for an activity to help students think metaphorically.  For their writing to reflect a deeper understanding of characters in literature and people in history, students needed to grasp the background, motivations, attitudes, concerns, and general characteristics of them.  Thus, I created the Character Metaphor project.

Materials needed to complete this project:

1. Unused recycled paper book covers
2. Gingerbread Man template
3. Couple of boxes of old magazines (ones with lots of pictures)
4. Glue

Project Description for English and History

Metaphors are comparisons that show how two things that are not alike in most ways are similar in one important way. Metaphors are a way to describe something. Authors use them to make their writing more interesting or entertaining.  Unlike similes that use the words “as” or “like” to make a comparison, metaphors state that something is something else.

In this project, students will create a Character/Person Metaphor using a large gingerbread template and photos from magazines.  Have students choose a character from the novel you are reading or a period of history you are studying.  This character/person should be one that is so fascinating that they’d enjoy learning a bit more about him or her. Be sure to provide a sign up list for the characters/persons, trying to avoid lots of duplication.  Then follow the steps below:

1. Research this character. Using sites like Spark Notes or Cliff Notes and other traditional searches, learn as much as you can about your character.  Use similar sites to research information about the historic person.
2. Take notes on anything you find unusual, entertaining, or interesting. Notes can be taken in outline form, bulleted lists, or paragraph form.  Notes can be divided into categories, as well.  Consider categories such as childhood and ancestry, formative years, goals and dreams, significant accomplishments, important people in his/her life, and later years.  Look for nouns that explain more about your character as you conduct your research.  Integrate the two subjects together to have students highlight all nouns in two colors – one for concrete nouns, one for abstract nouns.
3. Using old magazines, pictures, greeting cards, drawings, or clip art, choose pictures of objects or things that describe something interesting about your character. At first, collect all pictures that have any meaning at all for your character/person.  Sorting through lots of pictures will make it easier to put together a good project later. Consider body parts as you do this.
   
4. Glue the pictures in collage form on the area that best suits that picture. If the character/historic person is stubborn, glue pictures of rocks on their head. And so on.
5. On the back of the gingerbread person, have students write a description of why you chose that metaphor for your character and why you put it in that particular place. Again, the rock is a metaphor used to describe the character’s stubbornness.OPTIONAL:  Have students write these descriptions on a blog with a scanned photo of their completed character/historic person metaphor.  Students could be required to comment on one another’s metaphor to increase understanding of the characters/persons.  Also, consider using technology tools such as Gliffy to create the “gingerbread-style man” online.

Here are a few suggestions/tips to get you thinking about characters/historic people for this project:

• Head/Face/Mouth – Think about their intellect, beauty, and other mental and physical descriptions.  What do they think about often?  (Donald Trump, pics of money)
• Hands – How do they use their hands? (Thomas Jefferson, pic of Declaration of Independence or Monticello)
• Heart – What are their feelings, attitudes, and concerns for other things or people? (Atticus Finch, pic of something equally black and white)
• Feet – Where do they go? What do they do?  (Mother Theresa, pic of India)

Here are a couple of examples from The Great Gatsby.  Of course, these use old-fashioned cut and paste skills.  But this activity made a huge difference in helping students to think more metaphorically.

Notice in one of my student’s character metaphors, Jay Gatsby’s head is full of “Daisy”, heart and hands are filled with large homes and money, and his feet are swift to provide alcohol to those with such a desire.  One of my favorite metaphors from this class (not pictured) was a picture of a snow globe of a family glued on the head of Jay Gatsby.  This student explained this how the snow globe was a metaphor for Gatsby’s life’s ambition.  But his was a wish for a moment in time and that it was only perfect from the outside looking in.  This student explained that such places only exist in snow globes and upon actually discovering this, Gatsby’s world was destroyed and thus his reason for existing, as well.

Wow!  Students will love this activity.  You’ll be thrilled with the results!

Like most expectant moms, I put a lot of thought into naming my two boys. Names are very important labels, offering insight and credibility to a child if carefully chosen. And, in my line of thinking, the name is important because my child’s name would be something I would say every day for the rest of my life. So, I really need to like it. Luckily, I like saying Jackson and John David. And even if I tire of the names, I shouldn’t mind saying them since they are two pretty cool kids.

When I first heard the word wiki I laughed. It rhymes with icky, sticky, picky, tricky, and Vicky (my sister). I laugh when I say most of those words. And wiki is the silliest of the group. When I learned more about wikis by creating one and exploring on my own, I was still laughing. I wasn’t laughing at the word, now I was laughing at how much fun this would be. I was raising an adopted Wiki! I didn’t name him or really give birth to him, but Wiki was mine and if he was going to grow up, I had to feed him, clothe him, and make him do his homework. God knows if I was passing out names, I would choose anything but Wiki.

Since I take parenting seriously, I decided to help Wiki adjust to life as a school teacher’s child. Of course, I filled him full of important information. And if his little brain couldn’t hold all of the lessons I had for him, I made a note for him of where to find it. I taught him to make friends easily and initiate conversations with his new friends. We spent lots of late nights looking around the world for the most stylish clothes and popular possessions. (It’s important for kids to feel like they fit in. They need to know that others think they are cool. Wiki’s friends think he is pretty cool.) Somehow, Wiki and I have successfully made it through adolescence. He was completely unorganized, lacked focus and direction, and seemed to be in a permanent state of rebellion. Miraculously, he has grown into a fairly mature young man. Don’t get me wrong, Wiki looks like a strapping young lad on the outside, but has lots of growing up left to do!

Wiki is growing up so fast and has changed so much since I adopted him. He’s so popular with his friends that I’m seeing some changes in him. He doesn’t stick so close to mom anymore; he wants to go out on his own. Wiki is always bugging me to get him the most flashy videos, the newest music, and the coolest gadgets (he calls them widgets…kids!) He tells me that his friends have actually started expecting him to have the best stuff. I guess Wiki doesn’t want to disappoint his friends. And I don’t want to see Wiki fail to realize his potential. Just like with Jackson and John David, I am willing to make some sacrifices to make sure Wiki is raised with plenty of attention, genuine affection, and thoughtful guidance.

This parenting adventure has been such an unexpected pleasure. It’s a real rush that my husband and I are parents to two great kids and that I’m a single parent to a precious adopted child. I have a serious desire to raise my actual children with a desire to impact this world. I hope I am raising my virtual child with the same hopes. When I agreed to adopt Wiki I didn’t think I could get used to his name. Since he’s a pretty cool kid, it turns out that I don’t mind saying his name every day at all!

Visit my adopted child at FHS Wolves Den

Years ago an eye doctor told me I was near-sighted. After wearing the eyewear he prescribed, I had to agree. If I want to know what’s going on ten yards away, I better wear them. I’m not sure why this has bothered me all these years. I don’t like being labeled with a “vision” problem. Last night, while grading my junior English class’ essays online, I realized that I have the kind of vision that really matters.
High school juniors are a unique breed. They are full of eagerness for their future. They are also full of questions, complaints, worries, conflict, and obsessions. All of this gives me so much to work with. I love to help them iron out a path for themselves. These youngsters are like my own children. I want them to achieve more they they dream. I want to plant ideas in their heads about their capabilities that even they can’t see. I want to show them that the questions, complaints, worries, conflict and obsessions serve great purposes in life and help us find our way. I want these high school juniors to see what I see. They are truly unique individuals with special gifts designed to make our world better.
21st Century teachers are a unique breed. They are full of eagerness for their student’s futures. They work hard to provide them with the skill base necessary to compete in our global environment. They realize the importance of students mastering new technologies and creating purposeful work products. A 21st Century teacher understands why today’s students need opportunities for collaboration, investigation, and analysis. They are truly unique individuals with special gifts designed to make our world better.
Mix high school juniors with a 21st Century teacher and you might just have something amazing. It’s not enough to care for your students. It’s not enough to push them toward their potential. We must have a destination in mind for them. I know where my students must go. I’m working on doing the best job I can to get them there. And who knows? One day I might get a new diagnosis and learn I’m not near-sighted after all.

Today in English class I listened to the teacher. Even though the teacher was me, I heard her say, “It’s not about the product right now, it’s about the process.” We were writing essays focusing on personal conflict – with all of the fun of analyzing and picking apart the dramatic issues of today’s teens. But that “process” comment seemed to become glued inside my head all day long.

I am techno-toddler trying to grow up too fast. My serious efforts to use technology in my classroom began under a year ago. Yet, I want so much to be a grown-up blogger, podcaster, wiki wizard, and web tool handyman. I find so many inspiring examples of teachers doing all sorts of amazing things that I figure I should be among them. That passionate urge to be the “best in show” settled deep within me such a long time ago. But that urge to be patient with myself never took root in me. So, I find myself more frustrated than anything – just like my students writing essays about conflict.

So, I must take my own words to heart. The process of discovery and understanding takes time. It is essential that I grow through techno-adolescence and beyond at a slow, reflective pace. With a clearer perspective of tech methods, I can better serve my students and other teachers. The process of becoming “best in show” is much more important than the final product presented in the show itself.

Sometimes the teacher actually says something worth remembering.