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Georgia O'Keeffe's art has a simplicity and calm that makes me happy

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Better Remixing Through Scissors @WickedDecent

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Better Remixing Through Scissors @WickedDecent

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Print the lyrics of a poem or song; have students physically slice and dice the words and rearrange to reveal the key elements or central ideas. Or completely alter the meaning. Grand fun!

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We continued digging into symbolism and Speak today by exploring the song "Daylight" by Matt & Kim.

chorus
and in the daylight we can hitchhike to maine
i hope that someday i'll see without these frames
and in the daylight i don't pick up my phone
cause in the daylight anywhere feels like home

chorus
and in the daylight we can hitchhike to maine
i hope that someday i'll see without these frames
and in the daylight i don't pick up my phone
cause in the daylight anywhere feels like home

We started by watching the video a couple of times and following along with the lyrics.

Then we marked up everything we thought could be symbolic.

And then we created remixes to emphasize the symbolism. We cut and pasted and moved and drew and wrote to create versions of "Daylight" focused exclusively on the symbolic meanings.

It was pretty neat.

Then we moved our thinking over to Double Entry Journals (DEJs) and looking at how we can explain our thinking in writing. This is something you will need to do on Speak this week and next.

We looked carefully at what makes the difference between a MEETS, DOES NOT MEET, and EXCEEDS the standard response.

Keys to meeting?

Identifying the symbol that is being used.

Explaining what the symbol means to the overall idea the author is trying to get across.

Identifying the author and the work.

Take pictures of three items that symbolize who you are. They may be things you own, they may be objects you see, they may be in the school, they may be around town. Take three pictures and explain how each represents you. Req'd Post:
If you HAVE to find pictures off the web, ok. Try to make that your LAST option.
Due: Friday, March 14

Double Entry Journals: 3 on Symbolism Due: Wed, March 19

Roots: Roots 11
Quiz & Product
Due: Thursday, Mar 20

8th Grade Transition Video

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Humanities: Symbolism & Matt & Kim & Speak

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We continued digging into symbolism and Speak today by exploring the song "Daylight" by Matt & Kim.

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Buy these. There are freebies. Buy the rest. Do it. Yesterday.

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Browse educational resources created by Luke Neff in the official Teachers Pay Teachers store.

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just found this post ! @amyburvall

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Monday, March 10, 2014 at 05:22AM

Everyone is born creative; everyone is given a box of crayons in kindergarten. Then when you hit puberty they take the crayons away and replace them with dry, uninspiring books on algebra, history, etc. Being suddenly hit years later with the 'creative bug" is just a wee voice telling you, "I'd like my crayons back, please." Hugh MacLeod

It is the supreme art of the teacher to awaken the joy in creative expression and knowledge. Albert Einstein.

I hope you are not looking for formulas. Or handouts. Or a single technique. Or even a "method." The creativity-inspiring classroom is a culture not a set of rules or specific activities. It is a mindset that teachers demonstrate to their students everyday .

Creativity doesn't just happen. It needs to be cultivated. Quite honestly, I don't know if creativity can be taught. It can be:

But directly taught as a separate skill? So far nothing I've read or seen allows me to believe it can or should be.

But to keep this from being a terribly short postr, I'll try to identify some things teachers can purposely do in their classrooms that increase the odds of both their students and themselves being more creative.

1. Ban clip art.

2. Ask for information to be shared in at least two media formats or writing types.

3. Encourage the narrative voice in writing and oral presentations.

4. Ask for multiple possible answers to questions or multiple possible solutions to problems.

5. Give points for "design" on all assignments.

6. Instead of simply telling a student his or her response is "wrong," ask for a reason why the answer was given.

7. Use technologies that encourage creativity.

8. Ask students to help formulate classroom rules, modify procedures, and solve issues.

9. Honor students' personal interests and unique talents when teaching skills.

10. Honor student creativity by giving it a CC License.

11. Respect re-mixing.

12. Teach the proper use of quoted materials.

13. Add creativity spaces for display of student work in your classroom.

14. Add "maker-spaces" to your classroom and library.

15. Modify your discussions to allow for divergent ideas and interests.

16. Discuss the creative work of experts.

17. Seek out the creative ideas of other educators.

18. Make creativity a criteria on all assessments.

I am not going number this final one just because it deserves special attention. I started this post by listing what we as educators can do about creativity. We can:

I will add one more. We also need to respect it and the students who demonstrate it. Remember that courage is a critical attribute of the creative individual. Fear of ridicule clamps a lot of mouths from offering a divergent opinion and keeps a lot of hands from designing something original. (I bet this happens in your staff meetings as well.) Research shows that "communities of creativity" are very effective in bringing out the creativity in everyone in them.

Do an honest assessment of how you personally respond to "wrong" answers, assumptions, or points of view. Are they immediately corrected or they investigated? Do you yourself acknowledge that every individual has a unique set of experiences, point of view, and problems that may be reflected in her work? Do you honestly believe the old adage "there's no such thing as stupid question?" Do you always dig a little deeper before judging? I have to admit, these are all tough mindsets for me to practice!

A teacher's respect and the respect she builds in her students is the most important element of a classroom that builds rather than destroys creativity.

What else can and should teachers do on an everyday basis in the classroom encourage creativity?

(This list will be fleshed out in my new book.)

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18 ways to promote creativity in your classroom everyday - Home - Doug Johnson's Blue Skunk Blog

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Monday, March 10, 2014 at 05:22AM Everyone is born creative; everyone is given a box of crayons in kindergarten. Then when you hit puberty they take the crayons away and replace them with dry, uninspiring books on algebra, history, etc.

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We do a lot of group work in my class and at the beginning of class, I have students take an online superhero quiz to see which superhero they relate to most and post their findings on a padlet wall.  We break into groups based on our superhero style.  Great opener for a discussion about what qualities make teams work well together...

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Which Super Hero are you?  Write it on the wall.  Your name is optional.

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Go to http://www.matthewbarr.co.uk/superhero/ and take the Superhero quiz.  Post your results on the wall (see Mrs. Brown's example). Notice how many of your classmates have the same super hero personality and how many are different.

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Students get cups of 10 LEGO bricks each. Circulate around projects, drafts, any sort of gallery walk environment. Leave a number of LEGO bricks equal to positive reaction you had to the piece. Return to your piece. Use the LEGO left for you to make a construct that represents your piece in some way. (No LEGO left at a kiddo? Throw 'em a bone. Or a brick. Or four.)

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Hobbies Equal Learning Stuffs @WickedDecent

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Hobbies Equal Learning Stuffs @WickedDecent

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Always neat the stuff students bring in when you suggest that the leftovers from their hobbies can make for awesome learning. Wood ends, spare parts, broken instruments and even used targets equal great stuff. One of our young ladies is a state champion shooter. She used her old targets to create a visual chronicling her heroic journey.

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Photos randomly selected tell a story who what when where why

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just saw this about literary graffiti

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Instagram or Photo challenge of the week

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Twitter q of the week

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I pilfered the bean bags from student council's homecoming spirit games closet & used them w my staff to choose focus areas during a student engagement-oriented staff mtg. Chart paper on the floor indicated categories. Quick & silly way to get data. (Also, water bottles make great anchors.) Yay data!

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@amyburvall I have a wall of makey makey apps /tools/people to follow on Vine + Instagram- kids put post its up there + we learn from eachother - like a post it toolbox

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@amyburvall I have a wall of makey makey apps /tools/people to follow on Vine + Instagram- kids put post its up there + we learn from eachother - like a post it toolbox

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Quick one, studying artifacts had to find one on campus and explain why. @JoAnnJacobs68

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Quick one, studying artifacts had to find one on campus and explain why. @JoAnnJacobs68