I was much happier with my teaching style a couple of years ago. I feel like I have lost some of my enthusiasm and patience over time and need to get back to the way it was. But how do you reverse time? As we all know, time passes quickly, and with the advent of technology changes, time changes exponentially. I have to change with them. I am willing to change. However, I can’t change until I know what I have done wrong. How can you change if you don’t know where you went off course?

I would hate to blame the students I work with. I would hate to say that I enjoyed teaching a couple of years ago more because the kids were different. I would hate to say that these former students were more engaged in learning and more committed to doing the work. Too many teachers look back and don’t want to admit that they have changed and blame it on the kids. I have heard over and over, “Teaching just isn’t like it used to be. The kids just don’t try like they used to.” I think it is time for me to try harder.

So the first step in this process is to analyze what I did a few years ago that I don’t do now. Hmmmm… I did lesson plan more. I thought through more details of the lessons. I had wrote them, I crossed off what we got done, I made notes of what we didn’t get done. So how did this make me a better teacher? Obviously, you can’t do a great job if you are flying by the seat of your pants every day. However, the devil’s advocate in me also wants to jump in and say some of my best lessons have come from flying by the seat of my pants.

Another thing that I have done differently is that I am expecting students to take notes, but not modeling it for them like I used to. I used to go over the notes, they would watch me write them down, talk about them, and have them add to the notes. I expected the notes and I periodically asked to see them. Now, I am asking students to take notes, I give them the basics and expect them to take notes, but they don’t. Then I don’t ask to see them, because I know they don’t exist. I also used to make them keep everything in a notebook, and then referred back to those notes, but in an effort to be green and use less paper, I have not made them do this. Am I providing them too much in the way of digital notes because I have the technology to do so, and they are getting lazy because of it? Maybe I should expect more.

Lately I have been frustrated by the lack of effort by the students. They give half the effort they should on assignments. They complain when we try something new. They say things like, “this sucks,” or they mutter under their breath and act like they are being tortured. I think part of their frustration is that they feel like they don’t have time to do the work they are asked. They think they are too busy. The kids weren’t any busier back a few years ago than they are now, so what is the difference? I can wager a guess, but they wouldn’t like the answer. A few years ago, they weren’t texting on their phones nonstop all night and they weren’t on Facebook all night chatting and snooping into their friends’ pictures and status updates. They weren’t sucked into an online life that assists them in losing track of time.

I used to spend a lot of time going over the project guidelines and creating grading rubrics to match their projects. I have always asked the students to write notes in the margins or to ask questions they don’t understand anything they might be graded on. Recently I had the students do a project, I went over the guidelines, and handed out the rubric. The students handed in a rough draft and I spent a lot of time making comments, and using the rubric to show them how to improve. A week later when they turned in their final drafts, they only made superficial changes and did not change or improve anything major. I wasted all that time making comments and suggestions for improvement. I am not sure if it was laziness on their part, or if they did not understand how a rubric works, or if they ran out of time, but there was no improvement. No effort. Such a letdown!

They never write down assignments. They never worry about due dates. They think they are entitled to turn things in on their own timeline. I used to make the kids write down due dates and check them off. Originally, I thought that the digital submission of files would help those who were less organized. They could see in their sent box whether they sent in their assignments. I would have a copy and there would be less “losing” of papers. However, now the excuse is, “you must not have gotten it.” Or, they say I sent it and I thought you got it. So now students need to “send a copy to me and to yourself” at the same time (which I can see in the header of the email).

"Going back to the basics" sounds so cliche. I am not teaching junior high students, I am working with high school students, but maybe this will help. Maybe reiterating the basics will bring them around to finding out what is important before we start the second semester and inevitably find the senioritis disease, and the end of the year slide the other students seem to fall into.

Money for Education

I have been working with my students writing blog entries. Usually when I teach a new form of writing to my freshman, I give them a basic organizational format to begin with. This format is used to let them get started, and then, once they are comfortable with the format, they can make it their own. As we began blogging, rather than doing all the research myself, I had the students search the Internet for effective organization methods for blog entries. Then I had them search for bloggers who wrote about subjects they are interested in. I also had them search for famous bloggers who write with great style and interest.

As I teach a new concept, in this case searching for blogs on podscope.com, I usually demonstrate on the overhead projector once, and then have the students do the same with a topic of their interest. I searched “why education doesn’t get money.” At some point in this demonstration process, while the students were searching for their own interest areas, I found the following quote in a blog that I can’t find today:

“The reason why education is not given any money is because it doesn’t generate any money. The study of natural resources generates revenue; the study of diseases generates money especially for the pharmaceutical industry, etc. Schools generate human resources and that is not an obvious moneymaker from the beginning because you have to go looking for them, they are not lying around waiting to be minded or mixed.” (Source unknown but if you know, please help me give them credit.)

I am not a very political person, and when conversation turns toward teachers pay in a group of non-teachers, I stay out of the conversation. It is safer this way. If you complain about your paycheck, you are just opening the door for others to complain about their paychecks and how they deserve more money than teachers do. If you complain, then you are just encouraging them to say how much time we get off during the summer and how we have such a short day from 8 to 4. If you complain, someone always has it worse than you. If you complain, and you expect someone to agree with you, you will be disappointed.

However, I can’t help but think about this quote. I don’t want to dwell on the money aspect of this section either. I want to concentrate on the human resources aspect. It might sound cliché, but without teachers to work with the natural resources brought to us every year, your children, there wouldn’t be scientists finding cures for diseases. There wouldn’t be the study of new energy sources, or new pharmaceutical developments. We as teachers have to work with all the students that are given to us. We can’t go through and work with only the resources that will help us in the end. We have to look at our natural resources as more than just moneymakers. We have to think more about how to “mine” the “mix.” We have to figure out how can we use what we have and remix it knowing its strengths, weaknesses, and possibilities that can be cultivated. That is harder work than just digging in a mine for raw materials and selling them as is. That is harder work than mixing materials according to a recipe that is handed down from the boss. We prepare the human resources for all job markets.

Does this mean that we should be paid more? No, not necessarily, but I do believe we need to have the best people possible to work with these kids. We as teachers are cultivating the future and helping every job market to develop. We are training everyone from a CEO of a major global company all the way down to the people who make the world work, the construction workers, hairdressers, waiters, and farmers who are all equally important in the whole scheme of things. Sometimes, to get the best people, you have to pay them well. Sometimes to get the best results, the teachers have to love their jobs and be able to pay their bills without second jobs taking their attention away… I’m just sayin’ …

Where Is the Balance?

Today, a student was struggling with writing a scholarship essay. (I know, I have written about this before… just bear with me for a while.) As she began to speak, she rubbed her forehead in frustration, and slowly tried to explain her dilemma. She explained that she will not be the valedictorian of her class, nor will she be the salutatorian. She said she didn’t have the highest ACT score, and she doesn’t have the most jam-packed activity resume of her class. As she spoke, I couldn’t help but relate to what she was saying. I had to agree with her, and I also knew it was best to be honest with her and not pump her up full of unrealistic hopes. When she stopped and stared at me, waiting for some kernel of inspiration to get her started writing, I told her to just begin to write. Sounds simple…

I told her to be honest. Tell the scholarship committees the truth. Tell them just what she had explained to me. Explain to them that she only frustrated herself with being in every sport, out for every activity, keeping up with the ever increasing homework demands, and working in time to be with her friends and family. She was struggling with finding balance in her life and needed to get things into perspective. I told her she had to hope that the honesty of her essay may be a breath of fresh air to the committee members. Maybe they would just love to give money to a hard-working, down-to-earth student who will use the scholarship money for a good cause. I wanted to say with certainty that some scholarship committees realize when they are reading scholarships that are all the same. These committees receive a ton of scholarship applications that all have the same qualifications: good grades, high ACT scores, a jam packed activity resume, and the same mediocre essays telling the same stories of being involved and studying. We talked that some students simply join everything to beef up their resumes even when they don't really want to be in all those activities. Some students only join activities because they feel pressure. We talked about the balance of academic focus with the fun focus. Which focus should the scholarship committees see as an asset? Which focus will help her in college? She has a well-rounded education and social life, even if she is not involved in everything. She needs to emphasize her focus on the things that are really important to her.

But the questions becomes, how does this student make herself stand out? How does she explain the lack of activities in her senior year? Will the scholarship committee see that at a time when most students want to simply enjoy life, their senior year? This student is really focusing on her future. Instead of doing participating in every club, sport, and activity that might take her out of school (thus minimizing the amount of time she is “forced” to be in high school), she has chosen to taken to dual-credit college courses. She is taking the more difficult chemistry class instead of an elective that would not have homework. She is taking the highest level of math course offered in our district so she will be prepared for a college math class. She is taking a college expository writing course and another semester of college literature in the spring instead of the regular high school English course. Even her elective courses involve homework. She is taking a psychology course, a journalism course in which she is the editor and reporter for the school newspaper, which is mailed to over 600 public subscribers. I reminded her of a blog post I wrote last year for another senior titled, “A Practice Regimen for the Big Game.” http://lifeinadschool.blogspot.com/2010/05/practice-regimen-for-big-game.html (Little did she know that she would be the subject of a blog post too.) I reminded her that if everyone spent as much time on their academics as they do practicing for volleyball, basketball or track, then everyone would be better prepared for college. I also reminded her that she is doing just that… that could become the focus of her own scholarship essay.

I suggested that she go home and do some “brain vomiting” of ideas. Just begin writing, let her real feelings, frustrations, and concerns come out quickly onto the paper. Then once she has said it all, and feels a bit better, she can begin to clean up the mess and pretty it up. I reminded her that she will probably take a lot out. She will probably clean up, rearrange, and rewrite many of the sentences and ideas. She will probably also add a lot of new ideas later too. She stared at me for quite a bit, probably not realizing how long it really was, because she was lost in her own thoughts. Finally she broke the silence and asked if I would proofread it for her.

So as I sit here writing, comfortable on my couch with a cup of hot chocolate and listening to music, I wonder if she is at home writing too. Has she found her voice? Can she portray balance of activities and academics? Will the scholarship committee appreciate the balance in her life? Are those scholarship committees more impressed by students who are involved in everything – and often over extended, or are they impressed by other things? Are they impressed by the ACT scores and the GPA; or are they impressed that she is taking more difficult courses that will prepare her for the future instead of easy classes? I have to agree with my father who always said, “An honest day’s work should always be rewarded.”

Nobody Went to College and Majored in “Cool”

As the college kids are beginning to come home for the long Thanksgiving holiday, I am starting to see them wandering the streets of our small town, in the businesses, and some even come up and visit at the school. I look forward to this time of year for many reasons. I love to catch up with last year’s seniors (who are most likely to visit). I love to get surprised by students who graduated several years ago and I haven’t see in a long time. I also love to have alumni return with their own families (yes, I am that old). It is usually at this time of year, that I get that brief moment of “this is all worth it” that all teachers hope for. This is when some of the hard work pays of for a few seconds.

When students are in high school, I get so tired of the students saying to me, “that sucks,” or “that is lame.” I want to scream each time they deflect my efforts to help them better themselves. Every one of my students will admit that at some point I have given them all advice. Some solicited and some unsolicited. Some didn’t want to hear it, some did, others heard but didn’t listen, and others listened. (You can’t win them all.)

I can’t tell you how many times I have said to my senior students, “You can’t major in cool in college. You are going to have to work and you may as well get prepared now, while you have help adjusting to the new work ethic.” I’ll bet you can guess the reaction I get: the rolling eyes, the deep sighs, and the mumbled comments. That is when I have to make a choice: shut my mouth and let them learn on their own or just keep talking hoping they will hear some part of my message. Again, I’ll bet you can guess… I keep talking and hoping.

Jeff Piontek, a superintendent from Hawaii once said, “I didn’t learn to think until I went to college.” When he said this, I was mortified for a moment. I was scared to admit that the same was true for me. I was even more horrified when I started to think about all the people who did not go to college... maybe the connection between when people start thinking is more connected to age rather than the college… So does that mean people don’t start to think until they are older? I need to take a step back and think more about this statement.

They key words are, “learn to think.” If we choose to believe that we didn’t learn to think until college, then that must mean we are not teaching our students to think while they are in high school. (Long pause to analyze this idea.) If you were to survey 100 high school teachers, how many do you think will say that they teach their students to think? If you tore this down to core values, how many would say that they teach students to think about their content area instead of just learning the content material as it is presented? When do we actually take the time to teach them to think about it and make new meaning? This means we would have to get every student above knowledge, comprehension, and application. The teacher would have to make sure students get to analysis, synthesis and evaluation. A lot of education happens between application and analysis and even more by the time students take the time to evaluate what is being told to them or read by them.

As a writing teacher, I work with my kids to develop their own voice. To find the right word choices and phrasing to say what they really mean, not what they think others want to hear. I work with their ideas so they can prove, in writing, that what they interpret, believe and think is valid. I work with my students so their writing is fluent and so they can develop the most powerful message for their readers. I work with my students on their grammar, spelling and punctuation so that their message is not lost in a sea of mistakes. I work with my students to develop their ideas and not just allow them to regurgitate the ideas of others. They all have something to say, they just may not be as ready and able to share it in writing.

As a teacher of literature, I do the very same thing. I give my students options. I want them to think for themselves so I don’t ask them comprehension questions when they read novel. I don’t really care if they can name the characters; what I do care about is what they learned from reading the book. What new information did each each learn for themselves? What did they glean from the words and phrases? What did they think about as they read they will carry with them into the future? What meaning did they find as they read? What interpretations did they discover, even if it is not what I interepreted? How does this reading assignment help them as they move on with their future (even if the student is going into construction, fast food, the law, medicine, professional athletics, agriculture, etc.)?

When the college students come home, they are welcomed with open arms by not only me but the high school students. They are looked up to. They are idolized. They are questioned about the wonders of being out in the real world and how much fun it is. They are deemed to be “cool.” They are what others aspire to be. Too bad those college students don’t tell the high school students that they can’t major in cool. They have to work and they have to work hard or they won’t be in college for long…

Moving On or Stop and Smell the Roses?

Time seems to go so fast, and we only make it go faster by trying to reach the next plateau, the next goal, the next milestone, the next summit. Though being forward thinking, aggressive to work for what you want, and determined to improve are all good qualities, are we missing something? Have we taught ourselves, and our kids, that it is wrong to stop and enjoy the small victories? Have we taught our kids that taking a break to enjoy is “resting on our laurels”?

I am not talking about stopping, I am talking about stopping to enjoy. Enjoy is such a hard word to write about, especially when you have a series of goals you want to meet (either in a short term project or in a lifetime). For example, in the spring of 2003, I voiced something that might be considered a wish for my students. I told the school board that I wanted to start a laptop initiative. I worked tirelessly to until spring of 2006 to get our students, teachers, community, and taxpayers to agree with my idea and get things started. I didn’t have much time to enjoy this new success because I was busy training teachers and working with students that entire first year. In the spring of 2007, I was offered a job in another district that did not have a laptop initiative and didn’t plan to have one (to this day they still don’t). My choice became, stay and enjoy the rewards of my hard work and really see the program flourish, or move on and try to convince another district to do the same thing.

I stopped to enjoy, but not for long. Even though I chose not change districts, I didn’t stop trying to improve and move forward. I began working with other districts to help get their laptop initiatives started. Over the next several years we made major changes, and could see vast improvements in the education of our students. Now my choice became, stop and enjoy or move on.

How long is an appropriate amount of time to enjoy? How long is too long rest on our laurels? How long does it take to stagnate? How long until we begin to be resistant to change? How long is too long to put off striving for a dream? How old is too old to make major life changes?

How fast should someone move onto the next goal? How fast should we be trying to change? How fast can change happen and still be effective? How fast do we move before we are just speeding through things and not giving them the attention they need so others can learn?

How many opportunities do you pass up before you have lost your way? How long do you consider your options before you are just wasting your time? How do you know when you have outlived your usefulness in a district and could really benefit someone else?

It sounds like I am thinking of a job change, but I really am not. I don’t have any job changes in mind, and I can tell you why. I have a husband and three kids of my own that deserve my full attention when I am not working. If I take a job change, then my focus will have to switch away from them for a while. Do they deserve that? On the other hand, do I deserve the opportunity to move up in my profession? Can I rely on the old saying, “One Door Closes... Another Opens.”

Another reason I am hesitating to change is that financially I am secure. I know I have a good job and a steady income. In this economy can anyone really take a hug leap of faith to chase a dream? I have always dreamt of writing a book, but I don’t have enough hours in the day or week to really work on it; and I can’t afford to quit my job to do it either. I have wanted to get more involved in presenting at a professional level, but to do that you have to build a reputation, present a lot, and travel. Do I want to do that? Again financial security and time with my kids while they are growing up, gets in the way.

I like what I am doing now. I am comfortable, most days with what I am doing. I love teaching, and I love working with technology. I like the amount of presenting I am doing and I love blogging when I have time. So am I smelling the roses right now, or am I moving on? Am I somewhere in between?

Veterans are People... Not Symbols

So many of our activities and lessons we present in the classroom fall upon deaf ears. Teachers are always trying to find new and innovative ways to get our students attention and to create motivation for them to learn more. The one thing that is always emphasized is change. Things need to be different each year. We can’t just keep doing the same lessons year after year and expect the students to be interested and engaged. This same thing can be said for school programs. When we have drug-free presentations, the students only listen when the speaker is dynamic (funny, shocking or famous). When we have Internet safety presentations, the students only listen if they think they might be at risk, and scare tactics have not worked in the past.

Veterans Day is tomorrow. So today, I am thinking about veterans in general. I have watched, throughout our school district, teachers give lessons about Veterans Day. We do it every year with some variation, but not much. The kindergarten learns the Pledge of Allegiance. The first and second graders used to learn to fold the flag and the meaning of each fold. We had a veteran on staff that taught his students to march and it was cute to watch them go through drills. Our seventh graders read patriotic poetry and the eighth graders write essays for our local DAR contest. We have a variety of high school students who create PowerPoints, play in the band and sing for the ceremony. We have, in the past, had students who are in the National Guard as high school students participate in the color guard. Though all of these things are wonderful and as each group of students prepares for their presentation, they are learning. But when it comes time for the actual ceremony/program, is their message lost because the audience has seen it before?

When we took our students to see the Traveling Vietnam Memorial wall a few weeks back, our students were more engaged in learning about veterans. It was different; it was new to them. It was tangible and real. They paid attention and they learned. They listened as Governor Dave Heineman said that Vietnam was “a difficult time and we forgot to say thank you. Today are here to say thank you. Today we are here to say the thank you we forgot. We always, always, always, need to support our troops regardless of agreeing with the war, we have to support out veterans ... We owe a debt of gratitude to them from all Americans, every chance we get.” They realized not only do we need to honor our Vietnam vets, but also all vets, of all ages, all wars, and all state-side soldiers.

Now as we are preparing for Veterans Day, the students know it is something to be celebrated, and it is worth the time to pause and think about the meaning of the day, and to think about our Veterans. In an effort to try to find a meaningful project for my students to do, that centered around Veterans Day, I thought I needed to do a bit of quick research. As the English teacher, I can’t really go the historical route, the history teacher will do that. I can’t have them sing that is for the music teacher. The younger grades are doing the essays, and the art students are working on visual representations. What should my kids do? I googled the terms “veteran” and various forms of the word “patriot.” I am sure you can guess exactly what appeared in the images…pictures of flags, eagles, soldiers, and gravestones. The links for information using the word “veteran” revealed Veterans Day programs, benefits for vets, and a couple of organizations for veterans. When I searched the word “patriot,” I got more about the definition of the word, the NFL football team, and historical examples. I found the same catch phrases: “freedom doesn’t come free,” and “they made the ultimate sacrifice for their country.”

I thought to myself, “What does all this really mean? My dad doesn’t carry a flag every day, he doesn’t have a pet eagle and he is very much alive.” Have we gotten too cliché about this holiday and is it beginning to lose its meaning with the kids because we use the same images, lessons, and catch phrases? Should we be focusing on something different to really get the message across and to get a different reaction from the students. I could have gone the route of defining a patriot, a hero, a veteran… that would be language arts based… but not really effective. When I think of a veteran, I think of one specific person, my father. I am sure that is the same for everyone. Most high school students can also say they know of at least one veteran. They probably even know one that is close to their own age since they are growing up in wartime. Veterans Day is not about symbols or catch phrases; it is about people. People we know and love. That is what their assignment should be. Sit with a vet at the program. Talk with them. Learn their story. Let them share their experiences (if they are willing) and really learn from them. Honor them with your time and listen, not just hear about them. Honor them by talking with them, asking questions and appreciating them.

Additional Thoughts on November 11, 2010:

Today, during the Veterans assembly, I was pleasantly surprised to see that this program was more about the people. The 3rd and 4th grade students really did concentrate on the vets themselves. They each went home to find out the name of a family member who served in the military. Then they interviewed, found old pictures and presented to a large audience today. They each showed a slide, said the solider's name, the student who the solider was related to, when and where they served, a favorite memory, advice for the students, and then anything else they wanted to say. These kids really learned about veterans.

Yep... I Qualify!

In an email, twitter post, or from a blog, I received a link to "21 Signs You're a 21st Century Teacher," and thought it was very interesting. I have felt for quite some time that I might be a 21^st century teacher. I thought I fit the model… until I read this list... (You might want to read this post before you read my reactions below, or they might not make sense.)

1. I require my students to use a variety of sources for research and they use blogs, podcasts, etc. I even skyped with my class to teach a lesson while I was in hospital.

2. I have my students working on collaborative projects, but not necessarily out of the country. My students live so rurally, just working with a urban student si a huge change. This must be something to strive for…

3. I keep a blog, but don’t necessarily use it to talk to parents. I give them the address… I use my blog to brainstorm, talk with other teachers (especially since we are so rural there is only one high school English teacher in our district), and to post assignments for my students.

4. I really enjoy twitter and I go in spurts using it. The problem I have with twitter is the same as with email and facebook. I find myself checking it too often and not getting other things done, therefore I fear that my students will get distracted as well. So I use it in moderation for my professional life and as an introduction for my classes in a short assignment.

5. Video is such a powerful medium for a variety of uses that I don’t limit its use to just controversy. I use it more for individual interpretation of poetry, writing, sharing new ideas, persuasion, etc..

6. My subs are never left with a simple set of written directions. I have them direct the students to my online lesson plans (for both students and parents) to get their directions. The students are so used to getting links, directions, examples, and other materials from my web page that they can usually sub for themselves.

7. This is funny but I have had my students create a MythSpace page for the Greek gods as an assignment. Funny they should get that close to my real assignment…

8. Wikis are so much more than just study guides. They can be used for portfolios, shared textbooks, all-class brainstorming, shared links for a similar topic categorized by type of technology, and so much more.

9. If sharing lesson plans means that I post them to the internet each day and each week and anyone can see them, not just my students, their parents, and my administrators, then yes, anyone can see mine and they can get a link to my documentation, examples, and resources.

10. Free is my middle name! I love the free resources that is why we use blogger, wikispaces, free email accounts, google docs, animoto, toondoo, and so many more for projects.

11. Professional development is such a personal thing for most teachers that technology has really opened doors for expansion. It used to be that we all filed into an auditorium for the same session and half the people would not be paying attention. Half of those that are paying attention are only paying attention half of the time. Half of those left only listen when the crowd begins to chuckle or a buzzword is used. Half of those are actually getting information from the speaker. And half of those are going to use the information they gained from the presentation. With online resources, you can pick what you want to learn, where you will learn it, who the presenter will be and what you will do with the new information when you get back to your classroom.

12. Virtual field trips have become a weekly occurrence in our district. The students can’t travel for financial reasons, and distance, so it is great to have them visit places for science, art, museums, history, literature and so much more than they would never have had a chance to see.

13. Photo galleries on flickr are a regular occurrence, and when I ask them to write captions for those photos it becomes a writing assignment. We also do sequencing for elementary students based on the stories the pictures tell too!

14. This one is redundant in that we have already talked about virtual field trips.

15. Internet etiquette and safety are a ongoing conversation in every class. If students are going to have access to technology in class everyday, they need to be reminded of these issues every day too. It doesn’t have to take long, but a mention here and there is best.

16. Cell phones are still an issue in our school because we don’t have enough teachers ready to make that massive change to ask them to use them. Not to mention the fact that teachers should not “talking” with students via cell phones for privacy issues. This becomes a catch 22… However, at a minimum, getting the students to not use their cell phones in class is small trouble, but when we tell them they can’t have them, and they hide them in their bags and backpacks, are we just forcing them to lie to us? That really isn’t fair to them because if you look in desk drawers, pockets and purses of the teachers they are there.

17. Summarizing chapters, annotating online texts, and writing reflection blogs entries can be done via twitter, text message, email message, discussion board, blog entry, Facebook status posts, etc. Why limit which medium we are going to use?

18. I don’t need to showcase my student’s work… they post it themselves to YouTube, Facebook, blogs, wikis, etc. (However, I do post links on my lesson plans and blogs of their examples they have made public.)

19. No morning coffee, no RSS feed, but I read my share of blogs, twitter posts and the links in them, and online newspapers, journals and tech magazines while I relax at night before going to bed. (The morning is too hectic with 3 kids to get off to school!)

20. I read the whole thing and even did a bit of research on who else has written about it in their own blogs.

21. I blogged aobut this post, posted the link so people could read the original blog entry, and then posted to facebook and tweeted that I had written this reaction…

Hmmmm...Must be a 21^st century teacher…