Reaction to 'Did you Know?' by Carl Fisch

Will these facts and predictions affect schools?
Absolutely. These facts are amazing. I can’t believe how fast information grows and changes and how the world is growing and changing.

One fact that struck me as interesting was that we are preparing children for jobs that don’t exist yet. It really reinforces for me the idea of preparing them to be smart thinkers about whatever it is that they are working on. Whether it be history, science, math or stories it’s important that they can think critically about what they are learning about.

I also found it interesting that knowledge becomes obsolete very quickly. It reinforces the idea of needing to be a lifelong learner. No matter whom you are or what you do in life you need keep up with the times intellectually.

Staying on vs. leaving the tracks

I found the David Warlick video quite interesting and at times slightly frustrating. I am a firm believer in sidetrips but feel that there is too much expected of teachers to make them too lengthy and to make them common occurances.

Before my school year begins I know that I have to complete 8-12 units in each subject area. Most of them last 3-4 weeks each. That's a lot to accomplish in a school year. Most years I accomplish it all. But, as a free thinking teacher and curious human being I understand the value of side trips. Each year I feel that I can fit in only one medium length side trip that spreads thoughout each school year and a few small ones sprinkled in.

I found what David said to be slightly frustrating at times because I felt that he was preaching to the choir. I would love to let my kids go on side trips all year long. I would love if they could guide the curriculum and decide what they want to learn about. Unfortunately it doesn't work that way. I have administrators that tell me what to do and they have administrators above them that tell them what to do.

Overall I love the concept of sidetrips and will continue to include them in my school year whenever I can find the time. I find them exciting and empowering for the students and it's a nice change from the usual for all of us.

Helpful websites

www.brainpop.com
This website is designed for kids. It has cartoon videos that teach about subjects that are interesting to kids. Each topic has some free videos and there are also videos that you can pay to see. It also has quizzes that the students can take after watching the video to see what they've learned. This site is highly recommended by my students.

www.quizlet.com
This website is designed to help learn vocabulary or data. You enter the words or data that you want to learn and it tests you on it. It's like flashcards but on the computer.

www.classroomdirect.com
This is my favorite site to buy supplies for my classroom. They have teaching tools as well as basic supplies. They typically have competitive prices.