To add or not to add.... That is the question

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I recently read a post on Dangerously Irrelevant and came across a post that talked about Facebook and students. So right away I was intrigued. Of all the posts on the blog, this one caught my attention the most.  It is about "friending" your students who add you.  The post mentions that they go through multiple steps and criteria that classifies when they befriend a student and when they defriend a student. This teacher believes in adding the student under certain conditions. I guess my opinion in this is that there needs to be a fine line between student and teacher. I think that a teacher can add a student after they are out of their class and no longer their professional teacher. I have been using this method with coaching my jr. high baseball teams. I have gotten multiple friend request from my players and I feel that I need to stay professional so I ignore them until they are done playing for me. This year I will inform my players of this rule so they are aware of it. I feel that this keeps a level of professionalism between player and coach. This can correlate to the classroom as well.

Let's get snappy

As a long snapper for the football team and an avid football fan, I have enjoyed following the blog longsnap.com. This blog gives reviews of long snapping throughout the year. You can learn all about new roster moves or interesting things that are happening in the world of long snapping.

When I was told that I could talk about the blogs I have been following for a class, I was pretty excited! I know that I am probably the first person in the history of this class to be talking about long snapping. So hopefully you will learn a thing or two!

 This is a great site for me to stay educated about my line of work that I do on the football team and about the special position in general. I am assuming that some of you who read this post have no idea what long snapping truly is. And during this blog post I will give you a little insight into what it is and my thoughts.  So if you think that long snapping is a boring subject or just not flashy enough for you I apologize and suggest that you google something like "quarterback blogs" on google :) Below is a clip of Nick Sundberg who gives some technique about how to snap a football. He is the former snaper for the University of California football team and current long snapper for the Washington Redskins in the NFL.

Long snapping over the years has come a long ways. It used to be that the normal "center" would also be the longsnapper and would snap the ball to the punter on 4th down. But now, teams make a couple roster spots for longsnappers.  Over the years games have been won and lost solely because of a snap.  It is a position that requires a lot of time and effort. To be a quality long snapper you have to be very picky about what you do. Even over the years long snapping has evolved more than many realize. People who have mastered the skill have enjoyed using their free time create long snapping trick shot videos and posting them on Youtube.

                                 

So as you can see, long snapping has become "kinda cool." Well, at least to me these video are kinda neat!  This video is living proof that if you give somebody a camera and a football, just about anything is possible! Maybe a new school project?? I'm not sure, I will have to look into that one.  As I come to a close, I challenge any of you who read this to it's completion to go out and try to snap a football and have some fun!

Another great long snapping site that offers instruction and tips for all levels of snappers:

http://www.longsnapper.com/index2.shtml

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1:1 computing and it's benefits

I recently read a post on Dangerously Irrelevant and they were talking about 1:1 computing and they mentioned that there are school districts in Iowa that are part of this new wave. This got me thinking and I wanted to know more about which schools are like this in Iowa. So I went straight to google and decided to check it out for myself.

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The article  written by the Iowa 1:1 Institue talks about how the hardest part of 1:1 computing may not be getting the technology into the classroom but actually utilizing it once you get it.  While having this technology you truly have the opportunity to change the whole dynamics of a classroom. One question brought up in this article asks if the new technology creates new opportunities or just extends the same old teaching tactics.  The possibility of having 1:1 computing could truly change the world but shouldn't be seen as the cure for all of the problems in the classroom because this new wave could become the biggest problem if it is not properly used and managed. In the video below Dr. Scott Mcleod talks about his thoughts on 1:1 and the Iowa 1:1 Conference.

Though I had a hard time finding a lot of specific schools who have gone 1:1, I do know that the Waverly Shell Rock Middle School is one of them. This school has an iPad for each student in the school.  Principal Roger Wilcox gives a great explanation of how the iPads are used in the school and the guidelines for the parents in the video below.  I happen to know Roger and he is a great principal ad runs a great school in Waverly!

Overall I feel that 1:1 would be a great opportunity for any school who has the resources and the leadership to take it on. I think that I wold enjoy being in a school with this possibility because I could be exposed to a whole new way of teaching. I have never been in a classroom who is 1:1 but I would like to see how it is actually used someday!

Strike three......?

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STRIKE! The first word that comes to my mind when I think of strike is an umpire with their "over the top" punch out calls on strike three in a baseball game. But unfortunately the issues im talking about aren't on the ball diamond. They are on a little more important playing field you could say...... the classroom!!

Recently I have been scouring the "blogesphere." I have been through a few different blogs that we were supposed to be reading about and surprisingly I have enjoyed reading about the Chicago teacher's strike. (Im not sure if that's a good thing or not enjoying reading about teachers striking for more pay and better contracts and a whole bunch of other stuff, but it's all for  my own good, right?)  Cool Cat Teacher had some great links and insight about this topic and really made me realize how there are tough situations throughout schools across America. Below is a Youtube video where ABC talks about the strike and gives some background on the situation.

But as I keep thinking about the issue and how it really is a two sided issue, it makes me wonder if that would ever happen here and how I would feel about it. If I was  parent or a teacher in a district like this I dont know what I would do? Below is a parent who has a student in the school system and school is the one place that there student had left. A lot of the student come from high poverty homes and dont have a lot of extra things.

The gentleman in this article truly does say it best. Why do we pay professional athletes so much money when we cant even pay our teachers enough to get by? That really made me think. It truly is a joke that professional athletes make million on top of millions and a teacher makes enough to keep in a tin can compared to those making millions.  Just seems a little backwards, someone had to teach the millionaires too right?

So do you think that this will ever happen in your school? Let's hope not. It is a mess for everyone envolved. So think on that one for a while!

Fresh Start!

It's that time of the year again! Hard to believe it really. It's football season and the weather is changing. Nothing like walking outside and you can feel the cool breeze and the smell of leaves. Nothing better than that!  Are you ready for some football? I know that I am!

So, I am supposed to create some innovating and world changing blog posts this semester.  Consider the last sentence as your warning as to what will be coming your way. The topics may be very different from week to week. I could be talking about the newest stuff in technology for the classroom and I could be discussing the latest news from the world of football and long snapping. So be sure to tune in from time to time. That's all for now!

Go Panthers!

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