Hello Readers,
I had to post about a Disney film that I just discovered. As a biology teacher, I certainly found the movie's contents highly entertaining and fairly accurate, although a little too steeped in 1940's culture for my liking. Regardless, the backdrop of the story is this: Kimberly-Clark devised a material to use as bandages, but later learned that WWII nurses were also using the bandages as sanitary napkins, a word that later became taboo. As such, Kimberly-Clark decided to market their bandages to the public as such. However, in order to truly corner the consumer market, they commissioned Disney to create this film for schools to show to middle and high school female students. I guess their intent was to develop brand loyalty by getting 'em while they were young. How strategic! Nevertheless, I intend to show it to my students to review female physiology, if even for a hearty chuckle.
Have a look and see a side of Disney that you will likely not see again:
The Story of Menstruation
I especially liked the later content about slouching, constipation, and heroic feats!
Happy viewing!
Wednesday, March 23, 2011
Tuesday, March 22, 2011
World Water Day
Hello My Faithful Followers,
Today World Water Day was observed. Please click on the link below to learn more.
World Water Day
I am not sure about you, but I find it unsettling that ONLY 10% of the world's water is fresh. The remaining water is either too salty, too frozen, or too polluted to consume. In fact, if you were to scale this down and imagine all of the world's water as filling a single glass of water - we would have access to a mere drop! Not a whole lot of water when you consider that there are nearly 7 billion people on our planet! I have a great demo that I do for students to really drive home this point. I adapted it from Bob McDonald of CBC's Quirks & Quarks, but I use it so that students might give a little more thought to the value of water. Hopefully, they will be a little more mindful the next time they are brushing their teeth with the water running, walking by a leaky faucet without concern, or letting the tap run so that they can have a 'cold' glass of water.
If you are concerned about water shortages, I have posted a link to a documentary that still haunts me, despite seeing it a few months ago. I think this Canadian documentary vividly demonstrates how lucky some of us are to have a steady supply of clean and running water. Perhaps more importantly, it also provides a sobering look at what could happen if our fresh water supplies were to run out...even in Canada, the world's so-called water-keeper!
No Running Water
Until next time...
Today World Water Day was observed. Please click on the link below to learn more.
World Water Day
I am not sure about you, but I find it unsettling that ONLY 10% of the world's water is fresh. The remaining water is either too salty, too frozen, or too polluted to consume. In fact, if you were to scale this down and imagine all of the world's water as filling a single glass of water - we would have access to a mere drop! Not a whole lot of water when you consider that there are nearly 7 billion people on our planet! I have a great demo that I do for students to really drive home this point. I adapted it from Bob McDonald of CBC's Quirks & Quarks, but I use it so that students might give a little more thought to the value of water. Hopefully, they will be a little more mindful the next time they are brushing their teeth with the water running, walking by a leaky faucet without concern, or letting the tap run so that they can have a 'cold' glass of water.
If you are concerned about water shortages, I have posted a link to a documentary that still haunts me, despite seeing it a few months ago. I think this Canadian documentary vividly demonstrates how lucky some of us are to have a steady supply of clean and running water. Perhaps more importantly, it also provides a sobering look at what could happen if our fresh water supplies were to run out...even in Canada, the world's so-called water-keeper!
No Running Water
Until next time...
Tuesday, March 15, 2011
A Distorted Tally System?
Here's a question: Does physical activity (walking, running, yoga, Pilates, etc...) cancel out a bad habit (smoking, drinking, eating poorly, etc...)? I pose this question because I was struck today by two such cases of this very question. First thing this morning, I saw a woman circling my block in a repeated fashion. While there was nothing absurd about her track suit or runners, I was taken aback by the fact that she was puffing on a cigarette in between strides! She was literally a speed walking conundrum!
The second example arose when I saw another woman fully decked out in Lululemon Athletica gear (including bag) and like the first woman, she, too, was puffing away on a cigarette while she waited for the bus. While I understand that Lululemon is now ubiquitous and anyone can sport the products, I would have thought that maybe some of their good-feeling marketing about energizing one's body would have sunk into the minds of those that opt to shop such stores. Then again, maybe it is just me and my distorted sense of mathematics - I don't think the two cancel out!
Incidentally, if any followers are keeping track: 3 regular beers are enough to wipe out the sweat and time spent in a 60-minute workout session, at least calorie wise!
To be continued...
The second example arose when I saw another woman fully decked out in Lululemon Athletica gear (including bag) and like the first woman, she, too, was puffing away on a cigarette while she waited for the bus. While I understand that Lululemon is now ubiquitous and anyone can sport the products, I would have thought that maybe some of their good-feeling marketing about energizing one's body would have sunk into the minds of those that opt to shop such stores. Then again, maybe it is just me and my distorted sense of mathematics - I don't think the two cancel out!
Incidentally, if any followers are keeping track: 3 regular beers are enough to wipe out the sweat and time spent in a 60-minute workout session, at least calorie wise!
To be continued...
Tuesday, March 8, 2011
My Orchid
Hello Readers,
Here is another update from the homestead: My orchid finally started to bloom again after almost two years! It now has gorgeous yellow petals with streaks of purple - I think that it must have cross-bred with another purple orchid that I previously had. Nevertheless, it is stunning to look at on a cold, wintery Saskatchewan morning.
As you might detect from the pictures, the span of its leaves is nearly 20 inches now - they just keep growing and growing. In fact, the leaves have grown so much since I first got the orchid, I thought I would never see it bloom again. Then one day it dawned on me that I my house wasn't humid enough for it, so I moved the orchid to the window by the kitchen sink. Who would have thought that washing dishes and bringing it into the shower with me would have been so good for it?
To be continued...
Here is another update from the homestead: My orchid finally started to bloom again after almost two years! It now has gorgeous yellow petals with streaks of purple - I think that it must have cross-bred with another purple orchid that I previously had. Nevertheless, it is stunning to look at on a cold, wintery Saskatchewan morning.
As you might detect from the pictures, the span of its leaves is nearly 20 inches now - they just keep growing and growing. In fact, the leaves have grown so much since I first got the orchid, I thought I would never see it bloom again. Then one day it dawned on me that I my house wasn't humid enough for it, so I moved the orchid to the window by the kitchen sink. Who would have thought that washing dishes and bringing it into the shower with me would have been so good for it?
To be continued...
Tuesday, March 1, 2011
Keeping the E-Trend Alive!
Hello My Followers...
This post is meant to advertise my upcoming e-portfolio (URL to follow). As part of my ECMM 470 course, in addition to the creation of this riveting blog, we have been asked to blog about our upcoming major project using a few guided questions:
(1) I chose the e-portfolio option over the webquest option for a few reasons. Firstly, I am intending to apply for a full-time teaching position in the very immediate future and thought that this project would be a great impetus to get the ball rolling on constructing my very own professional teaching portfolio. I would like to have a portfolio to refer to during potential interviews and thought that an e-portfolio would more appealing from both a creative and viewing standpoint. Additionally, by creating my e-portfolio for an assignment, I can receive constructive feedback on it and then make any necessary changes before unveiling it to a potential employer. Perhaps most importantly, I chose the option of creating a e-portfolio because my green conscience was calling me and I thought that an electronic version would be more environmentally-friendly than a bulky paper option, but I will pretend to ignore the operation of all the dirty coal-fired power plants that will be needed to generate the electricity for creating my e-portfolio.
(2) Another reason that I chose the e-portfolio is that I believed that it would provide me with several professional uses. For example, I would very much like to become more proficient with creating web-based assignments. While I intend to create multiple WebQuests in the future, in comparison to the WebQuests, I thought that the e-portfolio may be a baby step towards catapulting myself into the electronic assignment world. I would also like to introduce my students to the concept of portfolios as a means of facilitating student reflection on their own learning. For future science classes, namely biology and chemistry, I would like students to maintain e-portfolios over the course of a term and use it to document/reflect the different ways that they observe/experience scientific concepts in their lives. I would like to be able to directly speak to students about some of the challenges/benefits of creating/maintaining an e-portfolio and think that I should attempt one in order to assist my students with their online learning record. Professionally, I also made the leap that the creation of an e-portfolio might convince future employers of my enthusiasm and proficiency towards utilizing technology, although we all know that the training wheels are still on.
(3) While I have been viewing examples of educator's e-portfolios all week, I think that mine will contain the following content:
- About/Meet Me (A page devoted to explaining: Who am I; My interests, Personal statement/Philosophy of education, Picture of me (possibly); etc...)
- Resume (A page devoted to archiving: Teaching Experience; Related Work Experience; Volunteer Experience; Achievements; References)
-Planning & Teaching (A page including several examples of my Lessons/Activities and Samples of Student work)
-Assessment & Evaluation (A page devoted to my favourite topics: AFL; Literacy Strategies; and Performance-based assessment, etc...)
-Professional Development (A page documenting: Certification; Workshops attended)
-Letters of Reference (A compilation of my feedback: Intern Report; Colleague, Student, and Parent Evaluations)
(4) I do not want my e-portfolio to be plagued with text. When looking at available examples, I found that I quickly became disinterested in the person if their portfolio was composed of reams of text. To combat this problem (possibly the worst thing for a potential employer), I would like to incorporate quite a few pictures to make it visually appealing - after all, a picture is worth a thousand words, isn't it? I would also like the webpage to be easy on the reader's eyes. While I have heard that our professor has a fondness of lime green backgrounds, I think that mine will have a white backdrop and consist of dark colours for font/text. Additionally, I would like the e-portfolio to be representative of me and my interests. As such, I want it to have a nature-based theme to reflect my love of biology, chemistry, and gardening. Therefore, the homepage shall be a large tree and the branches shall be pull down menus that contain the above-mentioned topics. I would also like to have a navigation bar on the along the bottom (the roots or soil). Alternatively, the navigation bar may just be a link to the homepage.
(5) While I am concerned about privacy, I do not think that I will have an access page. I will also have to ensure that I have former students' permission to post their old assignments and evaluations of me. While they entrusted them with me to utilize at a later date, I am not sure if they would anticipate that I would post them online. I will also have to strive to be careful with the copyright issues of any pictures that I use, especially since I am striving for my portfolio to include a hearty helping of images. Luckily I learned about a website that will help me to filter out such concerns about "borrowing" web-based materials. I also want my e-portfolio to look professional and to address any questions that potential employers might have about my experience or skill set. Hopefully, the feedback from this assignment will help with this particular concern, such that I will have time to edit/revamp any or all contents prior to my potential interviews.
To be continued...
This post is meant to advertise my upcoming e-portfolio (URL to follow). As part of my ECMM 470 course, in addition to the creation of this riveting blog, we have been asked to blog about our upcoming major project using a few guided questions:
(1) I chose the e-portfolio option over the webquest option for a few reasons. Firstly, I am intending to apply for a full-time teaching position in the very immediate future and thought that this project would be a great impetus to get the ball rolling on constructing my very own professional teaching portfolio. I would like to have a portfolio to refer to during potential interviews and thought that an e-portfolio would more appealing from both a creative and viewing standpoint. Additionally, by creating my e-portfolio for an assignment, I can receive constructive feedback on it and then make any necessary changes before unveiling it to a potential employer. Perhaps most importantly, I chose the option of creating a e-portfolio because my green conscience was calling me and I thought that an electronic version would be more environmentally-friendly than a bulky paper option, but I will pretend to ignore the operation of all the dirty coal-fired power plants that will be needed to generate the electricity for creating my e-portfolio.
(2) Another reason that I chose the e-portfolio is that I believed that it would provide me with several professional uses. For example, I would very much like to become more proficient with creating web-based assignments. While I intend to create multiple WebQuests in the future, in comparison to the WebQuests, I thought that the e-portfolio may be a baby step towards catapulting myself into the electronic assignment world. I would also like to introduce my students to the concept of portfolios as a means of facilitating student reflection on their own learning. For future science classes, namely biology and chemistry, I would like students to maintain e-portfolios over the course of a term and use it to document/reflect the different ways that they observe/experience scientific concepts in their lives. I would like to be able to directly speak to students about some of the challenges/benefits of creating/maintaining an e-portfolio and think that I should attempt one in order to assist my students with their online learning record. Professionally, I also made the leap that the creation of an e-portfolio might convince future employers of my enthusiasm and proficiency towards utilizing technology, although we all know that the training wheels are still on.
(3) While I have been viewing examples of educator's e-portfolios all week, I think that mine will contain the following content:
- About/Meet Me (A page devoted to explaining: Who am I; My interests, Personal statement/Philosophy of education, Picture of me (possibly); etc...)
- Resume (A page devoted to archiving: Teaching Experience; Related Work Experience; Volunteer Experience; Achievements; References)
-Planning & Teaching (A page including several examples of my Lessons/Activities and Samples of Student work)
-Assessment & Evaluation (A page devoted to my favourite topics: AFL; Literacy Strategies; and Performance-based assessment, etc...)
-Professional Development (A page documenting: Certification; Workshops attended)
-Letters of Reference (A compilation of my feedback: Intern Report; Colleague, Student, and Parent Evaluations)
(4) I do not want my e-portfolio to be plagued with text. When looking at available examples, I found that I quickly became disinterested in the person if their portfolio was composed of reams of text. To combat this problem (possibly the worst thing for a potential employer), I would like to incorporate quite a few pictures to make it visually appealing - after all, a picture is worth a thousand words, isn't it? I would also like the webpage to be easy on the reader's eyes. While I have heard that our professor has a fondness of lime green backgrounds, I think that mine will have a white backdrop and consist of dark colours for font/text. Additionally, I would like the e-portfolio to be representative of me and my interests. As such, I want it to have a nature-based theme to reflect my love of biology, chemistry, and gardening. Therefore, the homepage shall be a large tree and the branches shall be pull down menus that contain the above-mentioned topics. I would also like to have a navigation bar on the along the bottom (the roots or soil). Alternatively, the navigation bar may just be a link to the homepage.
(5) While I am concerned about privacy, I do not think that I will have an access page. I will also have to ensure that I have former students' permission to post their old assignments and evaluations of me. While they entrusted them with me to utilize at a later date, I am not sure if they would anticipate that I would post them online. I will also have to strive to be careful with the copyright issues of any pictures that I use, especially since I am striving for my portfolio to include a hearty helping of images. Luckily I learned about a website that will help me to filter out such concerns about "borrowing" web-based materials. I also want my e-portfolio to look professional and to address any questions that potential employers might have about my experience or skill set. Hopefully, the feedback from this assignment will help with this particular concern, such that I will have time to edit/revamp any or all contents prior to my potential interviews.
To be continued...
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