Bits of Wisdom
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Welcome! I believe you will think and learn more in this class than you have ever encountered in a social studies class. You cannot get out of it or hide behind the person in front of you. If you wish for all the freedoms that America offers, you in turn must accept the responsibilities that go with it. One of the responsibilities is the ability to think for yourself. It takes practice to hone your thinking skills. Be prepared to practice each day in my class. If thinking or speaking for you is scary, remember it is also okay to make mistakes. (I make quite a few mistakes on a daily or hourly basis so you will be in good company.) It is also fine to change your mind. If a classmate makes a good point, feel free to adjust your thinking. You will influence others through your viewpoint too. What is not permitted is “fence riding”. You cannot stand between two issues and say, “I don’t know.” Think about the issue and pick a side. Just believe in yourself and your ideas.
In the earlier paragraph making mistakes was mentioned. Mistakes can be very valuable. If you make a mistake, you tend to learn something and grow from the experience. I expect you to grow, not just physically but mentally this year. The use of various class resources will help you grow. Within the assignments and tasks given, a variety of Howard Gardners’ Multiple Intelligences will be used. You will enhance your cooperative learning skills to complete tasks. Many assignments will allow your individual talents to appear. There will be many opportunities for all of you to shine. Shining is good, but stretching or growing is more valuable. Now stretching is not always fun. To stretch causes you to reach beyond your comfort zone and try something new. Stretching may not immediately give you rewards. You might stumble or feel slightly uncomfortable but it holds the potential for the greatest rewards. Remember, it does not take that much effort to shine, but stretching requires guts, hard work and the perseverance.
You will be asked to share your work. You might be asked to share your work out loud or participate in a gallery walk in which you display your work for other classmates and parents to see. I understand that you cannot create a masterpiece every night. Do not pressure yourself unnecessarily.
Please understand that color is a part of various assignments. It adds life to your work, draws the interests of the readers, and gives you pride in your work. Some assignments will require color within the criteria, other tasks will not ask for color. I also expect that your notes or mind maps have color. You decide how you wish to use color. Some individuals love color so they write in color, add color around their work, doodle in color-you get the idea. (notes only). This can be intimidating to those who do not enjoy coloring as much. Do not despair, some students write in pen and go back and underline and highlight important information to add their color. Still others refuse to use color (when assigned) and receive a slight deduction in points. This would be a good time for all of the gel pen lovers to use your creative talents on paper instead of your hands or book covers.
As you will learn in the days and weeks to come, the classroom and its activities are geared to our brains and how we learn. We will complete tasks that support many areas of the brain. We will not just write about something, we will draw about it or get up and act it out. The more ways to learn something the longer it will stay with you. As a result, we will draw in my class. Drawing puts some people in a slight panic. You may draw stick figures but you have to give them character. Also have the comfort of knowing that no one will make fun of your drawing attempts as you surely won’t make fun of mine!!! If you are an uncomfortable drawer have no fear, we will write a lot too! If you are not a lover of either drawing or writing, you will enjoy skits, debates, group work, and act-it-outs.
Take pride in your work. At the end of the year you will be amazed at what you have learned and accomplished.
In the earlier paragraph making mistakes was mentioned. Mistakes can be very valuable. If you make a mistake, you tend to learn something and grow from the experience. I expect you to grow, not just physically but mentally this year. The use of various class resources will help you grow. Within the assignments and tasks given, a variety of Howard Gardners’ Multiple Intelligences will be used. You will enhance your cooperative learning skills to complete tasks. Many assignments will allow your individual talents to appear. There will be many opportunities for all of you to shine. Shining is good, but stretching or growing is more valuable. Now stretching is not always fun. To stretch causes you to reach beyond your comfort zone and try something new. Stretching may not immediately give you rewards. You might stumble or feel slightly uncomfortable but it holds the potential for the greatest rewards. Remember, it does not take that much effort to shine, but stretching requires guts, hard work and the perseverance.
You will be asked to share your work. You might be asked to share your work out loud or participate in a gallery walk in which you display your work for other classmates and parents to see. I understand that you cannot create a masterpiece every night. Do not pressure yourself unnecessarily.
Please understand that color is a part of various assignments. It adds life to your work, draws the interests of the readers, and gives you pride in your work. Some assignments will require color within the criteria, other tasks will not ask for color. I also expect that your notes or mind maps have color. You decide how you wish to use color. Some individuals love color so they write in color, add color around their work, doodle in color-you get the idea. (notes only). This can be intimidating to those who do not enjoy coloring as much. Do not despair, some students write in pen and go back and underline and highlight important information to add their color. Still others refuse to use color (when assigned) and receive a slight deduction in points. This would be a good time for all of the gel pen lovers to use your creative talents on paper instead of your hands or book covers.
As you will learn in the days and weeks to come, the classroom and its activities are geared to our brains and how we learn. We will complete tasks that support many areas of the brain. We will not just write about something, we will draw about it or get up and act it out. The more ways to learn something the longer it will stay with you. As a result, we will draw in my class. Drawing puts some people in a slight panic. You may draw stick figures but you have to give them character. Also have the comfort of knowing that no one will make fun of your drawing attempts as you surely won’t make fun of mine!!! If you are an uncomfortable drawer have no fear, we will write a lot too! If you are not a lover of either drawing or writing, you will enjoy skits, debates, group work, and act-it-outs.
Take pride in your work. At the end of the year you will be amazed at what you have learned and accomplished.