The daily meanderings of a teacher

Category: The daily meanderings of a teacher

  • Hearing and Listening

    Bird Droppings September 21, 2011 Hearing and Listening “We have two ears and one mouth so that we can listen twice as much as we speak.” Epictetus A simple analogy yet we far too often do not understand that statement and perhaps it is because we have more jaw muscle than ear muscle. In education…

  • Trying to clear my head

    Bird Droppings September 20, 2011 Trying to clear my head “The hands will solve a mystery that the intellect has struggled with in vain.” Carl G. Jung I have been a fan of Carl Jung for some time. Many teachers know some children will learn so much faster when the hands are engaged as well…

  • Ralph Waldo always has a few choice words

    Bird Droppings September 19, 2011 Ralph Waldo always has a few choice words “The glory of friendship is not the outstretched hand, nor the kindly smile, nor the joy of companionship; it is the spiritual inspiration that comes to one when he discovers that someone else believes in him and is willing to trust him…

  • Endeavor to persevere

    Bird droppings September 18, 2011 Endeavor to persevere “It’s not that I’m so smart, it’s just that I stay with problems longer.” Albert Einstein How do you teach perseverance that stick-to-itiveness that we want students to have. I watch many teachers flounder when students leave that realm of attention and then teachers claim there is…

  • Can we define soul

    Bird Droppings September 17, 2011 Can soul be defined Over the years I have written about the idea of or concept of soul many times to the point of considering using the word in my dissertation title. The word has differing meanings as you discuss with various religious groups and or psychologists. It is quite…

  • Finding a way to forgive

    Bird Droppings September 16, 2011 Finding a way to forgive “Many people are afraid to forgive because they feel they must remember the wrong or they will not learn from it. The opposite is true. Through forgiveness, the wrong is released from its emotional stranglehold on us so that we can learn from it. Through…

  • A few ramblings

    Bird Droppings September 15, 2011 A few ramblings “If you observe a really happy man you will find him building a boat, writing a symphony, educating his son, growing double dahlias in his garden. He will not be searching for happiness as if it were a collar button that has rolled under the radiator.” W.…

  • Teaching the unteachable child

    Bird Droppings September 14, 2011 Teaching the un-teachable child “Let us think of education as the means of developing our greatest abilities, because in each of us there is a private hope and dream which, fulfilled, can be translated into benefit for everyone and greater strength for our nation.” John F. Kennedy I was working…

  • So much difference in perceptions

    Bird Droppings September 13, 2011 So much difference in perceptions “The delineation of the difference between modern (secular) society and traditional (Sacred) societies and their competing views of land and nature helps to explain the persistence of severe conflict between such societies. Unlike secular societies – where land signifies property, property signifies capital, and capital…

  • Checking the toes for mittens

    Bird Droppings September 12, 2011 Checking the toes for mittens Last evening my granddaughter was showing off her new hat and mittens so clad in a t-shirt diaper and mittens and ski cap that looked like a penguin she was showing off for us. Finally she realized crawling was a bit harder in mittens and…