C4T Continuous

I am continuing to follow Intrepid Teacher. He hasn't blogged since my last update - which is sad because he is so interesting. I am once again going back in time to find a post. 

Post #1

This post was about the fact that children today do not know how to explore the outdoors. (My child included!) Students today want to go to school - indoors - and then they go home to play video games, watch television or get on the computer (or phone). They no longer go outside to play. 

Student know all of the iconic logos for consumable items; yet they are unable to identify simplistic flowers! Watch this! 

It is almost frightening! I have read another post of his talking about getting students outside to work. This just reinforces my belief that I must get my students outside at least once a week!

Post #2

This week there is a poem. It is so moving - especially after the posts about plagiarism that I have decided to post it and nothing else... enjoy!

by Jabiz

take me
use me
share me
i’m licensed
to be
re
mix
ed.

those ideas
these words
the painted
scrawling blathering
ruse
moves us from
mine to ours.

i can feel it in you
just as you’re feeling
it in me:
nothing original
nothing new
nothing owned
everything free.

dancing derivatives
denizens of a developing
culture.
unattached and untethered
blurred and modified
(r)evolutionary
copied and copied and copied.

a commons
in which we give and take
remix and build and create
and share and evolve.

non-commercial
and not for profit
call me an idealist
and I will call you one too.

take me
use me
share me
i’m licensed
and ready to be
made into you,
as i take you into me
and carve a we.

no monsanto
no pfizer
no property

this is buddha
this is marx
this is freedom
this is sharing
this is free

give credit where credit is due
then take the thing and add to it
too.

this new thing,
the one that belongs to neither you or me
give it away and let a third voice sing it free.

i am creative commons licensed
everything i think
i feel and create
is there for you:
use it,
adapt it
share it.
give it away once you’re done with it,
tell people where you found it
don’t try to make money from it.

Post #3 

In this post Jabiz is re-thinking the way he teaches writing in his classroom. In the past he has published his students writing in blog form; yet he has decided to do something different this year. He is no longer going to look at writing the same way. He wants the students to understand the entire process of writing.  I think he might be on to something. We are so focused on the students writing but we do not focus on how the students start writing and we don't follow them through the process of writing. 

Overall I really enjoyed this post. It was short but great -- as always! 

Post #4 

In this post Jabiz talks about never not finishing a book. As soon as I read that I had to stop and think, "Have I ever not finished a book?" The answer is no. I have some weird sense of loyalty to an author. I feel like I must complete a book when I start reading. Sometimes the book is horrific, but I still finish it. Jabiz is the same way. He has only not finished reading 2 books. He says he doesn't really count it as not completing the books because he plans to complete the readings. 

I can relate, although I never stop reading a book, there have been books that I have wanted to throw out the window of a fast moving car! Sometimes it is difficult to read (like War and Peace!) a book that is overly long and extraordinarily descriptive. I still try to complete it!