Do you have a lot that you are trying to accomplish? Are there many steps to each of the projects that you are working on? Does it seem like you will never get to the end of the road? When you feel this way it is time for you to stop, turn around, and see how far you’ve come. When you look back you will identify milestones, small victories that have gotten you as far as you are. The question is this: Did you celebrate these successes, these small triumphs? Chances are the answer is, “No”.
So take time out now to celebrate the benchmarks. Celebration doesn’t need to be fireworks. It could be something as simple as an extra 20 minutes on the treadmill, watching a favorite program rerun, listening to your favorite song, or spending 30 minutes doing something that helps you to relax. Share your celebration with others. Let them know you have made progress and you have accomplished some critically important steps along the way to project completion.
In the future, take the time to celebrate along the way. It will be helpful to you and keep your spirits high. If you are working with a team, celebrate with the team as well—even if it is to simply sit around a “tell war stories”. Make a plan to celebrate in advance. Then, stick to it!
Not so usual celebrations:
July 6th is National Fried Chicken Day. Fried chicken is a favorite traditional American meal. Although we love fried chicken, we are beginning to eat more baked, broiled and grilled chicken than ever before. Sometimes it seems that we have forgotten Colonel Sanders finger lickin’ good chicken and settle instead, for the grilled chicken breast sandwich. But if you have a chance today, check out one of those wonderful fried chicken places—Chick Fil A, Kentucky Fried, Popeye’s and of course any restaurant that advertises both waffles and chicken in its name. If you can’t eat the chicken, at least be happy that you are not buying a chicken pumped full of salt water and instead can find wonderful Foster’s Farm chicken in most any store.
Celebrate the day with a chicken dance. Better yet, go on a picnic and have fried chicken be the main course. However you celebrate July 6th, remember that a fried chicken has given its all so you can enjoy that great taste.
As a project, divide students into groups of 4 and have them choreograph a chicken dance that they can share with the class. Give students approximately 20 minutes to prepare and then have the group reconvene to share with another and cheer each other on.
Tuesday, July 6, 2010
Take a look at Covey’s 8th Habit [July 5, 2010]
If you haven’t had an opportunity to read Covey’s 8th Habit, take time to consider doing that this summer. To be sure, the 8th habit is not the forgotten or undiscovered 8th that attached to the 7 Habits of Highly Effective People. It is, in fact a stand alone. The 8th habit is “to find your voice and help others to find theirs.” A person will find his/her voice at the nexus of body, heart, mind and spirit and it resides in the unique contribution that each person can make in the world. The 8th Habit certainly build on the private and public victories identified in the 7 Habits, but it goes beyond to talk about the leadership challenge found in helping others to find their voice.
Chapter 7 focuses on the importance of being a trim tab. If you do not understand this nautical reference, a trim tab is found in a large rudder, and its purpose is to help turn the rudder so the ship can turn. Often times in the organizations we work in we discover that we are a small part of a much larger ship. Turning that ship can certainly prove daunting. If you follow the lesson of the trim tab, however, you can see how focusing on the things that you can influence allows you to make a huge contribution to the work at hand.
The 8th Habit also discusses the important of aligning goals and systems to achieve results, releasing the passion and talent in ourselves and others, finding the voice and the speed of trust, and Covey’s belief that this 8th habit is preparing us to move from the knowledge-worker age to an age of wisdom.
I would strongly encourage you to give this book a read or a listen. You can find this book in both abridged and unabridged audio as well as the complete text. You will find it worth the effort, and the insight you gain will be well worth it.
Not so usual celebrations:
July 5th is Workaholics Day. So for all of you who did not bother to relax and chill on this 4th of July extended weekend, you might want to consider that this day is for you. In case you haven’t had a chance to check it out (and of course if you are a workaholic you would not have had a chance) there is a website devoted to workaholics. Check it out at www.workaholic.org The call themselves the Workaholic’s International Network, because the initials spell out WIN and we all know that workaholics are winners, at least in the work department. Perhaps, and this is only a suggestions, they suffer from an inability to find a harmonic balance in life, but you can certainly count on them to get the job done.
On the website you will find several suggestions for a survival kit, including a coffee mug, a clock with no hands, and a picture frame so that folks who love the workaholic can stay connected. In fact, it is this picture frame that we are going to encourage you to make with students.
If you have never tried making a picture frame, using craft foam can be the perfect place to start. To make this picture frame you will need the following supplies:
• craft foam (2 different colors)
• a photo to frame
• a hole punch
• scissors
• Tacky or white clue
• 5-7” of narrow ribbon
• items to decorate the frame with (foam cutouts, pain, sequins, buttons, yarn, etc.)
Directions:
• Choose a photo to frame and decide on a shape for the frame and cut the shape out of the foam (both pieces). Remember that all types of shapes will make a great frame.
• Cut a display hole in one of the pieces of foam, this is the piece that will be in the front.
• Glue the picture to the back of the frame.
• Glue front of the frame to the back, centering the picture inside the frame
• Decorate with foam cut-outs, yarn, buttons, or other items
• Punch a hole in the top and string with the ribbon.
Chapter 7 focuses on the importance of being a trim tab. If you do not understand this nautical reference, a trim tab is found in a large rudder, and its purpose is to help turn the rudder so the ship can turn. Often times in the organizations we work in we discover that we are a small part of a much larger ship. Turning that ship can certainly prove daunting. If you follow the lesson of the trim tab, however, you can see how focusing on the things that you can influence allows you to make a huge contribution to the work at hand.
The 8th Habit also discusses the important of aligning goals and systems to achieve results, releasing the passion and talent in ourselves and others, finding the voice and the speed of trust, and Covey’s belief that this 8th habit is preparing us to move from the knowledge-worker age to an age of wisdom.
I would strongly encourage you to give this book a read or a listen. You can find this book in both abridged and unabridged audio as well as the complete text. You will find it worth the effort, and the insight you gain will be well worth it.
Not so usual celebrations:
July 5th is Workaholics Day. So for all of you who did not bother to relax and chill on this 4th of July extended weekend, you might want to consider that this day is for you. In case you haven’t had a chance to check it out (and of course if you are a workaholic you would not have had a chance) there is a website devoted to workaholics. Check it out at www.workaholic.org The call themselves the Workaholic’s International Network, because the initials spell out WIN and we all know that workaholics are winners, at least in the work department. Perhaps, and this is only a suggestions, they suffer from an inability to find a harmonic balance in life, but you can certainly count on them to get the job done.
On the website you will find several suggestions for a survival kit, including a coffee mug, a clock with no hands, and a picture frame so that folks who love the workaholic can stay connected. In fact, it is this picture frame that we are going to encourage you to make with students.
If you have never tried making a picture frame, using craft foam can be the perfect place to start. To make this picture frame you will need the following supplies:
• craft foam (2 different colors)
• a photo to frame
• a hole punch
• scissors
• Tacky or white clue
• 5-7” of narrow ribbon
• items to decorate the frame with (foam cutouts, pain, sequins, buttons, yarn, etc.)
Directions:
• Choose a photo to frame and decide on a shape for the frame and cut the shape out of the foam (both pieces). Remember that all types of shapes will make a great frame.
• Cut a display hole in one of the pieces of foam, this is the piece that will be in the front.
• Glue the picture to the back of the frame.
• Glue front of the frame to the back, centering the picture inside the frame
• Decorate with foam cut-outs, yarn, buttons, or other items
• Punch a hole in the top and string with the ribbon.
Celebrating the 4th [July 4, 2010]
The 4th of July is all about saying “Happy Birthday, America!” We do this by getting together with family and friends, sharing a meal, enjoying the day off and end by watching fireworks. If you tune into something on the TV you can watch the Boston Pops or the show from the Capitol. So what does “Happy Birthday America” really mean? If you had an opportunity to watch the movie, The American President with Michael Douglas and Annette Benning, you had the opportunity to see a “comedy” of sorts in which the President is single and falls for a lobbyist. Toward the end of the movie, the President decides to stand up to his critic, a character played by Richard Dreyfus who would like to be President himself. There are two lines in this portion of the movie that continue to resonate with be. Although this is not a direct quote, here they are. The first goes something like this—to be an American is advanced citizenship. The second—I have been so busy trying to keep my job I forgot to do my job.
Being an American is advanced citizenship. It’s not easy to be informed, to talk with others to be sure that you have a 360° point of view, to not get hung up listening to the people who spin the news interpreting what you just heard with your own two ears. Being a citizen of this great country means understanding that every single American needs to have the opportunity to express his or her point of view and to be heard. But more than just the opportunity to speak, there must be equity and access to the American promise of liberty and freedom, a renewal of the social contract. C4K firmly believes in this concept and believes that the road to achieving social justice (this whole notion of equity and access for everyone) can be accomplished through social change; and we believe that after-school is an instrument of the very social change we need as a country to ensure justice for all of our citizens. We are committed to working with after-school programs and school day programs to make space for this change. The focus of the C4K website is to provide staff development and training to ensure that the army of people working in after-school arena are uniquely positioned to do exactly this.
The second quote about keeping and doing the job reminds me how important it is to not only to work daily to ensure that after-school staff is well trained and prepared, but to keep in touch with the higher calling of this work, the importance of providing equity and access to every child that lives within our borders.
So, on this July 4th I echo the words of the Lee Greenwood song, Proud to Be An American—
I’m proud to be an American,
where at least I know I’m free.
And I won’t forget the men who died,
who gave that right to me.
And I gladly stand up,
next to you and defend her still today.
‘Cause there ain’t no doubt I love this land,
God bless the USA”
Happy Birthday, America!
A very usual celebration…
So what can youth do to celebrate America’s birthday. Short of a “Traditional 4th” with sack races, watermelon, and hot dogs, why not have kids make a Happy Birthday wind sock. If you being with a piece of white construction paper, 12” x 18” and some colored pencils our marking pens, they only other things you will need are a piece of yarn, some crepe paper streamers, and a stapler. Begin by having the students divide the 12” x 18” paper into a patchwork. In each of the squares in the patchwork, have young people capture something of America (fireworks, flags, Washington Monument, the Capitol Dome, the Statue of Liberty, a family, a picnic—including ants, a ballot box, and so on). When the patchwork is complete, have student add the crepe paper streamers (use stapler or glue) and then create the windsock and top off with the piece of yarn to hang the sock from.
Being an American is advanced citizenship. It’s not easy to be informed, to talk with others to be sure that you have a 360° point of view, to not get hung up listening to the people who spin the news interpreting what you just heard with your own two ears. Being a citizen of this great country means understanding that every single American needs to have the opportunity to express his or her point of view and to be heard. But more than just the opportunity to speak, there must be equity and access to the American promise of liberty and freedom, a renewal of the social contract. C4K firmly believes in this concept and believes that the road to achieving social justice (this whole notion of equity and access for everyone) can be accomplished through social change; and we believe that after-school is an instrument of the very social change we need as a country to ensure justice for all of our citizens. We are committed to working with after-school programs and school day programs to make space for this change. The focus of the C4K website is to provide staff development and training to ensure that the army of people working in after-school arena are uniquely positioned to do exactly this.
The second quote about keeping and doing the job reminds me how important it is to not only to work daily to ensure that after-school staff is well trained and prepared, but to keep in touch with the higher calling of this work, the importance of providing equity and access to every child that lives within our borders.
So, on this July 4th I echo the words of the Lee Greenwood song, Proud to Be An American—
I’m proud to be an American,
where at least I know I’m free.
And I won’t forget the men who died,
who gave that right to me.
And I gladly stand up,
next to you and defend her still today.
‘Cause there ain’t no doubt I love this land,
God bless the USA”
Happy Birthday, America!
A very usual celebration…
So what can youth do to celebrate America’s birthday. Short of a “Traditional 4th” with sack races, watermelon, and hot dogs, why not have kids make a Happy Birthday wind sock. If you being with a piece of white construction paper, 12” x 18” and some colored pencils our marking pens, they only other things you will need are a piece of yarn, some crepe paper streamers, and a stapler. Begin by having the students divide the 12” x 18” paper into a patchwork. In each of the squares in the patchwork, have young people capture something of America (fireworks, flags, Washington Monument, the Capitol Dome, the Statue of Liberty, a family, a picnic—including ants, a ballot box, and so on). When the patchwork is complete, have student add the crepe paper streamers (use stapler or glue) and then create the windsock and top off with the piece of yarn to hang the sock from.
Building Self-Esteem [July 3, 2010]
Self-esteem is the opinion that you have of yourself. It is how you feel about yourself. Do you consider yourself a person of value? Are you proud of the work you do, the things you’ve accomplished, the person that you are? One would think that self-esteem should be relatively easy to come by. But this is not the case. What you think of yourself is highly influenced by the “messages” you hear from any number of people that speak to your worth and value. Of course, you, and every other individual, is truly priceless. You have a unique contribution to make to the world. No one else can make it in the exact same way that you can—but remembering that is not always easy.
Good self-esteem allows you to take a chance on you—to try new things, respect yourself even when you make mistakes, and hold your head high and feel proud of your accomplishments. When you feel good about yourself you are more likely to make good choice. You will be less likely to follow the lead of others when you believe that this action does not line up with how you see yourself. You will make decisions based on what is best for you, holistically—body, heart, mind, and spirit—and say no to those things which are not in your best interest.
It is important to hear about what you have done right. Too often we focus on the behavior to correct, the decision that needs to be reversed, and less on those things that we do correctly. Taking time to celebrate success makes examining the mistakes easier. Encouraging words from others—peers and adults—helps to build good self-esteem.
Building self-esteem in youth is not about giving them opportunities to “brag” and share a false picture. It needs to be thoughtful recognition for a job well done as well as progress made along the way. Be especially attentive to “events” that can alter a child’s self-esteem—moving to a new neighborhood, family struggles such as divorce or illness, physical changes (puberty, weight gain or loss, skin breakouts) and any number of things that indicate to kids that they are just not “okay”. Nothing builds self-esteem like success. Create an environment where young people are set up to be successful and then celebrate those successes. Intentionally tie the success to two things—what was done and the capabilities of the youth which allowed them to accomplish the result. Remember that praise just for accomplishments can lead us to be “blue ribbon” addicted. The value in self-esteem is personal worth—certainly what you do, but more importantly, who you are.
Not so usual celebrations:
July 3rd is Compliment Your Mirror Day. How perfect this day is to fit with the development of self-esteem! It would be amazing to look into the mirror and say, “Congratulations! You are loved and valued!” Too often when we look in the mirror we are looking for imperfections. Today, put that use of the mirror aside and instead, put a big smile on your face and acknowledge the value of you!
So what can you do with youth to celebrate this day? Have young people make a list of the things they do well. Ask them to think about themselves doing one of those things on the list. Then ask them to think of someone that they would like to tell them, “You are amazing! This is wonderful!” You get the idea, the person they would most like to have praise them. On a 4” by 6” card, have the youth write down the words they would like to have this person say to them. Check them out to be sure that these words are positive and supportive.
When all of the youth have a completed card, have them get up and take the card with them. Put on the music and have youth move around to the music. When the music stops, they should find a partner. The partners then exchange cards. The partner then reads the card aloud to the person who wrote the card. The process is then reversed. Repeat the activity several times. Debrief the experience. Ask youth how it felt to hear someone say the words of praise.
Good self-esteem allows you to take a chance on you—to try new things, respect yourself even when you make mistakes, and hold your head high and feel proud of your accomplishments. When you feel good about yourself you are more likely to make good choice. You will be less likely to follow the lead of others when you believe that this action does not line up with how you see yourself. You will make decisions based on what is best for you, holistically—body, heart, mind, and spirit—and say no to those things which are not in your best interest.
It is important to hear about what you have done right. Too often we focus on the behavior to correct, the decision that needs to be reversed, and less on those things that we do correctly. Taking time to celebrate success makes examining the mistakes easier. Encouraging words from others—peers and adults—helps to build good self-esteem.
Building self-esteem in youth is not about giving them opportunities to “brag” and share a false picture. It needs to be thoughtful recognition for a job well done as well as progress made along the way. Be especially attentive to “events” that can alter a child’s self-esteem—moving to a new neighborhood, family struggles such as divorce or illness, physical changes (puberty, weight gain or loss, skin breakouts) and any number of things that indicate to kids that they are just not “okay”. Nothing builds self-esteem like success. Create an environment where young people are set up to be successful and then celebrate those successes. Intentionally tie the success to two things—what was done and the capabilities of the youth which allowed them to accomplish the result. Remember that praise just for accomplishments can lead us to be “blue ribbon” addicted. The value in self-esteem is personal worth—certainly what you do, but more importantly, who you are.
Not so usual celebrations:
July 3rd is Compliment Your Mirror Day. How perfect this day is to fit with the development of self-esteem! It would be amazing to look into the mirror and say, “Congratulations! You are loved and valued!” Too often when we look in the mirror we are looking for imperfections. Today, put that use of the mirror aside and instead, put a big smile on your face and acknowledge the value of you!
So what can you do with youth to celebrate this day? Have young people make a list of the things they do well. Ask them to think about themselves doing one of those things on the list. Then ask them to think of someone that they would like to tell them, “You are amazing! This is wonderful!” You get the idea, the person they would most like to have praise them. On a 4” by 6” card, have the youth write down the words they would like to have this person say to them. Check them out to be sure that these words are positive and supportive.
When all of the youth have a completed card, have them get up and take the card with them. Put on the music and have youth move around to the music. When the music stops, they should find a partner. The partners then exchange cards. The partner then reads the card aloud to the person who wrote the card. The process is then reversed. Repeat the activity several times. Debrief the experience. Ask youth how it felt to hear someone say the words of praise.
Being A Change Agent [July 2, 2010]
In the world of after-school you have an opportunity every day to change the life of a young person. You can do that while applying the 3 R’s of after-school: Relationships, Relevance, and Rigor. You can do this in a variety of ways—all of which sound easy but require that you are thoughtful and intentional.
Lead by example: Youth are watching you and everything you do, you say, you wear, you model in any way will serve as justification for the behavior each of them demonstrates. Pay attention to what you do and say, the subtleties of your body language and facial expressions will share more information than your words. Play back the “movie in your mind” at the end of the day and ask yourself if you would be pleased to have youth act like you.
Provide learning experiences: After-school programs are not expected to create learning experiences in the same way as the instructional day. Your program is a place for hands-on, cooperative group, relevant and rigorous learning opportunities. There is no need to simply read about how the stomach works, you can make them out of plastic zipper bags. Create a “stomach” by adding water and food into a plastic baggie. Simulate digestion by massaging the “stomach” as it churns on the food you have placed inside. Demonstrate the value of stomach acid, try adding vinegar to the water and food inside the bag and see what happens. This hands-on opportunity to see the stomach in action will be more relevant (and more memorable) than simply reading about the digestion system. When deciding on what learning experiences to provide, line up with school day instruction. Additional experience and learning in the after-school program will provide students with the background knowledge needed to participate more fully in school day classes.
Stretch the thinking of youth: Operate on the core value of Current Best Thinking (CBT). This value allows you to learn new things and willingly change your mind as you gather more information. Stretch young people to examine CBT through discussions with one another. One way to do this is to ask young people to make a list of things they are interested in—not so much things like skateboarding, cooking, and soccer, but things like immigration, what is happening to jobs, or gangs. Find an article or other piece of information, ask the youth to read the source material, and then engage them in a discussion about what they think. This won’t be easy the first time, but the rigor of this type of activity will promote thinking, examination of opinions, and quite possibly, new CBT which will lead to change.
As an after-school professional, you are uniquely positions to make a difference. Take advantage of the opportunity.
Not so usual celebrations:
July 2 is officially, “I Forgot” Day. Now you may wonder why this is a day to celebrate. I would be happy to share the top 10 reasons for this, but unfortunately, “I forgot”. Some people look at this day as an opportunity to make amends for the things that they “forgot”. Others appreciate it because when they do forget they have an excuse—“Of course I forgot, this is I Forgot Day.” You could also use this day as a reminder to yourself to “not forget” in the future. To help this cause, you might want to establish the idea of making both a Task List and a To Do List. The difference, quite simply, is …. I forget. No seriously, the difference is that a To Do List is a listing of specific tasks that you are going to accomplish in an identified time frame. A Task List, on the other hand, will include items that are less specific and will also include anything that you have delegated to another so you can follow-up and follow-through.
So, what might you do to “celebrate” I Forgot Day? How about making a giant list of everything you can remember that you forgot? (Is this an oxymoron?) The list could include birthdays, anniversaries, setting the table, cleaning up your room, cleaning up after the dog…you get the idea. Then have students make a card or postcard that indicates what they forgot and how they are going to make it right. This of course will require a commitment or otherwise, the excuse, “I forgot” will become a mantra to dismiss being responsible for your commitments.
Lead by example: Youth are watching you and everything you do, you say, you wear, you model in any way will serve as justification for the behavior each of them demonstrates. Pay attention to what you do and say, the subtleties of your body language and facial expressions will share more information than your words. Play back the “movie in your mind” at the end of the day and ask yourself if you would be pleased to have youth act like you.
Provide learning experiences: After-school programs are not expected to create learning experiences in the same way as the instructional day. Your program is a place for hands-on, cooperative group, relevant and rigorous learning opportunities. There is no need to simply read about how the stomach works, you can make them out of plastic zipper bags. Create a “stomach” by adding water and food into a plastic baggie. Simulate digestion by massaging the “stomach” as it churns on the food you have placed inside. Demonstrate the value of stomach acid, try adding vinegar to the water and food inside the bag and see what happens. This hands-on opportunity to see the stomach in action will be more relevant (and more memorable) than simply reading about the digestion system. When deciding on what learning experiences to provide, line up with school day instruction. Additional experience and learning in the after-school program will provide students with the background knowledge needed to participate more fully in school day classes.
Stretch the thinking of youth: Operate on the core value of Current Best Thinking (CBT). This value allows you to learn new things and willingly change your mind as you gather more information. Stretch young people to examine CBT through discussions with one another. One way to do this is to ask young people to make a list of things they are interested in—not so much things like skateboarding, cooking, and soccer, but things like immigration, what is happening to jobs, or gangs. Find an article or other piece of information, ask the youth to read the source material, and then engage them in a discussion about what they think. This won’t be easy the first time, but the rigor of this type of activity will promote thinking, examination of opinions, and quite possibly, new CBT which will lead to change.
As an after-school professional, you are uniquely positions to make a difference. Take advantage of the opportunity.
Not so usual celebrations:
July 2 is officially, “I Forgot” Day. Now you may wonder why this is a day to celebrate. I would be happy to share the top 10 reasons for this, but unfortunately, “I forgot”. Some people look at this day as an opportunity to make amends for the things that they “forgot”. Others appreciate it because when they do forget they have an excuse—“Of course I forgot, this is I Forgot Day.” You could also use this day as a reminder to yourself to “not forget” in the future. To help this cause, you might want to establish the idea of making both a Task List and a To Do List. The difference, quite simply, is …. I forget. No seriously, the difference is that a To Do List is a listing of specific tasks that you are going to accomplish in an identified time frame. A Task List, on the other hand, will include items that are less specific and will also include anything that you have delegated to another so you can follow-up and follow-through.
So, what might you do to “celebrate” I Forgot Day? How about making a giant list of everything you can remember that you forgot? (Is this an oxymoron?) The list could include birthdays, anniversaries, setting the table, cleaning up your room, cleaning up after the dog…you get the idea. Then have students make a card or postcard that indicates what they forgot and how they are going to make it right. This of course will require a commitment or otherwise, the excuse, “I forgot” will become a mantra to dismiss being responsible for your commitments.
Why e-Learning [July 1, 2010]
e-Learning is the broad term describing the learning done while on a computer that is usually connected to a network. This type of learning has several advantages, (check out Eric Dent, University of Maryland Top 10 Reasons for Online Learning), perhaps the biggest is that you can connect anytime, anywhere that you have a signal strong enough to connect to the internet. For the learner, this means that you can connect when it is convenient for you rather than a professor or learning institution.
e-Learning classes are self-paced so the learner can determine how much time is spent at each point along the way. An opportunity to return to the content to clarify meaning helps learners solidify the concepts. Discussion groups can support learning with threaded discussions which allows questions and responses to flow between learners. This web-chat and threaded discussion capability make the learning experience rich and as valuable as any other classroom experience.
Some e-Learning environments have virtual classrooms where learners can come together to communicate in real time through a webinar format with instant messaging and audio conferencing. In either case, a Learning Management System tracks where you’ve been and in the case of quizzes and tests, how well you’ve done.
No single e-Learning method is best for everyone. That being said, the ability to connect when you are ready to learn makes the e-Learning option a strong one.
Not so usual celebrations…
July 1 is Canada Day…just like July 4th is the birthday celebration of the United States, July 1 is Canada’s birthday. It was on July 1, 1867 that Canada became a “kingdom in its own right” even though Britain maintained limited political rights over the country until 1982. Canada Day is celebrated in many of the same ways that we celebrate July 4th—parades, outdoor events, family gatherings, and of course, fireworks.
Canada, our neighbor which stretches across the entire US northern border, has 10 provinces and 3 territories. The provinces and territories and the population of each is listed below. *
So, what might you do with youth to celebrate Canada Day? How about a maple leaf magnet? The maple leaf is the center piece of the Canadian Flag. The flag has a wide red stripe on each side (each stripe is ¼ the width of the flag) and an 11 point red maple leaf in the center.
To make the maple leaf magnet you will need red craft foam, scissors, glue, a magnetic sheet, and a maple leaf pattern. Have the youth trace and cut out the maple leaf. A rectangle of the magnetic sheet should be glued to the back of the leaf. After the glue dries, you have a perfect refrigerator magnet.
* List of Canadian Provinces and Territories by population, January, 2010 http://en.wikipedia.org
e-Learning classes are self-paced so the learner can determine how much time is spent at each point along the way. An opportunity to return to the content to clarify meaning helps learners solidify the concepts. Discussion groups can support learning with threaded discussions which allows questions and responses to flow between learners. This web-chat and threaded discussion capability make the learning experience rich and as valuable as any other classroom experience.
Some e-Learning environments have virtual classrooms where learners can come together to communicate in real time through a webinar format with instant messaging and audio conferencing. In either case, a Learning Management System tracks where you’ve been and in the case of quizzes and tests, how well you’ve done.
No single e-Learning method is best for everyone. That being said, the ability to connect when you are ready to learn makes the e-Learning option a strong one.
Not so usual celebrations…
July 1 is Canada Day…just like July 4th is the birthday celebration of the United States, July 1 is Canada’s birthday. It was on July 1, 1867 that Canada became a “kingdom in its own right” even though Britain maintained limited political rights over the country until 1982. Canada Day is celebrated in many of the same ways that we celebrate July 4th—parades, outdoor events, family gatherings, and of course, fireworks.
Canada, our neighbor which stretches across the entire US northern border, has 10 provinces and 3 territories. The provinces and territories and the population of each is listed below. *
So, what might you do with youth to celebrate Canada Day? How about a maple leaf magnet? The maple leaf is the center piece of the Canadian Flag. The flag has a wide red stripe on each side (each stripe is ¼ the width of the flag) and an 11 point red maple leaf in the center.
To make the maple leaf magnet you will need red craft foam, scissors, glue, a magnetic sheet, and a maple leaf pattern. Have the youth trace and cut out the maple leaf. A rectangle of the magnetic sheet should be glued to the back of the leaf. After the glue dries, you have a perfect refrigerator magnet.
* List of Canadian Provinces and Territories by population, January, 2010 http://en.wikipedia.org
Friday, July 2, 2010
C4K has launched!
C4K is launching. Feels like the “birth” of a dream! Proof of the adage, “If you think it, you can achieve it”.So, a huge Welcome!Regular postings and updates will begin on Tuesday, July 6. Until then, have a wonderful and relaxing weekend with family and friends celebrating the birth of another great dream—the US of A!
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