WeekofMay2630

EveryonceinawhilemystudentswilltellmesomethingthattellsmeIamdoingsomethingright.A
studentwhoexpressesbeliefswhichareverydifferentfrommyownexclaimedfrustrationduringour
debateonJimmyCarterandRonaldReaganthatsheisstillunabletofigureoutwhatmypolitical
leaningsare.ItoldherwhatItellallofmystudentswhoaskmewhatIbelieve,thatIdontsaymy
beliefstostudentsbecauseIdontwanttojeopardizetheirtrustinmyteachings.Iftheydisagreewith
mybeliefswhyshouldtheybelievemeinmyotherteachings.And,ontheotherside,Idontwant
studentstosimplytrustmyteachingssimplybecausetheybelieveasIdo.Idontwanttotellstudents
whattothink,butsimplythatcanthinkandtheyshould.qqq

WeekofMay1923

Keepingmystudentsmotivatedaswehitthefinalstretchoftheyearhasbeenchallengingtosaythe
least.Withmy9thgradegeographystudentsIhopedtocreateafunandinterestingprojectthatcould
keeptheminterested.Iwantedthemtoidentifyaproblemfacingtheenvironmentanywhereinthe
world,makeaninfographiconthattopic,andthencreateabusinessproposaltosolvethatproblem.
Whilemostofmystudentsareengaged,therearemanyotherswhoarealltooreadytousetheinternet
notworkingasanexcusetonotdotheirwork.ThechallengeIamfacingwithmy9thgradersisnothing
comparedtothefinalpushIamtryingtogetfrommy11thgraders.Icansitandworkwithgroupsin
bothmyAPandregularclassesandtheyworkwhenIamwiththemandthenfallapartwhenIwork
withanothergroup.IamgoingtotryandfocustheirattentiondifferentlynextweekwithSamsara.
Hopefully,Icangetthemtochangegearsjustenoughthattheycanekeoutsomeselfguidedlearning
anddiscoveryastheyfinishtheirpenultimateyearofhighschool.

WeekofMay1216

MyAPstudentsdidprettywellwiththeirmuseumexhibitssothisweekIamgoingtocontinuegiving
themsomethingdifferent.Iknowthatmakingmoviesfordifferentclassesisprettycommon,butitisnot
anactivityIhavehadmyAPstudentscompleteasafullclass,yet.So,Igavemystudentsthe
opportunitytocreateeithera3minutedocumentaryora3minutefictionalfilm.Theresultswereallover
theboard,butforthemostpartmystudentsfaredverywellwiththisproject.Ihadonlyonevideonot
reallyworthyofAPwork,butIthinkithadmoretodowiththegroupsetupandtheirleveloftechnical
expertisethantheirknowledgeandunderstandingoftheinformationathand.Similarly,Ihadonegroup
whoseworkwassuperbandIlaterfoundouttheirgroupleaderrunshisownyoutubechannelontopof
outsidecontractworktopeoplewhoneedvideodesignandediting.

WeekofMay59

Peoplesaythedefinitionofinsanityisdoingthesamethingoverandoveragainandexpectingdifferent
results.WhileIhavemanagedtokeepmyAPstudentsmotivatedandengagedforamajorityofthe
year,Icanactivelyseethemstartingtocrack.So,Idecidedtotrysomethingdifferentthisweekinstead
ofdoingthestandardweeklyschedule.IhaveassignedgroupsandtoeachgroupIhavegivenachapter
fromGiveMeLiberty!Intheirgroupsstudentsmustanswerthefocusquestionsofthechapterbutmust
dosoinanengaging,creative,andentertainingmanner.Theirendresultwillbeamuseumexhibit,quite
similartotheexhibitscreatedbymyregularUnitedStatesHistorystudents.Iamhopingthatthisis
enoughofachangethatmystudentsareabletostaymotivatedandengagedinclass.
WeekofApril28toMay2

InoticedthisweekthatthehotelwashostingaNativeAmericanGallerywithart,jewelry,andother
kitschmadeonreservationsinColorado,NewMexico,andArizona.Ithoughtthispresentedan
excellentopportunityformyAPstudentstoflextheircriticalthinkingmuscles.Aftertellingthestudents
weweregoingtogoandexplorethegalleryItoldthemtopayattentiontothemes,motifs,patterns,
colors,andanythingelsethatstruckthemasinteresting.ManyofmyAPstudentsdidwellwiththis,
examiningeachsectionthoughtfully.However,andIshouldhaveknownthiscouldhappen,Ihad
severalfemalestudentsbecomesuddenlyenthralledwiththejewelrysection.Intheend,fourgirlsleft
withringstheydidnothavewhentheyfirstcametomyclassroom.Wedidenduphavingadecent
discussionoverpatterns,motifs,andcolorsafterthevisit,butthevisititselfdidnotgoquiteas
anticipated.

WeekofApril1418

Wow,thisweekhasbeenhard.Withmygrandmothergettingreallysickandbeingadmittedtohospice
Ihavehadtothisweekfigureouthowtodoaprofessionalandpersonallifebalance.Ihavebeendoing
mybesttogivemystudentsagoodlearningexperience,butwithnotimeforrestbetweenschooland
visitingwithmyfamilyithasbeendifficult.

WeekofApril711

Istruggleasateacherwithgivingveryspecificdatesforstudents.Iwonderifitislargelybecauseof
howusefuldateswereformewhenIwasastudent.Meaning,Ineverfollowedthem.Isupposemy
distasteforthosehardfastdateshavefollowedmeontotheothersideoftheshroudasIhavebegun
teaching.ItoldstudentstheymusthavetheirAffluentCityProjectcompletebeforetheywouldbeable
totaketheirUrbanGeographyAssessmentbecausetheirassessmentwouldbeadirectresponsetothe
researchanddemographicstheyfoundintheAffluentCityProject.Well,ofcourse,wegettothedate
oftheAssessmentandIfindthatmanyofmystudentshavenotcompletedtheirproject,andthusare
unabletobegintheirexam.So,insteadIhavetogivethemextratimetofinishtheirexamsbecausethey
areusingtheirexamtimetofinishtheirproject.Besidestheproblemswiththedates,Ididlikethe
informationmystudentsputtogetherinanalyzingtheirAffluentCityProjects,theywereabletomake
somestrongconnectionsbetweenaffluenceandgeographywhichmeansImustbedoingsomething
right.

WeekofMarch1721

ThisweekIbeganthesetupforourUrbanGeographyAssessment.Iwantstudentstoseetheopposite
sideofpovertysothathopefullytheywillbeabletostartmakingconnectionsbetweenthehavesand
havenotsinanygivensociety.StudentsweretobeginlookingupAffluenceincities.Theywereableto
chooseanycityintheworldandexamineasmuchinformationtheycould.Iwantedstudentstocreatea
storyofaffluenceintheircity.Ifoundthatusingthewordstorywasquiteconfusing.Theyallassumedit
hadtobeatraditionalstorywithabeginning,middle,andend.IsupposeIcouldhavesaidthatI
wantedthemtocreateapictureoftheircity,butIamnotsurethiswouldwouldhaveproducedanyless
confusion.IntheendmanystudentsweresuccessfulatcreatingtheirAffluentCityprojects,butitdid
takealotofextraexplanationtoridthemofconfusion.

WeekofMarch1014

MygeographystudentshavebeendoingwellwithUrbanGeography.Theyhaveexaminedboththe
FavelasofBrazilandKowloonWalledCity.Iwantedstudentstofinddemographicsofeachofthese
areasandasalwaysthereisahugegapinwhatallofmystudentscanfind.Forinstance,whilemostof
mystudentswereunabletofindanyinformationonthedemographicsoftheFavelas,Ihadonewhodid
themallbetter.HebeganusingGoogleTranslatetoputkeysearchtermsintoPortuguese.Hethentook
thosesearchtermsandfoundaBrazilianCensusthatwasspecifictoFavelas.Hethenfoundwhathe
hopedwouldbeimportantcharts,tables,andgraphsandtranslatedthewordsintheirtitlesandaxes
fromPortugueseintoEnglishandthuswasabletofindafarragoofusefuldemographicinformationfrom
theFavelas.Itisquiteincrediblewhatthesestudentscancomeupwithitneverceasestoamazeme.

WeekofFebruary2428

Wow,thisweekhasbeenentertaining.Inthehotelwearenotabletocontinueusingournormalrooms,
soinsteadtheystuckusinthehotelsuite.ThiswasoneofthemostinterestingenvironmentsIhaveever
taughtin.Therewere24chairsputinthesuiteallfacingthesamedirectionwithnoroomtomove
betweenrowsorspreadoutintheroom.Itriedbrieflytousemytraditionalteachingmethodsbut
quicklyfoundthatthespaceintheroomdidnotallowthis.So,insteadwebeganwatchingThe
PruittIgoeMythearlierthanIhadanticipated.Studentsseemedreallykeyedinandengagedtothe
ideaandtherewereotherswhoweredownrightappalledattheinjusticesportrayedinthefilm.Thisfilm
continuestobeanexcellentvehicletogetstudentstoconsiderinstitutionalizedracism.Iamhopingthey
areabletousetheinformationfromPruittIgoetoconsidertheirsituationsandthesituationsofpeoplein
theworldaroundthem.

WeekofFebruary1721

IthinkitisfantastictofinallybegettingintoGeography.WhileIunderstandtheimportanceofteaching
civicstostudentsitissoterriblyfarfrommyownacademicinterests.Italsostretchesmyfrustration
levelsandabilitytodealwithmystudentsinaconsistentlyneutralmanner.IdothinkIamsuccessfulin
myabilitytomaintainneutrality.Though,itisalsofrustratingtohearstudentsspoutoffthesame
misinformationtheyhearfromtheirparentsandAmericantelevisednewslikeentertainment.Itis
helpfultofindexamplesliketheoneIdidwithCGPGrayandthetrilliondollarcointogivestudentsso
theymayreconsiderhowtelevisednewsisputtogether.Theoneswhoquestionandwanttodobetter
willlearnandthosewhodonotcarewillcontinuenottocare.

WeekofJanuary1317

Thisweekwearebackatthehotel,andwhileallofmystudentsarejubilantatnotlongerhavingtobein
theCommons,manystatedthattheyenjoyedtheexperience.Whatstoodoutmosttothemwasmyrole
ashallmonitor,makingsurethatstudentswhowereinthehallwayswerestillfollowingandmaintaining
schoolexpectationsforresponsibilityandintegrityinthehallways.Thisbringsupaninterestingquestion
formypedagogy.Iasateacherworkreallywellwithdistractions,moreoftenthannotIamthecause
forthedistractions,butdomystudentsworkaswellwiththedistractions.Imovefrompointtopoint
quitequickly,andmystudentshavecometoexpectthat.Asalways,therearegoodandbadresults
fromthis.FlexibilityiskeybecauseIliketouseteachablemomentsintheclassroom,butIalsomustbe
carefulthatIdonotstraytoofarfromstandardsandexpectations.ThisisthebalanceImustmaintainin
myclasses.

WeekofJanuary610

Thisweekcouldhavebeenmuchmoredifficultthanitturnedouttobe.Therewasrenovationinthe
hotelsoItaughtallbutoneofmyclassesintheCommons.TheoneclassnotintheCommonswas
taughtinaclassroomwithanotherteacher.Themostimportantassetateachercanbringtoa
classroomisenthusiasmandapositiveattitude.Studentsreactwelltoteacherswholeadthrough
example.Whilemanywerenotthrilledabouthavingclassintheclassrooms,theyworkedhardand
maintainedmyexpectationsbecauseIencouragedthemtodosoandsetagoodexample.

WeekofDecember1619

AsImentionedinoneofmyearlierposts,testinghasbeendifficultthissemester.However,Iamtrying
anewapproachformytestingofmystudentslegislativeknowledge.Justaswehavebeenstudyingthe
legislativeprocessingreatdepththroughCongressionalDebate,Ihaveinstitutedasecondroundof
CongressionalDebatewhichwillactasacomprehensiveexamofthelegislativeprocess.Thebenefitof
doingitthiswayisinhowtheprocessmorecloselymimicstheactuallegislativeprocess.Justaswe
haveabicamerallegislatureinAmericanpolitics,wewillworkasabicamerallegislatureatSTEM.
Studentswillreadandwriteargumentsforthebillswritteninotherclasses.Lastly,Icanironoutthe
kinksthatoccurredinthefirstroundofCongressionalDebateandconfronttheproblemsthatexisted
beforepriortothemoccurringagain.

WeekofDecember913
Mappingthecourtshasproducedavarietyofresults.Manystudentsstruggledwiththeideaofthinking
oftherelationshipinmetaphoricalterms.InattemptingtoexplainwhatImeanttomystudentsIstarted
withtheideaofpizza.Ifweusepizzaasavehicletounderstandthecourtswemustmakeequivalencies
betweentheUnitedStatesCourtsandpizza.So,webeganwiththecrust.Asanexample,Itold
studentsitcouldrepresenttheConstitutionoftheUnitedStates.Justasthecrustrepresentsthe
foundationofthepizza,sotoodoestheConstitutionoftheUnitedStatesrepresentthefoundationofour
CommonLawcourtsystems.Usingpizzaasourexamplehelpedstudentstovisualizewhatdifferent
componentsofthecourtsystemcouldequategivendifferentsymbols.Someofthesymbolsmystudents
cameupwithincludeflowersplantedinthegroundandthevariouspositionsonasoccerpitch.This
experimentationwithideashashelpedmetobetterthinkofwaysofteachingMappingtheSupreme
Courttomystudentsinthefuture.

WeekofNovember1822

ThisweekwecompletedourcircleandhavebegunourstudyoftheUnitedStatesSupremeCourt.This
willroundoutthethreebranchesofgovernmentforCivics.Iwantstudentstounderstandthe
distributionofcourtsintheUnitedStates.Toachievethis,Ihadstudentsbeginbymappingoutthe
variouslevelsofgovernmentacrosstheUnitedStates.However,thiswasnotmeanttobeastandard
map.Instead,Ihadstudentsfirstresearchthevariouslevelsofgovernmentandcharttheirrelationships
tooneanother.Then,Ipresentedcharacterwebsasawayofthinkingaboutrelationships.Withthisin
mind,Iaskedstudentstothencreatetheirownmetaphoricalrepresentationofthecourtstoone
another.

WeekofNovember48

ThisweekwebeganthepresentationofCongressionalDebatebillsfromdifferentclasses.Ihadhoped
byintroducingnewbillsitwouldfreshentheCongressionalDebateprocessandstudentswouldbe
envigoratedbynewideastodebateandresearch.Thisturnedouttobepartiallytrue.Whilestudents
werehappytoseenewideas,problemsmanifestedinhowseriousstudentstooktheoriginalprocessof
theirbills.Forinstance,thebillthatprohibitschildrenfromswimminginfonduefountainsishilarious,but
itdoesnotreallyallowforchildrentoengageinlegitimateandusefulresearch.Itdoesbringlevity,but
overallitshowshowimportantitisformetofinddecentparametersforthisprojectifIamtocontinue
withitnextyear.

WeekofOctober2125

Congressionaldebatehaswrappedupnicely.Overall,Ibelievestudentshavebeenquitesuccessfulwith
thisclassroomprojectandexperiment.ItseemsthatoneofthemajorproblemswithCongressional
Debateismakingsurethattheclassroomexperienceisnottoorepetitive.Itisquiteeasytofocustoo
heavilyonboththestudentsbillsaswellasthestepsleadinguptodebateandbillpresentation.My
taskintheweekaheadistomakesurethatwhenstudentsareintroducedtotheirpeersbillsfromother
classesthattheprocessdoesnotbecometooredundant.

WeekofOctober710

IhaveintroducedCongressionalDebateinearnestthisweek.ItismuchmoredifficultthanIimaginedit
wouldbe.IthinkpartoftheproblemisthatIdonotnormallyinstitutesomanyrulesforassignmentsin
myclassandthewholepointofCongressionalDebateistofollowandengagewiththerulessetforth
forproperprocedureandetiquette.Iamhopingthatstudentswhoworkwellwithrulesandwhoare
interestedinbeingthepresidingofficerwilltakethereignsofthisclassroomexperimentandmakeittheir
own.Iwanttogiveflexibilitytostudentstoenjoythis,butIalsowantthemtoexperiencethespiritof
congressanddebate.ThisweekworkedwellwhenEriccamebytodiscusstheeffectsofthe
governmentshutdownonhimandAmerica.Ithinkthatmanyofthestudentsreallyengagedwithhis
presentationandthatitwasusefulforthemtolearnabouttheshutdownfromsomeonewhoisnotme.

WeekofSeptember30toOctober4

ThissemesterhasbeeninterestingsofarasIhaveattemptedtoincorporatemanydifferentideasintoall
ofmyCivicscourses.Iwanttohavesemesterlongprojectsinsteadofjustfocusingononeunitand
movingontothenextunitandnotthinkingaboutanyofthepreviousunitsuntilitistimeforfinals.Thus
far,ithasbeenworkingprettywell.Studentsareabletomoveseamlesslybetweenprojects,starting
newonesandcontinuingoldprojects.Oneofthedrawbacksofthisapproachistheeaseofand
organizationofunittesting.Ihavetriedafewdifferentmethodsofmakingupforthislack,butoverall,I
findthattraditionaltestingjustisnotworking.So,Ihavehadonereallysuccessfulexamthusfarwhere
studentsfocusontheinformationontheConstitutionandtheprocessinwhichaBillbecomesalaw,and
ithasworked,butIwillhavetocontinuebeingcreativewhenIamreadytoassessthesecourses.inthe
future.

WeekofSeptember2326

Isolvedlastweeksproblemofmissingstudentsbyhavingstudentswhowerenotinthefieldtriplast
weektoteachthestudentswhoweregone.Together,theyweretocreateareviewprojectwhere
studentswouldbesimultaneouslyreviewing,teaching,andlearningthematerialonFederalismand
AntiFederalism.

WeekofSeptember1620

Overall,thiswasachallengingbutexcitingweekformyteaching.My9thgradeclasseshadanywhere
fromaquartertohalfofthestudentsmissingduetotheKeystonefieldtrip.BecauseIcouldnotassign
homeworktothosegone,Ihadtofindawaytoteachmystudentswhostayedwithoutmovingtoofar
beyondthepurviewofthestudentswhowereabsent.ThisalsomeantthatIcouldgointomoredepth
withmystudentsonideasoftheUnitedStatesConstitution,theFederalismandAntiFederalism
debate,andlastlythecurrentpoliticsofthefloodinginColorado.Itisthenmygoaltohavethese
studentswhowereherethisweektoteachthestudentswhowereabsentnextweektomakeupforthe
missedinformation.