Double Entry Journal # 15

1. "In my mind, play and learning can and should be intimately
linked."

I selected this quote because it is something that I strongly agree with. I think that playing and imagining is how students learn. This is because they model life experiences and have the ability to think freely.

2. "If we want
children to develop as creative thinkers, we need to provide
them with more opportunities to create."

I selected this quote because I agree that schools don't give students enough opportunity to create an original product. A lot of teaching strategies require students to complete worksheets with definite answers or answer choices instead of allowing students to learn on a broader scale.

3. "Lots of things can go wrong, stick with it"

In my 30 hr. clinical I was faced with situations during teaching that I wasn't prepared for. I didn't want to waste the students' times, so I tried backing out of my plan and changing to a new lesson. By following through with my plan, I was able to find quicker, better, and more productive ways of completing my lesson.

Double Entry Journal #14

Chapter 7: Shape-Shifting Portfolio People * Chapter 8 A final Word the content fetish

1. What was the most interesting idea you encountered as you read the chapter?

The most interesting part of the chapter for me was when the author described Seasame Street, Barney and Friends, and Blue's Clues. All of the information hat he described were things that were obvious for me except for when he states that Seasame Street is designed to include the parents in watching the show. When he contrasted the other two shows to Seasame Street in this sense, I was really intrigued with the differences and his reasons for how that changes the show.

2. What connections can you make between Gee's critique and Sir Ken Robinsons' critique of traditional schooling?

I can see a relationship between Robinson's point that schools kill creativity and Gee's point that learning is done best as a cultural process. Learning isn't done because the uniqueness, creativity, and culture of each student is not accepted or valued in the classroom.

3. How did this book change or support your understanding of good teaching?

It helped me better explain why students should gain experience in particular interests in order to learn. This is because the vocabulary and language won't have a meaning for the person until they've had an experience that causes them to give a word a meaning.