THE WILDEST TRUE STORY I READ THIS WEEK: Imagine discovering someone has stolen your identity, and when you complain, you get a free trip to an involuntary psychiatric hold. This is not a Kafka story. But if you teach Kafka, I bet you can find a way to use this story in class.
GRADES? A new book is due out this summer evaluating the costs and benefits of assigning letter grades, and this review indicates it lands firmly on the side of eliminating them altogether. I have complex thoughts on the issue that probably aren't articulable in this format; nonetheless, I have ordered the book for my teacher shelf in the library if anyone else is interested in reading.
ON THE BEAUTY OF OBSESSION: I have no idea what you will do with this, but once I discovered there's a YouTube channel featuring a guy who just talks about the history of hats, it was inevitable that it would find its way onto this page. I'm fascinated by people who have a niche interest so strong that they figure out how to build something that might interest others. I can tell you it worked on me. I've already had 11 of these videos playing on background in the library today.
NATIONAL HAIKU DAY is coming up on 4/17, so if you want to burn some time having kids write their own, We Are Teachers has a handy printable for you!
GOOFY TEST QUESTIONS: When I have an odd number of questions on a test, and I'm looking for one more, I like to add something goofy in the middle, just as a sort of brain-break "gimme." You'd be shocked at the way sullen teenagers suddenly turn back into creative toddlers. And I promise on my next test, this little tutorial on how to draw a cat will find its way in somehow, probably in the form of "draw the cat then add a speech bubble where the cat explains how to solve a system of equations by substitution."
via We Are Teachers
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