Malcolm Gladwell is Super Smart

http://www.gladwell.com/2008/2008_12_15_a_teacher.html
Gladwell's latest New Yorker article

And a link to all of them...
http://www.gladwell.com/archive.html

Whenever I see anything by Malcolm Gladwell, I read it. He is simply one of our most brilliant nonfiction writers right now and perhaps ever. MHS library has Blink, Tipping Point, and Outliers, all fantastic reads if you are interested in why the world is the way it is. All three focus on complicated concepts like decision making, success, and group dynamics.

I especially love Outliers-- a study of what makes people successful. Gladwell's theory is that those who are successful all have hidden advantages that, when combined with hard work, intellect, and/or natural ability, create success. For me the most important revelation is that we all need help on our way to success. Having one advocate in you life can be the difference between success and failure, which of course is why our job as educators is so important.

If you'd like to leave a comment think about this question: What makes a good teacher? And if we know this, how can assure that every classroom has one? Finally, do we believe that the US is willing to put forth the money and time needed to make this possible?

Career Cruising

All 9th, 1oth and 11th grade English classes are currently cycling through the Delaware CareerCruising program over the next few weeks. The link is www.careercruising.com. This program allows every student in these grades to explore career and college options through a state the art web based system. It can be accessed at home 24 hours a day or during school hours.

Students are required to meet certain criteria such as picking three college choices, three college majors, three careers, constructing a resume and creating a plan to acheive short term and long term goals. I encourage all students to log in to your Student Success Plan (SSP) and continue to update your information monthly throughout the school year. Success doesn't just happen; it takes planning and hard work, and your SSP is a big part of this process.

After your two days with Mr. Snyder, you'll have all of the information you need to log in and continue to plan toward your goals using your SSP. For username and password information, see me, Mr. Snyder, or your school counselor.

Finally, parents/guardians need to review these accounts in order to certify that they know what they're student's goals are. They have their own login, so parents need to contact me, Mr. Snyder, or they're child's school counselor for that username and password. The library phone number is 302-422-1616 and I'm available 7:30-3:00 daily. Leave a message if we don't pick up, and we'll get back to you with the log in info within 24 hours. You can also email me at ssnyder@mail.milford.k12.de.us and I'll respond within a few hours.

College should be part of every student's plans, and the SSP can be a powerful tool to help all students get there.

What I'm reading right now...

Turning the Page http://www.nea.org/home/35939.htm
Students live in a Digital World. Are schools ready to join them?
By Tim Walker

Are we ready to finally embrace technology in education? I'm not sure. Even though we do have more technology than we did a decade ago, I'm not sure we use it any differently. How many of us use google tech, twitter (The state just unblocked it), and other web 2.0 tools in our teaching? I've just started, and here's what I've learned: It takes time, and this is the one commodity we all seem to be short on.

If you think you have the time, check out the web 2.0 links on my website. Pick a technology and try it out.

http://sites.google.com/site/milfordhighschoollibrary/

Nicholas Sparks New Book

When bestselling author Sparks (The Notebook; Message in a Bottle; etc.) receives a brochure offering a three-week trip around the world, it's not hard for him to persuade Micah, his older brother, to join him in touring Guatemala's Mayan ruins, Peru's Incan temples, Easter Island, the killing fields in Cambodia, the Taj Mahal and Ethiopian rock cathedrals. His account of the trip is refreshingly honest and perceptive. At each stop, the brothers, both deeply committed to their families, cover the crucial moments in a life full of familial love and tragedy: Nick's role as the middle child always feeling left out; his marriage in 1989; the loss of Nick and Micah's mother two months later after a horseback riding accident; the death of Nick's first baby and the physical problems of his second son; the death of their father in a car accident; and the passing of their younger sister from a brain tumor. As the brothers travel together through these mythical sites and share candid thoughts, they find themselves stunned by fate's turns, realizing that a peaceful moment may be shattered at any time. Weaving in vignettes of tenderness and loss with travelogue-like observations, Sparks's account shows how he and his brother both evolved on this voyage. "Somehow there was a chance we could help each other, and in that way, I began to think of the trip less as a journey around the world than a journey to rediscover who I was and how I'? developed the way I did."

Accelerated Reader

ATOS Reading Level: 6.0
Point Value: 16.0
Interest Level: UG
Quiz: 84531EN

This is my suggestion for the day. I just finished it and I really enjoyed it. Lots of sad parts, but overall a happy uplifting message. It is on the new books shelf on the circulation desk for as long as it lasts!