My Summer, Thing 1 & Thing 2

Would someone pah-leese tell me where in the Sam Hill my summer went? One minute I was sitting by the pool drinking lemonade and eating chips. The next minute I'm standing in my closet getting all misty eyed trying to figure out what not to wear.

I had all these big plans for the summer. Things like organizing my files for the school year. Things like organizing stuff in my house. Things like losing 500 pounds. Things like… Well, you get the picture.

Apparently, this is a reoccurring problem of mine as I wrote about this exact same thing on August 9 of last year. That post (which begged for a summer do-over) was pretty funny. (OK, so I'm easily amused.) Now, I'm just pathetic.

So once again one year later, I'm sitting here pondering all the things I need to be doing. In fact, for inspiration I even got out Thing 1 and Thing 2. (And, no I'm not kidding either.) All they want to do, though, is get me in trouble.

So once again I head back to school without much to show for my summer. At least when I get there, I'll take a peek at my "things that will get you fired" folder and hope things run just a tad bit more smoothly this year.

And speaking of things, I bet Thing 1 & Thing 2 had something to do with the thieving of my summer.

Week 15 Training Update

For those of you who have been following my training for the Susan G. Komen 60 mile, 3-day for the Cure Walk, my latest update can be found on Technorati or on my fitness challenge blog.

And the survey says…

Thanks to everyone for participating in the survey on whether to allow posts from commercial vendors along the midway of the Education Buzz carnival. Most of you said to consider their submissions if they have a relevant educational topic. (Now, if I were a judge on the Supreme Court, I would use the phrase "legitimate pedagogical" concern.)

Well, I may not be a Supreme Court judge, but here on the Education Buzz midway, I am the gate keeper of the midway. So-o-o-o-o, we'll judge submissions based on the content. However, I will also group those submissions separately so you know whether the posts are from EduSphere bloggers or EduSphere carneys.

Now that we've cleared that up… Submissions for the second edition of the Education Buzz are open until 5 p.m. CST Saturday, August 14. You can use this handy dandy form for your submissions.  And, if the good Lord's willing and the creeks don't rise, the carnival will be up and running on Wednesday, August 18.

Please remember the ground rules…

1. No spam
2. Must be education related
3. Since the carnival may be organized around themes, not all submissions may run.
4. Please remember to post and link back to the carnival.

Dirty Little Secrets

[This article was first published as OMG Did U C That? on Technorati.]

OMG Did  U C That?

It was bound to happen. A father in Irving, Texas, said he plans to file a lawsuit against the school district there for reading his daughter's text messages. 

According to The Dallas Morning News, the Irving School Board dismissed the father's complaint this week. The board determined that in April, MacArthur High School administrators had probable cause to search the 17-year-old's cellphone, as well as those of three other students, because they believed a possible school violation or criminal incident had taken place.

Administrators said they read the text messages because they believed the cell phones might have contained information about two cars that were vandalized, a possible gun on campus, and bullying.

The girl's father, however, said his daughter's right to privacy was violated in the search. The dad asked the school board to issue an apology, terminate the administrators involved and award $7.5 million in damages to his daughter.

$7.5 million in damages. RU kidding me?

Jeez Louise, I wish I had thought of that.

Several years ago when my youngest daughter was in high school, she had her cell phone confiscated by an assistant principal because she was caught texting, and cell phones weren't allowed in school at that time.

For some reason, school administrators read her text messages and went into a tizzy. They called me very, very concerned because one message contained the phrase "my dirty little secret."

Unconcerned, I told school officials that I would wager there were lots of kids with that phrase on their lips since it was the name of a song by the band All-American Rejects. In fact, the song was so popular it stayed in the top 10 slot on Billboard magazine's Hot 100 chart in January 2006.

$7.5 million? Puh-leese. Between you and me, I would have settled for a cool million.

And that, my dears, could be our dirty little secret. 

Education Buzz Carnival #1

Welcome back my friends!

Come one, come all, the short, the fat, the tall...C'mon y'all down the education carnival midway. We've got the very first edition of the Education Buzz Carnival right here with some excellent reading throughout the EduSphere.

No need to pop into the Funhouse if you want to get some blood boiling and screams curdling, all ya gotta do is mention the words "voucher" and "public schools" in the same sentence. Yep, that ought to do it. I'd just as soon shoot fish out of a barrel. But if you'd rather do more than fish around, check out Matthew Ladner's post on "Rhee Looks to Clean Up the DC Special Ed Barn with vouchers."

Darren from Right on the Left Coast pushes some hot buttons with his take on an Augusta State University student who filed a lawsuit against her school claiming it violated her First Amendment rights when administrators told her to change her views on homosexuality or leave.

And did you really think you could get out of the Funhouse without popping over to the Education Standard to read "Scary but true: Real Reform is Wholesale."

All this reform stuff must have been weighing heavy on everyone this summer because Nancy Flanagan also talks about the difference between reform and investment in her post "Follow the You-Know-What." (Even if you don't care about reform, you need to go there to read about her new house.)

Better watch your step on the midway or you'll find yourself Dancing with Crocodiles. Go see why the perfect classroom should be like a group of monkeys on a rock. (Come on, what's not to like about monkeys? OK, OK, OK, so maybe the flying ones are a bit scary, but the other ones…)
 
Sorry, but things are going to get a bit more complicated than wondering whether to buy cotton candy or salt water taffy (although that's a tough decision). Curmudgeon's pondering "Why Johnny Can't Write A Term Paper" and perhaps you should, too.


And while you're in the mood to ponder those educational type things, go chat with Stephen Lazar about the challenges in using Standard Based Grading in the history classroom over at Outside the Cave.

I wish y'all would stop asking me if I think you'll win one of those ginormous stuffed Tweety birds. Go talk to Pat over at Successful Teaching. She has some some pointers for handling those silly questions (and unlike me, it doesn't include anything remotely having to do with Big Fat Stupid Heads). She's nice like that.

Wait just a darn tootin' minute…Maybe we should try and figure out how to win one of those ginormous Tweety birds. With creativity on the decline, Sarah over at Ensmartening has some tips on what to do.

Better hurry up and grab that last corny dog. It's time to head on home. Hope you had a good time. 


Thanks to everyone for submitting. Some posts were not included as we try to determine whether to include posts from commerical sites. The survey is still up and running and the results are really close. So, if you haven't voted yet, please take the time to do so. You can read about it here and cast your vote on the link provided there.

If your post was included, please link back to the carnival. Otherwise, I'll get snarky and may not include you next time. If you are interested in submitting a post, please check our guidelines first and then use this handy dandy form to submit. The carnival will appear back here in two weeks. Once school begins we'll shoot for a weekly carnival. Posts are due by 5 p.m. CST on Saturdays.

Please let me know about any broken links or problems.  As always…

“I’ve got this feeling that there’s something that I missed…”

–Snow Patrol

And, if I did, my apologies.

Trying to Stay Out of the Heat & Hot Water

[Article first published as Week 14--Trying to Stay Out of the Heat and Hot Water on Technorati.]  

With temperatures soaring into the triple digits, and last month setting heat records across the country, wanting to walk more than a few feet can present quite a challenge.

Still, I've managed to keep my training schedule for the 3-day for the Cure, walking at least two miles a day and up to four or five miles when I can. I've also managed to squeeze in a hot yoga class although we probably could have just yoged outside in the 100 degree plus temps and gotten the same results.

Despite highs predicted at 104 degrees for Friday, I, along with my two walking buddies, plan to brave the heat and squeeze in a long 9-plus mile walk around White Rock Lake before school starts.

With my summer winding down and the start of school just a few weeks away, I've been trying to cram in all the things that I can't seem to find time for during the school year. That, of course, includes what I like to refer to as "preventative maintenance."  So since I'm walking the walk and raising money to fight breast  cancer, I thought I better schedule my yearly mammogram.

When I called for an appointment, I discovered I hadn't had a mammogram in several years--four years to be exact. Embarrassing, I know. I guess when I thought about getting one, life got in the way and I thought I had actually had one. Dumb, I know. I guess I'm part of that group of women--an estimated one-fifth between 50 and 74 years old--who fell behind on getting mammograms, according to a recent study by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

My training buddies were mortified that I had let four years go by. Needless to say, I scheduled my appointment speedy quick and I'm in the clear.

At least (for now), I'm back on track and out of hot water with my walking buddies.  Now, if I can just get out of this heat.

The Education Buzz--Life's a Carnival Coming Soon!

Submissions for the first edition of the Education Buzz are closed. Barring any natural disasters (or as my mom used to say, "If the good Lord's willing and the creeks don't rise"), the Education Buzz carnival will be up and running on  Wednesday, August 4.

In the meantime, something for you to ponder and weigh in on… As I said before in the ground rules, no spam. Now, my question is this… Do we allow online education sites to post to the carnival. They are commercial, but they do have education posts. I need to know what you think.

If you would, please weigh in by completing a brief survey…

Click here to take survey