Learning Strategies

Recent Posts - page 102

• Weston teens & Boston teens…polite or not?

  By ljd42 on November 10, 2009

  Earlier today I just happened to make a small remark to my junior class, complimenting them (and indirectly their parents) on how well brought up they were. The context was that two students had gone out of their way to… Read More ›

• Friday cat blogging

  By ljd42 on November 6, 2009

  

  Geometry was never their strong point. It’s hard to get them to understand what “parallel” means:

• Congratulations to the Math Team!

  By ljd42 on November 5, 2009

  Please congratulate the Weston High School math team for a spectacular showing at today’s meet. There were three — count them, that’s three — students with perfect scores, an unprecedented event in my years at Weston. Kudos to Marco Alagna,… Read More ›

• What's wrong with a B+?

  By ljd42 on November 4, 2009

  Three different freshmen approached me at various times today with concerns about whether they should stay in Honors Geometry or drop down to College Prep. That’s OK. But for two of them the reason was that their current average is… Read More ›

• What a good day for a test!

  By ljd42 on November 2, 2009

  Must be a good day for a test. Today three out of my four classes are taking tests — or opportunities to achieve, as some of them like to say. Maybe we are getting close to the end of the… Read More ›

• Halloween ups and downs

  By ljd42 on November 1, 2009

  

  This year’s Halloween was the best and the worst. Let’s save the best for last. So the first question is, “How many trick-or-treaters did we get this year?” For perspective, we need to know that Barbara and I just happened… Read More ›

• Friday cat blogging

  By ljd42 on October 30, 2009

  

  This is Rosalita, commonly known as Rosie but sometimes called the Curmudge-o-cat:

• Class blogs

  By ljd42 on October 26, 2009

  Check out the blogs for all of my classes! We rotate each day that a class meets, so that students take turns posting class notes. So far this has led to a number of positive effects: Students who miss class… Read More ›

• Bullet voting: why it may be a good idea

  By ljd42 on October 24, 2009

  I was recently asked whether a Boston voter should always vote for the full allotment of four at-large City Council candidates, or whether bullet voting made sense. I unhelpfully replied, “It depends.” It occurred to me that I had already… Read More ›

• Paper clips: current count

  By ljd42 on October 19, 2009

  Currently up to 18 paper clips…

• Little Brother

  By ljd42 on October 17, 2009

  Little Brother, by Cory Doctorow, is billed as a “Young Adult” Novel. And so it is. But, like several other “Young Adult” adults, it is worth reading by not-so-young adults. This is an homage to 1984 — hence the title… Read More ›

• Stimulus Package

  By ljd42 on October 15, 2009

  No, not that stimulus package. This one is the recently released CD from Weston High School’s own à cappella group, the Town Criers. Released in September on Apple’s iTunes Store, Stimulus Package is a flawless collection of eleven songs sung… Read More ›

• Me? Joining a gym???

  By ljd42 on October 13, 2009

  Never in my life did I think that I would join a gym. And I especially never thought that I would enjoy being a member of a gym. But all that changed in July when I joined Dedham Health &… Read More ›

• Mrs. Jones

  By ljd42 on October 11, 2009

  After several enthusiastic recommendations from friends, Barbara and I decided to try the take-out from Mrs. Jones, a small restaurant at 2255 Dorchester Avenue in Lower Mills, Dorchester. We are pleased to report an enthusiastic thumbs-up. For an exceptionally reasonable… Read More ›

• Encouraging mistakes with paper clips

  By ljd42 on October 8, 2009

  This year I’ve been trying something new, and I already love the effects. Back in August I had read this wonderful idea from a math teacher whom I don’t know except from her post: I start a chain of paper… Read More ›

• Math Explorers Club

  By ljd42 on October 4, 2009

  I don’t know why I never knew about the Cornell Math Explorers Club before now. Its website is a terrific enrichment resource for high-school math students and their teachers, with a wonderful assortment of slightly offbeat topics that are right… Read More ›

• Can the right to choose be detrimental?

  By ljd42 on October 1, 2009

  

  I always start off each class in September with a seating chart where the students are seated in alphabetical order. This arrangement is the quickest way for me to learn the names of the 75–95 names in all my classes,… Read More ›

• Pasha

  By ljd42 on September 30, 2009

  I’ve had lunch twice so far at Pasha, a new Turkish restaurant in Arlington Center. Although I don’t know anything yet about their dinners, I can highly recommend it on the basis of the two lunches. If you’ve never had… Read More ›

• The Internet isn't melting our brains.

  By ljd42 on September 28, 2009

  Vincent Rossmeier has written a refreshing article in Salon entitled “Is the Internet melting our brains?” Essentially an interview with linguist Dennis Baron about his new book, A Better Pencil, the article counters much of the typical hand-wringing in the… Read More ›

• Numb3rs, Season Six — and the Unexpected Quiz

  By ljd42 on September 27, 2009

  On the other hand, the season opener of Numb3rs — Season Six, which is hard to believe! — was pretty good, even it was skimpy on the math and a bit long on tensions between Charlie and Amita. But this… Read More ›

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