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So no thinking goes on through all that! But today I am in a different world- not at the Musher's Meeting, no- I am home, silent and thoughtful.

See Iditarod has to date been a total failure for me. I have yet to achieve any of the goals I have set for it... Mainly to finish with a happy team that moves up the trail with style and confidence. Now I have tried for two years and I can tell you that it takes over your whole life- sucks it all in. Running dogs is so complex... an Iditarod dog team should represent years of work and 17 living beings working together through ever changing environments, working at the edge physical abilities... there is so much to learn to do it right... and it is such a fierce learning environment wit real consequences to both the musher- and more importantly- the dogs.

Like everything though, there are different paths through this learning environment- some are harder than others, some take longer... and each learner sets their own expectations and their own definitions of success.

Just like a school... just like a classroom...

And my path through the Iditarod is unique to me... just like every other musher... my expectation of of success are different- failure means something different.....

Just like every kid in every class in every school in every state in every country around the world!

Understanding or being aware of this changes who I am... changes how I approach other people's learning...... approach teaching... because in the end, Learning is a solitary occupation despite the best intent of the best teacher... we have to walk alone in our Learning. ]]> General http://teachingwow.org/blog/index.php?itemid=267 Thu, 28 Feb 2008 13:39:57 -0700 http://teachingwow.org/blog/index.php?itemid=263 Edutopia.... interesting enough subject but what caught my eye was this....

"by the Pew Internet & American Life Project, revealed that girls are now considered the "power users" of online communication tools"

WoW! Can you imagine what this means? How deeply this will effect society? What a fundamental shift in power between the genders this foretells! Think about what will happen as this generation of girls grow into women?

If knowledge is power. If the "old boy" network of connections was/is real? Then these "power users" are already one step ahead of the "old boy's"

I think these types of technology induced social shifts (potential anyway) are totally facinating and I can't wait to watch the next 30-40 years to see what happens.

Oh... and by the way... How is this going to effect learning- who's learning and from whom are they learning?]]> General http://teachingwow.org/blog/index.php?itemid=263 Tue, 19 Feb 2008 10:16:31 -0700 http://teachingwow.org/blog/index.php?itemid=261
Where do we learn?

Where do you learn?
I learn everywhere... and frankly I would be a very stupid person if I confined my learning to structure environments like schools! Who wouldn't?

So the next logical question is... Why do we put so much energy into schools?
Well, that seems pretty simple too! Because that's where foundational learning occurs! The basics. And not just the reading, math, science, writing, etc... It's where as a society we say, "Yep! Learning is important to us!"

But learning is important to us so why don't we devise a system for students to get academic credit for all their learning? Why do we compartmentalize learning into "school learning" and all the other stuff that makes us who we are?

How can we adapt our schools to account for all types and places of learning?]]> General http://teachingwow.org/blog/index.php?itemid=261 Mon, 11 Feb 2008 12:11:58 -0700 http://teachingwow.org/blog/index.php?itemid=259
He did great... check out the dog blog to learn more about it- but the thing that struck me is that this is the first race that he has really trained mostly by himself for. The last few years we have trained together and it has been an amazing experience for me to teach him about running dogs... and he has learned so much! It would be hard to say, that after this race, he isn't a full blown, independent musher!

No real earth shattering or amazing insights here- but it is so cool to see the "student" step out of that role and move out on his own!

I guess that is why teaching can be so rewarding! ]]> General http://teachingwow.org/blog/index.php?itemid=259 Wed, 6 Feb 2008 17:18:02 -0700 http://teachingwow.org/blog/index.php?itemid=246

The good thing is, that in the last 2 years since we moved our program from an office in Talkeetna out to our cabin and kennel, this is the first time that has happened. The phone line is fixed… the bad news is the power lines are down now! So I am sitting here typing like crazy to finish this up before the battery power of my laptop dies… and I am wondering when I will get a chance to even post this blog!

In any case, this has made it clear to us, that given how rural we are, how far out at the end of the lines we live, we need to have in place an alternative plan for folks registered in our programs incase we lose power or internet and aren’t able to even let anyone know what happened. We are thinking about some kind of web-based, media intensive lesson plan that teachers can walk their students through in case we can’t connect. We want to do all we can to avoid that horrible experience of having a class of students waiting for a program that isn’t going to happen… that way it won’t be a wasted, frustrating time for teachers and students but instead fun and informative… and then when we can get rescheduled (at half price) the program will be even better because the students will have just that much more background knowledge coming into the event.

So over the course of the next week or so we will be getting this online, blogging about it, and letting everyone who signs up for a program know how to use it.

]]> General http://teachingwow.org/blog/index.php?itemid=246 Tue, 22 Jan 2008 08:49:51 -0700 http://teachingwow.org/blog/index.php?itemid=243 As I was saying in the Dog Blog, I didn’t have a very good attitude about Jack London or “Call of the Wild” when I first began to reread this book. And my reasons for this bad attitude were not good, not based on anything but bad information and a fuzzy memory from when I first read the book twenty years ago. So what a great chance it has been to re-read it. What a great new perspective it has given me to look at my dogs and how I interact with them and how they interact among themselves.

But then it really does go so far beyond just sleddogs! Connections started clicking for so many different areas that I work in. One area that I spend a lot of time thinking about and working on is school/educational reform and the role Student Leaders can play in making change. Specifically the book got me thinking about shared leadership and how much smoother a task can be completed if leadership is shared and everyone is comfortable and respected in the role they play in completing that task.

These thoughts got me thinking about a short activity that could be done based around mushing to help reinforce the idea of shared leadership.



The idea is to basically make a dog team out of your students (or maybe a few dog teams)- but with a twist. Here is how you would do it- break your class up into groups of 6-8 students. One student will be the “Musher,” teach them the commands “Gee” and “Haw” for turning right and left- respectively. Then teach them “whoa” to stop and “hup,hup” to start. Finally, pair off all the remaining group members and select one pair to be the “leaders”, one the “swing dogs,” and one to be the “wheelers.” Any remaining pairs will be “team dogs.” Now using a rope you have happen to have at the ready… Have your mushers “hook up” their dogs to the rope (p.s. Don’t tell any of the “dogs” the commands the Musher is going to be using)

Now, once the team is hooked up… the goal is to mush around a “trail” that you have set up in your classroom with the hope being not to run into anything, collide with other dog teams, get stuck in a blizzard, or frostbite anybody parts. (p.s. Only tell the musher where the trail is, and remind her/him not to use any other words than the command words… gee, haw, whoa, huphup… that your just taught them.)

When the first go around the trail is over, and the mayhem is calmed… gather the class up a debrief what happened… what worked, what was hard, why, why not, etc… lead the discussion into the fact that only the Musher new where they were headed… that he/she was the only one leading the group…

Now send them off down a new trail. Again, only tell the Musher where they are headed but this time let everyone know the commands…

Debrief again but this time have them compare and contrast the two experiences, guiding them to the conclusion that when everyone is working together, sharing leadership to accomplish a task, that things go a lot more smoothly.

For a more complete description of the activity with diagrams, debriefing tools, and further resources follow the this link.





]]> jack london http://teachingwow.org/blog/index.php?itemid=243 Mon, 19 Nov 2007 14:04:31 -0700 http://teachingwow.org/blog/index.php?itemid=241
The narrow country road wound through the dark forest, the double beams of the car’s powerful headlights only dimly holding back the evil shadows. The strong wind, blustery and insistent, pushing dead and decaying leaves across the pavement as the tires clung for traction on the tight curves and through the freezing rain.

Inside the car the young couple clung to each other in wild love, mindless of the soulless nature of the forest that stalked them. Erie green glow lighting up their faces from the dashboard instrument panel, throwing in sharp contrast the innocent, wrinkle free faces of youthful innocence. The girl- thin cotton dress, heelless sandals, light shawl thrown over the shoulder, head lightly snuggled into the crux of the boys neck. The boy- light shirt, shorts, tennis shoes, arm protectively draped around his sweet dreams shoulder. Both regretfully underdressed for the cold nature of the land they have entered.

And the road winds on. The trees move in closer to the road, swaying and screaming in the building, raging wind. Rain turns to frigid hard snow.

On the ipod, pumped through the car’s speakers, Jimmy Buffet sings “Changes in Latitude, Changes in Attitude,” the meaning of the lyrics slip past without a thought as they drive ever further north, ever deeper into the woods.

In the back window the cold slips in- killing the batteries in the cell phone- moving forward.

The snow piles up across the road, the girl feels the fist fingers of cold- shivers. The boy misunderstands and wiggles closer into her, excited. His foot pushes down harder on the throttle. The powerful push of the car’s pistons surge the boy and girl forward, faster and faster, streams of snow wail up and over the hood. The headlights dim, vision goes to nothing but the swirling white demons of snow screeching around the rapidly fogging windows.

The car chokes, sputters, dies- snow clogging all the intakes. The heater quickly blows cold air. Goose bumps rise on the girls young, soft flesh. The hair shivers along the back of the boy’s neck. Wrinkles of awareness line their faces just as heatless green glow of the cars power fades out.

The demons pound on the windows, shake the car, push frozen fingers through all the cracks, fill in the pampered, cultured, civilized world they lived in with white icy death.

Days later, weeks later, months later, in the spring sun, trees in bloom, a gentle wind filling the air with fresh wild life, the car still sits in the middle of a forgotten road, in the middle of a forgotten wood. The putrid rot of the young couples decay locked in the petro-chemical seals of their luxury life, strong enough to keep in their death but to weak to hold onto their lives.
]]> General http://teachingwow.org/blog/index.php?itemid=241 Wed, 31 Oct 2007 15:50:45 -0600 http://teachingwow.org/blog/index.php?itemid=240 Sleddog Symposium in Fairbanks put on by the ADMA (Alaska Dog Mushing Associations) it was a great learning experience!

The thing that was so cool- besides all the information that was being shared- was the reason people were there... from presenters to participants. Everyone was there because they love dogs, running dogs, caring for dogs, etc!

People from all walks of life... people who make there living from all fields of profession...but share dogs as their reason for living. The energy was amazing! The information, the learning being exchanged, was incredible. I have participated in a fair number of "Professional Development" symposiums, and I am always excited to goto them, and energized to get back and try implementing ideas I have discovered... but the environment is just different than it was at the Mushing Symposium- not as electric.

I think the reason for this is simple: people attend "professional development" symposiums and workshops to improve their "work" knowledge base. And as we all know, not everybody earns a living doing "stuff" that follows their passion. So, say at an education symposium, you will have a mix of people with a wide range of interest in the content being presented- from the guy their just to get a paycheck (kinda' like that kid sitting there in the back row just sliding along to get his or her "passing" grade) all the way to those really great educators that are their because it is their true passion to help teach kids (like those dreamy students who sit in the front row and hang on our every word, project idea, or any other learning opportunity we present to them). And I think that mix of reasons for being their can really detract from the overall atmosphere of a learning environment.

At the Mushing Symposium people attended because they had a passion for the subject! We were all unified in our reasons for being their... to learn how to manage/treat/train/care for our dogs... we were their for our PASSIONS! And the learning was so much more intense because of that... our energy fed off one another to create an amazing, charged, learning environment. Even when the presenter truly lacked presenting skills... it didn't matter- our passions carried us through the tedium of a bad presenter to core meaning of what they were presenting.

And what I think... is that through all the new technologies we have available, all the new ways we have to communicate, the many new insight we have on how people learn... that there doesn't need to be a classroom anywhere, a subject/content area anywhere that doesn't tap into the passions of each and every one of our students!

We learn best through our passions!
Our jobs, as modern teachers, are to guide our students into tapping into their passions to learn the general content (reading, writing, math, science, history, art, etc...) that will help them develop their current passions... and give them opportunities to find future passions!

Teach Passions!



]]> General http://teachingwow.org/blog/index.php?itemid=240 Tue, 23 Oct 2007 11:19:37 -0600 http://teachingwow.org/blog/index.php?itemid=235
Teaching your Passion is the idea of sharing what you love to do with your students, sharing all it takes to do it, and letting your excitement and energy flow into the students so they become energized to learn.

The two concepts work together because with the level of technology we have access too, a good teacher can find someone, somewhere, excited about almost anything we can imagine... and every core subject we are responsible to explore can be found in real-life application, used by devoutly passionate people who would be thrilled to share their knowledge!

I am a prime example of that... I use Math, Science, History, and Social Development to run my dogs to the best of my abilities. I love it! I could share for hours and hours all about it!

But the challenge to all of us is to develop the skills and physical infrastructure to find one another! To connect and relate to each other so that we can share our passions!]]> General http://teachingwow.org/blog/index.php?itemid=235 Sun, 9 Sep 2007 15:05:10 -0600 http://teachingwow.org/blog/index.php?itemid=233
Is it a great chance for your students to experience something you otherwise couldn’t provide for them in your classroom?(pic of museum vtc)
Do you see it kind of like a fieldtrip… but not really?
Well, when we look around at all the other Content Providers that’s what we think too!

Or maybe…
…maybe you think of videoconferencing as a way for students in your school to receive daily instruction in course work your school can’t provide otherwise?
We can see that too!(vtc course delivery)

And then there is Professional Development and district-wide collaboration.
Another great use of videoconferencing!(pic of pd)


But can you see MORE?

We can!(dia. of global learning)
We see all those uses- virtual field trips, course delivery, and professional development- blended into a single community. A community made up of students, teachers, and experts in the field… all educators invested in learning and building understanding across physical and social environments.
We see our programs as just a small start- a small, obscure juncture in the silk threads that make up the web of Global Learning.

A Grand Vision! But how about the small steps first?

The first step is to share the idea (teaching wow blog)…
The second step is to build infrastructure… build the lines of communication (links to moodle, blog, vtc, SL, how to’s)…
The third step is to start sharing!
And that’s where we start… you in your classroom and us in our kennel.
You have your curriculum and learning goals… structured and setup for the year.
We have our kennel plans and objectives, organized into components much like subjects in your classroom… Breeding, Dog Care (includes feeding), Equipment (both for the musher and the dogs), Training, and Racing… all these pieces come together to make up our Kennel Management System.
So…
Where do your needs in the classroom meet with our experiences in the kennel?
Or, in other words…
How can we help you meet your classroom objectives?

Well, in every component of our Kennel Management System we use science, math, social studies, and a plethora of other academic skills!

That means you, as the teacher, can tap in to our real-life applications of your subject matter. And you can do it through a wealth of different media! Videoconferencing. Our online classroom! Our Blog and traditional webpages! And soon (early 2008) real-time Second Life conferences! Individually, or in any combination you choose!

What we envision is a close partnership with you as the teacher! A collaboration where you share with us what you need to accomplish in your classroom, based on State and National Standards, and we share with you what we are doing in the kennel related to those Standards.

What we envision is long-term relationships with classrooms where we meet regularly and follow each other’s progress throughout the year.

Here is just one example of how this might look:

Say you’re a science teacher working, over the course of the year, on the following National Standard (add Link):
NS.5-8.1 SCIENCE AS INQUIRY

ABILITIES NECESSARY TO DO SCIENTIFIC INQUIRY
IDENTIFY QUESTIONS THAT CAN BE ANSWERED THROUGH SCIENTIFIC INVESTIGATIONS.
DESIGN AND CONDUCT A SCIENTIFIC INVESTIGATION.
USE APPROPRIATE TOOLS AND TECHNIQUES TO GATHER, ANALYZE, AND INTERPRET DATA
DEVELOP DESCRIPTIONS, EXPLANATIONS, PREDICTIONS, AND MODELS USING EVIDENCE.
THINK CRITICALLY AND LOGICALLY TO MAKE THE RELATIONSHIPS BETWEEN EVIDENCE AND
EXPLANATIONS.
RECOGNIZE AND ANALYZE ALTERNATIVE EXPLANATIONS AND PREDICTIONS.
COMMUNICATE SCIENTIFIC PROCEDURES AND EXPLANATIONS.
USE MATHEMATICS IN ALL ASPECTS OF SCIENTIFIC INQUIRY.

You (as the science teacher) learned, through our Programs page and Blog, that one of the many projects we have going on in the kennel this year is an intensive 6 month long experiment on commercial dog foods.

To begin:
Sign up for an initial Feeding videoconference program
Use our Flexibility Tool to customize your videoconference
This gains you access to our online classroom where you will find added resources, networking
tools, and curriculum ideas to expand the value of the videoconference
Use the materials from the online classroom to further tap into the power of our Blog and
Traditional Webpage.
Go even further and explore our Second Life facilities.
Each Videoconference program that you sign up for gives you access to the Online classroom and Second Life portals for one month (the Blog and Traditional Webpage are always accessible). So for each Program you register for you receive support and resources for up to a month of supportive curriculum bringing the real-world application of your subject matter into the classroom.

But the ideal is to string the programs together. So that after the first month you register for another program… either the same one working on a new Standard or a different one examining the same Standard in a different context.
]]> General http://teachingwow.org/blog/index.php?itemid=233 Wed, 5 Sep 2007 20:00:49 -0600