Children See. Children Do.

How do you want your students to turn out?

Thanks to Samantha for sharing this video. =)

Drawing Manga Realistically!

Many students have taken fancy to Japanese anime and manga. Therefore, stimulate their interest with these easy-to-follow tutorials and get them drawing amazing and realistic manga immediately.

Be sure to praise them, encourage them and display their initial tries readily. Your belief in them will most certainly motivate them to start on the second. third, fourth....

Blogging made EZ...

Alright, it's term 4 in our school and we'll be embarking on a blogging project as part of our ICT curriculum. The blog is meant as a e-portfolio to capture the learning that has taken place over the last 3 terms. Students will be taught how to create new posts, add the images they have created and upload the video they had produced in term 3.

It is hoped that this skill learnt will help some of our students gain another wonderful platform on which they could showcase their achievements and socialise responsibly. As we will be using wordpress blogging script, the following videos are meant to introduce ideas that you can work with your students as you conduct a lesson on blogging.


This is a very comprehensive video that can be shown to your students to take them through blogging.


This video is for more advance learners and for teachers who would like to explore hosting a blog of your own.

And if you are preferring to use Blogger to do your blogging, check out the following video:


Adding a video in Blogger:


And the magic of adding Google gadgets in Blogger:



Enjoy!

An idea for Monfort Challenge?

Those of you who are keen on putting up a singing performance, this is a challenge for you!

If you didn't get enough laughter from the above video, check this one out!

Happy Teachers Day!

Dear teachers in Singapore, this is a day we can all celebrate our common achievement as builders of our nation.

The values you hold are imparted.
The vision you embrace is caught.
The passion you burn with keeps igniting.
The dreams you carry never cease to inspire.
The care you show always transforms.
The way that you show gives comfort and hope.

Thank you for being an agent of transforming change!







Singapore Teachers: Lead. Care. Inspire.

I get bullied a lot in school...

Watching this, it is easy for us to understand the emotional strain that one goes through when targetted by bullies. The negative self-perceptions, the negative social experiences, the suspicions of others' motives being with ill-intent, lack of self-belief, etc, all converge in a growing mind.

Nevertheless, we can start by saying, "Andrew, you are better than you think you are!"

Perhaps you can be someone who builts another up. So, go ahead, be an inspiration!

Bobby McFerrin playing the audience like an instrument

WOW!

Try this during one of your school's assemblies for a change...

Sir Ken Robinson: Do schools kill creativity?

I guess I do agree with him.

Watch and experience how Sir Ken Robinson disarms you with his wit and wisdom. A truly remarkable talk given by a remarkable man.

I loved the story he told about Gillian Lynne. That really provoked me deeply to consider the tremendous power I have in helping my students fulfill their destinies. This power is a double-edged sword. You have this power too.

And also, the thought of how all education systems apply the same hierarchical valuation in terms of subjects was a tremendous revelation. Imagine all the breakthroughs in educational research on Multiple Intelligences, Learning Styles, Brain Research, etc had SO LITTLE impact on the education world!

What would it take for you and your school to do the right thing?

Steve Levitt - Why Financial Incentives Don't Work

One of my favourite authors---the only one who made Economics fun enough for me to read!

Anyway, are you wondering what this video has got to do with you as an educator? Am I saying that you should not be drawing a higher salary?

Well, no. I think that teachers are providing an important function to society and should be financially incentivised generously. Having said that, what am I trying to say with this video?

Simple. Perhaps we can apply what he has said to how we run the class room. Do our students actually think that what they are doing is the most important thing in the world? Or are they working for extrinsic motivations?

If you went "huh?!" after reading that. You have either not watched the video or you need to watch it again.

Keep your school Bully-Free!

My school is running a two-week emphasis on Bully-free education. Research has shown that some cases of absenteeism are related to victimisation as a result of bullying.

Be on the look out for the following tell-tale signs that your student may be bullied:

• Drop in grades to poor school attendance
• Loneliness and poor social relationships
• Physical ill-health
• Lowered self-esteem and depression
• Suicide talk or tendencies
• Self-harm
• Revenge leading to violent juvenile behaviour
  

The anatomy of a bullying experience:


The following video is a stark reminder that bullying cannot be taken lightly. Parental guidance is advised.


I believe that one of the most effect ways to create a bully-free environment is to make bully-free look cool. In this way, it is likely that victims are well-informed on proper responses to bullying and bullies have full expectations of the consequences of bullying. Schools must also take up stringent measures to curb bullying and mete out harsh punishments for school bullies. However, having said that, the most powerful kind of incentive is the moral incentive. We must educate our students that all forms of bullying are inhumane to say the least. After all, they wouldn't want the same (form of bullying) to be done to themselves, would they?

A few more videos to help you with your quest to make your school bully-free!

link to final video (not possible to embed)

And finally, a link to help you and your students go deeper into this campaign:

http://www.bullyfreecampaign.sg/

Many thanks to Khusni for inspiring this post!