Saturday, May 8, 2021

THIS WEEK'S WILDNESS Dad Gone Wild Nobody reads it, everybody quotes it

Dad Gone Wild – Nobody reads it, everybody quotes it.


THIS WEEK'S WILDNESS 
Dad Gone Wild 
Nobody reads it, everybody quotes it





THE ROLE OF SCIENCE AND HISTORY
by TC Weber / 17h
“People who deny the existence of dragons are often eaten by dragons. From within.” ― Ursula K. Le Guin, The Wave in the Mind: Talks and Essays on the Writer, the Reader, and the Imagination This week, amidst great fanfare, the State General Assembly came to a close . For many, it couldn’t have come fast enough. I would argue that this year’s legislative session produced an overabundance of bad b
ALL GOOD THINGS MUST COME TO AN END
by TC Weber / 4d
“One of the hardest things in life to learn are which bridges to cross and which bridges to burn.” ― Oprah Winfrey The 2021 version of the Tennessee General Assembly is slowly coming to a close. But whether it will close with a whimper or a bang is yet to be determined. Two bills slated for discussion this week could send it either way . First up, is a bill that would lay out a pathway for those
THE NEW ABNORMAL HAS IT’S PLUSSES
by TC Weber / 7d
“The mind can calculate, but the spirit yearns, and the heart knows what the heart knows” ― Stephen King Clipping the leash to the dog, I check that I have the necessary plastic bag in my pocket. Once verified, I call out to my 10-year old son, “You about ready?” “We going now?”, he responds from the living room, “Coming.” It’s 7:45 and in a normal year, we’d be rushing to get him and his sister
A RACE TO NOWHERE, WITH NO GUARANTEED WINNERS
by TC Weber / 9d
“the city’s ills were supposed to disappear.” ― Douglas Stuart, Shuggie Bain Back when I wore a younger man’s clothes, I drank the elixir of the protestant work ethic by the case. I was sold on the idea that I was on a mythical race to somewhere, I didn’t know where it was or even have a clear vision of how I’d recognize it if I got there, I only knew that if I worked hard and studied my craft to
WHO DO WE WANT THEM TO BE WHEN THEY GROW UP?
by TC Weber / 11d
“The time has arrived when patience becomes a crime and mayhem appears garbed in a manner of virtue” ― Edgar Rice Burroughs, Tarzan of the Apes I’m going to let you in on a little secret this morning. For some, it’ll be deeply


Dad Gone Wild – Nobody reads it, everybody quotes it.

Posted by at
Labels: , ,

TEACHER TOM THIS WEEK IN EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION + Teacher Tom: Let's Turn The World Around: Teacher Tom's Play Summit

  Teacher Tom

TEACHER TOM
THIS WEEK IN EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION



Teacher Tom: Let's Turn The World Around: Teacher Tom's Play Summit


We heard it from Mandela,
"Turn this world around,
For the children" - turn this world around.
He's done it once before, and now we hear his call
For the children, turn this world around.
Turn, turn, turn,
Turn this world around
For the children, turn this world around.
Turn, turn, turn, 
Turn this world around
For the children
Turn this world around.
                                ~Raffi

It's an urgent message, one that's part of almost every conversation I have these days. The principle project of every society has always been to care for the children, yet in so many ways, we are failing in this fundamental task. I myself have been going along for years, feeling like I was doing enough: that if I just tended my little corner of the world where children are free to enjoy an authentic childhood, where they are respected, where their needs are met in a community that strives to let them grow up as free people . . . but I know now that this is not enough.

These last 12 months have been transformative in so many ways, not all bad. Indeed, many of us have expressed our hopes that the legacy of the pandemic might be exactly the catalyst we need to turn this world around, not just for children, but for all of us. At least as many are expressing fears, because transformation doesn't always naturally happen the way we want it to. No, the only way the world has ever "turned around" has been when we make it happen.

This is the inspiration behind Teacher Tom's Play Summit, a free online gathering of early childhood educators and parents taking place June 21-25. Please join us. Together we will turn this world around. 

We've managed to pull together some of the most progressive and thoughtful people in ECE, from Peter Gray, Lisa Murphy, and Maggie Dent to the beloved children's troubadour Raffi whose message of "child honouring" comes directly from the Dali Lama. We have cast a wide net to assemble a line-up of both established experts as well as less often heard voices from marginalized communities. The fate of young children is one of the few issues that can truly unite all of us, and it starts with listening to children, to one another, and sharing our perspectives from around the globe. 

Maori educator Brenda Souter says, "It's a journey. It's not a destination . . . And we certainly have not reached it if it is." Ojibwe teacher Hopi Martin warns, "There is a real need to repair what is lost. We've got to work together or we're in big trouble." And Denisha Jones, co-founder of Black Lives Matters in Schools, tells us that first "we have to liberate ourselves" which is, I think, the most logical next step in this journey that may not reach its destination in our lifetimes.

But that's okay. As Defending Early Childhood board member and Play Empowers founder Kisha Reid said to me when last we spoke, "Let's take over the world!" which is her way of saying "Turn this world around." 

As we hopefully try to emerge from a pandemic, from political and social turmoil, and as we are finally opening our eyes and ears to the voices of those less often heard, the time is ripe for transformation, for children, for all of us, and we are the ones to make it happen.

Please, please join us. Please share with others. Now is the right time and you are the right person. Click here to learn more about our presenters and get on the waitlist. Let's turn this world around.


******

Teacher Tom's Play Summit is online, free, and takes place June 21-25. To learn more and to get on the waitlist, click here!

I put a lot of time and effort into this blog. If you'd like to support me please consider a small contribution to the cause. Thank you!




Teacher Tom

Posted by at
Labels: , , , ,

SSPI TONY THURMOND: STUFF THIS WEEK FROM THE CALIFORNIA DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

 California Department of Education


SSPI TONY THURMOND
STUFF THIS WEEK FROM THE
CALIFORNIA DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION





Accessing Educational Data
8d
Obtain data collected by the California Department of Education (CDE), including enrollment data, demographic and student group data, staff data, school and district accountability, statewide assessment results, and directory information.

 California Department of Education

Posted by at
Labels: , ,
Subscribe to: Posts (Atom)