How to teach volcanoes

VOLCANOES. They’re so cool, right? Not from up close, of course. I’m pretty sure your mentee would agree with you.

Here is an incredibly detailed article from The Guardian elaborating on the myriad ways for you and your mentee to learn about volcanoes together (with links). As this is a UK Newspaper, you might have to make a few adaptations to make their suggestions more relevant to our context – such as which volcanoes are closest to Canada, for example.

One thing the article fails to mention is the mythology behind volcanoes. Many cultures have specific myths and stories about volcanoes – if your mentee is into it, a cool project would be to look up and compare these myths!

It’s getting a little toasty here, don’t you think?

An A+ Student Regrets His Grades [Article]

BY: AFRAJ GILL

The Globe and Mail

Published Friday, Jan. 18 2013, 10:12 AM EST

The purpose and meaning of education is widely misunderstood and wrongly presented.

This is why the education system needs “reinventing, not reforming,” according to Harvard Innovation Education Fellow Tony Wagner. We’re creating a culture – reinforced by society and habitually drilled into students from an early age and well into their teens – that revolves around textbooks, lectures, GPAs and exams, where failing or not doing well are either unacceptable or wrongly considered a sign of weakness or a lack of intellect.

Education is not confined to the walls of a classroom; it stretches well beyond that. Valuing success above all else is a problem plaguing the schooling systems, at all levels, of many countries including Canada and the United States, and undermining those very qualities that are meant to foster an educated and skillful society.

This very issue took a toll on my own educational career, not in terms of academic performance, but other aspects considerably more important.

[See Full Article Here]

Why university students need a well-rounded education

Sometimes something amazing happens in everyday life – like when I hit up the newspaper (okay, let’s be honest…when I check my twitter home page) and there’s an article so relevant to what we’re all doing here:

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/time-to-lead/why-university-students-need-a-well-rounded-education/article4610406/

The article discusses the need for a well-rounded education, the idea of a broad-based curriculum and the meaning of the word “practical” in terms of higher learning.

We all know that McGill students strive for excellence, that we always aim to know more and understand better. However, more often than not, this idea of “excellence” is defined in theoretical knowledge and the concept of “understanding” becomes a shadow of itself. This idea of an excellent education isn’t quite as well-rounded as it should be.

Of course, we don’t have to blame the curriculum for not providing practical knowledge. Being the eager and powerful students that we are, we find our own ways of constructing knowledge and experience. Increasingly there’s been culture of engagement growing on campus – and I’m proud to say that all the volunteers of Homework Zone are a part of it! We are entering new neighbourhoods, we’re attending workshops, we’re asking questions about one of Canada’s fundamental infrastructures: education.

And better yet, we are sharing all of this with the next generation. We’re not leaving our classroom knowledge behind – no, we are shaping what we know into something greater, adding context, experience and the perspectives of others. Heck, we’re even sometimes figuring out exactly why we’re studying what we’re studying when we tell our mentees more about ourselves.

It’s about bridging the lecture hall with the community; and in this case, bridging one classroom with another (usually distinguished by shorter desks and wall-art).

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Check out this extra video, begging the question of a need for educational reform at the post-secondary level.

The Importance of Pretend

This article is inspired by one little girl at Homework Zone in Orchard Elementary. When asked what her favourite part of Homework Zone was, she replied “when we pretend”. 

FULL ARTICLE

Encourage your child to use her imagination — it’s not just fun, but builds learning skills too!

Young children learn by imagining and doing. Have you ever watched your child pick up a stone and pretend it is a zooming car, or hop a Lego across the table as if it were a person or a bunny? Your child is using an object to represent something else while giving it action and motion. But this pretend play is not as simple as it may seem. The process of pretending builds skills in many essential developmental areas.

• Social and Emotional Skills
  When your child engages in pretend (or dramatic) play, he is actively experimenting with the social and emotional roles of life… (see full article)
• Language Skills
  Have you ever listened in as your child engages in imaginary play with his toys or friends? You will probably hear some words and phrases you never thought he knew… (see full article)
• Thinking Skills
  Pretend play provides your child with a variety of problems to solve… (see full article)
• Nurturing the Imagination
  Not enough pretend play at your house? Consider creating a prop box or corner filled with objects to spark your preschooler’s fantasy world. You might include:
  • Large plastic crates, cardboard blocks, or a large, empty box for creating a “home”
  • Old clothes, shoes, backpacks, hats
  • Old telephones, phone books, magazines
  • Cooking utensils, dishes, plastic food containers, table napkins, silk flowers
  • Stuffed animals and dolls of all sizes
  • Fabric pieces, blankets, or old sheets for making costumes or a fort
  • Theme-appropriate materials such as postcards, used plane tickets, foreign coins, and photos for a pretend vacation trip
  • Writing materials for taking phone messages, leaving notes, and making shopping lists

My Day @ McGill (article)

A short article by McGill in the Community, looking at the My Day @ McGill tour in conjunction with the Homework Zone program.

Worth a read for all of your hard work!

Talking to Kids About Race (Article)

How do we talk to children about our differences? Should we talk to them about differences, or emphasize unity? Well, I believe that it is through teaching race and encouraging curiosity that student and mentor can truly unite. This Psychology Today article gives a good introduction to the idea of colourblindness in an environment of curious, honest and uninformed children.

WHAT DO YOU THINK??

“In our increasingly multicultural society, our children are going to be exposed to race-related issues sooner or later – and they need to be prepared. Children may witness acts of exclusion or rejection based on race, or will themselves be targets of discrimination. It is precisely for these instances that parents must provide their children with a framework for understanding difference, for helping them place such experiences within a developmentally appropriate narrative about the meaning of race both within their family and their culture. Think for a moment about how you might best react if your child saw or even experienced bullying. I doubt many parents would cope with the problem by not talking about it. Rather, a likely response might be to shower our child with love, remind them that we are always going to be in their corner, to avoid that bully, and additionally make sure that our child doesn’t go hit somebody else. A lot of these strategies apply to racism – but they cannot be enacted if we don’t broach the topic directly, albeit in a developmentally appropriate way. ”

Youth Mentoring in Perspective (Article)

An in-depth look at one of the key themes discussed at our March 1st Reflection Event: the place and role of a mentor within the larger scheme of a child’s education. At our event, we discussed the 3 influencing bodies: community, school and family. In this article, John E. Rhodes finds these same influencing bodies and looks at the influence of caring adults in the lives of children.

In your experience as a mentor, do you feel you’ve had influence? Is it in the same way Rhodes describes?

[Full Article]

Don’t Force Canadian Teachers to Take Down Ally Signs (Article)

FULL ARTICLE

Parents of grade 5 classrooms in Altona, Manitoba have voiced opposition to teacher’s support of LGBT youth.

Teachers Stephanie Fortier and Peter Wohlgemut of West Park School placed cards on their classroom windows to openly state that they had completed training through the Rainbow Resource Center in Winnipeg, a program aimed to supporting LGBT youth.

The cards read,”As an Ally, I support lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, Two-Spirit, intersex, queer and questioning individuals, families and communities. As an Ally, I will work towards a more aware, affirming, safe and open work environment in both policy and practice.”

Parents have demanded that the cards be taken down for fear that their children will accept the LGBT community.”

The teachers are actively creating an inclusive environment by publicly stating a safe place for LGBT students and allies.

The homophobia of parents should not infiltrate an institution of learning.

Protect Teachers Who Create LGBT Friendly Schools!

Here at Homework Zone, this helps us ask ourselves: What does SOLIDARITY mean? And moreover, what role can education play in broadening or restricting our ability to engage with the concept?