The content of this blog is generated by whatever strikes my fancy at any given point. It might be computers, weather, political, or something else in nature. I experiment and comment a lot on things so don't take anything here too seriously; I might change my mind a day later but what you read is my thought and opinion at the time I wrote it!
My personal website is at: http://www.dougpeterson.ca
Follow me on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/dougpete
I'm bookmarking things at: http://www.diigo.com/user/dougpete
Year ago, when I was on the OSAPAC Committee, I learned a great deal about Canadian Currency. I was moved to this seeing many clipart collections that indeed had currency in it – but it was US Currency. Students creating presentations or documents would use this as the resource for their work and would have to make due with what was available – even if it meant using a $1 US bill. What? A $1 bill? What’s that?
It seemed like a big injustice since we use a $1 coin in Canada so an outreach project was made to get permission for students and teachers in Ontario schools to use clipart of Canadian currency in their work. That’s where some of my learning started – I guess I had assumed that the Royal Canadian Mint was in charge of our money. I was wrong! They only look after minted coins. Paper money was the domain of the Bank of Canada. Their services go far beyond just what you might have in your pocket or wallet.
The bottom line is that permission was sought and granted for use in Ontario schools. Of course, you can’t print your own (that would be very difficult) but it allows students and teachers to legally use images of our currency. That is a big deal.
If you’re a fan of currency and who isn’t, you know that Canadian Currency and its state can be a moving target. Recently, we got to enjoy the beautiful new $10 Bill. Now, there’s talk that the Bank of Canada wants to revise the $5 Bill.
Apparently, Sir Wilfred Laurier will be no longer be the face of the Canadian five. That bill has the sad distinction of people using a black marker to create an image of Star Trek’s Spock. No link; find it yourself.
According to the CBC article, the Bank of Canada will be looking for input as to who should be on the new bill. Think about the concept for a second.
Recently, the topic was trending on Twitter and many were in favour of Terry Fox being the new face. In fact, the True North Initiative is going all-in on this, collecting digital signatures for a petition to support Terry Fox appearing on the bill.
So, for your feedback, how would you feel about this? Can you think of another famous Canadian that should be considered instead? I’d be interested in your thoughts.
And, for a Saturday morning quiz, from memory, who is found on the current currency? What makes the currency unique?
$0.05 coin
$0.10 coin
$0.50 coin
$1.00 coin
$2.00 coin
$5.00 banknote
$10.00 banknote
$20.00 banknote
$50.00 banknote
$100.00 banknote
Yes, I know, I gave you the links above but use your memory!
So, if you did click through to the Royal Canadian Mint or Bank of Canada website, enjoy some time learning about the security features as well. Did you know them all?
From Cal Armstrong, perhaps a Public Service Announcement. As Cal notes in the post, he has a number of whiteboards around the perimeter of his classroom that he uses regularly. His problem? How to clean them.
He indicates that he’s tried:
torn up towels
athletic socks
plastic bags
That’s quite a collection of ideas!
I never had that many whiteboards but I recall a solution, by accident, that worked out well. I had a microfibre wipe for my glasses sitting on the desk and reached out and actually used it once. It did an amazing job. Of course, they don’t come free and I don’t know how long it would work before it would need to be washed. I just threw it in the wash when I got home. And, truth be told, I only had one whiteboard that I was using. I can’t imagine a whole classroom of them.
Any suggestions? Head over to Cal’s blog and help a colleague out.
From the TESL Ontario blog, a post from Mandeep Somal that I think goes further beyond just the concept of Team Teaching.
I’ll admit; team teaching wasn’t something that I wasn’t able to experience as the only Computer Science teacher in my school. So, I ended up living vicariously through this post.
I think that it’s tough to argue when she outlines how it works…
Open communication between teachers – this can consist of daily updates about the class, sharing ideas of what and how to teach, or jointly assessing students’ progress.
Efficiency in work – since you know that someone else is depending on you to complete your share of the workload, you become accountable to stay on schedule and get your share done in a timely manner.
Greater attention to detail – nobody wants to work with a messy or unorganized teaching partner, thus making you attentive to detail.
My only wonder about this deadlines and holding up your end on things. We all know that things always don’t go as planned when timing it out. Does missing your target cause issues for your partner?
Actually, I have another wonder – read the post and enjoy the philosophy described here – why don’t more people do this?
I’ve never met Sue Dunlop; I know her through her writing but if I had to guess, I would have predicted that she was, in fact, a straight shooter.
From this post, it’s not a new thing – she claims to have been this way since she was 18. In the post, she offers a couple of titles to support the notion of proceeding with candor.
In my opinion, it’s most efficient to use straight talk. If you’re honest and truthful, you won’t get caught up in the same discussion at some later date when you have to remember just what it was that you had said if you make it overly flowery or you dance around the issue.
I always appreciated a supervisor who was a straight talker. It was worthwhile knowing her/his position and once you agree on the points, much easier to determine a plan of action.
In a leadership course that I took once, we were encouraged to adopt this type of approach and Sue captures it nicely in the post. The one caution is to make statements on things that are observable and measurable and stay away from things that could be taken as a personal slam to someone.
I learned, from this recent post from Paul Gauchi, that he isn’t a contract full-time teacher yet. I guess I considered from the richness of his past posts that he was.
He manages to tie that position into one of not making a resolution for the New Year. No one word here.
Instead, he shares his outlook of positiveness…
Have high hopes
See the good in bad situations
Trust your instincts
The last point is interesting. I wonder – are teacher instincts different from other people’s? Not only do you, as a teacher, act for yourself but you also act and make decisions for students in your charge.
I started out reading this post from Sue Bruyns and remember thinking that it was going to be a book report or summary. Of course, it’s from Sue, so I made sure that I read the entire post.
Then, it got real.
But beyond becoming immersed in a world as readers, we also want our students to know the power of creation. We want them to use words, play with words and combine words to create other worlds, to create characters and to create tantalizing images of places that others will want to visit.
That changed the tone just a bit for me. Yes, she was still on about the book but it leads you to realize that reading in education is more than enjoying or understanding a good book. It should move the reader to want to create content on her/his own.
It seems to me that blogging is a great place to start in order to support this.
Peter Beens is back with a summary and commentary on some of his recent posts. A couple really caught my interest.
Trump Properties
We definitely live in a challenging world and the recent acts and responses should give worldly travellers pause to consider their destination. Maybe it’s because I’m Canadian and some of the passengers on that Ukrainian flight were from the University of Windsor, but I would think carefully about places that I would care to visit.
If You’re an Avro Arrow Fan…
I’m old enough to appreciate the amount of Canadiana that surrounded the Avro. Like Peter, I feel that it’s a part of our history and it’s a good thing that these blueprints weren’t destroyed so that we might all be able to enjoy them. Would history have changed if this project hadn’t been scrapped?
This is a story that we’re seeing more and more of and many of us have lived through. It’s not a pleasant thing. In fact, when we were younger, there was so little that we knew about it. We sure know a great deal more today.
In this post, Judy Redknine shares a story of love and caring between her and her mother. She writes in great detail the process that they both have endured and the struggle through dealing with dementia.
Very appropriately, she addresses this illness as a thief stealing parts of a wonderful life.
Stealing is all about vulnerability. My mother is vulnerable. We are all vulnerable. Today her priceless treasures remain locked in a strong box. Her joy, her laughter, her love of nature, of music, of stories, of people, of ice cream, and chocolate. All fiercely protected by the superpower of love; guarded by friends and family. She is full of grace.
It’s a long, detailed read. You can’t help but feel the love and well up with a sense of empathy at the same time.
It’s another Friday of great reads. Please take the time to click through and read all that these bloggers are offerings.
And then, make sure that you’re following them on Twitter.
Here Are 20 Headlines Comparing Meghan Markle To Kate Middleton That May Show Why She And Prince Harry Are Cutting Off Royal Reporters https://t.co/79jTbiUlqh via @flipboard
If you asked me to name a shipwreck, like many, I would give you EdmundFitzgerald and Titanic. That’s about all that comes to mind.
It’s not that I haven’t been aware of more. I grew up close to Lake Huron and now live close to Lake Erie. Watching big ships glide past has always been a pastime, and an exciting one at that. I always stop to watch when I have the chance to see one up close or even one sitting on the horizon.
There is always something intriguing about a marine museum and I’ve visited many. To be honest, I can visit them many times and it always seems like the first time.
The latest one around here is an outdoor museum in Olde Sandwich, Prosperity Place.
An interesting resource came to my attention recently. Michigan Shipwrecks indicates that there have been 6000 shipwrecks in the Great Lakes and some 1500 are in Michigan waters. I don’t know about you but those numbers just blow me away.
This website, and corresponding application, identify those that are in Michigan waters.
The locations are identified by difficulty for underwater divers.
But, you can learn about each by just clicking on a point and reading the details.
A searchable database of Ontario Shipwrecks is available here. Yes, the Edmund Fitzgerald is in there.
The latest The Doug Peterson Community News! https://t.co/shuwKOEP0s Thanks to @poppymasselos @brmf_rm @MatthewAGilbert #edtech #artificialintelligence
Today marks the fifth day of withdrawl of services from OSSTF members. The following districts are affected.
• Keewatin-Patricia District School Board • District School Board Ontario North East • Moose Factory Island District Area School Board • James Bay Lowlands Secondary School Board • Rainbow District School Board • Bluewater District School Board • Upper Grand District School Board • Wellington Catholic District School Board • Durham District School Board • Hamilton-Wentworth District School Board • Hamilton-Wentworth Catholic District School Board • Ottawa-Carleton District School Board • Upper Canada District School Board • Conseil scolaire de district catholique des Grandes Rivières • Conseil scolaire de district catholique de l’Est ontarien • Provincial Schools Authority
Plus a number of French Language schools as indicated here.
I will show my support by leaving this blog dark for today.
