HLTH 312 Blog # 10 – A POEM

We have discussed health and its connection to education all semester. For your final blog comment you will create an ACROSTIC Poem using the words HEALTH & EDUCATION.

An acrostic poem is, a short verse composition, constructed so that one or more sets of letters (such as the initial, middle, or final letters of the lines), taken consecutively, form words. Below is an example using the word acrostic:

ACROSTIC

An acrostic poem
Can be about anything
Really
Of course, some people like to
Start each line as a sentence, though
I prefer weaving words into a
Creation that is more free form.

Here is another example using my first name:

JANIS

Janis is
A
Natural woman, and is
Interested
Sincerely, in your acrostic poem about health & education.

The words must connect to health & education, course content, and make sense in order for you to earn points for this blog comment.

Reflection will not be assessed for this comment. I will assess CONTENT (4 points), CRITICAL THINKING (4 points) and PRESENTATION (2 points).

Your turn, and have fun with it!

HEALTH & EDUCATION
H
E
A
L
T
H
& (ignore this &)
E
D
U
C
T
I
O
N

HLTH 312 Blog Post # 9 – Observation of Mr. Hawkins - Who is he and why?

Use your observation skills to tell me about Mr. Hawkins. We were introduced to Mr. Hawkins in Chapter 1. Read about Mr. Hawkins in Jensen's book Teaching with Poverty in Mind on pages 5, 13, 46, 66, and 106.

Describe him. What do you think he is like?

What kind of a teacher is he?

Is he healthy in all the domains of health (physical, social, emotional, spiritual, intellectual, and environmental)?

Do you think he eats, sleeps, and exercises well?

Is he a good role model? Observe only from the pages listed above, and tell me a story about Chris Hawkins, the teacher.

HLTH 312 Blog Post # 8 – “instructional light and magic”

For this comment I want you to read Chapter 6 in Dr. Jensen’s book, and then think about your future teaching practice. Effective teaching demands an inordinate amount of time for preparation, but it is worth it. This chapter synthesizes the core ideas of the book, and this will assist you in thinking about how you can apply the practices you have learned about in this book in your future classroom.

“The phrase ‘instructional light and magic’ refers to your ability to shine a spotlight on what matters most.”

Read the chapter and then choose three practices that you will consider using in your classroom. Focus on the factors that matter the most to you, and emphasize the strategies that will reshape the brains and enrich the lives of your students.
For example, health is really important to me, so one of the strategies I chose was “Framing the Content” on page 148. “This powerful strategy creates an intentional bias toward what follows so that the students are more likely to buy into the content.”

The framing is the setting of the stage for the lesson, it’s the “hook”, information that appeals to the student so that they want to learn more. Jensen writes that it “creates an emotional invitation to learn”. I like that. He gave an example of a story by reading a passage that engages the students and gets them thinking about the lesson. He told about an African American man who was drafted during the Vietnam War. So, this man was out there in a war, fighting for his country, but he could not vote in his country or in his home town because of illegal voter registration quirks.

The reading of the passage caused a conversation to ensue about prejudice, both at the national level and at school. Prejudice is an excellent topic to discuss with your students if it is developmentally appropriate. It relates well to health.

I like the idea of framing the content, and I love telling stories that I can relate to content. I also know that stories and bits of anecdotal data can break up a lesson and reduce the boredom of dry lecture material.

Okay, now it is your turn. What three practices would you choose from chapter 6, and tell me why, and provide an example.