Talking points 9 (Promising Practices)

The morning started off really slow and signing in was hectic. When we branched out into our groups however i was excited.I was in the schooling beyond the classroom walls group. The first section was about the WHERE, WHAT and WHO of educating outside the classroom.
Where: any place that is not in the traditional formal classroom.
What: any education that takes place in a time that is outside of the typical school day.
Who: people in the community who focus on the youth. For example boyscouts and the S>T>E>M groups.
We also talked about a concept called "blending practices" where instead of calling it after SCHOOL, we call it the after zone where kids do activities that enrich what they learn during the day and take it into their hands and do activities that put it into action.

The second session of the workshop was about the group FOODIES. They blend math and language arts by teaching kids how to cook by reading recipies and creating meals. The focus on family dinners and doing it as a group. They also have a wide range of cultures that they cover. WHen they start a new section lets say Italian, they focus on music food an ethinicity of the dishes that they are making.

They also deal with a diverse population and a variety of kids with IEP's and 504 plans with behavioral issues and multiple inteligence levels.  Their idea of social learning is something that they encourage and focus on.
 I felt in the time after the presentation when it was open for discussion and questions it turned into a complaining session for those who gave the presentation. They just focused on the negative aspects instead of trying to figure out a way to solve the issues at hand. The group PASA that came to speak i thought had some of the best ideas and was the most realistic about the fact that it was going to take time for the changes to occur.

I thought the break in between the sessions and the teen empowerment was way too long. We lost interet in what we were doing and sat there eating and socializing. I also did not really understand the teen empowerment presentation either.

I thought they had good ideas and cool methods but i felt as though unless you were on the stage that it was pointless for you to be there. They didnt really focus on the group as whole except for the beggining of the presentation where they introduced themselves.

Overall, it was an okay day. I think it was something was deff. dragged on but it did have some good aspects and planted some great ideas for how I want to run my classroom.