Movies

I'll be succinct. I love movies (all different types). If you share the same thoughts, you should check out this really cool movie search engine I just found called nanocrowd. I think I'll use it to help me pick a flick to watch this weekend!

Music

Right now I'm listening to my ipod and doing school work. It's amazing how music can aid in the speed at which I accomplish my work. Occasionally I will play music using pandora.com or grooveshark.com for my students. Sometimes I will play "Kagan's Music for the Mind" when my students are reading & writing.
Personally, my music taste is quite eclectic. I'll listen to anything, and normally it depends what type of mood I'm in; I listen to everything from Jack Johnson, Green Day, Less than Jake, the Beatles, Metallica, Nickelback, Dave Matthews, and so many more artists. The world would be bleak without music.

Fun with Poetry

Recently I had my students rewrite songs using their own words, but keep the rhythm of the music.  The class was really excited and the lesson turned into a huge success.  Students created some humorous parodies, and I've posted some below.

May is here!!

           Hooray, May is here!  I don't know about you, but the month of May sure is busy.  My calendar is filled with so many things: weddings, baby showers, birthdays (mine), etc... How do I keep track of it all?  I use the website www.rememberthemilk.com .  For gift ideas I often search using google shopping or worio.com.
           The school year is finishing up and there are so many things I still have to accomplish.  But, it is also imperative that I take a moment to sit back, relax, and enjoy the beautiful weather.  You should stop and smell the roses too!

Spring Break

     Wow! I can't believe the break is over.  I did nothing over the break, and it was wonderful.  My batteries are recharged and I'm ready to go back to school.  Actually, I did get the opportunity this past week to sleep late, read a novel, watch some movies ("Slumdog Millionaire" was really great, but "Seven Pounds" was pretty awful), relax with my wife, and take my dog on ridiculously long walks.  I discovered a website called pizzashare, which enables the browser to search for good pizza locations wherever they might be in the US.
     I'm really excited to go back to work tomorrow, because my students are about to begin my favorite social studies project.  They will be researching life during colonial times, coming up with a family name (based on real census date from that period), pretending to open up a shop that focuses on a specific trade, and make skits for "Ye Olde Colonial Faire!"

Poetry

Currently my English class is studying poetry.  I heard about this poem from a workshop I attended and felt like sharing it with everybody.  Feel free to leave comments.

"Booger Love" by Brod Bagert (taken from his book Giant Children)


I love this little booger,
All shiny, green, and black.
You can hold it for a minute,
But I want my booger back.

It stays right where I put it,
It sure knows how to stick.
And if it gets too dry...?
It just needs a little lick.

I can hold it on my finger,
I can flick it in the air,
I can stick it underneath a desk,
Or underneath a chair.

I can make a ball and roll it
Just to see which way it goes.
I love this booger anywhere...
Except inside my nose.

Here is a great poetry website:  http://ettcweb.lr.k12.nj.us/forms/newpoem.htm

Great website

The other day I found and started using immediately a great website--

http://www.superteachertools.com/

This site enables the user (for free) to generate class lists and use them for a variety of purposes. Also, they send the list to your email, so that you can save it for future use. You can use the site to randomly generate names, groups, and other activities. I recommend all educators to check out the site.