The "Hive" Classroom

As I'm reading through your papers...I thought some of you would like this graphic on classroom culture. It connects to some of the beliefs you are stating in your personal theories of learning.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/emily-e-smith/the-new-classroom-a-vesse_b_4343454.html

Awesome way to teach kids history! (seriously)

I'm sure this was meant as a joke, but the more I think about it the more this really would resonate with today's youth considering the media rich world they are growing up in. This is fairly ingenious. I doubt anyhow will see this post since we're done posting but I those it was super cool.

http://www.collegehumor.com/article/6650094/facebook-news-feed-history-of-the-world-world-war-i-to-world-war-ii

Field Trip Reflection – 11/21/13

Josh Justice is a Counselor/Therapist in the Johnson County, Kentucky school system.  He works for an agency that services students with behavior and psychiatric issues. The children he works with have IEP’s and most have and IQ of around 75.  He has worked in the program since August 2011, alongside a Psychiatrist. Their goal is to help students progress to the point of discontinuing their psych medicines.

One of his students was very aggressive in elementary school.  The student stabbed a teacher.  After working with Josh in the program, this 4^th grade student was able to achieve 3^rd place in the Accelerated Reader Program.  He had a complete personality shift. Some of the strategies that Josh used with this student consist of: consistent structure, utilizing a behavior chart, calling three times a day, relationship intervention, after school programs, reinforcement schedule, and a token reward system.

Josh also implemented Parent-Child Interaction Therapy (PCIT) to change the relationship between the caregiver and the child.  This involves the caregiver responding to good behaviors and reinforcing it. The student should be praised for doing well in class also.

Josh uses a stopwatch when the student starts misbehaving and he will keep the student after school.  He describes his position as, “a job one does with passion, not for a paycheck!” He is a strong believer in communication with parents and developing rapport with them. Students are with him in the summer and the program includes many fun activities and home visits.  They frequently play Xbox games together and this nature of relationship changes the dynamic of the student-educator connection.  A student will learn best from a teacher that they like and respect.  He feels it is extremely important for him to remain involved in the student’s life and the lives of their family members by default. The teacher and student can achieve great progress when they work together as a team and support one another.

To achieve success in his program, Josh applies an extremely high level of dedication to his role. His life maintains flexibility and he is always available for the students.  He does not have a wife or children of his own.  He finds the most pleasure in watching his students’ progress in their program.  He enjoys the time he spends with them and is constantly focused on helping them improve.

I was impressed with Josh’s level of dedication and commitment to his profession.  He talked a lot about his students, and did so with a great deal of passion. I was also impressed with the level of fulfillment he receives on a personal level, from seeing progress in his students.  I would like to have had an opportunity to meet him personally and talk about his experiences.  I believe that he would have even more interesting stories to tell. He does some beautiful work and has changed the lives of many students.  It makes me happy to know that there are people like him in the world, and I will strive to model his dedication in my own position.

War on Teachers

Here is an article from Metropulse discussing the recent attention to teacher frustrations across TN in light of the new evaluation and testing policies. 

http://m.metropulse.com/news/2013/nov/20/war-teachers-2-teachers-revolt/

Chicken recipe

2 chicken breasts

8 oz. cream cheese

8 oz. ranch dressing

6 oz. hot sauce

Boil chicken until tender. Mix cream cheese, ranch dressing and hot sauce in separate container. Shred the chicken after it has been tenderized and mix it together with the sauce (cream cheese, ranch dressing and hot sauce mixture). Bake on 400 degrees for 30 minutes.

Keefe: Appalachian Cultural Competency

Keefe: Appalachian Cultural Competency

The author of this article is seeking to educate people on the origins of Appalachian culture, and how though it seems much different than traditional “American” culture, if explored many aspects are similar. I was struck at the beginning by the author’s note that Appalachian culture draws much the same core values as most other American societies, but the “strength and presence” of the value may present itself differently. Keefe gave the example of individualism: traditional American culture says that this value is the right to be nonconformist and pursue the American Dream. Appalachian culture also values individualism, but emphasizes independence and sovereignty. The values are the same between the cultures but expressed more clearly in different points. Keefe went on to express that Appalachian culture has been put under the victim-blaming umbrella that presupposes that “mountain people” are responsible for and perpetuate their own state of poverty. However, close investigation of colonial pursuits and involvement in Appalachian culture show that outside influences are more to blame.

The implications of this information are that any efforts as educators that we pursue to make differences when working with students from Appalachian backgrounds will only be effective if we understand the culture. The study the author cited about tobacco cessation materials showed the ineffective nature of those who went in to try and educate without first educating themselves. Without knowing what the students we work with value, and by making harmful assumptions about the reason that the students live in poverty, we do a disservice to our students. 
                I was especially interested by the note during the part of the article about medical studies which stated that fokloric medicine has never impeded modern medicine in the areas that were studied, and in fact still helps contribute to research and modern medicine.

The program designed within the article which familiarized the nursing students with the area and culture seemed comprehensive and beneficial to both parties involved and I think that similar programs for educators in such areas could be of equal benefit. 

Sissies, Faggots, Lezzies, and Dykes... by Lugg: An Article Reflection

Article: Sissies, Faggots, Lezzies, and Dykes:  Gender, Sexual Orientation, and a New Politics of Education? By Lugg, Catherine A.

Prior to returning to the classroom I studied “Development”, largely with an international focus.  However, as a math teacher of Title 1 low-income neighborhood schools of Atlanta, GA and Memphis, TN, I pursued my master’s degree with the idea that education is a major development problem for our country.  The more I studied, despite my interest in international issues and working on projects for CARE in Ethiopia on Emergency Famine Response and The Carter Center on mental health care initiatives in Liberia, I have always come back to U.S. education.  Surely, these issues, and a multitude of others, are critical arenas that must be addressed so that marginalized human populations be enabled to lead lives with rights recognition and economic choice.  That said, as I read Lugg’s article,  Sissies, Faggots, Lezzies, and Dykes:  Gender, Sexual Orientation, and a New Politics of Education?, I could not help but feel that my education has, in some ways come, full circle.  The marginalization of queer populations in our public schools is a structural issue effecting, often times negatively, the quality of education received by all stakeholders.

Lugg’s commentary around roles within U.S. education brings to light that since the beginning of this system, gender and sex have dictated who does what.  Within the U.S. education system woman have been restricted from marriage, and administrative roles.  Men have been put on a fast tract to administration and ostracized for remaining classroom teachers simply because of the perceptions involved should they remain in the classroom.  Queer individuals have been kept from teaching/education professions as a result on legal mandates.  Here, one can see there clear interaction between U.S. policy, gender, sexual orientation, and U.S. public education.  Our public education is a forum by which U.S. policy is enforced, and from which political ideas are generated. 

(Please note: gender and sex are separate.  Gender defined by Lugg as “a set of roles and behaviors that individuals are expected to follow as determined by societies and cultural racial, ethnic, and religious groups of what it means to be male and female”.  Sex, however, refers to a “chromosomal” distinction.)

Gender, and its interpretation culturally throughout the history of U.S. political action, has dictated how various populations are treated within schools.  In other words, gender and sexual orientation are structural issues, as mentioned above, which as Lugg puts it, determine “who gets what, when and how”.   Considering social justice and human rights recognition, gender and sexual orientation are not areas to ignore if we are hoping to provide equitable education within our public school systems.

Despite these facts, schools are historically, again, rights violating institutions for faculties and students that are queer.  Over the past years legislation has tended to create a policy paradox where queer student populations are more protected than queer teachers and administrators.  Lugg urges that should we wish to address this, more research is needed.  Additionally as policy is written we must remember that, “the problems confronting queer children are not that they are queer – on the contrary, the American legal foundations for homophobia, heteronormativity, and gender bias generate their problems”.  As we seek to address gender and sexual orientation issues, an essential question we must ask is “are we considering these populations as ‘deviant’, and if so, what implications does such a perception have on policy we create (or do not) create?”

Now, back to development.  There are many interpretations for what “human development” is and means.  For me, this would mean that rural pastoralists of Ethiopia continue to be pastoralists despite a global economy that now interferes with their centuries old practice of living off the land, and doing it well.  Human development means that all students regardless of their individuality, gender, sexual orientation, religion, and what other distinction, are enabled a quality and non-discriminatory education.  Should our cultural views stand in the way of that and permeate into political life, as they do, we have a lot of work to do in the area of shifting historically held beliefs and customs which bar rights and freedoms for millions.

Ableism (its not what you think it is!!!)

I chose the topic of Ableism because, although I had heard it used, I did not have an understanding of its meaning, and going into special Ed, I thought it appropriate to learn more about the concept. When reading Herir’s article “Confronting Ableism”, the first thing that struck (and surprised me) was that he labels ableism as a bad thing, and not a good thing. I guess my initial assumption was that ableism meant helping students to be more “able” at something – to help them to overcome a disability in order to function. This is indeed the meaning, but Herir places it in a negative light, not a positive one. To me, the author’s assumption is that it is just as fine for a student to spend their life confined to a wheelchair as it would be to have them up and walking. It is just as fine for a student to struggle their whole life being unable to hear, as it is providing them cochlear implants in order to allow them to navigate society and communicate easier. He states in the article that “from an early age many people with disabilities encounter the view that disability is negative…and that overcoming disability is the only valued result”. I think this is an unfair statement, as it leaves no room for middle ground. Is having a disability a negative? Yes, probably it is. If you’re unable to walk, its going to limit your ability to participate in certain activities, work in certain fields etc. If you are born with eyesight or hearing limitations, you will never have the opportunity to pilot a plane, or joined the armed forces – does this mean that the person with the disability is any less valuable? No of course it doesn’t. And does this mean that the only valued result of someone’s life is overcoming the disability? Absolutely not! But none of this takes away from the fact that a disability is, as the root of the word states, disabling, and as such is indeed a negative thing. Herir appears to be speaking to society as a whole and judging those of us who do not have a disability due to our desire to help those who do. As an example, Herir discusses in his article  child who was born with cerebral Palsey. The child states that her mother was concerned that the way in which she walked, which was very awkward, often times caused her to fall, and might lead to ridicule by other children. She goes on to admit that this was indeed the case, and that she did often fall and was made fun of. Yet to Herir, the mother’s attempts at sending the girl to physical therapy in order to learn to walk better is an example of “ableism” and is a bad thing, because, according the Herir, learning how to walk straight may have taken away time better spent on academics. My question would be, what is the point of academics if this poor girl falls and cracks her head open due to her inability to walk properly. What good is building her handrails at school if she refuses to go to school because she is being picked on by other students? Where is the harm in trying to help this young girl to walk properly and in doing so eliminating so many of the boundaries and blockades she will likely encounter as a result of her disability? Lets build the hand rails and at the same time try and teach her to walk well enough that she doesn’t need them! What is the harm in that?

Herir goes onto say that in Special Education, it should be our goal to “minimize the impact of a disability and maximize the opportunities for students with disabilities to participate in schooling and the community”. In this statement, I see Herir as contradicting himself. How is providing a student with CP physical therapy or a deaf student with cochlear implants not “minimalizing the impact” of the disability while enhancing that student’s opportunity to interact with his or her school and community? Herir’s argument appears to be a moral judgment call, and he appears to consider himself on some moral pedestal. Herir states that “minimizing” does not equate to making “misguided” attempts to cure a disability? What exactly differentiates a “misguided” attempt and a “guided” attempt? Are we to ignore cures or interdictions which might make the life of a child easier?  Why on earth would we do that? He states that schools should spend less time attempting to find cures, and more time attempting to find ways to include children with disabilities not only in academic programs, but also in “sports teams, choruses, clubs and field trips.  How exactly is a child wheelchair going to make the football team? He isn’t. Could we include him in other ways, such as helping out in the locker room, or having him involved in pep rallies? Yes of course, and so we should, but if there is a possibility of allowing this student a way out of the wheel chair and onto the field, where we can run and catch and actually play football, why would that not be our number one goal?

Herir goes on to discuss students with both learning and emotional disabilities. He plays out theoretical scenarios where students with these disabilities are placed in separate classrooms with students with similar disabilities and with a teacher who is not trained to work with a special needs population. If this does indeed occur then I would have to agree that it is a terrible approach to special education, but I am lothe to believe that this does occur. Maybe 30 years ago, but today, I’m fairly certain that a special education classroom will have a special education teacher sitting at the desk. Another point Herir makes which I take issue with is that schools should not attempt to deliver mainstream material  / education if at all possible. This to be is ludicrous. Its all well and good to provide taped audio books to students who are struggling to read due to a disability, but should this be done if there is a possibility of the student learning to use a normal book? Absolutely not, and I’ll tell you why. A high school may give a student a test on tape and allow him or her to respond in a different manner than the rest of the students and as a result receive the same grade, but in the real world, when that student walks into an interview at IBM or ExonMobile, these accommodations will not necessarily be available, and not making every possible attempt to teach the student in a “mainstream” manner will rob him or her of opportunities later in life. Education does not occur in a vacuum and for its own self-worth. We receive an education in order to quality for jobs in the workforce, and it would be immoral in my opinion not to prepare students for the real world if there is any chance whatsoever of doing so. 

Lastly, I did not find a single mention of Ableism in our Ormond text. It is my opinion that this is not a mistake. From what I have read (and I am now going to read some of the other articles since this one has me fairly worked up) Ableism is a politically correct term for wanting the best for students – for wanting them to succeed. Ableism appears to want us to pretend that blindness, or deafness, or Cerebal Palsy, or dyslexia is NOT a problem – it wants us to accept these conditions and pretend as if that student is just fine, and that disability is not something to be cured, but rather embraced. If this is the current pervasive basis of special education today, then maybe I’m going into the wrong field, because this touchy-feely notion that all is good is foolish. As a special educator I will make every accommodation in order to help my students succeed to their fullest possible ability, but I will not ignore the fact that their disability is undesirable, and if it can be corrected or “cured” that it should be, because that’s just not the way the world works.

Chapter 4

The author is this article is James A. Banks, he is widely renowned as the ‘Father of Multicultural Education’ in the US. I was interested in Bank’s work so I skimmed a few of his other articles and realized that I have been exposed to his other works in classrooms where Race and Ethnicity was discussed.  The article was a piece of a journal that was said to contain ‘important theoretical and empirical insights that can be used to improve intergroup relations in schools’. The article listed various forms of research that explored racial issues in schools and strategies that could be used to address these issues.  The article referred to research done by numerous people that all pointed to the same thing: promoting interracial/ intercultural education decreases negative racial attitudes and helps students develop positive intergroup attitudes. Interracial educational attempts included plays, social studies materials, ‘jigsaw’ groups that were comprised of children of different races, and even watching Sesame Street for long periods of time.

I found myself agreeing with almost everything in this article. This article mainly presents research topics, their findings, and how these findings relate to the everyday classroom. I found this extremely approachable. While Race/Ethnicity is a topic that can be discussed forever, this article made it easy to summarize main points and present them in a no-fuss fashion. The overall theme of this article seems to be that education and experience can help children and people to assume more positive racial attitudes. Of course I strongly agree with this, I have been in school in a variety of different settings and I have found that the classrooms where a community is established, students are less likely to resort to racial stereotypes and assumptions. Classrooms like this are extremely important as the classroom environment can largely impact a student just as much as any other factor.

Defining Emotional Intelligence in Music Education- Michele Kaschub

In Michele Kaschub’s article, “Defining Emotional Intelligence in Music Education,” she addresses the issues of emotional intelligence and how music education contributes to it. The whole article is a review of best-selling writings of a journalist, Daniel Goleman. He suggested, “Measures of emotional intelligence may provide a better understanding of human intellectual processes than the previously favored intelligence quotients derived largely from verbal and mathematics-based testing procedures.” Kaschub goes further to discuss “feelingful intelligence,” and it’s function in music education.

Feelingful intelligence is the ability to acknowledge one’s one feelings and relate to the world that is around oneself. The concepts of feeling and thinking usually are not separated. Kaschub suggest that the “ability to relate to the world requires a knowledge of feelings as they pertain to the internal realm of experiences of feeling.” The article discusses the importance of feeling in relation to cognition and more specifically how the arts give students opportunities to develop those feelings.

It is important for students to assess their feelings of the environment around them and then proceed from those feelings. Whether they are analyzing their own work or the others around them, how they are doing so shows how “intelligent” their feelings are. This presents an issue that testing and scoring cannot show us. There may be a student who can score highly on math and science, but not have the capability to feel and socialize with the environment around them. “Goleman’s theory posits that skills of social interaction can be further developed through a knowledge of one’s own feelings and an understanding of how those feelings relate to the emotive life of others in particular situations and contexts.”

This idea of feelings and social interactions comes into play with music education through the concept that developing musical skills requires students to analyze their own feelings and work with those around them in a constructive manner. Kaschub discusses the importance of peer-group activities and the roles they play in the music classroom. Breaking groups off into sectionals and having students collaborate on a piece of music not only furthers the student’s musical abilities and “feelingful intelligence,” but also furthers the development of the ensemble as a whole.

It is very important for all teachers to be aware of the “feelingful” intelligence of their students and know how to further develop it in the classroom. It is especially important for students and the learning community in general to recognize the significance that music can play in the role of a student’s cognitive process, and how it can further develop their intelligence and abilities to interact with the world around them.

Ableism - "Confronting Ableism" by Thomas Hehir

            Thomas Hehir paints a disconcerting picture for the reader in his article “Confronting Ableism”.  Hehir defines Ableism as “society’s pervasive negative attitude about disability”.  Hehir targets education professionals, specifically those involved in all influential areas of special education, as he advocates for students that are caught in the societal web of disability.  The article explicitly stresses the need for eliminating ableist assumptions in the world of special education.  Hehir is advocating for change on behalf of the innocent children that are at the mercy of educational politics, while asserting the value of involving the student in their individualized education plan.  He generates the assumption that students are failing because education and educators are failing them.  I have to say that I completely concur with his assumption.  Students with a disability deserve and are entitled to the same opportunities that what society refers to as “normal” children are.  We need to stop aiming to cure the disability and apply each of their abilities to the development of their education.

            When providing potential solutions and strategies for altering the perception of special education and the ableism approach to disability, Hehir consults experts.  He consults individuals that exist with what is labeled a disability and applies real-world situations to his analysis of ableism.  Children that need accommodations made for their disability, yet are repeatedly forced through the educational system with the same expectations of their peers, are staged for failure.  Hehir describes this situation as “a human-made world designed with the nondisabled in mind, children with disabilities can gain an advantage if they can perform like their nondisabled peers.”  It is absolutely asinine that disabled students are expected to be “cured” rather than treated as the capable individual that they are! 

Response to Thaller's Appalachian Culture and Schooling

In my article, Appalachian Culture and Schooling, Eva Thaller paints a picture of the physical setting, current educational practices, history, diversity and culture of Appalachia.  Thaller, although not born in Appalachia, currently resides there on the family farm and has a personal attachment to both the physical setting and the Appalachian culture.  She takes a serious look at the history behind Appalachian people and culture and specifically, how schooling as been impacted.  The article speaks to the long-standing problems that have affected people of this region and both informs makes suggestions to educators on how to best incorporate culture into the classroom. 

            Little ethnographic research about Appalachia exists but some studies have shown that the troubles that plague the region educationally are not altogether different from other groups.  One difference that I found interesting, however, lies in the history of the land and its people.  Misuse of the land led to social and economic decline.  This story is one that still continues today with mountaintop removal benefitting a few large companies while displacing many and ruining the environment, to boot.  Throughout history, this exploitation has lead to prosperity for only a few.  Thaller explains that because this history of the land was never taught in schools, the decline in the state of living and quality of life was accepted as the norm.  The poor are poor and the only solution to escape the reality and state of living is to leave.  Following this trend, one fault of the educational system, Thaller explains, is that it only prepares students for the outside world and not for repairing the problems at home.  While the latter is important, I believe it’s also imperative to educate youth about the possibilities elsewhere. 

            According to the Population Reference Bureau, about one in six Appalachian residents lived below the poverty level from 2006-2010.  In addition, in 218 of 420 Appalachian counties, working-age adults with at least a bachelor’s degree failed to reach more than half the national average of 30 percent.  This is a clear indicator of the educational level of those living in Appalachia. 

            Thaller explains the term, “cultural deprivation,” initially devised in the 1950s to describe children of lower classes with assumed lower intellects and those with whom the teachers had lower expectations.  It became easier to blame the poor performance of schools on the population and simply accept it.   Drop-out and illiteracy rates continued to climb and students, instead of the systems, were blamed for their mis-education and failure.  The Appalachian population, among others from lower socio-economic backgrounds, are ones that we typically look at and accept, never questioning the historical background or how we might help or help the population help themselves.  It is clear that a similar sentiment still exists today, one that labels these students negatively, of lesser intellect

            Ormrod explains the multiple factors which lead to higher drop-out rates and indicates that when students face many or all of these factors, they are at a high risk for academic failure and other outcomes.  These factors may include poor health and nutrition, inadequate housing, unhealthy living and social environments, and lower-quality schools, to name a few.  Thaller notes similar factors that contribute to failure and that every person and society is a product of both genes and culture.  The multiple definitions of culture outlined in Thaller’s article shed light on the various ways in which a person is influenced as well as the commonalities and basic understandings that shape how we live.  When we consider “Appalachia,” we consider nearly 25 million people from 420 counties and 13 states from New York to Mississippi and remember to not put them all in the same stereotypical box.  The populations whom deserves the utmost attention are the ones that lives in rural areas of Appalachia, oftentimes without adequate living situations, food and healthy living environments.  While they may have a strong tie to family and traditions, as Thaller outlines, this does not provide the most basic of needs for our students.  Thaller explains the ways in which the educational system can change to accommodate these students, but suggests little about how to assist when it comes to these basic needs.    

Thaller does a great job of painting an historical portrait of Appalachian culture and of the mistakes of a few that lead to the downfall and a poor quality of life for many.  She outlines Appalachian sentiment, recognizes major cultural differences and notes suggestions for improving the educational system and the relationship between home and school life for easier student transition.  This transition is illustrated beautifully in Thaller’s article:

“One educator pointed out that many children are raised in a cultural environment that is very different from what predominates at school, when that occurs, the children use up so much energy adjusting to the school’s expectations of appropriate behavior that there is very little energy left over to devote to learning,” (Thaller, p. 260)

I was particularly interested in reading more about this population for a few reasons.  About five years ago, I saw a Diane Sawyer ABC special called “A Hidden America: Children of the Mountains” about Appalachian life, specifically the effect that life had on the children of Appalachia.  Additionally, having lived in Kentucky and Tennessee for the last nine years of my life, my eyes have been opened to the rural areas and populations that surround the urban areas in which I have resided.  The books I have read and music I have listened to speak about issues surrounding Appalachian life.  I also currently teach in a rural, Title I school with a large transient population so I was particularly interested in learning more about how to work better with this population of students.  As Thaller explains, educational programs can do much to assist all 20+ million Appalachians reach their full potential and to help themselves and their kin rather than escape.

Response to "Understanding Poverty in the Classroom"

Understanding Poverty in the Classroom by Beth Lindsay Templeton

             In chapter 6 and 7 of this book, Templeton addresses the effects of poverty on teaching and learning, and how to learn from others’ successes. The author targets those who are involved with students are living in poverty, specifically teachers and other school faculty. The author takes the assumption that poverty is an effect on students more so than we can imagine or relate as teachers, but that there are ways in which we can counteract these effects with positivity in our classrooms. She also assumes we can do this without having to intervene by pulling a student out of his living situation, or offend the family in any way, but by supporting and providing a safe environment which is conducive for learning. Templeton addresses several aspects of the effects poverty can take, and gives examples of how teachers can respond in an impactful and positive way; as well as provides real-world examples from schools and communities in the United States which have “turned-around” and created the best environment in which these students can learn.

            The suggestions made for each specific aspect of the lives of these children are extremely helpful and insightful. Sometimes teachers cannot have understanding for students’ situations if they do not have experience with similar children or cannot relate to their specific situations. Although these suggestions will most likely be helpful in many situations, I am critical that they will not always hold the promises expected. Each student’s needs are unique, but a teacher must start somewhere. I must be in agreement with the approach the author has taken on these situations. I am sure I will be so tempted to call Child Services and have a child taken out of his living situation, but to cater to his deeper needs I must be willing to attempt at helping the student beyond that option and in my own classroom and control.

            The second chapter focuses on specific examples of schools and communities which have proven to be successful in breaking the barriers to high educational performance. I found these stories highly encouraging because of the great turn-around demonstrated, but also discouraging in a way because they seem very out of reach or unrealistic for many schools. The examples were of schools which completely abandoned their previous ways of running the school and adopted new ways. The overriding point of each example was that everyone involved in the school was committed to the change and willing to put forth their biggest effort – which is the part I sadly see as unrealistic. I also did not see the relation these examples gave to the specificity of poverty, but to struggling schools in general. Overall, I found the chapters agreeable with my personal discourse and beliefs, and was positively surprised to find such great suggestions that are within reach for a majority of teachers.