Santa Clause is Coming to Town!

Oh my goodness, Christmas is almost here! No, seriously, it’s tomorrow (in case you didn’t know that already). I was looking on Facebook for some cool posts to put on my SU Random Acts of Kindness page, and I found this incredible story. Children with major illnesses and those that are abused or neglected don’t always have the best time at Christmas. They may be in the middle of treatments or may be moving to a new foster home, so the holidays don’t have the same joy to them as they do to many of us. That’s where Fantasy Flight comes in.

Fantasy Flight is an organization that works with the Make-A-Wish Foundation to make Christmas awesome for these kids. Kids get to take a one-hour plane ride to the “North Pole” and meet Santa. The plan and the airport is decorated, flight attendants sing Christmas carols, and each kid gets to meet Santa Clause and get a gift. The really neat thing is everyone working the Fantasy Flight is a volunteer. They do not get paid a cent to do all of the awesome stuff they do for kids. The planes are lent out by companies, and the gifts are all donated. All of the volunteers talk about how amazing it is to see the joy on the kids’ faces. Fantasy Flights take place all across the country, but this story focuses on Denver, CO. The story comes from CNN, and I highly encourage you to read the article and watch the video!

http://www.cnn.com/2014/12/19/travel/fantasy-flight-kids-north-pole/index.html?sr=sharebar_facebook

Why Music is Totally Awesome!

Since the holidays are quickly approaching, I’ve been trying to find some fun and simple random acts of kindness to post on my Facebook page. I love being kind, but sometimes I think we need a little extra kindness around the holidays. The cold weather, the stress of buying presents and cooking food for a ton of family members can really wear down a person, you know? Besides pinning some adorable kindness calendars on Pinterest, I also signed up for a random act of kindness advent calendar. Basically, Noomii sends me an email every day during the month of December with little suggestions for random acts of kindness. They are simple and most are free! I would recommend signing up if you need some ideas for cheer this month.

For day 11, the calendar suggested playing some music as a random act of kindness. I was curious how music could be seen as a random act of kindness. I mean, I play music for myself, and I understand the importance of being kind to myself, but it didn’t seem to make any sense. Then I saw this video from APlus. A man walks into a supermarket in Maine wearing huge headphones, and he starts to sing “This Little Light of Mine.” It was mostly a social experiment to see what people did, but as I watched the video, I couldn’t believe the reactions. People in the entire store (his voice was loud) began to sing! They had a dance party right in the middle of the check out aisles, and I found myself smiling. Sure, maybe his intentions weren’t to spread random acts of kindness, but all of those people got to enjoy themselves for a little bit. They slowed down and listened to the music and were ultimately kind to themselves. After watching this video I understood a little more what it meant to play music as a random act of kindness, and I wanted to see what other videos I could find.

This next video is a classic, and many of you have probably seen it. In 2012, a classical orchestra took over a plaza in Sabadell, Spain and played Beethoven’s “Ode to Joy.” It starts with one guy, then more join in and even more. It gives me goosebumps every time I watch it because I can’t even begin to imagine what it must have been like for a spectator. Like, how freaking cool is it that an orchestra banded together in the middle of a plaza to play classical music?! Oh, yeah, the choir is pretty freaking cool too. Plus, as someone who used to play the violin (for however short a time it was), I love listening to this stuff. I think my favorite part of the video, however, is the look of wonder on everyone’s faces. Wouldn’t it be cool to think that someone was inspired to play an instrument or start singing because they were in this plaza on this day? It’s the same idea as the first video: people stopped and slowed down and enjoyed life for a little bit. That, my friends, is why music is totally awesome.

Gotta Love Kids

I love my random acts of kindness stories, but I especially love the ones with kids. Kids being kind makes my heart melt a little during the cold weather because kids are probably some of the purest human beings ever. They are so innocent (for the most part) and genuine, so when they do a random act of kindness all on their own, it seems way cooler compared to when an adult does one. Plus, most kids are so stinking adorable, it’s hard not to enjoy a pint-sized act of kindness.

Take this young lady for example. Claire was born to deaf parents, and she wanted them to be able to “hear” her sing in her school’s holiday concert. So, unbeknownst to them, she learned how to sign each song. American Sign Language was her first language, but it still takes effort and memory to know how to sign holiday music (and some obscure stuff too!). While her classmates make cute hand gestures, she signs the whole time. It is really quite adorable! It is also pretty clear that she has stolen the entire show by the third song or so. Her mom and dad were totally thrilled with Claire’s surprise! I found this post on BuzzFeed, and below is the YouTube video. Enjoy!

I’m Done!

I am home!!!!!! I left college at 9:15pm last night and didn’t get home until almost midnight, but I don’t care!!! I got to sleep in my own bed with my lovely kitty, and I even got to sleep in until *gasp* 7:30am! Gosh what life is this?! My plans for winter break are to work and prepare for student teaching. I already have some awesome ideas, and I can’t wait to do some research and get even more. I will be teaching 6th grade Science (Geology) and Language Arts (Making Your Voice Heard) in less than two months, and I am seriously looking forward to it. I’m lucky because I’ve been with my teachers since the beginning of this semester, so I know all of the kids and how the classroom works. It’s been interesting reflecting on their teaching styles and mine. I want to be a teacher that inspires and encourages kids to learn. So, my video for today shows a teacher who does just that.

If you aren’t familiar with TED Talks, you really should be. TED was created in 1984 as a conference on Technology, Entertainment and Design (see what they did there?). Now, they show videos about all sorts of topics in 100 different languages. They even have an education site with lessons and videos. I’ll show some of those eventually. TED is a little bit elitist (their conferences are mucho expensive), but the content is awesome. Each speaker gets up to 18 minutes to talk NO MATTER WHO THEY ARE! So, Winston Churchill could come back from the dead to give a TED Talk, and he would still get 18 minutes and 18 minutes only. This means people have to be fantastic speakers. Today’s video shows an awesome teacher who calls for other teachers to connect with their students on a personal level. Enjoy!

Random Acts of Pasta

I found this awesome story that I wanted to share with you all! Matt Tribe took advantage of Olive Garden’s Never Ending Pasta Pass. You pay $100 for unlimited pasta for seven weeks. He decided that since he couldn’t possible eat that much pasta, so he gave free pasta to his local homeless community. What an awesome way to use that pasta pass! Check out the article from E! Online and the video below! If you ever have leftovers (like you haven’t touched half your plate leftovers), consider giving them to someone who will actually eat them. Or even better, buy some $1 menu items from McDonald’s and give them away. I bet this would make a lot of people happy!

Reflecting on the End

So this semester is almost over for me. I skipped my last class (who wants to go to a 3pm Friday class anyway?), so technically my classes ended Wednesday afternoon. Besides being a dedicated student, I also tutor at the Writing Center four days a week. I have all types of students, and some of them have various learning disabilities. I have one student who I worked with a lot this semester. We were working on her final paper, and she said she wanted me to check what she had so far before we continued on. As I read her paper, tears welled in my eyes because I couldn’t believe how her writing improved! There were barely any mistakes, and her arguments were clear and well-supported. Now, I do not for a second take credit for her improvements, but I was proud nonetheless. I felt like I was meant to teach and help students with their work. No matter how stressed I am, tutoring helps me calm down because I focus on my writer and my writer only. I think my favorite part is seeing writers improve and get better each time I see them. It’s those warm fuzzy feelings that can’t be replicated anywhere else, and that is what I love most about teaching. So as I get ready to go student teach in middle school, I think I am actually prepared to go into the real world and teach. It is super nerve-wracking but exciting at the same time. So, yay!

The video for today comes from Channel 4 in the UK. A teacher uses a technique from The King’s Speech to help a student come out of his shell and give the best speech of his life. Enjoy!

http://www.upworthy.com/watch-a-teenager-bring-his-class-to-tears-just-by-saying-a-few-words-2

Looooooong Day!

Oh my goodness I am tired. I had to travel to Penn State with my science methods class to present at the Pennsylvania Science Teacher’s Association conference. Don’t get me wrong, I had an absolutely blast, and I am thrilled with how well my session went, but being up since 4am really took a toll on me. I just want to curl up, watch Netflix and go to sleep, but alas, I must write a reflection paper while the conference is still fresh in my mind. I learned so much from this conference and met some amazing teachers from across the state. The people at my session really seemed to like my wetland activity, and they gave me some awesome tips and suggestions. Overall, my experience at the conference was fantastic, but I sure am glad to be home on my couch. This is the third conference I’ve been to in a month, so I think it’s safe to say I’m over conferences for a little bit.

Since I went to a science conference today, I want to share a science video with you! At my conference, I noticed there were way more males than females in attendance, and it made me kind of sad. Girls get discouraged from doing science at a very young age, so as a future teacher and mom, I want to be someone that encourages ALL students to get involved in science. I mean, scientists make the world go round, so why shouldn’t more people want to participate?

If you don’t know Goldieblox, you should because they are an amazing group dedicated to getting more girls involved in STEM fields (science, technology, engineering, mathematics for you non-science folks). They sell awesome science kits tailored to girls’ interests, and they also host programs to empower girls in science. Check out their commercial below!

I also want to highlight boys in science because even though we need more girls in science, we should still definitely celebrate the awesome boys in science! Peyton created a new adaptation of the sandbag to help people during floods. Check him out!

Hugs

On a chilly winter day like today, hugs sound perfect. If you’re not a hugging person, maybe a hug from a blanket or a cup of tea would be better. Warm hugs from anything are great, to be honest. I love hugging my family because it makes me feel safe and loved. I love cuddling with my pets because I know no matter how much I might screw something up, they will always shower me with love and kisses. With my mind on a countdown for break, hugs from the people, animals and things I love are constantly on my mind. Going to class and doing homework, however…not so much. I made a To-Do list a mile long, so hopefully crossing things off my list will help me feel better.

Now, back to hugs. Not only are hugs proven to be good for you, but they also send messages around the world. Hugs are a symbol of caring and kindness, and I am all about that life. I saw an awesome picture from a rally in Oregon. I’m sure most people have heard about Ferguson and all of the stuff going on there. I am not commenting on it here, but I will say I have been following the various rallies and kind acts following such a controversial topic. People stopping others from looting, community members gathering together to clean up the mess left over, etc. are all things that make me happy. I saw one article that was just too good to pass up sharing. I’m sure most of you have seen “The Hug Seen Around the World” on your social media sites. Devonte Hart held a sign that read “Free Hugs” during a rally in Portland, and police sergeant Bret Barnum took him up on the offer. The article below has the story, and I highly encourage you to check out Devonte’s story as well. Both are inspirational and remind us to act with compassion in our lives.

Article: http://www.oregonlive.com/multimedia/index.ssf/2014/11/photo_police_officer_and_citiz.html

I’m Done My Unit!!!

AHHHHH the day has finally come! I am officially finished my integrated unit for my Science Methods class! All I need to do is print it out and stick it in a binder. So, how do I celebrate this success? With a lovely cup of chai tea and awesome videos! My brain is still a little mushy after this long ordeal, so I hope you enjoy a short, but inspirational post. 🙂

I really, really, really love Kid President, and when I found out he had a new TV show, I was super excited. I’ve watched a couple of the episodes, and this clip was by far my favorite part of the TV show.

Mrs. Flexer is a retiring teacher, and Kid President helped gather her past students to say goodbye. She seems like an awesome lady, and I can only hope that I make half the impact she did. I can’t even imagine how great it must have felt to hear from all of her students. I am a huge believer in telling people that have influenced your life how much they mean to you. So, if you have a Mrs. Flexer in your life, tell him/her how amazing they are! Peace and love, friends!

Bully

I am reading a fantastic book companion to the movie Bully. As a soon-to-be-teacher, I have been thinking a lot about bullying and how it will impact my classroom. Unfortunately, I know a decent amount about bullies because I had several throughout my educational career. It stopped in fourth grade because the girl moved, it stopped in seventh grade because the girl transferred to a private school, and it stopped senior year when I finally had the courage to tell my bully how horrible of a person she really was. I didn’t have confidence in myself at those ages, and this is not a new phenomenon. In fact, bullying is becoming such a huge epidemic that schools, parents and students are having trouble trying to figure out how to handle it. Thankfully, there are more resources and more awareness campaigns out there compared to when I was in school. Kind Campaign and The BULLY Project are just two of the amazing anti-bullying websites/campaigns out there. If you have children or work with children, I encourage you to be proactive about bullying. It could be the difference between a child taking their own life and living to see graduation. Also check out the book Bully because it is really fantastic!

The article (from Inspiyr) below shows a wonderful example of a father taking charge and talking to his son about bullying. This story gave me goosebumps, and it reminded me of the parent I want to be in the future. Enjoy and happy Saturday!

http://inspiyr.com/high-school-questions/