Accept what the universe brings me and run with it...

Push myself during YOGA sessions...

GREAT YOGA SESSION!!  I listened to my body and let go.  I removed my glasses and used less visual cortex stimulation.  I FELT!!  It was amazing and exhilarating to be that in touch with my body.  I pushed passed thresholds and points when I wanted to give up.  It was a great mosey with myself.  If I can keep it up I will be ready to push myself.  This is just the foundational cycle!!

Mosey with myself: seek solitude...

Walk
Listen
Journal
Write
Observe
Feel
Reflect

Develop and Apply the Art of the Mosey...

Planning can sometimes get in the way and intrude on a relationship.  When getting things done take precedence over how two or more people interact, this may lead to communication break downs and lack of trust.  Remember, it's always about the relationship. 

Getting things done is not always what is most important. There is value in allowing others to learn, even if the task is not accomplished as quickly, efficiently or effectively." - R.D. Clyde

Take your time. Do your best and forget the rest.

http://www.parellinaturalhorsetraining.com/when-planning-intrudes-on-the-horse-relationship/?utm_source=Parelli+Natural+Horsemanship+List&utm_campaign=6fd6dcb6a2-connection_5-19-2011&utm_medium=email

From the cluttered mind of C

Human Being not a Human Doing

Writ this day Monday, May 23rd, 2011

in West Allis, my first home

Roll if I fall! Haha!

Roll if I fall! Haha!

Roll if ya Fall
Barefoot Truth
Changes in the Weather

Sent from my iPhone

Promise

I, Lukas Christianson, agree to fill these pages with as clear a truth as my present perception allows.  Freedom from the limitations of my mind is the desired outcome, therefore, I have decided to undertake a PROCESS.  I promise myself that everything written in this blog will be as honest as possible. 

I can relearn and choose my own knowledge and assumptions.

Keep and update an online glossary...

Definition of incommodious: inconvenient, as not affording sufficient space or room; uncomfortable.

Learn more word meanings at Dictionary.com

Sent from my iPhone

Keep and update an online glossary...

Definition of prose: ordinary language as distinguished from verse.

Learn more word meanings at Dictionary.com

Sent from my iPhone

Keep and update an online glossary...

Definition of transmutation: act or process of changing form, nature, etc., or the fact or state of being so changed.

Learn more word meanings at Dictionary.com

Sent from my iPhone

Keep and update an online glossary...

Definition of subterfuge: means used to evade or conceal.

Learn more word meanings at Dictionary.com

Sent from my iPhone

Keep and update an online glossary...

Definition of artifice: clever trick.

Learn more word meanings at Dictionary.com

Sent from my iPhone

Interacting with text in SAN DIEGO!!

Beyond Comprehension A Coda by: Pearson

Connect thought to feeling. Feeling to right action.

It's about collecting your thoughts, feelings, and opinions before an event happens. Preparing for an experience is NOT KNoWIng what is going to take place. Its about aligning positive thought to possible action and then letting go in the
Moment.

It's about creating a RIPPLE EFFECt!!! Give the thoughts, fears, dreams, ideas, feelings, muses, possibilities to the UNIVeRSAL CONSCIOUSNESS then...
GET OUT OF THE WAY!!!!!! By having the thoughts, fears, dreams, ideas, feelings, muses, and opening up to limitless possibilities; you are preparing to have an experience!!!

Sent from my iPhone

We shall not cease from exploration, and the end of all our exploring will be to arrive where we started and know the place for the first time. -T. S. Eliot

We shall not cease from exploration, and the end of all our exploring will be to arrive where we started and know the place for the first time. -T. S. Eliot

Sent from my iPhone

Learn to dance in the rain.

Life isn't about waiting for the storm to pass. It's about learning to dance in the rain.

Sent from my iPhone

Alter my perception to emphasize the positive.

What COULD happen, what SHOULD happen, and what WILL happen are all a matter of perception...
Point of view & attitude

Sent from my iPhone

Comprehend a BALANCE of KNOWLEDGE...

Debate on Caffinated beverages

Business-Peaches
Health-Luther (Effects of caffeine)  Q: Are there other ways to simulate the effects of caffeine on your body in ways that are nonaddictive? 
Historical Literacy- Beth and Luke Q: What is the decision making process in today's politics?  People make decisions for us all the time.  If we want something changed, what do we do? 
Math(Stats and Graphs)- Crosby

Petitions
Socratic Seminars
Debates
PERSUASIVE WRITING
Interviews
Writing a LINE OF QUESTIONING

UNDERSTAND TIMELESS THEMES OF HUMAN EXISTENCE...

When one understands the timeless themes of human existience that new found knowledge leads to prophetic statements...

"All you have to do is write one true sentence.Write the truest sentence you know." - Ernest Hemingway

Believe...

cultivate a belief and sense that everything is as it should be.  Things may not be as they COULD BE, but all is as it should be.

Show model my research and learning process...

1.  Be open to new ideas...
2.  ALIGN WITH AND ACCEPT an opportunity when it presents itself.
3.  Balance your head and your heart to see if it's what your truly want.  (Are you willing to "give up your time and your peace and you sleep for it?")
4.  Think about what you already know about the subject.  (SEARCH YOUR SCHEMA)
5.  "FILL IN THE GAPS" What you don't know...FIND OUT!
6. 

Plan with FULL CONSCIOUSNESS...

Raise my awareness of thoughts as they permeate consciousness within context in order to hold, retain, organize, and apply them in a precise, effective delivery. (hold thoughts until they will be needed later where their effectiveness will be unleashed.)

Integrate History and applied literacy...

Sequence leads to timelines
Sequence leads to plot

Plot = what happens in a story
Timeline = events that took place

Plots and timelines can be connected and related

Similar reading concepts such as these also appear within social studies/history lessons.  These are what good thinkers do.  Readers are thinkers.  Writers are thinkers.  Historians are thinkers.  Scientists are thinkers.

 SEQUENCE, TIMELINES, CAUSE/EFFECT, THEME, CHARACTERS, MAIN EVENTS/MINOR DETAILS, SIMILARITIES/DIFFERENCES, SETTINGS/LOCATIONS, SUMMARIZING/PARAPHRASING, INQUIRY/QUESTIONING, DRAWING CONCLUSIONS, MAKING CONNECTIONS

Find nuggets in writing, feedback, and mentor texts...

These are some of what Beth and I saw while
we were helping our 3rd grade buddies with their stories.

Remember that when we are giving feedback to the other writers in our CIRCLES, good feedback gives us ideas for how to make our writing better.

Somethings to always keep an eye out for are those parts in good writing that SHOW NOT TELL.  I found an example of SHOWING NOT TELLING in a book club book one club is reading.  It's been a MENTOR TEXT that has helped me with some of my writing. 

      "I closed my eyes, flared my nostrils, and let the scents flood in.  The strongest of them, caramel and brown sugar, smell as yellow-orange as the sun, came first.  That one was easy.  The one that anyone would notice come into the shop.  And then chocolate of course, the bitter dark and the sugary milk chocolate.  I don't think a normal girl would've smelled anything else, and part of me wanted to stop there.  But I could feel Sam's heart behind me, and for once I gave in. 
      Peppermint swirled into my nostrils, sharp as glass, then rasberry, almost too sweet, like too-ripe fruit.  Apple, crisp and pure. Nuts, buttery, warm, earthy, like the wolf.  The subtle, mild scent of white chocolate.  Oh, God, some sort of mocha, rich and dark and sinful.  The butter cookies on the shelves added a floury, comforting scent, and the lollipops, a riot of fruit scents too concentrated to be real.  The salty bite of pretzels, the bright smell of lemon, the brittle edge of anise.  Smells I didn't didn't even know names for..."

METAPHORS & SIMILES
http://www.brainpop.com/english/writing/similesandmetaphors/

Find the history in all that surrounds us.

Feels like
Sounds like
Looks like
TRIBES...

Sent from my iPhone

Organize and update around the domains of teaching: grading, planning, scheduling, teaching

Organize and update around the domains of teaching: grading, planning, scheduling, teaching

History repeats itself...

Sent from my iPhone

Teach the writing process through Workshop and Circles.

I write entirely to find out what I’m thinking, what I’m looking at, what I see and what it means.  What I want and what I fear. 

-Joan Didion

     "I would like students to understand that writing is a method of building something.  Good writers have to identify with their OWN VOICE.  Then, structure their writing with the voice they have discovered within themselves."  -High school english teacher I spoke with over the summer.

      There is a VOICE inside us all that speaks to us when we feel strongly about something or react to something we think or read in our external environment.  VOICE comes in many forms.  VOICE comes as an idea.  VOICE comes as a feeling.  VOICE comes as thought.  VOICE comes as a memory.  VOICE comes as a reaction to a stimulus.  VOICE COMES AS AN OPINION.  VOICE comes as an interest.  VOICE COMES AS A WHISPER!  One does not hear voice.  YOU FEEL IT!!

Writing is like ARCHITECTURE.  There is a form, a structure to writing and although the structure a writing piece takes on is flexible; it gives it shape.  There is an art to writing, and there is also a science to it. 

Step	Description	Strategies
Prewriting	An activity that causes the writer to think about the subject.  The writer organizes his thoughts before he begins to write.	Drawing Talking Brainstorming Graphic organizers Research Listing Field Trips
Drafting	The process of putting ideas down on paper.  The focus is on content not mechanics	Taking notes, Organizing thoughts into paragraphs, Writing a first draft
Revising	The process of refining the piece of writing.  The writer adds to a writing piece.  The writer reorganizes a piece of writing.  The writer shares his story and gets input from peers or teacher.	Peer editing Conferencing Share Chair or Author’s Chair
Editing	Mechanical, grammatical and spelling errors are fixed in the writing piece.	Checklists Rubrics Editing Checklists Proofreading
Publishing	The writing piece is prepared in final form, including illustrations.  The writer shares his writing with others.	Reading aloud Reading to a group Displaying in the room Printing the books Web publishing

Live up to my greatest ideal: Day by Day...

What is the greatest ideal I can be today?
A project-based literacy teacher that incorporates real life personal experiences...
What is project-based reading? Lit circles? Book Clubs? Inquiry circles? Rubrics? Blogs? Discussion groups? Checklists? Small group conferring? KWLs? 3-2-1's? Energizers? Tribes? The 5 E's? Brainpop? Media? Videos? Text? Web-searches?
True comprehension is less about the questions one can answer at the end of a reading and more about the questions one has the ability to ASK at the end of a reading.

Sent from my iPhone

Use an online grade book EFFICIENTLY.

Keeping up with grades has really turned me into the teacher I don't want to be.  There is so much emphasis placed on this aspect of school it's ridiculous.  It seems to me certain families and parents use grades to "keep up with the Jones'" where competetive nature and the need for comparison drive thought.  The pressure is overwhelming.  It feels like the negative feedback from the beginning of the year shaped the direction the last few months have taken.  It feels like being forced into a corner where you can't move or even breath without your methods, thoughts, work, efforts, and character passing under scrupulous supervision. 
The judgements passed on the school and its teachers came a lot in part from the report cards.  They came from the expediency (or lack thereof) of the report cards and grades.  The question "How's my son/daughter doing?" feels like a loaded question these days.  It's daughnting, agitating, frustrating, and does not motivate anyone to do better or try harder while unleashing a teacher's full potential.  It releases the "I don't want that to happen again so I better do just enough to not get busted" work ethic.  The judgements do not build a partnership nor open up clear lines of communication.  -2/12/11

TEACH WRITING in a different way for a New World

WHAT IS THE GREATEST IDEAL I CAN BE TODAY?
I CAN teach one trait of writing at a time…  these are my minilessons
-WITH A RUBRIC
-WITH STUDENT MODELS (MENTOR TEXTS) OR WITH PROFESSIONAL MODELS (MENTOR TEXTS)

I CAN assign and grade ONE to THREE paragraphs for that trait only…
-WITH OPPORTUNITIES TO REVISE
-WITH 2-3 HELPFUL COMMENTS FROM PEERS (WRITING CIRCLES)
-WITH 1-2 HELPFUL COMMENTS FROM THEIR TEACHER (ONCE A WEEK “WALK AROUNDS” THAT EVALUATE/ASSESS)  "DIALOGUE POST-ITS"

I CAN teach students to effectively organize and explain only one point or argument in only 1-2 paragraphs

I CAN regularly schedule “writing days” (30 MINUTES) when I read and grade while students read or write.
-WITH OPPORTUNITIES TO COME UP TO MY DESK FOR “STUDENT SELECTED CONFERENCES” OR RAISE A CUP OR SIGN ON THEIR WRITING DESKS TO CALL ME OVER FOR A “STUDENT SELECTED CONFERENCE”

Example… I want you to go home and watch the TV/news with an adult or by yourself.  Form an opinion from what you see.  It could be American Idol for all I care.  Just form an opinion… good/bad  ugly/pretty  awesome/awful  talented/no talent at all  Write your opinion down and explain why you feel the way you feel.  Use two paragraphs to describe your opinion.  You are going to need a TOPIC/MAIN IDEA/supporting details.

I Can... Bring to life MY VOICE and the light behind it.

I Can... Bring to life MY VOICE and the light behind it.

You don't have to do something to be the person you have always wanted to be.

You already are the person you have always wanted to be.

Just BE the person you are.

Sent from my iPhone

I Can... Organize small groups that foster collaborative skills, conscientiousness, cooperation, and motivation.

I Can... Organize small groups that foster collaborative skills, conscientiousness, cooperation, and motivation.

Sent from my iPhone

I CAN... Bring the FUN back into the classroom!!

I CAN... Bring the FUN back into the classroom!!
It's about problem finding; not problem solving!!
Traditional education is one of Inquiry... Conventional education is what we see with desks and rows and "sage on the stage"

Stop think and react to new information!! THEN, pick out the important stuff. TEXT CODING

The questions a student asks after reading are a better assessment of their understanding than the questions they can answer after a reading.

Sent from my iPhone

Live a curious and passionate life... Then model it!!

Live a curious and passionate life... Then model it!!
Ask Questions!!!

Sent from my iPhone

I Can... Read more in front of kids with read alouds.

Use the first chapter of books/series for minilessons...

Character intros
Setting
Intro of the problem/conflict
Sequence
Causes that lead to effects

Sent from my iPhone

I Can... Update my blog no matter where I am: whenever/where ever inspiration strikes. In context!!

Writing is self expression.
A THEME is not a summary.
A theme is a sentence, a complete thought.
"Write the truest sentence you know!" Hemingway
Universal truth bubbles up from beliefs, truths that have been passed down.

Sent from my iPhone

I Can... Use multiple resources to record thoughts, feelings, and musings.

Time is relative: in a lot of cases irrelevant! Lessons learned (not learned) in childhood pass on into adulthood.
Physical maturation is not equivalent to emotional/mental maturation.
READINESS: Adults need it as well as kids.

Sent from my iPhone

In life there are Mosquitos and there are fireflies. Some people are Mosquitos that you feel no remorse swatting out of your life. Some people are fireflies that brighten your life and bring light where there was once darkness. Those are the people you hang onto with gentle hands and keep them from getting crushed.

In life there are Mosquitos and there are fireflies. Some people are Mosquitos that you feel no remorse swatting out of your life. Some people are fireflies that brighten your life and bring light where there was once darkness. Those are the people you hang onto with gentle hands and keep them from getting crushed.

Sent from my iPhone

Plan and Prepare

It's about collecting your thoughts, feelings, and opinions before an event happens. Preparing for an experience is NOT KNoWIng what is going to take place. Its about aligning positive thought to possible action and then letting go in the
Moment.
It's about creating a RIPPLE EFFECt!!! Give the thoughts, fears, dreams, ideas, feelings, muses, possibilities to the UNIVeRSAL CONSCIOUSNESS then...
GET OUT OF THE WAY!!!!!! By having the thoughts, fears, dreams, ideas, feelings, muses, and opening up to limitless possibilities; you are preparing to have an experience!!!

Sent from my iPhone

Research is what I'm doing when I don't know what I'm doing. - Wernher Von Braun

Research is what I'm doing when I don't know what I'm doing. - Wernher Von Braun

Sent from my iPhone

Write where the story takes you.

Write where the story takes you.

You have to make space!!! Space in your life. Space in your home. SPACE IN YOUR MIND. Writing releases and frees up space in your mind.

Space for things that you want to do. People are going to have things they need you to do.

Sent from my iPhone

I can share the things that make me happy. I can co-experience the things that bring joy to my life.

I want to share the things that make me happy. I want to co-experience the things that bring joy to my life.
Horses
Fitness
Reading/books
Movies
Qtime
Sleep
Affection
Archery
YOGA

Sent from my iPhone

I Can...

Share my passions and happiness with others. 

Enjoy the things I attract into my life: Snow Day

Enjoy the things I attract into my life and not feel unworthy or undeserving. 

The heart of a fire...

I Can...

Every time you repeat the words, "I CAN..." with whole-hearted conviction, you cancel or override your fear and increase your confidence.  By repeating this affirmation over and over, you can eventually build your courage and confidence to the point where you are unafraid.