Back Home Again in Indiana

May 27, 2012
Today is a sad day for me as I am sitting at home in Florida watching the Indianapolis 500 on TV instead of sitting at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway watching the race in person.  I have watched this race my entire life as Speedway is my mom's hometown and my dad has always been a race fan (my theory is that if he had been given the opportunity, he could have been a pretty successful driver).  My grandparents house was a mile or so from the track, mom now lives across from the track, and we have family and good friends all over the area.  When I was in 4th grade we spent several weeks in May with my grandparents.  Strangely enough I had never been to the race itself until about 10 years ago.  It has become an annual pilgrimage that is not as much about the race as it is about spending the weekend with family and friends, walking up and down Georgetown, relaxing, and having fun.  Of course, attending the race is part of the fun and is hard to describe to someone who hasn't been to it.  The energy of the crowd of several hundred thousand, the festivities prior to the race, the parade of members of the Armed Forces riding around the track waving to the crowd, the whine of the cars, and so much more add to the excitement.  It truly is the Greatest Spectacle in Racing!   Our plan is to be back there next year.

Coasters

May 26, 2012

Yesterday at Legoland I went on all four of the roller coasters with Catherine.  That may not seem like a big deal, but for me it's HUGE.  Roller coasters scare me.  I really dislike the feeling of going downhill quickly and all that twisting and turning makes me feel like I'm going to go flying off into space and then crash into the ground.  The four coasters at Legoland are geared more toward children, which makes them just about my speed!

Excellent Adventures

May 25, 2012

We like to go on adventures.  Today's adventure took us to Legoland.  Yes, three adult children wandering around Legoland - Wayne, Catherine, and myself.  It was a lot of fun - pretty low key, lots of lego creations to see (including this WELCOME sign), a few rides, a very hokey but fun ski show, and part of the original Cypress Gardens.  The MiniLand, where places such as Times Square, Kennedy Space Center, part of Las Vegas, and Daytona Speedway have been recreated in Legos, was quite interesting.  All in all, an excellent adventure!

Road Trip

May 24, 2012

During the summer of 1997 (or maybe 1998), Daddy was racing the AHRMA circuit on his vintage Penton that he had rebuilt.  One of the races was at Mid Ohio Raceway.  He invited me to go along on a quick trip for that race.  We took off from Savannah, GA late one afternoon and drove all night, arriving at Mid Ohio in the morning.  Daddy registered, we looked around at the vendors, and then found a hotel to get some sleep.  The next morning we were at the track for his races, spending the day there.  At one point a woman came up to me and asked if I wanted to register to race as they needed another woman in the event.  She made sure I knew that if I raced I would get a trophy no matter what since they were giving trophies to the top three in each category and there would be only three women!  I didn't race but I sure was tempted!!  Daddy placed well in his races.  We got up before daylight the next morning and headed to Orlando, arriving that night.
It was a very quick trip but so much fun!  We talked and laughed and just generally enjoyed spending the time together.

The Magic Bean

May 23, 2012

Another of the fun sights from our Chicago trip 4 years ago was this bean-shaped mirror ball in Millenium Park.  It was fascinating and drew quite a crowd.  You can see yourself reflected in it from quite a distance away.

Racing

May 22, 2012

In June, Wayne and I will celebrate our 5th anniversary.  The first Christmas we were married, I gave Wayne the gift of driving an Indy car.  After looking at all of the choices of tracks and the possible dates the following summer, he settled on Chicagoland Speedway the week of our first anniversary.  So, we spent a week in Chicago sightseeing, attending a Cubs vs White Sox game at Wrigley, and Wayne got to go to driving school and drive this car!  Yes, this is really a picture of him driving the car.  It was worth the whole trip to see the look on his face when he got out of the car!

Cookie Cutter Teachers

May 21, 2012

Through thirteen years of public school (Kindergarten through 12th grade), four years of college for an undergraduate degree, several years of working toward (and obtaining) a Master's degree, four courses granting me a certificate to teach gifted students, countless professional development courses, and twenty-eight years of teaching beside hundreds of other teachers I have seen just about every type of teacher there could possibly be.  Each one of them taught me something, and I think the most important lesson I learned is how to get along with many different types of people and how to do things many different ways.  I had teachers who taught through lectures, discussions, outlines, notes, small group work, whole-class instruction, one-on-one instruction, and hands-on activities.  Some of them had classrooms with tables and some with desks.  We sat in rows, in small groups, at tables of two or three or four, and in large circles.  Some teachers were approachable and some were not.  Some teachers cracked jokes and some did not.  I learned from every one of them.
There is a movement afoot to create what I call "cookie cutter teachers".  We are all supposed to teach the same lesson on the same day in the same way with our rooms set up in small groups.  Each lesson must have a "productive group work" component and all "whole group instruction" is seen as an example of poor teaching.  Please don't misunderstand - I don't think working in small groups is always bad.   I just don't think it is the be-all-and-end-all of teaching methods.  Nor do I think it is the best method for all teachers or for all students.  I know teachers who use it successfully.  I also know teachers for whom it is not an effective tool.
My contention is that teachers should not all be the same.  If we all teach exactly the same way, how will children learn to adapt and get along in a variety of situations with many different kinds of people?