My two sons tease their dad often, but, I must admit that he has provided them with opportunities for some comic gold. He has also been showing them how to make others laugh for a long time, but, they are more fortunate than their youthful hearts can know. The family lore is full of dadContinue reading “Dad’s Gold”
Author Archives: Melanie White
Remotely Listening
On Tuesdays afternoons, urged by the much admired Sherri Spelic, I joined an engaging weekly series of webinar discussions from the Office of Open Learning called “Open Teaching Tuesdays”. I am so glad that I did! The hosts, Bonnie Stewart and Dave Cormier, invite various educators to talk and share experiences, expertise, and questions aboutContinue reading “Remotely Listening”
Up close and at a distance
I was giving feedback to my students online the other day and realized that the way we think of reading, the way we position ourselves in the process of reading is vital. I also realized a missing part of the learning that I have been providing; I missed showing them how to know and recognizeContinue reading “Up close and at a distance”
Remotely Speaking
I am spending a lot more time speaking to myself these days. These conversations are often dropped mid sentence or I’m silent and don’t reply to my own questions. Thoughts remain unattended for days. Sometimes weeks. I realize that I haven’t been a very attentive host to my own conversations and am reminded of aContinue reading “Remotely Speaking”
The Healing Week
During my years after graduating university I worked as an injury claims adjudicator, and the medical professionals in my office would frequently claim that any injury takes six weeks to heal. Fractured ankle? Six weeks to heal. Crushed femur? Six weeks to heal. Broken heart? Well… maybe not all types of injuries take six weeksContinue reading “The Healing Week”
Thinking like a Scientist
I’ve been reading a great deal of advice and research on remote teaching, distance learning, pandemic pedagogy, and the like but there is one call from Twitter which deserves reiteration: cite your sources. I think this is important, not only to credit the source of your inspiration, but also to recognize the source of yourContinue reading “Thinking like a Scientist”
What we deny
Only in our isolation and disconnectedness do we discover that everything and everyone is localized and connected. And, in this distancing, I am beginning to question what we deny. Rebecca Solnit kept appearing in my daily consumption of media and I’m beginning to wonder if this is the work of a latent existential force drawingContinue reading “What we deny”
10 Things I’ve Learned: a response to Doug Peterson’s Blog
This morning I continued my usual routine of reading blogs and preparing for virtual meetings, trying to catch a digestible drink from the firehose of online teaching resources. I made an attempt to consolidate my learning here: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1DMgQIkgMS_UVn0E2Lc73Zqq-N8a2vO9yxRuIcG0NkGs/edit?usp=sharing Then I read Doug Peterson’s blog because he has the ability to deliver big ideas in meaningfulContinue reading “10 Things I’ve Learned: a response to Doug Peterson’s Blog”
Falling in love – 31/31 #SOL20
Since I’ve been writing daily, I’ve occasionally lost my sense of time and space which is common when you fall in love. Writing and commenting in this space, where teachers gather and share and comment – this has been my daily anchor – a routine that can be relied upon. And since I’ve been writingContinue reading “Falling in love – 31/31 #SOL20”
Dear Students – 30/31 #SOL20
Dear Students, I don’t quite know where to begin this letter, or at least, this is the umpteenth time that I’ve begun this letter because writing is all about the drafts, which, of course, you already know, because you heard me say this when we were in class. I mean, I know my purpose forContinue reading “Dear Students – 30/31 #SOL20”
