Day 8: Understanding by Design, Conversations on the other side of the world.


1.  Simply by sharing that what we do has to have a purpose or there's no point in doing it.  I would explain that once they figure out what they wanted the students to learn, why they needed to learn it and how this fits into the big picture, planning everything else becomes so much easier.

2.  I plan to shift to more "backwards planning."  I was doing it before but really got away from it in the last few years.  I also plan to have a Skype or google hangouts session.  

So the morning was spent learning about effective lesson planning. I feel much more confident that I can do better at this.  My problem is taking time to plan as opposed to using my down time as down time.  


We also spent about an hour on a Skype session with a teacher in Hyderabad, India.  It was interesting to learn about how schools are different over there.  40 kids to a class?!? No thank you!  

Art project progress:  
Watercolors were dried, then I applied marker, pastel chalk and acrylic paint.  I also began drawing and cutting shapes.  The sgraffito project is on hold until tomorrow. 48 hour rest time apparently.

We spent the late afternoon learning about Dr Huang's life growing up in China and about her trip there last summer.  Large schools, large class sizes, plenty of money, but prices and infrastructure just can't keep pace with growth.  Looks like a beautiful place, though.  Very rich in history and beauty.

  

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