A Marvelous, Maxed Out, MAEOE of a Weekend

You know you've had a full weekend when you have had:

• Two 3-hour session of eco-art and inquiry
• Six 1-hour sessions from everything from climate change, marine debris, student empowerment and more
• A 1.5 hour keynote
• A 1.5 hour plenary panel
• And inspiration beyond belief.

Making it past the first day of MAEOE, the second day was a great one, and a full one.  I decided to let my camera do the talking while I let all the good ideas settle and ruminate!  Good stuff, great weekend!

Free slideshow made with Smilebox

Photos from my camera (including pictures of the conference bulletin), and incorporated into a Smilebox presentation.

Hi Ho, Hi Ho... It's Off To MAEOE I Go!

Well, it is that time of year again.  Time for the annual MAEOE (aka: "Maryland Association of Environmental and Outdoor Educators") weekend conference.

Pronounced properly, MAEOE sounds like "mayo."  MAEOE is the Maryland organization that grants schools with their "green" status.  The conference theme this year is "Fulfilling Environmental Education's Promise: Authentic Learning and Real World Impact."  MAEOE has a whole weekend filled with sessions integrating all sorts of eco-issues with other curricular content and the great outdoors.

Day One has been a full day so far, with 2 half-day sessions for me.  Figuring that this is just two offerings out of a sea of many, a lot of neat things were happening, and the MAEOE joint was jumping!

Session one for me was "Engaging Youth in Ecology Through Arts and Nature."  It was led by Desiree Shelley, the environmental educator from Baltimore's Parks and People Foundation.  This foundation creates curriculum for after school programs for Baltimore City youngsters.  Given it's after school, activities need to be very hands-on.  What better way to do that than getting the kids outside or incorporating art and creative expression.  It was a full morning, with a lot of take-aways (including make-and-take aways) as we learned about:

• "Designs in Nature" (a activity incorporating fractals and geometry),
• Tree cookies (log slices where you can count the rings and then paint with images of the stories you create about the imagined life of that tree),
• Spiderwebs and the Iktome tales of Native American culture,
• Ways to make bird houses out of recycled objects like milk cartons or jugs,
• Making "habitat mosaics" with paper for indoor art, or with times to make outdoor stepping stones,
• Taking black and white images of the urban neighborhood and painting in the nature,
• And much more!

If you are interested in learning more or in obtaining some these lesson plans, contact Desiree, as she's been kind enough to open herself up as a resource here through GTG!

Kim Dixon of the Baltimore Zoo led my 2nd session entitled "Using Inquiry to Explore Nature." She gave us a brief description on how inquiry-based learning has a different dynamic than the more linear scientific method with it's ebb, flow, and "I wonder" approach, being more student-inspired and student-driven.  Then Kim went on with a fun exposure to guided inquiry.

The grand finale was an outdoor trek to the beach for an experience in open inquiry. (Did I mention the fact that the conference is being held at a beach-side conference hotel in Ocean City!).  She allowed us to go into Zen observation mode to see what it is we see, and come up with our own inquiry investigation, then present our results to the group.

Ours:  Do the sand ripples from the wind change as you get closer to the water? With a close measure using the uber-scientific "ripple to ruler" ratio, we discovered that... WAIT!  I could tell you the answer, but that would counter the purpose of actual inquiry! This is the part of the program where I urge you to make your own hypothesis and investigation, and find your own beach to answer your own wondering!

Getting us out there, encountering not only what inquiry is but how it feels, is always good for us teachers (even those of us who sometimes might want to just sit in the back and just take notes--especially right after lunch!)  And, it's the point of the MAEOE and the "Green" School movement:  no child left inside.  Clearly, that applies to teachers too!!


Snapshots from my camera; MAEOE logo from www.maeoe2012.wikispaces.com

Pinteresting Stuff: Ring Around the Dendrochronology

I'm a recent convert to Pinterest.  I battled myself on it for awhile:  "Like I really need another addiction."  Of course, I said that too with Facebook, Twitter, "Words with Friends," and now "Scramble With Friends."  I should know by now I don't ever win that battle.

Anyhoo, it was through my Twitter PLN (Personal Learning Network) of folks I follow, that I saw that Pinterest actually had an educational element to it. This I have verified, through finding all sorts of educational boards and neat teaching ideas. (There's a ton of stuff on there for Homeschooling too, a few pals have told me!)  It's also a great place to go for arts and crafts, many of which use recyclable items. 

It reminds me of my reading (years ago) of Sarah Ban Breathnach's book "Simple Abundance" and her urging to make visual visionary boards.  Pinterest is most certainly a digital way to do that.  Being highly visual myself, it didn't take long before I was sucked in.  So much for that aforementioned-battle!!

But it is interesting...my fullest board so far is my "Good Brain Space" Board.  Finding quotes seems to be something that is not my quest alone, I have discovered.  Qutoes are all over Pinterest!!  One of my favorite lately, I think in part because of the organic nature of it (but moreso due to the actual quote itself) is this one:

This quote truly has been staying with me for days.  Maybe it has in part since my 3rd graders were talking about tree rings and how botanists use them to for dating the tree in science just a week or 2 ago.  Dendrochronology.  It has been leaving me to ponder my "educational dendrochronology."  For my class.  For my own children who live in my house.  For myself.  It's made me curious about what my own rings reveal in each of these categories.  It has made me want to notate it... draw it out... label it up, almost like a science diagram.  I think it could be revealing to see in each these circumstances:  my class, my kids, and most certainly for me.  Where are  the rings wide?  Where are the rings narrow?  How are my 3 "tree maps" mentioned above the same, and where are they different?  Where am I most proud?  Where do rings need more attention?

In pondering it, I do think I'm quite proud of my own li'l little Math Month Tree Ring as of late.  I have mentioned ECS's Math Month a bit in GTG here lately--see here or here).  The Pasadena Patch online newsletter focused on Eagle Cove School's Math Month this past weekend (click here for the article).  As the head cheerleader for that month-long event, I feel like I've created a nice, wide "love of math" ring for my students...and that most certainly feels good!

Yes...the making of my own visual tree rings might indeed make for a good brain space exercise!!

(Interesting too, as an aside:  Dendroclimatology is the study of tree rings to learn about global climate and climate change.  Who knew?! Not me... yet, as my son told me after his first day of Kindergarten science this year:  "Physics!  It is all Physics.  Nature likes circles.  Circles are physics."  Irony, synchronicity, and tree rings are too--circles that is!  But herein lies the connections of cool quotes, tree rings, good brain space, eco blogs, and physics!! I love it when that happens!!)

Book image for "Simple Abundance" from http://www.barnesandnoble.com/, Tree Ring Image from ohboy3rdgrade.blogspot.com, and of course, my Pinterest Boards.

Marvy Math Month @ Eagle Cove School!

January 31st finds us at the end of Math Month at Eagle Cove School.  Tomorrow, February 1st, is the day the last projects are due in from our PreK to 5th grade population.  All classes worked together to put a project or two together (to find out more, see my Jan. 29th "Math Month Meets Eco-Stats & A Touch of Tech" blog article), while our 2nd to 5th graders also worked on individual projects as well.  Even our youngest PreK'ers made mitten graphs and button-clad snowmen.  Our 8-paneled stage enclosure is filling up nicely, with more to come tomorrow, for sure!

"Pure mathematics is, in its way, the poetry of logical ideas."              ~Albert Einstein

No matter how many years these boards get filled (and this is my 4th of being in charge of cheerleading this month and seeing that all projects get hung), and I swear, each year tops the one before it!  So many neat, new, original project ideas... from individual students as well as from classrooms as a group, art, science, and more! And even more in-class projects in the books we read in library, the songs we sing and play in music, the rhythm we count out in gymnastics in PE, and the foreign words we count in Spanish! 

Yes, yes indeed... it's a marvelous, mega, math world in which we at Eagle Cove School live... and we love, love, love it!!  

"Go down deep enough into anything & you will find mathematics." ~ Dean Schlicter

Photo from my camera, from my school!

Math Month Meets Eco-Stats & A Touch of Tech

January is Math Month at Eagle Cove School.  Given that, we encourage math exploration across the grade levels, send home math calendars for enrichment activities, read about math, incorporate math in all our special/enrichment classes, and work up both individual and class projects that then get posted in the Mega Math Museum in the gym.  It's a big deal!  

QR Code Caption:  Styrofoam cups

take ____ years to biodegrade.



As the teacher/cheerleader who runs Math Month, it's exciting each year to see the different projects that come in.  Every year is unique and different, and it's always a surprise what the kids will bring in.  It's a delight, too, to have even our youngest munchkins come running up to me at recess to tell me all about the math they are working on and the project that they'll be bringing in soon!  They are excited about math, and I love it!!

Given my "green" leanings, I always try to build in an environmental project or two for my whole class projects.  This year, for one of my whole class 3rd grade projects, I decided that it'd be timely to tie in a math project with a few of our new ECS iPads.  Using the Kaywa QR Code Generator, I loaded it with some statistical data from my eco-library:  how many years does it take for a plastic grocery bag to biodegrade; how many weeks does it take a banana to break down; how long does it take Styrofoam to biodegrade; etc.   

So my young math minds made some prediction using the blacklines below in the SlideShare.  They predicted the order (from least to greatest) that they thought the following items would biodegrade:  cardboard milk carton, sheet of paper, banana peels, aluminum cans, cigarette butts (which always brings 8-9 year old to chuckles), plastic grocery bags, plastic cups, and Styrofoam.  Then they made reflections about their findings.  Some surprises... that's for sure!  At this point, I had my "Math-Month"ians complete a graph and a paragraph frame of their findings.  2 examples are in the SlideShare below.  To go the extra mile for an amazing presentation, I had them take their rough draft graph to the computer lab to type in the blanks on a pre-installed black-line on our school server in the computer lab. 

The computerized end-results were completely a thing of beauty, and I swelled with pride in that "proud teacher" moment.  Their comments were rich:  "Wow! After this, I am going to use less plastic," "I think I need to recycle more," "I was totally surprised by the numbers!"  In the end... our Math Month project had great results, both with its in-class commentary and with the dynamic presentation it made. Plus, it might even teach the Mega Math Museum viewers a thing or too.  That, too, makes me swell in "green" teacher pride!

Biodegradable qr code math graph pdf

View more documents from Vicki Dabrowka

QR code from my document above as created from http://qrcode.kaywa.com/

Soaring Like an Eagle With Synchronicity

"Synchronicity" is when 2 (or more) events come together in perfect harmony.  We had a moment of exactly that--synchronicity--yesterday in 3rd grade. 

This week we have been reading the story "Fly, Eagle Fly" by Christopher Gregorowski.  In it, an eaglet is found, and raised as as a chicken, with chickens.  A friend of the farmer is insistent that the eagle, as it grows, should be allowed to fly as it is one with the sky--an eagle.  Meanwhile, the farmer is insistent that since the eaglet was raised as a chicken--it essentially IS a chicken.  My students were drawn to the story, and found truth in the theme that one should always be themselves.  Being from "Eagle" Cove School our conversation turned more and more to eagles, and my students were able to learn a lot about them as raptors, as predators, as our national symbol, and as a symbol for the environment--going from being on the endangered species list due to DDT and now back again. 

I structured one part of our reading activity around writing an "Eagle Poem." With this, I had my students imagine what it might be like, being an eagle.  I wanted them to write from that perspective.  The poem need not rhyme, but rather it started with beginning phrases such as "It sees... It hears... It feels... etc."  

About the time we started talking about this in class, the sun started peeking through the January sky in a rather unseasonal way.  In fact, the 50 degree weather was more than rare for a January.  Given we have eagles on the island just across the Magothy River from us (and we have the name "Eagle" in our Eagle Cove School name), it seemed only right to go OUTSIDE and imagine what we might hear, see, feel, etc.  With clipboards in hand, out we went.  The rhyme-less poems my students created were down right amazing.  Outside seemed to make all the difference!!

In case there was any question...I am a big proponent of Richard Louv and "No Child Left Inside."

Looking out on the water, knowing an eagle or 2 live on the island across the adjacent river, the kids could imagine what it would feel like to personify an eagle flying overhead. 

Based on the end product, my students clearly consulted their inner eagle, and were most certainly inspired by the great outdoors!  Makes me completely love teaching... especially on a day like this!!

Fly, Eagle, Fly pic from http://www.amazon.com/Fly-Eagle-African-Tale/dp/0689823983; other pics from my camera!!

Whether Sleet or Snow... To EdCampDC We Go!

You know you've been at EdCamp all day when...

A). Your day is full, your mind is swirling, and your teacher mind is charged;
B).  You have a lot of ideas you can easily put into practice--as soon as Monday;    
C).  You have spent the day with a lot of like-minded individuals who serve as total inspiration & motivation;
D). You find yourself in bed and asleep by 9 pm because you are wiped out due to operation overload (but in a good way!);
E).  All of the above.

If you answered "E," then you've hit the nail on the head!

As for me and "E," this past Saturday I ventured out with a colleague to my 2nd (and her 1st) EdCamp:  EdCampDC. Just like the US Postal Office Creed:  "Neither snow nor rain nor heat nor gloom of night stays these couriers from the swift completion of their appointed rounds...."  We trekked the hour or so southwest to DC despite the icy, slushy world around us.  Just like "the show," EdCampDC "must go on!"  Weather did hit the numbers, taking the anticipated 250 down by half or more; but for those of us that were there, the information du jour kept our creative juices flowing!!

  

To learn more about EdCamp in general, you can take a peek at my experience at EdCampHarrisburg or go to the EdCamp Wiki (where you can see a global calendar of all upcoming Edcamps) or the EdCamp Foundation. 

Kudos and special thanks to EdCampDC organizers Matt McCrea, Andrew Pratt, and Selena Ward.  It was a great, great day!

Here are some of the great finds I found along the way during the course of my EdCampDC Day (in addition to an amazing final session all about rewarding motivated teachers--great food for thought!):

1.  Metryx

An education assessment start-up that is due to start-up any time, this will transform your in-class, clipboard-style assessment with just a few clicks on your mobile tablet device.  By help teachers to assess students and then helping them to use that data for differentiation within the classroom, this could potentially transform  not only your teaching but the way in which you assess your students' progress in the classroom.

2. Evernote

If you're like me, you know that Evernote is a file-cabinet-style tool for you to access all your finds online (whether by tablet, phone, or computer).  But at EdCampDC, we talked a lot about the ways in which notebooks in Evernote could become great places for quick anecdotal recording of your students' behavior and academic progress.
 

3.  Class Dojo Behavior Plan

An online way to both improve student behavior as well as motivating students with "live" feedback.  Class Dojo allows you to program li'l avatars, make behavior reports based on specific in-class behaviors that you design.

4.  Educreation App:  Interactive WhiteboardIf you like Khan Academy, you'll love this with it's ability to make and record similar videos yourself....OR have kids use to create a short illlustrated video where they explain/define something.

5.  Other Good Interactive Whiteboard iPad Apps:
ScreenChomp, Skitch, Splashtop, and BoardCam

6.  National Teachers Alliance
A non-partisan network for classroom teachers, the National Teachers Alliance is out to communicate what is working in the field of education through resources, reviews, and really good stuff!

And no, not from EdCamp, but equally yummy finds this weekend, and equally EdCamp-appropriate for getting the mind in gear with edtech, apps, iPads, and more!!

7.  APPitic - 1,300+ EDUapps
Here you'll find a directory of educational apps from Apple Distinguished Educators (ADEs).  They have been tested across grade levels and are organized in classroom-helpful ways!

8.  95 EdTech Resources You May Have Missed–Treasure Chest January 22, 2012: Tech the Plunge Every Sunday the Treasure Chest is posted--wow!  A Treasure Trove indeed!!

9.  Twitter for Teachers from Kathy Schrock's Webinar
Last week I did a Kathy Schrock eGenio webinar--wow!  What a powerhouse she is.  Great tips for teachers on how to build your own Personal Learning Network (PLN) through Twitter!  Love it!


All EdCamp images from http://www.edcampdc.org/ .

You Know The Green School Education Is Working When...

You know the "green" school education is working when my two cherubs (ages 6 and 9) cue up educational finds on YouTube that they've gotten from their science teacher. 

Yes, it's a low key Saturday night after an amazing yet full day at EdCampDC (more on that later this weekend).  I'm doing a li'l laundry, and I come up to find the 2 of them, gathered around the computer, caught in rapture watching the wayward adventures of a plastic bag.  Which wayard plastic bag, you ask?  The Magestic Plastic Bag:  A Mockumentary.  A personal favorite of mine (and one that's appeared here in GTG before) yet not what I expected my 2some to call up here on a Saturday night.  But most certainly, if you haven't seen it, it's one definitely worth watching in it's Jeremy Iron's-narrated, dramatic style.

Whatever you do, you too, should watch out for the teacup Yorkie AND the illustrious creature, the Majestic Plastic Bag!!



Video from http://youtu.be/GLgh9h2ePYw 

A Great Green School Experiment

In 2008, Fisher Elementary School (a school of approximately 500 students/staff) in Walpole, Massachusetts embarked on a mean, green, school experiment.  Their eco-bound route, as you'll see in this short video below, took them a long distance in a short period of time:  they landed a 3-way reduction:  70%  in classroom trash, 53% in combined total school trash, and a 37% in wasted milk!  Major strides... and a prime example of how much of a difference the power of one (one school) can make!

Video from: http://youtu.be/Dopg2MYrsk0 

Food for Thought on Martin Luther King, Jr's Bday

I was reminded this weekend of the Great Pacific Garbage Patch TEDx Event of November 2010 sponsored by Plastic Pollution Coalition.  I watched a bulk of it back then, and wrote about it here in GTG.

In honor of the long weekend celebrating Martin Luther King, Jr.'s birthday celebration this Monday, I think this Van Jones speech from that TEDx Event is the perfect tribute for today's world.  In it, he talks not only of the environment and biomimicry, but of democracy, social justice, poverty, empowerment, and activism.  Yes, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. would be proud.

My favorite quote from Van Jones from this piece:

That idea of biomimicry, respecting the wisdom of all species, combined with the idea of democracy and social justice, respecting the wisdom and worth of all people, would give us a different society. We would have a different economy, a green economy that Dr. King would be proud of. That should be the goal... The idea of disposability not only hurts the species we have been talking about, but it corrupts our own society.

Video from http://youtu.be/FjvjSlpJoqo

Singing a Symphony of Whales

"Life is a Symphony, not a sound bite.  Beauty takes wing in its own time."~ Steve Schuch

This week in rading, my 3rd graders read the story "Symphony of Whales" by Steve Schuch.  The story centers around Glashka, a young Alaskan girl who works with her village and the help of a Russian icebreaker to help free trapped beluga whales from a frozen waterway. With the help of music, the whales add in their calls, and are able to find their way through the channel of cut ice to open freedom. Even better, this story is based on the true events of the 1984-1985 winter season where this happened, midst the center of the Cold War, making the event all that much more remarkable during a time of political uncertainty.

In researching some clips of the "songbirds of the sea" (aka, beluga whales), I found some interesting commentary on nature and the environment. Steve Schuch's webpage was one of the premier places for that.  Not only does he consider himself the author of this book, but also the "composer" of the story, as he is a musician as well.  On his webpage, Steve Schuch has a musical clip of himself playing violin with the whales.  Also on the site there is an author's interview about the story, as well as an interesting essay entitled "Reflections on the Arts & the Nature of Education."  In the latter, Schuch shares his philosophy about how the arts open up the sense of wonder in both children and classrooms.  He opens with a quote from environmentalist Rachel Carson.  He ends his essay with this final paragraph:

"The challenges we face in this century will require all the creativity and wisdom we can muster. Global warming, changing politics and economies, learning to bring seemingly limitless appetites into balance with finite ecosystems... all these will require awake and thoughtful citizens. They will require diverse languages and rich vocabularies, both to form relevant questions, and to frame meaningful answers."

Along with sharing Steve Schuch's webpage, I also found the following 2 visuals incredibly helpful (and inspiring) to help bring the story... and environmentalism... to life in my classroom.

The first, from a surprising source:  a Pacific Life Insurance Commercial.



The second,  this video trailer from the upcoming Drew Barrymore movie "Big Miracle" (which has a very similar, true-story-based-storyline as "Symphony of Whales"):



My favorite line from this clip, which is so true: 
"There's ALWAYS something you can do!"



Images from http://informationsentinel.com/resources/Computer_Skills_and_Bio_Project_2_Cierra/Computer%20Skills%20and%20Bio%20Project/characteristics.html and  http://www.amazon.com/Symphony-Whales-Steve-Schuch/dp/0152165487/ref=tmm_pap_title_0

Video Clips from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tVghYFkehGE and http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qv-mWQUoXOg

Meditating on the Materials Economy: AKA, Studying "The Story of Stuff"

This winter, I'm taking an online course through the Green Education Foundation Institute.  Through part of the studies, I found my way back to the 21 minute video by Annie Leonard--her original "Story of Stuff."  I have got to admit it: I'm a big fan of Annie Leonard.  I have seen her speak, and I have read her book.  Not quite a junkie, but close.  Well, okay... maybe, I am. 

She just truly has her finger on the pulse of materials economy:  extraction, production, distribution, consumption (including the dastardly planned and perceived obsolescence) and disposal.  If you haven't seen it, you need to take the time, and do it today!  It's that important, and she is soo right!!



Other GTG "Blasts from the Past" and my previous commentary on the "Story of Stuff":

Sweet Tweets & "Stuff"  3/13/2010

Ode to Annie Leonard,  3/15/2010

Scary Stuff and Powerful Percentages, 7/10/2010

Story of... My Garage!  11/14/2010

Another Successful Story of Stuff:  The Story of Broke, 11/17/2011

Story of Stuff  7/7/2011

Ghosts of Christmas Past in My Kids' Toy Room, 12/3/2011


Video from  http://www.storyofstuff.org/

Retro, Reuse, Pizza, & PacMan

Back in the day, when I was a wee pup, a Friday night was a fulfilling eve with my high school buddies at Hickory Point Mall, in Forsyth, Illinois, right outside of my hometown Decatur.  More specifically, the corner of the mall by Bergners, where there was a routine two-stop "shopping" for every hangout night:

1). The multi-leveled , ladder-esque-looking Garcias Pizza (best pizza by the slice--ever!), and

2). Around the corner from Garcias, there was the video arcade, named Replay.

Given it was the 1980s, and prices were right, a $5 or $10 could take you far in both places.

Well, given my journey home to the homeland for Christmas, I got an opportunity to trek back to the past... No, not my mall haunt of days gone by (my Hickory Point Mall haunts have long-since disappeared), but to another Garcias, a new one in town (well, at least, "newish" to me!).  Setting up shop adjacent to Millikin University in a little "college town" strip of shops and restaurants (some of which have been long time Decatur favorites), Garcias is right there on the corner, a beacon, just calling you in!

Little and unassuming, Garcias led me right back to my high school days with the same pizza by the slice.  [My personal favorite:  Sausage, though "The Gutbuster" was always a popular favorite for those who like ALL the pizza goodies.]  Inside, in addition to a handful of tables and booths, it was "VideoWorld", where Sega, Atari, and Midway unite.  There were games galore (everything from Ms. PacMan [my all time personal favorite] to Star Wars to Strike Fighter to driving/racetrack games, and more.  Add in the final touch of perfection: continuous playing 80s music!  If I wouldn't have had my own kids with me, I would have felt like Marty McFly in "Back to the Future" (minus the Delorian, of course).

Atari's circa 1976 donned booths. Retro board/card games like "Urban Myth," "The Simpsons" and "Battle of the Sexes" were under Plexiglas on table tops. The tokens were endless and free.  Event the plates were salvaged from a hometown Good Will (that I swear had been on my home table in the late '70s from the "buy a plate a week" series from the local grocery store), right next to a mix match of garage sale silverware... ahhh! It was not only tons of fun for parent and child alike, but it was an excellent example of retro reuse--and a wonderful way to keep a boatload of items out of the landfill. There was such a beauty in its simplicity!  I was nearly in eco-nirvana.

Hanging out there, Johnathon (the proprioter) was the perfect host, checking in on us, and helping out in any way we needed.  As I was sipping my soda (while my kids were playing free token after free token), I raved about the place to Johnathon.  I told him that it could be made truly perfect with only one additional thing: dump the Styrofoam cups!  Yes, in this amazing world of reuse, the Styrofoam was out of place!  Johnathon took my eco-advice in stride and in good humor. In fact, within 5 minutes of our conversation, he made a call to his supplier to check on pricing. Color me impressed!

Of course his findings didn't surprise me... paper cups would almost double the pricing of what he was paying out for Styrofoam. Alak, alas... The old story of bottom line: of green versus green--economy over ecology.  Especially in the world of small business, where profit margins tends to be narrow, it's tough to be pro-planet when you need to be pro-personal-pocket.  I think this is one of those things that is going to always be the conundrum of the environmental movement.  People want to go forth and make sustainable choices, but until there are affordable, comparable options, it's going to be a bumpy ride.

Well, back at Garcias... I appreciated Johnathon for taking a moment to pause and investigate the options.  And he thanked me for planting the seed of thought. He said he might try to investigate a hybrid plan for the future with some reusable cups for in-house use, and perhaps paper for "to-go" cups down the line.  I think that is all anyone can do... take little steps, darkening your shade of green as you can and where you can.

But at the end of the day, I truly did feel like I was in my own li'l retro-green nirvana, in the happy place of nostalgia, tasty food & good music filling my soul, smiles on my video-playing munchkins.  Also, I was glad for the conVersation, the conServation, and the open-minded approach to looking at things through new eyes.  Thanks again, Jonathon!  I'm looking forward to heading back to Garcias on my next trip home!!

Pics, courtesy of my own camera, at Decatur's Millikin University neighborhood Garcias, located at 1099 W Main Street, Decatur IL!  Full disclosure, I just love their pizza, the nostalgia, and the retro & reuse (and the merriment of Ms. PacMan), which is the only payback/compensation I am getting in writing this!  ;-)   That, and my perpetual search for blog fodder that feeds my soul.  Mmmm...almost as tasty as a slice of Garcia's sausage pizza!

Out With The Old, Hike in With the New

Out With The Old, Hike in With the New... Year, that is!

Maryland's Department of Natural Resources (same ones who have brought us Maryland Park Quest, which we love so!), are at it again to get us up and outside.  This time, with their "First Day Hikes" program.  However, Maryland can't take all the credit alone.  For the first time, in coordination with the American States Park organization, all 50 states are participating in the First Day Hike Program.

The point of the program--to offer up free opportunities in State Parks for folks and families to start the year on the right foot--in the great outdoors, enjoying nature.  Unplugging, exercising, embracing beauty that nature offers, and tackling nature-deficit disorder.

So mark your calendar for New Year's Day, and make some time to get out and be one with nature.  Richard Louv, author of Last Child in the Woods: Saving Our Children from Nature-Deficit Disorder,  

and The Nature Principle: Human Restoration and the End of Nature-Deficit Disorder would raise his New Year's glass, and toast you and your gameplan to participate!

To find a state park near you, click here and put in your location to find outdoor fun nearby! 

Cheers to you, 2012, and all outdoor adventures ahead!!

Picture from http://www.dnr.state.md.us/publiclands/firstdayhikes.asp

Milestones

There are treasured milestones and memories we all hold dear: our first kiss, learning to drive and getting our license, turning 21, having your father walk you down the aisle on your  wedding day, birth of your first/each child.  These memories become permanently tucked in a special place in our hearts.

As a blogger, there are other milestones... most certainly, not ranking up quite as high as the above list, but treasures all the same. With my map on my blog, there have been definite days of giddiness as I hit all 6 continents (Antarctica, we'll cut you some slack), all 50 states, the homeland of my heritage. My one year anniversary on February 23, 2011 was also meaningful.  Same with Twitter and Facebook when people or organizations that I revere have followed, mentioned, or even retweeted me. Yes, that's a tad swoon-worthy.

My latest milestone was hit yesterday--notably, on what would have been my parents 46th anniversary.  Green Team Gazette reached 50,000 hits. Wow! A good "Merry Christmas" to me!  GTG's creation, I never really even stopped to consider a number such as this!  Small potatoes compared to some of the biggies out there, yet I am at such a level of gratitude for all that have chosen to follow along!  Thanks you for "going green" out there with me!

Cheers... and thanks... and looking forward to following along on this path with you all!

Image created at www.wordle.net

Sending You My Holiday Best

Wishing you a wonderful, love-and-peace-filled December 25th, wherever on Earth you may be!

This free ecard created with Smilebox

Special thanks to all of you who have been

following along this green path with me! 

~ Merry Christmas ~ Happy Holidays ~

Seasons Greetings ~ Happy Hanukkah 

~ Peace on Earth ~

Click here to view online.

Oh Santa!!!

Santa has a rough go of it...

a). A one mega-work night, but ooh la lah, the hours of that! Not to mention, the number of hours of recuperation after those hours of being on the move?

b).  Expectations to have "the right gift" in "the right place" multiplied by... oh, let's say, 7 billion (aka, current population of the world!)

c).  A transportational set up, that is "this side: of amazing...How many of us have our own 9 personal flying-mammal transport systems, one of which is complete with a glowing red nose?

Yet, as I forwarded on Twitter yesterday, Santa has some carbon footprint implications associated with his annual jaunt.  But, knowing/intuitively-assuming that Santa has an innate need to adjust and move forward with the times, I bet he will take the recommendations under advisement!!  Check out Santa's Carbon Footprint Infographic (click to enlarge, or click the link to see it in it's entirety!!)!


For More on Santa, especially here in the final stretch...and especially if you are interested in tracking him here in the final hours...Check out NORAD Tracks Santa's site: 


Image from http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=tracking-santa-on-christmas; Infographic from:  http://www.grist.org/living/2011-12-17-green-christmas-santas-carbon-footprint, Video from http://www.noradsanta.org/

One of My Favorite Things: The Old Book Barn

I'm struck this morning with the sometime-associated-Christmas song "My Favorite Things" from The Sound of Music.  Strains of Julie Andrews' voice & the lyrics are circling my mind, and I am finding myself humming.  Why?  Well, some pretty obvious reasons:

a).  It's Christmastime.

b).  Music has always been a big part of my holiday season, and thus one of "my favorite things."

c).  Between the "brown paper packages tied up with strings" and the wrapping galore that's happening in my house around me, it makes sense.

But add in, yesterday I went to one of my favorite places in the world yesterday.  No, not Paris, Rome, or somewhere exotic on that scale, but a nirvana in and of itself for me.

The Old Book Barn!

I've written about this gem of Forsyth, Illinois before (see my June 27th, 2011 blog entry).  With over 200,000 books (the lion share are reused), it's a book lover's dream....and a great "green" example!  It is always one of my stops when I'm in the neighborhood.  My classroom always gets a major boost to its library after a stop here, as I take home a bag-full of "gently used" books.  My own children love pouring over the Kids' Section (pictured above with the Christmas tree!)  Of course, at this time of the year, the Christmas room is magical in and of itself!!  Yes, it is easy to lose yourself in the stacks, and time flies at the Old Book Barn. 

So, until they open up a franchise on the East Coast (and I tried to talk them into it when I was there!), I'll have to savor my visits as I get them!!  And savor, I do!! 

Pictures from my camera; Video from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tfbB0p-yyLA 

Have Yourself a "Green" Li'l Christmas

Okay, it's true:  I love my school, and all that we represent.  As a Maryland "Green" School since 2006, Eagle Cove School is "green," through and through!

Whether it is students in my class (who know that they have an eco-crazy teacher), or my own two children and their classes (heck, ALL the classes at Eagle Cove School), yep, we're green--especially at Christmastime!

Case and point:

a).  In art, my son's kindergarten class made Rudolph necklaces out of old light bulbs.

b).  In 4th grade science, my daughter made evergreen wreaths out of holly leaves and pine needles as a gift to her parents.

c).  In my son's kindergarten class, they wrapped special gifts: angels out of oyster shells, wrapped in reused tissue paper, and wrapped in lamination scrap remnants, formed into gift bags.

d).  In my 3rd grade class, we took stockings sewn from old sweatshirts, painted them, and used them as "reusable" wrapping for the class gifts we made.

e).  As for our class gifts:  ornaments for moms and dads with a picture of our first day of 3rd grade on one side.

f).  In my class gift pile, I had a student who had made ornaments out of crab shells, painted silver, complete with a li'l holiday scene inside.

g).  At our 3rd grade class party, our room mom had the kids make ornaments out of old Christmas card fronts...I think there's one of these ornaments, circa 1976, on my mom's Christmas tree!

h).  My own 2 children made ornaments for their teachers, complete with reused vino corks.

i).  And then there was my gift from my son's PreK class last year, which is right on my mantle, and one of my favorite gifts of all time: A winter snowglobe!!

Yep, I love my school, and its creativity and "green-ness!!"!!

Pictures a la my camera!!

When Left and Right Brains Unite: The Symphony of Science

In our science room at school, we have this amazing poster visually showcasing the left and right sides of the brain.  (Ironically, it's an advertisement for Mercedes-Benz!)

Our science teacher chuckles over the commentary he gets from the kids: 

• "Why is the left side so plain?" 
• "Why is the right side so messy?"
• "Oh!  Look at all the beautiful colors on the right side."
• "The left side makes me feel so calm and relaxed."

Gee, can you figure out which "side" each one of those comments come from?!

I happened to think of this poster today as I happened upon this video entitled "The Symphony of Science:  We Are All Connected."  Where else can you have Carl Sagan (Pulitzer Prize winning astrophysicist and author), Richard Feynman (Nobel Prize winning physicist), Neil deGrasse Tyson (astrophysicist, NASA Distinguished Public Service Medal, and the person known for re-classifying Pluto as a "dwarf planet" rather than a full-fledged planet) & Bill Nye the Science Guy all set to music discussing the interconnectedness of individuals with the Earth and the Universe: biologically, chemically, and atomically?  A pretty powerful way to show the interrelatedness of people to the planet and beyond, in a way that sticks with you.

The Symphony of Science is the work of musician/producer John Boswell.  Through it, he brings the two hemispheres of the brain together, by incorporating the words of scientists with music.  Pretty memorable approach, if you ask me. Click here for a pretty lengthy list of his remixes.

Truthfully, I think this is the approach that Sheldon should take with Penny on "Big Bang Theory!"  I think if he presented some of his left brain physics concepts to his quirky actress neighbor Penny using the "Symphony of Science," Sheldon may indeed have a lot more luck!!  Plus, then, when I watched, I could sing along!


Left-Right brain image from http://www.coloribus.com/adsarchive/prints/mercedes-benz-left-brain-right-brain-paint-14188405/; Symphony of Science pic from http://symphonyofscience.com//.  The Symphony of Science:  We are All Connected from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XGK84Poeynk.

Visions of a Sustainable World

Here is a wonderful ten minute video from Dr. Paul Raskin, of Yale's School of Forestry. Entitled "Visions of a Sustainable World," this video (and Dr. Raskin) describe the key elements needed for improved quality of life--on a sustainable level.  He touches not only on global improvements, but also on personal improvements for our daily life, moving beyond a "things = happiness" stance. 



Video from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FS7o4g5kzMM

"MuppetGate" = Mayhem & Madness!!

I like to refer to it as "MuppetGate"... especially since it is starting to get as much press as any other "-gate:"

• Fox Business' Follow The Money (12/2/2011) The Muppets' Liberal Agenda: "Brainwashing" Your Kids!
• The Washington Post's Lifestyle Blog (12/5/2011):  "The Communist Muppets:  It Ain't Easy Being Red"
• The Huffington Post (12/5/11):  "The Muppets Are Communist, Fox Business Network Says
• Fox News The Five (12/6/2011):  "Bolling Apologizes To 'Froggy,' Challenges Him To Debate"
• Mother Jones (12/7/2011):  "Right-Wingers Are Outraged by Muppet Plot" and "Social Media Pokes Fun at Fox's Muppet Freak Out (The GOP Muppet Hearings of December 2011 light up Twitter: #gopmuppethearings)
• The New York Daily News (12/10/2011): "Muppets Aren't Communist, Director James Bobin Says"

I could go on, as it has been a pretty highly covered story. 

I am still shaking my head at the attack that Kermie and company have been getting this week, all stemming from Eric Bolling (of Fox's Business News) and his Muppet name-calling, equating them to "communists" and "anti-capitalists."  It even evoked an entire Facebook debate in my own world based on my dismay over the Huffington Post link.

They're muppets people!?  They're lovers and dreamers and rainbow connectors. They're singers. They are entertainment meant to bring a smile or two in our pent up, stressed out, over-worked, over-serious world!

Can't "they" (the universal "they" that's always out there)...can't "they" realize it's a movie?!? Not a propagandizing anti-capitalist attack.  Movies have plots. Some plots are against the bad guy... and some bad guys are oil tycoons. The plot point of the movie is that Tex Richman wants to tear down the Muppets' theater, which is something that the Muppet love. Which is the point of the story: be passionate enough about something you love and do what you can to save it.

  

Co-filmmaker & scriptwriter Jason Segel (and human lead male in the latest Muppet movie) needed a plot point that would put the Muppets in need of saving their theater. The choices are always plentiful:  it could have been to tear it down for condos, to make a strip mall, or to renovate the neighborhood.  Segel and company opted for the demise being to dig for oil right under the land where the theater stands. Any of the choices would have been considered by the far-right as anti-capitalist.  The movie doesn't have the same draw, appeal, or plot "sense of urgency" if you are tearing down the Muppet theater to build a day care center,  organic food market, or welfare office for Muppets who are down on their luck. Bottom line: movies need plots. Sometimes it's about vampires, sometimes it is about a talking cat who wears boots, and sometimes it is about a New York City crime caper. Aren't we lucky we live in a country where all these movies can hang out under one roof together?!

To quote a friend of mine:

"I guess boycotting A Charlie Brown Christmas is next, since they [the Peanuts gang] didn't splurge on the big shiny corporate Christmas tree, but bought the little, organic one.   If you don't like the Muppet movie for 'anti-capitalistic' reasons, well, then you shouldn't like Charlie Brown. Or for that matter, any Muppet movie."

Plus, hasn't Kermit had it rough enough? I mean, come on, man! He's an amphibian living in a human world. He's lived the life faced with the fact that it's not easy to be green, he's in love with a pig, and now he's facing name callers and bullies telling him he's unAmerican AND a Commie? Yes, that indeed is high travesty in my book!

In today's world, where a song and a smile are a welcome respite, I will always choose the Muppets.  It brings new meaning to the "Man or Muppet" Song from this now-controversial Muppet movie.  Maybe I'm naive to think that movies can be fun and entertaining alone, lacking of bipartisanship & name-calling negativity. Or perhaps, just perhaps, I'm a very wo-man Muppet.... or maybe rather, a Muppet of a wo-man.



Muppet Movie Poster from http://www.daemonsmovies.com/2011/07/31/the-muppets-2011-new-posters-jason-segel-and-amy-adams/the-muppets-movie-poster-03/; Muppet pic from http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/12/06/muppets-are-communist-her_n_1131408.html, "Muppet or Man" Video from http://youtu.be/m5iN0QNT6Uk