Highlighted Pastiches

Trust by Irma


Those who don't trust and only know how to judge.
They think everyone is guilty.
They think no one is nice especially if they're different.
They are dumb for we are smart.
But we can be trusted.
We know who to trust and who not to trust, and we should not judge based on differences, we are under God's eyes. But not everyone feels the same. 
Yeah. That is how life goes.

Guest Speaker: Dr. Peters Burton

Dr. Peters Burton from George Mason University was our guest speaker on Dec. 20th.  She shared her story with us about how she and her family escaped hardships in Ireland, how she landed in foster care, and how she ended up attending several universities for free.  Before all that though, she ate a candle (or was it...?)!  Her bio at GMU is available here.  Her book is entitled Thinking Like Scientists: Using Metacognitive Prompts to Develop Nature of Science Knowledge.  Dr. Peters Burton said that her goal is to help teachers create meaningful science lessons in their classroom that inspire students to want to learn.  If you would like to email her, her email is Epeters1@gmu.edu.

If you were in the class, what did you find interesting about Dr. Peters Burton?

Why take Cornell Notes?

In the late 1800's, a German psychologist and researcher named Herman Ebbinghaus was the first to study forgetting and remembering.  His studies yielded that within 24 hours after a lecture, a person loses 50-80% of the information learned.  As days go on, more and more information is lost.  His results were plotted is what is known as the Ebbinghaus Forgetting Curve.  This reveals a relationship between forgetting and time.  Information can be lost very quickly as it is learned so repetition is important to remember things.


Continued research on forgetting and remember from the University of Waterloo led to this information based on one hour lecture:
On Day 1, you enter knowing 0% of what will be covered (this is the baseline of the curve).  At the end of the lecture you know 100% of what you will know (this is the highest point of the curve).  By Day 2, if you have done nothing with the information you learned in the lecture, you will have lost 50-80%!  Our brains are constantly recording information on a temporary basis: scraps of conversation heard on the sidewalk, what the person in front of you is wearing...Because this information isn't necessary, our brains simply unload it at the end of the day, but what about the lecture?!  By Day 7, we remember even less and by Day 30 we only remember about 2-3% of what was discussed during the lecture!  Obviously, we can see the impact this might have on tests, and end of year exams!  This could cause some serious anxiety.

Good News: You can change this! A big signal to your brain is how often you repeat thing.  The more you go over information, the more you will remember if.  So here is the formula: Within 24 hours of getting new information, spend at least 10 minutes reviewing it and you will raise it back up to 100%.  Review it again within 7 days and it will only take 5 minutes to reactive your brain.  Do this each week and after 30 days of learning the new material, you'll only need to review it for 2-4 minutes.  No cramming needed here because we managed our time correctly.

More recent studies by Marzano, Pickering, and Pollock in 2001, identify that summarizing and note taking is key to taking information and putting it in the long term memory.  It helps to promote better comprehension because you have to put the information in your own words.  A good set of notes can be a study guide to help you review the information on a daily basis.

So in AVID, we use Cornell Notes to help us because it is a form of note taking that acts as a study guide.  We have to go over the information a few times which helps us repeat what we've learned allowing us to do better on tests.  This results in a higher GPA and more opportunities!

Do you have more questions about note taking?  Have you seen an improvement in your grades since you've been practicing taking Cornell Notes?  Make sure to leave a comment below.

Remember:

“One learns through the processing of information by the brain.  Words very, very seldom imprint themselves on the brain; but ones thinking does.” -Walter Pauk

Some of what is written was adapted from an unknown author.  The information was presented at a meeting that Mrs. Triplett attended and no author was given.

AVID Student Speaker Contest

Awarding all speakers $500 and a chance to speak before thousands at the
2012 Summer Institutes

Note: Speaker contests will remain open until the end of the year (December 31, 2011).

Student are the highlight of Summer Institute. Selected students will speak during the Day 2 General Session in front of thousands of educators from across the country. We look forward to hearing your AVID story.

• Student Speaker Contest

Have questions or concerns? Email speaker@avidcenter.org.

Note: Entrants can apply online using the Student Speaker Contest Application!

Speech Prompts

Think about your experiences with AVID and how working with AVID teachers, tutors and peers has helped you open doors to opportunity and change and define your future. The best speeches will address all of the prompts below.

• How have you been influenced by your experience in AVID? What kind of opportunities has AVID made possible for you?
  
• How have your AVID teacher(s), tutors, and peers helped you grow academically or intellectually? How has participating in the AVID program enriched your life, whether because of your peers, tutors or teacher?
• What obstacles have you faced and how has your AVID family helped you to cope and possibly overcome them?

Guidelines

• Speech should be approximately 500-750 words long.
• Speech should be four to five minutes long.

Deadline

• Application cut-off date: December 31, 2011.

Apply online using the Student Speaker Contest Application.


Example:Jonathan Grant Brown

Is this the future?

"Watch "A Day Made of Glass" and take a look at Corning's vision for the future with specialty glass at the heart of it.  Learn more about Corning at corning.com. Search for career opportunities at corning.com/careers."

How crazy is that?!  A lot of these technologies already exist so we could see this happening in our lifetimes!  I love the idea of decorating the fridge with my favorite MOVING pictures!!  Comment on this post to share your thoughts.

James Madison University

The 8th graders went with the 9th graders to James Madison University on Tuesday!  We had a blast.  We saw lots of cows, rain, and even a dead bear on the drive out to Harrisonburg, VA.  The AVIDers on the bus watched Karate Kid, but those in Mrs. Triplett's car listened to Bush, The Cranberries, Los Del Rio, and Juanes!  We discussed gun control, how to support our slacking friends, and how Angry Birds requires a lot of Algebra skills.

Once we got to campus, we entered what used to be James Madison High School and had a quick bathroom break and introduction.  Our tour guide was very nice and wanted to make sure we were interested in college; not just JMU.  We then hopped back on the bus and walked around campus.

Did you know if you clap your hands in the very center of campus you can hear a squeak!  It sounds like you stepped on a mouse.  This is because of the way the sounds waves travel to the buildings and back.  We tried it, and it is true.  So strange!

James Madison University is also home to a "Kissing Rock".  Apparently, if you kiss your loved one while sitting on the rock, you'll eventually get married!  Don't try it out until you are ready to propose!

After everyone tried hearing the squeak, we went for lunch.  The buffet was great.  Mrs. Triplett had a delicious salad.  She really liked how the food was labeled with the calorie content and allergens.

After lunch we visited the library.  Mrs. Triplett did mention that ECU's library is more technologically advanced, but JMU's has a Starbucks right inside.  How cool is that?  Grab your Skinny Vanilla Latte and start researching!

We then went to the  John C Wells Planetarium.  Our guide talked a lot about how knowing math and science can help advance our careers. We then watched a video about how two small pieces of glass have shaped the future of science.  Did you know that the star Vega is 26 light years away?  That means if you look at it through a telescope, you are actually seeing what it looked like 26 years ago!

After the show and a quick bathroom break, we boarded the bus.  Some of us went for a short jog after a missing wallet was NOT left in the planetarium!  We hit the road and got back to school before the late buses rolled out.

Mrs. Triplett had a lot of fun.  She was SO happy to see some of her high schoolers that she misses SO much.  Mrs. Triplett wishes that we could have learned a little more about what JMU has to offer for a kid from Annandale, but she thought the campus was very nice.  It has that old university feel without feeling like you're in the middle of no where.  There's lots of shopping close by and lots of activities to offer.  It is also close enough to the parents, but far enough away so you feel independent!

PS: We now know who the next Galileo will be!

James Madison University on College Board.
Check out what's going on at JMU by visiting them on Twitter!
See videos of what life is like on their YouTube page!
Here's another channel too!