May 23

Oh... a what!

Today's classroom was filled with fun and laughter.  We played the icebreaker game of... I'm actually not sure what it is called, but it was comprised of the folling: us sitting in a circle, one person starts off by saying to the person next to them, "This is a what," while handing an item to them.  Then that person asks, "A what?"  and they respond, "A what." and the other person says, "Oh, a what!" Then the receiving person passes the item to the next person and again says, "This is what," then they ask, "A what?" the person that hands it to them, asks the person who handed it to them, "A what?" and the first person gives the answer, "A what." and the process repeats around the circle until it meets its way to the person that started it.  Does this sound complicated? 

It was a game that required concentration and communication.  We didn't just have one item, but two going on at the same time, opposite directions.  It wasn't really about what we were saying, but how we were saying it.  There is a distinct way of saying "What," and "What?" and making that distinction to who were were communicating to was crucial.  

Sir Ken Robinson

It was my first time hearing of Sir Ken Robinson and I'm glad Professor Jimmy showed him to us.  Ken spoke of being in and finding your "element". He talked about "digital immigrants" vs. "digital natives"and I immediately thought of my parents.  It took a while for my dad to move up to a smart phone, but he still doesn't really know how to use it, and my mom absolutely refuses to learn how to use one.  My niece got her first cell phone when she was five years old! I got my first cell phone when I was nineteen!
What I took most from Ken was that being good at something isn't a good enough reason to do it.  It about passion and your attitude towards it.  More importantly, there are three things that will help you succeed: your ability to think differently, how welyl you work with others, and how well you can communicate.