Wednesday Hodgepodge

Hello and happy Wednesday!

How is your week going? We’ve had one day of school, a snow day, and then I’m not feeling well. I feel like I have a cold, but I’m hoping it’s nothing more.

I’m linking up with Joyce for her weekly Hodgepodge post.

This week’s questions are Super Bowl/Valentine’s Day themed which is fun.

1. Did you watch the Super Bowl? Did your team win? What’s your favorite game day snack for whatever sport is happening?

Well, we were cheering for our Chiefs, so of course we watched the Super Bowl. Unfortunately, that means we were disappointed in the outcome. While I wasn’t expecting the Chiefs to win…it was just one of those seasons where they scraped by, I didn’t think it would be such a blow out. It felt like everyone wanted us to lose, so I hate that that was the outcome.

We went to my brother’s house, per tradition. Our Super Bowl menu is always pizza, wings, and cookie cake. The cookie cake was still delish, even with the loss.

We really have been spoiled being able to watch so many Super Bowls with the Chiefs playing, win or lose. Hopefully, they’ll be back some time soon.

2. What’s your “superpower”?

I think multi-tasking is my superpower. Not sure you can be a teacher and a mom without being a good multi-tasker.

3. Will you do anything special on Valentine’s Day? If so, do share. Any thoughts on/about this particular holiday? Share a favorite verse or quote relating to love.

Trav and I will typically go out to dinner at some point. I always try to do some type of Valentine’s Day themed family dinner at home on the 14th if our schedules allow. Through the years, I’ve made heart shaped pizza, let everyone choose their favorite dinner item and had a hodgepodge dinner, and we’ve also had heart shaped nuggets and some sides.

Chicken nuggets are on the menu for Thursday or Friday this week.

I think it’s a fun holiday to celebrate, but also not one that should carry too much weight. Travis and I only exchange cards, and I buy the kids a thing or two for Valentine’s Day. I’ve tried to make it special for them through the years.

I also like putting out a few Valentine’s Day touches. I don’t put out a lot, but I only just decorated last weekend. The decorations mainly stay the same from year to year.

Hadley and friends had a Galentine’s Day party last weekend. They made bouquets….and this heart shaped pic of their creations is cute!

My Bible plan for this month has been this one…all about love.

4. Are you a fan of the rom-com genre? If so, what’s one of your favorites? If you’re not a movie go-er, then what about a book you love that features a great love story? How about a favorite love song?

I love a rom-com movie. You’ve Got Mail, Sleepless in Seattle, and While You Were Sleeping are always my “go to” rom-com movies.

I don’t read as many love/chick lit books as I used to. I read The Match last month and thought it was cute.

5. Let’s get creative…write an acrostic using the word L-O-V-E.

My answer to #5 is both fun and also give me a moment to stand on my soap box. From an education standpoint, AI is a problem. AI can also be used for good. At the start of this school year, it was the first time we, as teachers, had professional development on how to use AI. Honestly, it is pretty amazing. I can make a twenty question multiple choice quiz over Romeo and Juliet in about thirty seconds.

Of course, it’s also a curse while trying to get students to write. Just like with plagiarism, I can typically “catch” students who’ve used AI. I’m not perfect as I’m sure some kids have gotten away with it, but for me, I always ask students to cite our textbook with page numbers, so that helps.

So, in our Google waffle, we have “Gemini.” Starting Tuesday, our students will have “Gemini” in their Google waffle too. So, I guess we’re telling the kids it’s ok to use these resources. Of course, just like for teachers, students could benefit from these AI resources…but call me old school…I think they should have to learn to write a paper, provide text evidence, support a claim, cite the text, and write a concluding paragraph.

Hopping off my soap box to share my AI Gemini generated acrostic LOVE poem.

Luminous and bright, a guiding star,

Outpouring of warmth, near and far,

Valuable and precious, a treasure to hold,

Eternal and boundless, a story untold.

6. Insert your own random thought here.

I hadn’t really thought about it, but the current unit for my students is Crazy, Stupid Love with Romeo and Juliet as the main text. The essential question for this unit is “What is true love?” Perfect for February.

It’s been a minute since I’ve had to struggle through Shakespeare with some freshman, but it’s been fun to do so far. Obviously, Shakespeare isn’t everyone’s “cup of tea,” but we have lots of resources.

For Act 1, I read the “bridge text” with my general English 1 students. This is a shorted version with summaries of each scene before a bit of the Shakespeare text. The textbook provides this resource online, so I just print a class set of the act.

Another English teacher shared the PDFs of the graphic novel for Act 2, so we’re reading that this week.

My Advanced students are reading the No Fear version which has the original text on the left and then a modern English version on the right. As we read the No Fear text, we listen from the online textbook. I think this is a great way to tackle the text as we can hear the various characters’ voices…and we can listen on 1.25x speed! It’s worked out nicely so far.

Lastly, another colleague shared the link to the Orlando Bloom on Broadway Romeo and Juliet play. Again, if I had the students watch the play from beginning to end, I wouldn’t be able to hold their attention. So, I’ve used it sporadically. On Monday, we read Act 2 scenes 1 and 2, and then watched the play…Act 2, scene 2 which is the famous balcony scene…”O Romeo, Romeo, wherefore art thou Romeo?” and…”Parting is such sweet sorrow that I shall say goodnight till it be morrow.”

It’s always interesting to see what students think of Romeo and his impulsiveness with love…Juliet too! I always here, “Ms. White! He just thought he loved Rosaline,” and “Ugh! They’re only 14!” haha!

Hayden and Hadley are reading the play in their Adv. English 1 class too. It’s fun to see the play through their eyes too.

Have a great Wednesday!