This is our last week of 1st quarter! I can’t believe that! Time flies when you're having fun! Of course you can keep track of our week by clicking the link below for our newsletter.
https://www.smore.com/ph8fa
Our "Keep the Quote" project has been more successful and far reaching than I could have ever imagined. The kids are so excited about the quotes. We are learning so much from each other and they are engaged. They love to view the analytics of the blog and map our readers. The students have been used to seeing the blog hit between 400-500 readers each week. This past week they barely broke 120! They were a bit disappointed, but I told them not to worry! So, if you have family or friends who would enjoy reading our stories, share the blog with them. Now is not the time for them to lose momentum!! I want to keep it exciting for them!
This week’s proverb comes from Russia.
“There is no shame in not knowing; the shame lies in not finding out.”
This is an adage that encourages learning and knowledge. It means that ignorance is not a crime, but if you realize that you are lacking information about something, you should educate yourself. When there is something that you don’t understand, you should do everything you can to learn more about it. There is nobility in wanting to learn and expand your knowledge and understanding.
Of course, I had just a few eye rolls when I asked for the students to think about what this quote meant. A couple students responded, “Yes, Mr. Bradshaw. When we can’t do math or science you want us to practice so we will learn.” I totally agreed. I want them to excel academically, but I also want them to be critical thinkers. Our conversations started out about things we would like to know about, but don’t and how we can educate ourselves. I told them to think about it in a different way, however. This is why I have enjoyed the quotes so much. Everyone thinks differently and interprets differently. After a few minutes of discussion we turned the tables a bit and I asked them to think about relationships they have with friends. I asked them how we could interpret this quote with relationships. A student explained it perfectly.
“I have made friends mad before. I had no idea why, but we went a long time without speaking to each other. After several weeks I finally found out that he didn’t hear what I said at recess and thought I was making fun of him. If I had only asked him and found out why, we could have solved the problem the same day. I didn’t want to find out because I was mad.”
10 year-olds are wiser than you realize. Of course, we have the rest of the week to talk about this proverb. We will journal more about relationships and this proverb. The students had such good conversation about things they wanted to know but didn’t possess a strong foundational knowledge of. I concluded our discussion by asking them to jot down a couple sentences about something they find interesting but don’t understand. Some of the answers were priceless. Some I can help the students with, others I can’t. THANK the Lord!!!!
Here are a few examples
“I’ve never been able to fly a kite. Maybe I can watch a video to see what I’m doing wrong.”
“I want to know more about tennis, but I have no idea what any of the rules are.”
“I have no idea how to drive a car, but I sure want too.” (sorry pal…)
So, if you are out and about and see kites on sale for the end of the season...Let this teacher know. I need 22 kites so we can have some fun!
With the exception of my students, I would say the majority of the readers of this blog are adults. I leave you adults with this advice. In the world we live in, we are quick to judge and assume. Please remember this proverb. Unawareness isn’t simply a lack of knowledge but a rejection of education. As long as we are open to finding out more, we will never stop learning.
Until next week,
Mr. B
https://www.smore.com/ph8fa
Our "Keep the Quote" project has been more successful and far reaching than I could have ever imagined. The kids are so excited about the quotes. We are learning so much from each other and they are engaged. They love to view the analytics of the blog and map our readers. The students have been used to seeing the blog hit between 400-500 readers each week. This past week they barely broke 120! They were a bit disappointed, but I told them not to worry! So, if you have family or friends who would enjoy reading our stories, share the blog with them. Now is not the time for them to lose momentum!! I want to keep it exciting for them!
This week’s proverb comes from Russia.
“There is no shame in not knowing; the shame lies in not finding out.”
This is an adage that encourages learning and knowledge. It means that ignorance is not a crime, but if you realize that you are lacking information about something, you should educate yourself. When there is something that you don’t understand, you should do everything you can to learn more about it. There is nobility in wanting to learn and expand your knowledge and understanding.
Of course, I had just a few eye rolls when I asked for the students to think about what this quote meant. A couple students responded, “Yes, Mr. Bradshaw. When we can’t do math or science you want us to practice so we will learn.” I totally agreed. I want them to excel academically, but I also want them to be critical thinkers. Our conversations started out about things we would like to know about, but don’t and how we can educate ourselves. I told them to think about it in a different way, however. This is why I have enjoyed the quotes so much. Everyone thinks differently and interprets differently. After a few minutes of discussion we turned the tables a bit and I asked them to think about relationships they have with friends. I asked them how we could interpret this quote with relationships. A student explained it perfectly.
“I have made friends mad before. I had no idea why, but we went a long time without speaking to each other. After several weeks I finally found out that he didn’t hear what I said at recess and thought I was making fun of him. If I had only asked him and found out why, we could have solved the problem the same day. I didn’t want to find out because I was mad.”
10 year-olds are wiser than you realize. Of course, we have the rest of the week to talk about this proverb. We will journal more about relationships and this proverb. The students had such good conversation about things they wanted to know but didn’t possess a strong foundational knowledge of. I concluded our discussion by asking them to jot down a couple sentences about something they find interesting but don’t understand. Some of the answers were priceless. Some I can help the students with, others I can’t. THANK the Lord!!!!
Here are a few examples
“I’ve never been able to fly a kite. Maybe I can watch a video to see what I’m doing wrong.”
“I want to know more about tennis, but I have no idea what any of the rules are.”
“I have no idea how to drive a car, but I sure want too.” (sorry pal…)
So, if you are out and about and see kites on sale for the end of the season...Let this teacher know. I need 22 kites so we can have some fun!
With the exception of my students, I would say the majority of the readers of this blog are adults. I leave you adults with this advice. In the world we live in, we are quick to judge and assume. Please remember this proverb. Unawareness isn’t simply a lack of knowledge but a rejection of education. As long as we are open to finding out more, we will never stop learning.
Until next week,
Mr. B
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