Did you accomplish your goals this nine weeks? If so, CONGRATULATIONS! If not, you still have 3 more nine weeks to make this an AMAZING year!

What are your goals for the next nine weeks? Feel free to comment to this post with some promises that you are making to make yourself a better student.

Hikers hang their old, used shoes from the trees just outside the hiking entrance to the Appalachian Trail ... Blairsville, GA

So what did you do this summer?  Students are always saddened when their summer vacation comes to an end.  Teachers, are no different!  Believe it or not, some teachers actually do some awesome things during summer.  The photo to the left was taken in an excursion I took this summer to the the starting point (in Northern GA) of the Appalachian Trail.  The Appalachian Trail starts in GA and runs through Maine.  It seems that when when the shoes that hikers have been wearing have come to the end of their “life”, it has become a tradition to hang them from a tree just outside the foot of the trail.  I had been to this site several times — but this is the first time I noticed the shoes.  Very cool!

As I start my 19th year of teaching, I also celebrated another “milestone”.  I celebrated my “Sweet 16″ at Camp Juliena.  Each year I volunteer at a camp for children who are deaf and hard of hearing.  I get in my car, drive the 11 hours to camp (in GA) and spend a week or so as the “Nature Director”.  I started out as a cabin counselor, but now I simply plan and deliver nature and “sciency” type lessons (yes, I just made up a new word).

Each year I plant a garden with campers and counselors in memory of Kyle, a camper/counselor who passed away a few years ago.

We enjoy nature hikes, making ice cream, doing crafts, feeding the birds…and just having fun.  To the left is a picture of me and some other counselors.  We had just finished planting a garden in memory of a camper/counselor who passed away.  It’s always nice to do something special to remember those we love.

Well, there you have it!  Summer is over…and you now know something about your new teacher…..well….”old teacher” for those of you who had me last year.  I look forward to a great 19th year of teaching — and I hope you have a very productive year!

Feel free to comment on this post telling us what cool stuff you did this summer!

I am at the SDPBC Technology Conference

Say Hello to My Little Friend!

Students frequently want to know a lot about their teachers.  This blog has been a way of my sharing information my interests as well as those things I find really cool and want to share with students.

This week marked the start of another effort.  I am now a “Teacher Blogger” for The Secret LIfe of Scientists and Engineers.  The series’ website describes it as:  ”“Secret Life” is an Emmy-nominated web video series and site from the makers of one of the most acclaimed American science series ever, PBS’s NOVA.

I look forward to sharing things I find interesting about science.  Read my first blog post and bio to learn more about me and things I find interesting!

Now that this post is over, I bet you’re wondering why I included a picture of a rooster from Key West.  Well, I went to a wedding in Key West for Spring Break.  I have a hobby of taking digital pictures with my Cannon EOS camera. Now you know a little more about my Secret Life

Used w/ Permission through Creative Commons http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Yellow-naped_Amazon.jpg

Fear can be powerful.  As I have previously shared with classes, there are very few things I am really afraid of.  One of the things I am truly afraid of us birds – parrots, cockatiels, crows, pigeons, you name it.  I once remember going to an open air market in Venezuela where there was a photographer.  He placed a bird on my shoulder and I freaked out!  It was not a pretty sight.

So, by now you are asking yourself, “Mr. Woods, where are you going with this?”  The answer is quite simple.   Often  teachers encourage students to step outside their comfort zones.  We are famous for prodding students to do something that they don’t feel like doing.  People may not want to do something because of the fear of failure, for lack of interest, or simply because they are afraid to take a risk.  During the past two days, I faced something I fear worse than birds – the dentist!

I have two crowns on my front teeth.  One of them came off on Saturday.  I had to have it replaced – I looked like Dracula!  Knowing that I hadn’t been to the dentist since Bill Clinton was President, I went to where my old dentist’s office was and made an appointment.  Monday my two front teeth were fixed and I even made an appointment to go in today to get my teeth cleaned.  I even learned a few things!  Your mouth is a crucial area in which bacteria can enter your body.  So, I will have to do a better job with taking care of my teeth.  Secondly, I learned about oral cancer and its causes.  My dentist used a light in my mouth to see if he thought I had any form of cancer – I was clear!

My message for today is simple…..do something you are afraid of!  Even if it is uncomfortable and scares you to death!  Have a great Spring Break!!!

I got my iPad given to me as we started Winter Break in December. Mrs. Renzette got hers when we came back a few weeks ago. The point of the project is to see how the use of iPads in the classroom effect student performance….that’s a lot of adult talk for “Hey….do these things really make a difference if kids use them?” While we have just started the project, I am very excited about what we have planned for y’all!

Mr. Shoemaker and Mrs. Renzette Introduce the iPad Project

On our first day we learned about how the iPads worked, discussed how we would use them in class — including how to keep them in working order, how to get them at the start of each class period, and how to save your work on them.

Mr. Shoemaker from Educational Technology at our District Office was very kind to join us and help Mrs. Renzette and me out!  We have never done something so “cutting edge”.  Mr. Shoemaker is coordinating the iPad Pilot Project for several schools.  A big “golf clap” to him for all his hard work!!!

REMEMBER:  All students need to return their SIGNED iPad Pilot agreement and 1941 (photo release) forms ASAP.  Everyone will be required to have a form on file in order to utilize the iPads in class.

So you ask yourself…..WHAT’S NEXT?

We are going to explore the oceans and the continents on our iPads very soon.  Mrs. Renzette and I are so excited!

Congratulations to each of you for completing your first (Keynote) project with Mr. Shoemaker.  You made us proud!  You guys make us proud!

First, I hope that each of you had wonderful Winter Break! With that being said…..let’s get back to work!

Today’s blog post contains a few reminders! REMEMBER! You can follow our class onTWITTER. My Woods’ Classroom Twitter Account is: @MrWoodsClassFL Twitter is a form of “social media that allows users to communicate using small messages that are 160 characters or less. To Learn MORE about Twitter, click HERE! Twitter is cool in that it requires to create messages that get RIGHT TO THE POINT! I mostly tweet about things in science that interest me — like space, hurricanes, etc. There is a TWITTER FEED on the right hand side of this blog ——> it allows you to see what I have tweeted lately! I wanted to remind you of this — since I too have forgotten about our Twitter Account

There are many AWESOME AND EXCITING things coming in the next few weeks! I can’t believe how much more awesome and cool our class is going to become in the following weeks! Again, welcome to 2011!

Mr. Woods

My friends told me “Be careful! You’ll start using it and won’t know how to stop!” So…why am I sharing this with my students? Well, simple. It seems that the Magic Eraser is made of Melamine foam. According to Wikipedia, it has been “I… used for over 20 years as insulation for pipes and ductwork, and has a long history as a soundproofing material for studios, sounds stages, auditoriums, and the like. The low smoke and flame properties of melamine foam prevent it from being a fire hazard” …. and there’s more!

Wikipedia’s explanation of how the Magic Eraser works is FASCINATING!

Read THIS interesting article from Wikipedia to learn more!

SCIENCE IS MAGIC!