Word of the Day
whet·stone /ˈ(h)wetˌstōn / noun = a fine-grained stone used for sharpening cutting tools. Example: "A good book is like a whetstone for dull wits." The term is based on the word "whet", which means to sharpen a blade, not on the word "wet" (which people often say, one yesterday).
Colleen wrote a poem that begins: "Put a pen in my hand / before you lower the casket." I left this comment: "Oh, Colleen, I love this! Now I want to be buried with a pen in MY hand, too." The thought put a smile on my face. Okay, I know she wasn't being literal, but a pen does represent me and my love of words. What better symbol than a pen?
"Not wanting to be pushed to 'achieve' all the time was not some psychological problem I was having. It was an intelligent choice" (p. 98).
"I wasn't just worried about getting good grades or bad grades. I was worried about grades themselves, about the whole idea of grades. Because grades and test scores can make kids feel like winners or losers. And I don't like that. Because I saw some kids start thinking they were dumb after we all took the Mastery Tests last year. And they weren't dumb, not at all. So I wanted to do something about that" (p. 164).
"And that stuff about working up to my full potential — who gets to say what my full potential is? An IQ test? Shouldn't I have something to say about what I want to accomplish?" (p. 169).
Saturday evening, Sharon (who live on my floor) sent me these 25 playful puns, saying, "You like words...." Yes, I do. Thanks.
1. Dad, are we pyromaniacs? Yes, we arson.
2. What do you call a pig with laryngitis? Disgruntled.
3. Writing my name in cursive is my signature move.
4. Why do bees stay in their hives during winter? Swarm.
5. If you're bad at haggling, you'll end up paying the price.
6. Just so everyone's clear, I'm going to put my glasses on.
7. A commander walks into a bar and orders everyone around.
8. I lost my job as a stage designer. I left without making a scene.
9. Never buy flowers from a monk. Only you can prevent florist friars.
10. How much did the pirate pay to get his ears pierced? A buccaneer.
11. I once worked at a cheap pizza shop to get by. I kneaded the dough.
12. My friends and I have named our band 'Duvet.' It's a cover band.
13. I lost my girlfriend's audiobook, and now I'll never hear the end of it.
14. Why is 'dark' spelled with a k and not c? Because you can't see in the dark.
15. Why is it unwise to share your secrets with a clock? Well, time will tell.
16. When I told my contractor I didn't want carpeted steps, they gave me a blank stare.
17. Bono and The Edge walk into a Dublin bar and the bartender says, "Oh no, not U2 again."
18. Prison is just one word to you, but for some people, it's a whole sentence.
19. Scientists got together to study the effects of alcohol on a person's walk, and the result was staggering.
20. I'm trying to organize a hide and seek tournament, but good players are really hard to find.
21. I got over my addiction to chocolate, marshmallows, and nuts. I won't lie, it was a rocky road.
22. What do you say to comfort a friend who's struggling with grammar? There, their, they're.
23. I went to the toy store and asked the assistant where the Schwarzenegger dolls are, and he replied, "Aisle B, back."
24. What did the surgeon say to the patient who insisted on closing up their own incision? Suture self.
25. I've started telling everyone about the benefits of eating dried grapes. It's all about raisin awareness.
Bloggers gather in the Sunday Salon — at separate computers in different time
zones — to share what we have been doing during the week.
Other Sunday Salon musings are linked at the bottom of Deb's Readerbuzz post.
3 comments:
Bonnie, I love the photos of both of your families.
I'm not sure how I feel about grades. When Robert Pirsig was an instructor at Montana State College in the late 50s, he withheld grades for his writing students as an experiment. The good students worked harder and the poor students gave up and, in effect, dropped out. But one person had a nervous breakdown.
And, oh, the puns! I'm a huge fan of puns.
Deb, that's fascinating about Pirsig's experiment. I guess good students always work hard, because we love learning. What puzzles me, though, is the nervous breakdown. Did Robert Pirsig go back to grading, then?
I did a lot of thinking about grades when I was in the classroom. But, in the past few years I did even more concentrated thinking about it, attending workshops, reading, books, holding, discussions, and leading professional development. I really dislike the fact that students work for the grade rather than the learning and high achieving students seem to be the worst about it.
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