Ripple Effect

Advisory Bulletin

October 13, 2014 - October 17, 2014

The Ripple Effect

This week’s theme relates to cause and effect.  We need middle-schoolers to understand that they are all powerful agents of change.  Each person can change a room full of people (or a nation full of people) (or a world for of people) for the better or for the worse.

Monday, October 13 --   Monday Morning Meeting

Tuesday, October 14 –

a.m. – True or False:  “What we do now, echoes in eternity” – Marcus Aurelius    This might have been said before a battle (as seen in Gladiator) but is this      true for us too?  Who says yes?  Who says no?  Debate.

            What if we change it to:  “What we do now, echoes throughout the middle    school.”  Now true? false?

p.m. – Derek Jeter Nike commercial – “tipping the hat”

            http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OBoeNFz0NOM

            Discussion Questions:

»        What does the hat tip symbolize here?

»        Anyone know the history between the Sox and the Yankees?

»        What’s it mean that even Red Sox tip their hats?

»        What is Nike saying by using the Re2pect theme for Jeter?

»        Let’s watch it one more time.  Someone count how many ethnicities are represented in this video? how many socioeconomic examples do we see (another counter)? how many teams?  speak to what this indicates.  What idea is Nike presenting?  Who has thoughts?

            It is the hope that students will give thought to the idea that certain             principles cut across race/gender/socioeconomic/ethnic/regional lines.         Respect is one of those.   Do you have any personal examples of times    when you were with groups of people very different than your norm?           What principles helped you succeed or fail?

»        Is Nike saying that all these people re2pect Jeter or are they saying that Jeter represents re2spect?  (both)  (Jeter earned respect by being consistently respectful)

           

            6^th and 7^th grade game – Off Balance (Playmeo)

Invite everyone to find a partner, let’s say, is as tall as they are. To begin, as each person to stand facing their partner and firmly grasp their hands or wrists, or whatever point is most comfortable.

Explain that you want them to invent as many crazy, off- balance positions as they can think of in which each person is leaning backwards or forwards to the point that, if it weren’t for his or her partner, they would fall in a heap on the ground.

Make a few comments about not placing too much strain or pressure on their partners, and keeping a safe distance from other couples and certain eye-gouging protrusions. Then- and this is always the hard part- stand back, and leave the rest up to your group’s imagination.

After a few minutes, invite a couple of pairs to share their favorite creations, encouraging the rest of the group to try them out. Move on, or swap partners to invent more.

Concepts to be gained from this game

-         One person can make a whole room off balanced or other individuals off balanced

-         One person can be all the support everyone needs and provide stability

-         Working together bring balance to a group

            8^th grade game – Suspend Marshmallows

Set Up

Gather the materials listed below and place them in a box. Provide an area in which team can work. Read the list of construction materials and the team instructions out loud to the team.

           

Construction Materials

5' length of string
1 bag of large marshmallows
10 rubber bands
5 straws
10 toothpicks


Team Instructions

You have two minutes to devise a method to hold as many marshmallows as possible above ground level. Team members may not be in direct contact with any of the marshmallows during the final scoring process.

Have fun!

                                                                       

           

Wednesday, October 15 –

http://www.coffeecupsandcrayons.com/walking-water-science-experiment-kids/

Materials Needed-

Jars

Food coloring

White paper towel or tissues or toilet paper

What are you adding or deducting? 

Each person’s action either adds to the group or take away from the group.

If everyone’s efforts and behavior are working toward one common goal with the same energy and spirit then the goal will be met quicker and more efficiently ( ie the their cup fills with a combination of all the full cups. If someone is draining with off task comments, behavior or actions it can make the process slow or even stall out. It is a choice to add beauty or ugliness with your contribution. The outcome can be harmonious or tragic and ugly. The choice is yours.

Thursday, October 16 –

a.m. -            Look at the cup experiments. Ask them to think about what they have contributed. How colorful is their day shaping up? Tie it into the citizen stuff.

p.m. -            Peer Study Hall

Friday, October 17 – 7:45-9:30

No Flag Ceremony

This is a time to catch up on whatever you did not finish this week and then…

To play board games with your Advisory group/grade.  Determine ahead of time which room will be the drop-in room for when Advisories are done with their weeks work and can play (EF lesson here: work before play!!)

Citizenship 2

Advisory Bulletin

October 6, 2014 - October 10, 2014

Citizenship

Monday, October 6 --     Monday Morning Meeting

Tuesday, October 7 –

a.m. – This week we continue our exploration of CITIZENSHIP – last week we                         discussed what it means to be a citizen.  This week we take action.  Here is    a video of two brothers who took action.  What kind of citizens are they?

ESPN video:  http://www.theblaze.com/stories/2014/09/24/the-two-words-from-a-child-that-melted-an-nfl-players-heart-and-changed-his-life/

p.m. - Pick a form of citizenship to practice for the week as an                                advisory group. 

           

            Go through a make a list (try it from memory) of all the types of                citizenship that were discussed last week. 

           

            Write each type on a slip of paper and put it into a hat or some                    such container. 

           

            Have someone pick out a type of citizenship and brainstorm ways to         practice that type of citizenship this week.  Make sure the ideas are            SIMPLE and short-term.  Have a student write the ideas on the white        board or a big paper

            Examples:      House Citizenship – say hi to House Members in halls

                                                                        demonstrate positive attitude Thursday

                                    School Citizenship – be cool with younger kids

                                                                        thank teachers after classes

                                                                        make eye contact w adults in hallways &                                                                                               greet

                                    U.S. Citizenship –    be respectful of others who differ from                                                                                      you

                                                                        listen to a point of view other than your                                                                                                own

                                    Global Citizenship – participate in Meatless Monday for the

                                                                                    environment

                                                                        pick up litter

            IMPORTANT:  Devise a way for advisees to REMEMBER to practice!!!!!

            If time allows, begin to discuss the idea of your Advisory Flag & Pledge.

           

            What does your Advisory stand for? 

            How would that be represented on a Flag?       

            Ideas:  fun…team…individualism…helping each other…family… loyalty

            Each Advisory will have a cloth flag to decorate & embellish with symbols           on Friday.                                                     

           

Wednesday, October 8 –

1.      Check in on citizenship efforts.  Who acted yesterday?  Give merits if              earned.  The House with the most merits wins a new car.  Is the          memory plan working?  If not, adjust and improve it!!

2.     Continue designing Flag prototype.

Thursday, October 9 –

a.m.   1.  Check in on Citizenship efforts.  Who acted yesterday?  Give merits if                          earned.  Remind students that merit totals will be decided Friday at                                     11:30.

            2.  Continue designing Flag prototype.

p.m.   “Commonalities” game – Small groups develop a long list of                  attributes which they all have in common, and then share them with the    larger group to earn points for each unique attribute.

            Useful Framing Ideas:

»        “How often have you been involved in a conversation with someone you just met, and quickly discovered that you had something in common with this person?  You know a friend in common, or went to a mutual summer camp, etc…. It is said that any two people in the world are connected by no more than six degrees of separation, often less.

»        It is also suggested that the art of small talk is to find something you have in common with another person as quickly as possible.

»        This next game is all about exploring all of the things we have in common with others, but, today my challenge to you is: how many of these areas of commonality are interesting, or indeed, unique.

»        This game is about creating the most bizarre and most interesting list of attributes, that, if you were to bump into someone at a party who had all of these attributes, you would want to spend all night talking with them.

            How to Play:

1.       Divide your House into group of 4-6 people.

2.      Equip each group with a pen and pencil and then invite them to develop a list of attributes / things that everyone in their group has in common.  5-8 minutes of thinking is usually long enough.  For example, after a quick discussion, a group may discover that they are all the eldest in their families, or they have all visited the Miami Zoo, or can sing the first line of a Beatles song.  Whatever – “it” just has to be common to everyone in the group.  The group with the longest list of commonalities wins!

3.      Now at this point, some groups will get a little too excited and think that, given that it’s a competition, they can just list all the really obvious things, like “we all have teeth” or “we are all wearing clothes.”  Groups are welcome to add these BUT (here’s the kicker)… if at least one other group has this same or similar attribute on their list, both groups must cross it off from their tally.

4.      Not so easy any more and – purposefully – this rule encourages groups to look for the really interesting things they have in common.  Interesting recent contenders:  “all born by caesarean” and “been in an ambulance.”

5.      The group with the most attributes remaining after every group has shared, wins.

            Practical Leadership Tips:

»        You‘ll need to offer a few ‘interesting’ examples of commonality as part of your briefing to help people understand what you mean.  Because, if they’re not clear, they’ll just take the easy way out, which is far less interesting, and is less likely to achieve your objectives.

»        Don’t skimp on the time allocated for groups to share.  The whole point of this exercise is to share, and the more your group shares, the stronger their relationships will become.

»        Be prepared to have to make some judgment calls when determining if a particular attribute matches another group.  Remind your group, the emphasis is on “similar.”

http://www.playmeo.com/ice-breaker-get-to-know-you-games/commonalities

Brandy’s login is username: brandymkidd@me.com / pw: pjune069

Friday, October 10 –

Making your advisory flag!

Your Digital Footprint

Advisory Bulletin

September 22-16, 2014

Your Digital Footprint – Part 3

Monday, September 22, 2014             Parent/Teacher Conferences

Tuesday, September 23, 2014

            a.m. –  Morning Meeting

            p.m. – Review digital footprint work so far – brainstorm on white board                 or with post-it notes, what’s been covered so far.  [Look back on past Bulletins if you need reminders.]

            Anonymously write out a problem you have had with social media     or        texting or write out one you’ve heard of someone else having.  Come       back together as a group to brainstorm options. 

            Another idea:  break into small groups, with each group handling a    different scenario.

            If you need to give your group scenarios: 

            #1:

            Katie signs on to her facebook account and has two messages in her inbox from                        friends at school. They are both angry messages about how Katie should never       have posted what she did last night at 2am. Katie runs through her news feed and            her profile and sees that there are two pictures, each of her friends they took        when at their last sleep over of them being silly in funny outfits. They are not the             most flattering pictures of her friends. Katie promises she did not post the           pictures.

            #2:

            Ken is in a group message with all the guys on his swim team. They are talking             about the girls team and what girls are hot and what girls are not. The guys are             commenting back and forth about everyone equally. The messaging starts to slow       down after about a week and Ken loses interest. Then, Ken finds out there is         another message group that was created that did not include him. The    conversation is exactly the same, but this time the team all the guys are talking   about is the volleyball team! Ken’s sister is on the volleyball team!

            #3:

            I’m online and I get a friend request from someone I don’t recognize. I look to see        that they have 18 mutual friends with me. Their profile picture is of them in a         group and they look to be around my age.

            #4:

            I only gave my password to my best friend when I was out of town with no       internet connection and wanted her to check my inbox for messages from my        teachers about homework. Now I am in trouble because of an email that was            blasted from my account to the whole middle school. My best friend swears they     didn’t send it and didn’t tell anyone of my password. What should I do?

            #5:

            I was at the beach with my friends and I took a picture of myself in my bathing            suit tanning. We both look awesome in the picture so of course I post it to   Instagram. I get to school Monday and a bunch of classmates keep looking at me          weird. I ask what the big deal is, but no one will tell me. When I get home I am on             Instagram and I see that our picture is getting a lot of likes. I don’t see what the            big deal is. The next day at school one of my good friends shows me their phone.     My picture is on the screen, but it is not the same picture I took. It has been             altered!

            #6:

            I have two twitter accounts. One I let my mom see and one that I like to keep   private. She doesn’t need to know everything that I do. I am in Middle school she    needs to trust me. My mom just found my private account…

Wednesday, September 24, 2014

            Ask an adult – what were the big communication challenges of his or her     day?  How were they handled? What changes has he or she noticed since       the digital revolution?

            The idea behind this:  we are in a whole new phase of communication           skills   development.  Often, adolescents know as much and more than the    adults             around them.  Hopefully this exercise will impress upon     adolescents that they are the vanguard for responsible digital citizenship.    They will be schooling the adults in many ways.  Also:  if it feels like a lot to      deal with, it is.  Today’s parents didn’t have to learn these same lessons.              Today’s kids have to be smarter than yesterday’s kids.

Thursday, September 25, 2014          Holiday – No School

           

Friday, September 26, 2014

            Keystone Game:  Standing together shoulder to shoulder with others in a    tight circle, students slowly lean into the centre as they slide their feet out   to create a self-supporting structure.

1.      Ask your group to stand in a tight circle, facing into the center, just touching the shoulders of their neighbors.

2.      Invite everyone to slowly lean into the circle, without moving their feet.

3.      Having established reasonable balance, explain that you would like each person to slowly – very slowly – slide their feet backwards as they lean into the center.

4.      Announce that the ultimate goal is for the group to create an evenly-balanced circle in which everyone feels supported and yet critical to the overall balance of the structure.

5.      Allow for as many attempts as possible, stopping frequently to discuss what is and isn’t working.

6.      Keep practicing until they reach a desired level of challenge, balance and comfort.

7.      Process your group’s experience. 

            How-To-Play Narrative:

How often in a program do you ask your group to form a circle? Well, add one more to the count.  But this time, ask everyone to form as perfect a circle as possible.  No bends, no corners, just a perfectly round-edged circle.

Good, now come in closer, and closer still – until everyone is just touching the upper arms and shoulders of their neighbors.  Stop there.

Your next move is to invite everyone to lean in slowly, without moving their feet.  And as they produce moderate levels of pressure and balance, to slowly, ever so slowly, start to slide their feet backwards just a smidge or two

The objective of this task is to create the impression that every person is a “keystone” – an engineering term used to describe the wedge-shaped stone which is placed at the apex of a masonry arch which locks all of the other stones into position.

In other words, the ultimate goal is to create an evenly balanced circle in which everyone feels supported and yet critical to the overall balance of the structure, i.e., as if they were the keystone.  Your group should aim to keep this up for as long as possible.

With each smidgen, review the balance and composure of your group, and if considered safe, suggest stepping back a little further.  Anything up to 1 inch extended back from the starting position is cool – beyond this point, encourage your group to brace for a topple, or be ready to stop the exercise.

Invite your group to discuss what is and isn’t working between a series of attempts, and encourage them to keep practicing until they reach a desired level of challenge, balance and comfort.

There’s something pretty special about a large group of people leaning in toward each other attempting to reach that pinnacle of balance, where just one bad move will cause the pieces to topple.  It’s difficult to find this sweet spot, but worth every effort.

Practical Leadership Tips – Although it seems obvious, it is always a good idea to remind people that they should take a quick step forward if they feel that they are going to fall, or if they are experiencing discomfort. 

            Practice is key.  It’s easy for many groups to quickly become disengaged after a couple of poor attempts, so look for positives and offer lots of encouragement.  It can be done, and the sense of shared accomplishment when it’s achieved is wonderful.

Useful framing idea:  “If you looked closely as old stone archways and certain other architectural elements, you may have noticed an object called a ‘keystone.’  Does anyone know what this is? [allow time for suggestions….]  A keystone is, as it sounds, the key to keeping a particular structure together.  This next exercise will provide you each with the opportunity to be a human keystone.

Debriefing Tips:

»        Our three standard questions.

»        What worked and what did not work to keep the circle evenly balanced?

»        What adjustments had to be made to achieve the objective?

»        How can we apply any of the design principles here to our relationships with others?

»        How can we apply the design principles here to our digital footprints?

»        What do you think is the keystone of healthy, balanced relationships?

This video takes about 16 minutes.  Please preview and facilitate a discussion afterward.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DHZ-H45Etp0

Scenarios for Tuesday (if you want to cut these up and hand them out)

#1:

Katie signs on to her facebook account and has two messages in her inbox from friends at school. They are both angry messages about how Katie should never have posted what she did last night at 2am. Katie runs through her news feed and her profile and sees that there are two pictures, each of her friends they took when at their last sleep over of them being silly in funny outfits. They are not the most flattering pictures of her friends. Katie promises she did not post the pictures.

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#2:

Ken is in a group message with all the guys on his swim team. They are talking about the girls team and what girls are hot and what girls are not. The guys are commenting back and forth about everyone equally. The messaging starts to slow down after about a week and Ken loses interest. Then, Ken finds out there is another message group that was created that did not include him. The conversation is exactly the same, but this time the team all the guys are talking about is the volleyball team! Ken’s sister is on the volleyball team!

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#3:

I’m online and I get a friend request from someone I don’t recognize. I look to see that they have 18 mutual friends with me. Their profile picture is of them in a group and they look to be around my age.

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#4:

I only gave my password to my best friend when I was out of town with no internet connection and wanted her to check my inbox for messages from my teachers about homework. Now I am in trouble because of an email that was blasted from my account to the whole middle school. My best friend swears they didn’t send it and didn’t tell anyone of my password. What should I do?

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#5:

I was at the beach with my friends and I took a picture of myself in my bathing suit tanning. We both look awesome in the picture so of course I post it to Instagram. I get to school Monday and a bunch of classmates keep looking at me weird. I ask what the big deal is, but no one will tell me. When I get home I am on Instagram and I see that our picture is getting a lot of likes. I don’t see what the big deal is. The next day at school one of my good friends shows me their phone. My picture is on the screen, but it is not the same picture I took. It has been altered!

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#6:

I have two twitter accounts. One I let my mom see and one that I like to keep private. She doesn’t need to know everything that I do. I am in Middle school she needs to trust me. My mom just found my private account…