disapproving kitty

Tuesday, October 31, 2017

It's NaNoWriMo (NotGonHapNo)

While showering I remembered that it's going to be November in an hour and I still don't have a Great American Novel in my head to write for NaNoWriMo. Long ago* I thought that might be a cool goal for myself but now I'd settle for remembering to write down the cool ideas I think of while in the shower. Seriously, I need to start keeping handy those bathtub crayons they have to amuse kids during baths. There should be adult versions of those things, like they have adult footie pajamas now. Not that I want those. Those make your feet all sweaty, if you ask me**.
I digress.
So I'm not writing a novel, and likely never will have that as an actual goal. I'm okay with that, though, partly because I read this excellent post not too long ago about a better way to think about goal setting and, well, it's resonated with me. I don't know that I'm any better at achieving things because of it, but I've been less frustrated. Maybe.
So instead of creating a goal I know I'm not going to achieve, maybe this month I'll just set out to write in my blog a few days a week.
Here's what I want to write about:***

3 math games teachers should be playing with their students every day
10 reasons not to do improv in your classroom, and 1 reason you should
The goal of education is growth, not getting the kids to hit a target
DIY Nanofictionary
Common Core in English
Giving the "Personal Narrative" a rest for Pete's sake. (You're making my kid a worse writer and boring everybody to death.)
Drabbles and the art of being a Scottish writer
Why your student can tell you a 20 minute story but only write one sentence (and an illegible one at that.)
Choosing positive
Quit expecting miracles: I didn't learn how to write a real paragraph till 10th grade
Now that you've got that out of your system, how do you plan to solve the problem?
It's all about the love of learning. Everything else is secondary.
It's all about the love, but the process is a close second.
Reaching kids where they are: Experimenting (science), storytelling (language), solving puzzles (math) and playing games (all of the above)

I never intended this to be a blog about education, and I still don't, but this is what I want to write about now, so I will. If it turns into something great, I can port it into a more education-y sounding blog.
As I write these posts, I'll try to remember to come back an hotlink them, so they're easy to find. And it'll help me keep track of how many I've actually done.
If any of my 3 followers want to suggest topics, feel free. Even better, write your own post and I'll link to it.
Happy November, y'all.

*before I had children, or a career. Yes, I know there are women who have both children and a busy career and still write great novels, but I am never going to be one of them.
**If you do like them, then go you! It's cool to like different things.
***And yes, I thought of these in the shower. As soon as I got out, I wrapped up in a towel and wandered around till I could find pen and paper. (My phone was dead, so dictating it into Keep wasn't an option.)

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