Why Advisory?

In a keynote speech at the AMLE Secretary of Education Arne Duncan mentioned a study that cited only half of middle schools had advisory. Why is advisory important? Experts from AMLE have put together an answer here.
http://www.amle.org/Publications/MiddleLevelInsider/JustAsk/tabid/2395/Default.aspx

Habits of Mind

Last year our Shared Decision Making committee investigated the Habits of Mind. In our student plan books the 16 habits are listed. Advisory might be a great time to take a look at these habits and begin a discussion with the students.

Here is a link to a great article that describes the Habits of Mind.
http://www.ascd.org/publications/books/108008/chapters/Describing-the-Habits-of-Mind.aspx

Below is a slideshare that can be shared with your advisory to illustrate the Habits of Mind.

Habits Of Mind

View more presentations from maybecrystal

Some sites from Dee Elzer

Dee sent me some sites for us to use in Advisory. Please take a look.
This clip on geotagging is well-worth the few minutes it takes to watch. My thanks to Phil Nespeca for forwarding it to me.


Please view at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N2vARzvWxwY

Another site that Dee recommended was:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BewknNW2b8Y&feature=player_embedded


Thank you for your time.

October is Anti-Bullying Month

Two links that address bullying, some food for thought this month. Please also, check out past posts on this topic for ideas.
http://theinnovativeeducator.blogspot.com/2011/10/october-is-anti-bullying-month-and.html

http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2011/09/29/mitchell-wilson-suicide-disabled-bullying_n_987070.html?icid=maing-grid10%7Chtmlws-main-bb%7Cdl3%7Csec1_lnk3%7C100214

The First Advisory

Our first advisory is almost here and I wanted to remind you where you can find ideas for lessons. This blog is a great place to find ideas and share them as well. If you would like to post and idea please let me know and I will give you access as a contributor.
In the library there are several books available.
Here is a link to a post that was made last year:
http://smsadvisory.blogspot.com/2010/09/library-materials-available.html#links

Here is a link to some Icebreaker activities that may be helpful:
http://wilderdom.com/games/Icebreakers.html

Enjoy your Advisory and have Fun!

Welcome back!

Welcome back!
Gina Cacioppo shared this with me and asked that I share it with all of you.
Just wanted to share a special on Bullying covered by dateline NBC. The special addressed not only the agressor and victim, but the bystanders and concept of peer pressure. I find this topic very important to the health and wellbeing of our students. I have attached links to a few clips of the show.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vk_k2pnMO9o&NR=1 GIRLS

http://www.youtube.com/watch?NR=1&v=6W9N9ZDBA1M BOYS

The topic of bullying is very close to my heart.

Best of Advisory 2010-2011

As the school year comes to a close it is always a good time to reflect on the lessons we've taught. Advisory has been a wonderful way  for us to get to know our students better and for them to get to know each other.
Below are some  advisory ideas from colleagues that they have found to be successful.

Submitted by Marcy Tretler
I have used activities from a book borrowed from the library called A Treasure Chest A Teacher Advisory Source Book.  One that the kids seemed to respond to was a story called "Duck's Best Friends". In it, the class teases a boy because he is clumsy and constantly falls. They find out he is seriously ill and will not be returning to school. The  class is upset with their own behavior. We talked about what you can learn from this story.

Submitted by Margo Christopher and Katie Pearce (there is also a prior post)
You Tube-Kid and Marshmallow Test
Here is brief description.
http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=kid+and+marschmallow&aq=f
In this YouTube, a child is given a marshmallow on a plate and told to sit in a room. Before leaving, an adult tells the child he can eat the marshmallow now or wait until the adult comes back and get two marshmallows. It is quite cute to see how these children react. Discussions about instant gratification, patience, as well as cheating can be initiated from this Youtube.

Submitted by Ellen Goltzer

Activity #1 - Something About Me - Silly Putty StyleWhen Advisory started in the beginning of the school year, I brought in a silly putty for each student. I asked them to create something that would describe them or something they liked to do. The kids really enjoyed it and I got to know something new about each student. Activity #2 - Let's Make The Pieces Fit?I wanted to incorporate the importance of teamwork so I brought in an old puzzle I had at home. It has oversized pieces and when completed it is 4' x 4'. Each student received 4 pieces and they had to work together to put the puzzle together on the floor. It was cool how they all assisted each other. Then we talked about the importance of teamwork.
I would be happy to lend out any of these materials if you are interested.


Submitted by Dee Elzer
In my advisory I used this youtube video about how photos taken with smart phones can be used to track down where the photo was taken. We discussed geo-tagging and how parents can track their children on google earth/maps. We also discussed how 'bad' people can get information about where they/the students hang out and live through their photos that are posted on sharing sites.
Great short video to spark conversation.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N2vARzvWxwY

Submitted by Gina Cartolano
The link below takes you to the Rock or Feather activity that was posted in a prior blog post.
http://smsadvisory.blogspot.com/2011/03/education-world-lesson-planning-rock-or.html

Another activity submitted by Gina involves having students choose solutions to social situations they may have to deal with. The link below will take you to the document called Advisory 4 Corners situations.
https://sites.google.com/site/greatnecksouthmiddleadvisory/blog-resources

Submitted by Randi Falow
2 session Advisory activity


#1
1. I brought in a voodoo doll that had pins and several messages on it. Some were positive messages like win money, some were negative like be prosecuted for tax fraud. I asked the kids, before passing the doll around the room, if they thought it would work. They all said no. They did, however, all want to poke the doll.


2. This discussion went on to include things you can do when you are angry that allow your feelings to come out, but don’t hurt anyone, anything, or anyone’s feelings. Everyone took a turn placing pins on the doll. This was deemed therapeutic.


3. I gave out slips of paper and told everyone to write something bad that they had said or done, something they wish they could take back. Names were NOT written on slips of paper. We placed all the papers in a bag and I shook the bag. I ripped up the bag and the contents and absolved everyone of what they had done. Tiny pieces of paper were recycled. We called for a “new beginning.”


4. The students were asked, “Is it ever right to wish that bad things happen others?” What about people like Qaddafi ? “ The group decided that it was ALWAYS wrong, no matter what, to wish bad things to happen to others.
#2
We made paper fortune tellers with positive things you can wish others.
Susan Zucker did a great job showing the students how. Also, there are great instructions on youtube.


Submitted by Marissa Koch
My students really enjoyed Two Truths and One Lie. For this activity, they write three sentences about themselves, two that are true and one that is a lie, and the class has to guess which are the truths and which is the lie.


Submitted by John Lento
The Cup Game
Watch the youtube video with the students and follow the directions. 
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Grb1oa72kmk

I had them do it individually at first.
Once they got it, they played in groups.
They had a lot of fun.  It was a good team-building activity.








Please don't be shy send your best ideas to be posted.

Follow up to Rock and Feather Activity

#comments-
Tried this activity in my advisory today and it was fun. The kids enjoyed it and it really got them talking. Some of them did not want to choose a category but were able to describe why. Even the quiet students in my advisory were willing to speak. This activity inspired a lot of interesting conversations and helped me get to know the students even better.

Education World ® : Lesson Planning: Rock or Feather: A Critical-Thinking Activity

Education World ® : Lesson Planning: Rock or Feather: A Critical-Thinking Activity

A great idea to get the kids thinking and discussions flowing. Give it a try and see how it goes. I will be letting you know how it goes for me as I am trying it on Friday.

The Marshmallow Test

Hi all Katie Pearce sent me an activity that she had great success with in her Advisory. So here are the links.
The original article from the New Yorker Magazine was 4 pages so she condensed it. Students watch the video and then respond to the discussion questions and create their own test.

Kid & The Marshmallow Test - youtube video

The New Yorker

Don’t!


The secret of self-control.

by Jonah Lehrer May 18, 2009

In the late nineteen-sixties, Carolyn Weisz, a four-year-old with long brown hair, was invited into a “game room” at the Bing Nursery School, on the campus of Stanford University. The room was little more than a large closet, containing a desk and a chair. Carolyn was asked to sit down in the chair and pick a treat from a tray of marshmallows, cookies, and pretzel sticks. Carolyn chose the marshmallow. Although she’s now forty-four, Carolyn still has a weakness for those air-puffed balls of corn syrup and gelatine. “I know I shouldn’t like them,” she says. “But they’re just so delicious!” A researcher then made Carolyn an offer: she could either eat one marshmallow right away or, if she was willing to wait while he stepped out for a few minutes, she could have two marshmallows when he returned. He said that if she rang a bell on the desk while he was away he would come running back, and she could eat one marshmallow but would forfeit the second. Then he left the room.


Although Carolyn has no direct memory of the experiment, and the scientists would not release any information about the subjects, she strongly suspects that she was able to delay gratification. “I’ve always been really good at waiting,” Carolyn told me. “If you give me a challenge or a task, then I’m going to find a way to do it, even if it means not eating my favorite food.” Her mother, Karen Sortino, is still more certain: “Even as a young kid, Carolyn was very patient. I’m sure she would have waited.” But her brother Craig, who also took part in the experiment, displayed less fortitude. Craig, a year older than Carolyn, still remembers the torment of trying to wait. “At a certain point, it must have occurred to me that I was all by myself,” he recalls. “And so I just started taking all the candy.”
Footage of these experiments, which were conducted over several years, is poignant, as the kids struggle to delay gratification for just a little bit longer. Some cover their eyes with their hands or turn around so that they can’t see the tray. Others start kicking the desk, or tug on their pigtails, or stroke the marshmallow as if it were a tiny stuffed animal. One child, a boy with neatly parted hair, looks carefully around the room to make sure that nobody can see him. Then he picks up an Oreo, delicately twists it apart, and licks off the white cream filling before returning the cookie to the tray, a satisfied look on his face.
Most of the children were like Craig. They struggled to resist the treat and held out for an average of less than three minutes. “A few kids ate the marshmallow right away,” Walter Mischel, the Stanford professor of psychology in charge of the experiment, remembers. “They didn’t even bother ringing the bell. Other kids would stare directly at the marshmallow and then ring the bell thirty seconds later.” About thirty per cent of the children, however, were like Carolyn. They successfully delayed gratification until the researcher returned, some fifteen minutes later. These kids wrestled with temptation but found a way to resist.

The initial goal of the experiment was to identify the mental processes that allowed some people to delay gratification while others simply surrendered. After publishing a few papers on the Bing studies in the early seventies, Mischel moved on to other areas of personality research. “There are only so many things you can do with kids trying not to eat marshmallows.”

Once Mischel began analyzing the results over a long period of time, he noticed that low delayers, the children who immediately gave in, seemed more likely to have behavioral problems, both in school and at home. They got lower S.A.T. scores. They struggled in stressful situations, often had trouble paying attention, and found it difficult to maintain friendships. The child who could wait fifteen minutes had an S.A.T. score that was, on average, two hundred and ten points higher than that of the kid who could wait only thirty seconds.


1. What do you think of the results of the study?

2. How do you think self control can help you in school? How does it make you a better student?

3. Why would someone with self control be a more dependable person?

4. What are some things that you have difficulty controlling in your life?
5. Design your own marshmallow test...what items could you use to "tempt" other students in your advisory group?

Great Article about Teaching Empathy

http://www.knoxnews.com/news/2010/nov/02/culture-changing-curriculum-promotes-empathy/

This article talks about a school in Knoxville that has implemented a curriculum called Why Try! and the impact it has on the students and teachers.
Thanks Jerry!

More Bullying sites to visit

Stop Bullying Now
US Department of Health and Human Services offers flash movies, games, and information about bullying and how to prevent it
GO: www.stopbullyingnow.hrsa.gov/kids

The National Center for Bullying Prevention
Helping to promote awareness and teach effective ways to respond to bullying
GO: www.Pacer.org/bullying
GO: http://kidsagainstbullying.org/

STOMP Out Bullying
Focused on reducing bullying and cyberbullying
GO: www.stompoutbullying.org

A Thin LIne
A site offering information, stories and quiz for those who have digital drama
GO: www.athinline.org

PROJECT CHANGE
A grassroots, nonprofit organization comprised of youth and adults who believe that high levels of youth engagement are essential to building strong, vibrant and healthy communities
GO: www.projectchange-md.org

The Trevor Project
A 24-hour, national help-line for gay and questioning teens
CALL: 866 4U TREVOR
GO: www.thetrevorproject.org

Bullying.org
A site dedicated to increasing the awareness of bullying and to preventing, resolving and eliminating bullying in society
GO: www.bullying.org

Anti-Bullying Network (UK)
Information for young people, parents and teachers on tackling bullying within schools
GO: http://www.antibullying.net/

No Bully
Helps schools to implement an anti-bullying policy and create school cultures where every student feels included
GO: http://www.nobully.com/

GLSEN
A great organization that is working to eradicate bullying and bias in schools
GO: www.glsen.org

National School Safety and Security Services
Bullying, anti-bullying legislation, school safety.
GO: www.schoolsecurity.org/trends/bullying.html

October is national Bullying Prevention Month

Since the start of this school year there have been at least 4 bullying related suicides in the news. That is 4 too many. With the last reports about the death of the Rutgers University student being the most publicized,   it has prompted me and several other staff members(thanks Maxine) to gather websites and materials to arm ourselves and teach our students about the damage that cyber-bullying can inflict. In a blog I read while compiling these links the author stated that we are in deep doo doo when our children think that what they are doing is "fun or funny"  and "not that big of a deal." It is our job to educate them and help them to understand that these acts are big deals and can do irreparable harm to others. Below are some links to information to begin our fight against bullying and its horrific effects.

http://blog.anniefox.com/2010/10/02/broken-kids-are-breaking-all-of-us/

Cruel's not Cool website

bullying guidelines for teachers from teaching tolerance.org

Information about the film Bullied

http://www.stopbullyingnow.hrsa.gov/kids/

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/10/01/ellens-emotional-plea-sto_n_747061.html (scroll down to watch Ellen's video)

http://www.nea.org/tools/14837.htm

Cyberbullying Research Center

Appreciating Diversity

Here a couple of links to some videos that might spark some conversation about appreciating diversity.  The videos showcase  a teenaged boy diagnosed with Autism that is given an opportunity to play basketball in High School. It also discusses how his teammates and classmates view him. They were suggested by John Liotta ( Social and Emotional Learning ) .

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NOiEHpoKIJA&NR=1

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sE_pwpBmG3w

New book in the library

We have a new book in the library called Teen Cyberbullying Investigated which deals with recent court cases based on this issue. The call number is 345.73 JAC. The information in this book could be great for starting a discussion on cyberbullying with your group. It is on display with our new books currently so come on in and check it out!

Cyberbullying

This is a great article from Teaching Tolerance magazine.

http://www.tolerance.org/magazine/number-38-fall-2010/cyberbullying

Dignity for All Students Act-New York Anti-Bullying law

Did you know NY passed an Anti-Bullying law? On Sept. 8, Governor Patterson signed the bill into law.

Read about it in this article. http://www.suite101.com/content/dignity-for-all-students-act---new-yorks-anti-bullying-law-a283825

Girls and Cyber-bullying Article

Maxine found a great article about the rise of cyber-bullying amongst girls take a look, might be a good place to start a discussion.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/09/01/AR2010090102648.html?wpisrc=nl_headline

First Advisory

Hi Everyone,
Hope your first advisory went well. I did a few fun activities I wanted to share. My group played a game called fruit salad. and created an Answergarden. Hope everyone has a great weekend.



What does advisory mean to you?... at AnswerGarden.ch.

Library Materials Available

The library has four new books that have many different activities and ideas for your advisory group. The books will be located behind the circulation desk in the professional collection. Come to the library and check them out!

The titles are:

Treasure Chest: A Teacher Advisory Source Book

Treasure Chest II: Problem Solving Activites, Brain Stretchers and Active Games

The Morning Meeting Book
The Advisory Book: Building a Community of Learners Grades 5-9