Why did people go on pilgrimages in the Middle Ages? Email A pilgrimage is a physical and a spiritual journey to a sacred site, either a church or a place where a saint may have appeared or a miracle is believed to have taken place. Most religions have the practice of the faithful making pilgrimages to holy places as a way to express their deep belief, to ask to be healed or to do penance for sins. It is way of uplifting the soul. During the Middle Ages in Europe, life was hard for the majority of the common people. Poverty, disease, war and illiteracy were common. In the early Middle Ages, the second through the eighth Centuries, Christianity began to take hold as the official religion in Europe. Because there were so many holy sites and not enough saints or relics, the church had to create more. In the Middle Ages, Christianity fought to become the dominant religion in Europe. The medieval tradition of Christian pilgrimage to the Holy Land continues even to this day.
25 Insights on Becoming a Better Writer When George Plimpton asked Ernest Hemingway what the best training for an aspiring writer would be in a 1954 interview, Hem replied, “Let’s say that he should go out and hang himself because he finds that writing well is impossibly difficult. Then he should be cut down without mercy and forced by his own self to write as well as he can for the rest of his life. At least he will have the story of the hanging to commence with.” Today, writing well is more important than ever. So what can we do to improve our writing short of hanging ourselves? 1. Don’t just plan to write—write. 2. [The] Resistance knows that the longer we noodle around “getting ready,” the more time and opportunity we’ll have to sabotage ourselves. 3. Find your best time of the day for writing and write. 4. Work on a computer that is disconnected from the internet. 5. Find a subject you care about and which you in your heart feel others should care about. 6. 7. Hone your outline and then cling to it as a lifeline. 8. 9.
Literature Circle Models After experimenting for many years, I discovered an approach that's easy, fun, and effective. I refer to it as Classroom Book Clubs because it's a more relaxed method of doing Literature Circles that doesn't involve roles. You can view a narrated slidecast to this model by scrolling down to the Classroom Book Clubs section. On this page you can also learn about different types of Literature Circles. Ways to Structure Literature Circles Classroom Book Clubs - My favorite method at the moment is a flexible approach to Literature Circles that does not require the use of extensive handouts and assignment booklets. Classroom Book Clubs I love this model because it's a very flexible and fun approach. Mini Literature Circles (Using Leveled Readers) Are you required to use a basal reading program in your classroom? Assign 3 or 4 students to a leveled reader based on their reading level. Literature Circles with Roles Some students enjoy having roles within their Literature Circles.
ToonDoo - World's fastest way to create cartoons! Adrian Camm · Medieval Re-Design Your typical Medieval PBL unit would typically be built around a driving question like “What was life like in 14th century England?” Students would research clothing, art, music, food and perhaps have a culminating event like medieval bread baking. This is inauthentic PBL in my opinion and doesn’t do this incredible period of time justice. Stirling Castle, standing high on a Volcanic crag, dominates the land below, and is equalled only by Edinburgh Castle in it’s age and prestige. The Castle’s strategic importance, being situated as the gateway to the highlands, saw it besieged at least 15 times during it’s history. Geographically, the Castle is almost impregnable on three sides, so it’s defences were focused on the inclined approach from the south-east. To me this is a more authentic approach to a Medieval PBL unit which might be derived from asking a question like, “Could the sacking of Stirling Castle have been avoided?” From the website,
Harness the Mental, Creative, and Emotional Benefits of Regular Writing My journal has without a doubt been a transformational tool in my life. Just taking a bit of time to reflect on how the last week has gone and to renew my intentions for the coming week really keeps me on track, and alerts me early to any negative habits I am developing. It made it painfully clear to me why my NY Resolutions failed in the past. I simply didnt keep thinking about them. For me personally, having headings according to all the parts i want to keep in check (family, physical health, mental health, etc) works really well because it keeps me focussed on a balanced life. When you get hooked into something its easy to forget that other areas of your life exist. I keep it weekly because thats a very useful timescale for goals. Finally what works for me is handwritten.
Five close reading strategies to support the Common Core I walked in to my first college class, Political Science 101, eager to learn. For my inaugural college assignment, my professor asked the class to read the first three chapters of the textbook for the next class period. That night, I returned to my dorm room, determined to learn everything I could in those three chapters. However, when I opened my textbook it was unlike anything I had read in high school. I shrugged, pulled out my highlighter and started highlighting. I quickly realized that I had no real game plan for reading this complicated textbook. Flash forward to my first few years of teaching. While this method may have been slightly more effective than what I used that first day of college, it was still too vague and ambiguous for my students. Last fall, I attended an AVID workshop about critical reading strategies. 1. The Common Core asks students to be able to cite and refer to the text. 2. 3. Telling students to simply underline “the important stuff” is too vague. 4. 5.
Four Ideas For Using Online Tools to Extend the Classroom Guest blogger, Barbara Jolie provides some ideas for teachers who want some ideas on using the Internet in the classroom to more effectively accelerate learning outside the classroom. [amazon_omakase size="468x60" locale="" ad_logo="show" ad_product_images="show" ad_link_target="new" ad_price="all" ad_border="show" ad_discount="add" color_border="#000000" color_background="#FFFFFF" color_text="#000000" color_link="#3399FF" color_price="#990000" color_logo="#CC6600" /] For all the flack that the Internet gets, from minimizing attention spans to being a breeding ground for pedophiles and terrorists, if used correctly, the Internet may just be the biggest blessing for teachers and learners since the rules of logic were conceived. But using the Internet correctly is the hard part. 1. Creating a class wiki is one of the best ways for students to use the Internet in an exciting way. 2. 3. 4. About the author:Barbara Jolie, writes for online classes. Tags: classroom, online tools, teaching
A new tip for productivity | A Writer's Journey As a homeschooling mom, I do all my planning for the week on Sundays. I use a spreadsheet that lays out the full week, organizes by topic, and lets me see in one page what needs to be done, and even how to do it. So it occurred to me the other day- Why don’t I use the same technique for writing? Writing Planner- I created a table with 7 columns for each day of the week, and the rows are broken up on labels such as; Appointments- to list important meetings I must attend (and I add the time). Writing- This is writing specific to stories and things I will publish. Blogging- With keeping a blogging schedule, I find its faster to post and even brainstorm ideas by knowing when I need to update a new post. Marketing- This includes things I do for my web sites, blogs, and my business (learnthepc.net). Other includes specific projects I’m working on. Exercise- This was recently added to remind me that I need to exercise regularly. Feel free to use my idea, and let me know if it work out for you.
5 Presentation Tools To Captivate Every Student Creating a presentation that keeps a captive audience engaged is tough. Creating a presentation that keeps distracted students engaged is a much harder task again. Whether your are demonstrating to a class or presenting at a conference, keeping an audience focused on your content is more challenging than it used to be. Children and adult audience members alike, now have glowing distractions in their pockets and are expecting the instant gratification that comes from the Internet generation. Here are a few tools that will help you enthrall your audience and keep your presentations on the entertaining side of educational: SlideRocket is a hosted web app designed to take presentations to the next level with graphical prowess and multimedia integration. Although the content of your presentation is of course the most important part, small visual improvements can have a big effect on audience engagement and participation. www.sliderocket.com
(More) tips for writing well (Austin Govella at Thinking and Making) Published Wed, Jul 8, 2009 by Austin Govella. Updated Wed, Jul 8, 2009. As an editor, I’ve noticed several recurring bad habits you heathens would do well to disabuse yourselves of immediately. Almost without exception, these bad habits instantiate themselves as a series of stock phrases and constructions that reflect a lack of focus, a lack of fully developed argument, or the kind of intellectual laziness that sets in as you slog through your first draft. These things happen, That’s ok. 16 things to check when you edit Be vicious when you edit. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. 16. After you edit… The finished piece should be so tight, terse, concise, and clear that it’s boring. Boring. Then sand off the rough edges. Write like you talk. The first 16 recommendations remove fluff and force you to think and communicate.
Google Map Maker Gets A Makeover, Is Now Easier To Use Google Map Maker, the still somewhat undiscovered gem of Google Maps which allows users to create and edit maps, is getting its new Google makeover today. Following the redesigns of other top Google properties including Gmail, Docs, YouTube and Reader, Map Maker’s updated user interface is meant to be easier on the eyes, while also increasing the service’s usability. Map Maker, which launched in the U.S. in April of this year, is largely meant to extend the Google Maps service into countries where there isn’t much data, namely, emerging markets. In the U.S., however, the feature was limited to map edits, not creation, allowing users to add greater detail to an area for things like bike paths, walking trails, campus maps, and other areas and features that aren’t traditionally found on maps. With today’s update, the service has been improved, with a particular focus on first-time users. Google Map Maker is now live in over 180 countries, including the U.S. and Canada.