Do You Know What Your Children Are Learning in School?

teachers (Photo credit: Mouse)

 
      God bless our teachers!   But I am beginning to think that administrators and creators of curriculum are emissaries of evil.   They may think they are doing the right thing, but then again I wonder how thorough and rational that thinking is.  Or maybe it's just another part of a bigger conspiracy to control the world population.

        Schools are either now back in session or will be soon.  There is an increasing amount of buzz over a new curriculum being instituted in schools across the country.  Common Core is the bane of many teachers who are having to relearn how and what they teach.  Sure, there are some who come to the defense of Common Core, but I am hearing increasingly negative reports as more teachers are introduced to the program.

       When I initially heard about Common Core I had my usual suspicions, but didn't give it too much thought.  Then I began to hear some odd reports about the program.  I began doing some research on the internet.  What I found left me incredulous. If you're not familiar with Common Core do the research for yourself.  This is especially important if you have children or grandchildren in a school system where the program has been or is going to be added.

       I still don't know too much about Common Core so that's why this is my topic for today.  Maybe some of you can enlighten us about the Common Core program.  To me something smells fishy.   Now I'm tossing out the bait to see if anyone will bite.

      You can find many videos on YouTube about Common Core, pro and con.  The following excellent video was brought to my attention at the site Old Virginia Blog. I think the indoctrination they suggest sounds very suspicious and creepy.  This is the stuff of speculative or science fiction.  The video here concerns first and third grade.  What I've seen about middle school and high school text books is outrageous and highly disturbing.


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          Do you keep up with what your kids learn in school?   Are you familiar with Common Core?    What do you think is the intent of the federal government regarding education?

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What's Fun for You?

Battle of the Bands (video game) (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

       Can you believe another summer is almost gone?   I've had a great one for the most part and I hope yours has been good as well.

        I've had fun doing some traveling this year.   Road tripping is one of my favorite fun things to do.  But I do have fun just staying home doing things on the internet, watching movies on television, or just hanging out.  Gotta have fun sometimes.

Here's Something Fun

        Two of my good blogging friends have started a bi-monthly (as in twice a month) event called Battle of the Bands.  Usually on the first and the fifteenth of each month, they face off two versions of the same song for readers to vote on to decide which artist made the best recording.  They also have a giveaway as a part of the fun.   Read more about this event at their sites Far Away Series and Ferret-Faced Fascist Friends.  You can track back through their posts to see the two battles that have already taken place.   Next battle will actually be posted on August 30th due to Labor Day weekend.   Be sure to keep up with the battles to come.

        And guess who is going to join them in this.  If you guessed me then you'd be right.  How can I resist something like this?   Me and my passion about music and all.  I've got some interesting picks lined up.  You may know how obscure I can get.  Well, I can promise some picks that are rather out there, but I'll have some mainstream stuff as well.   Join me next Friday August 30 to see who will be battling in my first round.

         If you want to join in the fun then you can do your own battle on your blog.  Please be sure to link to Faraway and Stephen T. McCarthy and Tossing It Out of course.  Leave us all a comment to let us know that you've added your own band battle so we can check out your picks.   It's all pretty informal and unofficial and all.  Kind of a blogfest without a Linky List.  And most of all, it's fun!  Next Friday!

         What do you like to do for fun?   What fun things have you been doing this summer?   Would you like to match up your own song versions to do battle?



         

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Ask Arlee: Answering Some Questions

English: Rear of the Clover Hill Mill in Maryville, Tennessee, USA. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

   
      Today I'm going to answer some questions posed at L.D. Masterson's blog L.D. Masterson.  It was all part of an award, but I left the award at her blog since I already got one of those some time back.  But I'll answer the questions to fill up my space today.

        The problem here is the questions are about favorites.  I usually have a tough time playing favorites because the choice can often depend on time, place, occasion, or whatever.  Ask me a favorite and I'll come up with a list.  My favorite today may be different tomorrow or next week.  I'll play along by naming what comes to mind first or what I'm leaning toward for the moment.

1. Favorite color --Blue.  No green.  Wait--blue.  Green.  Blue green?

2. Favorite animal--Elephant.  I used to like to draw elephants when I was a kid and I thought I did a pretty good job at that.

3. Favorite number-- 7

4. Favorite non-alcoholic drink--Chocolate milk.  Yeah, that's healthy.  I have gotten better than I used to be at drinking more water.

5. Favorite alcoholic drink--Brandy mixed with Grand Marnier

6. Facebook or Twitter?--I use Twitter the most, but I find Facebook to be more interesting and functional.  

7. Passions--Writing, music, movies.

8. Prefer getting or giving presents?--I hate shopping but I enjoy making people happy by giving them something they like.

9. Favorite City--I could probably live just about anywhere because I can usually find something good about wherever I am.   In the U.S. I'd probably opt for Maryville, Tennessee.  Outside the U.S. borders I am mighty partial towards the Canadian city of Toronto--I've always loved being there.

10. Favorite TV Shows--I tend to prefer the classics I grew up with like "Twilight Zone", "The Ed Sullivan Show", or "The Jack Benny Show".   I have a post planned about television and I'll have more to say about modern TV at that time.

         Do you think posts like this are just trivial space fillers?   Do you have a hard time playing favorites?   Do you want to share any of your own answers (here or on your own blog if you need to fill some space)?   Do you have any new questions for future ASK ARLEE posts?

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