Temple Grandin Movie

I just finished watching the Temple Grandin movie on DVD.  I can't tell you how amazing it was but....I'm going to try.  First of all, this amazing woman's mother was told to institutionalize her because she was autistic.  She wasn't talking at age four, wouldn't let anyone touch her, and often had fits and panic attacks. 

While this was in the early days of the diagnosis of autism, it was still sad to see how people treated both her and her mother.  No one thought she would amount to anything and, for a while, it seemed her fear would overcome her and negate the gifts she had.  But her mother, and several other key teachers and mentors, pushed her, kept her going, forced her to keep trying new and uncomfortable things and, lo and behold, they became more comfortable for her and she tried more and more things until she had a doctorate and was able to clearly articulate what it means to be autistic.  Parents of kids on the autism spectrum, this clearly calls us to not give up and to push our children to be what they are capable of being, even if it is uncomfortable for them (or for us).  Teachers, we need to look behind the challenging behaviors of some students to who they are inside and help them develop the gifts God has given them.  This movie truly challenged me as both a parent and a teacher to not give up, to keep loving and praying and pushing my child (and those I teach) to become what they were made to be.

The truly amazing part of this movie was the insightful way which Claire Danes (and the director) portrayed Temple Grandin.  It gave me a previously unknown insight into how my son Daniel (who has Aspergers) and other people on the autism spectrum view life.  I know that the spectrum varies widely as do the experiences of people with this diagnosis but it helped me to see how the chaos and noise of life physically hurt those with ASD (autism spectrum disorder) and how the mind of someone with this diagnosis can view things in a beautifully different way.  She could do things that no one else could do and see things the way no one else saw them.  I know that Daniel does this too - he can take something that my "normal" brain cannot do (like see Lego instructions in 2D and convert them into a 3D model) and do it with ease.  He can laugh, smile, and have fun but he is also sensitive to noises, chaos, temperature, change, etc.  Just like Temple's mother, I am proud of him and excited to see what he will become and the plans that God has in store for him (Jeremiah 29:11).

One of my favorite quotes was that Temple is different but not LESS.  God did not put my son (or any other person given the label of autism or asperger's) on earth by accident. Each person is made with gifts and talents and a reason for existing.  Temple views her autism as a gift that enables her to do things and see things that other people cannot see.  The more articulate she became, the more she was able to express that she still wanted her life to have meaning even if there were things she would never understand (like people and their non-verbal cues, emotions, reactions).  Don't we all want our lives to count for something regardless of our challenges, failings, gifts, or emotions?

Take some time to view this film whether or not you have people with autism or asperger's in your life but especially if you do.  It will be well worth your time.

The Help by Kathryn Stockett

What a rare week!  Two "can't put them down" books in one week. As enjoyable as The Host was, The Help (whoa, two "The H" books in one week too...weird) was like reading a riveting, insighful classic.  This novel was a first novel by the author, Kathryn Stockett and it is hard to believe that it is her maiden voyage into novel writing.

The novel weaves the stories of three main characters, Miss Skeeter, Aibileen, and Minny, together into a narrative about Jackson, Mississippi in the early 1960s.  Miss Skeeter is a sensitive, thoughtful recent college graduate who wants to do more with her life than marry well and attend bridge club.  She was raised by a black maid who influenced her life just like the many other black maids all over town.  These maids were not allowed to use the white bathroom or trusted to put all the silver back after polishing it but they were allowed to raise white children and cook white food and clean white bathrooms.  Two of these maids, thoughtful, prayerful Aibileen, and sassy, outspoken Minny agree to help Miss Skeeter write the truth about the lives of black maids and their employers.  This quest links the three women together in friendship and a desire to tell the truth to the world, regardless of the very real risks to all three.

Their lives and stories drew me in to the extent that I couldn't wait to see what happened but at the same time, I didn't want the book to end.  It was a satisfying and enlightening read that is sure to become an instant classic.  All I can say is - you gotta read it!

UPDATE - August 22, 2011 - I saw the movie this summer and LOVED it.  The movie stayed very close to the book and the actresses were amazing!  See it if you can.

The Host by Stephanie Meyer

I finally got around to reading The Host by Stephanie Meyer and I really liked it! I think I liked it more than the Twilight series (I know, I know, don't shoot me).  It was a compelling read - I didn't want to put it down.  I really enjoyed it!

The book is about a race of aliens called Souls who invade planets by taking over host bodies.   Now they have invaded earth and, most of the time, when the Souls bond with a human host, the human mind/personality fades away.  However, in this case, the Soul (called Wanderer) in put into a "wild" human, one of the few remaining free humans. This human, Melanie, is stronger than most and refuses to fade away.  She and Wanderer end up inhabiting the same body and end up changing each other in surprising ways.

This book drew me in with the characters, the emotions, and the issues.  It is a fascinating new look at prejudice, acceptance, change, and the ever popular sci-fi topic of the survival of the human race in the face of alien invasion. The refreshing part is the way the invasion takes place and the relationships involved between human and alien. 

I recommend it to Stephanie Meyer fans and to sci-fi fans too!

iPod and iPad Apps at BBS

Do you want to see which apps we are using at Brainerd Baptist School?  Check out this link to see our apps for the iPod touch and the iPad.

http://myap.ps/brainerdbaptistschool

The last two iPad apps I have used with our K4 students are Fish School and Monkey Preschool Lunchbox.

Both apps really kept our four year olds' attention very well. Both also covered numbers, colors, matching, size, shape, and letters.  Both were fast paced and easy to interact with for small, uncoordinated fingers.  The kids' favorite of the two was Monkey Preschool Lunchbox.  I had more students ask to do that game again next week than the previous week when we did Fish School.  However, I'd recommend them both!

Top 10 Fun Websites

Family Fun magazine posted their top 10 fun websites in their September 2010 issue.  I have listed them below:

1. The Travels of Wiglington and Wenks Virtual World - This website is for ages 7 and up and is a history based quest where kids help historical figures
2. Funbrain - This website is for ages 6 and up.  It has fun arcade games along with educational games.
3. Kideos - This is for ages 3 and up.  It has kid friendly videos (much safer than YouTube).
4. NGAkids Art Zone - This website, for ages 7 and up, offers interactive activities from the National Gallery of Art.
5. The Toymaker - For ages 5 and up, this website lets kids print and assemble fun paper toys.
6. iTwixie - This website is for ages 8 and up and is a tween girl's social networking site.
7. Exploratorium - For ages 8 and up, this is the website of the San Francisco science museum.
8. Shidonni - Ages 3 and up.  This website allows kids to draw a creature on screen and animate it.  It is great for pre-readers too.
9. Activity TV - This website is for ages 6 and up and offers kid friendly how-to videos.
10. Fizzy's Lunch Lab - Ages 4 and up.  This PBS site promotes health through fun games, videos, and recipes.

Other good ones they list:

1. Starfall.com
2. National Geographic Kids
3. Free Rice
4. PBS Kids Island
5. The Great Word Quest
6. Togetherville
7. World of Cars Online

Happy Surfing!

Musical Chairs Creation Game by Heather

This guest post is by Heather and is a result of an assignment for Ancient Civilizations/Bible.  She was asked to design a game that would help children learn the days of Creation.  Here is her guest post:

First, prepare for the game by getting the number of chairs needed for the classical game of musical chairs.  Put a piece of paper underneath each chair with three questions on it (see suggestions for the questions below).  Put numbers on each chair.  Make smaller numbers and put them in a bucket. When the music stops and a person is left not having a chair, draw a number from the bucket that will match the number on one of the chiars.  That person has to get the piece of paper from under their seat and give it to the teacher (who will know the answers).  The teacher will ask these two children (the one who is left without a seat and the person whose number was drawn) the questions on the paper about one of the days of Creation. You can use each day of Creation more than once but you can not use questions a second time.  The two children will race against each other to give the answer first.  Whoever gets more answers correct gets to stay in the game and the other child is out.  At the end of the game, the last two people left will be asked several questions about all the days of Creation (not just one) and the one who gets the most right is the winner of the game. 

This idea can be used for other stories in the Bible. 

Ideas for Questions:

1. On what day did God make _____________ (stars, swordfish, cats, etc)?
2. Which came first in creation: ___________ or __________________ (fish or man)?
3. Name one thing God made on Day ______.

by Heather

iPads, iPod touches, and Macbooks at BBS!

The pilot program has begun at Brainerd Baptist School!  This week so far, we have introduced an iPod touch lab in 5th grade (I didn't help with that one), used iPads with K4, and taken a mobile Macbook lab to K5 and 4th graders. Today, the mobile lab will go to 1st and 5th grade too.

The first day of iPads with K4 was a huge success.  Each group had about 15 minutes with the iPads and the time flew.  They loved it and took to it just as intuitively as I thought they would.  One little girl said it was like her daddy's iPhone but bigger. (I knew that some of them would have already been playing games on Mommy and Daddy's phones.)  We did the app called Make Shapes.  It was really good to begin to introduce the pressure with which the students need to push on the iPad in order to make it work.  The app has students trace shapes in one level, trace shapes in the appropriate color in the next, and make pictures out of traced shapes in the last.  Then, there is a free draw page.  When the students complete a shape in the free draw page, the program fills it in so the students can see that they drew a shape.  The program includes bright colors, animations, and encouraging comments (like "Great shape!"  "Great line!").

One interesting thing is that the boys tended to start off by pushing down too hard with their fingers and had to learn to adapt to using a lighter touch.  Also, the girls tended to enjoy tracing the shapes and getting the positive feedback on that whereas the boys liked the free draw.  Overall, a great experience with no problems. 

The K5 and 4th did very well with the MacBooks.  The fourth graders were about to pop out of their seats and explode - they were so excited to get their hands on a laptop!  We spent a little time talking about the differences between laptops and desktops, the use of the touchpad, and the fact that we would be going to the Internet on Safari instead of Internet Explorer instead of Firefox.  When I asked how many of them had used a laptop before, one class had all hands up and the other had all but 3 in the air.  Less than half had used a Mac before.

The biggest time consumer was getting the laptops out in groups of 3 and then putting them back.  Each class ran over because the putting up took longer than I thought (about 6-7 minutes).  I know that they will get faster as the year continues. 

I must say that it is an exciting year at BBS and I am so glad to be a part of it.  Being on the cutting edge is fun!