All your base are belong to us

Hey, y’all. We’re nearing the end of March, and for many public schools, that means Spring Break is near (or maybe already arrived). It’s a very busy time for educators as one school year ends, and plans for the next are already taking shape.

My hope for you as we approach the end of another school year is that you take the time to take care of yourself. You cannot pour from an empty cup, and it’s easy to get caught up in all the things at the end of the school year.

atomic habits by james clear

Take a beat, catch a deep breath, and center yourself. Rediscover what is really important to you and what you can control.

“We have so little control over our lives. The only thing we can really control is what we spend our days on.” – Austin Kleon

Anyways, here are ten things I thought were worth sharing with you this week:

10 Things Worth Sharing

  1. I worked with a senior English class this week, showing them some AI tools. They might write a book.
  2. Here’s a curated list of prompts, tools, and resources regarding the GPT-4 language model.
  3. Wanna learn financial literacy? This 300-page book was written completely with ChatGPT.
  4. The TikTok trial is a mess and is only proving that the US government is targeting this specific company over other social media platforms. Any issues with TikTok are the same with Facebook, Instagram, Snap, and many others.
  5. What is the right amount of agency to give to learners during their interactions with EdTech? Blog post and paper
  6. Are you a Wordle fan? I’m totally not, but I’ve also never liked Scrabble. Not that you care. Here’s Every Possible Wordle Solution Visualized
  7. An AI course creator – according to the page: “Start with a description and let AI-Assistant offer title and outline suggestions.”
  8. You might be violating copyright in your classroom. Maybe.
  9. Bill Gates explains why AI is as revolutionary as personal computers, mobile phones, and the Internet, and he gives three principles for how to think about it. Also, he recommends this book, this book, and this book as helpful in shaping his own thinking about AI.
  10. An Introvert’s Field Guide to Friendship: Thoreau on the Challenges and Rewards of the Art of Connection
rocking the boat
Rocking the Boat by Debra Meyerson

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Long Live the Public Domain

This is a preview of my Friday “10 Things” newsletter. Friday editions are free for everyone.

Welcome back, my friends, to the show that never ends.

It’s the first week of January which means here in the US, the public domain was just infused with all sorts of new (old) content. Included this year are the later Sherlock Holmes publications (YES!) and Metropolis, an early film of art deco dystopia.

Millions of documents, images, and other media now live in the public domain, making them freely available to anyone. We can use those works as inspiration for creating our own, standing on the shoulders of giants, and bringing our own creative ideas into the never-ending mix.

As such, here are some things on content, creation, and the public domain that I thought were pretty awesome.

10 Cool Things Worth Sharing

  1. Everything that enters the public domain in 2023 (and some ideas on how you might use them in schools)

To read the rest, subscribe to my Friday “10 Things” newsletter.

Friday Assorted Links

Sale
Learning Transformed: 8 Keys to Designing Tomorrow’s Schools, Today
  • Sheninger, Eric C. (Author)
  • English (Publication Language)
  • 260 Pages – 06/06/2017 (Publication Date) – ASCD (Publisher)
  1. Do Professors Have a Right to Mistreat Students?
  2. A Winter Break Reading List on Skills for Scholars
  3. Chicago doubled the number of social workers in schools. Is it helping?
  4. New Report from Global Google Research Project Considers the ‘Future of Education’

Link Roundup Friday for 9-30-2022

  1. Take a peek at this animated map showing the spread of writing worldwide over time. It’s an interesting perspective on something we all take for granted.
  2. I’m really enjoying Ryan Holiday’s latest installment in his Stoic Virtues series: Discipline is Destiny. As I continue my own journey to better health, fitness, and completing a doctoral degree, I’m finding several great stories in the pages.
  3. RIP Coolio.
  4. NASA blasting an asteroid off its path is just about the coolest thing ever. Google it for more info and a fun treat.
  5. An ode to the idea of an infinite canvas and tools that support that idea.
  6. I’m now actively trying to find a usage for a colash or a semi-colash.
  7. Metaphors of Ed Tech

Assorted Links for Friday, 20 May 2022

Photo by Colton Sturgeon on Unsplash
  1. R.I.P. Vangelis: The Composer Who Created the Future Noir Soundtrack for Blade Runner Dies at 79
  2. David Letterman hosted the Late Show for the last time seven years ago today
  3. Panic Over SEL Is Unfounded. Here’s Why.
  4. Reducing Stress Through Tech – Podcast
  5. The Summer Reads Edition from Why is this Interesting?
  6. 13 Strategies That Will Make You A Better Reader (And Person)
  7. 13 Websites That Provide Lots of Digital Books for Summer Reading

And now, your weekly wind down…

Assorted Links for Friday, May 13, 2022

  1. This Is Spinal Tap Will Get a Sequel 40 Years Later, Reuniting Rob Reiner, Michael McKean, Christopher Guest & Harry Shearer
  2. The Rolling Stones released Paint it Black on May 13, 1966
  3. How to Enter a ‘Flow State’ on Command: Peak Performance Mind Hack Explained in 7 Minutes
  4. Smithsonian, with first exhibition, previews planned National Latino museum
  5. A timeline of the past two years of COVID-19 deaths
  6. Seven health insurance CEOs raked in a record $283 million for 2021
  7. 90s jazz design: cups, controversy, and nostalgia
  8. Cultivating Digital Literacy through Real-World Learning