Wrapping up the 2013-2014 school year - it's not "güle güle"

Trying to make good on a promise, this post is part of a series.

I didn't quite make it. I really wanted to hit everything you asked me to write about. If you don't make it through all of this I'd encourage you to at least read through the post I had you read on the first day of class: Last Lecture/First Lecture.

Although I haven't hit all the goals I had for this website and I haven't been able to write as often as I would like, I have really loved having this way to communicate with you - my class.

As we finish up the last day of school, here are some topics I missed:

1. " How extreme bacteria survive. Could they survive in space?" Extreme bacteria - there are a variety of organisms that can live in what we would consider extreme environments. The short story is exactly what you would guess: adaptations. For instance, bacteria that live in really acidic environments are able to maintain homeostasis only in those conditions. Natural selection has favored those that could survive and those that couldn't died. I would love to spend more time researching exactly how this works. I have a feeling that I would find some really amazing adaptations.

PS - they absolutely could survive in space. In fact, that's one theory for how life on Earth started. Looks like a good program at the University of Washington. Maybe I should check it out!

2.  What is evolution? How have we changed over time and how did our world begin? How was the universe created? We've covered this in class. See Unit 5 and above. If you're still having questions - email me.

3.  Creationism. Can science and religion co-exist? Yes. Some have trouble reconciling, but it's possible to understand a created world that is also governed by scientific truths. Some see science as a gateway to better understanding God and creation.

4. Sasquatch? I'll be looking for him. 

5. Will we ever make it to Alpha Centauri? Well it's only 4.37 light years away. So as soon as we figure out how to travel the speed of light and can figure out a way to travel for 4.37 years at the speed of light - then yes!

6. Co-evolution of humans and bacon. I think a brief history of bacon will suffice. Check for accuracy. :)

7. Indian History. Amazing what a google search can do. Check for accuracy. :)

8. Milky Way Galaxy and outer space. Did that.

9. Downton Abbey. The following will almost make sense to almost no one - including me.

It's tough to lose a loved one. Mary dealt with a lot losing Matthew and having a baby without its father (it helps to have hired help raise the child for you, but that's neither here nor there). This last season of Downton Abbey was disappointing to me because I felt like it didn't really lead anywhere. There was very little growth and progression and the character development was stunted. Mary was deciding between two suitors for pretty much the whole season it felt like - when I felt like she needed to either keep grieving(and stop leading them on) or choose one and try to make a go of it.

I find myself in a similar situation. Today is my last day and I'll be moving on from Hebron. This school will always be in my heart, but I know there's a bright future for me(and for you too). I leave here proud of what my students have accomplished and the community I've helped create here at this school. I do not want to be like Mary. Although I will miss this school, I want to grow, I want to progress, and I want to see what the future holds in whatever job I find. 

At the time of this writing I don't know what I will be doing next year, but I'm excited - just as you should be. You've finished your freshman year! You should be proud! I've really enjoyed having all of you in my class. Thank you for the smiles you bring to class every day and thank you for sharing a bit of yourself on your blogs. I really loved reading what you had to write.

For those that would like to continue to write and/or keep this site going please get in touch with me if you haven't already. This site may undergo a big facelift depending on what the future brings, but you can always reach me with the contact box on the left or by finding me on twitter.

It's time to turn my school computer in. As the Turkish Ambassador would say -  "güle güle" (goodbye)

I'd rather just say "teşekkür ederim" (thank you)

Blessings,

Mr. Early

A Li'l Background on Li'l Mr. Early

Trying to make good on a promise, this post is part of a series.

1. What inspired me to be a teacher?
My road to being a teacher took a few twists and turns. This is the long story - condensed.

I realized pretty early on(probably 6th grade) that I wanted to teach. I liked helping people. I was a student tutor in class and I genuinely enjoyed helping people learn. When I got to college I took a class called "Intro to Education." I hated it. I didn't like people telling me how to teach. I was young and immature and absolutely certain I was done with the idea of teaching. I knew I liked history and really wanted to work in a museum so I studied anthropology. I just didn't get into a museum and once I started studying anthropology I realized how interested I was in biological anthropology and I began a double major in biology and anthropology. 

Later on I realized I didn't really want to complete both majors and ended up finishing with a minor in biology. After college I wasn't sure what I wanted to do and I got a job at a high school as an aide and I remembered that passion I had at a younger age. I knew I wanted to teach again. I even looked into teaching English in Japan. In the end I went through an alternative certification and started teaching. It's not quite a "started from the bottom," but...well....here I am.

2. Why do I like being a teacher?
There are a few things I really love about being a teacher. First, I really do love working with students. That doesn't mean I don't get frustrated sometimes, but the only reason I might get frustrated is because I care about you and I want to see you do well, so when you don't act with the maturity (academically and socially) I know you're capable of - it's disappointing. I can say I've never dreaded coming to work as a teacher because I love my students and every day is new and different. 

These unique days are another great thing I love about teaching. I love being creative, innovative, and trying new things. I don't like to teach things the exact same way twice.* I always think there's something that can be improved. Teaching allows me to be creative in many ways (blogging being just one of them) and I know that in any job I do I need an outlet for creativity. I'd really struggle doing the same thing every day, over and over. Although I might teach the same thing 3 times a day, a couple times a year, it's never exactly the same and every class gives me a (relatively) new experience.

3. What did I like doing as a kid? In and out of school.

This is a big question. I was a "kid" for a really long period of time - almost 20 years!! 

Outside of school I always liked exploring. I've always been very observant.** I have a lot of brothers and sisters from different parts of the world, which always makes life interesting. One of my fondest memories of childhood is catching bumblebees with my brothers in our backyard. We had these honeysuckle flowers growing on the fence that would attract a lot of bees. He would catch them with his bare hands*** and we would put them in a jar and watch them. I won't tell you what eventually happened to the bees, but I would like to make my apologies to PETA and I will remind you that most forms of life need oxygen for cell respiration.**** Many of my interests continue to this day. I loved playing sports (soccer, baseball, basketball, football especially), exploring, going to museums, listening to incredible music, and watching Star Wars and Three Amigos.

Li'l Mr. Early

 There are a lot of other things I could say about my childhood (and road to teaching), but you'll just have to read my autobiography someday.

In school I really loved history (I was a big Civil War nerd) - and sub-consciously I liked science. Can you believe that my senior year of high school I took Anatomy & Physiology, Environmental Systems, and Chemistry? Yet I left high school thinking I wanted to be a history teacher. I didn't even realize how much I liked science. I know that's true about some of you now. You may not realize it, but you may end up with a career in a STEM field, even if that idea sounds cuh-razy right now.

I can't wait to find out where life takes you. That's also why I teach.






*yes, sometimes one semester might end up doing things that others don't - and vice versa
**I heard what you just said
***I'm not crazy. He can catch them. I'll watch them.
****Back off! I was a kid!

Hey! Tomorrow is going to be awesome...

...because we're going to learn a lot about some special endangered animals. Here are the organizations presenting, by class period, to help you scope out the competition.

1st Period:

2nd period:

3rd period:

"Magic: The Gathering" or "I found a game an animal could beat me at"

Trying to make good on a promise, this post is part of a series.

Magic: The Gathering. Seriously? I have no idea what Magic: The Gathering is unless I do a Google* search. I know it's a card game with an online version and seems like a more mature Pokemon.** Strangely, one of the things that comes up is a rabbit and a cat playing with the playing cards.

Nice move, rabbit
Correction: Thanks to Johnpeter (@ANameOfWits) for pointing out this first gif is Yu-Gi-Oh cards. The rabbit would still win.

Even better, cat

I fear I'd lose to both of these animals.

To those who play this game:

May the Gray Ogres never make you blue.

May the Board Wipes be ever in your favor.

May your Flamplers fly and trample

May the Alpha Strikes never bring you sorrow.

*Blogger is owned by Google. I'm required to call it a Google search. I think...

**Before you jump down my throat for being completely wrong, please understand I know just as much about Pokemon game play as I do MTG game play.