I’ve been learning to draw on the iPad. I’ve found many videos on YouTube and I’ve taken classes online. Yesterday I shared a couple drawing sites [free] to show those places I’ve found helpful.
I am also learning calligraphy. I made this for my family:
If you search for what you’d like to learn on YouTube, you may find what you’re looking for, or search to find a free class online, like I did for calligraphy– five days of lessons. I think I learned a lot.
If I could sing, we’d sing together. I love board games, and gathering as a family or playing with my brother or cousins was a favorite thing to do. We played Sorry, Monopoly, Pachisi [you could make your own]. My favorite game with my sons and grandchildren is “This Game is Bonkers!” It’s never the same game in the race to win points. As an adult, I love the game Fluxx, of which there are many versions. And it, too, is never the same game– the rules always change!
My middle school students liked chess 4×4. You can easily draw your own board, make pieces out of bits and buttons, and follow the rules to challenge each other.
Today I found many good things to do:
I discovered a lesson on the ukulele:
Stuck at home, grab your #uke! https://t.co/aYJjtXW14H #clmooc Love the inventions to manage these changing times. Thanks @ukelikethepros
— Wendy Taleo (@wentale) March 18, 2020
I found a list of authors stepping up with their own take on staying home:
Amid school closures, Jason Reynolds, Mo Willems, Laurie Halse Anderson, and other kid lit creators are stepping up to help. https://t.co/BOhy4n4x33 pic.twitter.com/3E5BSulC5i
— SchoolLibraryJournal (@sljournal) March 17, 2020
And books– lots of free books:
“Whether it’s The Lorax, or Fox in Socks all the way to James Joyce’s Ulysses, between YouTube and LibriVox or Storynory or Audible (if you can pay) or many other sites you can find vast libraries of free books.” @irasocol https://t.co/M1NgmBWaWr
— Ira Socol (@irasocol) March 17, 2020
And some fun comic, drawing, and writing activities from Jarrett Lerner [free during these times for education and home]:
Another new batch of free activities is now available at my site:https://t.co/elSYH2RkBR
Today I've got a Character-Maker, the Scribble Game, a desperate astronaut, and some blank clothes that need funky patterns. Scroll down to find them.
I'll post more activities every day! pic.twitter.com/rooofm280r
— Jarrett Lerner (@Jarrett_Lerner) March 17, 2020
When I was young, to learn something new, we walked to the library or book store to find a book on it. We joined a club. We learned from our parents, if they knew. No YouTube. No Google Search. Books or mentors, that was how we learned– or struggled on our own.
Now is the time to enjoy learning and laughing together– sharing our goofs and enjoying the struggle of finding and doing, redoing, and trying again and again. Playing games, new and old. And, to help each share a bit like this post.
You might even want to start a blog. Edublogs has a student challenge right now: Edublog Challenge.
Let me know if you do! I’ll be sure to check it out– just share your URL in the comments below.
Prompt: What have you chosen to learn or play?
This post is a Slice of My Life, part of a March Slice of Life by The Two Writing Teachers with tweets at #sol20.