Wednesday, April 28, 2010

Unschooling

Listen to the man in this video and answer the following questions:

1. What kind of schooling has this parent decided to give his children? What is his opinion of conventional schooling?
2. According to the man, how is a day "best spent" for a child who wants to learn?
3. What famous person (an American author and poet) has influenced the man's ideas? What did this famous person used to do and what purpose did it serve?
Discussion questions:
1. Have you ever heard of "unschooling?" Do you think it's a good idea?
2. To what extent can school have a negative impact on children?
3. Do you think children can motivate themselves to learn useful things without the need to attend school? Can an "unschooled" person prepare himself/herself for life as an adult? Why or why not?

Monday, April 26, 2010

FPIQ (20?)


Let's see if you can work this one out. Hint: she's changed her hair, too.

Bye-bye conventional cars?

Car of the future? Watch this video and decide on your own (answer the questions that follow):

1. Where can you park this interesting contraption?
2. What are the company and model names of this innovative product?
3. What kind of appeal does it have? How many people does it seat?
4. How long does the transition from car to plane take?
5. What institution are the engineers who developed the vehicle from?
6. What type of moment did the developers experience during the test flight, and at what airport?
7. How is this flying car powered? Why does this make it "greener" than normal planes?
8. When are the first units scheduled to be delivered to customers?
9, What advantages does the Transition have over an SUV (and what's that, BTW)?
Discussion questions:
1. Is this the future? Do you think there is a market for vehicles such as these? If so, can you describe the typical customer? Are they practical?
2. Would you buy a Transition if you could afford one? Do you think many people will be able to afford them?
3. Do you think the next generation will only have this type of vehicle and cars will become obsolete? Give reasons.

Wednesday, April 21, 2010

FPIQ (anybody know how many we've done?)

OK, here's a good one. Hint: he's not the most attractive guy in the world, but his daughter is a real head-turner.

Maslow's "Hierarchy of Needs"

Here's something interesting to discuss. Renowned psychologist Abraham Maslow designed a hierarchy of needs, based on a pyramid structure. At the top of the pyramid is "self-actualization" (we can discuss what that means in class), which can only be attained if all the other needs below it are satisfied beforehand.
Questions:
1. Have you heard of this before?
2. Do you agree with the order of the needs in the hierarchy?
3. Can you think of an individual who has reached the top of the pyramid? (What does "self-actualization" look like?)
4. What is homeostasis (at the base of the pyramid)?

Here's one to pronounce...

Have fun pronouncing this one! We'll talk about Maslow's hierarchy of needs in class.

Friday, April 16, 2010

Former NBA player "comes out"

Watch this video and answer the questions that follow in your notepads (feel free to post a comment):

1. What "first" has Amaechi achieved in the sports world?
2. What type of product is he endorsing? (What is an "endorsement," by the way?)
3. Why does Amaechi think HeadBlade thought of him to pitch their product?
4. What did former NBA star Hardaway have to say about having a gay teammmate?
5. What adjective does Amaechi use to describe Hardaway's words?
6. Was Amaechi openly gay while he was playing? Why or why not?
7. Have any active NBA players commented on Amaechi's "coming out?"
8. Why does Amaechi consider Anne Coulter's comments more dangerous than Hardaway's (what adjective does he use to describe her).
9. What advice does Amaechi have for public figures when giving opinions?
10. Who does Amaechi feel responsible for?