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Taking Note of Note-Taking

15/10/2018

 
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The Sumerians were perhaps the first people to use "wedge-shaped" writing tool on flat mud to keep track of projects. This tablet dates from 3200 BCE.
Ever notice people who scribble constantly while attending a talk?  I do because I don’t take notes well.  In fact I hardly take notes at all.  I find note-taking gets in the way of attentive listening.  I’m afraid I’ll miss something if I divert my attention to writing something down.   Note-taking is a different activity than actively listening.  So when I interview an expert to learn about his/her field for a project I’m working on, I bring along a tape recorder.  The only notes I take are about specifics—the spelling of a name, or a particular recommended reading, or a website I should visit.  Later, when I am synthesizing material in my own writing, I can always double check my memory about what I heard with the tape recorder.  I have come to understand that my memory is quite good. And, as a result, I’ve come to rely on it.  If I’m worried about forgetting some of the details after listening all day, I write my notes in the evening. 

It seems that Socrates also noticed this.  He worried about the technology of his day, the stylus, which allowed people to write in clay.  He was afraid that “[Writing] destroys memory [and] weakens the mind, relieving it of…work that makes it strong. [It] is an inhuman thing.” In other words, if you could easily make notes (now carved in clay), you no longer had to remember what you wrote down and so you could now forget it.  Listening and writing are two different and, perhaps, competing verbal activities. Modern research into multitasking indicates that we really don’t do two or more things at once, but simply shift attention back and forth from different tasks. But in college, we were all encouraged to take notes, not only from lectures but from our readings as well.

For my first term paper when I was in college, I learned from a graduate student that 3”x 5” note cards about the research were the order of the day and I diligently wrote them.  But, today, when I’m reading to learn, I find it disruptive to write notes.  When I’m trying to grasp concepts the best way for me to learn is to read several different sources on the same subject. It is only when you can articulate a concept in your own words that you truly “own” it. So I only make a note when something jumps out at me and I know that I’ll want to revisit it. 

But doesn’t the act of writing also strengthen memory?  The many times I forget to bring along the grocery list I had recently created makes no difference at all in collecting every item on that list into my shopping basket.  We authors are verbally articulate about the material in our books because we’ve thought about it and written about it and, as a result, remember it better.  The many pundits who speak so well on news talk shows are all excellent writers.  Good speaking comes from having written and practicing by engaging in substantive conversations.

The Common Core State Standards  “…..require that students systematically acquire knowledge in literature and other disciplines through reading, writing, speaking, and listening.”  To become an articulate, educated person requires interaction of all four of these activities, which I’ve put in red in this post. I’m not sure where note-taking fits into this process.  I have a hunch that it’s one of those highly individualized, personal quirks that everyone has to discover independently. In other words, we each have to figure out what works best in our personal acquisition of knowledge.  This could be a sub-text of the CCSS—although becoming educated involves all four activities, how you make it work for yourself can be discovered only empirically.  There is no one right way, one size fits all.  It is this process of self-discovery that needs to be communicated to teachers and students.
 


Climate Change and Hurricanes: Teachable Moments Are on Their Way

8/10/2018

 
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Climate change scientists predict in an increase in the strength of seasonal hurricanes.  Right now,  Michael is approaching Florida. Here comes a teachable moment. If you're required to "cover" earth science and particularly meteorology, allow me to point you to a resource I know quite well.  I wrote it.

It won a STEM award, only in its second year, which is honors the integration of science, technology, engineering and math into a single work. (I've been writing such books for a long time but it's still nice to be noticed.)  

Kids are fascinated with hurricanes because of their destructive power.  Right now, we have state-of-the-art ability to predict the approximate path of a hurricane within several days of warning. This gives residents, who may be in the hurricane's  path, time to board up windows, clear the patios of potentially flying objects, and evacuate if flooding from a storm surge is possible.  

We are nowhere close to steering a hurricane harmlessly into the ocean or diminishing its power.

Nevertheless, scientists and engineers have been thinking  and imagining how it could be done.  What do they need to know?

First, they have to understand the settled science about the the components of hurricanes: namely air, water, and energy.  How do these normally benign essentials for life get organized into such a violent storm?  Next, they have to understand what hurricanes do for the planet. Yes, they serve an important function, mainly to move the heat from the ocean to the stratosphere.  In. A. Hurry. Finally, they must understand the possibilities for weather modification and its potential for unforeseen catastrophe.  It's a fascinating subject for students to ponder.  It's a problem for which there are currently no right answers.  

I think it's good for students to live with questions.

You can find the new paperback here.  And if you want to follow Michael's progress and see what else is cooking in the Atlantic, go to the heart of the matter, the National Hurricane Center.  

Here are links to Nonfiction Minutes on hurricanes and climate change: 

Flying into the Eye of a Storm
Earth's Emergency Heat Valve: The Hurricane
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Climate Change: The Facts and the Consequences
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Hopping Ahead of Climate Change

Chelsea Clinton: A Real Children's Book Author

6/10/2018

 
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Children's librarians have often told me that they resent having to spend some of their precious new-book budget on celebrity books. Frankly,  they find that these books have a very short shelf life. Those of us who have made a career of writing for children are skeptical of children's books written by amateurs, especially when they are famous and their name will earn their publishers much needed revenue.  But we do understand why they do it.   I review only nonfiction books I like from the point of view of their value to the reader.  Chelsea Clinton's Start Now! You Can Make a Difference has a lot going for it.
  • The premise is empowering. Children know their vulnerabilities.  They wonder how they will ever learn to cope with the adult world.  Many of them are aware of problems and feel that they are not competent enough or old enough to take action and effect change.  Clinton shows them how.  Every chapter ends with check lists that are resources for young readers to address issues and problems that are now obvious to everyone.
  • Chelsea Clinton has done her homework. She defines 5 serious problems with a well-researched chapter on each: clean water, conservation and endangered species, health, nutrition and hunger, and bullying.  Her work is accurate and has obviously been vetted. 
  • The information is embellished with interesting anecdotes. She writes of seven-year-old Isiah, who lived in Virginia, and started a campaign to raise money for hand sanitizers for the children of Flint Michigan; of Haile, who learned how to make nutritious foods for her diabetic father and created You-Tube videos to share what she learned; of Christian, who helped spread the idea of a "buddy bench" where a classmate who suffered from bullying could sit and someone would soon join him/her.  There are also brief historic stories, including the cure for scurvy, the discovery of vaccines, and more.  Such stories are engaging, concrete evidence for children.
  • The writing has "voice." Clinton's tone is accessible and informal. She is not preachy;  she includes humor often, and occasionally refers to herself by using the personal pronoun "I."  She assumes little or no prior knowledge of issues and concepts on the part of the reader without sounding patronizing.  She has skillfully woven big ideas to individual actions. 

 In Start Now: You Can Make a Difference, Chelsea Clinton has introduced a very broad scope of issues and concepts with many particulars of how a child can make a difference.  This is no easy task. Her voice is a welcome addition to the world of upcoming children's nonfiction authors.


A Vivid Experience of the Titanic Beast of the Arctic

3/10/2018

 
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"Great polar bear..../how do you survive/ on the thick ice covering the deep Arctic Sea?" is the opening question in The Great Polar Bear by Carolyn Lesser.  This nonfiction picture book is a paean to the largest bear on the planet who lives in one of Earth's most inhospitable habitats.  Written in the second person to the polar bear, Lesser uses her poetic voice and graphic skills as an artist with paint and cut paper, to convey how  this impressive mammal is perfectly adapted to confront its year-long challenges in its hostile environment. 

Not only is the polar bear "great" in Lesser's words, but it is also "strong," "brave," "restless," "hungry" and "alone" as it wanders the ice looking for food (seals), a mate, and ways to cool off in the increasingly warmer Arctic summer.  The author's notes include a journal segment from her research trips (6!) to the Arctic in both winter and summer.  The notes also includes a warning as sea ice disappears: ...."although stable, polar bear populations have not returned to their highest numbers.  Bears are still smaller, and fewer cubs are born every three years--not two."

This book represents the best in nonfiction literature.  It is factual.  It is accurate.  But its telling is through the filter of Carolyn Lesser-- a human being with passion for her subject.  She skillfully uses her writer's craft and artist's skill  to illuminate the life and struggles of one of Earth's most impressive animals.  This book is evocative for the reader and it needs to be shared in story-time readings with children so they are caught up in a true story of adaptation and survival, something worth marveling at.

     Vicki Cobb

    *Award-winning author of more than 90 nonfiction books for children, mostly in science.
    *Former Contributor to the Huffington Post
    *Founder/President of iNK Think Tank, Inc.
    *Passionate advocate for the joy of learning for every child and teacher.


    Disclaimer: All opinions, typos, and grammatical errors are my own,  especially small word omissions which I often don't notice in my fervor.  

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iNK Think Tank, Inc. is a nonprofit with the mission of using nonfiction children's literature in classrooms

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