Mr. Brilla's Musings

Welcome:  Just like that, we are into the last week of September. I was talking to one of the students in my third-period class about how quickly this year is flying by—we are already one-eighth of the way through it. The students participated in some Spirit Week competitions to help celebrate Homecoming this week and it was great to see so many kids decked out in jerseys, team colors, and, school colors.  I decided to show a quick clip from the movie The Pursuit of Happyness  since we were discussing the Declaration of Independence. The movie is a great movie based on the real-life story of Chris Gardner. We watched a 2-minute clip about the importance of dreams and never letting anyone squash your dreams.  This Past Week:  The Fight Begins: The students used this slide deck to guide them through most of the work they needed to complete this week. I was out on Monday and Tuesday for training from the district so this helped them.  Boston Massacre Writing A...

Welcome:  This week, we had the privilege of watching a video titled "Dear High School Self," created by a former student. This heartfelt message serves as a poignant reminder for our students to cherish their time in school, as it passes quickly. Many students found it relatable and impactful, highlighting the importance of reflection during their formative years.   This Past Week: Monday: I was out today for a few doctor's appointments and the students worked on a Wizer activity meant to help them differentiate between primary and secondary sources and recognize bias. The guest teacher had nothing but great things to say about the students!  Tuesday:  Today was the final day for the students to work on their Unit One Timelines (#10 on the Google Classroom). It was great to hear the students discussing the different ways to go about finding the information for the timeline. One student said, "ohhh, it's like a game and you have to put together the clues."  ...

Welcome:  I simply cannot believe how quickly these past two weeks have gone! We are nine days into school and the students are doing great. They have been learning the new morning routines and bell schedules and it's starting to feel like we never left for summer break.  This week I showed a quick little video about happiness by Jay Shetty. If you follow anything in the personal growth space you may know that Shetty has come under fire recently as claims that he may have embellished his background have surfaced. I feel that we can all believe whatever we like about him, but the message of this video still stands--it's all about how to be truly happy in life.  This Past Week:  Tuesday: The students came back from their long weekend today and were given time to finish the Week 1 Gameboard before we used MagicSchoolAI to practice using AI to research so we can formulate and defend opinions. The big question for today was "Should we study history or is it a waste of tim...