I found this article and study interesting. It was done in England but I think it has plenty of relevance here. Even at the elementary school level some of these words, spelled right or wrong, occur quite often in the student's experience.
For the words above the k-5 vocabulary I don't think it's a bad idea to use this list as a way to make students aware of common erros through the spectrum, it might just help them become better spellers.
Is is the fault of spell-check so many common words are misspelt? Possibly. Should it matter that we have spell-check at our disposal? No, not in my opinion. Having a solid vocabulary should be a core tenet of any students education. Digital or otherwise, knowing how to spell correctly is a valuable skill.
20 Words you should make sure you know how to spell:
1. Separate
2. Definitely
3. Manoeuvre/Maneuver
4. Embarrass
5. Occurrence
6. Consensus
7. Unnecessary
8. Acceptable
9. Broccoli
10. Referred
11. Bureaucracy
12. Supersede
13. Questionnaire
14. Connoisseur
15. A lot
16. Entrepreneur
17. Particularly
18. Liquify
19. Conscience
20. Parallel
These are the 20 most misspelt words in the English language, according to a new British study.
Saturday, August 7, 2010
Wednesday, March 31, 2010
It's all about who you know
That age old expression is true, it really is all about who you know. However that doesn't always have to mean a better job or Super Bowl tickets...
...One of my closest friends friends from college is a guy by the name of Craig Rittenbaum. Craig works for Dreamworks Animation. Yes, that Dreamworks. Most recently he was the Production Manager on the film "How to Train Your Dragon."
Craig was nice enough to participate in my class blog and answer my student's questions about the making of an animated movie.
To that point my students knew me and that I had a website. They might have known someone else with a website. They've seen movies. But through this assignment, and Craig's generosity, they were able to correspond on a website with someone who was directly responsible for making a movie they were all planning on seeing.
To be able to make that connection for my students was quite the experience. Craig expressed his enjoyment of it as well. It's not every day the Production Manager of an animated film gets to talk daily and directly with the very audience he is creating for.
It was a great assignment and I hope to have Craig collaborate again on a future blog post.
...One of my closest friends friends from college is a guy by the name of Craig Rittenbaum. Craig works for Dreamworks Animation. Yes, that Dreamworks. Most recently he was the Production Manager on the film "How to Train Your Dragon."
Craig was nice enough to participate in my class blog and answer my student's questions about the making of an animated movie.
To that point my students knew me and that I had a website. They might have known someone else with a website. They've seen movies. But through this assignment, and Craig's generosity, they were able to correspond on a website with someone who was directly responsible for making a movie they were all planning on seeing.
To be able to make that connection for my students was quite the experience. Craig expressed his enjoyment of it as well. It's not every day the Production Manager of an animated film gets to talk daily and directly with the very audience he is creating for.
It was a great assignment and I hope to have Craig collaborate again on a future blog post.
Friday, February 12, 2010
Science of the Olympic Winter Games
This is an amazing site:
http://www.nsf.gov/news/special_reports/olympics/index.jsp
It has 16 short videos explaining, in fairly simple language, the science of the Winter Olympics. How a skater makes a jump, how skis are designed, what roll friction plays in competition, and more.
Using site like this is one of my favorite thing to do. They are timely, engaging, and mix the old and new, the web and traditional scientific explanation.
My students had to watch some of the videos and comment on them as part of a Winter Break assignment on my lab blog here...
http://www.nsf.gov/news/special_reports/olympics/index.jsp
It has 16 short videos explaining, in fairly simple language, the science of the Winter Olympics. How a skater makes a jump, how skis are designed, what roll friction plays in competition, and more.
Using site like this is one of my favorite thing to do. They are timely, engaging, and mix the old and new, the web and traditional scientific explanation.
My students had to watch some of the videos and comment on them as part of a Winter Break assignment on my lab blog here...
Saturday, January 30, 2010
What is The Casal OS?
Welcome to The Casal Operating System (OS).
What is The Casal OS? This blog is about my profession and how I view and shape the job I do and love,teaching; my experiences in the classroom, within the school, and general musings and observation regarding the educational field overall.
As I write this I am in my 8th year as a Computer teacher for the New York City Department of Education. I have taught both middle and elementary school. From a SURR (corrective action) school in Bed-Stuy to an A-rated school in Park Slope. I have a Masters in Educational Administration (School Based Leader), and Masters in Instructional Technology, as well as a Masters of Science in Teaching (MST) Grades K-6.
Between the various degrees, diverse school and neighborhood settings, countless students & colleagues, and all the things in between I have decided to document how I've gotten to where I am, the things that keep me going and push me to move forward, and the way I see education in this this era.
I've had a class website for years. My students have been involved in my site, classroom blog and wiki page as part of things work in my lab. Everything I've done online to this point has been for my students. This is the first time I've created a space for me, about my craft.
This is what makes me tick. This is what makes me run. This is my operating system.
This is The Casal OS...
What is The Casal OS? This blog is about my profession and how I view and shape the job I do and love,teaching; my experiences in the classroom, within the school, and general musings and observation regarding the educational field overall.
As I write this I am in my 8th year as a Computer teacher for the New York City Department of Education. I have taught both middle and elementary school. From a SURR (corrective action) school in Bed-Stuy to an A-rated school in Park Slope. I have a Masters in Educational Administration (School Based Leader), and Masters in Instructional Technology, as well as a Masters of Science in Teaching (MST) Grades K-6.
Between the various degrees, diverse school and neighborhood settings, countless students & colleagues, and all the things in between I have decided to document how I've gotten to where I am, the things that keep me going and push me to move forward, and the way I see education in this this era.
I've had a class website for years. My students have been involved in my site, classroom blog and wiki page as part of things work in my lab. Everything I've done online to this point has been for my students. This is the first time I've created a space for me, about my craft.
This is what makes me tick. This is what makes me run. This is my operating system.
This is The Casal OS...
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)