Monday, February 19

Today is Monday. Week 5 is now over... and Week 6 has begun. The new week's topic in the Myth-Folklore class is more stories from the Middle East and India, and in Indian Epics you will be starting the Mahabharata! You can find the week's assignments at the Class Calendar.

Class Procedures and Reminders

Success Tip: Explore the collective wisdom about learning. I added some new items to the Growth Mindset Padlet this weekend, which is where you can see what other students are thinking about growth mindset, and you can use their thoughts as prompts for your own mindset challenge. (And remember: you can do extra credit at ANY time during the week!)

Project Stack. As always, the project stack is HUGE on Monday. While you are waiting on comments back from me about your assignment, you can check the stack to make sure I received your email.

The following items are for fun and exploration:

Blog Stream. This was something I noticed in Laura's blog but forgot to share earlier: for the Google Map Tech Tip, she did a map of a famous mythological plase to include in her blog post: Rama's Bridge (reaching from India to Sri Lanka).

India Item. Here is a really fascinating set of stories from Devdutt Pattanaik's website: Shiva's Third Eye.

Myth Video: And for those of you exploring the Middle East this week, I wanted to share this Khan Academy video about Islamic art: Hagia Sophia as a mosque. Find out more at Khan Academy: Art of the Islamic World.

India Comic Book: Here's a comic book to go with the Shiva item above: Shiva-Parvati. See the Amar Chitra Katha blog for the Bizzell Reserve call number and more information.

Proverb of the Day: Here is another wonderful proverb from Kashmir: The snake goes crookedly, yet it arrives straight within its hole. Find out more at the Proverb Laboratory, and compare to the growth mindset cat below for similar advice.

Writing: And just as the snake goes crookedly, it's okay if your writing is not perfect, so long as you get there: Wonderful Writing.

Reading: And here are some wise words from Carl Sagan to inspire you in your reading this week.

Growth Mindset: Today's growth mindset cats have a human companion: Forget about perfect... just get the job done! You can find out more at the Growth Mindset blog.

Video: And here's a video meeting between Salman Khan (of Khan Academy) and Carol Dweck: Growth Mindset Lesson Plan.

Event on Campus: There will be a Wind Symphony Concert at 8PM in Sharp Concert Hall (details). Find out more about this and other events at the Campus Calendar online.

February 19: Ohíyesa. Today is the birthday of Charles Eastman, known also by his Dakota name, Ohíyesa; he was born in 1858. Eastman was the first Native American to receive a medical degree, and in his work as a doctor he treated the victims of the Wounded Knee Massacre in 1890; he was played by Adam Beach in the film Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee (trailer below). You can find out more about Eastman's remarkable life at Wikipedia, and you might enjoy taking a look at his book Wigwam Evenings - Sioux Folk Tales (free to read online). This photograph shows Eastman in 1897:

Check out the Twitter stream for information and fun stuff during the day, or click here for past announcements.