Week 15: Story Lab (Writers Write)

Write What You Care About

"Write what you care about and understand. Writers should never try to outguess the marketplace in search of a salable idea; the simple truth is that all good books will eventually find a publisher if the writer tries hard enough, and a central secret to writing a good book is to write one that people like you will enjoy."

RICHARD NORTH PATTERSON

I think this a great piece of advice. So many times I am worried to gain approval from everyone else that I put my own interests aside. It's important to write and invest something you care about, the rest will follow.

(advice to writers)

Week 15: Growth Mindset (Learning with Passion and Enthusiasm)

Growth Mindset: Learning with Passion and Enthusiasm

Dopamine and Endorphins are our happiness chemicals. So, when we're seeing things outside of our brain, we take into account if those things make us excited. For example, researchers did experiment showing pictures of Porches to men and then showed them pictures of an older, less luxury car. They noticed that there was a dramatic different in their reaction to the different cars.
One interesting thing I took away from this Growth Mindset activity is the fact that we go shopping to feel happy. In reality, we only feel happy while shopping for 12 seconds.

(video)

Week 15: Reading Notes Part B (Brother's Grimm Unit)

Brothers Grimm: Eve's Unequal Children

This story is part of the Brothers Grimm unit. Story source: The Grimm Brothers' Children's and Household Tales translated by D. L. Ashliman (1998-2013).

• Adam and Eve were working and doing chores 
• Eve brought a child into the world every year
• (some were good-looking and some were ugly)
• The ugly children were not allowed to be seen 
• The ugly children, however, were not to let themselves be seen. She hid one of them beneath the hay, another in the attic, the third in the straw, the fourth in the stove, the fifth in the cellar, the sixth under a tub, the seventh beneath the wine barrel, the eighth under an old pelt, the ninth and tenth beneath the cloth from which she made their clothes, and the eleventh and twelfth under the leather from which she cut their shoes.
• One day the Lord came knocking on their door 
• Eve was hesitant to show her children to him
• But, nonetheless the Lord blessed them all 
• "You shall be a peasant," to the second, "You a fisherman," to the third, "You a smith," to the fourth, "You a tanner," to the fifth, "You a weaver," to the sixth, "You a shoemaker," to the seventh, "You a tailor," to the eighth, "You a potter," to the ninth, "You a teamster," to the tenth, "You a sailor," to the eleventh, "You a messenger," to the twelfth, "You a household servant, all the days of your life."

(Illustration by Otto)

Week 15: Tech Tip (Blogger Side Bar Tips)

I'm going to talk about how to add your latest blog posts on the sidebar. This will make my blog posts have easier access for people who are coming to my blog for the first time.

Here's how to add the gadget to your blog:

YOUR BLOG ADDRESS. Start by copying your blog address from your homepage; you will need to copy and paste that into the dialogue box that comes next. It is the super-short address: NAME.blogspot.com.

BLOGGER LAYOUT. Go to Blogger Layout, and click "Add a Gadget" to the sidebar. Then choose the "Feed" by clicking on the plus button.

CONFIGURE FEED. Use the dialogue box to configure the feed; I accepted all the defaults and just changed the title that will display in the box to "Latest Posts." When you are done configuring the feed, click Save. Then you can drag-and-drop the widget to the position you want in your sidebar.

With this addition, it will create a new gadget for your blog and easier access for those looking at your blog. 

Week 15: Reading Notes Part A (Brother Grimm)

Brother Grimm: Little Red Cap

This story is part of the Brothers Grimm unit. Story source: The Grimm Brothers' Children's and Household Tales translated by D. L. Ashliman (1998-2013).

• Little Red Cap is little girl liked by everyone 
• She is closest with her grandmother
• One day, Little Red Cap's mother told Little Red Cap that she needed to take some cake and a bottle of wine to her grandmother because she was very weak 
• Her mother emphasized to Little Red to stay on the path!
• Her grandmother lived out in the woods a half hour away 
• A wolf approached her and she didn't know he was a dangerous animal 
• The wolf walked with Little Red Cap for awhile and asked where she was going and what she was doing
• Little Red explained that she was going to her grandmother's 
• The wolf got Little Red distracted
• He pointed out all the beautiful flowers and Little Red thought to herself how much her grandmother would appreciate them 
• She strayed from the path to pick some flowers 
• While Little Red was picking flowers the wolf headed straight for Grandmothers
• The wolf approached the house and said he was Little Red 
• Then he went inside and gobbled her up and put her clothes on 
• Oh, grandmother, what big ears you have!"
  
  "All the better to hear you with."
  
  "Oh, grandmother, what big eyes you have!"
  
  "All the better to see you with."
  
  "Oh, grandmother, what big hands you have!"
  
  "All the better to grab you with!"
  
  "Oh, grandmother, what a horribly big mouth you have!"
  
  "All the better to eat you with!"
• The wolf then ate up Little Red 
• Soon after a huntsman heard big snoring at the Grandmother's house he came and said I have been hunting you for a long time 
• Instead of shooting the wolf he cut his belly with scissors and out popped little red and her grandmother 

Little Red Postage Stamp

Week 15: Wikipedia Trail

Earth Day to Cuttle Fish

Earth Day
1969 Santa Barbara Oil Spill
Pelagic Zone
Cuttlefish

I wanted to start my Wikipedia trail with Earth day. I got the idea from looking at the class Twitter feed. Earth Day is April 22nd and celebrated all over the world. It was first celebrated in 1970 when  peace activist John McConnell proposed the idea to dedicate a day to honor the Earth and living in peace. From My first search on my Wikipedia trail being Earth Day it led me to the 1969 Santa Barbara oil spill. I was intrigued by the fact that Earth Day was inspired by some pretty phenomenal events. Some of these events really damaged our planet and it's important to actively try to save, reuse, and recycle. The Santa Barbara oil spoil occurred on January 28, 1969. From 80,000 to 100,000 barrels of oil spilled along the Channel and Southern California affecting a lot of marine life. This continued discovery of the environmental effects this spill cause led me to the Pelagic Zone. I am not at all knowledgeable on what the Pelagic Zone is so I clicked on it to learn more. Come to find out "pelagic" derives from the Greek word meaning open sea. There a lots of different depths in referring to the pelagic zone, which brings me to my final wikipedia stop, Cuttle Fish. Cuttle fish are very interesting creatures with eight right arms and two tentacles. They eat crab, mollusks, and fish. So there you have it! Earth Day to Cuttle Fish!

(Unofficial Earth Day Flag)

(cuttle fish)

Week 14: StoryLab

The Power of Creative Constraints 

TedEd videos: creative and writing style

Constraints play a special role in helping drive design and experiment. Without constraints and a little guidance we wouldn't know where to begin with our own creativity. 

In the video, the example they use is our mission to put something on Mars without releasing chemicals onto the soil. In 1996, scientists were able to figure out a paper bag tactic where the object would roll to a stop. Fast forward to 2011 engineers had made the Rover and we wanted to continue to explore Mars without interfering with its soil. They invented a sky crane! These are both examples of constraints, that were the catalyst for creative thinking and experimentation. 

"Solutions recognize the current limitations in technology in order to advance it."

Constraints guide decision making and that is super impactful. Sometimes unintentional experiments lead to the discovery of something new and better. Constraints aren't limitations, but the foundation of experimentation. 

(video)