The Freedom Writers Diary

I am quite the idealist when it comes to teaching. It's no surprise, then, that the story of the Freedom Writers has been nothing but moving.

During the summer of 2008, someone gave me a copy of Teach From the Heart by Erin Gruwell. Her story about how she affected her kids was astounding. During my four-and-a-half years in college, I worked at a community center that caters to the at-risk youth of Terre Haute. Erin's freshman English classroom consisted of the bottom feeder kids, the ones that nobody wanted to teach. She had the privilege of teaching them all four years of high school and helped them overcome their circumstances. Now many of those students are affecting the lives of other kids.

If you get a chance, check out The Freedom Writers Diary. It's very inspiring. MTV made a movie of the story.

Erin Gruwell and her Freedom Writers started the Freedom Writers Foundation to help support other teachers in recreating the success of the original group.

As I was reading the book (I am nearly finished with it), I have a hard time digesting the stories of the students. I cannot imagine what it must be like to have gone through their lives. Read it--story after story after story about overcoming adversity... one of my goals in life is to understand other's perspectives in life, and thus, I will be able to relate to my students much easier. It is difficult to do so when you have not experienced those things yourself. But, I wish to convey a sense of empathy, and I hope this helps.

And I have started the process of reading the literature that they mentioned in the book. Currently I am reading Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry and The Diary of a Young Girl (The Definitive Edition) by Anne Frank.

MysteryGuitarMan, Part 2

MysteryGuitarMan does it again! I posted a few videos of his in a previous blog. I just want to illustrate what I mean when I talk about his creativity.

Stalacpipe Organ

This is wild. An organ made out of a cavern. This has been added to my "must-see" list. The sound is beautiful, and I don't think could find a better resonating space!

MysteryGuitarMan

I am a huge fan of YouTube. I am a fan of the community that it creates. I am also a huge fan of the creativity that it has come out of it.

One of my favorite YouTube creators is Joe Penna, also known as MysteryGuitarMan. I never cease to be amazed at the content he creates. Just when you think he has run out of ideas, he comes up with something new. I don't know how else to say it, really.

His main form of content is stop motion videos. Check out a few:





I really enjoy how he takes music and thinks of new ways of presenting it.

His repertoire consists of more than just stop-motion, though. He frequently does looping videos as well.





I mean, I don't know what else to say after watching his videos--they really speak for themselves. He's only 22 years old, and he is super-creative, and he's made a career out of doing what he loves to do. Really, YouTube is his job. He's a part of the YouTube Partners program, which pays YouTube creators out of the advertising money that YT receives.

Check out his other videos if you have time!

Edumusology: What is that?

"Edumusology? What in the world is that?"

I am very into education, music, and technology.

Education, music, and technology are three very distinct things.

Sometimes, however, these things can cross over. And they should! Hence, the title: Edumusology.

The concept of blogging about education, music, or technology is not something new. I am not trying to re-invent the wheel. I am, on the other hand, seeking to develop myself in these three areas, and this blog will be my exploration of these three subjects. I will probably not have very many new ideas--this is simply to serve as a synthesis of materials that I find. Hopefully I will be able to offer an opinion on some things.

Here's a little bit more about me: I just graduated from Indiana State University in December 2009 with a Bachelor of Music Education, with an emphasis in Choral and General Music. For some of my music education courses, I had Dr. Alex Ruthmann. He now teaches at U Mass Lowell. We didn't talk much about traditional methods, like Orff, Dalcroze, or Kodaly. We spent much of our semesters talking about technology and how we can incorporate it into our classrooms. And we, as teachers, should! Kids are surrounded by technology and are pretty much hooked up to the internet 24/7. So why not utilize the tools that they have to make the classroom more relevant for them?

Please, enjoy this blog. Feel free to comment to offer up your own advice or thoughts on topics.