Back to School: We're back at work at the Shanghai American School, and in our last days before the students return crunch time. I'm excited to get back into teaching high school video and continuing doing some technology integration at the elementary school.

Light Housekeeping: You might notice a couple tiny changes I made on the blog over the summer, the most interesting (to me) of which is the Ripple icon. All you have to do is click on it, and a small amount of money will be donated towards building schools in East Timor. Each click helps.

8 Random Things: In the meantime, the hardest working man in show buisiness educational technology, Jeff Utecht has 'tagged' me in a blog meme to list 8 Random things about myself that you don't know. I guess its 'get to know your blogger day'. So-

1. My first experience teaching art was as an assistant counselor at Burn Brae Day Camp in Philadelphia, PA. I was also the assistant counselor for "mime". The counselor was a pupil of Marcel Marceau, and I was asked if I'd be interested in going to study with them in France. Good thing I didn't, or you'd be reading about educational miming right now.

2. Education is the "family business". My mother is a guidance counselor, my father taught for thirty years and had the first classroom in Philadelphia with a computer on every desk. He's also now the vice president of the local school board. My sister works for "New Leaders for New Schools", a great non profit that recruits people for leadership positions in urban schools. My wife Kim is an art teacher as well, so we can have great nightly conversations about art education and pedagogy over dinner. Although at the end of a long day, its more likely that we're watching an episode of Heroes.

3. Favorite restaurant: Tanoreen in Brooklyn. The best middle eastern food I've ever had, bar none. As far as food goes, there is nothing I miss more about living in New York.

4. We have two cats. Kim named them before we met, but I refer to them as "Wake Me" and "Vomit".

5. In fourth grade I tried to convince my mother that I needed glasses, and so she took me to the optometrist. I intentionally flubbed the test and somehow he busted me on it. I don't know why I did it, I guess I thought I'd look better in glasses.

6. I am a geek many times over, but I don't like Star Trek; because, I mean, there are limits.

7. Favorite movie: Life is Beautiful.

8. Favorite book: The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy.


The next part of this game is to 'tag' other bloggers, so I'm tagging some bloggers of my favorite art ed sites:

Craig of Art Junction, Sarah of Reflective Pedagogy, and
Rebbecca who has just started a blog at Art 304. I'll also tag a good friend of the revolution, Mike at Art Decade. Tag, you're it!

Back to your regularly scheduled art-ed thoughts and info tomorrow.