Valentine's Day

Are we "aging" slower now than we did in the past? What's the reason that 40 year olds in the 1990s (Think Steve Martin and Diane Keaton in Father of the Bride) looked older than we do now?I think some of it has to do with the way technology and streaming of media has made the past and present come together.What do you think?

I've had several videos on my social media this year that start out making you think they are describing Donald Trump (womanizer, adulterer, etc) that then turn at the end to describe King David of ancient Israel. My wife says she's seen NONE of these, so this illustrates the echo chamber I mentioned earlier this season, but the overwhelming point of the video is to remind you that God uses imperfect people to accomplish his purposes, I think. But is it a good analogy? Let's look further with a critical eye at the potential similarities between Trump and Kind David.

My thoughts on Valentine's Day have changed a lot over the years - for this bonus episode, here's a story of a time I really put my foot in my mouth about Valentine's Day

When you think of how we tell stories in our culture, or builds community, what is more important - the characteristics and experiences we have in common, or those that make us unique and different?Adam Conover from "Adam Ruins Everything" gave what I think is a great argumentagainst intersectionality in a recent YouTube video about the way we've shifted our cultural vernacular around time. (WHAT HAPPENED TO DECADES? -https://youtu.be/qo_EHY5jEX4?si=I4aMlR6FRKmX7kqn)TIMESTAMPS:00:00 - The Importance of Commonality vs Uniqueness6:07 - Intersectionality: Benefits and Drawbacks

There's a lot to think about innovative problem solving this week as Deepseek AI shakes up the market and Elon Musk and DOGE get to work on "inefficiency" in the federal government. Is this JUST what American needs, or is this going to be a disaster? And what can we learn about innovative problem solving from all of this? Timestamps: 00:43 - Innovative Problem Solving and Disruption 7:01 - DOGE and government efficiency 12:13 - Lessons from Deepseek

What's the *right* amount of time on social media? How do we avoid echo chambers as we build community online? How and why is it important to make sure we have differing perspectives as we navigate social media and consume news and entertainment? There's something here to make everyone mad, so I'd love to hear what you think!

While trying out a new Google AI tool today, Notebook LM, I put in my lesson plans for my GRC Podcasting class and besides summarizing my lessons into a clear unit summary, it also offered me an AI conversation discussing my notes - what a tool! Listening to other "people" discuss my lesson plans was really edifying and "their" feedback reinforced my conviction that this is going to be a great class! (Go subscribe now to hear my students' work! - https://open.spotify.com/show/5HaMDWgvVSL11e8IgEEnKh One professional development strategy deployed often in schools is a "lesson study," where a teacher presents an upcoming lesson with learning objectives, activities, assessment, etc., and then sits in the room as their colleagues discuss it and give feedback. Listening to this conversation felt exactly like that! What would you do with the ability to turn any text into an AI conversational recording? Is my hobby as a podcaster dead? Let me know what you think! IG: ⁠@mrcbakerislearning⁠ | ⁠@drivetimediary⁠ X: ⁠@chuckcbaker⁠

Its a commonly held assumption that public school teachers and administrators typically lean left politically, but why? Does the culture of "indoctrination" and professional development breed liberalism, or are left-leaning individuals simply more likely to go into education? What do you think of this nature vs. nurture scenario? Let me know what you think! IG: ⁠@mrcbakerislearning⁠ | ⁠@drivetimediary⁠ X: ⁠@chuckbaker⁠

I'm teaching a podcasting class the next 6 weeks on Saturday's with The Lou's very own Gifted Resource Council. Subscribe now so you don't miss any of my students' work - they're gonna be great! https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/theloucast Let me know what you think! IG: @mrcbakerislearning X: @chuckcbaker

I'm back in middle school this year! teaching middle school, particularly gifted classes is special to me because my gifted class in 7th and 8th grade was a safe haven for me from the jungle of the rest of my schedule. We didn't always do things I liked, but it was always a space I knew I could fit in better - and everyone needs that! What about you? How was middle school? Let me know what you think! IG: @mrcbakerislearning X: @chuckcbaker