Friday, December 17, 2010

Witness Greatness

This week I have been lucky enough to teach the rise of the European renaissance. Now, I believe that it is impossible to teach this material without focusing heavily on the amazing history of visual art. So this week, I have been introducing teenagers to the magic of Michelangelo (mostly by surprising them that he is not ONLY a ninja turtle - though that is important as well). To this end, you would probably be surprised to know that every time I have first shown Michelangelo's La Pieta to high school kids, they respond with absolute wonder. It is amazing to watch them light up, actually. 

And it just goes to show that sometimes the most important thing we can do in life is to witness greatness, ie: just watch someone do something that he/she is really great at doing. For me, looking at La Pieta, made merely from the hands of man, is humbling and inspirational, and makes me want to be better. What does it do for you?
Happy Friday.

Tuesday, March 16, 2010

The Beautiful Game

Soccer is Everywhere...and for good reason.

European Imperialism has been a strange thing.  It is terrible and vicious, and resulted in the subjugation of millions of Africans and Asians until the last 50-60 years.  It squelched independence movements, and resulted in many cultures and languages being lost forever.  But once the imperial age subsided, with the conclusion of the world wars - a strange thing happened.  The world became smaller, and culturally more unified (for both good and bad).  Basically, globalization has taken over virtually every nation on earth - especially in urban areas (I mean, you can get a Starbucks Mochachino in Thailand, Chile, and the United Arab Emirates these days.  And Starbucks even had a location in the former imperial palace of China, in Beijing, until 2007)  And the fact that Great Britain (inventors of soccer, or "football) once owned 25% of every person on earth, it makes sense that soccer is the most popular sport on the planet.  

So, to that end, check out this pretty sweet photo gallery of kids from all around the world (including: Sudan, Vietnam, Nigeria, Cameroon, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Yemen, Brazil, Spain, China, Israel, etc..) playing "The Beautiful Game."  Click here.

Featured Post

What is Punk Rock Pedagogy?

The most valuable preparation that I ever received for teaching history in a public high school was from punk rock bands.  Growing up in Win...