1. REFAC - i.e. REbound FACt:
~ This is the good old "vomit knowledge". Just
memorize it. I tell you, you tell me. It's useful, it serves a purpose.
It's not much fun, but it's a part of life. (This makes them frown.) For
example: "State Newton's Law of Universal Gravitation and write out it's
formula."
2. ANASOL - i.e. ANAlyze and SOLve:
~ Harder. More interesting. Worth more
points. More like real life. People will $ pay $ you to do this when you
graduate. (This makes them smile.) Most good test questions are like this.
A bunch of facts are presented. You have to organize the details, look for
the key points, apply the correct formula(s) and come up with a correctly
formatted and sensible answer.
3. CONTHINLOBECDIFY! - i.e. CONcentrate, THINk LOgically, BE Creative, DIscover For Yourself!
~ This is the really fun one! - I love this word. *This* is what education is all about! (Here I begin to get really excited.)
Nothing! is more exciting than learning Have you ever had the
situation happen when you're really thinking hard, figuring something out, and
all of a sudden, the whole picture comes into focus and you SEE it!? (Some of
them look at you, and know what you're talking about. You can see it in their
eyes.) This is what happened to Archimedes when he discovered the principle
of buoyancy and displacement as he got into the tub and watched it overflow.
He went running through the streets naked yelling "EUREKA" he was so excited.
(Mention someone running through the streets naked, and you always get their
attention.)
Learn to "conthinlobecdify" and people will pay you big $$!
Concentration is hard work. You need to focus, and not be distracted. Focus
for a long time. Think logically and move from questions to answers. Ask
yourself simple, step by step questions, and you can lead yourself to the next
stage answer. (The Socratic method.) Build the little answers and group them
to become the big answer. Be creative. Take what you know in one area, and
apply it in another. THIS is real life. You run into problems that have
never existed before. Of course no one "taught you this". You are
discovering for yourself, what no one has ever known before. This is the
truely wonderful part of learning. This is what makes education exciting. If
you don't find any of your school work exciting, then give thinking a try.
Think harder and longer than you ever have before. You'll love it!"
When I get excited, my students get exicted. Yours will too. Think of it as
a pep talk, to your "team". Sometimes after giving a test, a student will meet me in
the hall and say, "that last question was a Conthinlobecdify, right?"
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