Classroom Update: 9/26/12

Today in class we participated in our very first "Ed cafe" activity of the year. The overall summary of this activity was that we were each divided into groups that were assigned a different part of the 1st amendment (speech, religion, petition, assembly, and press) then in class we would be separated into 3 different groups that consisted of one person from each of the original 5 groups. We would then each take turns leading 8 minute discussions about our part of the first amendment until mr. Boyle would tell us to switch to the next part. I overall found this activity fairly enjoyable because not only did it give us enough time to closely examine each part of the 1st amendment but it was also, for the most part student run and kept everyone on their feet which I felt was a lot better then a long lecture by the teacher on the 1st amendment. The downside to this activity was the way the original groups and assigned parts of the amendment were assigned because the night before the "Ed cafe" I opened an email to learn my group and topics to research and was faced with a rather confusing email attachment (see image below) that just looked like a bunch of random names instead of assigned groups and assignments. I'll admit I probably should have checked the email prior to the night before so that I could voice any concerns that I had in class but at the time I figured everyone must have come across the same attachment and was just as confused as I was. This was not the case I found out today in class as everyone, aside from me had detailed lists of topics to talk about in the discussions they would soon lead but I had no preparation for mine. Never the less I was able to think on my feet to navigate through a discussion I was leading on a topic that I hadn't prepared for at all. I enjoyed this activity a lot but I wish that the groups and assignments could have been given out in class to avoid confusion.