Well, isn’t this the worst scenario for Spring Break, ever?
No travel. No company. No going out. No letting anyone into your two-metre bubble.
On the upside, this will hopefully be the only occasion you will ever be able to help save the world (and family and friends) just by lying on the couch all day. Slacktivism without guilt.
In the olden days you probably would have just read a book or 18, but now there are so many more options, like going curling online or visiting the world’s great museums. And you can do it all without having to dress up, or put on clothes at all.
Travel
If your travel plans vanished faster than your students, there are alternatives. And you can zip off to any destination you want. Oh, the places you’ll go.
There’s Roads and Kingdoms, where you can see the culture of Cuba or find all you need to know about featured cities that you’ll actually be able to visit someday. No, really.
Melting Butter brings you food, culture and fashion from around the globe. And those great restaurants will be open again.
Other day (Hour? Minute?) trips you might want to take: National Geographic.
Libris Stories, a collection of sites that provide visual stories of a wide-range of locations that aren’t your living room.
If you want to watch exotic animals on live cameras, there’s a vast assortment at Explore.
Food
Open Table, featuring some 400,000 restaurants you’ll eventually want to visit. Includes Manitoba restaurants near you.
If you’re growing weary of cooking every night, there still are some outside sources available. Peg City Grub has been trying to keep a running tally of what restaurants are open, which deliver and who now offers takeout.
Culture
Virtual tours abound for some of the world’s greatest museums. No lineups. No tickets. And you can’t touch anything if you were there, anyway.
From the Vatican to the British Museum to Musée d’Orsay in Paris The Guardian newspaper has rounded up the 10 best virtual tours of famous museums and galleries across the globe.
Closer to home you can watch a video of progress on the Winnipeg Art Gallery’s new Inuit Art Centre.
Or there’s always the zoo and Assiniboine Park. You can take in a preview of the new Diversity Garden.
The Canadian Museum For Human Rights has a number of online options, including a virtual tour.
You can go to On This Spot and view historic Manitoba photographs and, through the use of a sliding tool, see what those locations look like today.
Whatever occupies the time ahead, there is always the option of a book, or 18.
Dancing With Myself – Billy Idol
Don’t Come Close – The Ramones
Isolation – John Lennon
Don’t Stand So Close – The Police
They Dance Alone – Sting
How Can I Get Close To You – Kool & The Gang
All By Myself – Celine Dion
Closer Than Close – Bee Gees
I Drink Alone – George Thorogood
Afraid To Get Close – Iggy Pop
Home Alone (1990)
Close Encounters (1977)
Dangerously Close (1986)
Isolation (2005)
Cabin Fever (2002)
Working From Home (2018)
Far From Close (2010)
Just Listen – Podcasts for Spring Break
Podcasts are exploding in popularity, and given that most of us are now in self-imposed lock-down if not out-and-out quarantine, there’s never been a better time to dive into the endless inventory of great content offered in an isolation-friendly format!
There’s plenty more where these came from, so be sure to make time for your favourites over the next week. And here’s a few perhaps-new-to-you picks for consideration from the comfort of your couch.
Some Professional Development Picks
Schools are Closed. This is our Chance to Reimagine them
A sudden switch to reaching remotely is so difficult to manage. But what if it allows us to let go of all our previous assumptions about what we “have” to do with kids. If schools can simplify the curriculum, cancel standardized testing and put kids’ socio-emotional wellness first right now…why can’t we do this all the time? In this episode Angela Watson offers encouragement to help you let go of the pressure to do remote learning the “right” way. There is no right way because what we’re trying right now has never been done before on such a large scale.
What does it mean to flourish in your work? Featuring Dr. Sabre Cherkowski
What are the earliest signs of burnout? What are the daily practices of educators who have positive mental health and are able to handle stress well? How would you support a teacher’s happiness at school, and how important do you think happiness is to a teacher’s overall well-being?
In this episode, Dr. Sabre Cherkowski discusses what it means to “flourish” at work, and answers some common questions about K-12 workplace well-being.What are the earliest signs of burnout? What are the daily practices of educators who have positive mental health and are able to hanle stress well? How would you support a teacher’s happiness at school, and how important do you think happiness is to a teacher’s overall well-being? In this episode Dr. Cherkowski discusses what it means to “flourish” at work, and answers some common questions about K-12 workplace well-being.
Moving at the Speed of Creativity
Wesley Fryer has been producing “Moving at the Speed of Creativity” since 2005. The podcast primarily focuses on educational technology and digital literacy, but sometimes includes episodes related to history, science, or other educational topics.
ERRR #025. Daniel Willingham on When We Can Trust the Experts
The Education Research Reading Room (ERRR Podcast) brings together passionate teachers and educators with inspiring education researchers and thought leaders for engaging and informative discussion on key issues in the education space. Each episode we contact a prominent figure in the education landscape and ask them ‘If every teacher and educator in the world could spend an hour reading your work, what would you want them to read?’.
But, what about me?
Let’s not forget that this is spring break—and a very different kind of spring break at that! While you’re looking for ways to improve your practice, don’t neglect yourself. These are tough times, and if we’re going to get through this – which we will – we need to keep ourselves refueled and refreshed. Check out this offering from Greater Good Magazine:
Finding Beauty in the Everyday
The Science of Happiness
A tree next to a bus stop, a flower poking through the sidewalk. Our guest, a veteran of the Iraq War, discovers how awe and wonder can be found anywhere—if you just pay attention.
Why. Can’t. I. Sleep??!!
Who could blame you if restful slumber didn’t come easily after days in the crucible of managing a whole new virtual classroom. And did you reorder your prescription? Did someone feed the cat? Here are two suggestions for tuning out and turning off, so you can rest up and refuel on spring break.
The team over at Get Sleepy are comprised of professional writers, voice over artists, and sound designers. Together they help put the show together every week and offer free bedtime podcasts that will have you nodding off before you’ve even had the chance to think about counting sheep.
This is yet another offering from the godfather of the sleepy podcast, Drew Ackerman. Here Ackerman uses his same boring storytelling method, but in an even better way. This time, he’s using it for the purpose of Game Of Thrones recaps. The aptly named Game of Drones sees Ackerman masterfully manage to make perhaps the most exciting and enthralling show EVER into the most boring yet soothing drivel you have ever heard. This guy is a genius, I swear.