Notes from History Class -- September 14

We didn't cover much history today, just some basic "learning theory" material that will help make the rest of the class make sense.

Here's the link to the Presidents song:




The first quiz of the year will be the lyrics to this song. I'll provide everything but the names. You fill in the blanks. You have until Tuesday, October 19 to complete this quiz for full credit.

If you like the learning theory material, read Prisoner of Trebekistan by Bob Harris. Some of the scenes may not be suitable for little brothers and sisters, but that's what makes them so memorable, right?

For parents checking in, here's a rundown of what we did today:

The Trebekistan Method
Becoming Smarter Than You Ever Thought Possible In Eight Easy Steps

Step One:
Pay Attention to the Obvious.

If something comes up over and over again, it's probably important.

Step Two:
Let your feelings help you.

Learning is, at its core, an emotional process. We are emotional beings. Use that fact to your advantage.

Step Three:
Create a setting for remembering.

Re-creating the environment in which you will eventually have to remember will help you recall the information when you need to.

Step Four:
Better to do nothing than to do something dumb.

Consider the circumstance in which you've been asked to remember something. Know the price of being wrong.

Step Five:
Remember how little you really know.

Much of memory hinges on confidence. It's not enough just to know, but to know you know.

Step Six:
Everything connects to everything else.

Learning how the puzzle is framed helps you fill in the details.

Step Seven:
You can only see what you think you'll see.

No matter how hard we try, we can only see the world from our own point of view.

Step Eight:
Answer one question at a time.

Take learning and remembering one moment at a time. You can only do what's right in front of you, right now. The more you worry about what you can't control, the less control you'll have over what you can.

BONUS FOR WEBSITE VIEWERS: Embrace your inner weirdo.

One of my mentors growing up was a man we called Mr. Nick. He was the guy at church who always had candy in his pocket for the kids. One day I was wondering about being a preacher because I wasn't one of the popular kids. I made the comment that if the church was going to grow it needed somebody less weird representing it in the world of normal people.

I'll never forget what he told me. He said, "Ben, weird can be good." He went on to tell me that he saw a lot of his son in me, and instead of hiding my weirdness I should embrace it.

Turns out Mr. Nick knew a thing or two about cultivating weirdos into successful adults. Mr. Nick's only child was named Al.

You guessed it. Yankovic.

So let your freak flag fly, people. By the end of this class, we'll have enough freakiness for a parade.