In my line of work (whatever that is), I am often put in the position of defending the medium of television. There is a large section of the population who is convinced that television is inferior to film and all types of print media. These people love to use a host of specious arguments to…. read more
Spinoffs of Children’s TV Shows I’d Like to See
When one of our favorite TV shows goes off the air, it can be devastating. However, many times, the cancellation is the birth of a spinoff. Sometimes it can be a great thing (Frasier) and sometimes not so much (After M*A*S*H). Here are some spinoff ideas that I would love to see. Ookla in the…. read more
What Part of Awesome Don’t You Understand?
When my first child was born, I like most parents, became reacquainted with television for children. I was pleasantly surprised to find out that Sesame Street had a new character that shared a name with my oldest and at the same time, disappointed at not being able to find anything as entertaining as Electric Company….. read more
Is Our Childhood Coming Back to Haunt Us?
The other night, I was at the movies with my girlfriend and she stopped to peruse a poster for the new Smurfs movie. She expressed concern that the Smurfs were drawn to look fuzzy, as if they were covered by short blue fur. I said to her, “That’s what concerns you? Not the fact that…. read more
Ode to the TV Mom
The television matriarch has certainly come a long way. Gone are the days when June Cleaver and Donna Stone stayed home all day and kept the house immaculate while wearing spotless dresses and glamorous pearls. These days, TV moms bring home the bacon, fry it up in a pan, make some awesome BLT’s, and look…. read more
Anakin is not the Hero of Star Wars!
On any list of the top movie villans of all time, Darth Vader routinely places among the top 5. For example, Vader is #3 in AFI’s top 50 villians, #1 in the Sunday Times’ top 50, and #2 at listverse.com. According to many sources, Darth Vader was conceived by George Lucas “as the epitomy of…. read more
The SATs Are NOT For The Stupid
There has recently been some controversy about a question appearing on the Scholastic Aptitude Test this year. It’s an essay question that asks the test taker this question about reality shows, “Do people benefit from forms of entertainment that show so-called reality, or are such forms of entertainment harmful?” Of course, the question goes into…. read more
Man Buying Apples Problem
An old bit from Sesame Street. As multimedia becomes more prevalent in classrooms, this is a great video to share with classes of all grade levels. Besides the entertainment value, you can use this as a springboard for additional exercises: Can students write an expression to model all the man is saying? If the price…. read more
The 5 Best Educators on Television
Tami Taylor (Friday Night Lights) Putting aside the fact that Connie Britton is one of the most beautiful women on television, her portrayal of a guidance counselor and principal on FNL is the most honest and sensitive portrayal I have ever seen. Whether she is protecting her students from locals who only care about football…. read more
Everything I Needed to Know About Being a Father, I Learned From James T. Kirk
Ever since I was allowed to make my own decisions, I have tried to emulate Jim Kirk. Whenever I have a tough choice to make I ask myself WWJTKD? When I became a father, I continued that practice and it’s helped out immeasurably. You can’t make everybody happy During his career, Captain Kirk has been…. read more
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