Some Ways to Learn About our World

Books to Read

Baby-Preschool

Eentsy, Weentsy Spider : Fingerplays and Action Rhymes
by Joanna Cole, illustrated by Alan Tiegreen, contributed by Stephanie Calmenson
Tons of fingerplays and animal action rhymes for use with small children.

One Light, One Sun
by Raffi
Songs to read for the very young child, it emphasizes how we all share our world.

Swimmy
by Leo Lionni
About how when animals (and people) work together, big things can be accomplished.

AGES 4-8

Agatha's Feather Bed : Not Just Another Wild Goose Story
by Carmen Agra Deedy, illustrated by Laura L. Seeley
Unlimited material for discussion captured in an enchanting story about "sources of things" -- I cannot say enough great things about this book!

Be Nice to Spiders
by Margaret Bloom Graham, Margaret Bloy Graham
Great book to spur discussion about how even the smallest creatures are important.

Children of the Earth: Remember
by Schim Schimmel
Out of love and concern for their planet, the animals and people of Mother Earth work together to protect the natural world.

Dear Children of the Earth: A Letter from Home
by Schim Schimmel
Mother Earth writes a letter telling people about herself and asking them to take care of her for themselves and for all living creatures. Beautiful book for all ages

The Giving Tree
by Shel Silverstein
"Once there was a tree ... and she loved a little boy." "Every day the boy would come to the tree to eat her apples, swing from her branches, or slide down her trunk ... and the tree was happy. But as the boy grew older he began to want more from the tree, and the tree gave and gave and gave."

The Great Kapok Tree: A Tale of the Amazon Rain Forest
by Lynne Cherry
Beautifully illustrated book about conserving the rainforest and the animal habitats in it.

The Hunt for Spring
by Susan O'Halloran, illustrated by Dick Smolinski
Gorgeous book about a little girl who uses a polar bear to "bring Spring to the world."

The Lorax
by Dr. Seuss, Theodor Seuss Geisel
Wonderful classic that teaches about our responsibility to our environment and what can happen if people don't stand up for what is right.

We're Going on a Bear Hunt
by Michael Rosen, illustrated by Helen Oxenbury
Leads children on a delightful adventure through all sorts of natural terrain.

Soundprints books
Go to their web site and click 'Teaching Tools' for great FREE teaching guides for these series of books:
Smithsonian Oceanic Collection - Pre-school to Grade 2
Smithsonian's Backyard - Pre-school to Grade 2
Smithsonian Wild Heritage Collection - Kindergarten to Grade 3
The Nature Conservancy - Grade 1 to Grade 4
Smithsonian Odyssey - Grade 2 to Grade 5

AGES 9-12

Keepers of the Earth
Native American Stories and Environmental Activities for Children
by Michael J. Caduto, Joseph Bruchac, illustrated by John Kahionhes Fadden & Carol Wood
This is a book about living, learning and caring. It features a collection of North American Indian stories and related hands-on activities designed to inspire children - ages five through twelve - and help them to feel a part of their surroundings.

Global Warming Lesson Plans (Grade 7-12)
Teach kids how to do research and answer the global warming question themselves. (Go to the web site)

Shows to watch

PBS -- Kratt's Creatures

You can find thousands of books to learn about our world at your school and public libraries!!

سید حسین مجیدی

 

Improve Your Public Speaking Skills

Improve Your Public Speaking Skills
.	In consulting, public speaking is a required competence that will make the difference between success and failure.
December 15, 2003

 

What do people fear most? Is it illness, death, or financial ruin? According to a survey of 3,000 Americans, it's none of those things: Their number-one fear is public speaking. "Approximately 70% of the population has moderate or high anxiety about public speaking, and nearly 20% are literally 'scared speechless'," says Carol Zak-Dance, a University of Denver human communications professor. In addition, 50% of Americans consider themselves chronically shy, according to the Shyness Research Institute at Indiana University. To compound the problem, it's an axiom that many technically proficient individuals are not strong in communication skills. In the consulting business, where presenting solutions, persuading clients, motivating project teams, and influencing stakeholders are critical elements of success, public speaking is not optional; it is a required competence that will make the difference between success and failure. So how do we bridge this gap? What are the tips, tricks, and practices that consultants and technical experts can use to overcome fear and shyness and make presentation proficiency a strength rather than a limitation? First, let me make a personal confession. I'm a professional presenter today, making speeches, training project teams, and facilitating business meetings for clients. Yet I began as a nervous, shy, and uncomfortable presenter. I clearly remember early days in my career when I would choke up in front of audiences, go silent, or ramble unconnectedly, and walk off the podium knowing I had blown an opportunity to influence a client or motivate a team. I determined to master the skill of presenting, and did so through research, practice, and experience. I was able to do it, and so can you.

 

I started by reading stacks of books on presenting. While I found many of value, one that I recommend to all my clients is "Wooing and Winning Business " by Spring Asher and Wicke Chambers. Their company, Chambers& Asher Speechworks , helps business professionals develop presentation skills by using a methodology known as the "Speechworks Formula." I'll use some of their ideas as the basis for this discussion.

There's an old cliche in the presentation business: "tell 'em what you'll tell 'em, tell 'em, and then tell 'em what you told 'em." This basic guidance advises presenters to first prepare the audience by giving them an overview of what's to come, then to present the content, and then to summarize that content so audience members retain the key points. While all presentation coaches agree this is good basic advice, the Speechworks Formula revises it slightly by adding an important element: the self-interest of the audience.

By highlighting the audience's self-interest, we remind ourselves to frame our material with empathy, always keeping in mind the needs and viewpoints of our listeners.

Rather than simply preparing the audience for the material to come, Speechworks recommends that presenters emphasize "whats in it for them." Why should the audience care about your presentation? And what's the payoff for them if they take your advice or believe your pitch? This advice reminds us that every presentation is delivered for a reason. We either want to persuade the audience to take some action, to understand a concept, or to change their attitude. By highlighting the audience's self-interest, we remind ourselves to frame our material with empathy, always keeping in mind the needs and viewpoints of our listeners.

The Speechworks Formula leads a presenter through the preparation of a presentation by following a clear set of steps, as follows:

• What is your goal? Presenters need to think about the objective of the presentation. Are you trying to sell a product, teach a skill, persuade and influence? Each goal needs to be approached differently.
• Who are you talking to? Understanding the audience is a critical element of presentation planning, especially for technicians. An audience of techies may be comfortable with jargon and acronyms that would confound a business audience.
• What is the benefit to the listener? Listeners need to be persuaded to pay attention and persuaded to act. The best route to persuasion is the call to the audience's self-interest.
• What's the message objective? This is expressed by the template "By accepting my premise, you will gain these benefits." For example, "By consolidating your servers, you will save money and get more reliable services."
• Develop three main points. Presentations are best at conveying simple, concise messages. The best presenters condense their message into a few main points and present them clearly to the audience.
• Prepare your evidence. It's not enough to merely assert your content—you need to prove it. Develop your 'proof points," the elements of evidence you will present to support your three main points.
• Recap. Summarize what you told the audience and distill the presentation to a convincing conclusion.
• Call to action. Remind the audience what you're asking them to do, and use your best persuasive line or story to convince them.

I chatted with Joey Asher, the current president of Speechworks, about the special challenges that face technical presenters. Asher is the author of "Even a Geek Can Speak ," which presents the Speechworks presentation philosophy especially for technicians and engineers. According to Asher, "Technical presenters start with a problem—they've been so busy building the drill that they've forgotten about the hole! They become so focused on the technical aspects of the solution that they lose sight of the audience and what it is interested in."

Asher reminds technical presenters that "every presentation is composed of two key elements, content and style. In terms of content, stand-up presentation is not well-suited for conveying large amounts of data. Technicians should focus on a few main points. Many technical presenters are so focused on their area of technical expertise that they may believe that style is unimportant as long as the content is solid. Presentation is a forum for conveying stylistic elements such as mastery, confidence, and trustworthiness just as much as it's a medium for conveying content."

By following the presentation format described in the Speechworks Formula, and remembering Joey Asher's advice, technicians can be on their way to mastering the critical skill of presentation.

 سید حسین مجیدی

TUNE UP YOUR SPEAKING SKILLS

TUNE UP YOUR SPEAKING SKILLS:

Tips for Trainers, Group Facilitators and Career Counsellors

 

 

 

 

If your job title is Life Skills Coach, Group Facilitator, Trainer, Career Counsellor or Career Coach, chances are you constantly use communication skills in front of an audience.  Tune up your public speaking skills by borrowing some simple tips from the actor and professional voice-over artist.  

 

At acting schools across the country, one of the most important classes is voice and vocal training.  By perfecting the art of speaking for a living, an actor is able to build a career with a voice that can be interesting and uplifting.  Workshop facilitators and trainers can accomplish the same thing by incorporating some of the following techniques:                                                                                                 

(1) Physical:  Physicality is important to speakers.  You need to be loose and in touch with your own physicality.  Use standard warm-up exercises to get yourself attuned into your physical self before speaking before an audience.  Exercises can include stretching, breathing and standard relaxation techniques.

 

(2) Vocal:  A speaker’s voice is their instrument, and like an instrument it must be warmed up and trained.  Use simple vocal exercises to help yourself get started with expanding your vocal capacity.  These activities can include warm-ups and tongue twisters.

-      Warm-ups incorporate methods such as sustaining your breath on a hum.  Play with the pitch, up and down the musical scale, feeling vibrations resonate through your body.  As you get more adapt at feeling the resonation, try and move it deliberately, through your chest, your jaw, your nose, your sinus cavities, your forehead, the top of your head, then back down again.

-      Tongue Twisters:

“Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers

A peck of pickled peppers Peter Piper picked.”

 

“Sister Suzy sewing shirts for soldiers

Such skill at sewing shirts Sister Suzy shows.”

 

(3) Acting:  By using standard acting techniques, a speaker can increase their skills at memory, movement, timing, and humour.  By learning what actors call “blocking”, you can improve how you stand on stage or in front of an audience.  By achieving dramatic tension, you can learn how to sustain the audience’s interest in your presentation, so it never feels like time is dragging.

 

(4) Stage Fright: even the most talented actors and speakers might still experience stage fright.  To get past it, remember:

(a) Stage fright always feels much worse than it looks.

(b)The audience doesn’t want you to fail; they are out there supporting your success.

(c) Nervousness and excitement, physically, are very similar.  Focus on being excited.

(d)Breathe deeply.

(e) Forget about yourself, and focus on what you have to do, and the information you are providing to your participants.

(f)  Be brave, be confident, and be honest.

 

Just like actors, trainers, speakers and group facilitators, should be constantly studying their craft.  Keep a checklist of public speaking tips nearby.  Before a presentation or workshop remember to answer the questions:

- How are you dressed?

- How is your posture?

- How are your gestures?

- How is your eye contact?

- How is your voice?

- How is your language?

- And above all: how is your smile today?

 

 

·        To learn more about public speaking tips visit www.toastmasters.org

 

·        To discover local vocal training studios visit TAAS (Toronto Association of Acting Studios) at www.torontoactingstudios.com

 

·        Tune up your speaking skills by borrowing what actors use every day.  Before long, you’ll get an encore!

 سید حسن مجیدی