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Lifestyle Work

I Found Myself on the Brink of Inappropriate

Illustration of a crab wearing a cowboy hat used to represent an inappropriate  moment turned humorous in an online middle school classroom.

I teach middle school online.

At the end of every class, we spend the last 30 seconds on scribble time.

Everyone gets to scribble on the screen.

On the one hand, it’s stupid.

On the other hand, the kids love it.

And in an online classroom, that kind of joy matters.

Scribble time is a tiny but powerful way of building community online.

Today, during scribble time, one student announced,

“I want to talk about Jeffrey.”

“Jeffrey Dahmer?” another kid piped up.

Oh no.

We are NOT discussing Jeffrey Dahmer.

I’m not going to explain  Dahmer to the kids who don’t know.

That inappropriate topic is way above my pay grade.

I was one second away from closing down an inappropriate session when the student held Jeffrey up to the camera.

Jeffrey was a 3D-printed crab.

Wearing a cowboy hat.

Whew.

Jeffrey the Crab I can handle.

A conversation about 3D printing?

Absolutely within my pay grade.

But the kid who immediately jumped to Jeffrey Dahmer?

Yeah.

I’m keeping my eye on that one.

Liz Brenner

Everyone has a story to tell.

Even you.

Especially you.

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Categories
Work

It’s An Amazing Personal Development Plan For Kids!

Personal Development Plan

A Personal Development Plan For Kids!

I’ve taught on lots of online teaching platforms.

Some of the forums were ok.

Others were terrible.

But recently I heard about Outschool.

Outschool

Outschool is an online K-12 teaching platform.

It’s used by homeschoolers, charter schools, independent studies, and even some public school programs.

They offer amazing support for the teachers, which is what really impressed me.

So I’m going to do it.

I’m going to teach on Outschool.

I’m starting with a middle-school public speaking workshop.

Every public speaker that I know wishes they had started younger.

No matter how young they started.

Join my public speaking workshop now.

It’s an amazing personal development plan for kids!

Public Speaking Workshop

Remember that speaking is not just about giving formal presentations.

It’s also about making conversations, meeting new people, talking to salespeople, answering questions, telling stories, telling jokes, and so much more.

It’s about voice, gesture, pacing, and word choice.

It’s about structure, impact, focus, and purpose.

It’s really all about self confidence.

And grace under pressure.

You’ll learn all of that in my classes.

Some Memorable Learners

I’ve taught Public Speaking to middle school students before.

Here are some of my favorite success stories:

  • A boy who didn’t speak any English was allowed to give a speech in his native language, but he was encouraged to say three things in English. He did it. A year later he was in class again, but this time he was fluent in English.
  • A girl told a poignant story about her big brother who got his first job and took her out for an ice cream. He let her pick out anything she wanted. This was the first time she had ever been afforded such a luxury. It was a heartwarming and inspirational story.
  • A budding comedian told what I thought was a serious story about terrible misbehavior, but there was a hilarious twist at the end. This girl was very shy and declined to participate in class until the final meeting. She turned out to be a very entertaining speaker!

A Personal Development Plan

Public speaking is a soft skill that’s required in every avenue of life.

You’ll need it for job interviews, networking, teamwork, and leadership.

It takes time to develop these skills.

Don’t wait.

Most adults wish they had learned this skill when they were young.

Start now.

This workshop is an amazing personal development plan.

There’s More!

I’m starting my Outschool teaching journey with a middle-school public speaking workshop.

Soon I’ll add a high-school section.

I have tons of other ideas for other classes.

Speaking, writing, ESL, and literature are just a few options.

Let me know if you have any suggestions.

Stay tuned for updates.

See you in class!

Liz Brenner

Everyone has a story to tell.

Even you.

Especially you.

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