Route 6×6 Challenge

The Route 6×6 Challenge invites Chadron State College instructors to be reflective practitioners in the field of education and to share their reflections with colleagues. This is a place to discover our shared heritage of teaching & learning. Create 6 pieces of writing with at least 16 sentences for 6 months during the academic year (September, October, November, February, March, and April). Get your kicks on the Route 6×6 Challenge and sign up to contribute your thoughts about pedagogy, tools, successes, challenges, or hopes and dreams.

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Two-Way Street March 25, 2019 by Rich Kenney- The helping field, I often tell my social work students, is a two-way street. While our goal is to help individuals, families, and groups, it is important to remember that… Read More

Students on the road….. March 12, 2019 by Bruce Hoem- We are supposed to have a bad March snow storm tomorrow. The campus may be closed, but it may remain open. Sometimes the bad weather is out and away from… Read More

Here We Go Again February 27, 2019 by Rich Kenney- The other day, in class, we were discussing the topic of “self-talk.” When I asked for examples, one student replied, “It’s telling yourself you can’t do things, like passing my… Read More

I Love Winter January 31, 2019 by Markus Jones- Something happened to me recently. A change crossed the seasons of my mind. It was cold and windy, conditions I happen to like, and I was hiking along a desolate… Read More

Time Travel January 31, 2019 by Bruce Hoem- The hardest thing I do in the classroom is time travel, or, actually, remembering to do the time travel thing. In almost every class, it seems I am put upon… Read More

Is Lecturing So Wrong? January 28, 2019 by Nathaniel Gallegos- Does anyone else feel guilty about lecturing? I know guilt very well (I’m Catholic after all) and I’ve felt shamed in my teaching and learning literature by others using contemporary… Read More

Ice Fishing on Cape Cod January 24, 2019 by Rich Kenney- With the colder weather coming, I think of ice fishing. For years, I lived in Massachusetts and used to go ice fishing on Cape Cod. There were so many lakes… Read More

Why Read Literature? January 19, 2019 by Mary Clai Jones- A new semester begins with new-ish classes to teach, and I find myself wondering (again) how to get non-English majors interested in reading literature. This task feels daunting in our… Read More

On Essential Studies… December 20, 2018 by Nathaniel Gallegos- I have the privilege to participate on Chadron State’s Essential Studies Committee, which is our flavor of the accreditor mandated general studies program[1]. I confess to thinking this part of… Read More

Hey, I’m doing my best over here! December 20, 2018 by Bruce Hoem- A freshman student walks into one of my classes in the fall. He smiles. I smile. He is there to learn, to make it through the semester with a “B”… Read More

Take a Hike December 10, 2018 by Rich Kenney- Every so often, students will visit with me to tell me they are struggling with a course or courses. “Everything’s getting me down,” they’ll say. “I just don’t know what… Read More

To Give Pause October 30, 2018 by Mary Clai Jones- Recently I’ve been thinking about the role of pauses in my classroom and in my own teaching practice. My ENG 236A – British Literature Survey from Beowulf to Jonathan Swift… Read More

An Exhortation for Empathy October 26, 2018 by Nathaniel Gallegos- Many professors abhor attendance policies[1]. There are many sound arguments against them ranging from an economic libertarianism, conscription model failures, anti-infantilism, and classroom control curbing disruptions. But I don’t care… Read More

Words Are Like Stars October 23, 2018 by Rich Kenney- “Words are like stars,” my sixth-grade teacher, Miss Madden, would tell us, “and you should always reach for them.” She believed that words led to ideas that often led to Read More

Taking it to the streets….. October 23, 2018 by Bruce Hoem- Sort of, anyway. At least, taking it off the campus. I’m talking about my Social Work 332 class—Elderly and Differently-Abled. Up until four years ago, Read More

The Pink Cowboy Hat October 8, 2018 by Markus Jones- I wonder where we as a society steer people wrong a lot—where we as teachers could do more to serve our students. What are the unintended consequences of good intentions?… Read More

Meeting Students Where They Are October 1, 2018 by Mary Clai Jones- As teachers, we hear this saying a lot. It comes from the mouths of administrators, teacher-scholars, colleagues, and accrediting bodies. Yet, I get the sneaking suspicion it means something different… Read More

You Could Leave – Or… September 24, 2018 by Rich Kenney- In teaching my introductory courses to social work, I devote time to the topic of establishing rapport with clients. This is the engagement phase of the case management process. It… Read More

Politics in the classroom……? September 21, 2018 by Bruce Hoem- I consider myself an independently liberal-ish conservative-ish sort of guy. That’s a good thing to be, I think. It means if you are a politician, speak and I will listen. … Read More

Becoming People-We-Travel-With: The Unsung Outcome of Study Abroad September 20, 2018 by Nathaniel Gallegos- n the hierarchy of acquaintances, there is family, friends, and enemies. Thinner exceptions ladder amidst all three dockings for our tacit e-friends, the creepers that we lurk on so we… Read More

Writing is the Only Thing May 2, 2018 by Markus Jones- Writing is the only thing that, when I do it, I don't feel I should be doing something else -- Gloria Steinem... I love that quote. I never put my… Read More

Reflection on Reflections… April 30, 2018 by Nathaniel Gallegos- In my first couple of years spent at CSC, I remember that I had to meet with my dean concerning a “quality initiative” during my annual review. I have since… Read More

Passion and a Pair of Dusty Shoes April 27, 2018 by Rich Kenney- Breathing life into concepts is the hallmark of effective teaching. With nearly thirty years of direct practice in the field of social work, I work hard in the classroom to… Read More

Do I Really Have to Tell You that Cheating is Wrong? April 27, 2018 by Johnica Morrow- Early in this spring semester, I had an incident that prompted me to write this piece. I had started it, but got a bit distracted and put it away to… Read More

The power to be respectful… April 27, 2018 by Bruce Hoem- I remember graduate school only too well. This was before computers, so it meant long nights in the library, and long nights sitting up writing papers, having teachers who would… Read More

Where you are is where you are April 4, 2018 by Markus Jones- The place where one lives permanently especially as a member of a family or household is the definition of home according to uncle google. I think home has been found. Read More

I Am Not a Robot April 4, 2018 by Mary Clai Jones- What’s the deal with time? More specifically, even when I devote significant amounts of time to grading, commenting, conferencing, and prepping, I feel behind. It is important to remember that… Read More

On Foxes and Hedgehogs…. March 26, 2018 by Nathaniel Gallegos- Amid the meanderings of my early twenties, I attended a seminary discerning the Catholic religious life contemporaneous with college. The leftovers in philosophy, theology, hermeneutics, basic Latin, and Koine Greek… Read More

Helping Quiet Students Find Their Voices March 22, 2018 by Rich Kenney- “I’m afraid I’ll be the only one to think my thoughts, that no one else will see it the way I do. I don’t want to be wrong.” That was… Read More

At the Front of the Room March 22, 2018 by Bruce Hoem- Done well, teaching is challenging. I think there is always the question: Do I teach what I know the students need to learn, or do I teach what the students… Read More

Three Questions March 21, 2018 by Johnica Morrow- I have been dealing with many more student difficulties this semester than I had to deal with last semester. There’s been more whining, more entitlement, more blaming me for their… Read More

Maintaining an Engaging Routine February 28, 2018 by Brooks Hafey- Among the challenges of teaching applied music lessons to students over the course of their undergraduate studies is dealing with monotony, or at least the appearance of monotony. Musicians have… Read More

Another week. Another shooting. February 26, 2018 by Markus Jones- It wasn’t always like this, I tell my students. They know nothing else. Born after 9/11 and during a stretch of unbroken war, my students are inured to school shootings.… Read More

What Keeps Me up at Night February 26, 2018 by Mary Clai Jones- Two or three weeks ago I couldn’t sleep because of one bad student evaluation. (I know, I know! Why do I fixate on the one negative comment out of 75… Read More

Learning Happens February 23, 2018 by Rich Kenney- A few months ago, I had a conversation with a former student who had taken my FYI course, Matters of Opinion. She said, “I finally learned those terms you taught… Read More

The OER Confessions February 22, 2018 by Nathaniel Gallegos- I started at CSC in 2013 and was immediately hit with an administrative push for OER. To a then 32-year old, academy neophyte, I thought OER this was a great… Read More

What Did I Know? February 21, 2018 by Johnica Morrow- Empathy is a major part of my personality. I often find myself trying to put myself in another’s shoes, and I work hard to try to understand why people do… Read More

Waiting for the Answer February 21, 2018 by Bruce Hoem- The other day I gave a SAKAI assignment to my students that seemed simple enough: “Create a questionnaire that you could administer to a group of your choosing and bring… Read More

There are two ways to do things December 7, 2017 by Markus Jones- There are two ways to do things, my father always said, the right way and the wrong way. He would then mutter, but there’s only one way to do something… Read More

And December 5, 2017 by Mary Clai Jones- And then I forgot to put the laundry in the dryer, and I still need to grade those Elements of Literature presentations before I grade my Rhetoric and Writing essays,… Read More

Stick to the Basics November 30, 2017 by Nathaniel Gallegos- Keeping abreast of the morphing demographics of generational characteristics seems an essential sin for marketers, poli-sci profilers, and educators. I say sin because no one really likes to suffer the… Read More

When the bag of tricks won’t work…. November 30, 2017 by Bruce Hoem- It was a bright sun, cool, but the sun made it feel warmer. The students looked towards me, but they looked through me. I was blurred at the front of… Read More

Drinking from the Fire Hose November 29, 2017 by Johnica Morrow- There’s this phrase that you seem to hear popping up an awful lot during your first year at CSC (and probably many other places as well). You probably feel like… Read More

Teacher Presence November 29, 2017 by Rich Kenney- Developing teacher presence is something I continually work on. Not the kind, mind you, I remember in high school where the nuns expected us to jump out of our chairs… Read More

The Long Path: First Steps Together October 31, 2017 by Brooks Hafey- The first meeting with an applied lessons student is always exciting. This is the first opportunity to interact with a person that I will get to know well over the… Read More

Pronouns and Process October 31, 2017 by Markus Jones- The modular teaching I try and facilitate asks students for constant reflection and the dreaded criticism that accompanies such reflection. If I am honest it asks reflection of me as… Read More

Superpowers…. October 30, 2017 by Nathaniel Gallegos- I have secret powers, yes, I dare say super powers. Nothing as feckless as being bulletproof, outrunning speeding trains, or bending steel; these powers are of the mind. First, I… Read More

Add Counselor to the List October 30, 2017 by Mary Clai Jones- Sometimes in the chaos of grading papers, going to meetings, planning for class, and doing committee work, it can be difficult to stop and check-in with our students. My mentor… Read More

The Lab Coats of Critical Thinking October 26, 2017 by Rich Kenney- Imagine an opinion belly-side-up on a dissecting tray next to forceps and teasing needles. Now, imagine a scalpel blade. What happens next? Truth is, no one knows until the slicing… Read More

Islands of Understanding October 25, 2017 by Johnica Morrow- For all the years of training and preparations that we professors go through to get to where we are, it's kind of crazy to think that we can, and often… Read More

Yikes! There’s nobody at the helm…..! October 25, 2017 by Bruce Hoem- I have learned as a teacher that students enter the classroom with an expectation that I will teach them something that they need to know as they journey towards a… Read More

Glitter and the Book of Revelations September 29, 2017 by Mary Clai Jones- I despise being micromanaged or having to micromanage others. I try not to give ultimatums, which means I try to provide enough choice to myself and people around me, so… Read More

The Long Path: Introduction September 29, 2017 by Brooks Hafey- As a teacher of applied music, I am fortunate to interact with students weekly in one-on-one sessions. This type of interaction is invaluable in getting to know individual students, their… Read More

The Feedback Loop September 27, 2017 by Markus Jones- Grading. Grading. Grading. The greatest frustration I have with teaching isn’t time management, or student interaction, or meetings, meetings, meetings. My greatest frustration is grading. I value giving feedback to… Read More

A Few of My Friends September 26, 2017 by Rich Kenney- With the infamous lyrics, “I get by with a little help from my friends” (Lennon, & McCartney, 1967), I begin my first piece for the Route 6 X 6 Challenge.… Read More

Student examining hair from mummies for lice.

Tales from the Crypt: Teaching Mummy Studies in Sicily September 25, 2017 by Johnica Morrow- It’s another hot, humid day in the convent. A refreshing breeze whips its way into the convent, disappearing almost as rapidly as it had appeared. The day is young as… Read More

Writing, Teaching, and Abandonment September 25, 2017 by David Kendrick- Writing, they say, is never finished, just abandoned. The best of writers will say this is true. The draft. The revision. The next revision. The final resignation, “That’s good enough.”… Read More

On Situational Ethics September 22, 2017 by Nathaniel Gallegos- I discovered cheating in my professional ethics course during my first semester of teaching. The irony shouldn’t be lost. But it was so much more than just cheating; this was… Read More

A thief by day….. September 22, 2017 by Bruce Hoem- When I meet any social work class, I am always a little apprehensive. It does not matter if it is the first class or a class toward the end of… Read More

Get Your Kicks on the Route 6×6 Challenge August 2, 2017 by Elizabeth Ledbetter- Get ready for a road trip to discover our shared heritage of teaching & learning at Chadron State College. The Teaching & Learning Center invites you to share your teaching… Read More