On the 8th February 1946, Orwell told his readers that he owned nearly 900 books. After his death in 1950, his library was distributed between his literary executors – Richard Rees and Sonia Brownell – and his youngest sister, Avril Dunn. Many were later donated to the Orwell Archive in London. Researchers endeavoured to collate […]
‘Human power depends on mass cooperation, mass cooperation depends on manufacturing mass identities – and all mass identities are based on fictional stories, not on scientific facts or even on economic necessities.’ ‘When you give up all the fictional stories, you can observe reality with far greater clarity than before, and if you really know […]
“Along with poetry, travel writing is one of the oldest literary forms in the world.” […]
In all those very different contexts, one characteristic emerged as the best predictor of success. And it wasn’t social intelligence, it wasn’t good looks, physical health, it wasn’t IQ. It was grit. Grit is passion and perseverance for very long-term goals. Grit is having stamina. Grit is sticking with your future day in day out, […]
“Tokyo offers a lot of spectacle and confusion. This is just a facade. Behind the neon glare lies a steady rhythmic and miraculous everyday world that can be yours if you want it to be.” Tokyo Totem We walked Tokyo for a week in an attempt to make it “ours”. The weather was good, around […]
We only had three weeks of our month in Japan planned with accommodation booked. This gave us the freedom to use our JR Passes flexibly in where we went. The idea was to chat with Japanese people about where we might like to explore and see what emerged that we may not have found back […]
“Welcome to Osaka. Few major cities of the developed world could match Osaka for the overall unattractiveness of its cityscape, which consists mostly of a jumble of cube-like buildings and a web of expressways and cement-walled canals. There are few skyscrapers, even fewer museums and, other than Osaka Castle, almost no historical sites. Yet Osaka […]
Staff Development Days provide great opportunities to reinvigorate professional enthusiasms as well as to reflect on learning and life at school. For the last six years Dapto High has spent the final day of the academic year off-site at the Nan Tien Temple in Wollongong. The idea is that staff can best help students learn […]
“Motivation is what gets you started. Habit is what keeps you going.” Today, and I do feel a little sad about it, was our sixth and last ‘Resilience and Optimism’ Staff Development Day Conference at the Nan Tien Temple. It is time for renewal and in 2015 our school will find a new venue and approach to our […]
Our exchange to Seowon High School, our sister school in The Republic of Korea, has been an absolutely superb, exciting and positive experience for the students, staff and parents who made the journey during the school holidays. For the last five years our school’s Wider World View @DHS program has encouraged students and staff to […]
The world is but a canvas to our imaginations. Henry David Thoreau Today we enjoyed the fifth annual conference held at Nan Tien Temple for our professional development on the last day of the school year. The focus this year, although still optimism and resilience, is more about nurturing creativity and the keynote/workshops reflected this theme. […]
“What must be admitted, very painfully, is that this was a disaster made in Japan…Its fundamental causes are to be found in the ingrained conventions of Japanese culture: our reflexive obedience, our reluctance to question authority, our devotion to ‘sticking to the program,’ our groupism, our insularity.” Source I studied […]
It seems to me, albeit very late at night and when a little weary, that if your profession, hobbies and passions involve reading, literature, history, walking, nature, photography and the politics of existence, travel is the perfect companion and a kind of utopian space for a family to spend time outside of themselves and their […]
Japan Please indulge my musings about our travels for a few posts during January. My family has arrived for three weeks in wintry Japan during our summer holidays. We are currently exploring Tokyo and surrounds with the assistance of a JR Pass and some very generous Japanese volunteers. Already, after less than a week in the metropolis we […]
It is clichéd to comment about the impossibly rapid passing of time but I do find it difficult to believe this is our school’s fourth annual conference at the Nan Tien Temple in Wollongong. cc licensed ( BY NC SA ) flickr photo shared by Darcy Moore The principal’s idea, back in 2009, was that we […]
Our annual school conference is a special way to end the year on a high that we all look forward too. I blogged about our last two events and this year we again pilgrimaged to the Nan Tien Temple in Wollongong. It was another rewarding experience. Reverend Yo opened the day with Tai Chi and the conference with […]
It has been a great year and uplifting final day of 2010 for those of us lucky enough to work at Dapto High School. Last year, we ended our year on a professional high at the salubrious Nan Tien Temple. The staff, anecdotally and via a SurveyMonkey evaluation, overwhelmingly wanted to make it an annual event. The […]
Our last day of the 2009 school year was spent at Nan Tien Temple. I’ve just made the pilgrimage home after a most satisfying day and felt the need to write a blog post about this uplifting, professional experience. I’d highly recommend the temple as a venue for professional learning and (re)growth. The whole staff gathered […]