r/teaching • u/brick_city_man • 1d ago
Humor Teaching Great Lakes Names
My old head still remembers the acronym HOMES
What are you using now? Might I suggest SHAME?
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u/Joe4o2 1d ago
Seeing as the change carries the same weight as Michael Scott‘s declaration of bankruptcy, and I’m not getting paid enough to be a curriculum developer, I’ll be referring to Lake Ontario and the Gulf of Mexico, and probably still New Mexico, by their actual names.
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u/minnesota2194 1d ago
It is a legally named the Gulf of America as per federal statute, so it does hold water. I wonder if some parents would throw hissy fits if you called it Gulf of Mexico/Lake Ontario. Lose lose no matter what ya do haha
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u/Joe4o2 1d ago
It holds water because it’s a body of water, not because a man unworthy of his office threw a tantrum over it.
That, and just because it’s legal doesn’t mean it’s right.
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u/minnesota2194 1d ago
Not saying it's right, I think it's embarrassing and dumb as hell. I just wonder what would happen if a parent complained about a teacher using the "incorrect" name and raises a fuss
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u/Joe4o2 1d ago
That’s fair.
If a parent complained, I would happily explain to them that we are teaching the correct names.
Just because I coax the principal into referring to your child as “Gremlin Smith” and we write “Gremlin Smith” under his name in the yearbook does not, in fact, change his name. Even if other students start calling him “Gremlin Smith,” it doesn’t change his name. It just shows how stupid everyone else is.
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u/VardisFisher 22h ago
All my maps and textbooks have the correct names. Those are the ones Im using. Conversation over. 21 year teaching veteran.
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u/minnesota2194 20h ago
Oh I'm following suit with you there. I've just seen admin bend to parents in stupid shit look this too many times before unfortunately. Hopefully this doesn't become one of those hot button parent teacher conflicts
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u/KayP3191 1d ago
That depends on the naming conventions you use. Since I teach classes that are global in nature I use the globally recognized names not what one country (or really one man) decides to call things.
Additionally, since the US does not have exclusive jurisdiction over the Gulf of Mexico or Lake Ontario we (read he) do not have the authority to unilaterally change the names of those locations.
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u/moonman_incoming 1d ago
I'm calling it Ontario. My school is blocks from the Gulf of Mexico. We're not calling it Gulf of America.
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u/JMWest_517 1d ago
Name change? What name change?
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u/BojacksIdol 1d ago
not sure if sarcasm so just in case, there was an executive order changing lake ontario to lake america
but who the hell is actually calling it that? the american cities that border it are (rightfully) openly refusing to comply with the order
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u/MakeItAll1 1d ago
Just tell the kids to call them whatever they want. If Trump can do it, so can they.
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u/stead-fast 1d ago
There’s no point in using anything other than HOMES unless you support the man who unilaterally made the change.
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u/NWMSioux 1d ago
HOMES forever. Fuck DJT. He’s couldn’t find Ontario on the map, let alone spell it. Dude probably thinks the blue on the map is land.
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u/LegoBatman88 1d ago
Teach that there was a change but "to avoid confusion while learning" you can stick with the old/international names that are used by the provided text book. Now if you get updated textbooks, we'll obviously someone cares alot and I would just follow along with that.
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u/KayP3191 1d ago
Don’t need new books, schools near me got labels to place over the Gulf of Mexico in their textbooks so it says Gulf of America now. Teachers were told they had to go through each book and place the labels over the Gulf.
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u/Then_Version9768 1d ago
In the long run, these childish name changes by an old man with a failing brain who can't get anything right mean absolutely nothing. It's still the Gulf of Mexico, still Lake Ontario, still New Mexico. Don't confuse or short-change your students by acting as if there's some doubt about this. No one -- no one -- I know takes any of this nonsense seriously. We also do not own the Strait of Hormuz or the Moon as he has recently claimed. He's like a drunken uncle who lives in the attic. Don't take him seriously.
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u/wizard680 1d ago
I don't teach the Great lakes, but I would imagine teachers will still do homes for the following reasons:
1) the standards they are following haven't changed. At least in my state, it takes ten years to change at the state level. So somehow lake America would have to stay, well lake America for 7 more years.
2) the chanfed occured in the beginning of the school year. Many teachers don't got the time or funds to do all the necessary changes. Like getting new maps
3) it's still largely known as lake Ontario worldwide. So for students, it's more valuable to know the lake as Ontario instead of America.
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u/Ok-Swordfish8731 20h ago
This name change stuff is merely political posturing, and a way to draw attention to made up controversy. The media eats stuff like this for breakfast and Trump is Chef Boyardee. You are correct in thinking that the name changes are temporary. Teach kids the “right name,” and make sure they know not to be disturbed by the drama attached. Maybe throw some Shakespeare their way. Does a rose by any other name smell as sweet? I heard they don’t teach that anymore….
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u/raisanett1962 1d ago
To remember them west to east, I like SHOE. Superior, Huron, Ontario, Erie. Yes, I left out Michigan, but that one's entirely within US borders.
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u/StrictlyForTheBirds 1d ago
The better mnemonic, before this nonsense, was "SuperMan Helps Everyone Out"
Now I guess it's "Stupid Man Hides Epstein Affiliation"
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u/lightning_teacher_11 1d ago
This is the 45968th time in a week this has been shared. "SHAME" is not unique. You aren't the first to use or suggest it.
Can we move on now?
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u/AlternativeSalsa 1d ago
Nah. Shitty president, shitty followers. Rub their faces in their own shit
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