If it seems to you as though we have far too many "days" lately, I happen to agree. All kinds of things get their own national day. We celebrated Martin Luther King Jr. Day on January 17 (I happen to be in favor of that one), but this year that was also Betty White Day (can't really get too ticked off about that, either), but it was also National Classy Day, National Bootlegger's Day, and National Hot Buttered Rum Day, all in one little square on the calendar. If you missed it, January 18 marked Winnie-The-Pooh Day. The 19th was National Popcorn Day. The 20th was National Cheese Lover's Day, and Friday the 21st was not only National Hugging Day, but also Squirrel Appreciation Day, and--lest we forget--National Hyaluronic Acid Day. It's got a little out of hand, so I feel a bit guilty about the title of this blog post, because--whether you know or not--today is the 14th annual Goat Tag Day. It's OK if you didn't know that; very few do. That's because Goat Tag Day began in my World History classroom 14 years ago. The assignment was a dreaded Group Project whereby we attempted to illustrate the shift from Medieval Guilds toward individual enterprise as the Middle Ages moved toward the Renaissance. And let me be the first to admit: it was kind of a dumb project. I was a fairly new teacher, looking for something to break up the monotony that World History so easily becomes if we're not careful, so I slapped this together to see what would happen. I calculated the supplies based on whatever I had in my classroom closet. I don't even remember what they were, exactly, but each group got something like 10 index cards, 16 paper clips, 5 rubber bands, 2 colored pencils (their choice), a ruler, a scissors, 8 pieces of different-colored copy paper, and 18 inches of clear tape. They did not have to use everything, but their job was to create a new product that might be something someone could produce in the Late Middle Ages that could be sold for a profit; they were not only to create the thing, but make as many as possible in the time provided. You're probably already thinking, "This sounds like a disaster." It largely was. One group made paper airplanes, and though it was decided those could not be sold at profit, that group had fun throwing them around. A different group bunched up all of the pieces of paper, wrapped them loosely in some tape, and tried to sell stress balls, and so on. I will say, almost everyone had a fairly good time, but almost no one made anything practical. But one group created a shape and cut as many as possible from the index cards and paper. They used the colored pencils to mark up those shapes. The broke the paper clips in half (or so I recall), and punched them through the paper, and on and on, and by the time they were done, they had created close to 30 ear tags for goats, figuring farmers and herders of the Middle Ages might want some way to keep track of their livestock that was more humane than branding. And I thought, dannnnng. Fourteen years later, I sometimes forget to have fun days at school. After Lockdown and Hybrid and Virtual and Asynchronous, and "Please pull your mask up over your nose," I sometimes forget to allow creativity to flourish, even if that creativity is not in service of the most amazing lesson plan that's ever been designed. A couple members of Goat Tag group are still friends with me on Facebook, and every so often we reach out to one another and post something about "Goat Tag Day" to recall at least one morning in my classroom when a little bit of learning was a lot of fun. Fourteen years later, it seems selfish to keep Goat Tag Day to myself and a small group of former students. I don't wish to step on the toes of National Freedom Day (I'm also in favor of that one), but February 1 is also National Baked Alaska Day, National Serpent Day, and National Get Up Day--whatever that is--so maybe it's not too much to ask to add Goat Tag Day to the mix. Tomorrow we're going to allow a sleepy rodent to predict the weather, so I'm not that far out in left field on this one. And so, my friends, I hope you have a fantastic National Goat Tag Day. It may not have all the fireworks and sizzle of National Hyaluronic Acid Day, but I hope you'll join me in celebration, anyway. All you need to do is get creative with whatever you have in your closet, learn a little, and have some fun. Have a great day, one and all.
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