Close your eyes. Imagine a high school, a real high school, one, perhaps, you’ve driven by many times. Picture the building and the grounds. What would you change? Pull up the editing tools in your mind. Cut. Crop. Sketch. What’s different now? Is the parking lot freshly paved? Are there more trees, flowers, benches, a fountain? Have you removed an … Read More
Underrated
In the world of education, somewhere between “lecture” and “group project” is an overlooked, misunderstood, crudely-practiced, and often-omitted wonderful little learning method called “modeling.” It’s as simple as it sounds. A “model” of the work desired (a piece of writing, a performance, a technique, etc.) is presented and the learner observes, contemplates, and seeks to imitate in some meaningful way. … Read More
Stories Worth Repeating
In my last post, I raised a question that has been asked of me many times over, “Why are we learning this?” It’s a question that I’ve had a hard time answering myself, leading me to ask why we study anything at all. After pondering this for many years, I was led to an answer well worth the journey. But … Read More
Gym Class and Motivation
As an English teacher in public school for 17 years, I always felt frustrated by, and a little jealous of, the Phys Ed. teachers. Phys. Ed. class seemed to be a kind of outlier in school, and the teachers were able to operate in a value system totally different from the rest of school. I wished the value system of … Read More
Common Sense Standard (CSS) #5
Knowing what is best for kids requires knowing kids, each kid. There are varying opinions about the purpose of education, but simply to set a foundation, let’s go with something along the lines of “to develop thriving human beings in society.” That’s a pretty monumental undertaking–but achievable. Essentially, our hope is to help kids grow up to be the best … Read More
Bringing Joy to the Classroom
I was on my way to work recently when it occurred to me I would be early again, and that I was in fact happy about it. Crossing over the bridge into Pennsylvania, I mused on how long it had been since I’d felt sad, pressured, daunted, ground down, or any of the tangle of difficult emotions I used to … Read More