I once worked in a school where the librarian arranged the non-fiction by the color of the spine. It made for some serendipitous browsing. He was a friendly fellow with a big bushy beard, a scholarly demeanor and who claimed to have a PhD in philosophy. We got along well. There came a day when … Read more
Tool #1: Twitter With so much out there it’s hard to know where to begin. But Twitter is by far the number one online professional growth tool for educators. It’s the link and the glue that connects and brings colleagues and our collective knowledge together. While others may use Twitter for celebrity gossip, news updates, … Read more
I’m looking forward to the NAIS Annual Conference- #naisac15 – this year – assuming of course that Boston can dig its way out of all the snow. The theme is appealing: “Design the Revolution”. It’s a slogan that manages to evoke the design thinking and maker movements while also embracing the ineluctable truth that the … Read more
Design thinking – it’s everywhere in education. And that’s great because problems are everywhere and design thinking offers a way forward. It aligns with problem seeking, solution finding, empathy, integrative and interdisciplinary work, collaborative processes, open-ended thinking, revision and creative contribution – all that good authentic and relevant stuff. And it’s great that we seemed … Read more
I’ve been playing with a new graphics tool – easel.ly – and this is my first effort. I took the slogan Think*Make*Improve from Sylvia Libow Martinez and Gary S. Stager’s invaluable new book Invent To Learn: Making, Tinkering, and Engineering in the Classroom. The result is a bit of a pig’s breakfast and probably runs counter to every principle of good … Read more
Cross-posted from Josie’s Blog Did you know that Poughkeepsie Day School now has a Fab Lab? It’s short for fabrication laboratory – a place where people tinker, design, code, create, re-purpose, mess about, invent, make and play with stuff. It’s right off the Chapman Room. It’s in the pilot and prototype stage but we are … Read more
How we took four classrooms and a corridor and created a contemporary learning space for the middle school in the summer of 2012. Watch the short video. And then look for the pics of the new space with the sliding glass doors now in place!
I had the privilege last week of working with a great bunch of educators at the NYSAIS Think Tank at the Carey Conference Center in Rensselaerville, NY. The location was perfect, the company inspiring and the work energizing. And facilitator Ann Mellow provided leadership and kept us all moving forward. It was at this event … Read more
Take a look at the plans for the Athletic fields and for the creation of the Middle School Learning Community For those unable to attend the presentation on Thursday – here are the slides and a short clip from the video. Presentation April 12th 2012
The classroom is obsolete: it’s time for something new – said Prakash Nair in Education Week. last July. And that’s not just his opinion he says. “It’s established science.” The classroom is a relic, left over from the Industrial Revolution, which required a large workforce with very basic skills. …As the primary place for student … Read more
Canstruction: Art, design, architecture, engineering, construction, philanthropy. It’s a great idea and a wonderful project. We made our first foray for Fall Festival Reimagined 2011 with this fireplace. Made out of donated food cans it was built by a group consisting parents, faculty and students. It was dismantled last month and the food donated to … Read more
We have a new lobby in one of our buildings – the Elizabeth C. Gilkeson Center – and as you can see from these two pictures it’s quite stunning. This is the first place most visitors see and it’s where almost everyone passes through at least once a day and usually more often. It’s where … Read more
What size should classes be? Anyone who has a definitive answer probably has probably bubbled in the answers to all life’s big questions. NAIS president Pat Bassett weighed in with good remarks – including the observation that what makes the real difference in terms of quality education and student outcomes is a combination of great … Read more
Can design help children learn? That’s the cover story of in the February Metropolis Magazine lent to me last week by parent-trustee Stan Lichens. It’s worth a look. And the magazine also includes design firm IDEO’s 10 Tips for Creating a 21st Century Classroom Experience. It’s a quick must-read. This is thinking to guide designers … Read more
Some attributes of creativity: Challenge assumptions Be receptive to new ideas Recognize similarities or differences Make unlikely connections Take risks Build on ideas to make better ideas Look at things in new ways Take advantage of the unexpected from The Art of Looking Sideways by Alan Fletcher