Because We Are All Learners

by | Nov 13, 2016 | Uncategorized

wearealllearnersSaving files. Closing windows. Sharing a link. Updating a profile. I could name a gazillion (probably not a real number) technology skills that I think are important.  But there is one… one that is more important than the rest…

Critical thinking.

In our click happy share fast world, it could be slowing down that matters more than anything.  Taking time to think. Look. Think deep and critically…

What tool do I want to use?

What tool might be best for this?

Where did this information come from? Is it reliable?

How will I share this?

How might I troubleshoot?

Technology moves far too fast to know every detail. That’s what’s changed.  In a society that moves quickly, we have to find ways to slow down, be in the moment, and process what’s happening on the screen, in the device, or in the conversation around us.  People love to say that our kids are different – for their world is different than ours was.  The truth is, we have to adjust AND be ready to help guide them.  It’s a challenge for sure, but it’s going to be all about our ability to slow down, process, and deeply understand.  To get out of their way.

But it’s the reason I believe in the deepest part of my soul, that making is the future of education. Entrepreneurial-ship. Ideas that change our world.  Connecting with each other. Being a community.  Thinking deep about improving something, then doing it.  Helping our kids be WHATEVER they dream of and DREAMING big.  Because when we use technology that’s one thing. But when we create with technology, and add in tangible, hands on materials?  It’s us slowing down, and somehow in the midst we become the kind of learning environment that kids need, simultaneously becoming the kind of learning environment our kids need.  Because we are all learners.

 

 

See the Good: Thank you, Mr. Buist

by | Nov 11, 2016 | Uncategorized

edugoodSeveral years ago, I was in the midst of a hard year of teaching.  I had also, around the same time, discovered the power in connecting with other educators through social media.  I was on a mission to notice the good. I started a photo project called #edugood.  A small group of us took a photo a day of something positive and shared it.  Some days it’s easy, others?  It’s harder.  Our classrooms, hallways, and schools are filled with so much good. The more we share it, the better for us all.

Enter Michael Buist.. who sent me a state license place with EDUGOOD on it.  To this day, it’s in my office.  I don’t know how in the world I’ve never met Michael in person– I mean, he’s one of the most positive folks EVER and he’s a maker creator du’jour with his students.  But he’s had a positive impact on me and my teaching in so many ways.

I think I’ve come full circle when it comes to connecting online.  I’m in a great place.  I see tons of good every single day.  Should I stop sharing it? Nope.  Because there is a teacher somewhere who was that teacher I was a few years ago, in the midst of a challenging year.  The truth is, we ALL need each other.  We need people to support us, challenge us, listen to our crazy ideas.  I count my blessings everyday that I have colleagues in my hall who “get” me and I would do anything to help them.

Speaking of good things…. Michael just beat cancer.  (Michael I hope you don’t mind me shouting out for your success, but seriously, nothing’s more #edugood than YOU!) So for someone who helped ME see the good in everyday a few years ago when I just needed it, I’m sending out an international call for help to share the #edugood in YOUR day. For Michael’s success in his journey.  For the teacher down the hall. For the colleague who needs it.  For yourself.  For our kids.

Our students all over the world deserve our very best selves and we need to do everything we can to be our very best selves.  And the days we feel like we can’t carry on with our best, we can lean on each other.  One hug, one tweet, one positive message on Instagram, one secret good deed that only you know about?

Unpacking Empathy

by | Nov 10, 2016 | Empathy, Uncategorized

When I think about teaching empathy in the elementary classroom, I like to think about tools that will help support kids in their understanding of the entire concept of empathy.    I’ve been exploring Stanford’s empathy maps and really like the idea of kids taking an empathy walk as they explore one’s story.

Imagine a suitcase filled with items. Students unpack the suitcase and use the clues to learn about the owner.  The suitcase could include items to help build a character profile: a letter from the suitcase owner to a friend, a set of postcards to be mailed, a favorite snack, an itinerary for a vacation… maybe the suitcase could even be a favorite book character’s suitcase.   In thinking about seeing a situation through another’s lens… empathy.  While we try to help support kids in understanding thoughts and feelings, we have to start with simple, concrete examples like “What does he or she see?” or “What does does he or she hear?”

“Unpacking the suitcase” is really about unpacking a person’s (or animal’s) story. There is always more there than just the suitcase. Every ding, scratch, and mark on the case means something.  Every compartment inside contains something meaningful.  Through the power of observation, students can learn to look at people through a set of lenses, but it takes practice.  Often we just watch someone, and immediately decide what the story is.  Empathy slows us down to make sure we connect before we make any assumptions.   I made a set of cards (PDF here) to put on a ring so that kids could have prompts to help them think and process.  These are version 1 and I’m sure I’ll make changes as this story unfolds.

Has technology made us too quick to judge? Or is that just us being human?  Either way, empathy is a skill our kids need. Today, tomorrow, and in the future.

empathylens2

 

 

The 4Cs Are About to Become the 5Ms of the 22nd Century

by | Nov 6, 2016 | Uncategorized

makeadifferenceThe pendulum in education swings.  The 4C’s seem to be where it’s at right now… creativity, collaboration, connection, and communication.  Getting kids to connect and create is important.  But what are we missing when we KEEP talking about 21st century learning? The 4M’s.  I think it’s where we are heading.  No, I hope it’s where we are heading.

Meaningful, mindful, moments, and making.

The chaos of beeping devices, shallow connections with no meaning, blinging flashy websites, and apps that make satisfaction instant are about to be exchanged for a slower pace.  Apps that are worksheets are being exchanged for apps that are about creating a message and telling a story. Deeper learning. Learning that’s built on deep relationships rather than shallow connections.

The empathy our world is craving?   The empathy we NEED to survive the future?  It’s in the meaning and the mindful moments that are coming.  The way we connect when we play, tinker, explore? Making is going to save us all.

I’m tired of people thinking gadgets will change education.  I get ticked off when I see “making” watered down to activities and kits.

The future?  It’s bright and meaningful and WITHIN our kids.  The little souls that come to our classrooms are filled with joy, deep joy.  Joy that’s tangible and released when we all slow down and are mindful of where we are, make meaning out of moments, and go for deeper connections rather than shallow clicks and simple sharing.

The PLN of the 21st century is becoming about promotion and collecting followers, we need to push past it and get back to deeper relationships… the kind where you share when you rise, and when you fall… hard. But more importantly than the sharing, it’s the relationships and the meaning in them.

Design thinking, maker mindset, and play are about to swing the pendulum away from short bursts in test scores and gaining points on a test.  At least I hope so.  Our kids deserve it, and to be honest, our future needs it.

Is it extra dreamy if I think there just might be a 5th “M” in there? Magic.  Learning, when it’s right, is so magical.  Not like unicorns and rainbows magic, but like, “Wow, that blew my mind” magic.  And couldn’t we ALL use a little of that?

Do I sound crazy? Angry at the education that is?  Over the top dreaming about the future?  Yes.  All of those things.  That’s just called passion and the 5 M’s are fertile soil for it to develop.  Meaning. Mindfulness. Moments. Making. Magic.

 

 

The Disconnect

by | Nov 5, 2016 | Uncategorized

I’ve started 3 blog posts in the past few weeks, but none of them made sense and I didn’t finish them. I’d start writing about one thing, then end up writing about another.   I’ve been spending my days focusing less on checking messages and more on being IN my day. Really IN it.  In the learning with teachers. Alongside kids while they figure things out.  In the evenings, I’m focusing on my daughter’s upcoming journey to high school, my own journey in research, and the precious time our little family has to spend together.

I find myself slipping away from Twitter, falling from the throes of needing to read every update on Facebook, and connecting with fewer people. I’ve always known it’s not about numbers of followers, but maybe got it wrong in other ways. Connecting is empowering. It’s awesome to share with other teachers.  I love helping people.  But the connections started to feel a bit more about giving, promoting, and branding than about deep thinking, sharing, and supporting each other. I don’t know if things changed, or if I changed.  In all honesty, it doesn’t matter.

I’m not a brand.  I’ve never tried to be one. It’s the reason I deleted Venspired. It’s the reason I don’t like selling my own stuff.  I don’t make it to sell.  I once dabbled in photography for about a year and it killed my love of it. I started to feel more like a brand and less like a person.  Creativity makes me feel alive. Mass production just to produce? It kills my soul.   That sounds dramatic, I know. But it’s all really the difference to me in eating a fresh peach picked from a tree in the sunshine… or eating a stale cracker. One is filled with so much joy, the other is just existing.

I’ve had so many moments lately… moments I’ve been IN, where I paused to think about how those tiny little moments are the big things.  Giant peach moments.  It’s almost like going under water, opening your eyes, and realizing there is a whole ‘nother world that you didn’t know existed.

Constructionism, making, play… it DELIGHTS me.  Not like, “oh, that shirt is cute.”  But like, “HOLY COW THOSE FIREWORKS BLEW MY MIND!”  So when it becomes about personal branding and commercialism, I feel like it’s taking something away from it all. Taking it away from the purpose I feel from inside.  It’s taking away the sweetness that DELIGHTS me.

I know it all doesn’t make total sense. And I’m okay with that. This is a totally unsponsored post that poured out of my head tonight. And that’s the great thing about unsponsored writing… it’s raw and real. And creativity? It needs that very thing to fuel it.