April 2011 Blog Posts (62)

Get your students to reflect on their year and their content with a neat activity that uses smart phones, QR codes, and movement!

Here in Jasmin Ramzinsky’s   3^rd  grade class at Parkside Elementary School in Austin is why education can be turned around on a time by simply challenging students to assume more control of their own learning.

How do they do this?  By being encouraged to ask good questions about the content they are studying and then pursuing what International Baccalaureate calls “purposeful…

I’ve blogged about the successful use of thinking skills in promoting reading comprehension and the huge increase I saw in reading levels here: Reading Levels Jump 5 Months in just 2.5 Months!  

I started thinking how great it…

Ink Think Tankpresents its first "Computerside Chat" on 5/10/11 at 7 pm EDT. 

Passionate Voices: Science, Math and 21st Century Skills

It will be live, streaming video and you will be able to ask questions via Twitter #authorsoncall.

For more into, go to the invitation here:

http://www.inkthinktank.com/search/cscinvite1.htm

Now, while I don't pretend to be an expert on all of humanity, I do believe that it is primarily a way to prevent ourselves from looking foolish.  There are few things in life more aversive than the idea that you didn't think it through or were, in some way, naive about…

Daniel Pink writes in his book that the way that the world has been ruled for the past 50 or so plus years is not the world of the future.  Currently the world is shifting away from Left Brain dominated society to a society that will hold the six senses in higher regard.  These six senses: Design, Story, Symphony, Empathy, Play, and Meaning, are the skills that the future highly demanded careers will need.  He does not say that the IQ based left brain thinkers will no longer exist, but…

It is 4.15 pm now in Malaysia.I just had an interesting visitor from USA Embassy officer.The officer is Malaysian and he is contemplating to put my school into consideration to benefit from USA EMBASSY charitable educational programmes.Previously, the embassy had only taken middle schools and high schools under its wings.So,now they are thinking of candidate schools from elementary level.The embassy focuses on English Language Educational programmes by sponsoring teachers and students for…

Let’s look at the facts. Students handwrite badly, and don’t use it much when they grow up (think about yourself. How often do you write a long hand letter?). Really, why is handwriting important in this day of keyboards, PDAs, smart phones,…

Each Teacher has the personal responsibility to:

1.            To develop: Breadth and Depth of Repertoire of Strategies

2.            To create: Capacity to align strategies / learning environments / curriculum / assessment

3.            To build: Sophistication of personal teaching frameworks and ensure fit with broader society

4.            To…

What do you think of this debate?

http://neilfinney.blogspot.com/2011/04/time-has-come-to-kill-and-drill.html

Let’s face it – not everything that students need to learn in school is easy for them. But wait. If this is knowledge and skills what we want our students to learn, remember, and use in the future (the reason for universal K-12 education right?) then shouldn’t we be teaching them in a way that is intuitive, useful, and easy to remember and use. 

Man Meyers has a great video on Ted Talks called …

 Speak Up For Education and Kids is a group started by the National Education Association to unite educators and community members committed to investing in education, preventing harmful cuts,…

This I believe. . . with an attempt at order. . . but none are negotiable -

10.  Working with kids is a privilege.

The privilege of working with kids is just that – a privilege.  If your heart isn’t in it, you aren’t going to be effective and could probably make a better contribution elsewhere.  If your heart is in it, you are so needed – and you can make the world a better place. 

9.  Together, we are better. 

Parents,…

I have been feeling the need to celebrate our youth!  They are an amazing group of people, and I am privileged to work with them each day.

I am an Assistant Principal, and I am excited about our youth and the potential they have to contribute to this world. . . . also about the contributions they are making now.   There is every reason to be feeling ‘hope-full’ about our youth today.

Each day, when I go to work, I meet young people that are committed to making…