We say that we are open to new ideas, but…… that’s a challenging activity for many. I want to put my self into the perspective of a young learner for a bit. A child comes into the world with an incredible perspective, always being willing to explore and find out new information. When the child…
Category: potential
Why are you an artist, Dad?
Why am I an artist? Our daughters posed this question to me earlier this week as I was trying a new way to create. I am always amazed by the way paint works and saw some interesting acrylic pours at our local farmer’s market leading me to try this new method and I asked our…
Transforming through the 3 W’s
“I Have the Answers to the Questions They Never Ask”sparked a thought in my brain about how many of our students go through the day with new thoughts or questions, and an untapped potential of expertise hiding below the surface. This quote “I Have the Answers to the Questions They Never Ask” came from the book…
Ideas Floating Around
I sit in the twilight of morning wondering what kind of ideas might be heard today. As dark as our world is at times, I know there are ideas floating around in the minds of our students, just waiting to see the sunshine. How will those ideas come to see the light of day when…
Inspired by…..
Each day we set our sights on creating a community where inspiration can happen. Each morning, when students walk through our doors, we greet them with a fist bump and a smile, hoping that we can inspire them today. What if we flipped that and began to ask students who they will inspire today? Or…
Planning..With…Students
This year has been one of the most difficult years I’ve had as a teacher. Moving towards a more collaborative based structure with my students as planners has been a real struggle. Behavior and the ability to self reflect does not change in one year, yet I’m more than happy to take on that challenge….
The Challenge: _________________
Fill in the blank of the title. What challenge are your students facing today. I’ve found that no matter how we talk about a growth mindset, reflection, planning, and affirmation my students are struggling. Learning is a continuum and I need to continue to understand that the continuum is wide, especially with 9 year olds. …
Blank Canvas: Choosing the Best Brush
How often do we have the opportunity to express ourselves? What kind of brush would you use if you didn’t have breakfast in the morning? What type of color would you use if you slept the night on the floor? What type of image would you draw if your teacher always started the day with…
Wow! Thanks for sharing that Mistake!
I’ve been listening to the My Bad podcast recently created by Jon Harper and reflecting on how we can make these mistakes, that are all inherent in the learning process, be owned by our students. Think about all the mistakes we make throughout the day, how we reflect on those, and turn them into successes….
Thinking Differently
Throughout the day we have opportunities to think differently, to value thought patterns that might not be our own, and ask questions from different viewpoints. The question that I have been wondering about is how often do the adults think differently so that students can think differently? We are in a profession that is helping…
Imagination Trumps All
Interesting title huh? Truly our imagination is what we need to be successful. Imagination is what leads us to possible options to solve many of the problems we face. Yet how many times a day does our imagination get to come out and be seen by others? I’ve started our week back with an art…
What’s Your Perspective?
PERSPECTIVE…. the way someone views something, their point of view; definition (a particular attitude toward or way of regarding something; a point of view) Perspective gives us the opportunities to be creative and innovative We have so many different experiences that we bring to the classroom and our perspectives can be different according to those…
Curiosity, Exploration, Wonder 