Hey! Welcome back for the report on Day 2 of the two-day public speaking frenzy for Ian and Eva. Day one was all about sharing passions in 15 minute presentations. During day two, Eva explored more in depth sharing. Let’s jump to it, shall we? Friday: Video-Conference with Sweetwater Elementary in Devils Lake, ND Thanks to the… [Read More]
Two Days and 12 Public Speaking Engagements (and I Wasn’t the Speaker). Day 1.
Over the last two days, Eva and Ian have been quite busy talking to students about following their passions. It’s been a wonderful experience, sharing dreams, meeting people, and honing public speaking skills. In this post, I’m going to report on Day 1. But the two days were so different from each other; I hope… [Read More]
Taming the Tedium of Testing, Part 3 of 3: Ideas for a New Educational System
Ideas for a New Educational System Welcome to the last part of this trilogy, in which I will share my dreams about what our schools could be. These are ideas I’ve been chewing on for years, and many of them are already being done successfully in other places. For the first time since the beginning… [Read More]
Taming the Tedium of Testing, Part 2 of 3: Leaving No Child Left Behind… Behind
Leaving No Child Left Behind… Behind Now is a wonderful time to be thinking about changing our educational paradigm, and President Obama agrees. His administration has recently allowed states to opt-out of No Child Left Behind requirements. This new potential freedom is exhilarating, but terrifying too. After all, one’s current reality even if it’s bad… [Read More]
Taming the Tedium of Testing, Part 1 of 3: Resources to Explore Progressive Educational Options
I have a friend in Kentucky, one Renee Boss, who works for the Department of Education and thinks a lot about education reform. She is deeply concerned about the amount of time spent preparing students to pass their standardized tests. She grapples with the issue from both the perspective of a professional educator and as… [Read More]
Practice Doesn’t Always Make Perfect
There’s been a lot of talk lately about how our immediate access to information is reducing our need to memorize. Writing a history paper and can’t remember what specific date you’re referencing? A two second Google search will give you what you need. And it’s not a bad thing either. Though there is something impressive… [Read More]
Kids Teaching Kids
One of the greatest gifts I can give my kids is the assurance that adults don’t know it all – we’re not experts at everything, and we don’t necessarily know more than kids do, except for those instances that simply require extended life experience. Whether I like it or not, I offer this lesson repeatedly… [Read More]