A "Starbucks" classroom...

 

We started with an inquiry question... "why aren't Starbuck's Coffee houses drive through only?" 

We discussed this question for quite some time... here's what we came up with:

• They wouldn't sell as much coffee (to which we asked why, and the answer was "people like hanging out at Starbucks")
• They like hanging out at Starbuck's for a number of reasons:
• The smell
• The coffee
• The treats
• The books (if the store is inside a chapters book store, which they often are in Canada...)
• The leather couches
• The fireplace on a cold winter day
• The free wifi
• The ambiance (we looked that one up...)
• The public art (done by local artists)
• The comradeship; hanging out with friends
• The patio (on warm summer days)
• The friendliness of the baristas (we looked that one up too)
• The background sounds (music, chatter about interesting topics)
• The "coolness" of it all... the environment as described by the above reasons. We felt it was a laid back, relaxed and enjoyable place to be
• We even figured out that every time you turn around in a Starbuck's coffee shop, you run into something (and further realized that what you run into is usually for sale:). We realized that cramped spaces don't have to be cramped in a bad way if they're set up right, and if the folks within the spaces get along OK. So we came up with this model of learning and living, and put a giant version of it on our wall.

We reference the Hope Wheel often. We use it to contextualize our learning, to solve problems, resolve conflicts, set goals and teach others (that's the "Elder" part of what we do in the Responsibility phase of the north.) It has become the social, emotional and intellectual platform that our physical learning space is supported by. It's the model we use to think about things. You can learn more about this learning model here.

So we took a look at our classroom and decided that we could create this type of environment to learn in, sans the coffee perhaps:)

We decided that couches, books, free wifi, public art (done by students), comradeship, friendliness and the "coolness" of it all would be easy to emulate.

We got rid of the desks and put tables in their place. We found a couch and a coffee table. We hung (and continue to hang) art created by students. We put some mats on the floor. We created a private corner office that we take turns using each day. We already had free wifi. We created some cool lighting effects with a couple of lamps. Recently we even took a donation of a free electric fireplace! How cool is that?

So now we learn in a "Starbuck`s classroom," and we really like it.

"We're raising boys..."

This is cross-posted from Grow Boys Red Deer at http://www.reddeergrowboys.ca/. I have been involved with the Grow Boys project for three years now, and it has been one of the most rewarding initiatives I have taken on. For more information on the Grow Boys concept, please get in touch and we can talk.

  by  Ryan Qiu 

My father used to play with my brother and me in the yard.

Mother would come out and say,

"You're tearing up the grass!"

"We're not raising grass," Dad would reply.

"We're raising boys." -author unknown

We are raising boys. All of us. No matter who we are in the community, whether we are a parent or not; we all have a responsibility to support the happy, healthy growth and development of boys. Of course we need to do this for girls as well, but Grow Boys is a collective that focuses specifically on what can be done to nurture the particular needs of boys; and there are many. As the dad in the poem suggests, we need to take a critical and reflective perspective toward what our boys need from us, and how we're going to provide for them.

  by  Dave_B_ 

Herbert Vilakazi's opening address to the National Association of Child Care Workers 1991 Biennial Conference (http://tinyurl.com/yfxzdwn) in South Africa provides one such perspective with his brilliant insight to how we need to think and act if we are to support today's children as our gifts to the future.

"The problems of children and of youth, giving rise to child and youth care programs, can only begin to be solved in that society of humankind’s dream; a more collective-oriented society than at present, when the father of the child shall be every man as old as the child’s father; when the mother of the child shall be every woman as old as the child’s mother; a society of responsibility of the entire community; a society without poverty; without the inequalities of society members, based upon race, class, or sex; a society without the use of violence against other members of society; a society without any exploitation and oppression of any group by any other group; a society of equals; a thoroughly democratic society; last, but not least a society that shall have, once more, incorporated productive labor into the educational process."

Answers need questions...

  by  walknboston 

Generally speaking, questions need answers, but a colleague reminded me this past week that some answers need questions too.

Learning slows down drastically, or even stops completely when we get to a point where we believe we know everything we need to know about something. When we think we have all the answers, perhaps that is when we need to question things even more. Innovation to me isn't necessarily a completely new approach, idea or process. Innovation can often mean a retooling of elements that already exist.

“The real voyage of discovery consists not in seeking new landscapes, but in having new eyes.” ― Marcel Proust

At the heart of inquiry is the art of questioning. I believe the "voyage of discovery" Proust refers to is entirely about perspective. When learners instigate their own and others thoughts through questioning they are pushing the boundaries of perspective. Challenging our conventions about learning and knowledge happens in that cognitive place where time is taken to deconstruct what we think we know about how things should be, and where unencumbered thought magically turns into innovation. I am encouraging this process within my classroom.

ETMOOC- Redfining Success...

Hello, my name is Sean Grainger. I'm in my 19th year of learning as a teacher having experienced a diverse range of assignments. I am currently a Humanities 7 teacher at Glendale Sciences and Technology School in Red Deer, Alberta, Canada. I am also my school's vice principal, (a newly re-tooled K-8 inquiry-based, science and technology focused school.)

Before returning to Glendale this past fall, (I was Glendale School's counselor three years ago,) I was a vice principal in a K-5th grade school here in Red Deer, and before that I worked with kids from at-risk environments in Red Deer Public School District's Alternative Programs for eight years. My career started at Tall Cree Indian Reservation in the far north of Alberta at the end of a four hour drive on a gravel road once the pavement ended. I worked within three First Nations communities for a total of six years before moving to Red Deer. My time working with First Nation's people taught me so much about learning and living; it was a priceless way to begin my career.

I am a firm believer that, more often than not, the path chooses us. If somebody asked me how I thought my career would go when I left undergraduate school, I would not have predicted my story would be told the way it has evolved. I appreciate this. More than anything about teaching and learning, I appreciate the fluid, organic and unpredictable nature of my job... there is a new and different challenge everyday for which I am thankful. I consider it a giant privilege to be immersed in the learning process everyday, and I am blessed to be surrounded by kids who are inquisitive, intelligent and eager to learn with me.

Joining #etmooc is another opportunity for me to learn from others, and to share experiences with them. I have been blogging for three years, and I've been a fierce consumer of educational technology since leaving graduate school in 2006. My learning spirit was rejuvenated there when I was introduced to blended learning through my cohort-based experience at City University, Bellingham, WA. I went to grad school because I wanted to... I had no tangible goal other than to learn on a different plane. I participated on my terms, and it is the most engaging and enlightening formal learning experience I have had. My work at City U opened many doors, but even if it hadn't, I was successful because I was there on my terms. I think I will be successful as a member of #etmooc for the same reason.

Beyond #etmooc, the concept of massive open online courses in general is very intriguing to me. This is my first participatory experience, and I am seeking insight into how MOOC's can benefit learners who don't have the privilege of geographic location, financial means or time to participate in face to face, traditional learning institutions.

Looking forward to connecting!

The story behind the story...

A Chinese hanzi is often made up of multiple characters to create a unique meaning. The hanzi above is constructed of different characters that individually represent ears, eyes, undivided attention and heart. A beautiful alternative definition of the verb to listen is created... to listen means to hear with your heart; to be totally engaged and focused on understanding deeper meanings behind what we hear.

Every day I am reminded of how important it is to listen to student`s stories. I am fortunate to have time during the school day to hear with my heart as I listen to the real reasons why kids end up in the office talking to me. Like the young man in this clip, sometimes kids just need an opportunity to be honest and real so we can understand their struggle better.

In my school, we don`t think of a trip to the office as a punitive thing. We think of it as a resiliency building thing. An office referral is one of four resiliency pathways (as we call them) within our school that kids travel down depending on the nature of their challenge on any given day. An office visit more often than not means some adverse behavior would have been displayed.