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3 Steps to Winning a Meeting
We spend a lot of time in meetings. Not just scheduled meetings, but encounters – drop ins, hallway conversations, even e-mail exchanges. While these moments themselves become commonplace due to quantity, we cannot underestimate their impact on our work. This month, I was part of some extremely productive meetings.…
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Yes, and… Making Leaps in Education
In their book, Creative Confidence, Tom and David Kelley discuss the challenges, but ultimate benefits of taking “leaps” when approaching innovation. “While everyone has enormous potential for creativity, our experience suggests that successfully applying creativity in your work and life requires something more: the courage to leap. All that…
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Nitty Gritty of Assessment
As with many teachers, my only experience with assessments came from my experience taking them as a student. Upon reflection, I can say with confidence, that my personal assessment experience is not rooted in best practice. However, with little else to go on, why not stick with the most…
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Refreshing Classroom Research
When teachers prepare for a research project, the first step in the process is often, “pick a topic.” Early in my teaching career, that is exactly how I would begin. I would assign a topic or let students choose one out of a hat. Then, I would carefully design…
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My Theory of Leadership in 3 Words
Many leaders have their list of favorite authors: Kotter, Maxwell, Whitaker, Collins – to name a few. When I want to learn about something new, my first reaction is to immerse myself in text about that subject. Based on this reading and research I have developed some go-to beliefs…
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Nitty Gritty: Lit Circles
I love Wikipedia’s definition of literature circles: A literature circle is a students’ equivalent of an adult book club, but with greater structure, expectation and rigor. The aim is to encourage thoughtful discussion and a love of reading in young people. The true intent of literature circles is “to…
