John Spencer – T.R.U.E. G.R.I.T.

Beyond Flexible

March 28, 2018March 28, 2018 nankr1120

I am a huge fan of flexible seating. Why? Because it speaks to me… to every child. It is a language all on its own. It says … come in and choose what works for you! Choose what is best for your learning. To me “beyond flexible” is a respect to all languages of learning…. it builds a culture of value, trust, and respect.

Respect for differences.

Respect for prior knowledge.

Respect for one’s strengths… because everyone has them!

By providing flexible seating I am “speaking and interpreting many languages to learning.” It is the “multilingual approach to learning”… each child’s own personal language. I am letting each child know that I am privileged to learn with them and I cannot wait to see what they have to offer in their own way. But why stop with seating? Why not go beyond and have flexible learning too?

It makes me think of how I choose my shopping experience. I am in the moment. My moment looks different based on my day… my mood… my energy. I am the one who likes to walk in to a store that offers a variety. I want different. I don’t want a carbon copy of someone else. I don’t want everyone to know where I bought it just by glancing at a “label.” I am different and I embrace it, just like I embrace the different learners in my classroom each day!

George Couros, author of Innovator’s Mindset, made a strong point this week (during the IMMOOC YouTube live session)… one that resonated with me. He mentioned that when leading there are times “I am literally trying to figure this out right now.”

Thanks George… that is me! That is my shopping style! My life style! My learning style! I am wrestling with what I want… what I want to wear. I may not even know until I see it. I feel my shopping is similar to students’ learning. I feel they wrestle with their own learning and it may change from subject to subject like brand to brand. They may not even be in touch with their own likes or dislikes, yet they are trying to win at the “game of school” through one experience. Shouldn’t they come out with an amazing outfit of learning designed just for them? Shouldn’t their learning be flexible too… the kind that goes beyond differentiation? Isn’t it their own learning language?

“It’s more than just a skill level. Each student has a different set of interests and passions and prior knowledge. Each student has a different set of questions. Each student has a different system that works for them.” –A.J. Juliani and John Spencer, authors of Empower

Domain 3: Instruction, Domain 4: Professional Responsibilities

IMMOOC Week 4 Sum It Up

March 19, 2018March 21, 2018 nankr1120

Let’s Sum It Up this week… refocusing our lens on “Empowered Environments”

How do you view assessment? Is it a tool? A grade? An outcome? Is it yours to fulfill? To steer? or is it your students? download

Let me be blunt with the help of A.J. Juliani and John Spencer, authors of EMPOWER (paraphrasing their points)…

In place of being committed to your curriculum, are you committed to student interest?

Do you create plans based on choice or are you inspiring possibilities?

Bottom line is that my professional responsibility is to teach the skill… many skills to many different types of learners. I don’t take that lightly. My professional responsibility is to also create an environment to which every learner is opening doors to their learning… to their interest. This is not about just differentiating their learning, it is about lighting a fire under each of them so that they in turn can choose how they want to show me that they mastered the skill. I am turning “the possible” into “possibilities” just by shifting the focus from me to them!

When I taught internal conflict during my most recent novel study, students had to choose a quote and create a way for me to assess their understanding. I had students creating on Scratch, i Movie, Squishy Circuits, Design and Challenge in Maker-space, Bloxels and more. I wasn’t flustered about the variations in creativity. I wasn’t concerned about how I was going to put a grade in the grade book.

I knew the skill they needed to master… and so did my students!

Domain 2: Classroom Environment, Domain 3: Instruction, Personal Learning

Innovating Inside the “Box”

March 13, 2018March 13, 2018 nankr1120

It is a challenge to think of innovation inside the box, but even more challenging for me when I ask myself… what box? Is that the teacher box? The resource box? An empty box? Or the student box… the mind of a child?!

Really, what if the box were the child? How do they view their experiences and opportunities. How do they see change?

Change is inevitable and in many ways inspirational! As George Couros, author of Innovator’s Mindset, reminds us…

“Change is an opportunity to do something AMAZING!”

So why does change worry so many or worse off scare so many? Do we create an environment that makes it intimidating for a child or is it exciting, inspiring, and AMAZING? Every child has their own home-life, experiences, conversations, access/resources, goals, desires, mental/physical health, ability, and support…

or lack of.

What about the child facing changes each day when their own life may look so different. Change is a good thing, right? Have you asked a child lately? I have. For some, change isn’t for the better. Life for them doesn’t reflect innovation or even embrace it. Whether it is a mindset within their surroundings, a comfort-zone of knowing the predictable, or a lack of resources, I simply have students that shun the change that I have brought to their learning… to their world. To the one thing they considered safe and predictable.

So how do we bring upon change that is within their grasp… their means… their box? What would life look like to them if we simply did not change because our resources were less limited than that of a neighboring district? Are we then sending the message that they are just stuck in a situation that they have little to no control over? Are we validating excuses to define our situations and outcomes?

As stated in this week’s IMMOOC Podcast, the phrase “Don’t Over-complicate It” stood out to me along with many other #EDUAwesome moments with Katie Martin, John Spencer, Aj Juliani and Brianna Hodges.

Brianna Hodges, Director of Digital Learning at SISD, talked about the social concern and her creation of “A Heartbreak Story” to bring empathy and compassion for the child that does’t fit into the box we have created in education and society as a whole. This hit home with me… that was me! I had very little, but I believe that is why I was so innovative from a very young age.

I was forced to think within my constraints so that I could feel a glimmer of the “AMAZINGNESS” George talks about. As a child, my projects looked nothing like the store supplied ones that my peers brought to class. I had to find something within my home that could portray the concept being taught. I chose to empower myself by using what was available to me and finding ways to borrow or seek out resources from places like my local girls club or library.

I had to dream a little bigger.

Dig a little deeper.

I had choices to make each day… either I could take full advantage of every opportunity or allow it to slip through my fingers. I needed a teacher who would create better opportunities for me… someone to bring better learning to my world. I needed innovation… it was a sense of hope… a brighter tomorrow that I yearned to be a part of in this world.

As an educator I feel the restraints… the limitations of not having resources at my disposal. I have a classroom of students with a WIDE range of experiences so how can I bring change for the better to each of them? What do I have to offer?

I continue to empower myself by connecting to other educators, writing grants, borrowing materials, and creating my own opportunities with professional development. Empowering myself to develop my own skills has been key to the successes my students have gained.

I must be a part of innovation… to create a sense of hope… a brighter tomorrow that my students yearn to be a part of in this world.

I must create change…

Amazing change…

I simply must innovate inside the box, the mind of a child.

Domain 1: Planning and Preparation, Domain 2: Classroom Environment, Domain 3: Instruction, Domain 4: Professional Responsibilities, ISTE Standard for Educators

I Can’t Go With Them

March 7, 2018March 7, 2018 nankr1120

I have had more conversations around this topic than any other in the time that I have been teaching. It has looked different, sounded different, and has been reacted to differently. Yet, my response is always the same. No, I cant go with them… and would you really want me to?

Building a legacy for your learners is never about you. Once you humble yourself to recognize that one simple statement, you will then build up each child so that they are ready to take on the world… with or without you!

EMPOWER!

When I first read the incredible book EMPOWER by John Spencer and A.J. Juliani, I felt like they had been inside my head as they were writing. It spoke to me… it was an outlet for my thoughts. The quote “Student choice is the heartbeat of ownership and empowerment“ was exactly what I had been trying to say. I felt vindicated. I felt… heard.

Do I want a child that can only learn through my method? My style? My way? Or do I want every child learning through their method… the one that shines a light on their strengths and passions. One that shows their own unique style that they learn to love and appreciate. A style that they can channel their knowledge and learning through for a lifetime and not for 180 schools days with ME. Their way… their choice… their voice so that they can learn to make decisions that they are able to own through personal experience.

Empowerment is one of the most exciting words for a human-being, yet it scares the pants off of most. This struggle is so real for educators. You must be willing to take the RISK… but no one is saying you have to do it alone! Or worse off without preparation or backing. This is where I reach out… to a new book, a Twitter Chat, my PLN built by ME! I am only alone if I chose to be (Not so much the exact quote of George Couros, but the truth is embedded)… there are educators around the world ready to support me at the drop of a hat because I have empowered myself to build these relationships.

This mindset is the same for my students. One that they must be flipped for and by themselves within the first few weeks of having me. It is scary for them. It is exciting for them. It is messy. It is CHAOTIC. AND at times like herding cats, but…

We must breakdown their mindset of compliance before we can build up EMPOWERMENT in their learning!

I create this opportunity for my students with the 30 Second Pitch… it encompasses Mindset, Research, Connect4, and their Moment all wrapped up in one. They must plan and pitch their idea to me in 30 seconds or less. Not an easy task, but it takes them from

MAY I

I CAN

in one shift to their learning.

Domain 4: Professional Responsibilities, Personal Learning

Take a Risk and Get Into the RING!

January 29, 2018 nankr1120

Introducing first…. from the innovative mindset of education… He hails from Edmonton, Canada and was rated by many as the best influence on change in education… and for best change agent of the last decade. With a leading book in education, sought after keynote, and leadership consultant… Weighing in on student voice and giving their education a purpose. He is a former teacher champion, principal champion, and CHAMPION FOR ALL STUDENTS AND EDUCATORS…

GEOOORGE

COUROSSSSSSS!!!!!!!!

Yes, that is how I think of #IMMOOC… it is powerful and commands attention. It is a game changer for all educators. Just imagine what this season will be like when we LEVEL UP OUR LEARNING with Innovator’s Mindset, EMPOWER AND… Learner-Centered Innovation.

Whether you lurk or take the risk and join in, you grow by being part of the experience. JOIN US… you know you want to!

How do I get in to the #IMMOOC ROUND 4 ring you ask?

SIGN UP… just do it! Once you add your name to the list of EDUrisktakers you have already stepped forward in your thinking. (sign ups will be posted soon!)
YOUR VOICE AND CHOICE will steer your learning… you decide how much you can give and in return that is what you will take away. Big or small the takeaways ALWAYS impact!
DON’T FEAR THE BLOG… this may be the biggest issue for many educators. Worrying that they do not know how or may not know what to write. THAT IS HOW MOST OF YOUR STUDENTS FEEL EVERY DAY! This is your safe place just like you provide to your students… growing together in place of isolation is powerful!
TWITTER CHATS… you won’t receive a personal invite in a fancy envelope. This is a platform open to EVERYONE. Type in #IMMOOC and you will see the questions posted. It is a typical Q and A style format. You will see Q1 for Question 1 and you will respond with A1 for Answer 1. Just don’t forget to put #IMMOOC at the end of your answer (If it isn’t there automatically) to keep your response in the chat itself.
BE A CONTRIBUTOR not just a consumer… WE NEED YOU! If everyone simply consumed we would be self absorbed mirror images of one isolated way of thinking. Give… get into conversation… SMASH up your ideas with others and let EDUrelationships form for the betterment of your students, colleagues, and YOU!
Most often there are weekly videos to watch and reflect on… this is usually the jump-start to your blogging. There is no one way to reflect. This is your blog… JUST SPEAK YOUR TRUTH and others will chime in!

Here is your opportunity… get ready to do something AMAZING!