Innovative Education in Vermont
Exploring innovative, personalized, student-centered school change
There is a reason that we’ve written so many stories about students doing cool projects in and with their communities! Relevant, real world learning experiences are highly engaging for young adolescents. The learning and work feels meaningful, and youth feel energized with their emerging sense of agency: I can make a difference in my community. …
Continue reading “Introducing our Community Engaged Learning Toolkit”
There is a reason that we’ve written so many stories about students doing cool projects in and with their communities! Relevant, real world learning experiences are highly engaging for young adolescents. The learning and work feels meaningful, and youth feel energized with their emerging sense of agency: I can make a difference in my community. …
You know the vibe when you walk into a classroom where everyone is engaged and buzzing with learning, and the room is humming with good energy? It’s not accidental. Culture takes deliberate work to build and grow. Learning is happening. Collaboration is smooth. Laughter is present. How do we get more of that? Building community, …
Continue reading “Introducing our NEW Community & Culture Toolkit!”
You know the vibe when you walk into a classroom where everyone is engaged and buzzing with learning, and the room is humming with good energy? It’s not accidental. Culture takes deliberate work to build and grow. Learning is happening. Collaboration is smooth. Laughter is present. How do we get more of that? Building community, …
In this episode, we welcome author, educator, and Vermont transplant Kathleen Kesson who talks about Community Schools Blueprint: Transforming Our School Community Partnership. Kathleen and I talk about the possibilities we see for widening the cracks in traditional schooling by building opportunities for students and communities to support one another in authentic, real-world ways.
Like so many students this past year, the 7th and 8th students at Crossett Brook Middle School in Duxbury, Vermont, were in a hybrid mode of learning due to Covid restrictions in their school. They spent two days in the school building in small group pods and three days learning remotely from home. The three …
Continue reading “How a PTO connected students with community during COVID”
How do we effectively engage people in our community who aren’t already predisposed to discuss race and the impacts of racism? How do we pull people into a community conversation on race? Especially people who aren’t already striving to be more antiracist? I’m not entirely sure, but I do know that the more community conversations …
Continue reading “Lessons learned from a community conversation on race”
How do we help students connect to their communities, and consider how to enrich community life? That’s the question Chrissy Park and her 3rd through 5th grade students at Burke Town School, in West Burke VT, have spent their year exploring. Together and in-person, they considered ways they could all take part in their community. …
Continue reading “Connecting students to community in the Northeast Kingdom”
Using mergers as community opportunities Vermont Act 46 mergers challenged communities to restructure systems. Under a mandated merger, two schools came together to build one thriving community, focused on building a healthy culture. Challenging, yes? Through a shared, engaging advisory program, these two schools worked together to establish a culture that explicitly values: identity development …
Breaking bread & stereotypes with formerly incarcerated Vermonters Food and community are inextricably linked. Birthdays, funerals, weddings, holidays: a meal with family and friends is a powerful component of our life celebrations and milestones. We create connections and build relationships around the dinner table, the buffet line, and the sheet cake. What happens when we …
Starting how you mean to go on New year, new students. New school, sometimes, and a whole new opportunity to help a group of students celebrate and explore their individuality while respecting and appreciating each other’s differences. And yours, too. Let’s explore five resources for building community in your classroom during the #1st5days.
Meet the Compassionate Faces of the Shires How do your students recognize compassion? Do they recognize it in the faces of your community? In Manchester VT, one educator set about teaching her students to recognize and honor compassion in community members.
Meet the Humans of Burke So many schools operate in isolation from the very communities they are situated in. Do your students know community members? Does your community see your students as young community members? One small school in Vermont’s remote Northeast Kingdom interpreted the popular “Humans of New York” project to foster connection between …
Hope launches in the Northeast Kingdom As part of participating in the UN’s Global Goals, students at Burke Town School, in West Burke VT, kicked off their service learning projects by inviting their community’s leaders to come to the school and ask for what they needed. What would make West Burke a better place to …
Continue reading “Kick off project-based learning with a community event”
How did an 8th grader turn his passion project into a summer job? I found Connor in the tech ed room during the first session of Brainado, a school-wide Genius Hour at Crossett Brook Middle School in Duxbury, Vermont. He was taking apart a lawn mower. When asked why, he shrugged and mumbled something about …
Connecting learning to local communities, including community members, businesses, museums, cultural centers, organizations, and educational institutions.
Community conversations about education What would you tell your neighbors about your school? What do you think they’d say in return? The Washington West Supervisory Union has set out to find out, by hosting a series of community conversations. Life LeGeros, a Tarrant Institute professional development coordinator and WWSU community member, is taking part in …
Starting up with our students Another exciting year is upon us. It may be difficult to wrest our attention from these glorious days of Vermont summer but never have the opportunities for good teaching been more open to us. As one teacher noted upon leaving this summer’s Middle Grades Institute, “I can bring about positive change in …
Middle school students power Brattleboro’s radio days Brattleboro, Vermont was incorporated back in 1753, a former military fort that embraced trading, commerce and the power of nearby Whetstone Falls to spur mill production. It was where Rudyard Kipling settled to write The Jungle Book, and where Harriet Beecher Stowe came to seek the famous 18th …
Continue reading “Making history on the radio with community partners”
4 lessons learned A few months back, I wrote about how the Washington West Supervisory Union (WWSU) here in Vermont had initiated a series of conversations with the community with a kick-off film screening and discussion. I noted that “the most exciting thing about the conversation was the feeling in the room that we, as …
Continue reading “Facilitating community conversations about education”
A tech-rich case study from rural Vermont The team from Hazen Union Middle School, in Hardwick, Vermont, conducted an action research project over the fall semester of 2015, centered around deepening students’ connection to their community. They called the unit “I Belong”. It provided students with tech-rich opportunities to engage with the small and rural community of their …
4 lessons from a recent gathering On Friday, March 11, more than 50 participants from public and private schools, community education partners, and higher education from Vermont and the surrounding region gathered for a Community Based Learning workday, put on by Big Picture Learning, Eagle Rock School, Big Picture South Burlington, and Partnership for Change. …
Continue reading “Community Based Learning in Vermont: What’s going on?”
A case study in engaging your community I attended an event last week that was of huge personal and professional importance: a screening of the film Most Likely to Succeed followed by a facilitated conversation. As a new community member, it was inspiring to see a transformative vision of schooling put forth by education leadership. As …
Continue reading “How schools can conduct a community conversation”
Last week we looked at the sugaring operation at Essex Middle School. The students at the Edge Academy built a sugar house a few years ago, and now they produce maple syrup for their school every year. Math teacher Phil Young has intertwined the project with his mathematics curriculum, and students use iPads to support …
Continue reading “Sugaring and the community part 2: Students become teachers”
Early spring is sugaring season in Vermont. We produce the lion’s share of the domestic output of maple syrup, and we’re pretty proud of it. The process of tapping trees, collecting sap, and boiling it down has many connections to STEM education. The students and teachers of the Edge team at Essex Middle School built …
Continue reading “Sugaring, STEM, and community connections”
Here in Vermont we’re lucky to have a strong sense of community spirit. Co-ops, partnerships, collectives; these concepts run through many different parts of our lives. We also happen to live in a state with a rich and developing science and technology start-up scene. These two parts of our culture can combine to grow partnerships …
Continue reading “In support of Community Partnerships in STEM”
Family & Community Involvement Part of successful technology integration in schools is the welcoming of families and community members into the dialog around 21st century learning. Whether it’s communicating with families about 1:1 rollouts and take-home devices, or providing connections between motivated students and worthwhile community projects, here are some resources to help guide your …
Free app for students to make quick and easy back-to-school slideshows
Meet the digital anthropologists of Cabot, Vermont In fulfillment of their project-based learning research this past spring, this pair of middle school students decided to learn more about different regions of the U.S. by interviewing members of their small, rural Vermont town who had lived in those communities. They took the resulting interviews and embedded …
Continue reading “How to: showcase community interviews with digital tools”
Presentations Local Presentations Grow Community Through Service Learning and Leadership. Katy Farber & Peter Stratman. Presented at Vermont Fest, November 2018. Conversations About Micro-Credentialing. Susan Hennessey & Tim O’Leary. Presented at Vermont Fest, November 2018. Ideas Into Action Through School-Driven Change. Penny Bishop, John, Downes, Scott Thompson, and Life LeGeros. Presented at Rowland Conference at …
Legacy Schools
John Dewey once famously said, “We do not learn from experience…we learn from reflecting on experience.” As the Tarrant Institute for Innovation Education (TIIE) sunsets as an organization, we found it appropriate to reflect and share some tidbits of what we have learned. Here are some thoughts and reflections from former TIIE staff (alphabetized by …
Continue reading “Some final reflections from former TIIE staff”
We have a saying around here that “middle school is not a building” and we also believe that classrooms do not have to be rooms. There are so many benefits to being outside for humans’ wellbeing and for students’ learning. We’ve collected our favorite blog posts – find the toolkit’s permanent link here. Outdoor and …
Continue reading “Introducing our Outdoor and Place-Based Learning Toolkit”
We have a saying around here that “middle school is not a building” and we also believe that classrooms do not have to be rooms. There are so many benefits to being outside for humans’ wellbeing and for students’ learning. Outdoor and place-based learning are tightly connected with so many other things we hold dear. …
Equity is the moral imperative behind all of the work we do here at the Tarrant Institute for Innovative Education. In this new toolkit, we have collected many of our favorite posts about equity, including analyses and syntheses about equity in general, how to support equity in professional learning and in classrooms, and examples of …
The moral imperative behind our work at TIIE has always been equity. It is also the basis of the middle school movement that we hold dear, which originated as a challenge to the status quo of junior high schools. As progressive educators, we promote shifts in education to bring more equitable outcomes, more humane learning …
Dillin, a seventh grade student at Newark Street School (NSS), had this to say about starting school with 30 minutes of daily movement: “So my perspective is, I really like it. It gets you healthy. Your heart beats, and then you get ready for the day you have after you’re done doing it. Like you …
Continue reading “Prioritizing daily movement and experiential learning in Newark”
At the Tarrant Institute, we write a lot about Project Based Learning (PBL). We consider it one of the engaging and meaningful instructional pedagogies that we endorse. As an approach, PBL offers many of the traits that address the important needs of young adolescents. It engages students in thinking about real-world problems, gives time for …
Continue reading “Introducing our new Project Based Learning toolkit”
At the Tarrant Institute, we write a lot about Project Based Learning (PBL). We consider it one of the engaging and meaningful instructional pedagogies that we endorse. As an approach, PBL offers many of the traits that address the important needs of young adolescents. It engages students in thinking about real-world problems, gives time for …
It’s no secret we’re big fans of advisory around here. And we don’t just mean the time on the schedule that’s called “advisory,” but the practice of circling up with students to build relationships and connections, share ourselves, and laugh, play, and maybe occasionally even cry together. Which is why we’re so excited to announce …
It was a perfect match. The sixth grade team at Lyndon Town School were looking for an end of year interdisciplinary project. They wanted students to reconnect with the community after two years of pandemic schooling. The Town of Lyndon was calling for community members to help generate ideas about how to improve downtown. They …
Many schools and classrooms across the country identify student skills for success. Ideally, those skills cut across content areas and are grouped within grade bands. They are communicated and prioritized within the learning community. While Vermont’s AOE has identified five Transferable Skills, some learning institutions choose different ones – sometimes also known as “21st century …
Many schools and classrooms across the country identify student skills for success. Ideally, those skills cut across content areas and are grouped within grade bands. They are communicated and prioritized within the learning community. While Vermont’s AOE has identified five Transferable Skills, some learning institutions choose different ones – sometimes also known as “21st century skills”. …
Continue reading “NEW Essential Skills & Dispositions Toolkit”
A positive and collaborative adult culture is essential to a positive and collaborative student culture. As educators, we must attend to both. We can’t expect our student culture to thrive if that quality is not present in our adult community. As adults, we set the tone. Schools should be places where everyone is a learner, …
Continue reading “Introducing our NEW Adult Culture toolkit”
A positive and collaborative adult culture is essential to a positive and collaborative student culture. As educators, we must attend to both. We can’t expect our student culture to thrive if that quality is not present in our adult community. As adults, we set the tone. Schools should be places where everyone is a learner, …
Introducing our updated PLP Toolkit Knowing each student well is essential to a year of flourishing for students and educators. It’s a prerequisite to ensuring equitable access to belonging and wellbeing, a culturally-responsive learning environment, and deep learning. And it enriches the relationships so central to a thriving school. Personal learning plans (PLPs) can …
Continue reading “PLPs to Know Students Well: Introducing the Personal Learning Plan Toolkit”
The Why We teach a precious and somewhat precarious age group. Our middle grades students are in the throes of one of life’s most pivotal and seminal periods in human development. They are growing faster than at almost any other time in life, and are grappling with some of life’s most significant milestones which will …
The school year is almost over and this one may well be remembered as your toughest yet. If hardship makes us stronger, we’ve got that covered. And, we have learned lots about how to be, live, and teach in this challenging time. My first two posts nudge us to consider slowing down and rethinking what …
Continue reading “What Matters Most Now: Lesson Three – Authenticity”
Lovely listeners, welcome back. I’m Jeanie Phillips, and on this episode, I get to talk about “The Last Cuentista”, a book by Donna Barba Higuera. It’s a fantastic middle grades book that touches on the tension between technology and organic life, duty and desire, along with what we know about identity — and how we …
This is a the first in a series of blogs with attention to education priorities in the not-so post pandemic world. The Crisis I have been immersed in middle school education for decades. I have always been grateful to belong to such an amazing community of educators who share the same magnificent obsession. Because this …
Continue reading “What Matters Most Now: Lesson One – Slow Down”
Welcome, listeners, to another episode of vted Reads: talking about books by, for, and with Vermont educators. In this episode… we own an oversight. On this show, we are dedicated to breaking down systems of inequity in education. We administer flying kicks to the forehead of intersectional oppression! But we haven’t yet talked about disability. …
Continue reading “#VTED Reads: Care Work with Dr. Winnie Looby”
Testing helped me be successful in school. And it was horrible for my learning. I was good at tests. The more standardized, the better. Multiple choice questions were my jam. I specialized in figuring out the correct answer even when I didn’t understand the material. My *bs* abilities were off the charts, which helped for …
Continue reading “Rethinking assessment to rebalance education”
As we move through another calendar year impacted by COVID, I find myself taking stock of what’s important for our young people. While this pandemic has irrevocably changed all of us, it has perhaps impacted children and young adults even more significantly. What’s more, our schools have been tasked with nearly impossible charges. Keep humans …
Jeanie: In this episode, I sit down with educational phenoms Christie Nold and Jess Lifshitz. And we’re joined by Brendan Kiely, Author of The Other Talk: Reckoning with Our White Privilege. Now, you might be wondering what The Other Talk actually is. As many of you know, black people and other people of the global …
#vted Reads is a podcast by, for and with Vermont educators, discussing books for professional development and use in the classroom. Host Jeanie Phillips sits down with an educator, student or author each episode and together, they look at a book they feel is relevant for Vermont learners. Whether it’s YA, popular press or professional …
What if we could give more time to educators, many of whom are overworked and in danger of burnout? The Kingdom East School District (KESD) did it, and other districts could too. Recognizing that educator wellness is the foundation for student wellbeing and learning, KESD added ten early release days to their calendar. Teachers use …
Continue reading “How one district gave teachers the gift of time”
Listeners, I’m going to ask you to bear with me on this one. This is one of my favorite episodes we’ve ever recorded because, in it, you’ll hear students at U-32 school in Montpelier, Vermont, get to bring their questions about the book “Dig”, by A.S. King, directly to the author. If you haven’t read …
Many of the routines of the school day have been frayed by the pandemic. From kids unable to engage in work to walking out of class altogether, we are seeing norms and relationships stretched and tested like never before. This might even be described as “normal” right now — as in that it’s the norm, it’s …
Lovely listeners: today is a work day. Now, we all know that talking about anti-bias work is a vital component of the kind of school change that makes our classrooms safer and more engaging for students of color. Doubly so when we are white educators, and when we teach in predominantly white spaces, in predominantly …
Dear Readers, We are rolling into that time of year when we hope that you find time to get cozied up to a good book. These short amounts of daylight should beckon us to find warm and bright spots within our homes. For many of us at TIIE, that means getting into your favorite chair …
Need more student engagement and wellbeing? Join the club! Educators are always looking for ways to get students more engaged with school. In this third school year impacted by the pandemic, engagement and wellbeing are more important than ever. Ample research links extracurricular opportunities to student engagement and to social emotional learning. We also know …
Continue reading “Student clubs for engagement and wellbeing”
Lovely listeners: we’re baaaaaaack! And we missed each and every one of you. To celebrate our return, in this episode we brought back guests from *Vermont* Reads, a statewide program that encourages everyone across Vermont to read one book each year, and then turn and, you know, talk to one another. We are HUGE fans. …
With contributions from Emma Vastola Take a moment to think about a learning experience that was meaningful to your students. How do you know that it was meaningful? How did they communicate that to you? In the Two Rivers Supervisory Union (TRSU), middle grades students are documenting their meaningful learning experiences using PLPs. You can …
In late October, the middle school 7th and 8th grade team at Flood Brook School realized that the 2021 school year was off to a rocky start. Students and teachers alike were pretty miserable. So, they bravely brought their entire team community together – that’s teachers, students and support staff – for a three day …
The recent issue of the research journal Middle Grades Review was extraordinary for two reasons. First, it focused on the intersection of personalized learning and social justice education. And second, Vermont educators authored all but one of the articles. I encourage folks to peruse the entire issue, but this may not be realistic in the …
Continue reading “A Vermont-centric look at personalized learning for social justice”
Even in the best of times, October can be a tough month for teachers. And it’s hard to call covid times the best. In the latest issue of Educational Leadership, noted teaching coach Elena Aguilar suggests several ways to boost teacher resilience. Paired with understanding what personal efficacy looks like for young adolescents, teachers and …
Continue reading “Building resilience (for all) through personal efficacy”
What we can learn from Kingdom East School District’s summer camp? The 2020-2021 pandemic school year was uniquely challenging and extraordinarily exhausting. As the summer of 2021 got underway, the typical summer break excitement was tempered for many families due to tapped out energy sources and monetary resources. Vaccine rates were climbing and some aspects …
A student-led conference that brings together the student, teacher, and parent or guardian is a very powerful thing. It puts the student in the driver’s seat. This format varies a bit from the traditional parent-teacher conference. There is no mystery and student anxiety as they sit home and wait to find out what teachers said …
“Be yourself; everyone else is taken.” That. Quote. Drives. Me. Nuts. I mean, duh! And of course! And who else am I gonna be?! [Also it makes the librarian in me nuts because it is often attributed to Oscar Wilde, but there is no evidence he ever said it. Additionally, he doesn’t seem to have …
Continue reading “Student-centered personalized learning starts with identity”
As we begin the year with students in our classrooms, it’s important to start with a focus on building the culture. Whether it’s by building the culture for advisory, or building the culture for project-based learning, or just building relationships in the classroom and team, one thing is certain: time spent now on building culture …
The most wonderful time of the year It’s that time of the year again – the beginning of a new school year. The launch of a new school year has always felt like another occasion to wish everyone Happy New Year! (Confession: I have definitely been known to exuberantly exclaim ‘Happy New Year’ to colleagues …
Hooray for summer! Sure, we usually say something along those lines this time of year, but this year? ONCE MORE WITH FEELING. And with that, we turn to our Tarrant correspondents for a peek into the reading bags, shelves, carts and– *squints* — trees, that keep our folks out of trouble.* We’re off reading and …
Art for social change? How do you engage students in an exploration of the ways that art impacts social change? Sounds challenging. Right?! But the teachers at Rutland Middle School decided to tackle the task anyway. Through this exploration, students learned more about the UN Global Goals for Sustainable Development, visited local murals in their …
Back on the show: it’s Bill Rich! But first: Lovely listeners, a few episodes ago, we turned fifty. Fifty! Can you imagine? It took us a hot minute (and um, more math than we’d care to discuss) to figure that out but this is the season that took us to FIFTY EPISODES. And we are …
How can a school community emerge from isolation to reflect on individual and collective experiences from this uniquely challenging and transformative year? This spring, Hazen Union Middle/High School came back together around a creative engagement installation: the Sounding Board. Part of a broader Hazen Youth Voices Project — a collaborative initiative launched by the school’s …
Continue reading “Fostering a Sound Culture at Hazen: Youth Voices and the Sounding Board Project”
Listeners! Today I’m joined by Jaida and Emma, two marvelous students from Southern Vermont, and the three of us share our love of picture books. The art, the messages, the emotions, the relatability… the art. So we’re going to be asking you to listen to this episode with both your ears and your eyes — …
From the innovativeEd mailbag: a reader looks for ways to keep pathways of conversation open with their colleagues when it comes to talking about difficult topics. Meet “Flummoxed in Flannery”. “Dear InnovativeEd, With everything that’s been going on lately, simple conversations with coworkers have turned into a minefield of hurt feelings, recriminations and misunderstandings. So …
Continue reading “From the innovativeEd mailbag: Flummoxed in Flannery”
Audio only Resources Slides from “Fostering Brave Spaces” Annotated Transcript Hello, my name is Grace Gilmour. I’m a seventh and eighth grade social studies teacher. And today I’m going to be talking about: “How do we foster brave spaces for discussions about race and other forms of oppression in our classrooms?” In the fall …
In the past few months, we’ve been meeting with groups of students from six Vermont schools, asking them about their experience this year. What might next year look like if they had a say? Inspired by the Imagining September Project –the MIT Teaching Systems Lab & Harvard’s Graduate School of Education that gathers student input …
When schools closed to in-person learning in March of 2020, UP for Learning’s Youth Advisory Council (YAC) continued to meet regularly. We wanted to check-in and dialogue about their experiences and the experiences of their peers. Through these conversations, it became clear that it was important to understand how youth across Vermont were experiencing their …
On this episode… we have Ann Braden!!!! Ann is one of my favorite authors, and she’s also a former Vermont educator with a new book out, The Flight of the Puffin. Flight of the Puffin truly feels like a middle grades book for our time: it’s the story of four completely different middle school students, …
St. Johnsbury School District is committed to building on their assets, seeking input from all stakeholders, and planning in phases to seek sustainable transformation. Nationwide, education leaders are planning for the conclusion of one of the most challenging and weirdest school years ever. Simultaneously, they are working on medium and long-term planning for post-pandemic schooling. …
Continue reading “St. Johnsbury District’s reignite planning process”
Flood Brook School has been talking about a classroom library audit for A LONG TIME. Like, a real long time. It became one of those running jokes in some of our classrooms. 7th and 8th graders talked with teachers about how inclusive (or not) our libraries are, and we always intended to do a formal …
“Increasing Student Self-Direction” was a webinar presented by Rachel Mark as part of the 2020-2021 UVM Tarrant Institute Professional Learning Series. We present it here in its entirety. You can either watch the webinar recording, listen to an audio version, or read the annotated transcript. Follow-up questions about self-direction in your classroom? Email rbmarkvt@gmail.com. …
Middle school students are ever-changing, curious, socially and globally aware, and incredibly capable. Their energy and urge to explore can be channeled into rich and fertile learning territory. It’s such a privilege to walk alongside them as they grow during these often tumultuous years. Folks often say it takes a special kind of person to …
Continue reading “The successful, sustainable middle school”
Chicago-based educator and twitter wunderkind Jess Lifshitz joins Jeanie on the podcast to talk about Dr. Gholdy Muhammad’s seminal text on equity and criticality: Cultivating Genius: An Equity Framework for Culturally and Historically Responsive Literacy. Jeanie: Thank you so much for joining me, Jess. Just tell us a little bit about who you are and …
At their heart, Culturally Responsive Practices (CRP) are about teaching the way students learn. It is an unfortunate truth of being human that we are biased by our own experiences. As Mahzarin Banaji, a professor of social ethics at Harvard University says, “The quickest way to define what implicit bias is [is] to say it …
Continue reading “Culturally Responsive Instruction and Assessment”
This week, something new for us: a letter from our mailbag. While we aim to help everyone on a regular basis, it’s always exciting to hear directly from our readers. In this case, we try to provide a little context-setting for a reader who goes by the handle, “Sustainably Yours”. “Dear InnovativeEd, I’ve been …
Continue reading “From the innovativeEd mailbag: Sustainably Yours”
Today on the podcast, Alex Shevrin Venet joins us to talk about her new book, Equity-Centered, Trauma-Informed Education. How does it work in classrooms? How can you, as an educator, use your own coping strategies to dismantle inequity at your school? Will action research help? And what does convincing your landlord to let you have …
If you want to know what an organization prioritizes, examine its budget. If you want to know what educators care about, look at their curriculum. Curriculum is perhaps the most concrete representation of educational values. Students’ day-to-day experiences are rooted in their direct engagement with this bundle of lesson plans, materials, and assignments. We package …
Continue reading “Culturally Responsive Curriculum by design”
Oh lovely listeners, we are all still here, and we are all noticing the change of the seasons. This year the melting of the snow and the return of the sun are coinciding with a COVID-19 vaccine becoming available. We know, lovely listeners, that you are all feeling that complicated mix of joy, sorrow and …
Lindsay McQueen, a middle school science educator at Edmunds Middle School, in Burlington VT, originally presented “Challenging Simplified Notions About Health Equity in the Middle Grades” in January 2021. She presented it as part of the 2021 Middle Grades Conference at the University of Vermont. Below please find a video recording of the workshop, optimized for …
Continue reading “Challenging Simplified Notions of Health Equity in the Middle Grades”
“How to Facilitate Healthy & Respectful Conversations (Online & Off)” is an interactive online workshop for educators that we offered in March 2021. It featured Vermont educator Kathy Cadwell and six of her students at Harwood Union High School, in Moretown VT. In this workshop, Katherine Cadwell and her students shared their experiences addressing the …
Continue reading “How to Facilitate Healthy & Respectful Conversations”
Are you wear-your-mask-in-a-pandemic brave, listeners? Or get-vaccinated-when-needles-scare-you brave? On this episode of the podcast, we’re joined by Vermont author and educator Lindsey Stoddard, who’s here to talk about her new middle grades book, Brave Like That. We’ll talk about the many different kinds of brave you can be, along with how students know that tiny …
Natalie Smith, a middle school science educator at Lyndon Town School, in Lyndonville VT, originally presented “Making Science Authentic: Teaching Place-Based, Decolonized Ecology in the Middle School Science Classroom” in January 2021. She presented it as part of the 2021 Middle Grades Conference at the University of Vermont. Below please find a recording of the …
Continue reading “Place-Based, De-Colonized Ecology in Middle School”
Signs of spring surround us: snow is melting, the days are lengthening, and the mud has returned. So it must be time to think about school gardens! School gardens have become increasingly popular over the past few years, and for good reasons. They’re highly engaging, and ripe with educational opportunities, ha ha. But did you …
Continue reading “Personalized learning in the spring garden”
We’re here to talk books for educators, by educators and with educators. Today I’m with Dr. Penny Bishop and we’ll be talking about The Successful Middle School: This We Believe, by Penny and her co-author Dr. Lisa Harrison. Thanks so much for joining me, Penny. Tell us a little bit about who you are and …
Continue reading “#vted Reads: The Successful Middle School”
Imagine a place where every person can be their authentic whole human selves. A culturally responsive learning environment is a place where everybody belongs. The posters and images on walls, books and materials on shelves, the furniture and flow of the space all radiate belonging. These tangible items convey important information: what is valued, …
Continue reading “The Culturally Responsive Learning Environment”
Right now the problems of the world can feel so very big. And we can feel small. We can feel powerless. We can wonder: what’s the point? To which we say this: one person is the key to systemic, lasting change. One person is enough. Because the power of one multiplied by many? Changes …
In January 2020, the Vermont state legislature proposed a resolution formally apologizing for the legislature’s role in passing a 1931 law making eugenics perfectly legal and encouraged in the Green Mountain State. Meanwhile, on the Standing Rock Reservation, in South Dakota, the future of the Dakota Access Pipeline is in doubt, but only at the …
Continue reading “#vted Reads about Equity & Cultural Responsiveness in the Middle Grades”
Mornings at Mount Holly used to buzz with parents and kids in the cafeteria, in the hallways and in our classrooms. There were so many opportunities for parents to get to know this place where their children spent so much of their day. I knew that was not going to be the case this year: …
Continue reading “How a classroom newsletter gave my students a voice”
Are you there, #vted? It’s me, Jeanie. On this episode of the podcast, we’re re-joined by one of the very first guests on our show, Jory Hearst. She returns to talk about All-American Muslim Girl, by Nadine Jolie Courtney. Jory shares her own journey through and relationship with Judaism, and the ways she found her …
We talk a lot, as professional development coordinators and as educators, about self-direction. We think a lot about ways to support self-directed learners, offering them “choice and voice” while trying to make sure we support them in their learning. (And hey, educators, you’re learners too. I’m a learner. We are all, to some degree, self-directed …
Continue reading “Scaffolding success for self-directed learners”
Ways to move beyond “I’m fine” How are you? No, really. How are you? Right now, that’s a tough question for me to answer. Most days when asked this question, I take a shallow breath and reply, “I’m fine.” But I really notice when someone takes a look in my eyes and sincerely asks me …
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Walking through what it looks like to take commercial curriculum and develop a vibrant, personalized integrated unit. One thing we hear all the time in our work as professional development coordinators is: “How do you both personalize learning for students AND use the curriculum materials adopted by the district or school? Aren’t these things in …
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This year, I am hearing that many teachers feel they aren’t practicing the kind of teaching they believe in as much as they are used to and want to. They are stretched thin with all of the protocols and decisions and shifting situations the pandemic brings. That personalized learning, and service learning, feel further away …
On this episode, it’s the return of Aimee Arandia Østensen! She’s here to talk with me about The Dark Fantastic: Race and the Imagination from Harry Potter to the Hunger Games, by Ebony Elizabeth Thomas. We reflect on what we read growing up, and have deeply spicy thoughts about fan fiction, Island of the Blue …
The fifteen year old boy slowly hobbled from the parking lot to the school’s main office, stopping to adjust his crutches. He was welcomed by the school’s Flexible Pathway Coordinator, Ian Dinzeo for their 10 o’clock appointment. They both sat down, masked, at opposite ends of a table in the school cafeteria – which offered …
Digital peer mentoring at Lamoille South Unified Union School District As the coordinator for my school district’s full-time virtual option this school year, I knew that I’d be spending much of the year in problem-solving mode, likely for problems I couldn’t even imagine yet. While not every problem has an immediate solution, we have found …
On this episode of #vted Reads, we welcome Erika Saunders back to the show! Erika agreed to guest-host an episode, talking about Children of Blood and Bone, by Tomi Adeyemi. She’s joined by Philadelphia-based educator Monique Carter, as they talk about: the emotional resonance of your own language, especially if it’s lost and you ache …
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As ever-increasing cracks in the foundation of our democracy reveal weakness and corruption, so too do these revelations allow the light of justice and truth to penetrate. As educators, our work to help young people learn to communicate across differences, think critically, and work for justice is as important as ever. This remains an apt …
Editorial Note: This post was scheduled for publication prior to the events in Washington, DC on January 6, 2021. As ever-increasing cracks in the foundation of our democracy reveal weakness and corruption, so too do these revelations allow the light of justice and truth to penetrate. As educators, our work to help young people learn …
Lovely listeners, we have such a treat for you today. Joining us on this episode of the show is Vermont State Librarian Jason Broughton. Now, when I asked him to be on the show, I also invited him to choose the book we’d be discussing, and he chose the wonderful graphic novel ‘Marbles: Mania, Depression, …
It’s not you; difficult conversations are a lot right now. While it’s fair to say that the history of the world consists of “being a lot” at regular intervals, right now is a moment where multiple unlikely catastrophes have collided, exposing deep rifts in conventional society. A lot of people we know and love hold …
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When is a “lol” not a “lol”? Would a “ftw” hit as hard by any other name? Two things: Shakespeare’s now spinning in his grave like a turbine, powering most of greater Stratford; That’s absolutely fine with us. Language evolves. It grows and bends and twists and curls back on itself like you wouldn’t believe. …
Continue reading ““Because internet”: learning to communicate in different online spaces”
Now, more than ever. Many schools have an advisory structure to promote strong relationships and a sense of close community. And advisory already serves many purposes. It can be a place for close bonds, adult mentoring, connection and also great fun! But have you ever thought of advisory as a place for practicing mindfulness? Stress …
Spoiler alert: When we adjust learning conditions to be more in sync with the known laws of brain-based learning, learning improves. Momentum builds. Trust the science For 15 years I’ve been helping Vermont educators and school systems apply what we know about the brain to inform what we do in our schools. And for 15 …
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At the beginning of the school year, members of the middle school leadership team at the Lyndon Town School (LTS) in Lyndonville, Vermont, were doing what they do every week: reflecting and planning. Unlike most schools in Vermont during the current pandemic, from day one they were working with students in person five days each …
How do you blend a time-honored tradition and an unprecedented moment of social, civil and personal upheaval? Carefully. Very carefully. So, in order to make lemonade from 2020’s truckload of lemons, currently broken down in the fast lane of our lives, let’s look at 5 keys to a successful virtual parent night. 1.Provide choice — …
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De-Colonizing Your Thanksgiving Curriculum is the title of an interactive online workshop for educators offered in late October and early November of 2020. It is a collaborative project of Gedakina, the UVM Institute for Innovative Education, Shelburne Farms and Vermont Learning for the Future. The courageous co-facilitators of this webinar are Judy Dow, Emily Hoyler, …
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In this episode, we get real about what educators can do in their classrooms to make a more equitable playing field, how to walk that fine line between supporting student activism and co-opting it, and how to juggle the competing demands of educational and intersectional change. Also, we talk local soccer. It’s a full workout …
Continue reading “#vted Reads: So You Want to Talk About Race”
What does outdoor education and place-based learning look like right now? One of the recommendations from leading health officials is to conduct classes outside. But what if you’ve never done that before? What if you could use some pointers? How are other educators tackling this topic? And why should we keep taking students outdoors, …
Hybrid and remote teaching environments require us to tap into everything we know about designing engaging and targeted learning opportunities. At the same time, the contexts are often unfamiliar. So what we need is a blended and hybrid teaching toolkit. When looking to design a successful remote or hybrid learning experience, consider thinking about what …
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In this episode, we sit down with the executive director of the Vermont Humanities Council, Christopher Kaufman Ilstrup. The Vermont Humanities Council runs Vermont Reads (not to be confused with Vermont *ed* Reads), in which they choose a book for our whole state to read, ponder and talk about. This year, that book is Angie …
Because being “present” is very different from simply being here. Everyone reading this blog has very clearly moved on from beginning each day by simply reading out a list of names and putting a big old checkmark next to each one. Everyone. Those horror stories we’ve heard, about students being marked absent simply because they …
Physical, social, and emotional health are the top priorities in our learning communities. Period. End of story. Educators have been preparing for the opening of schools with this in mind. Thinking through endless what-if scenarios. Arranging and rearranging classrooms to observe best observe social distancing guidelines. Reading constantly updated and addended protocols. In addition, hand …
Yeah. Me too. Everything is a lot. Everything… keeps getting to be even more of a lot, and somehow we expect to throw a smile on our faces and, whenever someone asks us if we’re fine, to pretend we are, instead of saying: ‘I’m sad. I’m struggling. I’m overwhelmed. Please just let me lie here …
In some way, shape or form, we are all going to be using videoconferencing with students in the near future, to some extent. And while many of us have experience with this situation, as the situation around us continues to evolve, we feel like it’s helpful to think about basic understandings. Namely: What do you …
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Schools have been preparing for students all summer: developing protocols for handwashing and bathroom use, deploying hand sanitizer stations, hanging signs to remind students to stay socially distant, measuring and taping classrooms, cafeterias, and hallways. It’s *A LOT*. You are carrying an enormous burden, and I applaud your hard work, creativity, and fortitude. It is …
Listeners, I’m angry. I’m angry about the failure of our political leadership, the unmitigated disaster of climate change, and the risks we’re asking our educators and students to take right now. I’m angry, and I’m hurt, and frustrated, and I’m not the only one. I know you’re angry, and I know our students are angry. …
We’re all terrified, anxious, and… back at it in schools! So, as we return, let’s look at this big list of socially distanced advisory activities. Some work for being in-person, some work for being virtual, some work for both. But let’s face facts: at this point we’re all here to build community and chew gum, …
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It’s becoming increasingly difficult to think and talk about innovative school change. It’s difficult to see the start of this school year with a heart that’s anything but desperately worried for students, for teachers and for families. We want this school year to be fruitful in terms of learning, but we’re also shocked and dismayed …
Continue reading “What can we learn from summer unschooling?”
This show is a little different. Listeners, I want you to think of this show… as a pre-show. Let me explain. Today I’m joined on the podcast by Aimee Arandia Østensen and we start discussing the book Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge and the Teachings of Plants, by Robin Wall Kimmerer. I say ‘we …
The days of hosting public exhibitions and showcases in the school gymnasium appear to be over. For now. Some schools and educators, however, have been very clever at hosting socially distanced and virtual exhibitions of student work and learning, despite the pandemic. Why provide an audience for student work? We know that student engagement and …
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Will schools really re-open this fall? And what will they look like? Most of all: how will we ensure that our teachers and students are safe? Even though I usually do my best to think about anything but school during summer vacation, this year I’ve been tuning into the conversation on reopening. Why? For one …
Continue reading “Measuring the value of a personalized learning coordinator”
The return to school is usually filled with excitement, anticipation, and maybe a little nervousness. This year though? Much more nervousness with the excitement. How can we anticipate what it will take to keep teachers and students safe? While each of our communities and school leadership put their hearts and minds into that question, we’re …
Continue reading “Re-connect & re-imagine this return to school.”
Hello there, educator friends and colleagues! I hope this note finds you in a good moment. Good moments are crucial and to be cherished to be sure. Though they aren’t everything. Let me explain. July brought so many good moments for my family. My wife and I took several weeks off of work. We limited …
I’m Jeanie Phillips and we’re back for a third season of vted Reads! Books by, for and with Vermont educators. Kicking off this season we’re joined on the show by author and former teacher Kate Messner. Kate’s here to talk about how we can use books about some dark topics as conduits to reach students …
A couple of weeks ago, we had the chance to take part in a collaboration between the Vermont Agency of Education and Vermont Public Radio (VPR), celebrating the strange and wonderful ways this year’s graduation differs from those in years past. What do graduations look like in the time of COVID-19? The hourlong program featured …
Do you remember those pre-COVID days? All of the exciting plans, the face to face collaboration, the FIELD TRIPS?! The teachers and students at Two Rivers Supervisory Union had *BIG* plans: a four-day, four school, in-person Sustainable Development Goal Academy. Fifth and sixth-grade students from Cavendish Town Elementary, Chester-Andover Elementary, Ludlow Elementary, and Mount Holly …
Middle school is not a Zoom room. When the quick switch to a remote environment was required, Charlotte Central School decided to go with what they know. And these folks know their students. Specifically, they know “Personal Interest Projects” (PIPs, aka passion projects, aka Brainado, aka curiosity projects) work for their students. Charlotte Central students …
Schools are committed to bringing anti-racism into curricula and systems more than ever before. Even in predominantly white schools there appears to be a growing acknowledgment that anti-racist education is crucial for all students. Big changes seem to be underfoot. And that’s a wonderful thing. But there will be pushback. White fragility and white rage …
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What has taken shape in the world with COVID 19 has given me pause to wonder what matters most in life and as an educator a chance to query about what matters most in education. I am quite sure that for all of us, the COVID19 pandemic is uncomfortable, disruptive, scary, and deeply saddening. I …
George Floyd and Breonna Taylor were once middle schoolers. Black. Lives. Matter. As the Tarrant Institute for Innovative Education, and as white individuals, we are complicit in benefiting from a system designed to tear down and exploit Black lives — physically, economically, and spiritually. As an organization, and partner in systems change, we bear …
Listeners: our hearts are breaking. Our hearts are breaking for all of Vermont’s Black students, Black educators, and Black families. But frankly, our broken hearts are not nearly enough. Right now, we need to talk about what this all means for Vermont. What it means to interrogate in schools, and in classrooms, and in ourselves. …
Continue reading “#vted Reads: Hemingway, with Elijah Hawkes”
“What is the implication for how we understand ourselves and each other in reference to our racial identities? And if we are dissatisfied with the way things are, what can we do to change it?” –Beverly Tatum, Why Are All the Black Kids Sitting Together in the Cafeteria? This is not the post we originally …
Ah, the end of a school year. Always frenetic, and beautiful, and tear-filled and inspiring. Filled with rituals that educators and schools have developed with and for their community to bring closure. And now, this year. How can we develop new rituals or modify existing ones to honor everyone’s hard, hard (hard) work at the …
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Why the Marco Polo app? With social distancing and remote learning on educators’ minds, there’s never been a more urgent need for communication that’s clear, effective, bandwidth-respecting and multi-platform. The more ways we can connect our learners with each other, and extend out-of-school access to community partners, the better. Our usual ways of communicating at …
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I’m Jeanie Phillips, and welcome to Vermont Ed Reads: books by, for and with Vermont educators. Today on the show, we welcome Mike McRaith, who’s here to talk about Nora Samaran’s Turn This World Inside Out: The Emergence of Nurturance Culture. How *do* you hold harm, and harmony together in the same space in a …
Today on the 21st Century Classroom, from Super Sisters Academy: It feels really weird, because in some ways it’s kind of cool to see how you can be homeschooled. But then in other ways you’re like, “Ohhhhh, it’s kind of scary.” Because we are staying home because of the virus that’s going around and for …
In this episode of The 21st Century Classroom: I don’t think a lot of people think that I’m a hunter. I feel like when I have like a good connection with my teachers, they will get to know me and realize that I hunt and fish and do a lot of outdoor stuff, but like …
I’m Jeanie Phillips, and this is Vermont Ed Reads: books by, for and with Vermont educators. Today we’re joined by Philadelphia-based educator and “Learning Maximizer” Erika Saunders, to talk about the book Stamped: Racism, Anti-Racism, and You, by Jason Reynolds and Ibram X. Kendi. Jeanie: Thank you so much for joining me, Erika. Tell us …
It is spring. I know, snow has fallen and it has been cold lately, but it’s officially May. And while school might not look like every other bustling year with our end of the year celebrations, showcases, exhibitions, and events, we can still find ways to celebrate and share student learning. You might find yourself …
Continue reading “How to throw culminating events — online!”
During this COVID-19 crisis, we as adult educators, are collectively mourning the loss of our everyday routines and face-to-face interactions. And students are too. As educators, we know that routines are important, and so is face-to-face connection. Meaningful connection with other humans is critical to a young adolescent’s health and well-being. Right now more than …
I mean really, how are you? More than anything I wish I could sit down with you, face to face, and have a long chat. I’ve been missing my community: the teachers and students I get to work with, the educators I get to learn alongside, the folks I see at conferences and restaurants and …
JOY + CARE + RESILIENCE Co-written by Audrey Homan and Katy Farber Lots of educators, students and families are telling us that we can’t simply replicate in-classroom learning via video conferencing and assignments. It is *too* much for teachers and students and families. It doesn’t offer the kind of hands-on learning we know students enjoy, …
Oh, remember back when we had our project-based learning culminating events all mapped out? Students presenting at Dynamic Landscapes! A school wide community celebration of Cabot Leads! Presentations at Cultivating Sustainable Pathways.. and the Vermont Rural Education Collaborative conference. So many plans, spring days, joining together to celebrate and witness each other’s efforts! Full. stop. …
The need for trauma-informed practice is particularly salient during the current global pandemic, when many if not all of us are experiencing trauma daily. And educators are working hard to translate trauma-informed practice to emergency remote learning. Luckily, we have experts like Alex Shevrin Venet engaged in the current moment. She’s a local Vermont educator …
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Getting books in the hands of students is crucial to supporting their sense of well-being and reducing anxiety during the Stay-at-Home order. And while we here are massive fans of ebooks, we also don’t want to overlook the importance of the good old-fashioned paperback. To recap: paperbacks are good. Ebooks are good. Audiobooks, graphic novels, …
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Collaboration is not just fun for students, it’s also a crucial skill they will need to be successful in life. Yet with our need to stay home these days, students are desperately missing the social connections a classroom provides, and many are seeking other channels to maintain these connections. We know our students thrive when …
Continue reading “Scaffolding students with Padlet and Flipgrid”
I’m Jeanie Phillips and welcome to #vted Reads, we are here to talk books for educators, by educators and with educators. Today I’m with Meg Falby and we’ll be talking about two books by Laurie Halse Anderson: Speak, and Speak: The Graphic Novel. We’ll also be mentioning Shout, Laurie Halse Anderson’s memoir in verse. Lovely …
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Parents, how are you doing at home with your new “homeschool classroom”? I’m with you. I’ve been waking up every day for the past two and half weeks feeling like I am in the movie Groundhog Day. via GIPHY Despite having been a middle school teacher for nearly 20 years, I feel like nothing has …
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Ideas have been flying around the interwebs. Teachers want ways to connect with their students during remote learning. Creative ways to check in with students, provide a safe space with belonging and community and care at the core. So! We crowd-sourced activities from the incredible #vted community and other trusted resources. You’ll see them credited …
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On this episode of The 21st Century Classroom: M.: I learned to, well, use a computer. That’s a big one. And then I also learned to help and be a kind person and try to do as well as I can. For this episode, we’re in the Two Rivers Supervisory Union, in Southern Vermont. Ace …
I’m Jeanie Phillips, and welcome back to #vted Reads, the podcast for, by and with Vermont educators. And I? Am still here. As are you. Now, we recorded this episode with our lovely friend Lindsey Halman back in February 2020, a time that at this point feels almost like a long-ago Camelot, or perhaps as …
We find ourselves in a new frontier, suddenly in each other’s homes with online faculty meetings. Now that we are here, how can we make sure to continue to build community, plan, coordinate remote learning, create resources, while upholding some boundaries and norms? Here are some ideas for online norms for faculty meeting that might …
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I just got off a Google Meet meeting with teachers. They were trying to decide how to engage with students every day. Starting Monday, this teacher team will share a morning message in Google Classroom, and ask students to post a note back. Simple, and yet a way to see who is there and showing …
Just like our colleagues across the state (and world, really), educators in the Greater Rutland County Supervisory Union (GRCSU) have risen to the challenge of completely transforming the way education is delivered — practically overnight. GRCSU is responding to remote learning. I’m fortunate and grateful to have been working with GRCSU for the past three …
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Hello #vted community. We know things have changed *really* quickly. First and foremost, we are wishing you health and wellbeing. We know you are working hard to get what your students and schools need right now and we want to help. We’re working with partner schools around Vermont to provide resources and support around the …
There is not one right response or plan for school closures. Each school community faces different needs, contexts, and situations. And we know in some regions of our beautiful state, access to high speed internet and digital devices are limited. So, not all #vted schools are going to have the same plans for remote learning. …
Continue reading “Creating your school plan for distance learning with limited internet access”
So you’re moving to remote learning. There’s a lot to prepare for, and before anything else, relationships to maintain, strengthen and nurture. One important aspect to consider is how you can adapt the schedule of the learning day to provide structure and reduce anxiety during this period. Consistent schedules help. With so much in the …
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As schools consider moving to remote learning, you may be pondering how to continue the supportive and carefully developed community you have been building since day one of school at home. Perhaps you are worried about your students, especially the ones who might not have much supervision, resources, or even high-speed internet, because folks, this …
Being a student again is harder than I expected, and it’s also been quite revealing Recently, I decided to go back to school to pursue learning in a completely new field. It’s exciting! It’s challenging! And, it’s a little scary too. I can’t call on my years of experience as prior knowledge. I’m learning concepts, …
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I’m Jeanie Phillips: welcome to #vted Reads, the podcast by for and with Vermont educators. And today, with Vermont students as well! We recorded this episode at last year’s Teen Lit Mob. What’s Teen Lit Mob, you ask? Teen Lit Mob is Vermont’s only book-related conference specifically for young adult readers. Students from all around …
How PAML scaffolds screencasts for students Students and their families at Peoples Academy Middle Level have participated in student led conferences for a number of years now. What’s new this year? The opportunity for each 5th and 6th grader to tell the story of their learning through video evidence and reflection. It’s these “Learner Story” …
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We’re not talking enough with students about climate change At least, many of us are not. At the Global Youth Climate Strike last fall, I spoke with a lot of students who are really concerned about the future. Like, really concerned. Topping their list of worries is that not only are adults not doing enough …
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Welcome back to #vted Reads! The podcast for, with and by Vermont educators. I’m Jeanie Phillips and in this episode, we’re joined by Dolan, in talking about Juliet Takes a Breath, by Gabby Rivera. Along the way, we talk white fragility, preferred pronouns (and how your students can let you know what’s safe and appropriate …
Do you have your own yearly cycle of internal seasons? I think I’m realizing I do: spring is a time of anticipation, lengthening light, new growth, and inspiration. Summer finds me kicking back, slowing down a bit (I’m not a hot weather person), sitting still in rivers as the water flows around me, and ruminating. …
I’m going to be honest with you, writing this blog post about self-direction has taken, well, a lot of self-direction. I’m a busy person with agendas to develop, meetings to attend, reading to do… and it’s been really easy to put other work ahead of this post. What’s a Professional Development Coordinator to do? I’m …
When we talk about a student in an intervention meeting, we often start with what is amazing about that student. Teachers and caregivers who know the students deeply rattle off talents, skills, and strengths. These are personal and often show up outside of school. There are so many ways to be smart, creative, and self-directed. …
Continue reading “A critical lens on project-based learning”
Welcome to another episode of #vted Reads! We’re so glad you could make it. In this episode, we talk with librarian Margi Putney, from the Burr & Burton Academy, down in Manchester Vermont. She and I read Dive Into Inquiry: Amplify Learning & Empower Student Voice, by Trevor MacKenzie. Don’t those two things sound amazing? …
Today on the 21st Century Classroom: Beckett: When the school systems were created was to produce factory workers, to have good workers for their assembly lines and could make cars and they all knew basic information and could all say the same facts. It was a standardized person pretty much, being produced into the workforce. …
Continue reading “What CVU students want you to know about education”
On this episode of #vted Reads, we’re joined by noted Native scholar Judy Dow, to talk about Hidden Roots, by Joseph Bruchac. This book and the issues it raises are incredibly important for us to address as both educators and Vermonters, given Vermont’s appalling history with eugenics. So as a quick content note: we’re going …
Teacher Leaders are agents of innovative school change Situated in the heart center of education, teacher leaders are the true heroes of the education system. Your vision and passion lead the quest for deeper learning and transformation. Your intuition and experience guide your path. But what happens when you see the way to bring more …
Hello there! Happy New Year! We hope you had a relaxing and restorative break filled with whatever it is that gives you joy. Whatever helps you reboot. Mine included plenty of books, skiing, socializing, puzzles, hot beverages, and delicious food- sublime! But you know what I didn’t do this year? Make any New Year’s Resolutions. …
It’s that time of year again! Time for New Year’s resolutions! Could you use a little boost as we kick off the new year? Then why not visit your school’s makerspace? Did you know that you can use your makerspace for instructional shifts? This includes shifts to: project-based learning; more constructivist learning; learner-centered learning; more …
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Much happening this week in our worlds. And equally much to look forward to as we approach not only school vacation but also the shortest day of the year. A deficit of light, yes. Yet we celebrate the turning of the tide toward longer access to sun. We’re eagerly on our way toward the gift of …
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with Kendra LaRoche Here at #vted Reads, we are big fans of finding yourself in a book. Whether you’re a stinky, nervous wreck of a middle grades student or a winsome and confident Vermont educator who can still empathize with the… stinky, nervous wreck of a middle grades student, we love the kind of books …
You made it to break! The longest stretch of the school year with no breaks? That’s *behind* you. And we know it’s taken so much work to get here. Relationship and community building, teamwork experiences, new schedules, colleagues and procedures. When I was a fifth and sixth grade teacher I often made it to this …
On this episode of the 21st Century Classroom: Veronica: My name is Veronica, I’m 13, and I’m in eighth grade. Emily: And why are you here, Veronica? Veronica: I’m here because every morning I wake up afraid. And so knowing that so many other people feel the same thing? It makes me hopeful, for the …
Continue reading “What I Learned at the Youth Climate Strike”
Hoo boy, we have a CORKER of an episode for you today, with On The Come Up, by Angie Thomas. We’re going to be talking about some of the continual and heartbreaking trauma students of color face in our schools, as well as the incredible resilience of mothers. I’m joined today by Marley Evans, a …
#1. Making lists As a fan of lists, I went to bed Monday night mulling over my top 10 list of why snow days and school closings are a miraculous gift (to most of us)! High on the list is negotiating with my 17-year-old daughters on times to wake them. Glad to say option three …
What could it look like to get credit for real world math proficiency? Here’s something you should know about me: I knit furiously. All the women in my family do. I learned to knit when I was six, lovingly coached by my grandmother, my mother, and my great aunt, a magician who could turn anything …
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Chapter 1: Personalized Learning for Young Adolescents Foundations and Connections Personalized Learning and Personal Learning Plan,The Glossary of Education Reform, New England Secondary Schools Consortium How Personal Learning is Working in Vermont, Penny Bishop, John Downes, and James Nagle, Educational Leadership, 2017 Promising State Policies for Personalized Learning, Susan Patrick et al., iNACOL, 2016 Chapter …
Now that you understand the why of proficiency-based and personalized learning, are you ready to see the how? Learning Lab VT throws open the doors of classrooms around Vermont, so you and other educators like you can see personalized learning in action, up close and personal. Your hosts are educators just like you, who, along …
How can we shape Opportunity Time to introduce the power of personalization to young adolescents?
Chrissy Park is a grade 3, 4, 5 teacher specializing in project-based learning at Burke Town School, in Burke VT. cpark@kingdomeast.org | Visit Chrissy’s school Inquiry question: “How does personalization and project based learning help children connect and engage in their local community?”
Seeing students for who they are and what they can do We’re all still looking at various tools for building PLPs with our students but one thing we can all agree on is the power of PLPs to let us more clearly see our students, and learn more about them as individuals. Let’s look at …
Lucie delaBruere has spent 30 years in Vermont school teaching and learning with students from kindergarten to grad school. For 20 years her classrooms at Concord HS, Cabot School, and North Country HS and Career Center were filled with project-based learning that was hands-on minds-on and integrated within both local and global community. Her students …
On this episode of The 21st Century Classroom: It makes me happy to come to school every day, because I show up and I’m like, I know I’m able to do this because I changed the way it was. Like I’m happy that I feel like I’m being heard, like appreciated. Today we’re going to …
Continue reading “What Orleans students want you to know about student voice”
Listeners: how do you talk to your students about the special love that exists between a woman and a Sasquatch? Or between an insect and a robot-powered building? And where and how do you determine which texts are appropriate to give to students? On this episode of the podcast, I’m joined by Sarah Birgé, a …
Continue reading “#vted Reads: Dreadful Young Ladies, with Sarah Birgé”
This episode is all. About. QUESTIONS. Why are we here? Who was here before us? What kinds of stories do we tell about the world around us? And: how can we change from seeing the world as something to be studied, to something that can be acted upon …and changed. First-year educator Thierry Uwilingiyamana — …
Continue reading “#vted Reads: Place-Based Curriculum Design”
Seeing back-to-school activities & personalized learning through the lens of trauma-informed classroom practices I had a eureka! moment this summer. We are so lucky when our critical thinking converges ideas in ways previously unrealized. It transformationally reframes our thinking. Those moments enrich ourselves and arrive with the promise that our private learning should have public …
This one goes deep, folks. On this episode educator Corey Smith joins me to talk about The Benefits of Being an Octopus, by Ann Braden. We talk glitter and posterboard, coffee and peanut-butter smoothies, and using the Equity Literacy Framework to dismantle inequality in our systems of learning with both students AND adults. What might …
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What would you do if you were given the time and space to create a school where students could tell you exactly what and how they wanted to learn? Where they arrived cheerful and excited with boundless energy for the school day… And what if I told you it was grounded in the most powerful …
Continue reading “On the cutting Edge of student-centered education”
What is a Personalized Learning Plan (PLP)? Ultimately, a PLP is a tool. It can help us get to know our students better and teach us how to support each student’s learning. PLPs can also be: A creative way for students to show their identities, hopes, and interests A portfolio documenting students’ learning journeys. Demonstrations …
Climb every pillar… The “three pillars” are a helpful way to envision the three components of personalized learning. They’re interdependent, working best when implemented together. Together they can help us create improve learning for young adolescents. Green Mountain Union High School provides students with a program known as Wilderness Semester. Students learn outdoors skills …
Continue reading “1.1 The Three Pillars of Personalized Learning”
Just what is Personalized Learning? Personalized learning is a partnership between students and teachers in the design of learning that emerges from students’ interests, questions, needs, and preferences, towards an aim of self-directed learning (Bray & McClaskey, 2014). The best personalization is both personal and social, filled with purpose, and rooted in community. It’s a …
VTDigger reports that Vermont Secretary of Education Dan French said “From our standpoint, we portray districts being on a journey. Just like everyone in the world is on a journey. And we don’t see 2020 as some sort of hard and fast date.” However, regardless of a deadline, we should remain focused on centering equity …
Continue reading “3 ways to ensure equity is at the heart of your work”
Morning meetings are the norm in many K-6 and K-8 schools in Vermont. They’re a great way to empower students to find their voices and build community. Now here are five ways to organize and structure morning meetings to build transferable and socio-emotional skills (and build those strong relationships that matter so much!): (Not …
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What do PLPs and proficiency-based assessment have in common? They both emphasize what students CAN do. They’re not about ranking, sorting, and labeling. They’re about growth, progress, and opportunity for all. First, some definitions: According to the Vermont Agency of Education: The focus of proficiency-based learning is on students’ demonstration of desired learning outcomes. Students …
Continue reading “Ch 7: PLPs & Proficiency-Based Assessment”
HELLO! I’m Jeanie Phillips and welcome back to vted Reads! We’re kicking off our second season of the podcast with none other than author, professor, associate dean and Vermont education LEGEND, Dr. Penny Bishop. We’ll talk VT PLPs, the power of a compelling school example in changing classrooms practices, and how to steal all the …
Continue reading “#vted Reads: Personalized Learning in the Middle Grades, with Penny Bishop”
Ah, that second pillar. Flexible pathways are key to engaging learning. They’re all those great ways we engage students actively and meaningfully. According to the Vermont Agency of Education: Flexible Pathways are any combination of high-quality expanded learning opportunities, including academic and experiential components, which build and assess attainment of identified proficiencies and lead to …
The beginning of each school year gives us a chance to build new relationships. A learner profile conveys who our students are. We’ve already explored identity activities like This I Believe; how might we discover other aspects of students’ lives? Here are a few ways to get to know your learners. Be sure to offer …
Creating a personalized learning environment requires time and effort, for sure. It takes team building, as well as collaboratively setting expectations and procedures for how your group will learn together. The good news is that PLPs can actually help create this strong learning climate. At The Ottauquechee School, in Quechee VT, educator Kim Dumont conducted …
Remember that first pillar? You know, the one that had PLPs at the top and knowing students at its foundation? Right! It emphasized providing a window into students’ identities. Students need to feel safe at school, to know that they can truly be themselves, and that they’ll be seen, heard, accepted, and encouraged for who …
PLPs are for anyone who can provide access, enhance meaning, increase support, and expand learning for students. Wait! That means all of us! Families and caregivers. Student-led PLP conferences often help families see their child in new and positive ways, which can be helpful when many are starting to turn away from adults and toward …
In a personalized learning environment, students and teachers take on new roles. Teachers are still essential, but in different ways. They’re empowerers, scouts, scaffolders, assessors, and community builders. Teachers are: empowerers. scouts. assessors. scaffolders. community builders. This is personal, close-in work. And often it better meets students’ needs, improves relationships, and deepens learning. By adopting …
Knowing each student well is essential to a year of flourishing for students and educators. It’s a prerequisite to ensuring equitable access to belonging and wellbeing, a culturally-responsive learning environment, and deep learning. And it enriches the relationships so central to thriving among youth and adults alike. Personal learning plans (PLPs) can drive a rich …
Why? Because we believe: All students can learn. The purpose of assessment is to determine the next steps for learning. The goal of education is not to sort and rank learners, rather to help ALL learners grow towards their potential. Students are partners in creating meaningful and relevant learning experiences and environments; their voice and …
What is meaningful instruction? Meaningful instruction is the heart of the proficiency based education model. Educators know that good teaching is personal, relevant, engaging, responsive, dynamic, and rooted in strong student relationships. Meaningful instruction includes plans for how instructors will provide multiple ways for students to learn, engage, and practice what they need to know, …
What are Learning Goals? Learning goals define what proficiency looks like in concise, student-friendly language. While educators may break down the goals into different sized learning targets or progressions, what is crucial is that students understand what they are learning and that they are able to make it relevant to their lives. Explicit, measurable, transferable …
OK, so middle school students crave personally meaningful and engaging learning experiences. How do we create these? Ta-da, featuring a non-exclusive list of strategies and practices designed to do just that. Please add your own in the comments and let us know what we’ve missed! Project-based learning In Project-based learning, students identify a question they …
Sometimes pursuing systemic equity in education can feel a little like the carrot vs. the stick. Since No Child Left Behind, federal education policy has talked about equity while applying punitive measures to schools based on students’ aggregate performance. We have been largely mired in deficit-based policy that is ineffective for spurring transformation and generally …
Engaged, on-topic…and talking over each other? Here’s a scenario: student book groups. Everyone’s read their assigned chapters and prepared for their meeting. The group gathers to begin their discussion. Except what happens is this: the first question is posed, and instead of listening to one another they all begin talking at once, leaving little spaces …
Continue reading “Building discussion skills through Socratic Seminar”
Tracing a middle level social identity unit Identity. Oppression. Social justice. Structural racism. Liberation. These are some intense ideas to grapple with at any age. Yet 6th grade student Deng isn’t willing to wait: “We need to learn about this stuff early on before it gets pushed off and becomes a problem. We are the …
with 6th grader Abby Bunting As we close out the first season of #vted Reads, we celebrate another first: our first student guest on the podcast. In this episode, I’m joined by South Burlington sixth-grader Abby Bunting, as we discuss the book Watch Us Rise, by Renée Watson and Ellen Hagan. We’ll meet the book’s …
So, maybe you’ve been using protocols at faculty meetings or professional learning community sessions. Perhaps you’ve found that they make space for all voices in conversations about proficiency-based education. Or you like how they foster collaboration as you work together to structure personalized learning plans. Know what else they can do? Support us as we …
In this episode of #vted Reads, I return to my old stomping grounds at Green Mountain Union High School. I’m talking with school counselor Ally Oswald, about the realities of reaching and teaching students in poverty. Reaching and Teaching Students in Poverty is also the title of a 2013 book by educator and reformer Paul …
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At Flood Brook School, middle level teachers believe in an integrated approach to curriculum delivery. Four years into implementing an integrated (science & social studies), multiage (grades 6-8) approach towards units of study, Charlie Herzog responded to student concerns with a focused inquiry cycle asking this important question: How might student attitudes towards integrated units …
Continue reading “What does integrated studies look like at Flood Brook?”
There’s more math, biology, and chemistry than you’d think. It’s a wintry morning in one of the coldest Februarys in recent memory, with the temperature hovering around five degrees Fahrenheit. A cobalt-blue hatchback slowly navigates icy slush on a dirt road, heading toward two silver grain silos. The rutted road winds between deep snow berms, …
Continue reading “Connecting Vermont students with dairy farms”
Reader, today we’re going to talk toilets. Now, not in a weird way or a gross way, but because they’re a central theme in Susin Neilson’s No Fixed Address. They’re big white porcelain symbols of the main character’s resourcefulness as he navigates housing insecurity, and they’re really important to think about in terms of access …
Continue reading “#vted Reads: No Fixed Address with Annie Brabazon”
7 tips for educators Create a place where all students lives are seen and valued. Expand the idea of what is possible in your classroom or school library. Every student should be able to see aspects of their lives reflected in the books, media and resources they interact with. But they should also be exposed …
These 4th graders say yes. With a little help from the UN’s Global Goals. Students at Ottauquechee Elementary School took Minecraft, the popular video game platform, and turned it to something serious: saving the world. They paired Minecraft with the UN’s 17 Global Goals for Sustainable Development, and started creating towns that are innovative, sustainable, …
The Case of The Library Diversity Audit Whose stories are being told in your library? Whose stories are being left out? Look around your library. It is such a beautiful space. It’s filled with vibrant colors and flexible furniture, student art and encouraging signs and posters. Maybe it has a makerspace. And it’s stocked full …
Cornelius Minor likes to ask himself three key questions. One: what are his students trying to tell him? Two: What are they *really* trying to tell him, through their actions, and their silences? And three, what do these students — who he worries he might not be reaching — all have in common? I’m Jeanie …
Continue reading “#vted Reads: We Got This, with Kathleen Brinegar”
Think Global Goals, make local change The UN’s 17 Sustainable Development Goals are ambitious goals that countries, organizations, and institutions are committed to. They provide a framework that inspires students to connect local issues with global movements, to care deeply, and to make their own a plans for positive change. They include things such …
Continue reading “How to make real, sustainable change in the Northeast Kingdom”
The why and how of personalization An inquiry question forms the backbone of action research in the classroom. It guides the full shape of the research to come, and forms a foundation for the educator and students to build ongoing research. Learning Lab VT is a program with action research at its heart — action …
Foundations & Connections Learner Profiles, The Institute for Personalized Learning Vermont Personalized Learning Plan: Conceptual Framework Narrative for Students, Vermont Agency of Education Examples & Tools Identity Project: Who am I now? Lindsey Halman, Essex Middle School Personal Learning Plan Community Page, Team Summit, Montpelier Main Street Middle School, Vermont How Can Students Teach Educators …
Continue reading “Chapter 4: Launching PLPs with the Learner Profile”
All about makerspaces Makerspaces! What are they, why are they useful, who are they for, and how do they work? What’s a makerspace? A makerspace is a space for creating and making. The term “makerspaces” conjures up different images in almost everybody who uses it. A makerspace can be many different things. Makerspaces can have all …
What does Jane Austen have to do with a Drake mixtape? For this episode, I was joined by Vermont rockstar librarian Meg Alison, in discussing Ibi Zoboi’s Pride, a Pride and Prejudice Remix. We talk about gentrification, agency, and the amazing power of spoken word poetry, we give a shout out to DisruptTexts and ask …
When I travel to schools around Vermont, I hear many versions of the same concerns: Going anywhere from our school costs hundreds of dollars. We want to take students into the community, but we burn through our budget by October. Transportation funds are running low (or are gone). We know it is so important to …
Continue reading “Vermont schools have a transportation equity problem.”
Battle Physics hosts first multi-school tournament That is just what Allan Garvin and Becky Bushey did to raise the stakes of their annual Battle Physics competition. After four years of engaging students in the designing, building, calibrating, and competing of projectile launchers, they invited other schools to join the learning and the fun. Wait… what …
Continue reading “Nevermind the physics: it’s all about collaboration”
Rural life and project-based learning You might find students on the skating rink in front of the school, helping out on a goat farm, dirt bike racing, heading to dance class, or fixing broken snowmobiles. All of these life experiences are important to students — and are valid learning experiences in and of themselves! We …
Thank you for joining us for another episode of #vted Reads. This time we will be discussing The Power of Moments: Why Certain Experiences Have Extraordinary Impact. We’ll look for ways to make classroom moments more powerful, explore opportunities to raise the stakes for your students, and visit the popsicle hotline. Oh, and we’ll talk …
Continue reading “#vted Reads: The Power of Moments, with Rachel Mark”
Mettawee Community School, in West Pawlet VT, loves tradition. They’re a small, tight-knit school in a rural area, and home to two very important traditions: the annual Christmas holiday fair, and the sixth grade trip to Boston. And in order to address inequity in one tradition, they developed a unique solution that tied the two …
What’s the plan? Here’s a quick reminder of my focus question for this year’s Learning Lab: How can social justice be a lens for personalized, student-designed curriculum? Here’s how — at this moment anyway — I would adjust the wording of my focus question: How can students use social justice as a lens for designing …
Welcome to Learning Lab VT Ever wonder whether you’re really up to the task of meeting your learners’ needs? We have. Our learners — Vermont middle and high school educators — are in the midst of a monumental transition that, done well, will ensure that Vermont’s public schools deliver on their mission of excellence and …
Curtis Taylor & Melissa Williams Taylor & Williams are 6th grade generalists at Crossett Brook Middle School, in Duxbury VT. Inquiry question: “How does a focus on personalization and community empower students to help themselves and their peers in a sixth grade classroom?”
Jen Roth Jen Roth is the middle level co-principal Charlotte Central School, in Charlotte VT. Inquiry questions: “What are the systems that need to be developed to support personalization in the school day/week? How can schools (students, teachers, and administrators) collect and share the learning process and outcomes of students with families and the community …
Sam Nelson Sam Nelson teaches 7th & 8th grade social studies at Shelburne Community School, in Shelburne VT. He is returning to the Learning Lab for his second year as host and participant. snelson@cvsdvt.org Inquiry question: “How can social justice be a lens for personalized, student-designed learning?”
Welcome back to #vted Reads! In this episode, we’re talking about the comic memoir Hey, Kiddo. As we discuss Jarrett Krosoczka’s real-life story, we find empathy for young people living with the impacts of addiction and mental illness. And we explore other themes: how to really see kids, the importance of representation in books, and …
What is Learning Lab VT? Learning Lab VT is a network of Vermont educators who are implementing personalized learning strategies with their students. This year-long experience provides a cohort of educators the networked support they need to partner with their students and each other to explore strategies that answers the questions: Why personalization? What, …
Equitable access for each & every student Many of us doing proficiency work in the state see it as a means of ensuring equitable access for all students. A proficiency-based learning environment asks the learning community to partner together. The goal: to make certain all learners meet clearly articulated targets for success. And, the VT …
Continue reading “What can we learn about proficiency from special education?”
Welcome back to #vted Reads! Now, I recorded this episode back in September out in San Antonio, at the School Reform Initiative’s Fall 2018 meeting. Author Terra Lynch was kind enough to chat with me about her book for the podcast between sessions. Recording spaces were kind of hard to come by at the conference, …
Continue reading “#vted Reads: Protocols in the Classroom, with Terra Lynch”
How can you tell the difference between projects and project-based learning? Turns out, even though they both might involve snazzy projects, they are quite different. Let’s take a look at how. This post is based on research of PBL resources (listed below) and classroom experience. Okay, PBL? PBJ? Let’s dig in. Here are some guiding …
In this episode of #vted Reads, we talk about the 57 Bus by Dashka Slater. Based on a real-life incident, this book chronicles the experiences of two young people before and after an act of violence. We explore both perspectives of a specific crime: the victims and the perpetrators. Along the way, we learn more …
Continue reading “#vted Reads: The 57 Bus with Caitlin Classen”
Reviving Manchester’s past through oral histories & 3D printing With support from the local historical society, 7th graders in Manchester VT set about documenting the history of individual buildings during the town’s 1910 heyday. They went on walking tours, interviewed longtime residents, dug through old historical documents and photos, produced a documentary for each building …
Continue reading “Who are the keepers of your town’s history?”
In this episode of #vted Reads, we talk about Troublemakers, a book by Carla Shalaby. We touch on what we’re really doing when we ask our students to code-switch, Black Lives Matter, and the trouble with classroom norms, and we pose the question: ‘How do school systems bestow unearned privilege on some, and un-earned hardship, …
Continue reading “#vted Reads: Troublemakers with Mike Martin”
Burke students share their learning with district leaders How many school board meetings have you sat through where the only voices you heard came from adults? When was the last time your community — in school or out — asked students what they liked about school? And what would you do with that information if …
Continue reading “How does your district hear from — and listen to — students?”
New to podcasts? Listen to a few! Before you jump into creating a podcast, get familiar with the format. Here are a few that are friendly for middle school students and their teachers: Dorothy’s List: VPR’s book club for kids But Why: A podcast for curious kids Short & Curly: An ethics podcast for kids …
Be better at team conversations You know that spirited colleague of yours who dominates, practically filibusters, staff meetings with her lamenting and haranguing? Or your colleague who is so thoughtful, but rarely speaks at staff meetings? Or it is you? Does your zest and passion bubble forth into conversations leaving little room for all voices? …
From Vermont to Mexico and back, via Smart Board As the world becomes increasingly more connected, so should our schools. For Vermont, many schools existing in rural isolation can take advantage of these connections to bring their students the world. Connecting classrooms globally is not new, but videoconferencing tools have made the experience easier, more …
Continue reading “How can students make global connections?”
The art of listening We are big believers in including student voice in our storytelling. Usually we ask students to talk about a specific project or experience that we are featuring. But what if we left it open ended? We wanted to find out what students would talk about in a free-flowing conversation about what …
Continue reading “What students want you to know about school”
Change is hard! And changing a school procedure that has been the same forever is even harder! Leland and Gray Middle School teachers started planning a transformation this past summer. Their goal? To increase student engagement through student-led conferences. The Process Start with identity. Middle school students began the year by focusing on identity. Educators …
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Equity in education has — and needs — many lenses. The work is hard, the work is myriad, the work is vital. While listening to VPR’s Vermont edition the other day, a friend and fellow author, Ann Braden came on the air, and was reading from her new middle grade novel called The Benefits …
Continue reading “Unpacking equity in Passion Projects and Genius Hours”
Good meetings can be hard to find We’ve all been there: staff meetings that could have been an email or team meetings spent admiring problems and getting nowhere. And I’m not claiming innocence here: I’m definitely guilty of creating bullet list agendas or meeting with no agenda (or outcome) at all. But over the past couple …
How student-adult partnerships can scaffold student leadership “Did you know that the same areas in the brain light up when a person is curious as when that person is given candy or money?” Stowe Middle School students Macey Crowder and Shelby Lizotte posed this question to Stowe’s school board during a presentation to their school …
One of the best things about winter break is the chance to slow down and, for readers, the chance to take a break from the madcap holiday festivities and curl up in the corner with a good book. Here’s what the TIIE staff are reading this 2018 holiday season. Audrey While I usually go for …
Steven Netcoh served as Postdoctoral Associate with the Tarrant Institute for Innovative Education 2018-2019. He received his Ph.D. in Educational Leadership and Policy Studies from the University of Vermont (UVM) where he studied personalized learning and flexible pathways in Vermont secondary schools. He has also focused on supporting students’ transitions to college academics through his …
We just held the Best. In-service. Ever. And all it took was a little love & empathy. Some in-service professional development days are better than others. Sometimes, we get to be active learners and receive just-in-time instruction (and maybe even the gift of time to apply that learning for the benefit of our students). Other …
Continue reading “Run the world (Teachers) aka #TeacherDirectedPD”
Starting with strengths Imagine you’re reading a written reflection from a student. This particular student writes so beautifully of the lines on his grandfather’s face, and of the time they spent out on the porch together, enjoying a warm spring night. You can almost see the sun setting and feel the wooden bench they sat …
with Katy Farber From real and relevant to what to do in the event of a mountain bike accident, the last predators in Middlesex, and the all-important question of who is responsible for the pizza at your exhibition of learning. That’s right: librarian Jeanie Phillips talks all about service learning with author and educator Katy …
Interested in checking out one of our amazing Learning Lab VT partners and their students in action? We welcome visits to all of our sites this 2019-2020 school year. Visits will become available at the beginning of November. If you’re interested in booking a visit, email help@tarrantinstitute.org for more information. Available sites to visit Charlotte …
Leland & Gray students take on a school community makeover At Leland & Gray Union Middle High School, students decided to make their school a more inspiring place to learn. They put in flower boxes, painted murals, planted a garden, assembled a forest nature walk and built an outdoor classroom — all in one week. …
Continue reading “What does service learning look like in Vermont?”
Genius Hour Genius Hour refers to open-ended, student-driven projects during a pre-deterrmined time. Students pick a topic and decide how they will exhibit their learning. During the research phase students often connect with mentors within the school or in the community. (Genius Hour is also called Passion Projects or 20% time.) Check out : This …
BINGO. Communication with student’s families outside of student led conferences (SLC) is vital. Giving parents the information they need in order to protect that time for the student voice to take the lead in sharing the learning, goals, and needs is essential. Let’s take a quick look at the why, when, and the how, with …
Continue reading “17 ways to communicate with students’ families”
There’s learning in the lemonade stand What might be your child’s first experience with business? That’s right: the lemonade stand. I mean, what is cuter and more compelling than a few eager kids selling sugar water? Believe me, I’m a sucker for a lemonade stand. In fact, I’m a sap for anything created by and …
How do you get fresh eggs on a school menu? Students at The Dorset School, in Dorset VT, did it by researching, designing and building their own school chicken coop. They crowd-sourced donations for materials and had some hands-on help from community members, and now The Dorset School is home to some very happy …
Continue reading “Building a chicken coop at The Dorset School”
Why do certain groups add up to be greater than the sum of their parts? In this episode of our podcast, we kick off our fourth season with legendary librarian Jeanie Phillips. She’ll be sitting down with a series of guests from around the #vted ecosphere and …reviewing books. Not just any books, but books …
Beyond the “About Me” page “What is important to know about me to help me learn?” Every student at Frederick H. Tuttle Middle School attempted to answer this question last year. Student responses took many forms: poems, videos, sculptures, visual art, and more. At the same time, teachers crafted their own projects in order to …
Continue reading “Scaffolding deeper identity work with students”
Who am I and who do I want to be in the world? What do I stand for? What is the good life and how can I live it? These are questions that most middle schoolers (and adults)-hopefully- grapple with at some point. And this philosophizing usually begins in middle school. Which means that middle school …
Continue reading “3 tools for exploring character with middle schoolers”
Reflections from the Burke Town School At Burke Town School, in West Burke VT, students and teachers dove into integrated project based learning (PBL) last year. Here’s what we learned. Building our PBL unit This work started with an eighth grade unit, based on the United Nations Global Goals for Sustainable Development. After hearing about …
Continue reading “5 lessons learned from an integrated middle school PBL unit”
Welcome to the Best Part of My Week And yours, likely. Peoples Academy Middle Level educator Joe Speers shares how to get students to communicate with their families. He uses a technique called The Best Part of My Week. Speers’ sixth grade students use the iOS Explain Everything app to record a short message to …
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It’s September. Your feet have probably not stopped moving for a few weeks, with the start of school, the meetings, getting to know your students, setting up all the systems and explaining all the procedures, learning about all the new changes in your schools. You might feel like your brain has too many tabs open. …
Continue reading “5 summer mindsets to bring into this year”
Welcome to the 21st Century Classroom Episode 47: Student Graduations in the time of COVID Episode 46: Quarantine home-schooling: Sisters Academy of Duxbury Episode 45: Hunter education in Vermont Episode 44: Mt Holly student conversations Episode 43: Talking with CVU students Episode 42: What I learned at the climate strike Episode 41: What Orleans …
Welcome to Learning Lab VT Vermont’s schools are home to some of the most innovative, passionate and skilled educators in the nation. And they’re opening up their classrooms to the world. Welcome to Learning Lab VT. We’re all in this together. You ever wonder whether you’re really up to the task of meeting your learners’ …
Get your red hot summer reads right here! Or your chilling-in-the-AC-far-away-from-sunlight summer reads. We don’t judge. For educators, summer is a time to relax, recharge and maybe fit some professional development in, but honestly, not til like, August, easily*.
Leland & Gray lead the way Leland & Gray Union Middle and High School, in Townshend, VT, used a popular 5-stage framework in planning their service learning: investigation, preparation, implementation, reflection, and celebration. And they used this framework to improve their school’s infrastructure in powerful ways. Outdoor classroom, anyone?
Teaching to heal the world “How can we improve the systems we’re a part of?” That’s the question my team posed to our 4th- through 6th-grade students last spring at The Cornwall School, in Cornwall VT. It was the start of a deep dive into education for sustainability.
As Dorset’s coop dreams became a reality, students gathered new skills What does it look like to break one enormous project into several project-based learning units? For Dorset students to go from dreaming about fresh eggs to actually building a chicken coop required two strategies: breaking the PBL into phases, and asking students to assume different …
Continue reading “Evolving student roles in a big (BIG) PBL project”
What work looks like at St. Albans City School Students at St Albans City School, in St. Albans VT, have the ability to apply for in-school intern positions such as Financial Officer, Chief Executive Officer, Director of Communication and a whole lot more. What would it look like if your students could do an internship right …
What food education looks like in Cornwall VT Integrating food studies into schools leads to thinking about interconnectedness in other ares of study. But don’t take my word for it: meet some amazing students from The Cornwall School, in Cornwall VT, who definitely won’t be surviving on Pop Tarts, ramen or mac and cheese …
Personalizing PE In this era of personalized learning, it’s not just the jocks that find P.E. enjoyable. At Crossett Brook Middle School and Shelburne Community School, students employ cool technology, develop creative projects, and pursue personal interests and goals while developing autonomy, healthy habits, and deep understandings.
Public displays of learning are not always the end. How do you know when meaningful, relevant, personalized and authentic learning has really occurred? Is the charge and scaffolding strong enough to continue the learning after the in-school time has expired? One measure is looking at what happens after the project ends.
Community exploration builds connection What happens when you ask your students what they want to learn about and how they like to learn, then you turn them loose on a three-day self-directed series of projects generated from their ideas? Teachers at West Rutland School recently found out. (Spoiler alert: it’s harder, fun, and more engaging …
Badging growth toward goals’ attainment A small group of these 6th grades at Peoples Academy wondered how they could help their peers be more engaged in the school’s Opportunity Time, time devoted to goal-setting and exploring student interests, so they took on the challenge of designing a digital badging system to incentive their peers.
Beyond the Passion Project: Clara wanted to do something amazing for her final Brainado project. She wanted to push herself and leave a “remembrance,” as she called it, commemorating the sustainability program at her middle school. She envisioned painting a Crossett Brook mural on the newly constructed, pristine greenhouse. She only had one small problem: …
How did it go? It can be easy to end your project-based learning experiences with students in a big heap of exhaustion and miss the opportunity to reflect on the experience. There is so much to learn and gain from gathering your (and your students’) reflections. But how do you do that? Let’s look at …
Getting connected: online & with community members What if there was a way to spend less time grading your students’ writing, while also providing a valuable writing experience for them? What if there was a way to bring interested, wise community members into your classroom on a regular basis? I think I discovered a way: …
Continue reading “Students blogging for an authentic audience”
Going beyond the gallery walk Exhibition season is upon us! And as you’re making ready to throw open the doors of your school and welcome in the community, let’s look at a handful of ways to jazz up any school event: by planning your capturing in advance, making interactive takeaways, going off-campus(!) or setting up …
Students test drive tools to enhance & amplify project work When Stowe Middle Level educators met to plan for the upcoming student exhibitions of learning, they agreed on two critical ideas. One, that their learners benefit from multiple ways to tell the story of their learning. And two, students are in the best position to …
Lessons from an exhibition These days, I’ve been thinking about the reasons we ask students to share their work. A few weeks ago, I wrote about the connection that a public exhibition provides for parents and community. But as I wrote that piece, some other ideas were percolating in my brain about what happens when …
Continue reading “When students share their work, it deepens the learning”
Video reflection + social interaction The role of feedback and reflection are key strategies in best middle level practice for students and educators alike. Finding engaging ways for this exchange to take place in meaningful and relevant ways is, for many of us, a challenge. Enter Flipgrid.
What do the Global Goals look sound like in action? The three Essex Middle School students who delivered the keynote address at the 2nd annual Cultivating Pathways to Sustainability conference spoke from the heart. They also spoke from experience, having spent the previous year using the #GlobalGoals to address hunger in their communities.
Who let the dogs in? For some students, being ready to learn when they arrive at school is a big ask, and more than a few carry trauma or mental health burdens through their day. And that’s why more and more, schools in Vermont are adding therapy dogs to their staffing rosters. And they’re seeing …
Providing an arena for powerful family feedback School exhibitions take work. They take work to organize, schedule, promote and pull off, and they can feel overwhelming from the teacher side. But they also provide a very specific opportunity for students to stand proudly next to the results of all their hard work and say, “Yes. …
TED Talks are short, personal powerful storytelling. Now: how can students use this medium as motivation to learn, to explore their purpose, extend their perspectives and understandings, and develop strong storytelling and presentation skills? Let’s find out.
The transformation of Team Quest Educators never feel like they have enough time to do all the things they want to do with students. But for Team Quest at Crossett Brook Middle School in Duxbury, Vermont, the constraints of traditional subject area, schedule and process had become unbearable. So this two-person grade 5-6 team decided …
Manchester’s 6th graders weigh in… to their Selectboard. Teams of 6th-grade students from Manchester Elementary Middle School researched this question and put their arguments to the town. Should Manchester VT put in a bid to host a future Winter Olympics?
The power of metaphorical thinking A picture can speak a thousand words and convey a complex concept that text on its own can’t quite manage. And the act of crafting them is a powerful way to synthesize understanding. How would you create a visual whose goal is to capture the complexities of personalized learning?
How soon is now? Looking for opportunities to make real-world connections or bring an authentic audience to your students? Typically, a public presentation at the end of a project or unit provides this space for students to share with a wider audience. But authentic audiences can be found at any stage of the work.
Launching a new project cycle with inspiration from the last one Organizing your realia — testimonials, storytelling and artifacts — from a round of projects can feel overwhelming. So much footage! So many interviews! ALL THE IDEAS! Resist the freakout: here’s a recipe for pulling your footage together to inspire a new cycle of learning …
A Vermont tradition comes to the classroom Town Meeting Day is a Vermont tradition: once a year, everyone in towns across the state pack into the town hall and talk face-to-face about the issues affecting their community. But Warren Elementary School, in Warren VT, holds Town Meetings on a weekly basis, using the tradition to …
Continue reading “What if you could have Town Meeting Day every week?”
Applying NGSS to… chickens? At the Dorset School, in Dorset VT, the 8th graders know that fresh, farm-raised eggs taste amazing. The problem: their cafeteria cannot afford local, free-range eggs. So they asked: “What would it take to raise chickens at the school?” And they used a combination of design engineering, technology and community partners …
Continue reading “How to build a better (student-made) chicken coop”
Take student learning outside Students at Green Mountain Union High School demonstrate learning in Science, Social Studies, Health, and Language Arts over the course of a semester. But for one group of students, there are no barriers between subjects, no bell schedule, and no borders on their classroom. Much of their learning happens out of …
Virtual bulletin boards to go! Staying organized as a teacher can be a major challenge. Between student work, teacher plans, sticky notes, school supplies it’s easy to get buried and overwhelmed! This can especially be hard in a personalized learning environment, where students are often working at different paces, with different resources. But whether you’re …
The power of the student consult If you’re wondering what engages, excites and motivates students, the answer is easy: ask them. Creating opportunities for students to give feedback on plans, projects, assessments and activities builds a collaborative learning community, and creates leadership and student voice opportunities. Here’s how one school gave student consultants a shot.
Does your community know you as a learner? Flood Brook School buzzed with excitement. Students brought in their projects on tables or on carts, the weight sometimes shared with friends. As they set up their displays, parents, teachers, younger students and community members milled about, waiting for the opportunity to learn more about student projects …
Place-based learning with real world implications For your students, learning about the local landscape can be amazing. What’s that tree? How long has that building been here? What does that plaque, “1927 Flood Level” mean? Here’s 3 tech-rich ways to study local history: by updating your town on Google Maps, creating a QR code-powered history …
It takes a village to talk about substance abuse with students Londonderry, VT-based non-profit The Collaborative is in its 14th year of “Refuse to Use”, a substance abuse-prevention program that creates community conversations about alcohol, tobacco and drugs. They base their curriculum off hyper-regional data and depend on community members — parents, educators and students …
Continue reading “Having the hard conversations in Southern Vermont”
How do you maximize student learning? What are the ways we can do this, and how might our roles and labels get in the way of helping all students? Words matter. Job titles, given labels, justly or not, can affect how we feel about ourselves and our jobs. They can affect our we are perceived …
A new recipe for Personalized Learning Plans Rather than trying to get students to care about existing PLPs, some schools are revamping their PLP process to start with what students care about. They are asking students to pursue their passions by crafting projects based on their personal interests and deepest curiosities. The new recipe that …
Physical aspects of a student-centered classroom Sometimes what seems like a little change can make a big difference. That’s what two Proctor Elementary School teachers recently confirmed when they decided to incorporate flexible seating into their classrooms. It’s been such a success that now every classroom in their school features some sort of flexible seating …
Continue reading “What flexible seating looks like in action”
The Developmental Designs remix Ever notice how for some kids Mondays are a lot tougher than Wednesdays? Any time there’s a break in the school routine, some kids are likely to fall out of sync. Similarly, after the long December break, crisp classroom routines can seem like a foggy memory. After any break, students and …
Use service learning to grow your community What do you do when you’re a 5th-through-8th middle school housed in two separate buildings? If your 7th-and-8th graders are with the high school, and 5th and 6th graders are off on their own, how can you provide an opportunity all middle graders to feel involved in the …
Tech tools, tips & inspiration The world is BIG. And overwhelming at times. Especially for our students, who hear bits and pieces of what is happening across the globe, and have questions, worries, and thoughts. It makes sense that we move students beyond their geography, perspectives, and comfort zones. That way we can expand their …
We’re #vtgrateful for you This Thanksgiving, we’re grateful for the entire #vted community. For everyone working hard in supporting innovative school change in Vermont. What are you #vtgrateful for?
It all starts with an idea. Races Against Racism have taken place around the country, and last spring, a community member and organizer Henry Harris suggested that 15-year-old Hope Petraro organize an event in her community. He said she might be interested in having this event in Montpelier. That was just the spark she needed. …
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The United Nations has kicked off a movement for the future. They’ve identified 17 goals for sustainability world-wide, and they’ve given those goals to students around the world. Here in Vermont, a cadre of passionate educators are scaffolding project-based learning around those goals. And #vted students are hard at work, changing the world, one community …
Continue reading “4 ways students are tackling the UN’s Global Goals in Vermont”
Why structure? One of the most intimidating things about starting to do service and project based learning in the classroom is how to structure the time. One thing I have learned from direct experience in the classroom and from working with teachers is that this is structuring the time a key part of developing your …
Continue reading “3 strategies to create supportive structures during project time”
Realizing the promise of micro-credentialing As teachers and students grapple with how to implement proficiency-based assessment, flexible pathways and personalized learning, what can we learn from digital badge eco-systems? What’s been tried? What’s worked? And what do we need to think about as we implement micro-credentialing to help us grapple, not just with the requirements …
Continue reading “Digital badges as evidence of flexible pathways”
Making math real-world relevant Would you tell the school board how to redesign your school? Students at Shelburne Community School, in Shelburne VT, did just that. They were tasked with redesigning the school’s outdated “kiva” space. Using Google Sketch-Up, they created three different designs for renovating the space, and presented those designs to a panel …
What proficiency-based learning looks like Winooski Middle and High School, in bustling Winooski, VT, has been quietly making the journey to proficiency-based learning and proficiency-based graduation requirements for the past six years. And the resources they’ve constructed along the way — to support students, teachers and families — celebrate cultural and ethnic diversity and challenge …
Continue reading “Winooski’s Graduate Proficiencies & Graduate Expectations”
Standard 3-part story-driven post: 1) what it is, 2) what it looks like in a school, 3) how to do it in your school
Responsible and involved citizenship in Grand Isle We’re looking at how maker-centered learning and makerspace activities can help support students in developing Vermont’s five transferable skills. We’ve looked at clear and effective communication, self-direction, and creative and practical problem-solving. In this post, we recount EMMA’s visit to Grand Isle School, where teachers and students used …
Making as evidence of problem-solving It’s quite easy to see how making often takes students on new journeys, where their imagination provides opportunities to exercise the transferable skill of creative and practical problem solving. After a visit by EMMA, students at Malletts Bay School, in Colchester VT, were inspired to use their new skills to create …
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Making as evidence of transferable skills around Vermont During the past year, EMMA has visited schools around Vermont to fuel the conversation about maker-centered learning. As we reflected on each of EMMA’s visits, we continually noticed that maker centered learning provided evidence of students applying cross-disciplinary transferable skills.
This fall, we’ve been talking about everyday courage in schools. We’ve written about the courage it takes to start a new team, using technology to open up communication with students and to open up our practice. We’ve shared examples about how teachers are showing up, engaging in hard conversations about race, their own practice, about …
The #everydaycourage of being seen Take the iconic back-to-school prompt for students — what I did on my summer vacation — and give it a twist. Imagine how students might respond to the prompt What I think my teacher did on summer vacation. A lot of us wish other folks knew how hard we work during summer: the …
Continue reading “4 ways Vermont educators are sharing their practice”
Conversations begin at home. And at the bus stop. Also the market. And– So much of the change we need to see right now can be kicked off by starting conversations with members of your community. It takes a certain amount of courage to address issues that affect your whole community — such as bullying, …
How will your students prepare for active engagement in democracy? Last spring Christie Nold, a 6th grade teacher at Frederick H. Tuttle Middle School, was at Burlington’s Jazz Fest listening to student musicians when she got some disturbing news: someone had spray-painted racist hate speech on her school’s campus. Overwhelmed by her own emotions, Nold …
Continue reading “The #everydaycourage of talking about race in Vermont schools”
Think middle schoolers are too young for a QSA? Think again At the Queer Straight Alliance (QSA) at Crossett Brook Middle School in Duxbury, Vermont, young adolescents have carved out a space where they can be their authentic selves. While that’s critical during middle school, it’s especially crucial for LGBTQ students. As we kick off …
Continue reading “The Crossett Brook Queer-Straight Alliance”
The birth of a YA teacher’s book club “Sometimes you can do everything right and things will still go wrong. You’ve just got to keep doing right.” –Starr’s mom, in The Hate U Give by Angela Thomas
“It really is nice being able to teach others. I know that I had an effect on them.” The Essex STEM Academy, at Essex High School, lets students pursue their passion for tech and science with support from the Vermont STEM community. They also let the students teach. We spoke with Ian, an Essex STEM …
School leadership in turbulent times As schools prepare to welcome students through their doors, many educators are researching how to talk with their students about the attacks in Charlottesville or Barcelona. Or how to respond to student concerns about diversity, tolerance and equity. Or, ulp, how to address this recent article by Wired, revealing that …
Continue reading “#vted leads the way with #everydaycourage”
It takes a courageous village In order for student centered learning to happen, we have to invest in explicitly teaching (and reteaching) routines, expectations, and behaviors for learning. The beginning of the year is an ideal time to first establish a culture and community for learning. But it takes time to learn and practice these …
Continue reading “A Developmental Designs approach to student-directed learning”
Emily is an educator, facilitator, mother, partner, and mountain dweller. Her work centers on transforming herself and the systems she is enmeshed within toward justice, joy, and sustainability. She is currently the managing director at the Tarrant Institute for Innovative Education, as well as a professional affiliate with Shelburne Farms. Emily has worked as an …
Personalized, proficiency-based PBL or bust During a faculty meeting in late December of 2016, educators and staff talked about the need to provide personalized learning options for students at their small, rural Vermont school. They wanted do so in a way that honored the students’ need for passion-based, independent projects, as well as the desire …
Service learning Creating teaching and learning opportunities where students identify, research, propose, and implement solutions to real needs in their school community as part of their curriculum. Ponder these other definitions. What do they have in common? Why do service learning? Read researcher Shelley Billig’s take on why service learning benefits students in many ways. …
Scheduling The continued movement towards the middle level concept has put tremendous pressure on how schools choose to organize their time. For good reason! The remnants of the junior high days of past still exist. However, emerging schedules that support student-centered learning and best middle level practice are having a greater presence every year. Innovative …
Negotiated curriculum Negotiated Curriculum is the process of intentionally inviting students to be co-constructors of the curriculum and co-designers of the learning opportunities. This process, based on James Beane’s questions of self and world, yields a curriculum of greater relevance and invites students to take responsibility for the outcomes. Most importantly, this democratic process changes …
Project-based learning Project-based learning is a student-centered approach to student engagement and empowerment. Students choose a driving question they want to answer, then work collaboratively to construct a solution. Students focus for an extended period of time on their solution, then present it to real-world stakeholders. Why project-based learning? We believe project-based learning, or PBL, …
Proctor’s STEAM Family Night The sleepy little town of Proctor VT, is making some big waves when it comes to showcasing their students’ STEAM achievements. STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts & Math) is a hot topic in school innovation right now, and rural towns like Proctor are primed and ready to show their communities just …
Let students help you transform your school Creating sustainable systemic change is hard work. Yet there are readily available, free, renewable resources right in your classroom. Students are embedded experts, creative geniuses, ruthless truthtellers, and intrinsic futurists. Here are four examples of students as partners in school change: partners in building a makerspace, redesigning PLPs, serving …
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Expanding student access to reading As a school librarian, I needed to think how I could adopt Universal Design for Learning (UDL) in my own teaching and library space, but I also needed to think about how I could support my teachers as they implemented it in their classrooms. With UDL, teachers can allow students …
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Taking stock on implementing Vermont’s Act 77 “Do you know where you are?” Usually it’s a question medical professionals ask in emergency situations. It’s not as dramatic in the context of education, but it can be just as useful as a diagnostic criteria. We’re going to ask you to take stock of where you are …
Acknowledge, share, recognize The end of the school year is every bit as happy and joyous as it is chaotic and stressful. Make sure that you slow down the hands on the clock to bring closure to your advisory. Acknowledge the successes and challenges of the year. Share the positive things you’ve all learned about …
Standard 3-part story-driven post: 1) what it is, 2) what it looks like in a school, 3) how to do it in your school
3 ways to plan for PBL 2.0 You’ve dipped your toe into project based learning. You’ve planned an entry event, shared a high quality driving question, managed student teamwork, created scaffolds, and helped students finish a meaningful project to present to an authentic, engaged audience! Whew! Well done. But we know you. We know you’re a total …
Continue reading “Take project-based learning to the next level”
“Every student gets greeted at the start of every day.” At Peoples Academy Middle Level, educators have taken the role of teacher advisory, or TA, to a whole new level. They conduct their advisory to build personal connections with their students. As a result, at PAML, advisory has become a very special thing. But how …
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Standard 3-part story-driven post: 1) what it is, 2) what it looks like in a school, 3) how to do it in your school
What advice would your 7th grade self give you about teaching? Remember when you were first starting out as an educator? The ink on your certification barely dried, and there you were, standing in front of your first class, 30-some pairs of eyeballs staring back at you, waiting for you to lead. We hear from …
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Reflect, celebrate and plan Oh, the spring. Such a busy time for teachers. There are all those transition meetings, already getting ready for the next year. Then there are placement meetings, figuring out who will be in what class, core or group. And of course, all those ceremonies, exhibitions, and spring events. It’s easy to forget …
Continue reading “8 year-end reflection tools and activities”
Standard 3-part story-driven post: 1) what it is, 2) what it looks like in a school, 3) how to do it in your school
Expand your classroom and keep kids engaged The weather is getting nicer. The sun is finally out. And you are in charge of keeping your class engaged, focused and …inside? Ha! Any teacher who has experienced spring in Vermont knows that students get a little wiggly this time of year. What’s a great way to harness that …
The middle school team at Rutland Town School in Rutland, VT have been working on a more fully integrated implementation of personal learning plans (PLPs) at their school. They’re also passionate believers in student choice and learner-centered classrooms. Given some flexibility to change the school schedule, they came up with iLearn, a model of student self-direction and …
Standard 3-part story-driven post: 1) what it is, 2) what it looks like in a school, 3) how to do it in your school
Standard 3-part story-driven post: 1) what it is, 2) what it looks like in a school, 3) how to do it in your school
Cognitive outcomes vs intersectional traumas We talk with legendary awesome stats guy Mark Olofson — now Dr. Legendary Awesome Stats Guy Mark Olofson — about his research into adverse childhood events and school performance. It’s some pretty important stuff, about how the intersecting traumas that affect students have some long-reaching consequences.
Wondering how to blend project-based learning with STEAM? Yes, STEAM: Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Math. Earlier this year we profiled The Cabot School’s amazing public exhibition of sound sculptures highlighting water conservation. They were a big hit with the Cabot community, the students who made them and, it turns out, a fair number …
Continue reading “The great Brian Eno-powered STEAM PBL caper”
Standard 3-part story-driven post: 1) what it is, 2) what it looks like in a school, 3) how to do it in your school
Practice makes proficient What’s special about a proficiency-based environment? Practice, that’s what. I know, it sounded weird to me too. As a former math teacher, I thought of practice as the mind-numbing repetitive stuff that students had to do in order to attain fluency. Practice was for straightforward procedural skills. But Sam Nelson, a social studies …
Continue reading “The crucial role of practice in a proficiency-based environment”
Standard 3-part story-driven post: 1) what it is, 2) what it looks like in a school, 3) how to do it in your school
Keys to innovative school change We all want students to engage more fully with school by experiencing it as a place that facilitates relevant, meaningful experiences that encourage growth. But what does that mean for educators and administrators? We’ve gathered resources, definitions and tech-rich, student-centered examples from Vermont schools to help educators and school leaders …
Personalization for school-based service learning Looking for a way to harness students’ energy while giving them meaningful work that appeals to their personal interests? One model for service learning I’ve used is iLead: a “job-based” program that channels student interest into meaningful positions around the school. School community improves, students learn responsibility in a way that …
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Student exhibitions of project-based learning At this point we all know how important it is for students to share project-based learning with an authentic audience. It shows students they have power in the world, and that their research really makes a difference. But how best to design an exhibition that empowers students and provides a …
Continue reading “Student TED Talks, sound sculptures and a funk band”
Why digital composition matters I’d like you to think back to your days as a student. What kinds of writing did you do? Who read it? What made it important to you? And what made it important to the world? If you’re like most people, you’re probably drawing a blank right now. Some of today’s …
Google Expedition aims to connect students with refugee experience Teaching empathy to our future citizens of the world may be the most important work that we can do as educators. And it’s not something we can force. It has to be an organic outgrowth of the other lessons we build. Let’s look at how we …
Honor scholars with an authentic audience for their work The culminating event! It’s the lovely finish line of a Project-Based learning unit. The big event. You’ve been planning for months for this event that celebrates the projects and the learning in an authentic, community based forum. All along, it’s been a strong motivator for scholars, …
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Vermont’s new leading role online In today’s podcast, Mark Olofson talks with Joshua Rosenberg and Spencer Greenhalgh, education researchers from Michigan State University. Their research focuses on the state-level twitter conversations among educators: who is doing it, and what they’re getting out of it. And, spoiler alert, when they looked around the country, Vermont emerged …
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5 benefits of doing action research in the classroom Teachers are constantly tinkering, creating, learning, and growing. Action research is a slightly formalized version of what skilled teachers do every day. By honoring action research as systematic professional inquiry, we empower teachers to improve their practice. It’s easy to get started undertaking a small, powerful …
#vted = #vtexcellence A number of Vermont educators have been in the news lately, achieving and being recognized for the amazing work they do inside the classroom and out.
Start with the dramatic, unexpected & memorable Q: What do we really want from project-based learning? A: We want students to care about this subject. To really, truly care about it from their own student perspectives. To engage the active learning parts of their brains and the moral imperative for the work. Entry events are …
It’s about time I am fascinated with master schedules! This is certainly a massive understatement. I love the challenge of putting all the pieces together, showing how everything is connected. My mind is wired to think through a systems lens. I am always asking myself, if I change this thing over here what happens over …
Resources to tackle project-based learning Welcome to the PBL Highway, my new series aimed at helping you on the road to project-based learning! Setting up a student-driven, rigorous, community-focused project-based learning (PBL) unit can feel daunting, so the best way to tackle anything this huge (it’s yuge!) is to break it down into manageable steps. …
Getting started assessing proficiency School systems in Vermont and elsewhere are in the midst of a shift to proficiency-based learning. At the early stages, this transformation can feel overwhelming even for educators, even if they’re excited by the idea. Where to start? Start with scales for assessment.
8th grade scientists tackle carbon emissions at a busy traffic circle This past year, Shelburne Community School middle grades students took part in Idle-Free VT‘s ongoing efforts to reduce carbon emissions from idling cars near schools. The students’ outreach efforts led to a 79% measured reduction in carbon emissions at the school’s traffic circle, while …
On exploring flexible pathways to learning This past August, Vermont Secretary of Education Dr Rebecca Holcombe addressed the 2016 Amplifying Student Voice & Partnership Conference on the topic of equity in education. She was also kind enough to allow us to record and share her remarks. In the first of two installments, we hear from …
Continue reading “What work-based learning in Vermont can look like”
Structures & examples for student filmmakers Many students love working with video. Students can create videos for any subject to show specifically what they’re learning, how they spend their time and to demonstrate proficiency. But it’s not always obvious how you, as an educator, can help students see the connection to specific content areas. Let’s …
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8 great ways to approach PBL in the primary grades Picture this: you have a class of primary-grade students. Say grades K-3. They are learning their letters, and how to tie their shoes, how to go to the bathroom independently and write their names. This list of what to learn is long! But we also …
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Achieving escape velocity with students as partners Congratulations for making it through the first month of school! Whether it’s your first year as an educator or your thirty-first, the launch of the school year is a special — and especially challenging — time. It’s worth taking a moment to reflect and imagine how to build …
How 30 minutes can leave a lasting impact on the day. Advisory: the first 15 to 30 minutes of every middle school day, during which you’re trying to build relationships with your students and engage them in meaningful social interaction. You also might be fighting off the administrative minutiae of the morning: Attendance. Lunch money. …
There is no tired like teachers at the beginning (or end) of the school year are tired. Establishing routines, procedures, community and trust takes time and lots (and lots!) of energy. How can you create classroom routines and norms so the class feels safe, comfortable, happy and ready for learning? Here are eight ideas.
#vted weighs in again on twitter Is your school implementing proficiency-based learning? It’s an idea that’s taking hold all over, so some folks from Vermont’s education community wrestled with the opportunities and challenges presented by implementing proficiency-based learning.
A twitter showcase of amazing Vermont schools Wish you could see more of the innovative ways Vermont students and educators are changing learning? Have difficulty finding a full year to travel around the state? Let twitter help. With @ThisIsVTED.
How to get started with service learning Service learning can play a key role in middle level curriculum, yet it can seem daunting to many educators. But it’s so rewarding for students and valuable to the community, and most of all, easy to get started with. Let’s take a look.
What Vermont students really think about personal learning plans Put 47 middle-level students together, challenge them to think differently about ways to create effective, relevant and meaningful Personalized Learning Plans, and watch the magic happen. This past summer, we did exactly that.
Get ready for a new vision of innovative education With the advent of personalized learning, many schools and educators are finding the freedom to launch their teaching in a whole new direction. They’re getting #ready2launch into a vision of personalized learning with students as partners, students as leaders, and schools as places where learning is …
1% teacher inspiration & 99% student-led Genius Hour is a leap of faith in which educators set aside their most precious resource, time, for students to pursue their passions. It doesn’t get much more student-centered than that. But there are actually several aspects of Genius Hour where students can be involved as partners to amp up …
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Whose makerspace is it, anyway? A makerspace can take many forms, but fundamentally it should be a locus of student engagement and creativity. So engage them from the start by turning over as much of the design and operation of your makerspace as possible.
Create open, flexible, engaging spaces for active student learning. The beginning of the school year! Desks, mailboxes, coat hooks labeled. Books organized, materials in bins. This task is often overlooked and underestimated in terms of time. How can you create a welcoming, flexible and inspired space? Here are some tips and ideas. Just get some …
Introduce a student-centered tech-rich year Looking for ways to explore digital identity with students? Here are 4 student-centered, tech-rich digital identity exercises for working with students. As a bonus, all the exercises produce media that students can add to their digital portfolios. Let’s watch!
Build a community to support project-based learning I bet you have big dreams of creative, innovative projects and engaged students in your classroom. Students who are busy researching, collaborating, creating, and solving authentic problems they are interested in. But this doesn’t happen without a strong community of learners.
Student Leadership: The time is now August is usually a time crammed with planning logistics for the start of the school year. It’s a time when educators’ coffee intake increases exponentially and that ever-popular 4AM anxiety dream makes you jump out of bed in a sweat. Yet somehow it all falls into place and school …
Continue reading “Finding ways to encourage student leadership”
Katy’s 2016 Summer Reading Something about this book title and summer reading fits perfectly. The open ocean, pirates, and fierce independence. I’m hoping you have a bit of time to settle into some reading for fun and some that inspires you in the classroom to have students take on more leadership and develop their own …
An experiment in student-directed, open-ended project-based learning What if an entire school set out to maximize student engagement? What if there were a school-wide commitment to loosening control and trusting students to do great things? What if students were told that they could work for an hour a week on whatever they want with one …
Building a democratic classroom at The Edge Part of the power of implementing a negotiated curriculum is that it doesn’t just center student voice, it actually moves the learning space towards a democratic classroom, a place where students can advocate for themselves and their learning interests, goals and styles. It’s an important piece of the …
Continue reading “Negotiated curriculum and project-based learning”
Set boundaries, then let students drive the conversation Negotiated curriculum is the idea that you can assemble a curriculum for your class by entering into negotiations with your students: you, as the teacher, have certain non-negotiables or standards you need students to meet, and students tell you what or how they want to learn. That’s …
The Six Question Framework for reflection As the end of June nears and students take their final exams, clear out their lockers, and begin sleeping in until noon, teachers are gathering their remaining energy, and administrators are giving them space, to take stock of the year, celebrate the successes and challenges, and together learn from …
Scaffolding year-end reflections At The Compass School in Westminster, Vermont, students advance through grades by producing evidence of their accomplishments from the year, using the previous year’s reflection to inform the current one. We had the chance to sit down with a student just finishing 11th grade at Compass, and hear not just about his …
Check out these dynamic educators Are you heading to sunny Burlington, VT this Monday and Tuesday (no really, it will be sunny and warm) for Vita-Learn’s Dynamic Landscapes? It’s a perfect opportunity to mix business with pleasure. If so, check out our Tarrant Institute partner educators who are presenting! Feel free to store some of …
Continue reading “Will we see you at Dynamic Landscapes 2016?”
A visualization exercise for changing classrooms It’s not your imagination. It really is the time of year when everyone gets a little wiggly. (Or a little more wiggly than usual.) But how does your classroom layout respond to that energy? Does it honor it or stifle it? Can your students fling their arms wide to …
What is curiosity? Is curiosity important? What does it mean to be a curious learner? What am I curious about? These are some of the questions Cornwall, VT students considered this winter as they embarked on inquiry-based, personalized, research projects. For six weeks, we turned learning over to our students for the (first annual!) Curiosity …
Continue reading “Curiosity Projects: A stepping-stone to Personalized Learning”
Motivating students around goals by connecting schools Many Vermont students have worked hard this year establishing personal and academic goals as an important part of developing Personal Learning Plans (PLPs). But when we speak with some of them or listen to teachers reflect on the process and progress, many share the need for additional motivation …
Revisiting the possibilities of student-created geographies The rate at which technology changes has reached a dizzying speed, with new tools and platforms emerging constantly. But what hasn’t changed is students’ curiosity about the world and their need to explore their own place in it. Young adolescents in particular, burn with the urge to make and …
Continue reading “Interactive map tools for creating deeper place-based learning”
Ubiquitous learning at the Sycamore School (Ed Note: Susan Hennessey recently traveled to Malibu, California to check out some innovative schools there and attend Deeper Learning 2016.) While waiting at the Sycamore School in Malibu, California for our tour guide, my colleagues and I were entertained by a tree full of very talkative wild parrots. …
Continue reading “How ubiquitous learning spaces can spur reflection”
Lessons learned from passion-based research Passion-based research goes by many different names; 20% Time and Genius Hour are just two different terms that describe school projects that center upon personal inquiry and innovation to spark motivation in students. For the past several years, students in my 7th grade social studies classes have engaged in 20 …
Adapting big science for a middle school classroom One of the keys of the Project-Based Learning approach is to engage students in solving real-world problems. Ideally, students are involved in exploring relevant and authentic challenges in their community, state, nation, or world. Sometimes teachers and students have to search hard for a need or an …
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A case study in Shelburne Arts and citizenship is for 8th graders at Shelburne Community School. This past session, they had a digital media focus, looking at photography and Photoshop and digital manipulation. Most recently they just had a Community Celebration, where the artwork was posted around the school and families and the community came …
Measuring how students approach goal-setting in the 5th and 6th grades Educators at Wallingford Elementary School and Shrewsbury Mountain School, in central Vermont, undertook an action research project measuring how their use of digital tools — specifically Google Docs, Forms and Sites — changed how middle grades students approached setting goals and reflecting on their …
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More than just math? Let’s be honest, there’s not many days dedicated to the celebration of math or its concepts. This is why math folks get a little energized every March 14th. Picking up where last year’s Pi Day post left off, this is an opportunity to plan for activities or celebrations in the classroom, but more …
A teacher-authored case study Today we hear from a grade 5-6 team venturing into the world of personal learning plans (PLPs) using Google Tools. Jared Bailey, math teacher, and Joy Peterson, English Language Arts teacher, provide concrete details on how they rolled out PLPs this year, including links to such resources as graphic organizers that they used for …
Continue reading “Google Tools for personal learning plans (PLPs)”
Curating lists of online resources for deep dives into content research We have been spending much of our time here at the Tarrant Institute exploring the idea of what engagement looks like in a learning environment where access to resources is ubiquitous, where learning can and does take place anytime, anywhere. That is why when Lisa …
7th graders learn video as reflection tool When I sat down to work with my students on digital citizenship and literacy, I wanted to do something different. These are 7th graders coming from lots of different schools, different levels of understanding, different exposure to the concepts of digital citizenship and I was trying to think of …
Continue reading “Exploring digital citizenship as a form of literacy”
Science app-smashing in a 1:1 environment Brendan Nerney, a middle grades educator at Mill River Union High School in Clarendon, Vermont, explains some of the edtech tools his students use to study hurricanes with their iPads. The students used a variety of edtech tools to produce a mock newscast documenting a hurricane and its aftermath. Let’s …
Continue reading “What are some good tools for studying hurricanes?”
Flexible classroom spaces encourage flexible learning My principal in Baltimore came into my classroom one day and saw one of my students, Bree, standing next to a bookshelf in the back of my room with her laptop open and her things strewn about the surface. He approached her and asked, “Why aren’t you in your seat?” …
Continue reading “Creating flexible classrooms for personalized learning”
Since 2009, the Tarrant Institute for Innovative Education has supported technology integration in middle schools as a means of increasing student engagement and decreasing drop-out rates here in Vermont. We support partner schools with tech-rich, on-site professional development and provide funding for technology innovations. Who are our partner schools? Current partners: Bethel Elementary School (Bethel …
Reaching beyond the walls I’m always looking for ways for educators and students at different schools to use technology to connect in far-flung locations. One middle-level educator was kind enough to share how he used Google Hangouts, a Google+ Community, back-channeling and plain old email to enable his students to connect with students a couple of …
Continue reading “Using Google tools to connect with other schools”
3 strategies shared by local educators At Manchester Elementary Middle School, sixth grade students speak fluently about their Personal Learning Plans (PLPs). They’ve been working on setting goals in a PLP for years; some students in this school have been doing so since third grade. Manchester educators Seth Bonnett and Melissa Rice, share what they’ve learned about …
Continue reading “Providing support for goal-setting in a PLP”
Keep students centered in the conversation When it becomes time to talk about scheduling you can often feel the tension rise as everyone’s values and beliefs are put on the table in the attempt to make everyone happy. In many cases the term “everyone” often refers to adults and omits what works best for students.
What do we mean when we talk about innovation in Vermont education? Recently, the #vted Twitter chat focused on innovation, and the conversation brought a mix of practical tips, brilliant insight, and positive sentiment. The take-home message for me was that innovation thrives in an environment with a balance of risk-taking, moral support, and professional learning.
The Great Shelburne Pencil Drive In which we discover a direct link between Shelburne, Vermont and …Ghana? Last week I had a chance to visit Shelburne Community School to see some underwater robotics. It’s one of several stories I walked away with that day that touched my heart and I feel compelled to share. As we …
Continue reading “Middle schoolers helping locally and globally”
Using Vialogues for social learning Vialogues: visual dialogues. Video dialogues. (Visible violet dogs? Risible eyelet hogs? Dirigible side-slit frogs?) Vialogues are an online tool that encourages viewers to answer one specific question about a video, and the tool creates a comment thread based on the answers. When applied in an educational capacity, this creates a …
How school change began with just one person, and just one podcast We talk with Richmond Elementary School principal Mike Berry about how he’s using podcasts and other digital storytelling to help his students find their voices and prepare them to tell their stories as they move to middle school. You can listen to our …
Using the Young Writers Project to teach writing There are so many reasons to appreciate how we teach adolescents to write in Vermont. One of these gifts is the resource of the Young Writer’s Project. Let’s look at what makes this online resource so powerful for educators to present as an option for students looking to …
How does edtech affect extra credit? Is extra credit still a valid notion as we move towards ubiquitous learning, and grapple with questions of equity in education? If the goal is anytime, anywhere learning, how can we quantify certain activities as eXtraneous to that learning space?
What does “quality” mean in assessing statewide digital efforts? The Foundation for Excellence in Education recently released its 2014 Digital Learning Report Card. According to this report, Vermont does not support digital learning. In fact, all of New England is a digital wasteland. But what does the data really say? How are these researchers quantifying “digital learning”? And how …
Continue reading “What goes into measuring the success of edtech?”
Ubiquitous learning is not the same as ubiquitous computing We hear a lot of hype about e-learning, blended learning, MOOCS, and mobile learning. But even a quick investigation of these trends reveals that effective teaching and learning are as elusive as ever. Yet ubiquitous computing — that is, anytime, anywhere access — is only a stepping …
Timeline tools for transformative learning Timeline tools can serve two important purposes: concrete help with project planning (for PLPs, 1:1 rollouts, PBL) and for displaying evidence of learning in an easily digestible format. But the online, anytime/anywhere, collaborative nature of such tools can unlock meta-learning for students, providing them with a platform for bolstering collaboration and …
Steps to a student-led conference Some of my most poignant moments as a teacher occurred around the table of a Student Led Conference. Truly. My eyes have welled with tears at the sheer emotion shared. I’m a believer in giving students the voice and the power to be at this table. It requires a strong …
Online collaboration extends student learning networks Online collaboration takes on new significance as students extend their learning network in conjunction with more personalized and meaningful learning: they can use online networks to learn with mentors, with community partners, remote collaborators and with asynchronous and synchronous group work.
How these educators used Nearpod for professional development Educators instinctively understand the engagement power of a tool that allows learners to actively participate in the learning. For those of you new to Nearpod, this multi-platform app allows teachers to shoot out presentations — think Powerpoints or Google Slides made interactive — directly to their students’ devices. Content …
How to use Minecraft with students Minecraft is an example of welcoming in student-driven modes of learning, exploration and demonstration of learning. Students find the platform deeply engaging because they can use it to build entire worlds, and many prefer to do their building collaboratively, or outside of school hours. But Minecraft also requires reading, …
Extend learning communities beyond the classroom For a review game “killer app” recommendation, Kahoot is by far at the top of my list. Kahoot, if you have not yet had the pleasure of being acquainted, quite frankly, is a riot no matter what your age.
Just-in-time learning in its best form is “Just for me” learning. When you learn something because you yearn to understand it, precisely when you need to apply it, you will learn it deeply and joyfully. Your brain will soak it up because your heart is in it. Now, how does that translate to providing just-in-time-teaching?
Collaborative blogging puts students’ voices out front Hazen Union School 8th grade student Elijah Lew-Smith shared the first student post of the school year on the school’s shared Middle Level Blog. Check out his post to see this year’s new initiatives: 1:1 with iPads, a new House structure, and the focus on Project Based Learning, from a …
Continue reading “Multiple platforms, multiple voices: scenes from a 1:1 rollout”
What can educators do with Google Hangout? Much like being friends on social media, physical proximity has little to do connecting people with other people. Google Hangouts has successfully made communication between individuals or groups and accessing information a bit easier and some may save they even have shrunk the world.
4 edtech tools for family communication How can technology help make communicating with your students’ families easier? These 4 edtech tools for family communication offer different ways to open the door to your classroom and welcome families inside.
Help students prototype mobile apps with these development tools Mobile app development with students can be tricky, because in a lot of cases they’re ready to run and the tools and systems for publishing apps are still at the crawling/walking phase. Let’s look at 3 easy steps to mobile app development: sketch it out on paper, mock it …
by Dayna McRoberts The Community Sailing Center (CSC) in Burlington has developed a multi-age, year-round environmental curriculum that works in conjunction with local schools to teach the opportunistic, seasonal lessons provided by Burlington’s landscape. Floating Classrooms engages students with their environment through ecology, science, and a medium the CSC holds dear: sailing.
Reflections from Vermont educators embarking on the 1:1 process As the 2015 Middle Grades Institute draws to a close, we check in on some of the amazing work educators have been doing with their teams this week. And this time we’re focusing on the 1:1 planning they’ve been doing.
Setting goals for summer learning and beyond It’s Day 3 of the 2015 Middle Grades Institute, a gathering of more than 200 Vermont educators all passionately invested in technology-rich, student-centered educational change. And with the Act 77 deadline requiring a Personal Learning Plan for every student in Vermont grades 7-12 coming up in November, talk …
Continue reading “4 educators reflect on personalized learning”
Go beyond back-channeling and unlock creative communication This summer, look for ways to liven up your faculty meetings and delve a little deeper with technology. Try something new or take a new look at a tool you’re already using. Here are 3 ways of using collaborative digital tools for faculty meetings.
Students partner with local scientists in collecting, analyzing & disseminating water data A group of 7th and 8th grade students took a trip through the full cycle of scientific study this past year. Edmunds Middle School students partnered with the UVM Watershed Alliance to study the Lake Champlain Direct and Grand Isles Basins, very specifically, the …
Continue reading “Making a difference with watershed science data”
How do we move all new learners to the deep end of the pool? As I walked through an innovation showcase at SxSw 2015 (one of the the largest convergences of creative and critical thinkers last March) I was struck by the juxtaposition of two tables that were adjacent to each other. One offered “Creative …
Continue reading “Beyond Bling: how do we deepen Makerspace learning?”
Implementation of personal learning plans (PLPs) around Vermont As Vermont works through the first year of implementing personalized learning and Act 77, Flexible pathways to secondary education completion (pdf) there ‘s a lot of discussion on the best way to implement personalized learning in Vermont. PLPs are non-traditional pathways by which students can navigate from entrance …
Getting educators to a place of power with a powerful method When I think about educational technology, it has never for me been divorced from pedagogy. As soon as I encounter a new digital tool, although it might attract me at first based on its novelty, my mind immediately jumps to the connection of how …
So many schools in Vermont are engaged in innovative, student-centered, tech-rich education work.We’re proud to partner with The Cabot School for just this reason. Their students write the school’s website updates. They’ve been featured twice on VPR this past year. They win national awards for their recyclable, energy-efficient musical production, and their educators are Rowland …
Continue reading “4 amazing things afoot at The Cabot School”
4th grade researchers share Capstone Projects with community This past Wednesday, 4th grade scholars at Richmond Elementary School, in Richmond, Vermont, shared the results of their research with their families and community. They opened the doors of their school to family and friends for Celebrating Learning at Richmond Elementary School. I had a chance to attend …
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Crafting Pickaxes, swords and social skills Since its release in 2009, Minecraft has made its way into 60 million homes worldwide and has become the best-selling PC game of all time. The game can now be played on multiple platforms, including XBox, Playstation, and most smart phones and tablets. There are Youtube videos with literally …
Continue reading “What does Minecraft look like in a school?”
Learning on and off-line civics Whenever I taught civics, I repeatedly told my classes that I would measure my success as a teacher on how many of them were voting in elections in five years. Of course, I had no way to measure this, but it was one of my most concrete goals of teaching …
What makes an argument worth making? Recently, I was working with a colleague about getting students more jazzed to dive deep into building claims with supporting evidence. My colleague stated: “To be an argument, there needs to be a sense of “others” who are vying against our argument in ways that excite/worry us about our intellectual …
Continue reading “Student motivation in claims, evidence and audience”
Student teaching STEM Academy arduino strand Meet Ian. Ian’s a senior at Essex High School, and he’s not just enrolled in the STEM Academy there, he’s also teaching it. In this episode of the podcast, research fellow Mark Olofson talks with Ian about how he went from learning about arduinos, to teaching them, and why …
Help your students’ PSAs find their public Student-made PSAs are a great way for students to engage in project-based learning with real-world impact. Especially if they join up with community partners to tackle local issues. But once the PSAs get made, how can you help them find an authentic audience?
New podcast episode: Essex STEM Academy In this episode, we talk with math educator and STEM Academy leader Lea Ann Smith about Essex High School’s STEM Academy and take a look inside a program that lets students pursue projects in medicine, engineering, computer science, mathematics or biology — by working with community partners during the school …
Continue reading “Personalized STEM learning at Essex High School”
Flexible learning environments have a physical component — and effect Do you recognize the object at left? Does it look like a comfortable learning environment for a student? Does it look like the type of learning environment a student would choose for themselves? OF COURSE NOT, and because you are all such passionate and committed educators, you started …
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There is a lot of conversation about the importance of STEM education – in the media, in politics, and among educators. With so many voices emphasizing STEM education, it is not surprising to see people raising the counterpoint. Recently, Fareed Zakaria (a journalist for whom I have a lot of respect) published an op-ed titled …
100 years of Girl Scouts can’t be wrong Digital badges have potential to serve as both markers of achievement and as a vehicle for those of us who assess students’ learning for a living to think differently about our current practices. Many students do the work of examining their own learning through collecting artifacts, reflecting …
Continue reading “Digital Display: add Credly badges to Google Sites”
What are some mechanisms for keeping track of digital credentials? As we work with schools who are piloting digital badge programs on the BadgeOS platform, we need to start thinking through what some options are for students to store, keep track of, and display the digital credentials they earn. What does it look like to …
Find new uses for data visualization Free, online timeline tools allow students to break free of the traditional two-dimensional timeline and create highly customizable multimedia projects to showcase research, serve as digital portfolios, manage projects, guide gallery walks or form study guides. And yes, they can also be used for book reports.
In Vermont, in the winter, we talk about the weather. A lot. Perhaps this is due to our agrarian roots and realities. Maybe it is an extension of how we look for each other. Or maybe it’s because it is really, really cold. Mars cold. Whatever the reason, it is a very common topic for …
At TechJam this past autumn I was fortunate to run into a number of student groups who were there to show off projects. That forum, and others like it, gives learners a space to share, interact, and learn from each other. One group I met was from Big Picture South Burlington (@BigPictureSB), a community of learners …
Making math and music at The Edge We were lucky enough to get to sit down with three groups of students at Essex Middle School’s Edge Academy just before the break and hear how their year-long project-based learning (PBL) projects are going. In the final installment of the series, we talk with three students making math …
Continue reading “Project-based learning at Essex Middle School: algebra and songwriting”
The play’s the (learning) thing Also the musical film and the series of novels. Stay with us on this. In the 2nd of our three-part series looking at project-based learning with The Edge team at Essex Middle School, we talk to a novelist, a playwright (slash-director-slash-costume-designer-slash-actor) and a film-maker — all at the same time.
Essex 7th graders partnering with UVM on food sustainability project Just before the holiday break, we got the chance to talk with some of the students on The Edge team at Essex Middle School, in Essex Junction, Vermont, about the progress of their year-long inquiry projects. In the first of three installments, we talk with …
Continue reading “New podcast ep: Building an eco-machine at The Edge”
Here at the beginning of the year, many people make resolutions. A new year can mean new opportunities, and offer chances to implement large changes. One change that we see teachers take on is the idea of implementing the flipped classroom. Shifting direct instruction to video in order to clear up more class time for …
Continue reading “Thinking about flipped science classrooms”
Getting the most out of Apple’s new OS in the classroom The new Yosemite OS from Apple is out now and free to all desktop and laptop users running OS 10.6 or newer. But why upgrade? Will Yosemite provide educators with any useful new functionalities? WHY YES. Right this way for 5 cool Yosemite tips for …
Besides ours, of course 🙂 In case you’re just tuning in, podcasts are having something of a renaissance. People are finding themselves on treadmills or trapped in cars on their commutes back and forth to work and soccer practice or just out for a long walk with the dog after dinner. And in this do-more-be-more-right-now world, podcasts represent a …
Continue reading “4 edtech podcasts you should be listening to”
Shouldn’t every hour be a genius hour? Anyone paying attention to education in the US lately has seen the proliferation of the “Genius Hour.” Presumably inspired by Google’s 20% rule, through which employees of the search engine giant spend a day a week on projects of their own choosing, many schools are adopting a model …
Move to implement PLPs reflected at two local conferences for educators Fall in Vermont features two amazing local conferences for educators: VT Fest and the Rowland Foundation Conference. And at both these events, one of the hottest topics was personalized learning. As Vermont moves to implement Act 77, Flexible pathways to secondary education completion (pdf) …
It is Tech Jam time here in Burlington! This annual two day event is a chance for employers in the tech sector to come out and talk about who they are, what they do, and who they need to hire. It is also an amazing tech expo that has interesting and fun activities and presentations …
A tiny little podcast with big stories on education The 21st Century Classroom podcast aims to showcase young Vermonters talking about the experiences they’re having both in and out of school. Students we talk with do amazing things, and we hope they inspire other educators. The heart of the stories: student interviews. We want …
Concept to reality with Edmunds Middle School makerspace Hear from a group of 6th grade engineers who got to use their school’s nascent makerspace to design their own magnetic-levitation (mag-lev) cars in Google SketchUp, and then actually make them.
Twitter’s not just a great way to build your PLN as an educator, it’s also a powerful tool to connect students with the world around them in very unique ways. But how can you make those connections authentic learning experiences? Let’s look at making the most of twitter in your classroom.
When I was still teaching high school, I was presented one quarter with the option of creating and teaching a science elective. Looking at what my department offered, I noticed a lack of courses that explored the earth sciences. At the time I was getting really interested in weather, and so I created a course …
By now, almost everyone’s familiar with QR codes, the distinctive-looking black-and-white graphics which, when scanned, take the scanner to a url. No? Not sounding familiar? Then how about: If you have a phone, iPad or tablet with a QR-scanning app installed (we like Barcode Generator/Reader for Android, and Scan for iOS) open it up and center …
Continue reading “5 off-beat ways to use QR codes in the classroom”
Educators are embracing digital tools for planning and sharing Personalized learning plans, or PLPs, are non-traditional pathways by which students can navigate from entrance to graduation in a way that’s personally meaningful. By studying topics they’re passionate about, students continue to stay engaged; by collaborating on the plans with educators and family, students’ passions can …
Continue reading “4 ways personalized learning plans are taking off in Vermont”
STEM endorsement for students features personalized learning, community partners Last week, Essex High School threw a community launch party to celebrate the start of their STEM Academy‘s second year. But what does a STEM Academy look like on the inside? What does taking part in this program look like for students? We were on hand for …
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One of the big challenges in the math and science classroom is to make abstract concepts real for your students. Whether we’re talking about how changes in the intercept of a line will affect its placement on a graph or how batteries push electricity through a circuit, a lot of imagination is required to make the …
Continue reading “Science and Math simulations for your class”
We’re flipping for Flipboard — and your students will too! Flipboard is a free mobile app for the iOS, Android and Google Play tablets that allows you to “flip” content into self-curated magazines. Translation: you grab webpages, videos, tweets or images, and pull them together into magazines. The magazines are the important bit. Haven’t you ever wanted …
Continue reading “4 ways to use Flipboard in your flipped classroom”
What is the worst consequence of our best idea? That’s a question that Chris Lehmann, founding principal of the Science Leadership Academy, asks his team when trying out new strategies in their high school. It’s a question I want to pose to all teachers when considering issues of equity in our classrooms.
Feed and grow your PLN as an educator Now that you’ve gotten started with Google+ Communities, you may be wondering how to make the most of the time you spend there. How can you find other tech-minded educators to learn from? How can you maximize your connections and find folks who can help with your classroom …
Continue reading “Six Google+ Communities you should be part of”
It’s all about your Personal Learning Network (PLN) Google+ communities are becoming a major way for educators to get inspired by other classrooms, get tech questions answered and make personal and professional connections. Jump in and get started!
Flip the way you deliver content and engage students, but don’t stop there: flipping your space, your community and faculty meetings can be just as useful.
Mark Olofson is a second year doctoral student at UVM and began working with the Tarrant Institute in the Fall 2013. Mark has taught middle and high school science and mathematics in Colorado as well as Los Cabos, Mexico. He is looking forward to incorporating his experience with content-driven technology integration and blending brick-and-mortar with virtual …
For a lot of kids, science can be something you learn about, instead of something that you do. This is understandable – a lot of experiments that students do in the classroom aren’t exactly leading towards new discoveries. Even if it’s an amazing reaction or a wonderful simulation, it can be hard for students to …
Continue reading “Citizen Science: routes to collaboration on scientific research”
What We’re Reading Advice from the popular Nerdy Book Club on how to create authentic book clubs in the classroom, from a teacher who didn’t:
So many graduations to be excited about this week! Congratulations to the 8th graders transitioning from Cabot’s middle school to high school! Congratulations to Winooski’s graduating kindergarten class! Congratulations to PAML students who are stepping up this morning! Congratulations to Burlington High School class of 2014! Congratulations to Milton Middle School 8th graders, who graduated …
Continue reading “Congratulations to all of Vermont’s amazing graduates!”
I can’t recommend highly enough Mrs Pepe’s Google Glass Adventures. Courtney Pepe teaches high school in New Jersey, and has spent the last month plus trying out Google Glass in the classroom with her students. Her blogposts. Are. Fascinating. Like this demo of using the translate function with Glass: Other fun entries include how Glass …
Project-based learning is alive and well in rural Vermont As part of The Cabot School‘s Exhibition of Learning earlier this spring, middle school students had a chance to share out some PBL research. Themed around the cultural landscape of the United States, the “See America” exhibit boasted a number of amazing students who showed off outstanding …
Continue reading ““See America”: Cabot students share their PBL research”
Local educators and students presenting at Vermont state conference If you’re one of the many folks planning on attending Dynamic Landscapes 2014, the annual state-wide conference for Vermont’s education scene, be sure to check out these Edmunds and Essex students and educators! They’re presenting at this year’s conference. Kathy Gallagher, Carole Renca and their students will …
Continue reading “Tarrant Institute partners presenting at Dynamic Landscapes”
Get out there! It’s spring (unless you’re in the Antipodes) and IT HAS FINALLY STOPPED SNOWING. Yes, all those capital letters are really necessary to announce that fact. The sun is out and if you’re planning on doing some outside work with your students, here are four activity ideas for using iPads outside when there’s no access …
Continue reading “Get out! 4 ideas for using iPads outside (and away from Wifi)”
What-smash? Despite sounding like a weird potato-fruit dish, app-smashing gets your students thinking less about apps and more about tasks. Hopefully with a minimum of actual smashing. App-smashing is when you give students a specific assignment that can best be solved using more than one app. iPads4Teachers has a fantastic overview of app-smashing here. Sounds good, …
Continue reading “Think outside the app: 3 outstanding examples of app-smashing”
Sixty dollars, a dremel and a dream It all started with a post on the iPad Ed Google+ community. Wait, I take that back. It really all started with the 20+ iPads we loan out to educators. Those suckers are constantly in demand and constantly in need of charging. They’re each firmly encased in Fintie …
Continue reading “Build your own iPad charging cart out of office supplies”
Here’s a great way to dip your toes in the digital credentialing waters: DIY.org. What Is It? Geared for kids 8 and up, DIY.org features dozens of digital badges heavily geared towards doing and making. To earn a badge, students choose to complete 2 or 3 challenges from an array of 7 or 8, and …
Guest post by Lindsey Halman, facilitator at The Edge at Essex Middle School: What is a system? How are living things organized? How do the structures of organisms contribute to life’s functions? Learners on the Edge team addressed these questions through a unit on Structure, Function and Information Processing in Living Organisms using the …
On February 11th, Edmunds Middle School opened their doors to the community and invited them to see what technology integration looks like in a 21st century Vermont school.
As part of celebrating Digital Learning Day yesterday, we visited The Edge team at Essex Middle School for their annual Project Fair, where students share their learning with the community. Here’s a look at some of the amazing work on display.
A 1-minute iPad how-to from Harwood Union Middle School science educator Brian Wagner, showing you how to save augmented reality “auras” from the popular mobile app Aurasma, to Evernote. Wagner used Aurasma with his students this past spring in creating an augmented reality periodic table, mounted in the community gallery space at their school. …
Continue reading “iPad how-to: saving auras to your Evernote portfolio”
Hi there! My name is Mark Olofson, and I am a new research fellow here at TIIE. I worked for a number of years as a science educator, and I’m going to use this space to share some of the things I learned in the field related to using technological tools to teach science. I’m …
While we’re all over here recovering from the epic spectacle that was this year’s Code Camp, please enjoy Shelly Wright’s TEDTalk, on her journey as a teacher. They’re all excited and they’re telling people, and texting and I’m thinking this is gonna be awesome, you know? We’ll raise a couple thousand dollars, the kids’ll …
Continue reading “How one teacher learned to let go and trust her students to lead their learning”
Our inaugural Code Camp is in some great company this morning over at 7Days: Ruby Course, Conference and Camp Coming Soon. It’s great to see such strong support for learning to code in the community. 21st century educations ftw! If you haven’t signed up for Code Camp yet, you’re in luck: we opened up a …
Continue reading “Learning to code in the Green Mountain State (via TechJamVT)”
Montpelier’s U32 students did an amazing job crafting this documentary about school consolidation issues in Vermont. A fantastic example of using technology to engage with community issues. Highly recommended.
“It’s not that I feel smarter in learning, I feel smarter in everything.” Essex Middle School’s Edge team opened their doors to the community May 16th as one of three Innovation schools in Vermont. Students and facilitators discussed some of the projects they’ve accomplished and some of the things they’ve learned as part of this …
Keith Nemlich, educator at Manchester Elementary/Middle School, sat down with us and answered six questions about the state of edtech. “I’d like to be obsolete. Seriously. When my school no longer needs me and our students are independently accessing technology in appropriate and meaningful ways, then I’ll know that I have been successful. What would …