Students
Scratch This! The Poster You’ve Been Waiting to Buy your Bookish Friend (or Me)
Scratch This! The Poster You’ve Been Waiting to Buy your Bookish Friend (or Me)
Take scratch-and-sniff, add some literary favorites, and there you have it: the perfect gift for literati everywhere. (Perhaps including Black…
How Students in Flint, Michigan Do Prom
How Students in Flint, Michigan Do Prom
You have heard about Flint’s water crisis and perhaps their rising crime rate. But that’s not all Flint is, not…
Why to Stop What You Are Doing And Watch this Education Film (in French, but still…it has subtitles)
Why to Stop What You Are Doing And Watch this Education Film (in French, but still…it has subtitles)
If you have never seen this gorgeous documentary about an elementary school teacher in a little school in rural France,…
“I know a lot of talented ruins,” says James Baldwin
“I know a lot of talented ruins,” says James Baldwin
How many times have you heard children–and adults–refer to themselves as “not a math person” or “not a reader”? Children in…
What Constitutes Learning?
What Constitutes Learning?
We must ask very different questions in education if we are going to expect different outcomes. I’m convinced that it…
Are Cubicles the New Classroom? Maybe.
Are Cubicles the New Classroom? Maybe.
There is a lot of talk about the value of personalized and blended learning. But what does it really mean?…
Sal Khan on How Video Can Transform Education
Sal Khan on How Video Can Transform Education
I do a lot of work at the intersection of technology and education. In fact, one could argue that all…
Harry Potter’s Battle for Real-World Learning
Harry Potter’s Battle for Real-World Learning
You know Harry Potter. But did you know the young wizard was a champion of constructivist pedagogy? Based on this…
To Teach or Not To Teach like a Dead Poet?
To Teach or Not To Teach like a Dead Poet?
I love this clip from Dead Poets Society for many reasons. First, it cuts the the essence of pedagogy: does…
Love the Teenager in Your Life? Know Their Brain.
Love the Teenager in Your Life? Know Their Brain.
When working with secondary education teachers, I often find myself reminding them that while teaching teenagers can be challenging on…
Teach Students to Steal–Just Like Great Writers
Teach Students to Steal–Just Like Great Writers
The brilliant John Cleese imparts his advice to young writers: steal if you have to! In this clip from Big…
“You gonna leave that idea stuck in your head forever? That sucks,” says Lin-Manuel Miranda to BX students
“You gonna leave that idea stuck in your head forever? That sucks,” says Lin-Manuel Miranda to BX students
Watch Lin-Manuel Miranda, creator of Hamilton, share his insights about creativity and writing with students at a Bronx high school. The…
Want to Teach Strong Writers? Start with their strengths.
Want to Teach Strong Writers? Start with their strengths.
I tend to roll my eyes when I see extraordinary stories of teachers reaching students. Not because I have anything…
Aesthetic Learning through a Child’s Painting
Aesthetic Learning through a Child’s Painting
The International Museum of Children’s Art has a fantastic archive of powerful pieces by young people. This painting of a…
“Leave Them Kids Alone”
“Leave Them Kids Alone”
Pink Floyd’s “Another Brick in the Wall Pt. 2” from 1982 puts a short film to the anti-school anthem. It…
Hating School, Loving Education
Hating School, Loving Education
Check out this powerful poem that pinpoints the all-too-common tension between schooling and learning. Spoken word poetry at its best.