On April 19 and 20 0ver 60 educators gathered in St. Louis for our second annual sustainability education seminar.  This year we set the challenge to “bust several the predominant myths” of education, mental models of reality that are not actually true, and preconceptions that get in the way of meeting the needs of our students and communities. We explored five myths: Independent and public schools do not collaborate Students don’t do real work in school Students are not yet citizens Teachers deliver curricula, students receive it Tests are the best measure of achievement From the very outset we ... read more...

Earlier this month, I spent an extraordinary week at Opal School of the Portland Children’s Museum in Portland, Oregon.  I was there co-teaching a graduate education course through Butler University with Dean Ena Shelley and Susan Mackay, the Director of The Center for Children’s Learning. The group of 18 people assembled ranged in age from early 20′s to early 60′s.  We were administrators, professors, undergraduate and graduate students, and teachers.  All of us were captivated by the different kind of school that Opal is and by the life long learning that takes place there every day.  We focused on learning in ... read more...

Picking up from last week’s entry on my reconnection with Trung Le, principal at Cannon Design, an architecture firm doing paradigm shifting work in school architecture, I’ll focus here on a basic reformation in the thinking behind school: school as community…school as the builder of community….school as the creative force in community…school as the creator of culture. Carlina Rinaldi, president of Reggio Children, in Reggio Emilia, Italy spoke at a conference we hosted in St. Louis in 2001.  Just when the generations ushering in a new century were filled with all the promise a new beginning brings (like this spring ... read more...

I’m sitting at a conference table with eight colleagues.  We’re planning a second annual professional development seminar for this April 19 & 20, 2012.  We’re talking about projects that are going on at each school that have to do with WATER. Bob Dillon, MRH Middle School Principal, pipes up, Well, we should have our aquaponics project going by spring. Your WHAT? asked Tim Wood, TCS Sustainability Coordinator. At the end of Bob’s explanation, Tim turned to Sheila Gurley, Head of TCS, Well, Sheila, looks like we need a fish production center, too. She nods in hearty agreement. Oh, BTW…MRH is Maplewood ... read more...

We are in Vermont this week between Christmas and New Years at the farm where Ashley grew up.  This morning there is a dusting of sugar snow on the ground, a clearing sky and flat light and the dogs are running joyful circles in the yard.  The oven is on and bread is baking.  What could be better really? In less than a week 2011 will be gone and we will be launched into another year.  Cadwell Collaborative has been up and running for three and a half years now. Ashley and I are enjoying our work and our collaborations ... read more...

Designing a New School for the 21st Century To an educator is there anything more exciting (or daunting) than starting a new school?  I don’t think so.  I’ve done it twice (if you count the complete renovation of The St. Michael School, both the building and the curricula).  And now, I’m privileged to be a consultant to another new school in the making, Bennett Day School in Chicago. After six months of working with the creators of Bennett, I realize that, in their process they are using the very 21st Century skills that they plan to engender at Bennett.  In ... read more...

The Power and Pleasure of Curriculum Mapping In this post we will share some of our experience and practical ideas about what is called Curriculum Mapping. Curriculum Mapping is the collaborative process of documenting, discussing and improving curricula through creating visual “maps” of the essential understanding, skills, experiences and assessment that shape courses and projects. This practice was pioneered by Grant Wiggins who wrote Understanding by Design, and Heidi Hayes Jacobs who wrote Getting Results with Curriculum Mapping. This process is invaluable as it clarifies for everyone, including students, teachers, and parents, the essential “big ideas” that curricula is built ... read more...

Among the exciting possibilities in education today is this one: the design of schools can change to better support the 21st C. pedagogy and the development of 21st C. skills.  Over the past year, Ashley has had the opportunity to work with one of the great educators in North America, Dean Ena Shelley, and one of the most famous architects in the world, Gyo Obata.  Together, they are transforming an old school to one that will be an inspiration for the future.  This is what Ashley has to say about this exciting process. Ena Shelley is the Dean of the ... read more...

Oregon Episcopal School Kindergarten Field Guide This spectacular field guide by five and six year old children is a vital, thrilling demonstration of student voices in action designing and creating real work that contributes knowledge, innovation and insight to the local and global community.  These students are leading by example.  Here is how it happened. Last February, Louise led a day-long workshop at Opal School of the Portland Children’s Museum in Portland, Oregon.  The workshop focused on curriculum design and featured students’ exemplary work.  During the workshop, Louise worked with Kirstin McAuley, a kindergarten teacher at Oregon Episcopal School, (OES).  ... read more...

Over the years, we have been inspired by the work of our colleagues at Opal School of the Portland Children’s Museum.  Opal School is inspired by the work of the schools in Reggio Emilia, Italy.  Opal School teachers have a deep understanding of children’s development through reading, writing, mathematics and creativity.  We learn from Opal teachers, students and parents every time we visit, every time we collaborate on projects and workshops together, and every time we witness learning experiences at Opal that are meaningful and transformative.  For the last eleven years,  The Center for Children’s Learning at Opal School has ... read more...