Sunday Salon: What I Read Online January 5-January 24 2016

With the recent snowstorm that hit Kentucky and much of the East Coast, there's been plenty of time to curl up with our favorite books and devices for online reading. I definitely read more books during the snowstorm than online articles, but here are a few of my favorite online reads over the past few weeks.

This Washington Post article from a mom who just wants her children to love learning and enjoy school appealed to me because I want the same for my own sons and for all other children as well. If you've read my blog previously, you might remember previous posts I've written about the insane idea that kids should have to sit still for hours on end, spend hours at a time being quiet or day after day practicing for standardized tests. These are certainly not ways to help children love learning or enjoy their school experiences, nor are they ways to ensure students have what they need to be successful in life. We need schools that emphasize a love of learning, encourage problem-solving and curiosity, and that teach students the importance of healthy living.

While we're at it, let's also remember to listen to students from everything as big as education policy decisions to as important as classroom learning experiences. Nationwide, but especially in Kentucky, students are joining Student Voice Teams to share their thoughts on our education system. Super impressive is this Kentucky group who is also encouraging students to write op-eds about education issues in Kentucky. This article by a high school senior emphasizes the importance of adequately funding education in Kentucky to ensure ALL students have access to funding for college.

Whether students head off to college or immediately enter the workforce, we have work to do if we are going to make sure students are ready for the future. Ted Dintersmith's documentary Most Likely to Succeed continues to impress community members and educators all around the country. In Kentucky, we had the privilege of being Dintersmith's first state in his 50-state tour. Since his visit here in August, I've been following his tour via blog posts and other articles. This Atlanta Journal-Constitution article asks if we are educating teens for disappearing jobs. If you dig deeper into the AJC blog, you'll find the answer might be--no because if kids don't come out of high school today being innovative, they will come out being unemployed.

Speaking of being innovative, I enjoyed this Inc. article by the founder of an innovative Lexington based company--Big Ass Fans. Carey Smith writes about stock options and stock appreciation rights. It's an article worth your time.

Not only do we need to think about being innovative, we might also think about how we become mentally strong. After reading Amy Morin's book 13 Things Mentally Strong People Don't Do last year, I started following her writing via blogs and articles shared on Twitter. Earlier this month, I read a Psychology Today article where Morin says "mentally strong people don't give away their power--they do these 9 things instead."

Ultimately, we want to, among other things, know our values and be willing to stand out from the crowd. Though it doesn't seem as popular here in Kentucky as it is in Colorado or the mountains of North Carolina where I used to live, I still value hiking and nature. This article about 21 awesome places to see in Colorado captured my attention this week because I still long to hike and explore and I love Colorado. So, if anyone reading this blog is from Kentucky and knows of some terrific places to hike, please share with me! Thanks.

Thoughts on Nothing Daunted: The Unexpected Education of Two Society Girls in the West

When two young Society women in 1916 find themselves bored with daily life in New York, they head west to Colorado to become school teachers. While they both have degrees from Smith College, neither woman has any teacher training, but they commit to learning and giving back to society. In preparation for their arrival, Ferry Carpenter, the lawyer and rancher who hires the women, suggests they read John Dewey's Schools of To-morrow. Citing Dewey, Carpenter emphasizes in letters to the women the importance of "learning by doing, rather than by rote teaching and the rod."

Dorothy Wikenden's book Nothing Daunted: The Unexpected Education of Two Society Girls in the

My husband gave me this book for my
birthday when we were vacationing in
Colorado this past summer

West immediately hooks curious readers with the telling of the story of her grandmother and her grandmother's best friend, two Society women desiring adventure and exploration. Dorothy Woodruff and Rosamond Underwood (Ros) write letters to their families back in New York during the year they spend in Routt County Colorado. Wickenden finds the letters and creates a nonlinear narrative where we learn about education and life in Elkhead from 1916-1917.

You will like this book if you are interested in rural education or the ideas of John Dewey. Personally, the book fits perfectly with many of my interests about education, history, women's rights, and Steamboat Springs, Colorado. Wickendon, captures all of this in her informational and historical telling of the year Elkhead opens its school. Upon seeing the Elkhead school high on a mountain Rosamond exclaims "it is the Parthenon of Elkhead!"

Indeed the school serves as a prominent landmark where students learn and the community gathers. Dorothy and Rosamond ride horseback several miles to reach the school each morning, and the students, wearing thin and tattered clothing, walk or ski to school each day even in winter blizzards (imagine walking 3 miles in thigh high snow drifts and you get the picture).  Wickenden writes

"the teachers found their work strenuous but rewarding: preparing for classes, attending to the children's diverse academic needs, and seeing that everyone was paying attention and behaving (117)." 

For Dorothy, her favorite time of the day is storytelling. In her original letters she shares how the students would "make a mad scramble to pick up all the loose papers, put their desks in order--and then fold their hands and sit at attention!" when it's time for her to tell them stories.

A short time after the women arrive in Elkhead, they must travel to Steamboat Springs for the state teacher examinations. "...the nervous strain of the exams was awful for everyone makes so much of them here and you realize you are a public official...They weren't as bad as they might have been, by any means, but so silly, and taking ten [actually, twelve] exams in two days is not a pleasure trip!"

Wickenden shares more details about the content of the exams (fascinating for readers who are interested in education). She also tells about how Dorothy and Ros meet the school superintendent, Emma Peck, and provides more historical details about Peck--her professional contributions and the geographical landscape in Northwestern Colorado.

The teachers take exams to demonstrate requisite knowledge for teaching in Colorado schools. We read about the teachers creating lessons involving languages, performances, practical living skills, arts, math and current events. Even without teaching experience, the teachers' passion and zeal appeal to the community.

"They weren't yet fully aware of the awe with which college-educated teachers in such far-flung areas were regarded. They spoke perfect English and other languages, too. They valued education for its own sake, not simply as a way to escape the hardships of life at home. Most astonishingly, these two young women from New York seemed genuinely excited by the opportunity of teaching the children (213)."

If you decide to read the book, it's a great glimpse into the lives of school teachers in the early 20th century and it's also so much more. You'll learn about homesteading, mining, westward expansion, and life in Northwestern Colorado. If you teach writing, you'll appreciate the nonfiction narrative as another example of how informational text and narrative work well together. Read Wickenden's original article in The New Yorker or purchase the book published by Scribner.

"If we teach today's children as we taught yesterday's, we rob them of tomorrow."

~John Dewey 

A few thoughts about what I read online December 27, 2015- January 4, 2016

Well over a year ago I started a series where I shared on my blog what I read online each week or two weeks. Keeping up with the links was time consuming but fun, and I was always pleasantly surprised by the responses my readers provided via Twitter, Facebook, email, and even in person. This year, I'm reviving the series and adding a twist. Instead of sharing a larger number of links, I'm going to try sharing thoughts on various articles because sometimes sharing links with only 140 characters just isn't enough room to reflect, and I don't always want to write a full blog post for each article I share either. We'll see how this new format goes, and in the spirit of ongoing learning, I'll revamp or forgo the idea all together if it's not working. So, please let me know what you think!

Star Wars and Women

Please don't judge my skills. This cake was made with love.
I am no cake decorator, but I did challenge myself
to surprise my son five years ago when he longed
for a cake made by me with a Star Wars theme. 

I read two articles about Star Wars: The Force Awakens over winter break, and started a blog post specifically about the movie but then realized I didn't really want an entire post about the movie because to be completely honest, I originally went to see the movie with my family because A) my sons love the Star Wars series and were holding on with eagerness to the movie's release the weekend winter break began and B) I coveted time on Christmas Eve with my husband and sons and our family friends, especially since all our other family live over 300 miles away. We made the movie and lunch afterward a special event.

One article, Star Wars is a Game Changer, resonated with me because while watching the movie, I was pleasantly surprised about the intentional and positive portrayal of women as competent individuals not needing men to protect them. THIS is a message I want my sons to know and understand. Early in the movie when Rey yells "stop grabbing my hand" to Finn, I knew the movie would be different from the previous Star Wars movies which I had seen only as an adult (Neither my husband nor I were allowed to watch the movies as kids). This scene reminds me of the movie Elizabeth when she yells "I am no man's Elizabeth." One of my favorite movies and definitely a favorite line from a movie.

Kentucky & Colorado

While moving to Kentucky never topped my list of most desirable things to do, I've certainly made the most of my life here. Article titles like this one, A wary start to Syrian refugees' new life in Kentucky, from the Washington Post make me wonder if I want to stay here but when you actually read the article, you learn about how some people in Kentucky really are trying to help fellow humans.

Education issues and topics in Kentucky will continue to be controversial in the coming months as debates about whether we should finally join most of the nation in adopting charter schools ensue. Personally, I'm not theoretically opposed to charter schools. What I want is for ALL students to have equitable access to a high quality and enjoyable education, and we have a lot of work to do in Kentucky to ensure this happens either through charter schools or traditional public schools. My biggest question--what evidence do we have that what we are currently doing in traditional schools is working? If we don't have such evidence, why not try something new? Something new might be charter schools. We shall see.

After working long-distance with educators in Colorado, traveling there frequently for work and  vacationing there with my family for ten days last summer, my love for The Centennial State continues to grow.

This week I read multiple articles about innovative work happening in Colorado. This one about inquiry learning moving from teacher-guided to student-driven was one of my favorites. I especially appreciated that the examples were in elementary schools. Who says elementary students can't lead their learning? The article offers practical advice and question- stems to start with teacher guided and move toward student-driven with younger students, and I'd venture to say from my experience with high schoolers that this works with teens too.

Another article about Colorado I appreciated was this one about a group of educators in Boulder who are rehinking high school as part of the XQ America challenge. Here in Kentucky, I'm working with a small group doing something similar.


Finally, I'll share a couple of links to articles about a book I just finished reading (my first book of 2016). Since Nothing Daunted: The Unexpected Education of Two Society Girls in the West by Dorothy Wickenden was published in 2011, the articles I read are also a few years old, but the book was terrific (I'll write more about the book itself later this week). Typically when I really enjoy a book, I start looking for articles or other online writing about it to learn more. Wickenden, executive editor of The New Yorker, wrote this article prior to writing the book, so this article is great if you want a synopsis of the story. Since we vacationed in Steamboat Springs and Nothing Daunted was the second book I read that was set in Colorado, I decided to check the Off the Beaten Path Bookstore blog and found an article about a book signing and performance. Though the information was dated, I enjoyed reading about two more Steamboat area museums...maybe I'll visit them next time I make it out there.

Favorite Books I Read in 2015

Wrapping up another year reading a book a week, I thought I'd take the time to share reasons why the ten books listed here are my favorites from the 52 books I read in 2015. My reading this list year included books read for fun and books for professional and personal growth.

My favorite books read for fun in 2015

The Book of Unknown Americans by Cristina Henriquez

With all the conversations about immigration in America right now I think it's important that we remember people and their stories. In this novel, Henriquez's characters tell their stories and reasons for coming to the United States. One character says "We're the unknown Americans, the ones no one even wants to know because they've been told they're supposed to be scared of us and because maybe if they did take the time to get to know us, they might realize that we're not that bad, maybe even that we're a lot like them." Check out the short review I wrote for Cake and Whiskey Magazine's blog here.

Yes Please by Amy Poehler

This book makes the list because, well, because I'm not funny and Amy Poehler is. Honestly, I avoided this book for the longest time because I never really followed Amy Poehler carefully and wasn't sure I'd enjoy her humor, but when I had to drive to the other side of our state (10 hours round trip) for the second time in one month's time span, I knew I needed something other than my thoughts and music to occupy the time. Cue the audio book version of Yes Please. Poehler's humor was just what I needed in those ten hours, and each time I stopped I could hardly wait to get back in the car for more life wisdom from this comedian. No review from me on this one, but check out this fun review from another blogger.

Exposed: Tragedy and Triumph in Mountain Climbing 

by Brad and Melissa McQueen

Coincidentally, the authors of this book were in Steamboat Springs for a talk at a local bookstore at the same time we were there this summer. Their book kept me on the edge of my seat; I read it in two days while vacationing in Steamboat Springs. It's not just the adventure and beautiful scenery that keeps me reading books like this. I also appreciate the perseverance and experiential learning the authors share in their journey.

Bird by Bird by Anne Lamott 

For years I've followed Lamott's writing but hadn't read Bird by Bird, so when I received the book for Christmas in 2014, my 2015 reading journey started with this one. Terrific start to my year with numerous quotes applicable to life. Read more about what I thought of the book here.

Becoming Odyssa: Epic Adventures on the Appalachian Trail 
by Jennifer Pharr Davis

My interest in hiking/adventure memoirs continues and I read several more this year including Becoming Odyssa: Epic Adventures on the Appalachian Trail by Jennifer Pharr Davis. This was her first book about her early journeys on the AT. You can read about her record setting AT hike in Called Again. You can read my short review for Cake and Whiskey magazine's blog here.

The Light of the World by Elizabeth Alexander

This memoir reminds you of the importance of being grateful for life, and it helps you appreciate creativity while also maintaining hope. I blogged about the book for Cake and Whiskey and then wrote a follow up post around Thanksgiving on my own blog because this book had just that much impact on me. It's one of those books I won't forget.

Americanah by Chimanda Ngozi Adichie

Another favorite novel I enjoyed this year included Amercanah by Chimanda Ngozi Adichie. This was the first book I've read by Adichie, and I suspect it won't be the last. Her ideas resonate with me, and I appreciate her writing style too. This was another book I blogged about for Cake and Whiskey.

My favorite books read for professional growth in 2015

Most Likely to Succeed by Tony Wagner and Ted Dintersmith

This book by Tony Wagner and Ted Dintersmith probably had the biggest impact on me professionally because of the multiple opportunities I have had to see the film and to meet Dintersmith. His ongoing passion for reimagining education is incredibly authentic and refreshing. For more information check out this blog post about Most Likely to Succeed: Preparing Our Kids for The Innovation Era.

Smart Parents: Parenting for Powerful Learning 

by Bonnie Lathram, Carri Schneider and Tom Vander Ark

This book had the biggest impact on me as a parent and a blogger because Getting Smart contacted me through my blog to see if I would be interested in reviewing the book. Not only was it fun to review and promote the book, I enjoyed the wealth of information available for parents and educators, and I learned about the Smart Parents movement. You will feel empowered if you read this book...so go for it!




What Connected Educators Do Differently
by Jimmy Casas, Todd Whitaker, and Jefferey Zoul

There's really no comparing the amount of reach and connection this book has brought me. First of all, I wrote this post about how the book describes my own journey as a connected educator. Second of all, the authors are engaging and encouraging, and they even participated in a book Twitter chat I hosted this year. Finally, amazingly, somehow, my blog post about this book skyrocketed to the number one most read blog post in my four years of blogging. Really, if you are not connected much yet you should read this short and informative book right away.

Year in Review: 10 Most Popular Posts of 2015

In just a few days I'll mark the 4th year of my blogging journey. This year brought numerous requests for presentations on blogging with several more anticipated in 2016. No doubt these requests and my most popular blog posts would not be possible without you, my readers. If you haven't yet joined the blogosphere consider making 2016 your year. Let these ten most popular posts of 2015 serve as inspiration. Even if these topics aren't in your wheelhouse find your passion and your voice and share it with us all because blogging doesn't have to be polished like an essay; it's a great opportunity to creatively express your views.

Here at Learning to Muse popular posts in 2015 include book reviews, posts about my sons and posts about my professional passion of re-imagining public education.

#10 Dreaming of a Teacher Powered School

Call it a long shot, but I've taken steps toward realizing this dream by forming a team of students, teachers, and administrators creating a concept and designing a proposal to rethink high school in the XQ Super School Project. And, you? What thoughts can you add about how our public education system needs to change?

#9 As My Oldest Son Starts High School, Here's What I'm Thinking

This post brought comments on social media from other parents faced with sending their children to high school or even to kindergarten (since the photo with the original post included one of my son on his first day of kindergarten). Update: We're off to a great start as my son had a strong finish to his first semester of high school. He started the year by advocating for himself and landing in a specific science class he desired; he's performing well in all of his classes and he mostly keeps up with his progress without much pestering from us. He likes English class for the first time; we suspect it's helped that the assistant cross country coach is also his 9th grade English teacher.

#8 Hiking Upper Fish Creek Falls in Steamboat Springs, Colorado

Who doesn't love Colorado? With all the outdoor activities and beautiful scenery, you won't be disappointed. Since I've been collaborating with colleagues in Colorado for the past few years they assured me our trip to Steamboat Springs would be fantastic. Of course, we were not disappointed. Our incredible family trip with relatives included multiple hiking opportunities. We loved Steamboat Springs and even found ourselves dreaming about a move to Colorado (Oh wait, it wasn't just this trip--I've been thinking about a move to Colorado for several years now).

#7 My Favorite Quotes from Anne Lamott's Bird by Bird

If you're a writer or a reader follow Anne Lamott on Facebook for witty and wise commentary on being a better version of yourself. I kicked off 2015 reading Bird by Bird and sharing some of my favorite quotes. Not included in that post was another favorite quote-- "For some of us, books are as important as almost anything else on earth...They show us what community and friendship mean; they show us how to live and die." I also think they show us how to be better writers which is one of the many reasons why I personally choose to read at least one book a week.

#6 Students Should Create, Compose, & Connect Digitally

Troy Hicks and Jeremy Hyler share strategies for engaging students in using technology to create and connect. Gaining increasing momentum in America is the Student Voice (#stuvoice) movement connecting students across schools, districts, and even states. Fortunately, my youngest son has even joined the fun with our Kentucky statewide group, and he's learning and connecting with other students also interested in improving public education.

#5 Reflections on Writing with Deanna Mascle

As parents and educators, Deanna and I share experiences both of us have had with our sons, and we also share multiple links to resources for upping your game as a writing instructor. This post is fun for parents or educators (or both).

#4 Most Likely to Succeed Book and Film

If you haven't read this book or seen the film, you are missing out. Dintersmith and Wagner provide details and ideas for how we can re-imagine public education in America. Further, they provide statistics and examples of why we need to change public education. Follow Dintersmith's blog for information about his ongoing book tour and personal mission to push education change.

#3 Using Blogging to Connect, Learn, & Magnify Teacher Voice

Read this particular and very popular post for suggested blogs to follow and read. After joining National Blogging Collaborative as a volunteer writing coach this year, I personally found myself connected to even more bloggers--all on a mission to elevate the voices of teachers. If you do decide to get started with blogging this year, check out the free supports available from NBC. 

#2 Smart Parents: Parenting for Powerful Learning

In one amazing week, this post became my second most popular read blog post of all time (not just number 2 this year). In case you missed it, I'm sharing it here again so you can learn ideas for student-centered learning. Fellow parents--this book is for you, too, because we can learn more about how our children learn from us about how to persevere, set goals, and persist through challenges.

#1 What Connected Educators Do Differently Describes My Own Connected Journey

Even after 4 years of blogging, this one post skyrocketed to the number one place of all blog posts at Learning to Muse. This post is for educators specifically, especially those looking to connect with others.

Hiking Upper Fish Creek Falls in Steamboat Springs Colorado

Fish Creek Falls

Amazing sites and a steep hike topped our day yesterday as we hiked Upper Fish Creek Falls in Steamboat Springs, Colorado.

Our hike started off easy with a 1/4 mile hike to an overlook for viewing the beautiful Fish Creek Falls where we snapped photos and stood in awe of the 300 foot waterfall. Refreshed, happy, and at ease with the start of our hike, five of us continued on with the next section of the hike to the first bridge about a 1/2 mile in on a gravel trail. We stopped to look at signs about the various trails and determined that we would hike above the falls, taking us slightly closer to the Continental Divide Trail (since reading about people thru-hiking the trail last year, I've been curious about how close we could get when we ventured to Colorado).

This also provided an opportune learning time for my sons to ask about the Continental Divide. What better way to learn this aspect of geography than hiking within miles of the Great Divide of North America?

From there we began our hike upward on a moderate to difficult hike slowly and steadily gaining elevation. After another 1/2 mile, two members of our group of five decided to turn back because the incline takes a toll on unacclimated lungs. My sons, however, were determined to move forward, and I, too, wanted to challenge myself with a more rigorous heart pumping hike, so we pressed onward with the climb. After approximately 2 more miles of hiking up, we came to another bridge with more incredible views of the water and forest.

Rocky path near the top

From the second bridge we had about another 1/2 mile traverse of rocks to make it to the top of Upper Fish Creek Falls. At times, we climbed using our hands to keep us steady. Making it to the top with my sons was exhilarating (and exhausting). We spent only 10 minutes at the top before climbing back down the rocks and heading the path to the bridge and foot path to the bottom of the falls.

Climbing with our hands

The hike down took us much less time, and my oldest son, a cross-country runner, enjoyed taking the lead and hiking solo to the bottom to meet my husband and his brother who awaited us. Ever the runner and lover of outdoors, he made it to the bottom and came back up to find my younger son and me carefully working our way down the rocky pathway. Seeing him made us smile, knowing we were that much closer to the finish.

The cross-country runner taking a break to wait for us

We experienced feelings of joy, happiness, and accomplishment upon making it back to the first bridge and the bottom of the falls. Elated for the heart pumping and view inspiring experience with my sons, we walked the 1/2 mile back up hill to the parking lot. 3 1/2 hours start to finish. Total elevation 8,770 feet.

Three of us at the top

At the top

Sunday Salon: What I Read Online February 23-March 29

A month of balancing out of state travel and family life leaves me full of good online reads to share. Obviously, I won't be sharing everything here or the blog post would be way too long, but here are some of my favorites in the past month.

The hotel in Seattle where we met for our NT3 Learning Session 

New Ways of Thinking About School

I Wish Someone Had Intervened  by Heather Costaras conveys the story of a young girl whose needs are not being met in a traditional sit still school environment. Posts like these further emphasize the reason I remain in public education. We've got to make some changes for kids.

Every Child Deserves a World Class Education. Check out the #UpforSchool campaign.

In this post, an NBCT explains how she persevered through the National Board Certification Process even when it was tough.

Yet another reason to re-think our school models--Suspended Students Lose Millions of Days of Instruction While Out of School, a Washington Post article by Donna St. George.

We Should Be Teaching Our Students Like Yoda Taught Luke, a terrific article about personalized education by Vicki Phillips in Wired.

In The Power of Professional Capital by Andrew Hargreaves and Michael Fullan I learned about other countries in the world who treat their teachers like professionals who build a better nation. We can do this, America! It means we have to change our ways of thinking about teachers and teaching though.

Why I Quit Teaching by Adam Kirk Edgerton serves as an excellent reminder of why teachers should be treated like the professional adults they are.


Students at this School in NYC Get Jobs, Not Grades. Imagine the possibilities if we would think about making this type of school more accessible to more students in America.

Teenagers need playtime too. Nothing reminds me of this more than my own sons who consistently complain about how much they have to sit still at school.

The power of we in distributed leadership models within schools. Read this article if you care about new ways of leadership in our public schools.

Women, Leadership, and Self-Improvement

Read about amazing women who have accomplished much in life and also think about why we still need more women in particular fields Women's Work: Why We Need More Women in Media by Paula Kerger.

The 7 Habits of Truly Genuine People was a good reminder to me as I think about improving myself as a person and leader.

I've been thinking lately about the important connection between leaders and readers, so I found a few articles online on the topic including this one titled Is Reading Boring?

Though I'm not hugely into fashion, the article For Michelle Obama, Clothes That Lean In caught my attention because of the focus on Mrs. Obama wearing appropriate clothes for her mission to promote girls' education worldwide, and I certainly am into that.

This App Makes Your Phone Buzz When You Approach Places Where Women Made History. Not much else to say. Love it.

For fun & because I like to travel and enjoy watching Kentucky basketball...
Though it was a close call last night when Kentucky played Notre Dame, I read this second article a week earlier--Kentucky basketball is huge around here, and the biggest story right now relates to the historic number of wins. John Clay claims Kentucky will go all the way unbeaten. Of course, it's always fun to see Kentucky reflected positively in The New York Times.

As we continue planning our family summer vacation to Colorado, this article from The New York Times caught my attention since we will be staying in Steam Boat Springs for a large portion of our trip. The restaurant sounds lovely, and I look forward to trying the delicious sounding foods mentioned.

A view of the Space Needle from my room

Seattle, Washington remains one of my favorite cities in America to visit, and fortunately, I had the luxury of working there most of last week.

My work in the past week highlighted again the importance of teacher leadership. In our third learning session of the Network to Transform Teaching (NT3), we shared ideas across states and we made specific goals around the two aims. Read more about that work here.

I appreciated the focus on improved learning experiences for students as the reason why we need teachers leading in our schools and districts.

Sunday Salon: What I Read Online January 26 - February 08

My work week on January 26th began with a trip to Denver, Colorado. Coincidentally, The New York Times published this article titled What to do in Denver the week before my trip. Though I didn't get to take in all the sites suggested in the video, I did enjoy a couple of meals at local venues. My colleague and I enjoyed lunch at Earle's before a meeting downtown at the Colorado Education Initiative, and we were treated to dinner downtown that same evening. The following day we worked all day with teachers who were analyzing student work and planning revisions to their common assignment units before heading out to the infamous Steuben's (one featured on Diners, Dives, & Drive-Thrus) for dinner.

Morning walk in North Denver

Education

Students in Northern Kentucky took their desire to be makers into their own hands and created this makerspace.

Education is the most powerful weapon to change the world--read about a film exploring this truth.
Pressure for high-stakes standardized tests is apparently ruining creativity in China. Read more here.

"It's now more important than ever to teach students to think and speak critically" says Terry Roberts in this article.

Visions for Shared Leadership from district administrator Mike Stacey are encouraging.

In education (and other field) we are inundated with big data. In this article we are reminded of the importance of human perspective when we analyze data--yes!

Book review for The Test features a school right here in Kentucky using more performance based assessments to measure student learning.

Science teacher, Patrick Goff, writes about re-thinking the way we do science fairs, and I love this idea as a parent and as an educator.

We had the opportunity to see Jack Andraka live last weekend. If you've never heard him, I'd suggest listening to his dynamic TED TALK.

Health/Adventure

For inspiration to stay active, read about the American man who ran 7 marathons on 7 continents in 7 days.

Humanity
 
As we approached the anniversary the 70th anniversary of prisoners being liberated from Auschwitz,  hear and read a survivor's story here.

Female Militants published a manifesto about it being acceptable for girls as young as age 9 to be forced into marriage. How is this possibly right?

For weeks now, I've been following the story of Raif Badawi, and was pleased to hear his flogging was once again postponed, and I keep hoping for his freedom.

Remember the nearly 300 Nigerian girls who were kidnapped? They are still not free. Here's a reminder.

A story about girls from Chibok who escaped and are now returning to school, defying the militants.

Music/Art/Business
Madame CEO, Get Me a Coffee articulates some of the gender bias woman still endure in the workplace.

A story about Bob Dylan's speech at the Grammy's was a fun read as was this article about the intersection between art and literature.

8 New Jobs People Will have in 2025 was intriguing.

A delightful Google Doodle on the birthday of poet Langston Hughes.

Sunday Salon: What I Read Online January 1 January 11

December brought a break in my Sunday Salon series, but I'm back now to share a sampling of what I've read online the past couple of weeks. Since starting this curated bi-weekly post, numerous individuals have contacted me to share what they like best about what I've been reading, and they've also been sharing their own reading lists with me--making this an ideal learning/sharing opportunity.

Education

Teachers Know Best: Teacher's Views on Professional Development from Impatient Optimists

Obituary for John I Goodlad, Progressive Educator


A Valerie Strauss article in the Washington Post from a blog post by Peter Green in which he writes about The Biggest Public Education Win of 2014.

Valerie Strauss also published an article that includes a piece by Pasi Sahlberg reflecting on the question--What if Finland's Great Teachers Taught in America? This article left me feeling inquisitive and wishing I could talk to Sahlberg.

Student athletes in Utah attend a public charter school designed to support their interest in competitive winter-sports. The Heroes of America's Only (free) All Winter-Sports School by Heather Hansman left me thinking about other schools we might design focused on allowing kids and teens to pursue their own interests. 


I found A New Brand of Superintendents and their Visions for 2015 encouraging since the focus was on providing more distributed leadership and opportunities for teachers. 


From School to Shining School: 52 Stories from Educators Across the U.S. in an interactive map format.


Read about a new library focus in this Kentucky Teacher Magazine article titled No More Shushing in these School Libraries.

Technology

How My Mom Got Hacked by Alina Simone in The New York Times chronicles a real story of a woman whose computer files and photos were held hostage until she paid the ransom (via her daughter's assistance) in bitcoins.

Why, and How to Teaching Computer Hacking by Rachel Williams explores a new computer science curriculum.

I enjoyed this question--What's the Impact of Overzealous Internet Filtering in Our Schools.


For two reasons, this article BCTC's Hour of Code Program Was a Hit with Students. 1) I, too, participated in Hour of Code at a different local school, and 2) some of the students highlighted in the article here are from a school across town where I used to teach.

Te@ch Thought Blog offered a post titled Start Something: 13 Digital Strategies for Teacher Collaboration.

Hiking and Adventure 

An avid reader of adventure travel for the past 20 years, I found a new type of adventure travel to read when I learned about a couple of climbers free-climbing the Dawn Wall in Yosemite National Park. This article introduces life when Hanging Out 1,200 Feet Up. 

I'm planning a vacation for my family to Colorado (and maybe a day trip to Wyoming) so I was looking at hiking trails that might allow us to day hike a tiny section of the Continental Divide Trail. This site offered useful reading about Steamboat Springs Hiking Trails.


Section Hiking is Hard by Jennifer Pharr Davis serves as a great reminder that I better be thoughtful as I plan our tiny hike.


The Continental Divide Trail: A Long Way from Nowhere by Julie and Matt Urbanski is a blog post about their hike. I read their entire book last year, but enjoyed this blog post this week.

Miscelleaneous (But very intriguing reads extremely worthy of mention here)

Wal-Mart an Economic Cancer on Our Cities is well worth a read if you care about small businesses and economics in your area.

Personally, I'm driven to continue with my work in education because I'm passionate about issues of equality. The article Inequality and the American Child speaks to many of the concerns that keep me going in my work.

The beautiful photography of dessert art drew me into this blog post. For complete fun and appreciation for art, check out Brain Pickings and an article titled Modern Art Desserts From Mondrian Cake to Matisse Parfait.

Playlist: TED Talks to Watch With Kids includes 11 different talks on a variety of topics, all with kids as the speakers.

100 Years of the Christmas Truce. Longing for a New Narrative on the Public History Weekly site.





 

Kentucky and Colorado Teachers Collaborate to Create Units of Study with LDC Modules Embedded Within

Seattle, Washington

From Seattle to Colorado to right here in Kentucky the collaborative spirit has been an important  productive struggle for teachers and partners participating in the Common Assignment Study (CAS). In the CAS, Kentucky and Colorado teachers continue to lead the way with the implementation of new standards in both states.  For the past year, teachers from Kentucky and Colorado have been collaborating to create units of study containing embedded Literacy Design Collaborative (LDC) modules.  Hundreds of students in each state have been impacted by these high quality units, and dozens of teachers have learned from one another about what makes an effective unit and what quality student work looks like.

This summer we expanded our participation from 24 Kentucky teachers to 64 from five different Kentucky districts. Colorado has similar numbers of teachers from multiple districts participating in the study. To launch the expansion, The Fund for Transforming Education in Kentucky hosted Colorado educators and all our CAS partners twice this summer. We held the first session in northern Kentucky at Dixie Heights High School in late June. High School English Language Arts teachers and middle school history teachers joined forces to revise the units they implemented in 2013-2014 based on the results of student work they analyzed together using CAS partner created protocols. Joining us at this work session were school and district leaders from participating sites because we continue to learn the importance of school and district leadership with ensuring successful implementation. The leaders need to hear from teachers about what they need (time is always a big one) for collaborating with colleagues.

My son running XC on beautiful day in Lexington, KY

Our second session, in mid-July, was held in Lexington at Edith J. Hayes Middle School, and included a larger group of high school social studies, middle school English language arts, and both middle and high school science. Following the same protocols used at the June convening, teachers again worked to refine lessons and collaborate with teachers experienced in the CAS project and teachers joining new for the first time this year. This intentional design allowed teachers new to the project this year to work collaboratively with teachers who created the initial units last summer. This approach, though not easy, encouraged the newly joining teachers to take equal ownership of the units they will teach in 2014-2015.

As The Fund's Initiative Director for this project, one of my favorite parts is the equal focus on process and product. Yes, we're working to create units, rubrics, and protocols, but we are also experimenting with collaborative processes across school, district, and state lines. I'm not alone in thinking collaboration is a valuable part of our Common Assignment Study.  When asked what they liked about the collaborative process at the summer convenings, here's what we heard from some of the teachers...

"collaborative efforts of a lot of great minds"

"I liked that we came from different backgrounds"

"multiple perspectives"

"Collaboration was streamlined, and everyone was more comfortable speaking up"

"Again, collaboration with like minded experts always leads to new and productive ideas.  I always get better with my craft when surrounded by comrades."

Loveland, Colorado

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Other posts about this project by me & by others

Common Assignment Study Gears Up for Second Year

Online Tools for Collaborating Across States

Common Assignment Study Post 1

Bridging the Digital Divide in Classrooms by Brison Harvey

Introducing Common Assignment Study  A three part post by Brison Harvey

A Storify all about the HS English Spring Unit by Colorado Teacher, Danny Holloweg

Kentucky Educators Collaborating with Colorado Educators to Implement Common Core

After an amazing week in Colorado, I can honestly say I'm completely grateful for my job and the opportunities I have to work with educators in Kentucky and across the country.  Each morning last week as I drove to the beautiful Thompson School District Training facility, I drove toward the Rocky Mountains and past a beautiful lake.  The scenery wasn't the only amazing aspect of the week, I worked with excellent educators who all desire the same thing for all students--an equitable opportunity to learn and grow.

This meeting was exceptional because after one face-to-face workshop last summer and a full semester of virtual collaboration on the creation of a unit, teachers were again face-to-face to create new units for the spring semester.  They are creating common units around common content standards, but not scripted step-by step standardized units.  Each teacher contributes to the lessons and makes appropriate adjustments to meet the needs of individual learners in each class.  Teachers are encouraged to think beyond multiple choice tests and toward performance based assessments that will measure deeper learning.   Importantly, teachers lead the unit design and make decisions about the units; their work is facilitated by content experts from Stanford's Center for Assessment Learning and Equity. 

The groups begin by creating Enduring Understandings as learned in our work over the years with Understanding by Design.  These guiding questions serve as a driving force for the the unit of study.  The focus on larger concepts, principles, and ideas keeps us away from a focus on discrete skills alone and helps us consider ideas that will be more engaging to students.  For example, the high school English Language Arts group is looking at the impact of social media on language, and the high school science group is thinking about how humans affect biodiversity. 

Within these larger units of study Literacy Design Collaborative (LDC) modules are embedded.  LDC offers an instructional ladder (with mini tasks developed by teachers) designed to help students attain and surpass the demands of the Common Core literacy standards in each subject area.  Effective implementation is vital with both LDC and larger units for teaching the Common Core State Standards.   That's why our Common Assignment Study is exciting.  We have selected top notch teachers who know how to meet the needs of their students and who are always seeking to grow as learners and professionals.

As a former teacher, I know I would have enjoyed an experience like this, so to be there in a support and leadership capacity, was interesting and invigorating in a new way.  I collaborated as a leader because leaders also have to be willing to work together to create the systems and structures we need in schools, districts, and states to support the work of teachers and the learning of students.