My encounter with Tony Wagner's ideas...

I'm back from vacation! It was a great time to rest and catch up on my reading. The number one book was "The Global Achievement Gap" by Tony Wagner. As I mentioned in one of the posts before, he is a serious about education. There is so much information to share but I'll list the 7 skills he lists in his book as needed by every student to succeed in the twenty-first century.

1- Critical thinking and problem solving;
2- Collaboration across networks and leading by influence (versus leading by authority);
3- Agility and adaptability;
4- Initiative and entrepreneurialism;
5- Effective oral and written communication;
6- Accessing and analysing information;
7- Curiosity and imagination.

Most of the skills are not a surprise to me, but what caught my attention was the last one. Many people believe that creativity is a talent that people are born with and cannot be developed. Yes, creativity can be developed and can be taught. Also, this skill is not needed in all profession. However, with globalization and economy issues, finding creative ways to solve a problem or improve a system is very appreciated by the leaders of companies.

What are we doing in our classroom or at home with our children to developed their creativity?

Food for thougths! Important to remember...

In dealing with children, sometimes we forget that all behavior comes from the child's need in communicating something to adults. John Snyder, in his article "Talking with parents on the periphery," quotes Sandy Blackard saying:

"All behavior-even dysfunctional ones-are ultimately driven by healthy needs. Recognizing the need allows us to see and ally ourselves with the good in children, regardless of their behavior."  

We need to talk!

I've just begun reading the book "The Global Achievement Gap" by Tony Wagner. The book discusses education in a very deep way. What caught my attention was the fact that the author was a high school teacher and his educational views are from a teacher who gets students that have spent years in school but are without the skills they need to become well-prepared professionals and citizens.
Since I'm in early childhood education, I work hard on helping my little ones to develop basic skills such as eye-hand coordination, reading and writing. I help them to begin their journey through life with ideas on conflict-resolution and critical thinking skills. And considering the educational system in the USA, I just hope that the following years of my children's education will complete the job I've started. Wagner's description of what he's experienced in his years as an educator is amanzingly shocking. The skills that might have been developed by the time a student finishes high shcool are not even close to prepare him for a career and life in society. It is clear that between kindergarten and high school, the school system has failed students. 
The reasons for that failure are many. 
During this month, I'll try to discuss some of them. 
I believe awareness of the real problems is the beginning for real changes in the educational system.
We need to talk!  

Blood Cells

This is a picture of a work I created last month for my Body Unit.
I made the cells with FIMO clay and hand sanitizer with red food coloring to create the liquid. The oxygen cells were not placed inside the jar. It was made to explain how the red cells carry oxygen.
The only problem with the work was that after a few days, the hand sanitizer becames liquid and the cells go down to the bottom of the jar. I haven't tried hair gel, but it may work better instead of the hand sanitizer. 
My students loved it!!!

The Secrete of Childhood

"It's in childhood that man learns to guide and direct himself on the way of life. The first incent is given by nature in the sensitive period that is connected with order. Nature, as it were, gives man a compass that will enable him to orientate himself in the world." Maria Montessori, The Secrete of Childhood, p.55 (1972). 

Rethinking motivation

Last weekend, I went to the Cincinnati Montessori Society Conference. The keynote speaker was Alfie Kohn. His ideas on Education for life were provocative and maybe revolutionary for many people. But, I loved every single one. For instance, he spoke about how grades do not motivate students to learn and how praising creates children wo always expect something back from others. I'll expand on the topic of grades.
 According to Kohn, students have to learn facts that are imposed to them. They usually don't have any participation on the decision of what they want to learn or what is meaningful to them (their culture, background, professional interests...). Therefore, students usually memorize the information they need to get good grades but they forget what was studied  after the test or they cannot make connections between what was learned and life. If students are not motivated or interested in what they are learning, chances are they will not retain the information. More importantly, they do not learn to think critically. They cannot questions theories and apply old concets to new situations. There's much more to be said about education. A good book to reflect on is "What does it  mean to be well educated? by Alfie Kohn.
As an educator, I believe it is important to question my teaching and relationship with my students. How do I chose my curriculum? Do my children have any participation in the units to be studied over the year? Do I encourage and motivate them to learn? Or how do I avoid the reward and punishment system?
Food for thought... 

How much is too much?

Living in a city where winter can last up to 5 months, I believe taking time to appreciate a good weather when it comes is necessary. Today, I caught myself thinking about how much time I should let the children in my room play outside. The weather was great - 36 F. Well, after a lot of snow, rain and temperatures close to 0 F I thought we could all benefit from a good time under the rare sun. However, asking my children to put their works away was a hard decision. Most of them were really focus doing their works and I felt "kinda" bad for interrupting their concentration and finishing their work cycle earlier than usual. Of course they had a great time out. Of course they have had days their work cycle was long and productive. But, if at the moment that I interrupted their cycle, one child was about to have an "ah moment," what now? Is it going to come back? I believe it will but probably with less intensity or less excitment. How fair was I with that child? So...how much is too much? How much time is too much outside time? How much time is too much for the work cycle? How much time is too much without the sun?  

ADHD and my choices

As a teacher who has dealt with ADD and ADHD children and a wife of an ADHD husband, I sometimes find myself trying to identify what behavior in people has been caused by ADD/ADHD and what has been caused by a pure and councious choice. How much of that child's behavior is coming from an ADD/ADHD mind?
Even though I agree that ADD/ADHD is overrated today, I still believe that it is a disorder that affects many people. However, it should not be seen as a negative trait. ADD/ADHD people are increadibly creative and smart. Because of my husband, I subscribe ADDitude. This magazine brings interesting stories about how people with ADD/ADHD have copped with the disorder in their lives, recent researches in the subject,   helpful hints on how to manage the disorder and many other issues related to ADD/ADHD.  I particularly enjoyed the story written by Kate Rollins in the Spring 2011 issue. "Stand up to Symptoms" discusses how much ADHD influences a person's daily choices. The opening paragraph is a clear statement about how the disorder cannnot be blamed for a person's decisions: "I am writing myself, and all of you, a little reminder: ADHD does not make our choices for us and is not the sole voice in the choir of our waking thoughts." 

Hello!

Welcome to Thinking Montessori Today!

The idea to create a blog is the result of a compilation of information about Montessori and early education experiences in my life. The blog is just a space where I can gather ideas for works and collect reflections on daily events that happen in my classroom. It is an effort to organize information about the educational philosophy that I have learned to admire so much.