Saturday, August 20, 2016

Student Centered Learning

I'm really excited to be trying some new ways of teaching and learning this year!

What do you think about: Thinking for yourself vs “Doing what you are told”? What if, instead of following instructions, the teacher gives you the “intent”? In other words, what are we trying to accomplish here today? How do we do it? How can we work together to reach a goal? Yes, all that freedom must be fabulous! However, we do need to know what is necessary to reach our goal. We'll start with skills and then add the requirements and structure.

To do this I will help you with technical competence (the how) and the intent/goal (the why). You, as a student, need to learn the technical aspects so you can have the know-how to work on your own. Ideally, you will be a thinking, active, passionate, creative, and "taking initiative" student. How can we work together to create an environment for thinking? How can we cultivate and inspire leadership? An environment where everyone gets to achieve greatness?

What do you need to know? What would YOU like to learn? What are YOU passionate about?

This is the second year I am working with the menu, and with providing you with a lot of freedom. Most students love it, but if you are a student that prefers more structure, see me for guidance. Your education is all about YOU. I am here to help you craft it into what you need and want. If you have feedback on how to make this experience better, I'm all ears.

I'm looking forward to working with you, and learning with you.

Student Work! First Project of the School Year!