Study Group J
Our Smore!
Who We Are
Visited our national parks!
Loves the curiosity of children!
Apart of a BBQ Team!
Enjoys a good bike ride!
Certified BBQ judge!
Loves to travel with her husband!
Loves to travel!
Loves her weird 6th graders!
Loves to travel!
Working with PZ for 6 years!
Mama to 3 daughters!
Family is in 4 different continents!
Roadtripping with his wife around the US!
Traveled to us from Australia!
Eagle scout who loves video games!
Corporate refugee!
Loves to hike! Joining us from Hong Kong!
Excited to be at PZ and newly engaged!
Our Web of Connections
Our Study Group Norms
- Be fully present and participate
- Be active listeners, watch and share airtime
- Appreciate different perspectives
- Support one another's learning
- Have fun together! :)
What Brings Us to Project Zero
Start Close In
Start close in,
don’t take the second step
or the third,
start with the first
thing
close in,
the step
you don’t want to take.
Start with
the ground
you know,
the pale ground
beneath your feet,
your own
way of starting
the conversation.
Start with your own
question,
give up on other
people’s questions,
don’t let them
smother something
simple.
To find
another’s voice,
follow
your own voice,
wait until
that voice
becomes a
private ear
listening
to another.
Start right now
take a small step
you can call your own
don’t follow
someone else’s
heroics, be humble
and focused,
start close in,
don’t mistake
that other
for your own.
Start close in,
don’t take
the second step
or the third,
start with the first
thing
close in,
the step
you don’t want to take.
~David Whyte, River Flow: New and Selected Poems
Our Learning Experience
Movement Interpretation
Visual Interpretation
Musical Interpretation
Our Quotes from Day 1
"As educators, our job is to tame the wild and wild the tame." - David Perkins
"In the same way as a book feels like a friend, you get attached to something that is written well...the poem, I feel more friendly with. We are solid acquaintances, not besties." - Laura
"Really, really important as educators to feel that discomfort of learning something new." - Jackson
"I feel it is so groovy when someone notices something you didn't." - Adam
"The complexity of understanding...sometimes it is not a destination you reach." - Katrina
Our Throughlines
2. What are the roles of reflection and assessment in learning?
3. How can we nurture critical thinking and creativity?
4. How can we design for and with a variety of learners and contexts?
5. How can we continue our learning with others after the PZC?
"I wondered today more than ever!" - Ryan
Ron Ritchhart
Website: http://www.ronritchhart.com/ronritchhart.com/Welcome.html
Protocols!
Some recommendations to start:
- Looking at Student Work (LAST)
- New Understanding
- Ladder of Feedback
- Microlab
Website: https://www.nsrfharmony.org/free-resources/protocols/a-z
Reflection Time: Snowball Fight!
Memorable Quotes from Day 2
"Attention is the rarest and purest form of generosity" - Simone Weil (restated by Cathy)
"One thing outside my comfort zone is being a facilitator and letting students take control of their own learning." - Ryan
"Sometimes, I know what I am looking for. Sometimes, I see something interesting to take home. But, I never take home the whole beach." - Tina Blythe
"Something I read or saw today and feel ready to try is...speed dating." - Rico
"One thing outside my comfort zone is being a facilitator and letting students take control of their own learning." - Ryan
10 Things to Say to Your Students Everyday...and Why They Are Important - Ron Ritchhart
Our Action Plans
Reflection: How is your windshield?
Our Words From Day 3
"The question cannot be satisfied by waiting. One must commit to the process of finding the answer." - Paul Freir
"...from idea to action..." - David Perkins
"I'm going to butterfly it!" - Wendy
"I am driving 75 mph through a school zone, but I clearly see to the 'why'" - Anonymous Study Group J participant
Our Wonderings
Painted Reflection Journals: What has been most meaningful for you?
Thoughts from Day 4
"Stop where you are, that is where you should be." - Restated by Faraday
"To whom much is given, much is required." - Biblical Reference restated by Wayne Wilson
"Learning and development can only happen when we embrace diversity." - Daniel Wilson
"Teaching with cultural humility." - Carrie James
"Learning is a product of thinking." - Perkins
Thinking Routine
Recommended books to get started...
Ron Ritchhart
Mara Krechevsky, Ben Mardell, Melissa Rivard, & Daniel Wilson
Ron Ritchhart, Mark Church & Karin Morrison
Our Exhibitions of Learning
"How can my learners identify and recognize themselves as a learning group without myself dictating that for them. We do this work because our hearts are in it." - Adam
"Intentionally left open because I think more will come together for me as a I look through my notes tomorrow. Functional piece of art for me." - Laura
"Learning is a community experience if you want to join in. All for the sake of the child. Remember that you are never done." - Jackson
"Search many miles for understanding. Little Red Teacher was excited about the question unanswered." - Michelle
"I am hoping it doesn’t stay a dream but I am catching things that will really impact our kids at the school. What is at the heart of everything we do?" - Cathy
"Woke up the next morning and had much more clarity about what I want to do. Started thinking about the links. Throughlines have really resonated with me while thinking about this work." - Katrina
"Attention is the rarest and purest form of generosity. After going through this I have come out more reflective and taken that to heart." - Joel
"Coming back now with roots! The roots will be knowledge, forms, methods and purposes. Hopefully students see they are supported by a strong trunk grounded in the roots." - Shannon
"So much I’ve learned – I really want to go through and be reflective about it. Such an incredible time and felt very safe in this classroom." - Wendy
"Artifact from an emotional standpoint. When I woke up the next morning it was taking shape, everything was serene. I was open again." - Maria
"A new chair…a place to hold.. to wake up… a place to hold." - Ryan
"Heart symbolizing the love for my students. Hands to symbolize the nurturing I need to give to my students and colleagues. It has been lovely to exchange ideas." - Tamara
"We are doing it together. Creativity is not a solitary experience." - Holly
"This week I’ve been stretched more than I have in a long time. I have these greater overarching themes that overcome the challenges." - Rico
0 - Sinul
Jackson's PZ Song
The Story of Little Red Teacher Hood
Once upon a time there was a young girls called Little Red Teacher Hood. She had travelled many miles in search of understanding. One Summer’s day she found herself in the magical land of Harvard. Little Red Teacher Hood was so excited to be in this marvelous place where understanding was plentiful.
On her first day in this magical land of Harvard she found herself in a beautiful forest. This was the Forest of Understanding, where everything found in the forest could be used to build understanding. Filled with excitement, Little Red Teacher Hood started filling her basket with the forest. She filled her basket until it was almost full and so heavy she could barely lift it.
Just as Little Red Teacher Hood was beginning to despair that she could never fit the whole forest in her basket, she saw a dark shadow cross her path. She trembled as the Big Bad Wolf of Overwhelm huffed and puffed and blew over Little Red Teacher Hood and her basket. Leaves, branches and stones were scattered across the forest floor. The Big Bad Wold of Overwhelm laughed and said, “Whenever your basket is too full, I’ll huff and I’ll puff and I’ll blow your basket down.”
Little Red Teacher Hood sat in despair. How could she ever take home all of the understanding when the Big Bad Wolf of Overwhelm would be right around the corner ready to huff and puff and empty her basket?
Suddenly, a light appeared in the distance. It came closer and closer and the ball of light burst and before her eyes, her Fairy Godmother appeared.
“There, there Little Red Teacher Hood,” soothed the Fairy Godmother. “You expect too much of yourself to try to take home the whole Forest of Understanding. The Big Bad Wolf will always overwhelm you and leave you with nothing.”
“But what should I do?” moaned Little Red Teacher Hood. “I’ve come all this way, I can’t go home with an empty basket!”
“Oh but dear Little Red Teacher Hood, full and empty aren’t your only two options. Instead of trying to fill your basket with the whole forest, simply pick and choose the parts of the forest that speak to you the most. That way you will take home the understanding you need without being overwhelmed by the Big Bad Wolf.”
“Oh thank you Fairy Godmother, I really feel like I can take on the forest now!”
So Little Red Teacher Hood continued her journey through the forest. The forest was a little wild but this excited and challenged her. She admired the beauty of the whole forest but was careful about what she put in her basket. The things she picked up from the forest floor and put in her basket were:
- A leaf who’s veins created a map of understanding
- A branch, where each part was a routine or protocol
- A flower, where each petal was something to say each day
- 8 pebbles, when skimmed across the water created the ripples of cultural forces
- Twigs that created the framework for teaching for understanding
Just as Little Red Teacher Hood was wondering what she would do with all of these separate items in her basket, she stumbled upon a beautiful cottage in a clearing. In the cottage were elves who had also travelled from near and far to search for understanding in the Harvard Forest. Together the elves and Little Red Teacher Hood shared what they had found in the forest. The elves helped Little Red Teacher Hood see that all of the items in her basket were pieces of a puzzle.
The pieces of the puzzle were just starting to fit together when it was time for Little Red Teacher Hood to go home. The puzzle wasn’t finished yet but that was ok because now Little Red Teacher Hood felt excited by the questions left unanswered. She hoped she would be able to return to the Harvard Forest one day, but until then she would keep searching out ways to add to her understanding puzzle. She would always remember the wise words of her Fairy Godmother, the beautiful things she found in the forest and the invaluable help of the elves. And so she journeyed off into the distance, basket in hand.
And they all lived wonderingly ever after…
NOT the end…