Tiny bubbles...

Julie and I

Sir William Osler once wrote, "No bubble is so iridescent or floats longer than that blown by a successful teacher."  Tonight I was asked by Richard Pho a student from my class of 2004, to give the keynote speech at the Framingham High School National Honor Society induction ceremony.  I was honored to present another student, Lindsay Ortmeyer, with her certificate and it was a reunion of sorts as I exchanged hugs and photos with former students Ting Ting Ge, Julie Clancy, Mark Li,  Mahad Gudal and their families. Teachers blow many bubbles each day.  We watch them float away and once in a while one or two float back to us, mature and beautiful.  Tonight was one of those times...

MassCUE Here We Come...Thanks Framingham Ed Foundation

Technology is alive and well at Dunning School!  Thanks to a generous grant from the Framingham Ed Foundation 8 teachers attended the MassCUE conference at Gilette Stadium in Foxboro today.  The Patriots practiced on the field while we learned about new ways to engage students in our classrooms.  We are creating a professional learning network to learn with each other.  It is an outgrowth of my Just One campaign to spread technology in a grassroots campaign. I am so proud to be part of a group of teachers willing to take risks and learn together.

Last month I had an opportunity to put my money where my mouth is when, to spite a hacking cough and hoarse voice, I shot my first commercial! I can add reading from a teleprompter to my growing list of new experiences as MA Teacher of the Year. When the MTA asked me to speak out against Question 3 for the MA Coalition for Our Communities it was a no brainer - we must vote NO! Spread the word!  That is what I hope my commercial will do.  Here is a preview:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q0SyZG1NqsU

Dunning Reads for the Record

Lexi, Dasha and Alex Read

Mark Nieker, President of The Pearson Foundation brought Read for the Record to the STOYS when we attended the ECS Conference in Portland.  I am proud that my principal, colleagues and the students at the Charlotte Dunning School enthusiastically signed on to participate today to join thousands of children, educators and adults attempting to set the world record for the largest number of children reading the same book on the same day with a participating

500 Dunning Students Read

adult.  How exciting to see over 500 students and teachers reading this year's chosen book, Ezra Jake Keats' The Snowy Day. Read more about it in the Metrowest News Article.

   

5th Graders Lead the Reading

Next Steps - Day Four - Al Roker, Magnolia Cupcakes and Bittersweet Goodbyes

We were up early this morning to get to the Today show armed with our signs promoting Pearson's initiative for students across America to read a million books on Thursday.  Al Roker and Magnolia baked goods and I thought it couldn't get any better!  Today we spent the day making our Why I Teach videos.  It was a lot of hard work but I am hopeful that they will help to promote our profession.  There are so many incredible stories to be told.  I am amazed that there are still things we do not know about ourselves even after a whole year.

Toys R Us or is it Toys are we?

Dinner at the Hard Rock Cafe was great fun, one more visit to Magnolias for red velvet cupcakes and then we met to sit and chat one more time.  It is hard to let go - we have become a family of sorts.  The energy from this group of consummate professionals knows no bounds.  I have been so enriched by their presence in my life.

Next Steps: Day 3 - New York City: The City That Never Sleeps

We are here in the Big Apple! After a delicious lunch of New York pizza (oh how I have missed it) we headed out for some sightseeing.  How fun to share the city of my childhood with new friends who have never been here.  It is somewhat like seeing the city through the eyes of children; their excitement is contagious!  Tonight was so much fun - to celebrate our last trip together we were treated to gastronomical ecstasy at Carmine's Italian restaurant.  After seven courses we were praying for the arrival of a wheelbarrow pedicab to get us to the theater to see Billy Elliot.  We are staying in the W hotel in Times Square; it doesn't get much better than that!  Tomorrow we make our videos but first we are off to the Today show. Judging from my view from the 28th floor - NYC is the city that doesn't sleep but sleep I must...

Next Steps Conference: Day Two - A Kiosk of Opportunity

Today has been a continuation of reflection - how has our year gone, what have we learned, what will we do with our learning?  We have been challenged all day to think about what it is that defines a leader.  To me a leader is one who inspires others, without judging.  A teacher leader is one who has or sees the vision and can mobilize and build bridges between the vision and colleagues.  A leader has courage to explore issues and avenues they care about, and can speak up and spur others on to take risks.  A teacher leader leads by example.

Late this afternoon while touring downtown Princeton, I sat down on a bench to soak in the intellectual culture in the shadows of the beautifully gothic architecture on the Princeton Campus when I spied a kiosk on the corner plastered with so many flyers you could not even see the background.  Concerts, lectures, art - so many possibilities.  This is what life feels like now.  The future: a kiosk of opportunities ripe for the picking.  What to choose, what to choose...

"All teachers can lead." - Next Steps Conference at ETS in Princeton

A tornado or an oven?  That was the choice as I got into car service from Newark to Princeton after enduring numerous cancellations and delays yesterday at Logan Airport. I am not a happy camper when I am tired and hot.  Luckily after a good night sleep I was ready for the day this morning.  Today we TOYS began a bittersweet week called Next Steps.  What will we do from here on in with our positions, our knowledge and our connections?  Will we stay in the classroom?  Go into politics?  Become leaders in our fields?  Quoting Rhode Island teachers in "The Teacher Leader," Roland Barth said, "If schools are going to become the places where all children are learning in worthy ways, all teachers must lead." Introspection is so unsettling but healthy at the same time.

Today's provocative discussion centered around content knowledge and what teachers need to know to teach.  I wonder if it is not what the teachers know that we need to be looking at but the organization of education.  If an elementary teacher needs to know ALL the content just think exponentially what he/she would need to know.  All the content in math, science, social studies, reading, writing, health and child development not just from their own grade level but from grades 1-6!  Do lawyers need to know divorce law, patent law, and criminal law and be experts in their practices?  Do doctors know how to be brain surgeons, dermatologists, neurologists, and orthopedists?  It is unrealistic to expect an elementary teacher to know all of this!  If we truly want teachers to be knowledgeable in the content areas maybe it is time for the elementary structure to change.

After a day examining these intense issues we were treated to an amazing dinner tonight at Rat's Restaurant at the Grounds for Sculpture in Hamilton, NJ.  The garden restaurant was inspired by  the Wind in the Willows.  It was just beautiful and the food was delicious.  The menu was created by chef Kevin Sbraga, recent winner of Top Chef!