World of Learning Institute

The first week of this new year came in like a whirling dervish!   Rested from the holiday we all jumped back into the groove with good and new intentions. The bigger the challenge, the bigger the opportunity for growth. Anonymous Learning Spanish has been one of those exciting challenges I chose to try. I had fun listening to the Notes in Spanish Inspired Beginner Spanish podcast on the treadmill – as I went back at the gym (lots of commitments). I also worked through a lot of the lessons in the Duolingo app. I like the variety of types of opportunities you have to practice in Duolingo. I also like that you can read stories and use prediction skills to get yourself thinking in the target language. I find myself surprised that I remember some vocabulary from my HS and College Spanish studies! This week I plan to expand how I use Notes in Spanish by participating in their forums and seeing if I can make some connections to practice speaking. I think that is the ...

As I sat in my usual morning spot, on January 1, 2019 I had to force myself not to hurry. Hurrying has been part of my DNA for as long as I can remember! Don’t be late. Try the new thing first. Don’t get left out. Yet, my morning routine of reading a passage by Marv and Nancy Hiles in The Almanac for the Soul, started the year with the call to “Take thought in the silence of your heart’. Most of us spend little time in silence, and even less times away from a screen, including me. Longing to get outside and take a walk I fell into hurrying, again. Stopping and starting my brain - drifting into the work week. Thinking about my resolutions. Last year I resolved to read two books, preferably non-fiction, each month. The internet and work have taken me away from reading for pleasure and I wanted to feel the excitement of visiting places and times I have not been. Using the NYTimes Book List, PBS and asking friends and family helped me to find titles that were well worth the read and ...

Practice Becoming “. . . Practice any art, music, singing, dancing, acting, drawing, painting, sculpting, poetry, fiction, essays, reportage, no matter how well or badly, not to get money and fame, but to experience becoming, to find out what's inside you, to make your soul grow”.                       Kurt Vonnegut We are back at it folks! Excited to be working with teachers and learners! Teachers are amazing. I get the good fortune to meet lots of them in our World of Learning. What I know is that they are practicing all the time. I see them working hard at practicing the art of teaching as they learn new tasks and share professional learning each summer. I have the good fortune to work with amazing teachers at IU8’s World of Learning and as I support school districts through our Open Campus Initiative. I talk to people who care about learners, as people, every...

In the text A prophecy from the Hopi Elders spoken at Oraibi, Arizona, June 8, 2000 the leaders called on their people to come together. Working together to support learning is a passion for me and those of us who call The World of Learning and Open Campus home. It is so much fun to have such dedicated and passionate educators to work with. We are all about Professional Learning at the WOL. We are learning all the time. This past week we began our 2018-19 PD and will continue throughout the school year! Our theme in the WOL is Growing the Mindset - as we continue to Welcome Learners' where They Are.  Working with teachers and leaders is one of my favorite things to do. You all are some of the most passionate and hardworking people I know. So calling on the vision of the Hopi Elders seems fitting as we begin another school year. The work we do in education is much like a fast flowing river! If we want to support our young people we cannot hang onto the shore. Learners nee...