Living On The Edge of Chaos

Explore this show and so much more at www.coffeeforthebrain.comIn this episode of the podcast, I speak with the wonderful and incredible Jenny Buccos.Jenny Buccos is a multi-award-winning director and producer. She is the founder and Head of Content of EXPLR Media, a multimedia education strategist, and an agent for global citizenship.She is the Creator and Executive Producer of Crash Test World- a family-focused TV series presented by Kari Byron (Mythbusters). (Available on Discovery+)​​In 2003, before the existence of YouTube, she founded ProjectExplorer, a free multimedia website designed to educate primary and secondary school students about global issues and world cultures and histories. She has directed and produced over 500 short films working with leaders and visionaries including Archbishop Desmond Tutu, Belize’s First Lady Kim Simplis Barrow, Ziggy Marley, and Anthony Bourdain.​An international specialist in video and media-focused curriculum design, Jenny provides consulting services for educational, cultural, and non-profit organizations focused on increasing student access and engagement.Jenny has traveled to over 70 countries. When not traveling, she splits her time between Brooklyn, New York, and Amsterdam, Netherlands.Direct Link: Episode:   Find the this episode and all the previous episodes on Apple PodcastThe episode and previous episodes of the show is also on Spotify! TOPICS WE EXPLOREAll profiles can be found hereWho is Jenny Buccos?What is EXPLR Media?How do you think through the stories for curiosity to lead us into conversation and education?Real World, Relevant, RelatableHow do we weave these three R's into the story of the learning journey with time constraints and context of students?What has stayed the same and/or what has changed over time when it comes to telling quality stories and creating sparks of curiosities?Meet students where they are at and what is engaging them.What are some of the greatest AHA moments?How do you sift through all the ideas to determine which story to tell?Exploration of careers and bring these opportunities for students?What is her origin story?YOUR CHALLENGEShare ideas you gathered from the conversation with us on the socials.What resonated with you?RESOURCES MENTIONED IN SHOWhttps://www.explr-media.com/https://www.jennybuccos.com/ Just a few of my favorite ideas from the conversation! 

TOPICS WE EXPLOREAll profiles can be found hereWho is Amanda Clark?Who is Erin Starkey?Who is Sara Lev?How did the three of these awesome people come together?Erin Starkey Misconceptions on PBL and LiteracyPower words: Perception and PermissionSara Lev Misconceptions on PBL and IntegrationPressure of foundation skills and "catching students up"Three layers to considerAmanda Clark Misconceptions on PBL and Sustained InquiryInquiry, Investigation, ExperimentationField Trips vs. Field WorkThe power of being seen as an early childhood educator from the leadersPower of not dismissing the misconceptions, but embracing and working forward to create solutionsUniversal ideas from this work to all learnersYOUR CHALLENGEShare ideas you gathered from the conversation with us on the socials.What resonated with you?RESOURCES MENTIONED IN SHOWPBL WorksBook: Implementing Project Based Learning in Early Childhood: Overcoming Misconceptions and Reaching SuccessAmazonRoutledgeWebsite: www.earlychildhoodpbl.comTwitter: @ec_pblInstagram: @earlychildhoodpblFacebook: Early Childhood PBL (private group)Article: 30 PBL Ideas for Young ChildrenCourse: https://earlychildhoodpbl.teachable.com/Just a few of my favorite passages from the book!

See more at https://coffeeforthebrain.com/TOPICS WE EXPLOREWho is Joey Cofone?Issues with education system and why there is a disconnect to needs of ourselves and others.Barriers of creativity built by invisible rulesWhat can Alexander the Great teacher us about creativity?Power word "disruption"Making things different vs. making things betterActivity to showcase our uniqueness mathematicallyWhy is weird accepted on a global scale, but not a local scale?How did Joey use the Laws of Creativity to build a notebook company?Language shapes how we think and how he coined the word "Thinkers"Tale of Two Gloves: Power of belonging to a communityCreativity is misunderstoodFinal thoughts from JoeyYOUR CHALLENGEShare ideas you gathered from the conversation with us on the socials.What resonated with you?RESOURCES MENTIONED IN SHOWhttps://www.joeycofone.com/https://baronfig.com/ The Laws of Creativity: Unlock Your Originality and Awaken Your Creative Genius https://amzn.to/3XWFDFw

In this episode, I speak with Pernille Ripp.Pernille Ripp is an expert in literacy and technology integration and dedicates her research and practice to developing engaged and empowered students and communities.She is a teacher, speaker, author, blogger, and passionate advocate for education. She is the recipient of the 2015 WEMTA Making IT Happen Award; and the 2015 ISTE Award for Innovation in Global Collaboration.In 2010, Pernille founded The Global Read Aloud, a global literacy initiative that began with a simple goal in mind: one book to connect the world. From its humble beginnings, the GRA has grown to connect millions of students in around the world.She is the author of Passionate Readers -The Art of Reaching and Engaging Every Child and  Passionate Learners – How to Engage and Empower Your Students, now in its second edition, and Empowered Schools, Empowered Students, both focusing on creating learning spaces and communities where students thrive and all stakeholders are empowered and passionate about learning. She has also authored Reimagining Literacy Through Global Collaboration published in 2016 by Solution Tree.  Her work has also been featured in many print and online journals including Edutopia, The New York Times, School Library Journal, The Guardian, and MiddleWeb.You can follow Pernille’s work on Blogging Through The Fourth Dimension, her personal blog and a frequent Teach100 top-rated education blog.Pernille’s current research interest is in creating passionate literacy environments within the restriction of our current educational systems to helping students fall in love with literacy again. She uses her own classroom as a laboratory, as well as learns from the many educators she works with across the world.Pernille is now also part of The Author Village, a collective of forward-thinking children’s book authors and educators available for school and library visits, conferences, festivals, panels, and professional development opportunities.  To see her page there, please go here.Direct Link: Episode:  CHECK OUT THE SHOW AND EPISODES ON ITUNESThe show is on Spotify!TOPICS WE EXPLOREWho is Pernille Ripp? And what does she have going on?What are some AHA moments in the transition to living back in Denmark after being the US for a long time?What are differences in education between US and Denmark?What are similarities in education between US and Denmark?Why are we going backwards since COVID?Power of moderation, not thinking in extremes told through lens of the recent reading warsThird edition of her book, Passionate Learners, is about how do we let go in a system that teaches us that control is the best way to manage?Dealing with our own control demonsPower of trustHow do you start off the year co-creating community with students?How is power at the core of classroom about power and positional control?And how you do you this in the daily class, not just a one activity lessonYOUR CHALLENGEShare ideas you gathered from the conversation with us on the socials.What resonated with you? RESOURCES MENTIONED IN SHOWInstagramTwitterPatreon communityBlogAnd pre+order of my her edition?https://linktr.ee/PernilleRippall the goodness of her website AND more!Pernille Ripp Website Her website contains everything you would ever need to find all of her work! 

TOPICS WE EXPLOREWho is Jeremy Utley and how did he find his way to education from business work around the globe?Young people need permission to not knowNot asking a young person what they want to be when they growThe Einstellung effect where we cease to search when we think we have a plausible first answer AND how Ideaflow works to push through this issue of thinking.Connection of creativity and an arm splintWe are not practicing what we are saying we are saying in education? How do we do this type of work of Ideaflow and the space for it?What do we mean by creativity?Don't always evaluate. Simple challenge going, "Oh good! and fill in with a response" Start with a gift of good and the try a gift of bad.What if we couldn't do, then what would we do? Repeat this process for your first new idea to work to get past our first idea.Power of framing a prompt or challenge where it is more on the approach vs. the answer."Curiosity can pull you where discipline and willpower would otherwise have to push"YOUR CHALLENGEShare ideas you gathered from the conversation with us on the socials.What resonated with you?RESOURCE MENTIONED IN SHOWIdeaflow: The Only Business Metric That Matters Blog: jeremyutley.designTwitter: @jeremyutleyStanford's Masters of CreativityLeading Disruptive InnovationLaunchPadAstro Teller who is the head of Google X

TOPICS WE EXPLOREWho is Laura McBain in case you don't already know!How might we best deliver content to young people? AND...How do we bring an asset framework and mindset to our young people and educators?How do we solve the sticky issues that we not yet addressed in our education system?How do we separate the topic of failure from the larger issue in the education system that is so focused in a deficit framed mindset?What happens when a teammate of yours loses their way and fails in front of you? What is our responsiblity when each of us fail?Missed opportunity when we don't have a process to unpack the moments when things don't work.Michael Pryor story of compliant engagement (do as I say, and THEN we can have a great time)Misconception that when we pivot to a new idea means that our previous work is "wrong"Page 63 – Part of the mystery behind failure is this opportunity to surprise yourself. (my favorite line in the book!)If everything is prescriptive, then the magical moments of learning and a strong sense of learning to learn won't happen.Curiosity is what sustains us through moments of failure. YOUR CHALLENGEShare ideas you gathered from the conversation with us on the socials.What resonated with you?RESOURCE MENTIONED IN SHOWMy Favorite Failure: How Setbacks Can Lead to Learning and Growth d.school profileLaura on TwitterLaura on LinkedIn119: The landscape of questions and listening in education with Laura McBain from d.school https://coffeeforthebrain.com/119/A video Laura provided as we explore Authentic Learning https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wbvn0KjtNag&feature=emb_title 

In this episode, I speak with John Miller, Founder of Agile Classrooms.John inspires future-makers in creating a culture of vibrant empowerment in their organizations. As a foster kid, John was motivated to learn how some empowered themselves to become victors over their circumstances and others became victims of them. As the Chief Empowerment Officer of Agile Classrooms, he is pioneering Agile in schools to empower teachers and students to thrive in 21st-century learning, life, and work. As the founder of Rightshift Coaching, he helps organizations in their Agile transformations through coaching and training.His work and ideas are not only reinvigorating education but he is also revitalizing ways to engage in Agile transformations through his Agile Resonance Coaching method. He has helped a spectrum of organizations, from Fortune 500 companies to at-risk schools, in pivoting their culture to achieve in a fast-changing, competitive world. He holds a Certified Enterprise Coach® certification and is a Certified Professional CoActive Coach, Associate Certified Coach, and a Project Management Professional.When not focused on work, John loves to surf (well, wiping out more than actually surfing), make silly faces with his seven-year-old daughter, volunteers as a life coach for students, co-leads a Nonviolent Communication Group, and makes insanely delicious drinking chocolates. Say hi to him on Twitter @agileschools.TOPICS WE EXPLOREWho is John Miller?What do we mean by "agile" and "SCRUM"?(resources below)Power of the word "permission"What are some ways to get this work to work when change is tough?See, feel, changeFail smallMisconceptions about this workCommunication is a skill that needs to be taughtHow let go of lower level needs to be needed for deeper levels of thinking.YOUR CHALLENGEShare ideas you gathered from the conversation with us on the socials.What resonated with you?RESOURCE MENTIONED IN SHOWAgile ClassroomsIowa ALN Agile and SCRUM Support

TOPICS WE EXPLORE  What is a prototype?There a tension between a prototype as a question and a prototype as a statementThe struggle of the muckety muck phase of bringing ideas to life aka "the solution"It is really hard to sit in a room of silence and watch people think.Power of space and time to sit with ideas to marinatePrototyping with focus more on the learning journey vs. final productPerspective changing of seeing materials as valuable resourcesDisservice that when we need/want to be creative we also have to consider "garbage" as material to be able to create.When making a statement to convince someone of the idea vs. actually showing something to someone to ask a question.There is only value to be gained by engaging other people in the work.YOUR CHALLENGEShare ideas you gathered from the conversation with us on the socials.What resonated with you?RESOURCE MENTIONED IN SHOW Read more about the book here - https://dschool.stanford.edu/book-collections/this-is-a-prototypeHBO's From Earth to the Moon (this is mentioned in the show)These two are from Apollo 13 which are likely stuck in your head too if you've seen that one:https://youtu.be/ry55--J4_VQ  (connection to "one material prompt")https://youtu.be/f6F6MzMT2g8LinkedInMediumMake Space: How to Set the Stage for Creative Collaboration 

In this episode, I am sharing a session I was asked to present at the IASB conference. I have provided both the video and audio versions of this session. The beauty of this session is that we brought in a robust powerhouse of project based learning experts from around the country to help shape the narrative around why this work matters so much.The session description is as follows:Looking for ways to transform learning for your students? Join Pleasant Valley Schools and Mississippi Bend AEA to explore how they innovated to engage students and educators in authentic learning experiences and project-based learning. Attendees will examine real-world scenarios where teachers are weaving content standards, universal constructs and social-emotional competencies together—all while remaining collaborative and providing rigorous and authentic work. Give your students voice and choice, showcase their learning, and understand how this type of work can happen in YOUR classroom.Check out the perspectives and the challenges to enhance learning experiences for all students. The show is on Spotify!Video Versionhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XcDoocL9AQITOPICS WE EXPLOREQuick overview of the session and goals06:00 Chris Welch, administration perspective on authentic learning and students owning the learningStudents owning the learning changes the narrative around engagementUniversal Constructs that is so important10:00 rest of introductions and persepctive from Sarah Vice a 6th grade teacherFailure is a giftThe importance of human experienceProcess over product14:24 Steven Smith, NASA perspective8 most dreaded words "When am I ever going to use this?"Our students are going to be part of the space economyFailure is vital lesson we don't learn well19:21 Chris Welch, Administrator on providing context of how instructional design ofHow does civilizations from ancient history survive?What does survival look like present day with All Thirteen book?How do we then work with experts to think about the future that will be "present day" for our students?22:30 Jeff Robin and how to really think about projects from a real perspectiveTeachers need to do the project firstStudents don't want dumpster projectsYou only remember when learning is fun and exciting25:50 Amanda Clark and importance of strong leadershipNeed to provide space for teachers to be creative and to give teachers space to try things out.We need to do more than just teach standardsTeachers need support and love from leaders, community, school boards, etc.27:41 Erin Starkey and her story how pbl brought joy back to her teachingPBL was a lightbulb for Erin because she was passionate and that is contagiousPBL was a gamechanger because she found joy and in students from age of 4 and above29:30 Beth Campbell, librarian perspective on how to build school community to do the workIsolated spaces in schools are gone. PBL brings opportunities to team because together we are betterLibrary should be alive and vibrant with co-teaching and co-design for learning opportunitiesIncredible research on the brain and heart31:45 Chad Uhde, elementary principal and form PBL instructional coachPower of taking risks and see what we can do. Be brave to change identity of studentsPBL provides new outlet for students to showcase who they are and their why35:00 How do you assess and measure and quantify success?Jeff RobinCan the students explain what they have learned?Do we need an easy number?Are we doing education for ourselves or for the students?Erin StarkeyRequires intentional integrationUBD and designing formative flags around the wayConstantly meet needs of students naturally in PBLRubrics for learning not a checklist of tasksSteven SmithLots of standards are performance based on what students can doChallenge the paradigm that we need a numerical value for everythingLife does not work that wayPreparing students for a world that they will be creatingWe are not helping our students by creating widgetsAre we here for our students or ourselves?Why go through all the nonsense of teaching if we want each student to fit a single mold?We are in the space age and students will decide if they want to go to Disney in Florida, California, or space?We need to either start preparing our students for the future or stop pretending like we are tryingChris WelchFocus on standards and conversation on "How do you know?"Where is the learning visible?We end up with not just standards but thinking progressions on how to think at deeper cognitive rigor and DOK.Exchange not just instruction but facilitationYOUR CHALLENGEShare ideas you gathered from the conversation with us on the socials.What resonated with you?RESOURCE MENTIONED IN SHOWEverything can be found here - https://sites.google.com/view/creatingauthenticlearning/power-of-authentic-learningUniversal Constructs

In this episode, I am sharing a conversation I had with Loni Bergqvist. Loni Bergqvist serves as the Founder//Partner at Imagine If. Loni was (and always will be) a teacher. Loni started her career in education teaching at a traditional school in San Diego, California. She became a project-based learning 'convert' when she started attending night school in Leadership at the High Tech High Graduate School of Education. She began to try (with little success) to do projects in her own class. Loni could see very clearly that her students needed real-world projects desperately but would probably never have access to this type of learning.  Loni left her school to teach at High Tech High, knowing one day her mission would be to bring project-based learning to students who needed it the most; the ones who were in traditional schools. Since 2014, Loni has been working with schools around the world to re-imagine education. Her project-based learning expertise has been used in several international initiatives, including REAL-Projects (Innovation Unit, United Kingdom) and LEAPS (Kata Foundation, Denmark).Direct Link: Episode:  CHECK OUT THE SHOW AND EPISODES ON ITUNESThe show is on Spotify!TOPICS WE EXPLOREWho is Loni Bergqvist?How has her experiences in all her roles impacted her insights on education?How can give permission for educators to be at different stages of learning about project based learning just like we expect educators to differentiate for all learners in the classroom?Why is it so difficult to do the project first before teaching it?Prioritizing space and time for educators to be able to learn while on the job.Problem solvers vs. problem identifiersSelf imposed rules and barriersFinal thoughts on pbl not being the goal.YOUR CHALLENGEShare ideas you gathered from the conversation with us on the socials.What resonated with you?RESOURCE MENTIONED IN SHOWImagine Ifhttps://xptrust.org/https://www.linkedin.com/in/loniatimagineif/