STEAM in the Chagim

This year, I am participating in a collaborative with other Jewish Day Schools around the country to incorporate STEAM activities into Jewish holidays and traditions (STEAM in the Chagim).  The collaborative provides me with inspiration, a place to share ideas, and a team of people with whom to bounce ideas off of.  So many teachers have begun to integrate Maker and STEAM activities into their teachings of Jewish holidays.  After seeing how successful STEAM in the Chagim is, teachers are also asking how they can incorporate Making and STEAM activities into other subjects.  The end result is a group of teachers who are looking at teaching Judaics curriculum, including it's holidays, traditions, Torah portions, tzedakah, and history, in a different way.

Hanukkiah powered by Little Bits for all school assembly

Building Balance Scales

Designing Balance Scales

Holiday traditions from around the World.

Noah's Ark Tin Foil Boats

Maker Morning Skee ball Machine for Purim Carnival

Best Parts of my Day

This #blogamonth topic was easy for me.  What small part of my day am I grateful for did not take me long to think about.  Fortunately, I have two.  The first happens at work first thing in the morning, when I am greeted each day by students who are happy to be at school early in the library and spend this time to make, create, tinker, and explore new ideas.  The second time I am grateful for happens right after work when I arrive home to greet another set of happy kids - my own!

Both times are fleeting parts of my day.  The first moment lasts for only a half hour, but it is my favorite half hour of my work day.  I have written blogs on how #marvelousmornings inspires me each and every day.  I am in constant awe of the creativity and ingenuity of the kids who frequent the library each day.  They are often excited to try new things, they love to problem solve, and do not care when something doesn't work out right the first time.  This is my 3rd year running the maker morning program in the library, and while I get up super early to be at school early for these kids, it is worth every minute of my time and energy.  These moments, and kids, are precious to me. 

My second favorite part of the day lasts for only a few seconds.  It happens when my school day is done and occurs at the exact time of 2:37pm when the bus from the elementary school pulls up in front of my house, and my kids get off the bus, run right to me, and embrace me in a hug.  This last about a second, before my kids are off running to play with friends, being shlepped around on errands, asking for screen time, or we head to activities.  But I am incredibly thankful for that moment each and every day. 

Although sometimes I forget, it is good to be reminded of  how lucky I am to both start and end my work day with happy, smiling kids! 

Creating Connections

A colleague of mine once told me (and the students she taught) that the "smartest people know where to look", and this has become a mantra of mine.  When asked the question, what does it mean to you to be a connected educator?  This mantra is at the heart of it.  I know where to look when I need inspiration, feedback, or answers to difficult questions.  And it's not Google I look to...it's my people, my PLN, my network of like-minded educators.

Whatever the reason you have for connecting with others, the important thing is that you make these connections.  I truly believe that it is integral for educators to have a network of people with whom they share their ideas, to learn from each other, and in the end to reflect and maybe gain insight about how to improve.  Without these connections, a teacher is an island all by themselves.  Without these connections, in my opinion, an educator will not be able to grow.

I love meeting up with my CFG group, the members of AATE, librarians from other Jewish Day Schools in Atlanta, my team at work.  I love chatting with people I have met on Twitter.  I love being able to sustain relationships online with people I meet at conferences and workshops.  I love taking online courses that can help my teaching practices.  I find that each interaction with any one of these groups helps me grow.  Every connection I make gives me the inspiration I need not only to grow, but
to thrive in this every-changing world. 

A New Year, A New Beginning

This month's #blogamonth topic is to talk about one thing that is different than it was a year ago. Wow!  When I really think about it, I more than one thing to write about, which means this new year is going to be different, and amazing.

My beautiful Bat Mitzvah girl

Proud Mama

First off, to get a little personal, I am now the mother of a daughter who became a Bat Mitzvah.  That is definitely new.  We planned for this event for years, and while it was one of the best days of my life, now it is over.  And I look forward to a different future with my daughter, full of more amazing moments like the one we shared just last Saturday.

Professionally, things are different as well.  In a physical sense, we moved the library's makerspace to a different part of the Media Center and it has been quite successful.  Looking deeper, by moving this space, it has caused more attention, and teachers are becoming more and more interested in utilizing the space, and me!  I went to a workshop this summer that was designed to explore "Ethical Creativity" in Jewish Day Schools.  Throughout the week there I learned about design thinking, tinkering, explored my Jewish identity, and discussed how to spark creativity in our learners.  All of these experiences have changed my outlook on my position and has helped me integrate some or all of these ideas into my work at The Epstein School.

Busy morning in the Makerspace

Innovative and beautiful!

Tribes Training

Besides the new makerspace, we have implemented TRIBES throughout the entire school, which is a program that helps build community and inclusion.  I love how this program creates a common language among all the kids and teachers, and truly strives to create a respectful, inclusive environment.  Most classes, I start off with a quick community circle, which I did quite often as a classroom teacher, but never thought to do as a specialist.  It hones in the lesson, gets the kids in a good frame of mind, and we have an opportunity to learn about each other.  Win Win for everyone involved!

Seesaw!

We also started using Seesaw as a reflection and learning tool in the Media Center.  Students will learn a library skill and then record their thoughts in Seesaw.  It is an incredibly powerful tool for students to think about their learning, and then be able to share it.  I am learning how to best manage it with younger students, but so far so good!

It is so important that a new school year bring new enthusiasm and excitement (from both teachers AND students).  The best way to accomplish this is to DO NEW THINGS, or else we fall into that rut and the excitement and enthusiasm dwindle.  Teachers always ask, why should we reinvent the wheel each year, and then find themselves doing the same old each year because it's easy.  Well, I ask, why WOULDN'T you reinvent the wheel if you thought you could make one that could take you somewhere faster and possibly farther??

How Might We?

How Might We?  This is the question at the forefront of my mind these days.  A friend tells me she is deciding how to decorate a study area for the kids, I think...How might we redesign this space?  I notice that San Fransisco is WAY more environmentally conscious than Atlanta, and I think...How might we reduce our waste better where I live?   My children are complaining they are bored, and I think...How might we find something fun to do?

Not only am I looking at my life through a "How Might We?" lens, I also began thinking about everything we teach at a Jewish Day School, and how we can incorporate the design thinking process into our already existing curriculum.  First and foremost I am thinking of the question, How Might We Repair the World?  Tikun Olam is at the heart of Judaism.  Often times we think about repairing the world in a physical sense, but the How Might We question opens this idea up to how we treat each other, and how we interact with the world on a daily basis.  By involving students in the design thinking process, and having them interview others about how they would like to see the world as a better place, I can only imagine what they might come up with to the question of "How might we repair the world?"

Here's a few more to think about...
How might we build a 21st century tabernacle?
How might we design a Hanukkiah for a friend, family member, ourselves?
How might we restructure the way kids say Birkat Hamazon after lunch?
How might we hang our favorite fruit in the Sukkah?

Before I attended The Ethical Creativity Institute, I had been exposed to the design thinking process, but now that I attended several workshops on the subject, I see the bigger picture.  I see how we can use Design Thinking as a tool, both at school, and in our everyday lives, to help us solve problems and help us understand how to relate to real people with real problems.   I also see how you can take curriculum you are already teaching, and create an experience that gets everybody thinking.

Now I am thinking...How might we get everyone to see problems as opportunities for invention?

Ethical Creativity Institute

This summer I had an amazing experience attending The Ethical Creativity Institute.  This Institute is the brainchild of these inspiring educators: Nicholas Cole-Farrel, Sandee Bisson and Dan Glass from the Brandeis School in San Fransisco, and a perfect example of what can happen when like-minded innovators get together to plan a week of learning, making and introspection for Jewish educators. Throughout the week several presenters, including Ellen Deutscher, Leslie Roffman, founder of the Little School, and Ariel Raz from the d.School, came to the Institute to share their wisdom on topics of empathy and design thinking. We participated in text studies with community rabbis on the subject of Judaism and creativity, as well as discussing our own Jewish identity.  We were given many opportunities to explore our own creative side.  We tinkered with circuits with the owners of The Wonderful Idea Co.  We went on field trips to the Contemporary Jewish Museum and visited the Jewish Studio Project.  We collaborated with others on ideas for programs and curriculum in our individual schools. We shared many a meal, during which discussions were had and personal connections were made.

Here are my take aways from the Institute:

1. What is Ethical Creativity?  

We discussed a lot about how we are the ones defining this intricate idea.  As a group we brainstormed what it meant to us and after looking at my notes here is my definition: Ethical Creativity is the idea of using empathy and human centered design to spark creative thinking and learning, within the framework of Judaic ethics and values.  At the very heart of Ethical Creativity is empathy, which allows us to make space for new ideas.  

2. What is does it mean to be creative?  

It is a process just like any other kind of learning or teaching.  This was HUGE for me.  This week I learned that while an idea might be sparked, going through a creative process to produce a piece of art/writing/music etc., only enhances the creative output.

3. What is design thinking? 

Design thinking is the process that incorporates human thinking into your design for a problem you are trying to solve.  It allows you to see "problems as opportunities".  It asks the questions "How Might We?" and then gives us a tool to figure out a solution to whatever the problem is.

Another huge takeaway from the Institute are the connections I made.  The cohort of teachers I met are ones that I will keep in touch with to collaborate with, share ideas, ask questions of, and reach out to in order to continue the important and fabulous work we have only just begun.  

Marvelous Mornings Year 2 Continued - Organic Innovation

So as the school year is winding down, I am reflecting on what goals I have accomplished this year, especially those I had set for myself concerning the makerspace I have set up for Marvelous Mornings each day.  I revisited the last blog post I wrote about this at the beginning of this year and saw that I had just begun taking the Art of Tinkering course, looking for inspiration, and here's the update.

We built some scribbling machines.  I ordered motors and batteries, and special rubber bands and kids used these to create machines that would draw.  They were cool, but here's what was REALLY cool...

With those motors and batteries and rubber bands, the kids started building other things - creations of their own minds.  They put these pieces together to create fans, they have tried to make numerous objects fly, and one student has been working on a project that he believes he will be able to propel in water once it is done.  Each day they arrive and tinker, and with each day I can see the potential of giving students the opportunities for open-ended projects of their mind's own creation, given the tools I have put in front of them.


From this experience, I learned that some of the best ideas grow organically (and sometimes not so good ones grow too, but it was still an original idea).  A school-wide pajama day prompted the spontaneous making of pillows.  A donation of samples from a carpet store inspired a jewelry making session that lasted for weeks!  Today a student started making something that looked to me like a kaleidoscope.  So we wondered what we needed in order to really do this, looked it up, grabbed some mylar from the art teacher and BOOM! we were making kaleidoscopes.

I follow all the great leaders in #makered.  I buy and read the books, I download the project templates.  But I can truly see the beauty in an open-ended makerspace experience.  

Learning is often organic and is most meaningful when you are passionate about it. 

Making and tinkering can be the same.

From my experience, and upon reflection, I have found that often times the most innovative ideas that my kids are passionate about have come about organically, and while they might be able to find these ideas in a book, or online, the spark came from their own mind.

 And that has made all the difference in the Marvelous Mornings makerspace!