The Children Understood

Upon arriving home from grocery shopping, I remained in my car riveted to this NPR story. The best part was when the Bishop said, “But I was most impressed with the children. The children definitely were very eager to want to reach out and try to help me in some way.”

Here is the intro and link to the entire 4.5-minute piece.

“A Mormon Bishop in Taylorsville, Utah, went to great lengths last Sunday to teach his congregation a lesson. David Musselman disguised himself as a homeless person and walked around outside before the service. Then, in character, he walked up to the pulpit and asked to deliver remarks. He tells Ari Shapiro what happened next.”

Head of School Notes Revisited

Because so many people have asked me about this post that originally appeared on September 7, 2010, I am posting it again.


Over my career as a head of school, I have enjoyed reflecting on the job and writing about my impressions on being a head of school.  I wrote articles for The Head's Letter and The Trustee's Letter, which are monthly publications for heads and trustees of independent schools.  Here is a library of those articles.  You can click on the article link to read the full article.

"Education Voucher System" (June 1994) - While offering opportunities, pursuing vouchers should be handled with care.  
"Effective Heads of School" (March 1995) - Klingenstein Fellows list their thoughts on qualities of effective heads.
"The Head Outside of the School" (November 1996) - The head's job often goes beyond her/his own school community.
"Head 'n Hand" (March 1998) - The best part of the job, greeting students, teachers, and parents each morning.
"Words Work" (October 2000) - Hearing a sermon on giving up summer time to helping others can inspire.
"Choices, Changes, Transitions" (February 2003) - Insights about moving on to the next opportunity.
"A Turn in the Barrel" (April 2004) - At some point every head is on the firing line.
"Transference Revisited" (December 2004) - A look into the mysteries of transference as presented by Dr. Ned Hallowell.
"A Head of Eeeshmail" (October 2005) - The challenges and nuances of using email can be daunting to school leaders.
 "Learning and Living Leadership" (January 2007) - Heads at an annual conference sharing their thoughts on leadership.
"Taking Care of Employees" (April 2007) - When trying to balance budgets, we cannot lose sight of taking care of faculty and staff.
"Whose Decision Is It?" (December 2007) - Board or head's decision?  Written with my Board Chair.
"When is it Time to Leave?" (January 2010) - Is there a perfect time when heads should leave their school?
"30% . . . Really?" (May/June 2010) - 30% of a head's time should be devoted to caring for the board?

Moral Courage Project

I recently heard Irshad Manji, the Founder and Director of the Moral Courage Project. Learn more for yourself, your students, and your children. Start by clicking over to Moral Courage TV. The topic and videos would make for excellent faculty and staff professional development sessions.

To learn more about Irshad, her work, and thinking, check out her latest book Allah, Liberty and Love: The Courage to Reconcile Faith and Freedom.

A Brief History of Math Curriculum

This will bring a chuckle. See if you agree.

Thanks to NAIS.

Inspiration From a Ten-Year Old

Last Sunday I watched "60 Minutes" and a compelling piece on the "reinvented" Metropolitan Opera, but what really caught my eyes and ears was listening to the opera singers perform. Well, you can imagine my amazement and pleasure when I watched this YouTube clip.

10th Anniversary of StoryCorps

Dave Isay, creator of StoryCorps, has a new book out in celebration of the 50,000 stories recorded throughout the Country. Ties That Bind: Stories of Love and Gratitude From the First Ten Years of StoryCorps tells of the origins, history, and some of the most memorable stories captured.

Listen to Wil Smith's story — one of the many tender, memorable stories that brings new meaning to parenthood and the pursuit of education.

World's Shortest Intelligence Test

It's called the Cognitive Reflection Test (CRT). Here are the questions:

1) A bat and a ball cost $1.10 in total. The bat costs $1 more than the ball. How much does the ball cost?

2) If it takes 5 machines 5 min to make 5 widgets, how long would it take 100 machines to make 100 widgets?

3) In a lake, there is a patch of lily pads. Every day, the patch doubles in size. If it takes 48 days for the patch to cover the entire lake, how long would it take for the patch to cover half of the lake?

Don't look until you come up with your answers, but the answer to #1 and #2 are on the ball in the picture to the right.

Check out the link above for more information on this interesting test . . . and the answer to question #3.

Welcome to Holland

In my ongoing reading of Andrew Solomon's book Far From the Tree, I was introduced to the beautiful fable, "Welcome to Holland" written by Emily Perl Kingsley in 1987. A writer for Sesame Street, Kingsley was inspired to write the piece by her own son, Jason, who has Down syndrome. The words are a tribute to families with exceptional children.

Quintessential Gladwell

Not unexpectedly, I was enthralled by Malcolm Gladwell's newest book David and Goliath. What will be most interesting to parents and educators is Chapter 2 "Teresa DeBrito 'My largest class was 29. Oh, it was fun.'"

But, for now, watch this TED Talk where Gladwell presents his book's introduction. You will love hearing the story of "David and Goliath" a la Gladwell style.

The Pacifier - Part II

A while back, I gave you The Pacifier. It was Part I of a two part series, kind of like a "Masterpiece Theater" series.

Well, here is The Pacifier - Part II.

What Makes a Great Teacher?

Want some answers? Read The Atlantic article "What Makes a Great Teacher?" by Amanda Ripley.

Middle School Brains

Middle school brains are growing, changing, and amazing. Think about what a challenge this is for the middle school child. Click over to this excellent article, "My Amygdala Ate My Homework! The adolescent brain is long on intellect but short on judgement" by Launa Schweizer. Here is the opening paragraph:

When I arrive at my job, several people run to the door to hug me. During each day, at least one person falls out of her chair, someone bursts into tears, and several people fail to complete their assignments. My co-workers drop food on the carpet, flip upside down into headstands, and make fart jokes. Half of them interrupt me with off-topic remarks, and the other half sit in sullen silence. Sometimes they pick the keys off our shared computers.

I wish I were kidding.

To See or Not to See

This miraculous story of Ben Underwood, "The Boy Who Sees Without Eyes — My Shocking Story" is truly a sight to behold. While the entire clip is 47 minutes, you only need to watch the first six minutes to understand why I have posted it.

Teen Talk

Now that school has begun, it's time to start thinking about our kids — their social lives and the pressures of school work, a challenging mix at best. My friend's blog has an excellent post on the mysteries of raising/educating teenagers. The post has a nice piece "Frustrating Teenager Behavior: What's a Mother to Do?" along with other links that you might find interesting in your work with teens.

My Montessori Journey

Unlike most Montessori educators who attend a Montessori school, or send their child to a Montessori school, or teach in a Montessori school, my experience was a bit different. I discovered Montessori at the age of 54 after teaching and working in four traditional schools over a 30-year career. You might find the story of my Montessori journey interesting. It was recently published in my column in Public School Montessorian. The publication is celebrating its 100th issue and 25-year anniversary.

Unsuspected Bond Between a Stranger and a Child

Listen to this beautiful StoryCorps clip of how a third grade child and an unsuspecting adult were introduced and how their introduction blossomed into a lifelong relationship.

Click here to meet Bryan Lindsay and Rowan Allen telling their story.

Born Good?

This excellent CBS "60 Minutes" piece looks at the questions

Are we born with a sense of morality?
Are we blank slates waiting for the world to teach us right from wrong?
Do we start out nasty, selfish devils who need our parents, teachers, and religions to whip us into shape?

The baby videos alone are worth watching this fascinating research.

Are You an Introvert or Extrovert? . . . OR Ambivert?

Ambivert?

Daniel Pink's latest book To Sell is Human has lots to say about introverts and extroverts. If you don't read the book, at least listen to this NPR interview with Pink to hear what he has to say on the subject.

This is a nice follow-up to Susan Cain's book Quiet.

How Do You Assess Child Creativity?

Check out this short video on creative thinking. It says so much about how children receive instruction. Also, you also might want to watch Sir Ken Robinson's TED Talk on creative thinking and listen to Harry Chapin's song "Flowers are Red." You will find both on my May 10, 2009 post "Child Creativity."

The Ultimate Question

Something for you to think about during these hot summer days . . .

If you were to ask your parents and teachers the ultimate question, how do you think it would turn out for your school? With this in mind, read The Ultimate Question 2.0 by Fred Reichheld.  It will give you excellent insights into how your school can be measured with one question. Reichheld has so much to say about profits v. service.

Oh . . . what's the question? Well, I guess I can pass that on . . .

"On a zero-to-ten scale, how likely is it that you would recommend us (or this product/service/brand) to a friend or colleague?"

Introvert v. Extrovert

If you have ever bumped into the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI), you know that it types personalities by the way people prefer to think and act. Originally based on the work of Carl Jung, one of the dicotomies is introversion and extroversion. Here is an excellent TED Talk by Susan Cain that presents the power of introversion.

If you are interested to learn more, check out her book Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can't Stop Talking.

Who Is Teaching My Child? — A Story for Parents

Parents, as part of your summer reading, think about getting to know your child's teachers.

See what I mean when you read "Who Is Teaching My Child? A Story for Parents" that was published in the summer 2013 issue of Montessori Life.

Having Tooth Problems?

I love Shel Silverstein's "The Crocodile's Toothache" poem from his book Where the Sidewalk Ends. Warning: this video is rated "S" for scary. No one under 8 should watch it without a parent OR anyone who is about to have work done on their teeth.