Announced on Monday. Here they are:
Click on this iPad textbook link to see how our students will be using technology in school. It is only a matter of time before all students and teachers will be using electronic textbooks. It is only a matter of time before teachers will be writing and publishing their own textbooks. This will revolutionize the way students learn in school,. . . the way teachers teach in school, . . . and the way parents support their children's education at home.
"The makeup of the global workforce is undergoing a seismic shift: In four years Millennials—the people born between 1977 and 1997—will account for nearly half the employees in the world. In some companies, they already constitute a majority."
As I was walking through one of our classrooms my eyes caught sight of this beautiful quote: 
. . . in an Age of Anxiety" is an excellent article by Neal Brown in the Winter 2012 issue of Independent School magazine. Whether you are a head of school, teacher, or parent, you will gain thoughtful, helpful insights into caring for and guiding elementary school children.
The older I get, the more I reflect on how important it is for children and adults to feel appreciated. Give recognition to others whenever possible. 
If you have children or teach children (including adolescents) you must read The Parents We Mean to Be by Richard Weissbourd.
If you did not read the funny, short New Yorker piece "Dear Mountain Room Parents," take two minutes to do so. Whether you are a teacher or parent, you will appreciate how emailing can get complicated fast. 
Click back to my November 24, 2010 post to review my first post "Conversations with Middle Schoolers"
I grew up with Looney Tunes characters Porky Pig, Tweety Bird, Sylvester the Cat, Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, the Tasmanian Devil, and any other voice Mel Blanc produced. Cartoons, and now full length movies, continue to entertain kids and adults. Here is a cute NPR "Weekend Edition Sunday" 3-minute interview with Mel Blanc's son, Noel Blanc, talking about his father.
This enlightening article in The Economist, "When should you teach children, and when should you let them explore" is a must-read for all teachers and parents. The article is about a study completed by Elizabeth Bonawitz and Patrick Shafto that looked at 85 four- and five-year olds. Here is a link to the complete study published in "Cognition."
Teaching students — and adults for that matter — about Internet security should start with the password. Listening to American Public Media's "Marketplace Morning Report" recently, I wasn't surprised to find out the least secure passwords of 2011 are "1234567," "abc123," "sunshine," and "iloveyou" but THE password with the most security holes is, yup, you got it — "password."
I am a big fan of authors Dan and Chip Heath. Their book Switch is the best for understanding change.
Here is a neat TED Talk of Thomas Suarez talking about his experience learning and developing aps for the Apple Store. In true Google fashion, for now, Thomas is looking to help others with his new-found talent.
While experiencing the sights, sounds, and smells of Zuccotti Park, I bumped into a vendor selling a T-shirt with a prophetic message. Here is what it said: 
I don't often reprise a post, but on February 14, 2011, I posted "'1' Not Such a Lonely Number." On this special day, I thought I would repost it in celebration of November 11, 2011, you know, 11/11/11. And this post was posted at 11:11 a.m.
Another instance where "guide-on-the-side" trumps "sage-on-the-stage."
If you want to experience professional development at its best, hope that you take part in The Music Paradigm. Maestro Roger Nierenburg uses a chamber ensemble—one he has never conducted before—to demonstrate leadership. Along with 150 heads of school from New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut, we sat among the musicians and witnessed the power of the conductor as leader. We were swept away by Tchaikovsky's Serenade for Strings and the brilliance of Nierenburg.
A better way to describe school programs is presented by Pat Bassett, President of the National Association of Independent Schools (NAIS). In a recent listserve message, he passed on the 5 Cs + 1 for 21st Century schools:
When you think of the word "rigor" and how it applies to our schools, what comes to mind? Good? Bad? Certainly not neutral. In a recent meeting here at school, the word "rigor" surfaced, and I could feel my skin crawl. It has no place in schools. I came across this blog post "Stop Saying 'Rigor'" that shed another person's light on the word.
Gary D. Schmidt's newest young adult book, Okay For Now, is the sequel to his highly successful Wednesday Wars. It follows Doug Swieteck and Joe Pepitone from Long Island to upstate New York. This could be a Newbery contender. I highly recommend it.
The other day I began connecting the dots on how important it is to be a positive leader; what it means to the people around you when you are positive; and how exhilarating it is to work in a positive environment. Let me take you through the sequence of how I arrived at this epiphany. 
While listening to Scott Simon on Weekend Edition, I was astonished to hear about the Whimbral, a bird that will fly from Virginia to Alaska nonstop. Listen to this four-minute clip, "A Bird Flies Into a Hurricane. Does It Fly Out?," to hear how this is done—the tracking and flight. You might want to share this with your class.
Author M. T. Anderson's book, Feed, is of the Brave New World genre—scary but highly prophetic. Feed is a book that every educator and parent must read. Here is a link to the movie trailer, but be careful; you should really read the book first!
Meet the author and hear him talk about writing in this video clip.
