Bright Spots: Starting the School Year with Meaningful Connections

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BRIGHT SPOTS

Your weekly source of learner-centered inspiration

Dear Educator,

Many classroom management gurus advocate that procedures and policies are the keys to classroom success. Others might tell you rules and expectations or the syllabus are a must in the first days of the new school year. I am not going to argue that these things aren’t important–they are! However, if you believe (and I do) that meaningful relationships between teachers and students are crucial to creating authentic learning experiences, then shouldn’t we start there?

I’m encouraged by the thoughtful ways that teachers are starting the school year and focusing on learners and their learning community. For this week’s Bright Spot, I am highlighting one of my favorite examples of how we can prioritize the learners and relationships to create learner-centered classrooms:

With Gratitude,
Katie

I'd love to hear from you! Reply to this email to share your Bright Spot this week!

BRIGHT SPOT OF THE WEEK

Design Your Classroom!

I have always believed that it is important for learners to feel that the classroom was ours, not mine. I always co-constructed our class expectations, and I still think it is critical. I recently saw this post from my amazing cousin and 5th-grade teacher, Sara Ballard, where the students got to design their classroom on the first day!

The process of co-creating the space is an important aspect of building community. Not only do students immediately have ownership in their classroom and learn so many amazing skills in the process, think of all the time that is saved when you don’t have to do it all yourself!

This approach to working with your students can be used to empower learners to do much more of the work both cognitively and physically in the classroom. As you head back to school this year and allow students to share the load and learn through the process, consider what you are doing for students that they could instead do themselves!

Interested in discussing how you might promote learner agency in your classroom this upcoming school year? Let's connect!

Get in touch

RESOURCE ROUNDUP

Below are some resources to help educators encourage learner agency this upcoming school year.

1. The real influence we have on students. Do relationships really matter in learning? A.J. Juliani examines ten phrases from “How to Win Friends and Influence People” that bring us back to the basics of teaching and learning.

2. Examining student agency. Part 1 of a 2-part article series from Education Reimagined carefully explores the meaning of student agency and how we can apply lessons learned in a culturally competent frame. Read now.

3. Designing for a learner-centered experience. Portfolio School's Jamie Stewart and Katie Cheek uncover several ways they intentionally design a Learner-Centered school year for students and teachers alike in this 3-part blog post.

LET'S SHARE OUR BRIGHT SPOTS!

How do you empower learners at the start of the school year?

Share your back-to-school #LCBrightSpots on social media!

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