Samantha Bennett: Author of THAT WORKSHOP BOOK

If you ever have a chance to hear Samantha Bennett, author of THAT WORKSHOP BOOK, speak, take full advantage of it. I attended Samantha's workshop on Friday and Saturday. Both days were filled with lots of thinking and learning.

Her book THAT WORKSHOP BOOK is a powerful one. Through her work with teachers, she has discovered the power of workshop and the power of our planning and our talk with kids.

I can't begin to share all that I learned over the weekend.. Sitting by friends always helps too. So much conversation from our learning. I am sure our talk will continue based on what we learned. Instead of sharing everything I learned, I decided to share my "Top 10 Samantha Bennett Quotes." I could have shared a hundred but decided the Top 10 makes sense. These are my personal highlight quotes of the day. These were the quotes I will continue to use to push my own thinking.

TOP 10 SAMANTHA BENNETT QUOTES FROM THE WEEKEND

"It's loud. It's messy. It's really, really fun."
Samantha said this when talking about workshop and workshop planning. She makes no claims that workshop teaching is easy or neat. She knows that a good workshop is complex and that it takes huge planning. This quote sums it up well, I think.

"It's not about liking things."

Friday's part of the workshop was spent visiting classrooms and learning from those. We visited via a live feed/camera, Katie DiCesare's 2nd grade classroom and Karen Terlecky's 5th grade classroom. During the prebrief session with Samantha, she was clear in telling us that she did not want to hear what we LIKED at the end of the session. She wanted us to begin to label practice with theory and to ask ourselves "What about this struck me?" She put this right up front and pushed our thinking before we even began. This changed the way we observed the classroom.

"If you only do something for one reason, don't do it. You should be able to label things in multiple ways."

Part of the work we did observing classrooms was labeling what we saw with research. So much of the challenge of teaching has to do with time and Samantha talked a lot about having lots of reasons for everything we do in the classroom. She believes strongly that every minute of every day for students has to be purposeful and there are so many things to accomplish, that we can't accomplish only one at a time.

"Remove the layers of crust to what matter most. You see what matters most to her. My job is to help her get more of that."

In talking about her role as a coach, Samantha shared the importance of helping teachers get to their core beliefs about education--about helping us see what it is that matters to us most when we get rid of the "crust". Then helping us think about how to get more of that. This was a huge piece of thinking for me. How do I get more of what matters into my days? A question that helps us be more purposeful in our work with kids, I think.

"You can always get better, every minute of every day."

This is the reason I am still in education after 20+ years. So much to think about and such interesting work. The fact that as teachers, we will never "get there" and that we can continue to learn and grow is what gives me energy. When I realized early on that I'd never have it all figured out, I started to enjoy the learning journey so much.

"They should not have to defend practice but we do want them to articulate it. Knowing what you are doing and why you are doing it every single minute of the day."
When we were ready to visit classrooms and Samantha was sharing the purpose, she was clear in saying that teachers in these classrooms did not need to defend their practice. We aren't there to judge it, but rather to learn from it. This philosophy would change so much about the way we talk to each other about our work. I think we, as teachers, often feel so under attack, that we get immediately defensive when asked about our practice. But being asked to articulate our practice is key to doing good work with kids. Articulating practice is something I try to get better at because it helps me as a learner. And it is good for the soul, I think. To know you are doing what you believe is right for kids.

"Stop asking what I am going to do tomorrow. Ask what students are going to do tomorrow. That should be the guiding question."
I loved this guiding question. So much of the day on Saturday was about the planning process and the need to teach for understanding. The belief that student work and learning is what we are about was a thread throughout the two days. This guiding question helps me to think a little differently when I plan. Keeping my eye on what kids will be doing is key.

"Kids knowing why they're there, every minute of every day."
Just as we have to make every minute worthwhile, it is critical that kids know the purpose of everything they are doing, everything that we are asking them to do. Kids have to own that learning so that every minute of every day piece is so important. A good measure to hold ourselves accountable to, I think.

"When kids are telling you no, listen. There is a reason they are telling you no. And you better figure it out. Take their reluctance seriously. What does this kid need that he is not getting?"
This was such a powerful thing to think about. When I think about kids who are not willing to do the work, kids who act out rather than take a risk, etc. this is something to remember. What does this kid need that he/she is not getting? Instead of blaming the child, this is about taking ownership that a child's reluctance is something we need to listen closely to.

"Unless you release kids to work, there is zero way to differentiate."

LOVED THIS! A thread through the two days was the need for teacher talk to be minimal. Kids need to be doing the work and if they aren't out there working, there is no way we can meet their diverse needs. I think sometimes we feel guilty if our minilessons are too quick, etc. but by remembering this, we know we are doing the right thing.

As you can tell, it was a great workshop. I hope to get a chance to learn from Samantha Bennett again soon. Very inspiring and powerful.

For other posts on the workshop:

Enjoy and Embrace Learning

Wordle of our Class Constitution

We are studying government in social studies right now. Here is a Wordle of our Class Constitution.

Here's the one I made of last year's Class Constitution.

Something Else That Happened in April

On April 18, I received this note:

Here's the link to the Independence Hall page of the Schmap Philadelphia Guide. And that picture in the top right corner of the page? I took it last November while in Philly for NCTE!

Moving Toward a 21st Century Library

Moving Toward a 21st Century Library

View more presentations from Franki22.

I had the opportunity to talk via Elluminate to a class of students across the country last week and the week before. I have participated in many Elluminate sessions and I love them but I have to admit, I was a bit nervous about actually being the person who shared my thinking in an elluminate session. As a presenter, I tend to feed off the group's energy and I rely heavily on conversations and active participation. But it was definitely a learning experience and I continue to be amazed that we can all be sitting at home and learning with people so far away.

These visuals probably don't say much without the talk that went with them, but pulling this session together helped me reflect a bit on my vision for the elementary library--where we've been, what my goals are. Talking to others and making my work visible always helps me see the work differently. I always appreciate the opportunity to articulate my own thinking because it helps me become more clear for myself about where it is I am trying to grow and learn.

It took a little bit of work to create a presentation that I could share publicly like this, but as part of my own learning journey, I wanted to make it public. (my first slideshare:-) These slides show the space and events in terms of the bigger goals of the library--but it cannot begin to share the day to day conversations and learning that the children have. I would need a different format for that, I think.

Embedded in this slide show is the slides that I used early in the year to begin a yearlong conversation on "Who are you as a learner?" I don't know if the students would even remember that first conversation but looking back at it and reflecting on those initial thoughts, I love the way the kids are now beginning to use the library to support who they are as a learner.

April Mosaic

April began with cupcakes and ended with guacamole.

The oak flowers looked so dainty against the blue sky when they were new. Then they streaked my car yellow with pollen and now there are so many on the ground that we will rake up gobs and mounds.

In answer to your question, yes, I wrote a poem yesterday, and no, I'm not going to post it here.

I do, however, have a few final observations about my NaPoMo poems. Remember the one-word poem? Did you follow the link to David R. Slavitt's poem? Did you realize that the discussion questions were part of my parody?

And that sprouting apple seed? I found it INSIDE my apple when I cored it. As much as I liked the poem it inspired, I was far more impressed with the idea of a pre-sprouted apple seed. I have planted it in a small pot on my windowsill and I anxiously await its reappearance.

The "If-You-Were" poetry form is the one that has inspired the best writing from my students. We will continue writing a poem a day for each other this coming week -- we have four friends left whose names haven't been picked yet. In the end, we will have written close to 300 poems total.

As the school year winds down and the students get itchy for summer, it is sometimes hard to get them to be smart and thoughtful (not to mention hardworking and productive). I will keep the Xs in the sky in my heart to remind me of the creative potential that exists in every child if they have the time to look and if I take the time to listen.

Poem #30--Looking Inside (and Poetry Friday)

Inside the month

I found the challenge.

Inside the challenge

I found the discipline.

Inside the discipline

I found the joy.

Inside the joy

I found the poems.

Inside the poems

I found my world.

by Mary Lee Hahn, copyright 2010

HAPPY NATIONAL POETRY MONTH 2010!!

The round up this week is at Great Kid Books.

All 30 of my NaPoMo poems are here.

Poem #29--Newspaper Blackout Poem

Franki sent a link to this book trailer and challenged me to try writing a Newspaper Blackout Poem. Every poem-a-day writer needs a cheerleader as thoughtful as mine!

He makes it look easy, no?

Here's my feeble attempt:

raise chickens

raise
chicken dinner
homegrown chickens
chickens
chickens
sprouting chicks
in the coop
nonviolent
rehabilitation

by Mary Lee Hahn, copyright 2010

Now YOU try it.

Post it and send your link.

I'm CERTAIN you can do a better job.

I'll be the springboard to your brilliance.

I have no problem with that role.

Go for it.

Go get your marker

and the newspaper

and make art by process of elimination.

Poem #28--Book Spine Poem

by Mary Lee Hahn, copyright 2010

Poem #27--A Limerick for the Poem-A-Day Writers

You've written a poem a day!

Every day you found something to say

in a poem or verse,

for better or worse.

To each of you: HIP HIP HOORAY!

by Mary Lee Hahn, copyright 2010

2 new Poetry Books

Like I've said many times, the kids in our library love any book about dogs. So, I had to get NAME THAT DOG: PUPPY POEMS FROM A-Z when I heard about it. This new poetry book starts out with a poem about naming dogs and how each is different. Then each page focuses on a different dog. From Aspen to Frank to Zipper, there are 26 different fictional dogs celebrated through poem. The poems vary in length and type but all have an element of fun. Each dog is labeled so readers know the breed of the dog highlighted. The book ends with a poem about finding the perfect name for a dog.


And, I was thrilled to see ANOTHER JAR OF TINY STARS is now available. Every other year, NCTE gives an Award for Excellence in Poetry. This award honors a living children's poet for his/her work. Several years ago, NCTE published A JAR OF TINY STARS, highlighting the work of the award winners' poetry. This year, NCTE has released this additional version which highlights the work of poets up through the last poetry award winner, Lee Bennett Hopkins. To choose which poems to include, students ranked the poets' work. Their votes helped to make the decisions for what to include in this book. It is a great collection with 15 amazing children's poets.