September 2011

This has been a start to the school year like no other. It's different and I'm trying to determine why. I think I've figured it out.

When a traditional school year ends, it ends. Students move on, teachers move on, the next group comes in and the cycle begins again.
For the first time ever I have a group of students for whom last year has not ended. We built a learning team, we worked together, we created something amazing and I get a sense from many of my students (not all, and that's ok) that we wish we were together again so that we could continue with the next step. It's as if we've just discovered how learning can truly be and are ready to take on the next project. I'm trying to find a metaphor to describe this experience. Have we built a business? An organization? a new entity or model of education?
Students are seeking me out, coming to my classroom, wanting to talk, wanting to stay connected - that's it- it's the wanting to stay connected and continue creating that is new! It's as if we are trying to recapture what happened in our classroom last year. There is a desire to continue with our creative team, to remain a unit and for the first time as an educator I am questioning the necessity of grade levels. I can see now that they are an ariticial construction. I am trying to imagine a different model; what would it look like. How can we make learning teams the basis of education rather than grade levels. I am very curious to see what model Project Dreamschool develops Project Dreamschool