Tweet Visual thinking helps students understand new concepts and retain knowledge, but what’s the brain function behind visual learning? How does visual information help a student’s brain create meaning and knowledge? Recently I watched a speech by Tom Wujec at a TED conference in February 2009 discussing this exact process.1 In the first six minutes, Read more »
Tweet Communication is commonly understood as an output or exchange of information, where thoughts are verbalized or expressed in words spoken aloud or by written means. Yet often, communication does not involve words at all. Visual communication, such as that conveyed with pictures, art or other nonlinguistic representations, is all around us in the world Read more »
Tweet I believe problem solving is a necessary, learned skill involving vision, strategy and higher-order thinking; all things that educators need to teach and nurture in students in order for them to be successful in school and in life. Since I received my masters in whole systems design and systems thinking, I have a bias Read more »
Tweet Paul Richard, the Director of Research and Professional Development at the Center for Critical Thinking, says critical thinking is “thinking about thinking while thinking in order to think better.”1 This is perhaps a playful way of reinforcing what I believe, which is that critical thinking is a core backbone to learning. The ability to Read more »
Tweet Educators across the country constantly share with me the challenge of teaching students to write. Teachers tell me that some students dive into their essays with enthusiasm for translating their thoughts and knowledge into carefully constructed sentences, while most find writing tasks frustrating and daunting. For those that need extra help, research points to Read more »
Tweet I’m a visual thinker. This means that if you ask me for directions to the library down the street, I will give you vivid images with colorful landmarks that point you in the direction of where you need to go. I dream in color and I perform well on tests when I’ve reviewed a Read more »
Tweet 21st century skills – the words have been buzzing through speeches and between conversations at education conferences and on the web for a couple of years now. National organizations like the Partnership for 21st Century Skills (P21), advocate and define the 21st century skills pertinent to students’ success in their studies and careers after Read more »
Tweet September marks the beginning of Read-A-New-Book Month, launching us back into the school year and decisions around choosing the best books to engage students and stimulate their thinking and writing skills. From time to time, I pick up juvenile literature lists to see what is being read and how reading has changed since my Read more »
