For the Love of Teaching and Learning - a Brilliant Day at Central High School, @BridgeportPSchl, & 27 @FairfieldU Undergraduates

There is not more joyous occasion than the days spent with phenomenal teachers and K-12 youth, especially Mr. King at Central High School in Bridgeport, Connecticut. Under the stellar leadership of Principal Graff, I've been able to continue community-engaged work with students for more than a decade, and such education comes from commitment, community, and literacy excellence. It is easy to see why a National Writing Project's investment in teachers is simply the most marvelous way to go. Teachers are professionals. They have the expertise. They deserve to be celebrated each and every day. 

This is year 12 of collaborating with different classrooms of Bridgeport Public Schools through the mission of the Connecticut Writing Project and via the numerous grants we've been able to secure over the years. Such support provides a way to work with teacher-leaders around the state who have attended CWP-Fairfield's teacher-leadership institutes, and the results follow. Mr. King is one of them - the epitome of teaching excellence.

Yesterday, we had the fortune of bringing 26 undergraduate students in a Philosophy of Education course to work with King's classroom of multiple languages. The librarian offered us a beautiful space to read, write, perform, converse, and gather. In addition, young mathematicians from newly-hired, and Fairfield University alumni, Michael Draper, brought forward his freshman and sophomore classes to discuss education, collaboration, and instruction with the inquisitive and curious college students. It is always something to witness the brilliance of youth as experts of their own lives. As teacher-leader Bria Parkman-McCullough, another teacher-leader, noted, "Imagine if there were weekly opportunities like this for all students. What might we achieve?" (by the way, Congratulations on the wedding ahead - such magic coming your way, Bria).

Mr. King and I have been dreaming up instructional possibilities for over a decade, including better ways to support English language-learners in his care through reading, writing, speaking, and student leadership. I think one testimony for the work is that word spreads quick around the school, and those who have attended Ubuntu Academy ask permission to attend these sessions when we're able to do them. 

 During our time together, young people discussed reading, learning, and the purposes for school and life with Fairfield University students. In return, they asked questions about achieving in college, study habits, and advice on how to be successful. As part of the exercise we read Bette Midler's children's book, The Tale of the Mandarin Duck, about the summer the rare (for these parts) bird landed in Central Park and distracted New York City dwellers from their phones. They put them down for a moment and simply enjoyed the beauty of the phenomenon...the awe of looking around (which is rare for us all in these troubling times).

Mr. King wanted the exercise to about main ideas and pulling important points from a story. Dr. Michelle Farrell, a teaching dynamo and colleague at the University, suggested how she uses hashtags to help students find meaning in what they read. It was a quick, early morning parking lot conversation when I stopped by the University to get copies. We gave it a try, and guess what? It absolutely worked.

#PutThePhonesDown #BeInTheMoment #SeeWithYourEyes #WeAreStrongerTogether #KnowWhatMatters #AppreciateNature #BeInAwe #LiveLifeAware

It was marvelous a day, as always...and a reminder of why I jumped into the profession, study the ways young people achieve as literate learners, and profess the importance of Ubuntu, human togetherness, cooperation, and shared humanity. We are stronger in community with one another, especially when we team up to help every individual achieve.

Each and every day should be like this. It's pedagogy that works ... 29 years and counting in this educational gig I got going on, and it remains true from the beginning (I have Sue McV and the Brown School to thank for this). There's no learning without relationships. Kids need to be valued, trusted, respected, and heard first. Curriculum should be built from who they are and who they might possibly be.