Category: Design

NeverSummer by Jess B BullerMay 6, 20165:54 pm

Principal Shadows Student, Gets Schooled

A Day in the Life of an 8^th Grader

I had just finished my morning coffee. Looking out of my office window, I saw AC entering the building with his sister. I popped up from my desk, met him at the door and asked, “Are you ready?”

“Yep,” he eagerly replied.

From there, we proceeded to breakfast in the cafeteria. I could tell he didn’t know quite what to think about the fact that his principal had dressed in ‘regular’ clothes and was planning to follow him around school the entire day. I wondered how students and teachers would react when they saw me in class.

NeverSummer by Jess B BullerApr 26, 20169:45 pm

To Reach the Child Who Hungers for Purpose

Digital vs. Analog

Many of my colleagues in the field believe Every Student Stem. By upbringing and by trade, I am not a programmer. A gamer-at-heart perhaps, but not a programmer. Yet I believe in that mantra as well.

It is silly for us to view today’s student as anything but a ‘STEM’ student. As a parent I often times find myself comparing my 4-year-old’s vocabulary to mine at his age. His frequent use of the terms profile and wi-fi astound me. When he fires up our XBOX 360, I must ask him to make sure he signed out of his brother’s profile and signed in with his own in order to avoid deleting anything.

Craziness!

My parents never said those kinds of things to me. We didn’t connect around Super Mario Bros. on the Nintendo or King’s Quest on our Tandy 1000. I spent my childhood on a bridge between analog world and digital world – a bridge that my parents saw no use in crossing. A bridge that many saw no use in crossing.

NeverSummer by Jess B BullerNov 16, 20157:00 am

#HMW Change The World?

The Answer in the Question

The question should be on every educator’s mind. #ThinkBig

I want to change the world. I want the staff (and students) in my school–and schools EVERYWHERE–to approach education from the same perspective.

A unified change in belief will lead to a unified change in approach.

#PivotTheModel

DesignThinking by Elaine MenardiNov 3, 20156:34 am

Math Is Hard

I Hate Math!

Math is hard for middle school students. Too many young minds believe they will never be good at math because numbers and logical thought processes are simply too complex to grasp at first glance. [They may have even heard an adult or two say: It’s okay. I’m not good at math either.]

DesignThinking by Elaine MenardiOct 26, 20157:00 am

The #HMW Questions

Plant An Idea

It all started innocently enough. I said to my 7th grade math class:

Please don’t crumple your papers when you put them in the recycling bucket. More can fit if you leave them flat.

Several of these students had participated in the Towers of Power challenge and had learned the properties of paper compression.

DesignThinking by Elaine MenardiJul 15, 20158:03 am

Google Makes Life Too Easy

I Bet You Can’t

Did your parents ever play this game with you? They would say “I bet you can’t… run to the refrigerator and get me a soda in less than 10 seconds.” You got into your best trackster stance and waited until they said On-Your-Mark-Get-Set-Go! Away you sprinted to the fridge while they pretended to count.

Almost every kid has done this… and if you didn’t learn it from your parents, then chances are good an older brother or sister tried it out on you. It probably worked a few times, maybe more, until you wised up and said something like “Go get your own soda!”

DesignThinking by Elaine MenardiJul 8, 20155:12 pm

Public Education Isn’t Enough

The 3rd Year In another few weeks, I start my third year here in this little schoolhouse on the prairie. So much water has passed under my bridge that my head explodes whenever I try […]

Design by Jess B BullerMay 27, 20153:05 pm

Truth Trumps Trepidation

Top 10 Ways d_school will Change Your Life Are you still unsure about joining us for the adventure of a lifetime? Time to let go of The Fear. At Never Summer, there is no need […]

Design by Jess B BullerMay 13, 20159:26 am

Shuffle Up & Deal!

Game On

If it was a secret before, it will be no longer…I love Poker.

That’s right. The age old game of cards and clay chips is one of my preferred pastimes. To some it is a game of chance; to others a game of strategy. To me, the potential of rolled up aces over kings makes every trip to the table a true adventure.

In Poker we use the term “pot committed.” A player is pot committed when he has bet enough money that—regardless of the strength of his hand—it would be better to keep betting until the end.

In the overall mission of Never Summer, I am pot committed. I am ready to push all my proverbial chips across the table because I am ALL IN.

Design by Elaine MenardiMay 6, 201510:45 am

d_camp: Kinetics 2015

Students: Time for d_camp!

Come and join the fun! It’s time for Kinetics 2015!

Students entering grades 6 thru 12 in Fall 2015 are invited to register for d_camp. d_camp: Kinetics 2015 is a 4-day design camp at Morgan Community College/Ameritowne Center in Wray, Colorado. Camp will meet Monday through Thursday, July 20-23 from 1:00 to 4:00 pm each day.

A Day in the Life of an 8th Grader