Flip the classroom

Imagine a school-day with no tedious whole group lessons. 
Imagine a work cycle where students spend their time manipulating and transforming ideas. 
Imagine learning and cementing concepts through experience instead of hearing and forgetting them through disinterest.

Salman Khan's work at the Khan Academy - Flipping the classroom by assigning the lectures for homework and doing actual work during the school day.

Thing kids do when we let them - Build a model of the White House

An article by Julie Scelfo for the New York Times describes the benefits of woodworking at the kindergarten level.  This group of Brooklyn students takes carpentry to a whole new level.  Using appropriate caution, the exercise shows the amazing power of young students and allows Kinder students to use their hands to orchestrate their learning.  As evidence continues to pour in on how crucial our hands are in our intellectual and social development, the Montessori classroom becomes an even more obvious leader of new 21st century schools. 

A Montessori Classroom at Home

Visit the LivingMontessoriNow blog and check out how to set up your very own Montessori classroom at home.

Overheard in the classroom

This one is actually from that Ken Robinson TED talk below
Between young student and teacher,

-What are you drawing?
-I am drawing a picture of God
-But nobody knows what God looks like...
-Well they will in a minute!