Thursday, August 18, 2011

Instructions for Homework

Hello Titans! I am glad you have successfully negotiated the web to our Institute blog site. It is here where you are able to post your reaction to Adora Svitak's opinion regarding kids' big dreams and the grownups' unwillingness to learn from children as much as to teach.

129 comments:

  1. It's that easy! But don't forget to create a Google account first by clicking Sign In in the upper right part of the screen. Then add your three to four lines of reaction and click Post Comment - that's it!

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  2. Looking forward to working with everyone over the next two days.

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  3. Can't wait to meet everyone as one of your newest Titans!

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  4. I love Adora's comment about kids deserving high expectations and opportunities to lead and succeed. It fits with our conversation earlier today about giving kids choices during assessments. If they feel they have had some control in choosing a topic, for example, their creativity and their knowledge will shine. I also think the world could use a good dose of "childish" thinking which, as she also said, can be "wildly creative" and optimistic. And the idea that teaching should be reciprocal makes so much sense. I know that I learn something new from my daughters at least once a day. If kids feel like their ideas are respected and valued, they will more likely respect and value our ideas.

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  5. Adora had some great sound bites, but one of my favorites was "to show that you truly care, you listen." It's so easy to look at this from the perspective of the students showing us they don't care by not listening to us. But this made me wonder how well I listen to my students. Not just to their right or wrong answers, but to their thoughts and feelings about my instructional methods or assessment strategies. Their decision to not listen to me may be a result of my own decision to not listen to them or of past experiences of not being heard.

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  6. Adora was so well spoken. It makes you realize age is but one component of ourselves. Young, old, child, adult, student, teacher - the line can be very blurred. We are simply all learners. If we keep that focus, it may be easier for reciprocal learning to take place each day in all our classroms.

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  7. Adora is an amazing young woman! I loved her views on teaching and learning being "reciprocal". We can learn so much from our students and children but we need to "slow down" and really listen to what they are saying to us. We are all life long learners.

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  8. It isn't uncommon to hear adults grumbling about the younger generation. Between the adolescent obsession with things like texting and Twilight, I'm sure many of us have been cynical about "kids these days." Adora mentioned the progress of her generation in a positive way. I found this to be a great reminder of the capabilities of students who are appropriately challenged and motivated.

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  9. Adora talked about how kids are not hampered as much with big dreams and do not think of all the limitations. I know that I can hold back from taking action at times because I see so many limitations. But I think that it is important for us to dream big as educators and learn from kids by the way they dream. We have much to bring to our students, but we should also realize that our students can teach us many things if we are open to listen and observe.

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  10. I really liked what Melissa said about the need to listen to our students. And by listening, I mean be active and open listeners. So often, we can go in with our own agenda when we listen for comments from our students. But only authentic and meaningful change can happen in our classrooms when we listen this way.

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  11. Adora's public speaking skills blew me away! She's right, there are so many problems on the planet today that are a result of us following in the previous generation's footsteps. It's only through the contributions of those who "push the boundaries of possibilities" that we have tried to overcome those issues. Why shouldn't we listen to and encourage the younger generations to do something about their aspirations now, not when they become adults?

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  12. TED is an amazing and inspirational resource. I have shown my kids Ken Robinson's talk "Schools Kill Creativity" at http://www.ted.com/talks/ken_robinson_says_schools_kill_creativity.html. It is not as judgemental as it sounds.

    Adora makes a great point about kids teaching teachers. But I am struck by how much her parents inspired her at a young age. How easy would our jobs be if kids entered school with a love of learning, confidence in their creative abilities and some self-discipline? I always say, if the teacher of a student's first six years of life don't do their job, the teachers of the next 12 will have their work cut out for them. Alas, it is not to be but one can dream...

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  13. Kelly - I totally agree with you about how great it is to hear her perspective on how new generations can be positive contributors to progress. This is a viewpoint that isn't always shared by many and I find it refreshing.

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  14. I liked what Julia said about "seeing too many limitations". I feel like sometimes we get caught up more in the obstacles and forget the "big picture". Young children especially tend to think more outside the box to figure out how to get what they want. I think many adults could learn from that (granted, some definitely have).

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  15. Responding to Kelly M's 1:55 post (sorry, I could not figure out how to contiinue a thread). It's amazing how many people say , "Kids today..." so negatively when they find out I am a teacher. I find the majority of kids today outstanding, positive, respectful, invested, motivated, tuned in and more. I think folks say that because their only contact with "kids today" is the negativity reported in newspapers. We need to start sending out press releases of the positive (such as the stats D-RY started the meeting with today).

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  16. Neeta M. Adora presentattion was done very well and she showed that setting limitations is good for learning and that we can learn from each other and that adults can also learn from children.

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  17. Speaking of dreams Walt, and in accordance with Adora's note about her "wildest dreams", I kept thinking back to our work with the i3 grant through the NENPP (who remembers what those acronyms mean?). Many of us from the school community and from schools across the region took part in a three day workshop on Authentic Assessment and Change Leadership. The group of participants included teachers, administrators, and most importantly, students.

    The students spoke of their "wildest dreams" for education, which included the desire to have a voice and a choice in how they learned and were assessed. This choice may range from learning modalities to the types of assessments offered. In any case, the message was made very clear that students want to take part in creating their learning. I think of some of our reluctant learners, and it always strikes me that the people they respond to the most are those that stop, listen, and help them solve problems in a way that is relevant to their lives.

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  18. I really like how Susan C. stated that we are life long learners. I know I am always learning something new from my peers and my students.

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  19. Adora's inspirational and intuitive comments are so appropriate for today's classroom. Especially in the areas of technology, students are more proficient than the teachers. As the classroom is a learning community, we should all learn from one another.

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  20. It is so true that "when expectations are low, kids will sink to them." As a teacher I know I need to be better at pushing students to use their potential and exceed expectations. Often students aren't given enough credit for their ability and as adults we need to communicate to them that we believe they are capable of doing great things.

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  21. I attended the NENNP workshop last week and my OPRAH moment was when I realized my need to get a response immediately from my students - that I was uncomfortable with silence -- I watched this not only as a teacher but as a parent and realized how many times I have fallen into the 'trap' of needing the right answer RIGHT now!! I watched this smiling and nodding -- appreciating Adora's views and comments - I also picked up on the role that she mentioned her family played in her education --

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  22. In response to chris m -
    i attended and shared the same experience as Chris last week -- and I share the concerns for our reluctant learners and he is correct in saying that the 'educators/facilitators' they connect with are the people that stop and listen - it isnt always the teacher in the front of the class they are supposed to be attending but the person who takes the time to simply care... even for a minute

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  23. I love it...."go slow to move fast"....take time to listen!

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  24. I am a math teacher and I learn so much from my students. To teach is to learn. Many a time a student solves a problem in a way that I would not have. I do take the time to have the student explain how they arrived at the answer. This does not only benefit me, but benefits those other students in the class that may have the same prospective.

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  25. Some of greatest educational minds compare the art of teaching to the practice of medicine. Without going into these various similarities, I’d like to point out just one, and this relates to Adora’s theme of “listening to children.” Some of the most valuable data a doctor can acquire often comes from the patient’s own description of what ails them. Doctors rely on the narrative that can only be provided by the person in need. Likewise, we as teachers need to LISTEN to our students--whether it be through conversations, assessments, essays--so we can know how to better provide the specific “cure” or path toward learning. If we don’t listen, we are only making assumptions and blind guesses regarding what students need to know. Would a surgeon operate without a CAT scan? Of course not. Therefore, we teachers should never teach without listening.

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  26. Like many of the previous posters, the quote about how “learning between grown-ups and kids should be reciprocal” resonated with me. As most of us began our teaching careers, there was pressure to keep our classrooms under control and quiet, or fear being criticized by administrators and peers. Implementing authentic learning and incorporating student choice in our classrooms leads to some organized chaos. Although this may be extremely effective instruction, it can cause us to become uncomfortable and fearful others will improperly judge us as having poor classroom management. Just as there needs to be trust between teachers and their students for this to be successful, there must also be trust between administrators and teachers. I think I can speak for all North administrators in saying we will look for student engagement and learning in classrooms, regardless of whether it is quiet and focused, or somewhat noisy and bustling.

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  27. Technology at it's current state becomes outdated in two years and I'm unable ( maybe unwilling?) to keep up with all the new advancements. I rely on my students to teach me what I need to know and they rely on me to teach them the classics.Our nation's economic recovery may be dependent on this new technology so we should embrace new ideas and far-flung concepts.......

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  28. Sorry colleagues I jumped to the comment stage before I made my original statement to the clip. I don't like the word "childish" and I can not remember the last time I used it.
    I think this young lady needs to give a speech to parents and the United States Congress.

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  29. Regarding what you said, Walt, about students entering school with more advanced creative abilities...
    Unfortunately, I think people sometimes underestimate what kids can do because they are not of a certain age. My son, Liam, who just turned five, astonishes me daily. Whether it's through a drawing or some insightful comment, he continually shows me how ready he is to grow as a learner and at such a young age. How great would it be if there was more widespread encouragement of creativity with children when they are still tots.

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  30. I loved all of Adora's little nuggets of wisdom. Something that Adora said that I particularly enjoyed was "to show that you truly care, you listen." I've found that this works particularly well with the "reluctant learner" types that we were discussing today. I think many students feel that they are going to be yelled at, or disciplined no matter what and that their side of the story or what they are going through doesn't matter. Many times if there's an issue in my classroom, a student will say "Well if I'm going to get a detention anyway, why should I explain my side?" I think it's always important to listen respectfully to everyone's perspective and that it can truly go a long way with kids who don't regularly have anybody listening to them.

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  31. In response to Walt and Kelly M., I am also sad when I hear people talking negatively about kids. Adora had the perfect response to that-- she asked the audience if they still had irrational, wishful thoughts that pushed the boundaries of possibility. She asked them if they still believed in utopia. The camera man scanned the audience as no hands went up. I just thought "Wow." She has a point.

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  32. Ted is such a fantastic resource! Adoras speech was so insightful and passionate I am just amazed with her. I love how she pointed out that we can learn from our students just as they learn from us. Sometimes in the big scheme of things this can easily be forgotten.

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  33. I promise this is my last comment - not.
    When graphing calculators became part of my job, I learned more from students than any other group of people. They were so excited to be able to teach the teacher. I embraced that and still do.

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  34. Dawn: Although I am not familiar with what an OPRAH moment is, I’m guessing it is pretty rich and powerful! I agree that providing appropriate wait time for students to process and answer questions is a difficult task. I also reflected upon how many times I demanded responses in a timely manner from students. Speaking with one of the facilitators at the NENNP workshop, she spoke about how it took a long time to adjust her teaching to incorporate appropriate wait time and break old habits. When I asked her what she did to improve, she mentioned that videotaping herself and having friends come observe her and comment on her wait time were among the most useful.

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  35. Like most people, I was really impressed with Adoras comments on student/teacher interaction. A quote that caught my attention was "trust us and expect more from us." I think that line strikes to the core of what we are trying to do with our assessments. On a totally different note: anyone want to chip in and buy Mark Fenlon a Bacon Boy?

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  36. Very Interesting and Inspiring. We have a lot to learn fron children if we would listen and hear what they have to say.

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  37. I absolutely found Adora very entertaining but more than that I found her speech to be inspirational especially when she said that kids big dreams deserve high expectations starting with the grown-ups willingness to learn from children and that kids need the opportunities to lead and succeed. Also that learning should be recipricol;teachers need to listen what students have say and not be judgemental.

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  38. I loved Adora. She was funny and smart. I do worry that her generation will be taking care of me. I worry about our extension students who just slide by.
    I truly do learn from my students. This spring I learned what wtf means. The student taught me 2 things. What wtf means and how frustrated he was that while most students understood the concept, he had no clue. We met and worked on filling in a void from his prior math skills and all went better. Listening to the student worked.

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  39. Q and I have a lot in common. When I need to do something new with technology I always rely on the kids in the class to help.
    When the LCD projector is giving me grief and I can't wait there is always someone to come to my rescue. As I tell them we learn from each other every day. Not just math but real life stuff. I am psyched to see the new technology in the teachers rooms. Are there going to be traveling working laptops also??

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  40. Alyssa I love what you said about 'kids thinking outside the box" We as adults and teachers I think get caught up in the routine of what we are doing and forget to remember as kids what it is to think beyond. I think as teachers we need to take a step back and listen more to what the kids are saying

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  41. Adora is a very insightful and inspiring young lady. Today we discussed the elements of quality assessments, and one key component is adding student voice to the process. I think we need to listen to our students to make their education more engaging and relevant.

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  42. Adora was very inspirational and motivating. She is right in saying we need to learn from kids. Even in our classrooms we need to learn how they learn, how they test and who better to ask then the students themselves.

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  43. Mike H.-
    I agree, that quote resonated with me as well, teaching should be reciprocal between teachers and students. As educators we need to drill down to discover what students want and need to learn.

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  44. I like what Cara said"I think it's always important to listen respectfully to everyone's perspective and that it can truly go a long way with kids who don't regularly have anybody listening to them". This is so true. The way we earn respect as teachers is to offer it to our students.

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  45. What an inspiration! Adora emphasized "the sky being the limit," but when do we step in to provide limits? Is there a time and a place? What would the limits look like if we need to have them? How do we approach implementing limits? Earlier today a teacher mentioned that some of the chemicals she works with can be dangerous--we can't be mixing ammonia and bleach.

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  46. "Whoever undertakes to set himself up as a judge of Truth and Knowledge is shipwrecked by the laughter of the gods." - Albert Einstein

    I think Adora has told us off!

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  47. I loved her comment about adults underestimating children's abilities "when expectations are low . . . we will sink to them". We should embrace every student as an individual and challenge that individual to soar, don't we do that for our own kids?

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  48. Snowy28, what a great question! I think students need structured guidance and criteria. Maybe they don't necessarily limits? I'd love to hear other people's thoughts on this subject.

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  50. I agree with Walt and Katie: TED talks are generally awesome. TED's tag line is "Ideas Worth Spreading" and Adora's talk certainly falls into that category. She's more engaging to me than Rick DuFour because she speaks from the child's perspective. It's so unexpected to hear what comes out of her mouth that you're glued right away. I know she speaks all over the world, but I wonder if she realizes how much impact she has on both kids and adults.

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  51. Restrictions on children, oppressive school regimes, lack of trust, teachers standing in front of the class saying "do this, and don't do that." She hit them all pretty well. In the end Adora's message that adults can and should learn from children reminded me of many of my North students...On more than one occasion at North I have realized (at one point or another) that their entire class, to a person, was a whole lot smarter than me...generally I learn from my kids here ever day.

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  52. Pat Johnson:

    I will chip in on Fenlon's Bacon Boy.

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  53. First off, I love that Adora has chosen to use her intelligence to advocate for herself, as well as for her peers. It reminds me of something my mom used to tell me --that intelligence is a gift, and it's my responsibility to use that gift to help those that may not have the ability to do so. I wonder if Adora was taught the same lesson.

    That being said, I have always contended that the line between teaching and learning is thin and permeable. Maura is absolutely right --to teach is to learn. If our goal is to inculcate in our students a life-long love of learning, then there is no sense in mystifying the learning process by making ourselves unapproachable or putting ourselves in a pedestal.

    Of course, we must be professional and certain boundaries must be respected. But, Adora and my colleagues are right to suggest that teachers have just as much to learn from their students as the students from the teachers.

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  54. Amazing young lady. I agree that the teaching and learning has to be reciprocal in the classroom. These students are our future and we need to be there listening, teaching, learning from them every day that we can. Making that personal connection with each one of them, will give them the confidence to express their dreams and ideas.

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  55. Irrationality was the point that stuck with me. As time and life goes on, it seems to become easier to classify something as irrational. So called childish traits such as curiosity and bluntness are discouraged. Childish seems to carry a negative connotation where child-like may be more appropriate. Thoughts?

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  56. I really enjoyed watching Adora's presentation. She made me think about the importance of not putting limitations on children. I really liked how she said that when expectations are low, children will go down to meet them. I think it is important to hold our students to a high standard, but part of that is offering them support that they need to be successful.

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  57. Most of the time, my reflections come in the form of questions, and this is no exception. We can easily get feedback from high fliers like Adora but how do we get at risk or uninvested students to come to the table? It seems like we struggle with that and I think the issue is trust and perception. Among some groups in our school, the students may trust individuals but they don't trust school staff as a whole. How do we fix that? And to respond to Snowy, how do we balance establishing trust and safety/ well being of the population?

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  58. In response to Julia S's comments about limitations and draming 'big' . . .
    During my time at North, our Guidance Department has actively encouraged students to "dream big" by holding visits to UNH, Keene and Plymouth State and targeting ELL students to attend. In doing so, students learn that four year colleges are within their reach, and that they do not have to 'settle' for a two year college and limit their aspirations. Thank you Guidance for all you do. :-)

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  59. What I took away from Adora's talk was how important being open to all ideas are, regardless of who they come from. Beyond the whole kids teaching adults thing she also reminded me of the importance of youthful idealism. Her example from the Tacoma Glass Museum reinforces both the importance of creativity in children but, as important, play as well. I think that we as teachers need to learn to listen to children, true, but if we don't provide them with oppotunities to play creatively, what will we hear?

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  60. I was struck by what she said about Trust. Lack of trust causes us to place restrictions. Restrictive attitudes towards kids (or towards anyone or any group of people) tells the story of our lack of trust. I thought about what is lost by these restrictions.

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  61. I appreciate Ami R's observation about establishing a condition of trust with our students. 1900 students are overwhelming when you think about creating trust on that scale, but if we can each focus on those students in our class and build trust one relationship at a time we can get there and provide valuable experiences for ourselves and our students.

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  62. Keith Richard:

    I'm on board with the idea of giving students ownership and a say within the classroom. Providing students with options in performance tasks gives voice to their strengths. This seems to align itself well with the concept of multiple intelligences.

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  63. I just wrote an erudite and witty comment (honest), only to have it disappear into the electric eather... Now I'm irritated.

    The bit about glass at the three minute mark made me question whether or not as the adult worried more on practicality, I'm impeding the ability of my students to create and innovate. The contrarian within also begs the question, however: in the equation that she posits, where positive always equals positive, whatt do we do about the negatives?

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  64. Pat J: I'm all about art for the sake of art, but the Bacon Boy seems to me to be a clear example that not all ideas or visions or equal and do not necessarily need to be followed.

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  65. Adora share several nuggets of wisdom, but the one I most enjoyed was "to show that you truly care, you listen." Some of my favorite moments from last year involved listening to students. In the midst of teaching an Algebra lesson, one of my students had a meltdown. Unsure of exactly what to do, I simply listened. The entire class also began to listen as the student shared his frustration with a parent. It only took a few moments before other students in the class began to share their own struggles. It was amazing to see the support the students offered each other and before I knew it, the student had calmed down and I was able to finish the lesson.

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  66. listening is the most important skill a teacher can have, especialy when dealing with "at-risk" or "reluctant" learners.

    unfortunatly with those learners (and many others) what we really have to listen for are the things they aren't saying. once we hear those things we can help our students find a way to voice them.

    we should also remember that those students who scream their desires most silently are the ones who most often hear clearly what we don't say.

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  67. Adora's presentation was very inspirational. Like many others, I loved how she said that students should teach their teachers and how learning should be reciprocal. Adora's presentation made me stop and think of all of the wonderful lessons I have learned from former students. I look forward to learning more from my students and my own children.

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  68. Adora is so well spoken! I love when she says, "students should teach teachers". I think there is a lot we can learn from our students and even more our students can learn from each other. I also completely agree that students will sink if our expectations for them are not high enough - I have always found that the higher you set the bar, the harder the students will work. Not all students will get there, but most will.

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  69. In response to what Chef said... listening is SO important. It's not always about what's being said about your class, it's just what's being said or how it being spoken about. I think we are sometimes too quick to get to the material and often lose sight of what's more important - the students

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  70. I agree with Alyssa that we should be encouraging the younger generation to start working toward their aspiration now instead of waiting until they are adults. There are many inspirational students at our school who have already started working toward their goals. Why should they have to wait??

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  71. Like many others, I thought Adora's points about the importance of trust, high expectations, and reciprocal relationships between adults and children were important and timely. Yet, I was most struck by her argument that "irrational" thinking can change the world. We are preparing our students for a world we can hardly imagine. I wonder what their world will be like 50 years from now? Will I have helped them "to be better adults than [I/We] have been?" This is a heavy and humbling challenge...

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  72. What an insightful young woman! I was especially moved by the idea of having the students invest more in the planning and construction of their learning. When students have choice there is engagement. I'm sitting here this evening working on updating my syllabus for this year with this thought in mind...

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  73. Adora's pesentation is remarkable. I appreciate the sentiments about trusting children and granting responsibility.

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  74. I agree with all statements that we have alot to learn from our students. When we are new teachers one of our biggest fears is that one of our students will ask us a question that we don't have an answer to. As we move further in our careers we realize that there will be alot of questions we will not know the answers to and that is OK. I always refer to my students when utilizing technology because this is what they have grown up with and are so much better than I am.

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  75. After viewing the presentation and reflecting on its relevance to our school, I am encouraged by the amount of reciprocal teaching taking place at North. Our school environment does foster what Adora advocates for and I think many students do feel respected and their ideas listened to and valued. However, there seems to be a disconnect between the overachieving students and the students who are not motivated. More can be done to foster trust and positive relationships between students and teachers among underachieving and high risk students.

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  76. Listening to our students is key - we can learn from them just as they can learn from us. The parental support that Adora has is not the norm and has set her on a completely different path. All the listening in the world won't recreate that path for some of our students. We need to do the best we can with the time that we have with our kids.

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  77. What struck a chord with me was Adora's comment on the children designing glass art. We too often put limitations on students' creativity in regards to their learning.

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  78. In response to Snowy's questions about limits, perhaps the idea of student generated limits might be an idea worth considering. I have experimented in classrooms with the students determining their classroom limits......most of the time they end up with ideas that I am completely comfortable with and, because of their involvement, their limits tend to be more self and peer managed.

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  79. Snowy:

    I would say the limits are those that provide a safe environment in which the students can reach for the sky.

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  80. Adora is an incredible young lady with many great ideas. I particularly liked her statement that our goal should be to "not to turn kids into your kind of adult, but rather into better adults than you have been". We need to provide students with every opportunity to be successful in their chosen paths.

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  81. Wow! What an articulate young lady! One of the aspects of Adora's presentation that really resonated with me is that trust is needed for reciprocal learning to take place. I think we sometimes get so caught up in getting our students to trust us and believe that we have something to teach them. However, it is so important that we trust our students to offer to the class as well. When they believe that we not only value their ideas, dreams, aspirations, etc but also expect these same things from them, they can only become more motivated to share them with the class. I feel this mutual trust can truly lead to increased student motivation and ownership of one's learning.

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  82. Adora's ideas and intelligence are very impressive. She obviously is a very bright and perceptive person, regardless of her age. Her comment about "teachers (adults) having low expectations for children" struck me the most in her speech. I found her statement to be ironic because i have tried to boost the confidence of many of my students at NHSN who have little or no confidence in their academic ability or their futures in general. Adora reminded me of some of the incredibly bright and connected students I had at Hotchkiss: kids who have been bred for success since the minute they were born. Since I .don't teach the AP kids or many Honors courses at NHSN, most of the kids I teach need our support and direction.

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  83. I was very much impressed by Adora's talk. As some of us have posted , I agree with the fact that as teachers we should keep an open mind for student's feedback on assessments, instruction etc. If we are ready to listen and I am sure the students will definitely help us and make our work whole lot easier.

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  84. Andy, I agree with your comment about "impeding the ability of my students to create and innovate". I think that giving students more freedom to express their learning will lead to great things.

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  86. I agree with Caitlin P. that high expectations for students is key. If we don't expect much from our students, why would they want to produce much for us?

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  87. Carrie & Alyssa,
    I agree with you that we should be encouraging kids to work towards their goals now, not telling them to wait until they are older. By telling them to wait we are bascially discrediting their dreams.

    I also wonder if sometimes we don't encourage our at-risk students to think enough about specific possibilities. For example, instead of just telling them they can graduate high school/college we should be getting them to think more about the specific lives they want. What types of people will they be? What jobs do they see themselves doing? How do they want to spend their free time? I think some kids have such a hard time even imagining their possibilities...

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  88. Wow. What an extraordinary and compelling speaker! Adora's presentation resonated with particular poignance for me when she emphasized the importance of reciprocal learning between adults and youth in the classroom. And I think this ties in with her broader argument regarding the current lack of trust adults exhibit in their students. To operate under the genuine expectation that a teacher will learn from his students, that teacher must invest in the authentic trust of his students. This trust will manifest itself in conversation, the prompting of assignments, and feedback and evaluation. It cannot be forced; kids will see through it. It cannot be faked; kids will sense condescension. And it cannot be neglected or, even worse, discarded; kids will also remove themselves from the reciprocal learning equation. It is crucial that we stake value in the expectation that our students truly can "push the boundaries of possibility." By incorporating student choice in our lesson and unit objectives (and particularly, as we discussed today, in our assessments), we might allow for them to rise to the highest of expectations rather than sinking to the depths of those previously established for them. I hope that our push for student choice in the classroom might foster a greater sense of trust that ultimately facilitates a reciprocal raising of the bar for both us and the youth with whom we collaborate in our classroom learning.

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  89. Ami R wrote:
    "Most of the time, my reflections come in the form of questions, and this is no exception. We can easily get feedback from high fliers like Adora but how do we get at risk or uninvested students to come to the table? It seems like we struggle with that and I think the issue is trust and perception. Among some groups in our school, the students may trust individuals but they don't trust school staff as a whole. How do we fix that? And to respond to Snowy, how do we balance establishing trust and safety/ well being of the population?"

    I think Ami's comment is right on target. I would love my students to take control of the classroom and their own educations (and future!). Most of the time the most confident students tend to dominate the discussions in Honors and Extension classes. I need to learn how to get more kids involved in those discussions!

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  90. Dawn your comments on needing a response from students immediately is something I also need to be conscious of.

    I liked Cara's reference to - "to show that you truly care, you listen" -this was true many times last year.

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  91. Esther,
    I totally agree that we are all learners in different ways. Kids learn from us and we learn from them. I like the term " reciprocal" used by many of us.

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  92. Can we have her speak to our students? I agree with Adora that there is so much that teachers can learn from students and not just students learning from teachers. The learning balance really has to start with having trusting relationships with our students.

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  93. I was really struck by Adora's comment that "we kids still dream of perfection because in order to make anything a reality you have to dream about it first." This resonated with me because by using that enthusiasm and conveying that message to everyone in the building (staff and students alike) I believe that we can have a positive impact on each and every student that walks through the door.

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  94. I would never want to be accused of being an adult but...
    I like to encourage students to think on their own. I am very happy when different students come up with different explanations or representations that are accurate. Having students explain and show their knowledge in class is important. In many discovery situations the teacher can set up an activity that provides thought provoking exploration but as important as the exploration is, is the need for the teacher to know in advance where student may have misconception and where they may need guidance.
    Consider the Socratic method of questioning, teachers are not just asking questions. Teachers are asking very specific questions to help students think critically and to help lead them to understanding.
    What I do agree with, is the statements about relationships, trust and learning about the student and their needs.

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  95. What an inspirational little speaker! So much of what Adora said hits home with respect to how we treat our students. So many great ideas were born from free thinking and a lack of inhibitions that we adults have developed over the years. As educators, we should include in our educational toolbox ways to allow our students to dream big, be creative and not let OUR boundaries keep THEM from surpassing US. She is right-we can learn from kids and education should be reciprical. We don't want to hold them back. After all, if students only learn what we know and they don't stretch their own boundaries, the next great discovery or invention will never ever happen.

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  96. What a great and inspiring homework assignment to have for our kick-off to a new school year. I liked Adora's comment on how "to make anything a reality, you have to dream about it first," is really what learning should be all about. I feel; however, with the constraints of NCLB, we teachers don't have the time to give students the opportunities to get creative. This reminds me of Dan Pink's book "A Whole New Mind - Why Right-Brainers Will Rule the World" because they are the ones brave enough to get creative and think of the ideas for tomorrow. Right-brain thinkers do not think of limitations, they just...think.

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  97. She made me think about a number of things...particularly about the power of dreams and how as we get older, we often lose the power to dream of new possibilities for ourselves and become far to practical. I have been thinking too about our students and do we help them to dream of their futures and what they could become or are we (am I) also erroring on the practical and thinking more about the next thing--passing, graduation etc. This summer I met students who came from a poverty that is beyond what I can even wrap my head around and I saw it myself. One of the things that struck me, and that I continue to think about, was the dreams they had for their futures. They weren't dreaming about passing the High School Entrance Exam--in their minds, that was the next step, not the dream. They dreamed of becoming doctors and lawyers and all sorts of other extravagant things. A friend on the team is also a teacher here in Nashua and he reflected that sometimes the dreams we give our students are too small (graduation) and that we need to start to help them to dream big dreams of what could be and then help them start working toward those dreams.

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  98. In response to Chris M: Imagine how thrilling it would be if a student's "wildest dream" in the classroom exceeded simply having a voice, being heard, contributing to his or her learning, etc. What if this were in fact the norm? How much higher would the "wildest dreams" of our students stretch? Honestly, I cannot imagine what my students wildest classroom dreams might be because I've never thought to ask such a big question. I look forward to doing so this semester.

    In response to Bill and others: It's disheartening to realize the lack of Adora-like creativity (300 short stories!) in my classroom. And I believe the suppression of creative impulses occurs long before the beginning of high school because kids arrive in our classes with a fear or breaching the limitations of an assignment or producing a "wrong" guess, attempt, or suggestion when approaching a prompt or problem. Last semester, I struggled immensely to encourage my students to focus less on the rubric for an essay and more on the paper's creative potential. The students desperately sought (and even begged for) assurance that there was a "right" format they could model. Ultimately, however, it was the group of students who strayed from (or rather rose above) the modeled format that produced the most original and compelling writing. Those who sank to the expectations that they felt they needed to demand for themselves produced weaker writing. They ultimately got it "right," but sacrificed innovation, risk, and originality in the process.

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  99. Kelly-Ann,
    I liked your comment on how "trust can truly lead to increased student motivation and ownership of one's learning." Learning does need to be reciprocated between teacher and student. And if we're going to prepare our students to have 21st century skills such as collaboration and communication, it should start between us and the students.

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  100. Walt, you are so right. So many kids are expected to be short adults with adult issues and concerns that they are not allowed to be who and what they are, just kids with hopes and dreams of their own. Our students come to us with adult problems that they have taken on because they feel they have to help... help their family pay bills, put food on the table or take care of their parent's other children. They are not allowed to be kids. They already have inhibitions. They have already been told they have limitations. Some have even been told they cannot learn. They are growing old before they get a chance to grow up.

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  101. Adora is an amazingly inciteful child; wise beyond her years. I also believe that learning should be reciprocal between myself and my students and whenever I can remember to stop and listen I learn from them. Adora reminds us that children have a unique way of seeing the world, one we often leave behind as adults.

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  102. I like Charlie K's quote from Albert Einstein. Adults get so wrapped up in daily life that we forget sometimes what it was like to dream and to pursue dreams. I too think Adora told us off!

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  103. Kelley Ann and Caitlin, you both hit the nail on head, I believe it all has to do with expectations. If we don't expect more from our student, they will never expect more from themselves thus never even attempting to dream or make a dream their reality.

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  104. Let's replace the term "childish" with "child-like". It remind me of innocence and a free-to-be-me mentality.

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  105. Joel, I think you were right on the mark when you described student supression of creativity being caused by fear. I would contend that repetition of the "right" way to do something is a significant cause as well. Tim Brown mentioned something in a TED talk I will link to in a moment. When asked to draw a 30 second sketch of someone, many adults apologize regarding the quality of the sketch(and ideas) while most children proudly display their work. Some of this behavior in the older crowd is fear, but I think that the constant expectation of what a typical portrait should look like puts unnecessary constraints on our minds to be creative. We need to do a better job of promoting a sense of creativity by lending credibility to the unorthodox.

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RjwUn-aA0VY&feature=relmfu

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  106. I think Adora makes an excellent point when she says that irrational childish thinking can lead to good, rational ideas. While her speech places what some may view as too much freedom for childish thinking, it is an excellent jumping off point for promoting creativity. The two creative catalysts I came away with from listening to the video are high expectations(clearly stated by others already) and setting goals(which set a purpose) instead of parameters(which stifle thinking).

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  107. In Response to Julie, You are absolutly right in your thoughts of allowing students to choose assignments, when appropriate, Often I let them choose whhat they would like to do in class, as long as it follows the curriculum. For example, what differnce does it make what soup the student is preparing, they are still getting the methods needed to make soup.

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  108. Adora's statement about children not being limited in their dreams by the reality of the the World that often limit adults dreams resonated with me. I know that my dreams and aspirations are limited by reality, many of the students we have in high school already limit their dreams based on reality. I truly appreciate the student who dreams and sees the World the way it could be and not just how it is - maybe he or she will help bring us closer to how it could be. Hopefully we will help them achieve their dreams - is it also our responsibility to inject reality?

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  109. In response to something Monica said, when asked this morning what was a sign of a good test, I thought of the times that students came up with a totally unexpected answer or perceptive than what I had in mind and that was accurate and defend-able. I love that moment and have been thinking about that on and off today re: how can I create opportunities for the to discover more and more on their own.


    Powerful quote from earlier: "we should also remember that those students who scream their desires most silently are the ones who most often hear clearly what we don't say."

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  110. @JGraham

    I appreciate the delineation between setting goals and setting parameters as you explained it. Setting goals and a purpose seems to give focus. Whereas, setting parameters in a class room will likely yield many very similar projects, but not allow students to be as creative and may potentially limit their ability to actually show what they know. I am reminded of rubrics that lay out how many pictures on a poster or in a powerpoint, how many quotes, where items should be located on the presentation, etc. The poster/powerpoint becomes a fill-in-the blank worksheet instead of being a visual representation of their knowledge.

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  112. Ami's comment reminded me that Adora had brought up the issue of TRUST. I know that we have had conversations in the school about how we earn the trust of students - have we reflected often enough on how students earn our trust?

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  113. Meredith - "And if we're going to prepare our students to have 21st century skills such as collaboration and communication, it should start between us and the students."

    I agree these are critical skills for the future. We should all be focusing on these areas in each course, every class.

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  114. I personally was inspired by her enthusiasm. Her humor was remarkable. I think as adults we do need to listen to the ideas and dreams of our students and help them find the tools they personally need to succeed. We need to set the bar high and challenge them.

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  115. Going off of what Pat said,trust is so vital. We need to foster this in our relationships with our students. Once this trust is built, challenging them more will be possible.I also agree with Keith that we have to make our lessons more relevant, engaging and fun.

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  116. Well done North! I am very impressed with the quality and depth of conversation. Some key elements you touched on were listening to students and helping them reach their dreams, helping students set goals and most importantly, holding high expectations for ALL students. Adora was clear: "trust us and expect more."

    Unbridled enthusiasm with safe guidelines is encouraged! Students and teachers alike must appeal to their creative sides in order to be successful in learning. I am giving you permission to break the mechanical parts of the industrial machine of instruction and be outrageous. Lifting limitations on creativity for students and teachers alike is permitted. Take risks! Be different and celebrate the daily opportunity to help students reach their dreams. Only in education do you get to shape the lives of people, embrace it and appeal to the innovator inside!

    Let's get to work.

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  117. I found Vicki's post to be very insightful. I find that working with the population that I do I am learning from them everyday as they learn from me!

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  118. Adora certainly has a way with words. Her plea that it is "imperative to create opportunities for children to grow up and blow you away" caught my attention. It's always a highlight of the day to see a student rise up, shine, and exceed our expectations. Providing more opportunities to do so is a win-win for all.

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  119. what a great and inspiring video. This is why we teach. Listening to what students say and getting their feedback will help us become better instructors.

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  120. Adora confirms that teaching and learning are most effective when there is mutual trust and respect. She reminds me of the poet Kahlil Gibran who had this to say about teaching children:

    "You may give them your love but not your thoughts, For they have their own thoughts.
    You may house their bodies but not their souls,
    For their souls dwell in the house of tomorrow,
    which you cannot visit, not even in your dreams.
    You may strive to be like them,
    but seek not to make them like you.
    For life goes not backward nor tarries with yesterday."

    I was inspired by Adora as I was by reading the comments posted here! I'm looking forward to what promises to be an exciting year.

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  121. What a great video. I want to see more... I totally agree with her comments about teachers learning from their students. I feel in life that we often get into a rut, do the same things, etc... we really need to learn from our students, change our past practices and really teach them to their interests.

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  122. I totally agree with Mommy AKA Erin also known as Erin Knoetig. This young lady is probably one of the most Mature insiteful individuals I have ever had the pleasure to listen too and she is what 12. Absolutley amazing. It was not that long ago when I too thought of how "childish" we as adults can be. Instead of just acting as dictators, teachers should be more sensitive to their students and involve them as part of the educational process of learning.

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  123. I loved this video. Learning from my students is definitely something I have done and continue to do. When a new lesson/process/technique is being introduced, I let them know that this is a place to start not end and if they come up with a better way or different way to share it with me and our class. It is always exciting when a student takes this challenge and runs with it.

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  124. Obviously a well spoken young lady. I really believe in developing trust filled relationships with the students. When there is mutual respect between teacher and students, the sky is the limit on both parties' development.

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  125. I agree with her points that higher expectations lead to better results. As teachers, we need to make it a priority to get to know our students better and understand their dreams, thereby helping us to help them. One thing that I would say is that in terms of enpowering student control over classes/classrooms, it would be a mistake to assume levels of motivation comparable to the speakers'. Adult direction is necessary.

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  126. I really enjoyed her ability to clearly express some of the mixed up thinking we all have. The idea of being childish as a bad thing, when children have such amazing qualities. The imagination and "sky's the limit" attitude would be something that many adults would benefit from.

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  127. I agree with Maureen C. about not placing a limit on ideas and creativity. It's not just about bacon glass art. These are the minds that will be designing new medical procedures, alternative fuel sources, and making the "cutting edge" ideas of today seem old fashioned. Thinking outside the box, not just getting the right answer.

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