Whatisschool November 20, 2014

Being #whatisschool tonight, talking about writing and communication, which I am so passionate about, has been nothing short of amazing.  For me art, film, writing-both fiction and non-fiction for print and TV, has been a lifelong journey I have now passed on to my kids. It has made them richer, multi-dimensional thinkers, creators and doers.  In this incredible age of technology and communication it is exciting, heart quickening, to guide children into the realm of communication and let them go, watch them soar.  As teachers you have the power to do this. You also have the power to extinguish their enthusiasm, a flicker of light fading out in the night. Be passionate, be bold, take risks! You have nothing to lose and everything to gain…so do your students.  Archives are posted below. -Laura

Author Laura Hill presenting with her daughters

How does Good Writing Create Powerful Communication?

#Whatisschool Thursday, November 20, 2014 6PM EST

Last week we talked about the changing nature of communication and the impact it has on student's ability to succeed.  This week #whatisschool takes a deeper look into the mechanics of writing, the basis for all communication.  So what is good writing, how does it affect communication and how can we foster a passion for visionary communicating in students?  

As an author who also writes with children this topic holds a dear place in my heart.  In my work, which spans 15 years of television and documentary production and five years of literary work, I have never found anything that is singularly more powerful, or misleading, than words.  Nations stand or fall, relations start or end, great ideas are created or extinguished like a spark in the night, all by words. I have written many articles on the topic of writing with children,  Living A PBL Life, Breaking The Mold, Flipped Writing, Why Shared Experience Is Crucial To Creative Writing, Real Life Experience, Making Dream Come True and created a web site dedicated to the Great Story World Mix-Up books my daughters and I have written. Please join me this week and invite your colleagues and students to this very special #whatisschool.      –Laura

 

Author Laura Hill presenting Secret Writing

#Whatisschool Thursday, November 20, 2014 6PM EST

1) What is the most important aspect of good communication, content or proficiency?

2) Can you strengthen student communication and writing skills by creating shared experience?

3) What methods can you employ to increase the impact of student communication and writing?

4) Beyond the written word, what forms of communication have students found most effective and engaging?

5) How can visual and audial technology or methodology increase the power of student communication?

6) How do you see students communicating in the future? What's the most important skill you can teach them? 

#whatisschool is an international twitter forum co-founded by author, speaker Laura Hill and tech teacher Craig Kemp that attracts thousands of educators who come together to re-imagine school in order to give students the skills they need to be leaders, inventors and creators in a global digital/communication economy.  Join us every Thursday night at 7PM EST, questions and archives of each week's chat are posted below.  To bring  #whatisschool to your school email Laura Hill or contact me on twitter @candylandcaper.  I hope you join us! -Laura

A Special Thank You 

I wanted to send a thank you, to all the educators who make #whatisschool an amazing forum and to those celebrating Thanksgiving this Thursday, I'd like to take a moment to reflect on all the good that we have done.  You and I are on the forefront of leadership exhibiting the willingness to explore, change and create; skills we want our students to embrace as they go into the world. For myself, this has been an extraordinary year in which I find myself busier than ever but even more importantly, I find myself evolving in thought and action.  Make a pledge to yourself this Thanksgiving to say Thank You to all the people who have made this year extraordinary and if nothing extraordinary has happened yet, be the agent of change!  Don't worry about the nay-sayers and the blatant self promoters.  Make a promise to yourself that 2015 will not be filled with the same reasons, or excuses, for not making a difference however big or small in your world.  Do it for yourself, do it for your students. Thank you for all your support and amazing input, you are each and every one a gold star -Laura

Happy Thanksgiving!

Related Reading: Are You A School Reformer?

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