LATEST ARTICLES
British teachers’ interest in aha! Process culminates in U.S. visit
Last month I shared with you that aha! Process would be hosting a group of educators from the United Kingdom, specifically Reading, England, [...]
Why Don’t They Just Get a Job? Chronicles Cincinnati Works’ success
Soon to be released is Why Don’t They Just Get a Job? by Liane Phillips and Echo M. Garrett. Liane and her husband Dave have provided a self [...]
Data analysis vs. quality instruction
Data analysis has become a hot-button issue in public education since the advent of No Child Left Behind and standardized testing. Schools a [...]
Across the Atlantic
Over the past several months, I have been working with contacts from the United Kingdom to host a group of teachers who have been selected t [...]
Brain research: Why mental models are crucial teaching tools
I almost always experience aha! moments when I hear Ruby Payne speak, and one of her comments at the Bridges National Conference in October [...]
The c in December sounds like scissors slicing
Last week Patti, a kindergarten teacher in the Menominee Indian School District, made my day by sharing a recent occurrence in her classroom [...]
Bridges team in Dubuque, Iowa does great work
To see what the Bridges team in Dubuque, Iowa is doing, read the premier edition of their newsletter, available here. Those of you who atten [...]
Ruby Payne Lesson Design for Teacher Training Candidates
A college in California is developing a Center for Teaching Excellence that will feature a teacher training and professional development pro [...]
Ruby Payne opens Summit with Keynote on Equity and Achievement for All
Ruby Payne opened up the second URL Summit with a key note entitled Practical Steps Toward Equity and Achievement for All. Some of her keyp [...]
The Under-Resourced Learners Summit Opening Session
Ruby Payne opened the summit with a thought leader session on equity and student achievement in which she touched on the current research on [...]
A rant free zone: community conversations that lead to direct action
Communities that use Bridges concepts to address poverty have a way of talking about poverty and prosperity that leads to direct action. The [...]
College Retention: Your Input Requested
I always enjoyed the beginning of each education year. New kids, new classes, and new adventures. Another school year is upon us, and we sti [...]
New students in a new economy: How to identify disengagement by building mutual respect
As most students have headed back to the classroom or soon will be arriving, I am wondering how much has changed over the summer for many of [...]
How to engage employers in a Bridges Initiative
This is a story about the business sector buying into Bridges and employing Getting Ahead in a Just-Gettin’-by World graduates. On June 9, 2 [...]
The need for mental models when teaching
I recently read the book Thought and Language by Lev S. Vygotsky and Alex Kozulin. The section about writing illuminates the need for using [...]
How to assess the progress being made by your Bridges Initiative
The Boulder County Bridges Initiative in Colorado has a lot going for it: solid leadership and funding, an engaged community, and a professi [...]
As the School Year Begins, Observe the Hidden Rules of Your New Students
Each year before school started I often spent two or three weeks making sure my classroom was "perfect" before my students arrived. I would [...]
Bridges Steering Committees in 26 Communities – a List
The first community to develop a Bridges Steering Committee was Springfield, Ohio. The actions that group took to address predatory practic [...]
How does your brain learn?
I recently read a book called How the Brain Learns (second edition) by David Sousa and was immediately struck by how the major key points of [...]
Ohio secretary of state launches Better Lives, Better Ohio social health index
On July 8, 2009, Ohio Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner launched Better Lives, Better Ohio, a social health index. Ohio is one of a very f [...]
Choosing Literature to Excite Under-Resourced Learners
As a teacher I have struggled to find literature to share with my students that is academically challenging, relevant, and engaging. This is [...]
Bullying may mask other issues
Bullying behaviors are learned from educators, parents, and the media. I would ask that school personnel examine their own behaviors. Bullyi [...]
Ruby Payne visits Menominee Indian Nation
Last week I had the privilege of visiting the Menominee Indian Nation with Dr. Ruby Payne. Many of you know that aha! Process has been worki [...]
Negotiating change
A colleague (call him William) shared with me all of the resources he brought to the Individual Education Plan (IEP) meeting for his son at [...]
Tucker Signs go to high school
What do high school students think about Tucker Signing Strategies for Reading? Eighth-, ninth-, and eleventh-graders (names withheld) in a [...]