I’m in awe of the body’s ability to heal itself. Have you ever cut or scratched yourself and marvelled at how the skin knits back together? It’s like magic. Did you know that if you break a bone, the body immediately starts producing new cells to heal the damage? I’ve listened to an Aboriginal elder […]

Project-based learning through Genius Hour provides a structure to help students succeed. There are three main components to Genius Hour. Research: Students must research something. Students cannot spend time going over the information they already know. The key is learning and as a bi-product of this, learning and refining research skills. Create: Students have to […]

Motivation isn’t something you can have permanently. It’s something you have to keep working at and a big part of this is believing in your own ability. Creating success over and over again can be as simple as following the four areas of the success cycle. Belief Your beliefs are a combination of your experiences […]

As children start going back to physical school from lockdowns, they may be anxious, overwhelmed or elated to be back and with their friends. I was recently chatting with a teacher, who had not considered some of the reactions from students which has prompted me to write this quick piece and share my personal experience. […]

Do you have a learning culture in your classroom and school? This might seem to be a pointless question, schools are for learning. That’s what students go there for. Learning is what happens in a school. Isn’t it? Ponder this: Do your students arrive to class learning ready? Do they have note-taking tools ready? Are […]

Picture this. It is a stunning day with wall to wall sunshine and I’m at a resort on the coast of Australia. To escape the heat, I decided to go for a bushwalk. I briskly follow the undulating and winding path as I took in the scenery and listened to the bird calls. As I […]

Maya Angelou said, “Do the best you can until you know better. Then when you know better, do better.” Anyone growing up in the eighties (and beyond) will have grown up in the self-esteem era. In the 1980s, psychologists showed that high self-esteem equated to high grades at school and students with lower self-esteem tended […]

“The senses, being the explorers of the world, open the way to knowledge.” Maria Montessori A necessary disposition for students to develop is to gather information through the senses. The senses collect information about the world and send it to the brain, and the brain uses this information to make sense of the world. Sensory […]

Ahhhhh – sleep – something so many people desire more of or an improved quality nights rest. All over the western world, people are suffering from chronic sleep deficiency. In terms of brain function and productivity sleep is really important. A lack of quality sleep lowers a person’s focus, impedes decision making and increases mood […]

“Watch your thoughts, they become your words; watch your words, they become your actions; watch your actions, they become your habits; watch your habits, they become your character; watch your character, it becomes your destiny.” Lao Tzu I love questions that send my thinking in circles. One such dilemma is the question: Which happens first […]