Podcast Archives - Page 22 of 25

Jan 30 2018

What the Netherlands Taught Me About Design Thinking

By John Spencer Design Thinking, Podcast No Comments

Last week, I stepped off the train and walked into the bustling streets of Eindhoven. I had never been to the Netherlands, much less Europe, so I became the obnoxious American taking quick snapshots, attempting to soak up the feel of the city. My first…

Jan 20 2018

The Seven Biggest Lies that Keep Teachers from Implementing Project-Based Learning

By John Spencer Creativity, Podcast, Project-Based Learning 6 Comments

We know that kids learn at a deeper level when they do meaningful projects. We've seen how it increases engagement and creates memorable experiences. However, let's be real. Project-Based Learning can feel daunting at first. How do you make it fit within the standards? How do…

Jan 15 2018

How Nature Inspires Better Design (and What This Means for Students)

By John Spencer Design Thinking, Future of Learning, Podcast 4 Comments

We want students to be makers and designers. But there's a surprising source of inspiration for design: the natural world. This is the key idea behind biomimicry, which encourages engineers to pay close attention to nature in order to improve their designs. The following post…

Jan 01 2018

10 Creative Risks to Take with Students This Year

By John Spencer Creativity, Podcast One Comment

My daughter looks up from her cereal and says, "You know what day I can't wait for?" "Um, your birthday?" She shakes her head. "Next Christmas?" She shakes her head again and then says, "The first day back to school. I can't wait to see…

Dec 03 2017

Five Ways to Boost Student Engagement with Flow Theory

By John Spencer Creativity, Podcast 18 Comments

If we want students to develop a maker mindset, we need to empower them to hit a state of creative flow. Flow Theory explains what happens when we hit that place of "optimal experience," where you are fully engaged, present, and focused. The following blog…

Nov 04 2017

What a Trip to China Taught Me About Global Collaboration Projects

By John Spencer Creative Collaboration, Creativity, Podcast One Comment

My Trip to China A few days ago I arrived home after a two-week trip to China. We spent a few days doing things that were unabashedly tourist-related, like going to the Great Wall, visiting the Temple of Heaven, and exploring the Forbidden City in…

Sep 29 2017

We Need to Trust Teachers to Innovate

By John Spencer Innovation, Podcast 18 Comments

If we want to see innovation happening in our schools, we need to trust, encourage, and empower teachers to transform their practice. Too often, teachers are forced to teach inside the box and it can feel frustrating. In this post, I explore why teachers are…

Sep 25 2017

The Roadmap for Collaborative Projects

By John Spencer Creative Collaboration, Design Thinking, Podcast No Comments

Five Really Good Reasons Not to Do Collaborative Projects With Your Students “Group project.” Say those two words and you’ll instantly notice the face of sheer dread as a handful of students calculate just how much extra work they’ll need to do in order to…

Sep 16 2017

Collaborative Projects Can Work in Any Subject

By John Spencer Creative Collaboration, Creativity, Podcast, Project-Based Learning 10 Comments

If we say we want students to become critical thinking life-long learners, we need to provide projects that encourage them to engage in creative collaboration. But what does this look like in each subject area? How do turn this idea into a reality? We'll be…

Aug 26 2017

6 Student-Centered Projects for the First Week of School

By John Spencer Creativity, Empowering Students, Podcast 10 Comments

Don't Wait to Innovate! Teachers often begin the school year with team-building activities or a review of the rules and procedures. But what if we began with student-centered projects? The following is an exploration of six student-centered projects you can launch in your first month…