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"Teaching is an exhausting gig and when teachers take the time to rest during the summer, they able to find a place of renewal and restoration. Research has demonstrated that rest is vital for maintaining our passion and reaching our creative potential. However, it's easy to go through the summer without finding any true restoration. In this article and podcast, we explore what it looks like to make rest a priority in the summer."

"While John Spencer and I were developing the LAUNCH Cycle, we came up with a few areas that were likely stumbling blocks in the creative (design-thinking inspired) process. One of the keys to the Launch Cycle is taking the time to Look, Listen, and Learn throughout the entire process (that is the L in the LAUNCH acronym). In talking with George Couros about the Launch Cycle we had a good conversation about when it was appropriate to share that learning. The quick answer: all the time. From start to finish you can be learning and sharing during the process. Whether it is students doing a Genius Hour Project, teachers creating their own PD, or school leaders implementing an initiative - the key is to be transparent with that learning process."

"Let's just put it out there. December is exhausting for teachers. The days are shorter. The weather grows colder and (at least here in Oregon) wetter. Students are anxious - whether it's a buzzing excitement for vacation or a sense of dread that some kids feel in homes that are unsafe during the holidays. And teachers are tired. They're tired of redirecting behaviors and tired of the mid-year pressure of the test and simply tired of the sheer energy it takes to be a teacher. It's no wonder that so many teachers begin playing holiday movies around this time of year. They want to create a sense of fun and escape and enjoyment, and a motion picture promises exactly that. Maybe that's okay. Maybe that's a part of creating a culture of joy. So, please don't read this post as a slam on teachers showing movies before the break. If this is a part of a positive classroom culture, keep doing it. This isn't meant to be a guilt trip or a rant or a "you're doing this wrong" post. This is meant to be a yes/and post offering other options."

"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 my friends and my teacher. I don't know what projects we're going to do but I know it's going to be awesome." She's right. It will be awesome because her teacher is always trying new projects. She is always taking creative risks and my daughter is excited to be there as a result. It has me thinking of a brilliant blog post that A.J. Juliani wrote last year, imploring teachers to use the new year as a reboot to take new creative risks.So, with that in mind, I'm going to share a few of my own thoughts on creative risks teachers can take with the start of a new year."

"This year has been a marathon for teachers. They've faced constant changes and big challenges at every turn. It's been hard to teach into the abyss of black screens and muted microphones or navigate the hybrid landscape with our attention split between students at home and in person at the same time. Or the challenge of keeping students socially distanced with the constant reminders to keep their masks on. We miss the little things like fist bumps and high fives and the smiles on students' faces when they have that "aha" moment. Teaching has been a marathon. However, at the end of this marathon, there are different levels of tired. Some people are simply exhausted. They have crossed the finish line and they are placing their hands over their head with a mix of gratitude that it's over and a sense of pride over facing a huge challenge. These teachers are worn out and need rest. Other teachers are injured. These teachers have finished the marathon but they're hurting. They have experienced is genuine injustice and it has shaken them to core. Many have faced trauma. These teachers need more than just rest. They need healing. I made this continuum for myself to think through whether I'm tired or actually injured. This isn't scientific or research-based. It's just a tool I made for myself years ago and I thought I'd share it. You can see it in the video below:"

"Although we tend to think of Genius Hour as a process for students, I want to explore how we might use Genius Hour in our own lives as educators as a form of professional development. Here, you might spend hour Genius Hour acquiring a new skill. You might learn a new language or learn how to play a new instrument. Or you might question you have and engage in your own personal Wonder Day project."

"The following are a few of the reasons students might be reluctant to read. It is by no means an exhaustive list. There are some excellent researchers and teachers who have been exploring this topic in-depth. However, I would like to focus on four different trends that I noticed as a middle school teacher and explore of a few ideas for how to address these issues."

"The explosion of generative AI has created significant challenges and sparked new opportunities for our students. So, how do we decide when students should and should not use AI? In this article and podcast, I explore seven key areas you might consider as you craft the policies and design the systems within your school."

"When you hear the word "create" or "make," you might be tempted to think of a tangible, physical product. However, in design thinking, students might design other types of products. So here are some of the types of things students might create."

"Here is a list of my favorite fifty books on creativity. Some of these are more on the pop culture side while others are more academic. Some are books I agree with while others are books that I don't necessarily agree with but still provoked a lot of thought. I hope you find this list helpful."

"When my grandpa died, my grandma told me that she missed the small stuff. She had plenty of photo albums packed full of memories, but what she missed the most was waking up next to him in the morning. I remember visiting her on a hard afternoon. She had accidentally poured two cups of coffee and brought them into the family room and placed one next to his empty chair. She spent the next hour crying. This moment had me rethinking what it means to live an epic life - which is ultimately why I created the following video:"

"A few days ago, I met Manuel Herrera at MORENet. He has an amazing maker space where students engage in creative thinking on a daily basis. It's a bastion of creativity and wonder and his passion for it is contagious. However, as we talked about prototyping and design thinking, he mentioned something surprising. "We have a 3D printer, but only a few students know how to use it for creative purposes. Most students download templates and print things out. There's not much actual creative thought that goes into it." "So, what's the answer?" I asked. "I think they need to start by making things by hand," he said."

"December is one of the most exhausting months of the year for teachers. The days are shorter. The weather grows colder and (at least here in Oregon) wetter. Students are anxious - whether it's a buzzing excitement for vacation or a sense of dread that some kids feel in homes that are unsafe during the holidays. And teachers are tired. They're tired of redirecting behaviors and tired of the mid-year pressure of the test and simply tired of the sheer energy it takes to be a teacher. It's no wonder that so many teachers begin playing holiday movies around this time of year. They want to create a sense of fun and escape and enjoyment, and a motion picture promises exactly that. Maybe that's okay. Maybe that's a part of creating a culture of joy. But for me, movies always fell flat. For my first few years, I showed a movie the day before the winter break. However, within minutes, kids were disengaged. They were passive. It wasn't special. My students could go home and watch a movie whenever they felt like it. It had me wondering . . . was there something that they could do in my class that they couldn't do anywhere else? Was this actually the chance to do something epic and make something memorable?"

"I used to teach a class called photojournalism. I usually referred to it as "digital journalism," because people assumed we were a photography class. Students created videos, podcasts, documentaries, and blogs with the goal of sharing their work with an authentic audience. On the surface, this might not seem all that practical. After all, newspapers are slashing their budgets and laying off staff. Why teach an elective class in a subject that doesn't connect to a decent job market? But here's the thing: whether we feel like it or not, we are all citizen journalists. We are all researchers. We are all sharing information online and publishing it on social media. We are all curating and producing content even if only a fragment of the population creates videos, podcasts, or blog posts. Social media is a fusion of space (social) and publishing (medium). Although it can simply feel like a place to hang out, every social media platform uses elements of traditional media. Just look at the terms: subscribers, news feed, followers, publish."

"It has me thinking about my own experience with creative work. When I first got into drawing, I copied the styles of other artists. When I first got into poetry, I copied the style of my favorite poet. When I first wrote a novel, it was essentially fan fiction -- albeit at a time when no one knew that term. I have noticed similar trends among students. They often go through a phase of copying and mash-ups that occur before creating something truly original. I see this trend in art class, wood shop, in writer's workshops, and in STEM labs. So, this has me thinking about stages that I notice as students move from consumers of media to creators of media. I admit that this is not very scientific. There might be a better model out there that explains this phenomenon. However, here are seven stages I see students go through as they shift from consuming to creating: "

"Here's a sketchy video I created for my technology pedagogy course. I have mixed feelings about SAMR, because it often implies that "lower levels" are not as good when often substitution works well. Royan Lee picked this apart well. I also think there are times when the best option involves avoiding technology. For example, there are times when sketching something by hand teaches observational skills better than using a camera. However, I still see a real benefit in the SAMR model, in terms of thinking about the transformative power of technology."