October Newsletter: Re-Imagining Meaningful Engagement, Social and Emotional Learning and Community Building
When my travels to facilitate professional development came to an abrupt halt in March, I couldn’t imagine how I would bring my experiential facilitation, teaching, social an
Creating Meaning With Metaphor
Excerpt from Tips & Tools for the Art of Experiential Group Facilitation. Since the beginning of civilization, humans have expressed themselves through symbols. Symbols, images
The Language We Use in Facilitation and Teaching: Reflection vs. Debriefing
There’s all the difference in the world between having something to say, and having to say something. —John Dewey My March of 2013 blog post “The Language We Use in
Know the Why Behind What You Do
Take time to study the theory and science behind what you do. Regularly reflect upon and intentionally observe what works in your groups, and consciously develop your philosophy of
Sequencing Reflection and Processing in the Middle of the Experience
Effective facilitators put a lot of thought into sequencing their programs so that lessons and activities build upon the previous ones. They start with less intimidating methods to
Meaningful Reflection Brings Learning to Life
Reflection brings learning to life. It is the essential ingredient in education, training, therapy, and team-building, that promotes growth and change in learners. It is the cata
Object and No Prop Pair Share Activities to Set the Tone, Build Community, and Initiate Reflective Discussions:
August is a month of new beginnings for educators and group facilitators. These last weeks of summer are filled with back to school meetings, training, student community building,
Choice, Control, and Ownership in Learning and Group Experiences
When people feel like they own their learning experience and have a sense of control and ownership from the start, buy-in, and participation increases. Simple but intentional actio
Showing Appreciation and Celebrating Success
This time of year as I work with school programs to wrap up the year and facilitate final faculty professional development days, the idea of celebrating success and honoring the co
Tips & Tools for the Art of Experiential Group Facilitation
Almost ten years ago, out of the desire to share my passion for experiential education and the art and science of group facilitation, I completed the first edition of Tips & To
The Reflective Educator/Facilitator Part Two: Meaningful Self-Reflection and Record-Keeping to Improve Your Practice
Last week’s post, “Embracing the Quiet and Taking Time to Reflect,” focused on the importance of prioritizing time for self-reflection to improve your practice
Embracing the Quiet and Taking Time to Reflect
In honor of the start of the new year I am re-posting this series of articles from the Inspired Educator Blog Archives on the importance of practitioner reflection. From the Archiv
Key Ingredients for Optimal Group Building Experiences
In past articles, I have compared group facilitation to cooking. As in cooking, group facilitation allows for a great deal of room for adaptation, experimentation and adjustment of
Differentiated Instruction: Don’t Dismiss It!
Wood N Barnes Publishing Co. is continuing to share excerpts from my new book: Inspired Educator, Inspired Learner: Experiential, Brain-Based Activities and Strategies to Engage, M
New Book! Inspired Educator, Inspired Learner
Inspired Educator Inspired Learner: Experiential, Brain-Based Activities and Strategies to Engage, Motivate, Build Community, and Create Lasting Lessons I am thrilled to announce t
Cultivating Creativity
Excerpt from the new book: Inspired Educator, Inspired Learner Play Dough Pictionary is one of my favorite community building and academic review activities. One of the reas
Bag of Nouns Activity for Review, Reinforcement of Content, Formative Assessment, and Fun!
Many of the inspired educators that I work with have shared variations of this playful party game for active review and formative assessment in the classroom or training sessions.
Choice, Control, and a Sense of Ownership
One of the tenets of experiential education is that people learn best when they perceive a sense of control, and have choice and ownership in their learning experiences. Think abou
