Reflection: The Essential Ingredient for Impactful Facilitation and Teaching
Here in Vermont, Spring has finally sprung! The Green Mountains are at their greenest, our daffodils and lilacs are blooming, and my hands have been in the dirt, expanding my veget
Online Variation of Gallery Walk: A Useful Tool for Active Group Reflection and Information Gathering in In-Person, Hybrid, Remote Programming
In past blog posts and in my Inspired Educator, Inspired Learner book I have shared about the value of “Gallery Walk” as an engaging structure for group reflection, inf
Miniature Metaphors/Found Object Reflection
Inspire meaningful reflection and dialogue that goes beyond the traditional sharing circle. Spark reflective writing, exploration of positive character traits, or facilitate strong
Art and Creative Expression in Reflection
Excerpt from Tips & Tools for the Art of Experiential Group Facilitation, Second Edition: There is great power when learners create symbols, music, words or performance to repr
Re-Purposing Rapport Building Activities for Reflection and Review: Handshake Mingle and Concentric Circles
Current brain research supports the experiential education philosophy that educators will increase attention, motivation, and learning outcomes when they weave in opportunities to
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
Start Off With Style: Create a Hook to Engage
Think back to your most memorable learning experiences— the courses, team-building programs, or classes you enjoyed and the facilitators or educators you found most impactful. Ho
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
Tips for Facilitating Meaningful Reflection
These tips will help you create an environment that encourages involvement in meaningful reflection and discussion. • Reflect throughout the experience. Reflection can we wove
Facilitating Reflection: Challenges and Opportunities
Helping facilitators and educators view reflection differently and find ways to make it meaningful and engaging has been a focus of my professional work over the past two decades.
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
Team Tally for Group Building, Reflection, Academic Review, and Data Gathering
This group questionnaire has multiple purposes: rapport building, reflection, data gathering, brainstorming, context setting, and academic or training content review/assessment. T
Best Of Back-to-School and Fall Program Kick-Off Activities and Strategies
It’s that time of year again. The school year is just beginning as is the start of fall programming for educational agencies and training organizations. Here is a collection
Re-Use, Repurpose, Upcycle
Upcycling is also known as creative reuse. With upcycling, an item that is no longer being used for its intended purpose but is repurposed— given a new purpose—and given added
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
Create Multiple Pathways to Learning
The more senses that are used to learn and practice information, the more neural networks are activated and the more ways the brain is able to store and retrieve information. Mult
