Join us for news, resources, and events for creative, progressive educators
A world of learning
|
Hello Reader, Announcing Constructing Modern Knowledge Australia!After 15 years in the USA, the Constructing Modern Knowledge 4-day institute is going Downunder for the first time ever this August 12th - 15th. CMK Australia will be hosted by the dynamic Westbourne Grammar School, near Melbourne, Australia. Exciting guest speakers have already been confirmed, and our registration website is being built over the next couple weeks. Save the dates and be on the lookout for the announcement that registration is open. This very special event will be limited to fewer educators than we have been able to accommodate in the USA, so don't miss out! Register for The Language of Computation by February 1st and Save!Our once-in-a-lifetime professional learning event in Reggio Emilia, Italy, April 14-17, 2025 has already attracted educators from 7 nations on 5 continents. Space is limited and registration fees increase on February 1st. The Case for ComputationGary Stager has been slaving over a hot keyboard writing three provocative new essays exploring the relationship between computation, teaching, learning, and the Reggio Emilia Approach®. Read part 2, The Case for Computation today and share it with colleagues. The Latest Book from CMK Press Will Be Announced Next WeekFrom the publishers of Invent To Learn comes a groundbreaking new book setting the standard for learning-by-doing in the years to come. Stay tuned for the exciting announcement in early February! Free white paper - Gamechanging AI Tools for EducatorsGary Stager authored this whitepaper exploring four AI-enhanced software environments and how they may be used within a K–12 educational context by both students and educators. Generative AI tools like ChatGPT are the subject of debate, hype, and hysteria in many schools. Yet this emphasis misses the arrival of AI-enabled “smart” software that allows me and busy educators like yourself to get work done.
Two PD opportunities inspired by CMKOur friend and CMK alum Jeff Ellenbogen shared a fantastic PD workshop opportunity at his school near Boulder, Colorado, next summer June 9-13, 2025. The Dawson MakerEd Jam will be a week of making for experienced Maker educators who are looking for an opportunity to explore and collaborate in a small group setting on projects in their well-equipped Makerspace. Jeff says he is "hoping to recreate some of the serendipity that I felt privileged to experience at CMK by leaving the projects open to the ideas brought forward by the participants." Check out the Dawson MakerEd Jam. Another CMK alum, Ryan Howard of the Xaverian Brothers High School in Westwood,Massachusetts is hosting a conference/workshop inspired by CMK called Xaverian Teacher Learning Institute: Innovative Teaching and Learning with Makerspaces. "Much like CMK, the goal is to get people doing and not listening to workshops/lectures." This is an also a small group experience, and all the facilitators are CMK alums! July 8-11, 2025. Be well! Sylvia Martinez & Gary Stager co-hosts, Constructing Modern Knowledge Institutes The Language of Computation: Constructing Modern Knowledge in Reggio Emilia April 14-17, 2025 Constructing Modern Knowledge Australia: Roots, Worlds, & Microworlds August 12-15. 2025 |
Constructing Modern Knowledge
Join us for news, resources, and events for creative, progressive educators
A lot of people feel tension between exploring AI's creative possibilities and worrying about its environmental cost. One of our newsletter readers wrote to us: One of my biggest struggles is having discussions around the amazing stuff we can create but also talking about how heavy a load this is on the planet. When we present activities like this, I think we also have to be honest about the environmental load. Her concerns are valid. The media has been full of stories about AI using up...
What's Happening in the World of CMK Fresh from working with educators and families in Australia, Gary is back on the road this spring — all roads leading to The Language of Computation – Constructing Modern Knowledge in Reggio Emilia this June. Coming Up A day-long Learning Adventures workshop at the legendary Bank Street School in NYC kicks things off, followed by a keynote at the Consortium on School Networking (CoSN) Conference in Chicago. The Future is Computational – Challenging...
Brett Moller needed tools that didn't exist. So he built them. Australian educator Brett Moller was about to take 35 students on a week-long field trip to Melbourne. He had some thoughts about tools that would make the trip go smoother and might even be a little fun! So Brett — a classroom teacher, not a software developer — designed and built a native iOS staff app, a real-time GPS boundary system, and a live scavenger hunt platform. Thirty-five Year 9 students used them. The tools ran...