Making Thinking Visible at Saint David's

Making thinking more visible to promote increased engagement, understanding, and independence in our boys' learning has been a focus of the curriculum this year.

Last week, small groups of Saint David's faculty members met with leading neural development and learning specialist Mark Church for follow-up workshops on strategies they are implementing in their classes to make their students' thinking more visible.

Mark, author of "Making Thinking Visible," and part of the team at Harvard University's Project Zero, began working with Saint David's a year ago and has made periodic visits to the school throughout the year.

During last week's session, he led the faculty members in discussion and analysis of their use of various routines that help boys to develop thinking habits, to be "reasoners with evidence" and "connection makers," rather than information absorbers.

These range from simply changing the question "Why,"to "What made you say that?" when seeking to reveal a boy's reasoning about a topic, to having the boys document their thinking in a visual manner.

It is essential for true scholars to go beyond acquisition of knowledge to experience more generative learning that leads to development of new ideas and solutions to novel problems.

As a school, we implement many ways for our boys to engage in deeper level thinking, whether in the classroom, the science lab, through our several learning partnerships with prestigious educational, cultural, and scientific organizations, or on the many class field experiences the boys partake of during the year.

The art, craft, and science of teaching is a principal focus of our professional development at Saint David's.

Comments

NE Patriot Tom Brady at Saint David’s

Last night, Saint David’s was honored to have one of the greatest quarterbacks of all time, four time Superbowl champion and three-time MVP winner Tom Brady, as the guest speaker for our Alumni Parents Council Lecture Series. Tom, who is the father of one of our Saint David's boys, addressed a standing-room-only audience in Hyman Hall comprised of our eighth graders, alumni, alumni parents and faculty. Friendly, introspective, witty, and wise, he directed his talk to the delighted eighth graders in the front of the room, and focused on the topic of leadership. “You are the young men and leaders of Saint David’s,” he noted. Tom debunked the perception that leaders are born not made, and credited his leadership abilities to “standing up to and facing fears” and to “cultivating a mental strength,” which he cited as “more important than being physically strong.” He also stressed the importance of working hard, honoring teamwork, believing in oneself and being a good lis

Digital Universe Unit With AMNH-Hayden Planetarium Kicks Off

The second year of our unique partnership with the American Museum of Natural History-Hayden Planetarium kicked off on Friday when the sixth grade had their first session of the Digital Universe unit. The session included a private viewing at the planetarium in which boys were able to explore the entire universe. They and their teachers were invited to view the show from the vantage point of the floor in the center of the round theater, staring up into the apex of the dome. What an amazing perspective! Museum educator and astro-visualization expert Nathan Belomy took the boys on a tour of the observable universe, allowing them to get a feel for the scale of distance and size in the universe. In a fun activity related to scale, the boys set down a volleyball (representing the sun) at 79th Street, and walked for blocks down Columbus avenue with the planets in our solar system represented by a variety of smaller objects – a cupcake sprinkle, a marble – predicting and then measu

"Lord of the Flies" Survival Game

Seventh graders are immersed in an "island survival" adventure related to their study of William Golding's 1954 classic Lord of the Flies . The novel tells the story of a group of school-age boys marooned on an uninhabited island, where they struggle to survive without a government or rules. In this creative, unique activity that spans 10 class sessions, our boys are assigned to belong to one of two "tribes." Using knowledge gained from history classes in the fall, they first determine what type of government system to adopt. During the simulations, they strategize methods to overcome obstacles and acquire resources such as wood, food, shelter, and water. The simulation requires the boys to negotiate, debate, and reflect critically on their decisions as they face challenges to their survival. In journals, they regularly write about their thinking, their decisions and consequences. Writing skills are further developed and honed. In addition to analy

Headmaster's Blog

Search This Blog