Humanities 7 is, by design, a democratic classroom. I provide the overall structure - independent writing, independent reading, and unit work, plus the skill list on which we focus - and they make all the decisions about what they write independently, what they read independently, and what the theme questions and individual (personally chosen) Focus Questions are for each unit.
Intersections: The Roots of Democracy
September
04,
2018
by Bill Ivey
Filed Under: Middle School, Stoneleigh-Burnham Middle School, Democratic classroom, Democracy, Constructivism
2018 Eighth Grade Moving Up Ceremony: Address
May
24,
2018
by Guest Student Author
Written and delivered by Jacqueline (Jax) Morgan '19, the Head-Elect of the Student Body.
Filed Under: Middle School, student voice, Stoneleigh-Burnham Middle School, Moving Up
What a Good Teacher Does
September
07,
2015
by Bill Ivey
Today was our first day of classes, and the beginnings of this year's 2015-2016 Humanities 7 class coming together as a community. As always, we began with Jonathan London's wonderful jazz poem "Hip Cat" with its theme of "Do what you love to do and do it well." These kids, at least some of them, have definitely figured out already that learning is a process, something at which you might steadily improve but also something that involves challenges and roadblocks and stuckness. Equally important, they view that kind of attitude as fundamental to who our school is.
Filed Under: Middle School, social justice, Stoneleigh-Burnham Middle School, Middle Level Education, Education, Democratic classroom
What is the point of an education?
February
20,
2015
by Bill Ivey
My Humanities 7 class is studying education now. We're continuing with Firegirl by Tony Abbott as a read-aloud book, since much of the action takes place in a school, and the students voted for I Am Malala as a group read. As always, they are researching individually chosen questions as they prepare to write essays and make a presentation, and the questions range from comparing and contrasting different groups or systems of schools (public vs. private, U.K. vs. U.S., mixed gender vs. single gender, etc.) to tracing the evolution of education over time to looking at the relative benefits and importance of a spiritual vs. a traditional education, and more.
Filed Under: Middle School, On Education, Girls Schools, Stoneleigh-Burnham Middle School, Middle Level Education, IB School, This We Believe
Ending Well, part 2
November
28,
2014
by Bill Ivey
On the last of classes in the middle school, I made the following post to Facebook:
Filed Under: Teaching, All-Girls, On Education, Beautifully different, Girls Schools, community, All Girls Education, In the Classroom, Stoneleigh-Burnham Middle School, girls' school, Uniquely Stoneleigh-Burnham School, Education
Ending well
November
28,
2014
by Bill Ivey
written Wednesday evening, Nov. 19, 2014, the night before the last day of Fall Trimester classes in the middle school.
Filed Under: School Happenings, community, In the Classroom, Stoneleigh-Burnham Middle School, The Faculty Perspective, Education
At the Heart of It
November
24,
2014
by Bill Ivey
Alfie Kohn is most definitely one of my educational heroes. Controversial as he may be, the controversy often stems from his relentless focus on what research tells us about what is best for students even when it flies in the face of common sense. And anyone who is all about figuring out what is best for students, and who has the courage to follow through on those principles (even if they differ from my own), earns my respect.
Filed Under: Middle School, Teaching, On Education, social justice, alfie kohn, classroom management, community, In the Classroom, Stoneleigh-Burnham Middle School, Education
One Mind at a Time
September
15,
2014
by Bill Ivey
I try to be on the lookout for chances to react to blogs, knowing (as Bill Ferriter has pointed out on more than one occasion) that one of the highest compliments I can pay a blogger is to leave a comment or even write a whole new blog in reaction, thus showing how much of an impression they’ve left on me. So when Brianna Crowley opened one of her blogs at the Center for Teaching Quality with a writing prompt from a 30-day blogging challenge for teachers, the temptation to write my own blog based on the same prompt was strong.
Until I really absorbed the prompt: “Write about one of your biggest accomplishments in your teaching that no one knows about (or may not care).”
Filed Under: Teaching, gender, On Education, social justice, Parenting, gender equity, Girls Schools, On Parenting, Feminism, In the Classroom, Stoneleigh-Burnham Middle School, Education
A very. good. year.
September
08,
2014
by Bill Ivey
It’s already happened. I bumped into a random person, in this case one of my neighbours, who asked about what my students were studying. “They do have a theme question already,” I said. “It’s, ‘Why do people judge other people and themselves?’” After a short pause during which his eyes first widened and then went slightly unfocused while his jaw dropped slightly, he said, “Seventh graders came up with that question?” “Yup,” I responded. His eyes came alive again and his hand went to his chin as he began to see the possibilities in the question, and to talk excitedly about his thoughts.
I love these moments, and I especially love that it happened after only two full days of classes this year. And yet, the second full day was in some ways even more extraordinary than the first.
Filed Under: On Education, social justice, community, In the Classroom, Stoneleigh-Burnham Middle School, Education
Don’t Abolish Middle Schools - Reinvent Them
July
15,
2014
by Bill Ivey
“You clearly have a passion for middle school.” I’ve heard this time and time again, often after one of the Open House presentations we give several times a year. And in point of fact, I do, and have ever since my very first month working with this age group. Their own passion and energy, excitement at discoveries and possibilities, outrage at injustice, and desire to be known and loved and understood endear them to me. And by understanding them and their needs, and learning how best to meet those needs, you can help make middle school an amazing experience. You can’t entirely do away with setbacks and heartaches, of course, because those are a given part of life, and the nature of early adolescence is that such moments loom large. But with proper support, students can learn to work through those moments, and the nature of early adolescence is also that each day is truly a fresh start.
So when a friend of mine on Facebook shared a link to the article “Why Middle School Should Be Abolished” by David C. Banks, it most decidedly caught my attention. My initial reaction was, essentially, “Oh, I don’t think so!” and as I began reading the article, I prepared myself for what our debate teams call “the clash.” It turns out that Mr. Banks begins with a very common misconception, and hopefully clearing that up will start us down the right path.
Filed Under: Middle School, On Education, Stoneleigh-Burnham Middle School, Education
