#InnovatorsMindset Instagram Book Study

Instagram is one of the biggest social networks in the world, and it’s visual component make it a platform that many people are interested in using.  As I have used it for most personal reasons, I wanted to see if it would be an excellent place to further my own learning and network with others.  This gave me the idea of doing a book study on my book, “The Innovator’s Mindset,” starting July 2 and going until July 18.

The goal is to go through a chapter a day and share learning through some visual medium.  Each day I will try to post at least a one minute video on a critical thought or reading from each chapter in order and will pose a question that you can either answer in the comments on my post, or on your post.

Each day of the book study (or as you see fit), participants will be asked to share a reflection in some form on what they have read. It can be a video that they talk or share something, a visual they create, or whatever you can think of that can be represented through Instagram like a “Booksnap” (information on that from Tara Martin here).

There are many ways you can share your learning through Instagram, so please do not limit it to my suggestions.

Each day of the book study, I encourage participants to do the following.

1. Share your post to the hashtag #InnovatorsMindset and the applicable chapter reading.  For each chapter, the second hashtag will be the following:

   Intro – #InnovatorsMindsetIntro
   Chapter 1 – #InnovatorsMindsetCH1
   Chapter 2 – #InnovatorsMindsetCH2
   Chapter 3 – #InnovatorsMindsetCH3

   (Continued for all 14 chapters)

   Each post should have #InnovatorsMindset AND the appropriate chapter hashtag. You can share any other hashtags that you see fit for the process as well.

2. Tag me (@gcouros) on the post on Instagram.  I will do my best to see as many as possible and comment.  You are more than welcome to follow me on Instagram as well, but my account is open, so you do not necessarily have to do so.
3. Write as much as little or as much as you want in the subject line on your reflection.
4. Feel free to use the story feature to share your learning as well.

*Please note that if your account is private only people that follow you will be able to see what you share.

This process is new to me as well, but I want to try something different to see how this impacts my learning and ultimately, what doors does this open for learning in the classroom.  Bear with me as I learn through the process as well.

The dates for the reading are the following:

Date	Chapter
July 2, 2018	Introduction
July 3, 2018	Chapter 1
July 4, 2018	Chapter 2
July 5, 2018	Chapter 3
July 6, 2018	Chapter 4
July 7, 2018	Chapter 5
July 8, 2018	Chapter 6
July 9, 2018	Chapter 7
July 10, 2018	Chapter 8
July 11, 2018	Chapter 9
July 12, 2018	Chapter 10
July 13, 2018	Chapter 11
July 14, 2018	Chapter 12
July 15, 2018	Chapter 13
July 16, 2018	Chapter 14

If you are interested in joining, I encourage you to purchase the book if you do not already have it.  That being said, if you do not have the book, you are more than welcome to join in any way you see fit.  As well, please sign up here:

Thank you for your interest in this process.  I am not sure how it will work, but I am looking forward to giving it a try and seeing how it can be modified for future use in schools.

A little reminder from the book…

• July 8, 2016 Curious about…?
• September 29, 2015 One School’s Impossible, Is Another School’s Norm
• November 10, 2015 5 Ways to Lay the Foundation for Innovation #InnovatorsMindset
• November 3, 2017 3 Images to Further the #InnovatorsMindset
• August 22, 2017 Using Technology Doesn’t Make You Innovative

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The importance of planning as a leader… & tips to do it well! #erincondren

Confession: My husband doesn’t buy me flowers. He buys me stationary supplies. As techy as I try to be, I can’t not have a paper/pencil planner. I have tried a variety of digital tools (google calendar, todoist, evernote). I have tried to quit cold turkey and only use my Outlook calendar so I can use my phone. […]

The post The importance of planning as a leader… & tips to do it well! #erincondren appeared first on Technically Yours Teamann.

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Banana Cream Pie Fluff

Banana Cream Pie Fluff is a new twist on a Southern classic. It’s wonderful for potlucks and picnics, and way easier than pie!

This recipe is sponsored by Campfire® Marshmallows, but all thoughts are my own. Thank you for continuing to support the brands that make My Baking Addiction possible.

I am not from the South. I hope this is clear in how much I talk about Ohio, and Ohio’s weather. That said, my best friend IS from the South, and talks about Southern food a LOT.

I’ve learned my way around some of the best Southern foods there are, from fried chicken and mac n’ cheese to – you guessed it – Banana Cream Pie.

There may be some argument as to whether or not this famous dessert is Southern, but that’s how I think of it. I definitely saw it on more than a few menus when I was in Austin last year, and I rarely see it up here.

(more…)

The post Banana Cream Pie Fluff appeared first on My Baking Addiction.

        

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PMP:116 The Starbucks Story – Three Lessons for School Leaders

Recently, Howard Schultz, the owner and CEO of Starbucks announced he will be retiring as CEO of the company. This news comes after several years of stunning success for a company whose stock price rose from $7 a share during the recession to $56 a share this past week. As a part of my commute, […]

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The High Tide Club by Mary Kay Andrews

It's been a long time since I've read a Mary Kay Andrews novel, and I'm happy to report her latest, The High Tide Club was just as entertaining as her previous novels. 

Set on an island off the coast of Georgia, The High Tide Club centers around Josephine Bettendorf Warrick, a 99 year old woman who is dying of cancer, and wants to make amends with friends before she dies. Brooke Trappnell, a young lawyer in the small town St. Anne, is called in to help Josephine with her requests. Living in a crumbling pink mansion on the island of Talisa, Josephine wants to reconnect with the ladies of the High Tide Club: Ruth, Varina, and Millie. Unfortunately, only Varina still lives, but she's a fragile 91 year old. Brooke quickly realizes there's more to Josephine's story--she's quite the sassy, bossy, and tough lady, even in her last days. 

Woven throughout the contemporary plot is the story of the High Tide Club, and a momentous evening in 1941, as Millie's engagement party takes place at Shellhaven, the Bettendorf mansion on Talisa Island. Engaged to a cruel man in order to provide for her mother, Millie is miserable, and the night of her party is a turning point for not only her, but all the girls. Russell Strickland, Millie's finance, is missing the next morning. What happened to him, and what do the friends know? How is Brooke connected to Talisa Island, and Josephine's family? Who will inherit the house and island after Josephine dies? 

I very happily settled into this novel. There were a few little twists that I wasn't expecting, and I was disappointed in the weak storyline regarding Henry, Brooke's three year old son. Brooke's reconnection with Henry's father seemed like an afterthought, and could have used more attention in the novel. But overall, I loved the characters, the plot, and the setting. A satisfying read all around. It's got me itching to read more of Mary Kay Andrews' backlist. I've missed a few over the years. 

Rating:  4/6 for an enjoyable summer read about the power of friendship, the power of money, family, and some good old scandals. Friendships between women old and young; friendships that span decades and some that are new,  built from shared experiences and connections. Pack your beach bag with this novel!

Available in hardcover, audio, and ebook.  

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“We can’t ask teachers to be innovative in their practice while administrators do the same thing they have always done.”

“I am not a teacher but an awakener.” —Robert Frost

I tweeted this recently about the ideas of engagement and empowerment. 

Engagement is more about what you can do for your students. Empowerment is about helping them figuring out what they can do for themselves. #InnovatorsMindset

— George Couros (@gcouros) June 8, 2018

Some things that I have been thinking about the idea of empowerment lately.

1. How close do we see “engagement” and “entertaining” in education?  I have read books that closely link the two ideas, but long-term, what does this do for our students?  Do they learn to need someone else to make learning interesting for them, or do we have students figuring out how to learn in deep and meaningful ways on their own?
2. Are schools asking teachers to “empower” students while micromanaging what teachers do in classrooms?  I am seeing the word “empower” often in school vision and mission statements now, but also see a lot of teachers who feel that at the end of the day, their hands are tied in what they are genuinely able to do.  Is that perception or reality?
3. Being “empowered” doesn’t mean that all learning is fun and exciting through the process.  But if a student has that agency over their learning, are they more willing to work through the dull spots to get to the depth?  I know that when I have more ownership over the direction I want to go, I feel more willing to work through the hard stuff.  Does that apply to our learners as well?
4. It is not “engagement vs. empowerment.”  The easiest way I can put this is that if a student is engaged, they are not necessarily empowered, but if they are empowered, they are definitely engaged.
5. If we really want to move ahead in education, teachers and students will need more ownership over their learning. I believe that this can be done within the constraints of our current system, but it will take school and organizational leadership to be innovative in their processes as well.  We can’t ask teachers to be innovative in their practice while administrators do the same thing they have always done.  I have noticed that the schools where teachers are doing incredible things have leadership that innovates inside the box. They do not just encourage different thinking and action, but they model it through their own process in supporting teachers within the constraints of the system.

I am not sure if any of these thoughts make sense, but these are just things I am thinking.  To me, part of the idea of empowerment is feeling comfortable with wrestling with ideas and thoughts on things that you are passionate about, instead of pretending we know it all.  Answers to complex ideas are rarely black and white but lie somewhere in the grey. The more we encourage learners to wrestle with these ideas, the more we move forward as learning organizations.

• May 11, 2016 The Timespan and Impact of Empowerment
• August 9, 2013 This I Believe
• May 22, 2018 3 Reminders For the End of the School Year
• January 23, 2018 “Passive Learner” to “Active Creator”
• September 8, 2016 The #InnovatorsMindset MOOC Starting Soon! #IMMOOC

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Not a Sound by Heather Gudenkauf

In my quest to read more books off my shelves at home, I pulled Not a Sound off a shelf the other day. I have met Heather Gudenkauf at a few book signings at my local B&N (she's an Iowa author) and I've read a few of her novels. They're all set in Iowa, and are thrillers. I have to say this is by far my favorite, and in my opinion, her best yet. She definitely stepped it up.

Quick synopsis: Amelia Winn was a victim of a hit and run which left her profoundly deaf.  It also cost her a career as an emergency room nurse; she became an alcoholic to cope with it all and lost her marriage as a result. Still married, but separated from her doctor husband and step-daughter, Amelia is sober and living in a cabin in the woods. She has learned to lip read and has learned sign language, but is still coping with her deafness and living with her service dog, Stitch. She spends a lot of time kayaking, paddle boarding, and running. One morning she's out paddle boarding, enjoying the peace. She stumbles upon a body in the water. Horrified, she recognizes the body as a fellow nurse that she worked with at the hospital. Amelia's childhood friend Jake, a local detective, arrives at the scene and comforts Amelia. He's the one who took her to AA and taught her sign language, and their friendship is what has kept Amelia sober and straight for the past few years.  

Amelia gets deeply involved in the murder of her friend Gwen, and is determined to figure out why she was murdered and who did it. Amelia's new job, working part time scanning patient files at a prominent oncologist's office leads to clues that something big is going on, if only Amelia can piece it all together. 

Wow. I was sucked into this novel very quickly. Amelia is such a strong character. The author's descriptions of Amelia's world of silence are so well written, you get a very good sense of what it is like to live with no sound all. How isolating it can be, how frustrating it can be. I can't imagine suddenly losing my hearing; how do you cope with that? How do you grieve that loss? One day you're a professional nurse, doing good work, living a happy life; the next you're profoundly deaf and have lost your career and life has changed completely. How do you rebuild your life? Just goes to show the kind of character Amelia is-she's human, and has her weaknesses, but she is one tough woman. 

I thought the mystery was fantastic, and how Amelia figured it out was through hard work and paying attention with all of her other senses. The last fifty pages were a thrill, and I was on the edge of my seat. Amelia is the first deaf main character I've encountered in a novel, and she is pretty impressive. 

If you like Jodi Picoult, I would recommend Heather Gudenkauf. She centers her novels around contemporary issues that are making headlines; one of her strengths is her ability to write about these issues in a small town setting--people face crime, ethical issues, and family issues in every walk of life. Her novels are a quick read and hard to put down. 

Rating:  5/6 for one of the most compelling characters I've come across in a long time. Gudenkauf's heroine is likeable, strong, and introduced me to a world of silence. Great plot, action, and really hard to put down. 

Available in paperback and ebook. 




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