Summer of Learning - Part Four

Forms and Formats of 
Self-Directed Learning


It has been a busy summer so far, and I am feeling so inspired by the last few months of professional development and collaboration with colleagues. I marvel at the variety of formats in which I learned. Years ago, our professional development was a sit-and-get format but when we take an active role in our own learning we find that learning adventures come in many forms.






CarPD

When you drive to conferences it's always nice to car 

pool with others. I was able to spend my four hour drive to Michigan and my two hour to Covington, Kentucky with colleagues. Our conversations were rich with ideas about school, children, learning, teaching and leading. Although we often talked about family and summer vacations, we always came back to those conversations that make us better learners, teachers and leaders.

Thanks to Karen Terlecky, Cathy Mere, Julie Johnson and Franki Sibberson for some great CarPD.


Reading Children's Literature (Middle Grade and Young Adult)

While I read a few adult novels this summer, I spent most of my days reading middle grade and young adult novels. I could not be bothered by cooking or cleaning when I was in the middle of reading some of the best books I have ever read. Here's my list of summer reads so far:

Pax by Sara Pennypacker
Raymie Nightengale by Kate DiCamillo
Everything Everything by Nicola Yoon
The Land of Forgotten Girls by Erin Etrada Kelly
Between Shades of Gray by Ruta Sepetys
The Serpent King by Jeff Zentner
Maybe a Fox by Kathi Appelt
The Firefly Code by Megan Frazer Blakemore
Hour of Bees by Lindsay Eagar

Even though folks would always see me with my nose in a book, my stack of children's novels seems to have grown rather than shrunk. I am in a happy place when I read these superbly written books.