I was recently given an article called “Four (Secret) Keys to Student Engagement.” I was, of course, excited right away because the title had the words “Secret Keys” and that sounds super cool. Plus, all teachers want to have students who are more engaged so if these authors had the secret keys to pull thatContinue reading “Be More Curious. Take More Risks.”
Author Archives: Nick
Instructional vs. Transformational Leadership
John Hattie points out some key distinctions between Transformational Leadership and Instructional Leadership in education: Transformational leaders lead around a common vision; their focus tends to be on getting teachers and students to buy in and commit to that vision. Once they have the buy in, they turn their attention to creating an environment inContinue reading “Instructional vs. Transformational Leadership”
The End of the Story – Will Ferrell, Jim Stockdale, and Educators
There’s this movie with Will Ferrell, Emma Thompson, and Dustin Hoffman called Stranger than Fiction. Have you seen it? If not, you should watch it; it’s excellent. Will Ferrell is a character in a book that Emma Thompson is writing and there’s this interplay between her story and real life that is creative and thoughtContinue reading “The End of the Story – Will Ferrell, Jim Stockdale, and Educators”
What’s a Growth Mindset?
“If you started at a school where the teachers were not familiar with the concept of a ‘growth mindset’ how would you introduce the concept?” Someone posed this question to group of educators I’m part of. Growth mindset has been a hot topic in education recently. The concept is simple but profound. People with aContinue reading “What’s a Growth Mindset?”
Get Better
According to Steven Covey, the primary thing that separates great leaders from good leaders is simply “being an individual who can be trusted.” After making this claim, Covey lists and explains 13 behaviors that characterize a leader who can be trusted. When I talked through these high trust behaviors with a group of colleagues thisContinue reading “Get Better”
Values and Stories
I recently read an article written by business management guru Patrick Lencioni called “Make Your Values Mean Something.” Lancioni breaks values into 4 distinct categories in order to distinguish “Core Values” from other types of values that might distract an organization if they are wrongly deemed “Core.” “Core values,” he says, “are the deeply ingrainedContinue reading “Values and Stories”
Esther: Who Knows?The Mystery of God
A sermon at Emmaus in the middle of a series on the Old Testament called A Well Worn Path… So this decree is sent out all across the empire. Jews everywhere, including Mordecai, are horrified. And so Mordecai sends word to Esther. Remember Esther is the closest one to the king and she’s secretly Jewish. Continue reading “Esther: Who Knows?The Mystery of God”
Delivered Again
A sermon at Emmaus in the middle of a series on the Old Testament called “A Well Worn Path…” This outcry of Gideon… it’s the outcry of the broken, the unemployed, the lonely, the sick. It’s the outcry of one who has faced rejection after rejection. It’s the outcry of you and me when weContinue reading “Delivered Again”
Ice Cream Before School
It started when I was 4 years old. My parents would take my sister and me out for ice cream the day before school started. We’d go to an ice cream shop called Swanson’s. I’d look over all of the flavors pretending to have a difficult time making a decision (Everyone in my family knewContinue reading “Ice Cream Before School”
Swimmers, you’re being watched
My two oldest kids swim for the Loomis Basin Dolphins. Since I wasn’t a swimmer growing up it has taken me a while to learn the ins and outs of how this whole swim team thing works. It’s a whole different culture with its own unique language and norms. This year though. I’m fully in. Continue reading “Swimmers, you’re being watched”
Mr. Zerwas Teaches Here 