Dear Teacher: Where are the block buildings and the dress-up clothes? I’m only five years old!

May 5, 2014Home21st century skills, block building, dress-up, importance of play, innovate, outside play, pretend play, silk scarves, Tony Wagner, Waldorf

By Kathreen Harrison

Tony Wagner, noted pundit on school transformation, writes: “Research shows that human beings are born with an innate desire to explore, experiment, and imagine new possibilities – in a word, to innovate. How do children learn such skills? In a word – play.” Why then when I enter kindergarten classrooms these days are there no building […]

21st Century Skills at Risk

August 2, 2013Home21st century skills, Canada, China, creative thinking, education, Finland, importance of play, Kindergarten, school change, school reform, school report cards, standardized testing, Valerie Strauss, Washington Post

By Kathreen Harrison

What should schools be teaching? What is fundamental to the skill set of an educated person? According to the Framework for 21st Century Learning, created by The Partnership for 21st Century Skills with the encouragement of the U.S. Department of Education, among skills at the center of the curriculum should be : Critical thinking. Communication. Collaboration. Creativity. I think […]

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Dear Teacher: Where are the block buildings and the dress-up clothes? I’m only five years old!

21st Century Skills at Risk

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