Listening Session Paintings from The Center School

These are the two paintings that came out of the two groups from The Center School. Both contain wonderful stories. The first I call "Always More", which says it all right there, but notice how the group focused on the middle of the tree, ignoring the roots and the upper portions. Each branch is a branch of opportunity leading to a new learning experience. All of the splatters represent creativity that is raining down on everything. The building signifies the more industrial side of the experience, while the red sun dominates the picture with its vitality and liveliness. The clouds express such feelings as love and that even though things can go wrong their is another always another chance.



The second painting I have dubbed "Eye of the Beholder". It has been designed to represent several stories. Moving vertically from the bottom right, the drawing signifies coming into
the learning experience rather unformed and then as you emerge from it, you explode into the world. The top right stands for no matter what you do, you can always bring creativity into it. The top left has the words live, love and laugh, expressing values the experience would offer as well as a sense of being free. Finally, the eye is the wisdom gained from the experience.

Both are wonderful. Thanks to all of you for participating!

The President's Wishes for his Kids and ours

Even though his inauguration has a few days to go, President-elect Obama published a letter to his daughters in Parade Magazine entitled:

'What I Want for You — and Every Child in America'

By President-elect Barack Obama

Before I comment further, the humorist (and ex-PR guy) in me laughs at the fact that he is so busy the only way to communicate with his daughters is to write them a letter in Parade. Too funny... but it turns out the letter is meant for all of us. And what he wrote is beautiful:

"When I was a young man, I thought life was all about me-about how I'd make my way in the world, become successful, and get the things I want. But then the two of you came into my world with all your curiosity and mischief and those smiles that never fail to fill my heart and light up my day. And suddenly, all my big plans for myself didn't seem so important anymore. I soon found that the greatest joy in my life was the joy I saw in yours. And I realized that my own life wouldn't count for much unless I was able to ensure that you had every opportunity for happiness and fulfillment in yours. In the end, girls, that's why I ran for President: because of what I want for you and for every child in this nation.

I want all our children to go to schools worthy of their potential-schools that challenge them, inspire them, and instill in them a sense of wonder about the world around them...."

This is a beautiful sentiment and a totally worthy objective... he does not say he wants our students to go to schools where they become test literate, but schools that are worthy of young people's potential. He talks about inspiration and wonder. YES! I hope he will really listen to his own heart and call for a reprioritizing of our goals for young people. I hope he will listen to the young people that are his children and their friends and as a father, push to make the schools worthy of their potential.

That would be a beautiful intention. Imagine Learning that is filled with wonder, imagination, creativity, inspiration, excitement, challenge, exploration, and last but not least, compassion and love. I can!

I was in a meeting with the Compassion Action Network in Seattle this week and through our inspired conversation, I began to think about how if we asked the teachers and students whether compassion was built into the very structure -- the objectives, standards, policies and procedures of the school system -- we would hear a resounding "very little, if at all." Yet, it was exciting to think about beginning an effort to design a system where compassion and love were essential in its creation.

It would be a much different world for our children Monday through Friday. Go President Obama!

Center School Listening Session is Wonderful!

Today, we had a really engaging Listening Session in Seattle with 8 students from The Center School. Thanks to principal, Lisa Escobar who totally got what we were doing and did most of the leg work getting it set up. Ankober, Ann, Arielle, Claire, Hong, Isaiah, Lucas, and Riley gave some powerful and insightful answers. It was fun, their concept paintings were cool and I think a good time was had by all.

It takes a lot of courage and faith to walk in to a Listening Session without really knowing what is going to occur, but everyone jumped right in and did a wonderful job. In the next couple of days, I will post photos of the paintings and later, when all of the consent forms are in, photos of the session. WE THANK YOU ALL!!!

2000 Great!

I was musing today about all of the amazing adventures we have had during the past year. It truly was a significant start for Imagine Learning. None of it would have been possible without all of you. From the students at the Academy of Art University who have worked so enthusiastically, to my dearest friends in Seattle who gathered round the table for two days; from all of the Listening Session participants, to many new supporters around the world (especially you Josselyn); from Jean Marie helping shape the entire process and rounding up students all over Marin, to my incessant tweaks, worries and wonderment; and from Stella coming on board and making a huge change for the better to the Listening Session questions and contributing so deeply to the overall conceptual idea, to meeting the most progressive educators in New Zealand, I say thank you!

Thank full, great full to all of you. Have a Happy New Year!

The Center School in Seattle is set for Jan. 13

We are excited that our newest Listening Session is going to take place at the Center School in Seattle on January 13th. This will be our first domestic session outside of the Bay Area! So many thanks to school principal Lisa Escobar for her support and help in making this happen! Seattle here we come!

Is Jakarta Next?

Oh yeah! I just got off the phone with Aleima Soeparto and she has been lining up at least two Listening Sessions in Jakarta for after the first of the year. Thank you Aleima!!!!

For those of you who have not met her, she is a graduate of the Academy of Art and was one of my students. She works now as an account planner in Jakarta. She is an original, pioneering member of the Imagine Learning team.

So we are going to work together to discuss whether we will go there, or she will lead them herself. Aleima is a veteran of Listening Sessions, so she knows how they work. She also could be the first to test the Field Guide. Wow. Awesome. Wonderful!

Love, life and Spirit

Wow, my first blog!!!
This is a learning experience!
Thought for the day: Love life, live each day well and enjoy the Spirit all about us.
Get inspired for a transformative future. A future filled with hope. Have you ever believed enough that our most inspired and well intentioned thoughts/dreams can manifest by simply believing and living the change? We live in a time where more and more are believing in a better future for all life on earth.
Gaike

The Paintings Come Home!

It was a blast figuring out that shipping them home on the plane was so much cheaper (free vs. a couple of hundred bucks) and faster! We went to a "Home Depot" and had it made on the spot. Perfect!!! Welcome home to our first International Paintings. Congratulations New Zealand.

Christchurch Listening Session is Wonderful!

The day before we left the beautiful waka known in English as the South Island, we had the great privilege of meeting with some amazing people and then leading our third Listening Session.

Our meetings and the magic of our visit in Christchurch was all arranged by this fantastic woman, Jocelyn Papprill (left). Through a recommendation, we had met with Jocelyn when we first arrived in Christchurch in late October. She was passionate, smart, connected, dialed in and in all other ways, fantastic! By the time we returned on the 5th, she had arranged several meetings and the Listening Session.

Our first meeting was with Jillian Heald, a Guardian of the Secondary Futures Project. From our meeting we learned that New Zealand has been studying how to change their secondary education for more than six years. The research they had done was creative, inventive and insightful and geared toward the year 2023. Amazing.

Then we met with Gaike Knottenbelt, the Principal of Seven Oaks Education Centre. They are a brand new school that is launching early next year. The school will work with young people to begin with and they hope to expand into secondary education when they can. The cool thing about Seven Oaks is that its core principal is sustainability! The have an amazing amount of land that had been previously used as a garden/horticultural center and so the young people who attend will be out doors most of the day learning about sustainability through experience! Gaike is a passionate, big-hearted, visionary and the kind of person we would all like to have our kids be learning from. We are sending them wonderful energy and hope that their opening is a huge success. You can check out their effort at . I love that -- Journey to Brilliance.

We also met with Vicki Buck, the founder of a new elementary school called Discovery and a new high school called the Unlimited School. Her vision and the high school's scope were really different from most public schools and it felt like being back in the alternative school I taught in many years ago in Richmond, VA called the Open High School. The next day we visited the school and loved it.

That led us into the Listening Session, where we met six fantastic young people: Pip, Morgan, Max, Cobi, Julia, and Holly. We also had a teacher named Lee, a parent/counselor , Glenyse, and Jocelyn participating. Following the last listening session, while we traveled along the roads, Stella and I had created new questions that were more focused on community, physical environment, the individual, education and spirituality, so this group was our first test of the questions. Their answers were amazing! Then they divided up and created two wonderful paintings and concepts. One was our first circular painting! All photos will be posted as soon as we receive the permission forms in the mail! I will get the painting photos up shortly.

We made many good friends and it made our last day in New Zealand awesome!

Imagining Aotearoa!

What a fantastic time we had with Stella and Charlie during their visit with us in Aotearoa-New Zealand. I first met C & S when they arrived in Christchurch late October, and immediately found myself excited and charmed by their passion for learning change.
I offered to try to put together a workshop for young people here in Christchurch for when they returned to our part of the South Island on 5th November .... and it all worked out!

Six young people - all wonderful - came together with 3 adults, and Charlie & Stella, at Tamariki School on Wednesday evening to share ideas, eat pizza and paint their vision of a learning environment that would nurture them. Two lovely paintings came from that evening and lots of aroha (love, connectivity) was woven. We were also able to share the excitment of Obama's victory in the Presidential elections - what wonderful hope for a future that we all can create together ...."YES, WE CAN!!"

All in all I found Wed & Thur to be two days of fire & passion for the mahi (work) of transforming our world toward a better future - one that is peaceful, sustainable and uplifting for all.
Kia kaha, kia manawanui e hoa ma. Be strong, persevere my friends. Return to our shores again soon