Bank Street: The Alumni Blog

Watching Teachers Work

Bank Street Alumni Blog — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 19:40:50 +0000

Yesterday the New America Foundation event in Washington DC marked the official release of Watching Teachers Work, co-authored by alum Susan Ochshorn’99 with Lisa Guernsey. This work highlights the use of observation tools in assessing teacher quality.

You can access the video here: http://newamerica.net/events/2012/watching_teachers_work.

Bank Street is front-and-center in Susan’s portion of the presentation, which features alumna Amy Dombro, remotely, in a terrific Skyped video, and the TuTu and Me preschool program in Hawaii, which used Toni Porter’s (Institute for the Child Care Continuum) Child Care Assessment Tool for Relatives (CCAT-R).

This is an especially hot policy issue right now—not only for early childhood but for teachers across the K-12 spectrum. In fact, “An End to the Teacher Wars,” an op-ed that Susan wrote with her co-author Lisa Guernsey, based on their work, is slated for this weekend’s Sunday opinion pages of the LA Times.

Trust Your Intuition

Bank Street Alumni Blog — Fri, 13 Jan 2012 20:18:21 +0000

By Bank Street alumna, author Jane Bernard

When it counts, people trust their senses and use their intuition. Just ask any policeman, fireman, doctor or member of the armed forces. They trust their intuition to keep clear about what really matters. When it comes to intuition, everyone has it. Intuition is an inner guidance system you’re born with. It’s a focusing, balancing and awareness lens.

Getting my masters degree in Special Education at Bank Street opened an awareness of my senses. Because I worked and played with and autistic, minimal brain damaged and emotionally challenged students, I had to learn to see, hear and touch differently. This sensitively snowballed through my life opening doors to my intuition. It has turned into books, programs and continued opportunities through media to share the delight and advantages of thinking with your senses. Your senses are the way of keeping in direct touch with your body and your world.

As we enter 2012, there is anticipation and excitement. People sense change. The Mayan calendar, dating back to Ancient Egypt, ends, and some say this signals a new beginning. Intuitively, for each of us, every day is auspicious. Every day is new.

Children are inherently tuned-in to this. They are excited by wind and autumn leaves, by snowflakes or the smell of a favorite dinner. We’re all children inside a shell of life experiences. We each recognize delight when a moment feels very clear. For example, a not-sentimental friend wrote in an email: “It never ceases to amaze me that the Christmas cactus makes a showing every December.”

When you recognize it, your intuition – just like your eyes and ears – is amazing. When you trust your intuition, the way you trust your eyes and ears, you feel in sync with yourself. It’s delightful.

This is a time of change. It’s up to us to make it auspicious. We have to think differently. Often we use our emotions to make choices. Emotions are complicated and we tend to justify them intellectually, which is equally complicated. Intuition, like seeing or hearing, is obvious. When it counts, it’s your senses that keep you clear about what’s really happening. Even though it’s not an emotion, your intuition connects with dignity, which comes from your heart.

You have the opportunity to make 2012 auspicious by connecting with your 6 senses and your life lessons to stay clear about the big picture, your priorities, personal boundaries and opportunities. Learn this new way of thinking and have the advantage of being in sync with yourself and the New Year.

Bio:

Jane Bernard is an intuition expert and learning specialist with degrees in philosophy and special education. She has worked for educational think-tanks and as a writing professor at several universities. Jane is the author of 2 books about intuition. She is sought as a coach and speaker. Jane regularly speaks at benefits to raise awareness about the needs of the hungry.

Jane has been featured on The Montel Williams Show, Martha Stewart Living (sirius radio), the nationally syndicated Joey Reynolds Show, Radio New Zealand, Australian Radio 891, and radio programs across the US talking about intuitive eating as a solution to losing weight and the 21st century approach to eating. With her tools, connection with your intuition is a stress buster that liberates you from dysfunctional diet dogma for good.

Jane reinvents personal dieting by uncovering how everyone can stay in sync with their body to lose weight and keep it off. Her book, Am I Really Hungry, 6th Sense Diet : Intuitive Eating teaches how to recognize and trust your intuition. You gain a weightless and permanent self-understanding and you lose weight!

Instead of rigid programs intuitive eating is flexible. There is no good or bad, there is only what you’re really hungry for. Jane reveals easy and natural to intuitive cues, to recognize 24/7, to stay clear about your priorities and personal boundaries around food. Am I Really Hungry is full of trick, tips and techniques that will change the way you eat, forever!

“Intuition is an inner guidance system you were born with. Use it and you’ll achieve your body goals. You may start reading this book because you want to lose weight. You’ll walk away shedding more than pounds!”

Am I Really Hungry? is available on amazon.com, barnesandnoble.com, Whole Foods stores and many bookstores.

Play Attention

Bank Street Alumni Blog — Fri, 06 Jan 2012 16:26:29 +0000

Bank Street’77 graduate Claire Wurtzel has been an educator for 40 years. She was on the faculty of the Bank Street Graduate School for 17 years, where she taught courses and chaired the department of Special Education. Claire and her husband, jazz musician Bill Wurtzel, are the authors of Funny Food which will be released in April,2012. www.funnyfood.us/

Claire blogs on Lifetimemoms about healthy eating and cognitive development using Funny Foods.

Creating healthy, silly food plates helps children learn to pay attention.

When children are absorbed and having fun, they learn to plan, focus and sustain their attention. They learn to control their impulses, and not eat whatever is in front of them. Instead they preview and plan ahead-essential aspects of attention.

How great it is to learn these skills early in life!

Even young children have to acquire attention skills in order to have friends and learn in school.

By age 4 (like Daniela) many children can delay eating a treat if they are having fun making it.

Kids who can’t control their impulses benefit from working with an adult who can help them plan the food play and delay the instant urge to grab the food.

After working hard and using lots of mental energy (another part of attention) they will enjoy gobbling up their creation.

Bank Street’s Children’s Librarian Lisa Von Drasek on Buying Books for holiday gifts

Bank Street Alumni Blog — Mon, 19 Dec 2011 16:19:38 +0000

Books to Give Kids You Don’t Know Very Well http://www.earlyword.com/category/childrens-and-ya/

So, there I was in the Bank Street College Bookstore, looking for my holiday gifts when I found myself helping other shoppers find the perfect book for their nieces, nephews, grandchildren and young cousins. I must have lost track of time and was startled when I heard my husband shout over from the stairs, “She doesn’t work here! Lisa, get back to your own shopping!”

My gift to readers for this holiday season is the 4th annual Books to Give Kids You Don’t Know Very Well.the time of year when we’re asked to recommend titles for that 4-year-old niece who is dying to learn to read (Mo Willems, Elephant and Piggie books, Disney/Hyperion), chapter books for that five-year-old emerging reader who lives in another state (Mercy Watson series by Kate DiCamillo, Candlewick), the young adult cousin who can’t wait for theHunger Games movie, (Divergent by Veronica Roth, HarperCollins/Katherine Tegan; Legend by Marie Lu, Penguin/Putnam; or Variant by Robinson Wells, HarperTeen).

I’ve organized the selections by age levels and interest; below are suggestions for younger children and for kids who just don’t like books (yet).

Board Books for New Family Members

Baby Animals, a series that includes the titles Pets, In the Jungle and In the Forest, various authors, Macmillan/Kingfisher. $5.99 each

Heavy stock board covered with close-up glossy photos of adorable baby gorillas, parrots and deer (there’s a reason CuteOverload.com is so popular).

The More We Get Together and You Are My Sunshine illus. by Caroline Jayne Church, Scholastic, $6.99 each

Shiny metallic covers envelope two classic songs with quietly sweet illustrations that embody friendship and love.

Little Black Book and Little Pink Book by Renée Khatami, Random House. $8.99 each

From the soft fluffy “touch and feel” fur of the black bunny to the page “seek and find” of licorice shapes, these are delightfully interactive color concept books.

Preschoolers Ages 3 to 5

If You’re Hoppy by April Pulley Sayre, pictures by Jackie Urbanovic, HarperCollins/Greenwillow, 16.99

A joyously buoyant retelling of the song “If your happy and you know it” with hoppy bunnies, growly bears and flappy butterflies.

Ages 3 and Up

I Must Have Bobo! by Eileen Rosenthal, illustrated by Marc Rosenthal, S&S/Atheneum, 14.99

A little boy is missing his stuffed monkey. Willy reminisces about past events that Bobo helped him through like going down a steep slide and walking past a big dog. He has looked everywhere! There isn’t a family who hasn’t experienced the loss of a treasured comfort object.

Mine! by Shutta Crum, pictures by Patrice Barton, RH/Knopf, 16.99

A toddler explains to a baby that the toys – a stuffed giraffe, starfish, airplane and ball are “Mine…mine…mine” until the dog decides that they all need a good washing.

Bears! Bears! Bears! by Bob Barner, Chronicle, 14.95

Cut paper collage and rhyming words depict a variety of bears from “Polar bears dive for an icy seal” to “Sun bears lick up a sticky meal” in this fact-filled information book.

Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star written and illustrated by Jerry Pinkney, Hachette/Little Brown, $16.99

Beginning with the endpapers as the moon smiles benevolently down on the woodland creatures, we sing the familiar tune. As dusk descends, we follow a chipmunk on a fantasy journey into the evening sky and back again. Caldecott winner, Pinkney paints a dreamy bedtime tale.

A Ball for Daisy by Chris Raschka, RH/Schwartz and Wade, 16.99

A wordless tour de force, Raschka paints in loose lines rendering a dog who is enthralled with big red ball. He rolls with it, bounces with it and naps with it on the comfy green and blue striped couch. One day at the dog park, the ball is snatched by another dog and burst. We see that our little dog is bereft as the pictures display the stages of grief over his loss. Don’t worry, although it takes time, things do turn out all right.

Kids Who Just Don’t Like Books

A book?! (the child’s face falls in disappointment as the wrapping is torn off). If that is the anticipated reaction, let’s try to turn it around.

Aesop’s Fables: A Pop-up Book of Classic Tales, illustrated by Chris Beatrice and Bruce Whatley, Little Simon, 27.99, Ages 5 and up

Familiar tales like The Lion and the Mouseand The Goose That Laid the Golden Eggare rendered in 3-D, pop-up glory. The lion leaps off the page struggling in the hunter’s ropes, Tortoise and Rabbit inhabit a lush garden while Crow teases a Fox at the top of a tree that looms twice the book width high.

Bob Staake’s Look! A Book!: A Zany Seek-And-Find Adventure, Hachette/Little Brown 16.99, Ages 3 and up

For the fans of the Walter Wick, I Spy Books, this is a volume jam-packed with graphic silly, absurd and teeny tiny images to engage readers. This is the book for the holiday trip on trains, planes and automobiles.

How to Speak Wookie: A Manual for Intergalactic Communicationby Wu Kee Smith, Illustrations by JAKe, Chronicle, 16.95

No really. Want give a Wookie directions in a starship? “AHH ARGH, ARRGHH!” That phrase translates to “Turn Right. Right!” or “Jump to hyperspace”? AARRR WWGGH WAANH” If we are still unsure of the correct pronunciation, the author has provided digital audio for ten commonly used Wookie phrases. I can’t stop playing with it.

The Worst-Case Scenario: Survive-0-pedia Junior Edition, Chronicle, 16.99

This one is an accidental pick. Faced with two boys that needed to be entertained for a couple of hours while waiting for the Thanksgiving turkey, I grabbed this from a stack of book. It worked. Want to know how to survive an avalanche? A shipwreck? Living on a deserted island? An active volcano? No problem. Start reading.

Short Story Collections

Ages 9 and Up

Guys Read: Thriller, edited by Jon Scieszka, illustrations by Brett Helquist, HarperCollins/Walden Pond, $16.99

The Guys Read series is back with a compilation of mystery stories by rock-star authors including M.T. Anderson, Gennifer Choldenko, Bruce Hale, Anthony Horowitz, and James Patterson. These are page-turning tales of pirates, smugglers, and detectives.

The Chronicles of Harris Burdick by Chris Van Allsburg, HMH, $24.99; Brilliance Audio

For a weirdly compelling collection, look no further than The Chronicles of Harris Burdick. In 1984, Van Allsburg produced a book of 14 captioned illustrations, titled The Mysteries of Harris Burdick, using the conceit that each drawing came from a different story. The illustrations are humorous, mysterious, whimsical and at times absurd, with images like a wallpaper bird coming to life and flying out a window. The idea comes full circle inThe Chronicles of Harris Burdick, a book of stories inspired by the pictures, written by fourteen authors including Kate DiCamillo, Gregory Maguire, Stephen King, Lois Lowry and Cory Doctorow. Or, maybe not. According to the introduction by Lemony Snicket, the writers will confirm or deny their involvement.

Young Adult

Steampunk! An Anthology of Fantastically Rich and Strange Stories, edited by Kelly Link and Gavin J. Grant, includes stories by Garth Nix, Holly Black, Cory Doctorow and Cassandra Clare, Candlewick, $22.99

For Young Adult readers, there’s no better introduction to steampunk than this collection. How do we define this science fiction sub-genre? Is it fantasy set in a parallel world? Or is it science fiction with Victorian manners and modern technologies based on steam engineering? These stories of mad inventors, child inventors, mysterious murders and steampunk fairies are the perfect entry into this fascinating world.

Wimpy Kid Lovers

Tale of a Sixth Grade Muppet by Kirk Scroggs, Hachette/LBYR, $12.99

The Wimpy Kid kids who have already glommed onto The Strange Case of Origami Yoda and its sequel, Darth Paper Strikes Back, (Abrams/Amulet) by Tom Angleberger, will also love Tales of a Sixth Grade Muppet by Kirk Scroggs with the author’s cartoons generously embedded in text.

Middle Grade Sleepers

Wonderstruck, Brian Selznick, Scholastic, $29.99

OK, OK, this is not a sleeper. In fact, it’s on most of the year’s best books lists, but I am including it because it may be overshadowed byHugo, Scorsese’s movie based on Selznick’s previous title, The Invention of Hugo Cabret. In Wonderstruck, Selznick once again sails into uncharted territory and takes readers on an awe-inspiring journey. Readers young and old will enjoy spotting the inter-textual references to E. L. Konigsburg’s From the Mixed up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler.

The Falcon Quinn series, Jennifer Finney Boylan, HarperCollins, $16.99

The perfect choice for fans of Harry Potter who think they have read “everything.” The first title in the series, Falcon Quinn and the Black Mirror, supplies this crowd with everything they want. Protagonist with hidden talent/curse? Check. Strange secluded boarding academy? Check. Developing loyalties? Check. Frighteningly powerful nemesis? Check. Slyly subversive humor? Check. The second volume, Falcon Quinn and the Crimson Vapor arrived in May and the 4th graders are now haunting my doorway for number three.

Ashtown Burials #1: The Dragon’s Tooth, by N. D. Wilson, RH/Random House, $16.99

If I could pick just one title from the avalanche of fantasy novels for ages 10 and up, this would be it. The story centers on twelve-year-old, Cyrus who lives with his sister and teenage brother in a run-down motel. When a mysterious tattooed stranger visits the siblings, the plot takes off like a roller-coaster ride.

YA Sleepers

Blood Red Road, by Moira Young, S&S/McElderry, $17.99; S&S Audio

A mash-up with the heart-pounding violence of Road Warrior crossed with the romance of Fire and Hunger Games, this fat read is for those teens who need to be swept away.

12 Things to Do Before You Crash and Burn, by James Proimos, Macmillan/Roaring Brook, $14.99

What if your dad was a famous TV self-help guru? What if he was a terrible dad? What if he died? And then what? Hercules Martino, aged 16 is sent to spend two weeks with his Uncle in Baltimore who had a falling out with his dad years ago. Proimos’s spare immediate language, sense of humor, and pitch perfect voice captures the young man’s anxiety, anger, confusion and yes, lust.

The Girl of Fire and Thorns, by Rae Carson, HarperCollins/Greenwillow, $17.99

For girls who want a romantic fantasy with a snarky, strong female protagonist who goes through a transformative experience, this is the one to grab.

Why We Broke Up, by Daniel Handler, illustrated by Maira Kalman, Hachette/LBYR, $19

But, wait! It’s not a sleeper (all five prepub reviews have starred it), but I have to mention Daniel Handler’s (AKA Lemony Snicket’s) novel-length break-up letter, Why We Broke Up. In bite sized vignettes, we witness Min, the quirky, smart, artsy high-school student fall for Ed, the school’s charming star athlete and then leave him. Maira Kalman’s paintings portray all the mementoes of the relationship in heartbreaking detail. For the teens dying to get their hands on the next John Green.

Chapter Books for Elementary Kids

If you asked the 4th graders at my school for their recommendations, they would encourage you to give series books. Boxed sets are a thrill because children read through these titles like peanuts. The list prices may look daunting, but shop around. They are heavily discounted by many online retailers.

Ages 7 and Up

My Weird School 21-Book Box Set, by Dan Gutman, illustrations by Jim Paillot, HarperCollins, list price $80.

For the kids who are looking for silly fun, these are the books. They are one step up from Captain Underpants. If a kid has already read through these, suggest a move up to the Louis Sachar’s Sideways School series (Scholastic).

Ages 8 and Up

The Secret Series Complete Collection by Pseudonymous Bosch, Little Brown, $80.00.

The readers who have just graduated from Lemony Snicket’s Series of Unfortunate Events, have a real treat is in store with this series. You just can’t go wrong with a good mystery, mind-bending puzzles and a snarky narrator.

Ages 9 and Up

Kate McMullan’s Mythomania. Capstone/Stone Arch Books, $5.95 each.

Are the kids wild about Rick Riordan’s Lightning Thief? Give them this series of fractured Greek myth retellings, told from point of view of Hades. Now back in print after an almost ten year absence, they are therefore new to today’s kids. They’re not available as a boxed set, so suggest making their own, starting with Have a Hot Time In Hades!, Phone Home, Persephone!, Say Cheese, Medusa!, andNice Shot, Cupid!

Family Read Alouds

Nursery Rhyme Comics: 50 Timeless Rhymes from 50 Celebrated Cartoonists, Macmillan/First Second, $18.99.

The book’s editors have gathered traditional rhymes like Hickory Dickory Dock, Pat-a-Cake, and the Itsy Bitsy Spider, pairing them with famous graphic artists like Jules Feiffer, George O’Connor and Roz Chast.

Liesl & Po by Lauren Oliver, HarperCollins, ages 7 and up, $16.99.

This is an old-fashioned tale of two orphans reminiscent of classics like Frances Hodgson Burnett’s A Little Princess and Dickens’ Oliver Twist. Liesl must escape the clutches of her evil stepmother and Po is a ghost who is trying to become human. A mystery and a ghost story carefully wrought with deliberate pacing perfect for family read aloud time.

The Flint Heart: a fairy story by John Barstow, retold by Katherine and James Paterson, Candlewick, $19.99.

Originally published in 1910, this humorous fairytale adventure was almost forgotten because of its archaic language and references. The Patersons rescued it from obscurity with their updated adaptation. John Rocco’s sumptuous art makes this a volume sure to become a family treasure.

Toys Come Home: Being the Early Experiences of an Intelligent Stingray, a Brave Buffalo, and a Brand-New Someone Called Plastic, by Emily Jenkins, RH/Schwartz and Wade. Ages 5 and up, $16.99.

Our pals from Toys Go Out and Toy Dance Party are back in this prequel where we find out how they all came together with The Girl. As we all know, toys have very busy lives when we aren’t looking. This satisfying story stands alone but once readers have entered its magical world they won’t want to stop until they have read all three books.

What Animals Really Like written and illustrated by Fiona Robinson, Abrams, 15.95. Ages 5+

Mr. Herbert Timberteeth, a beaver has composed a song about what he thinks animals enjoy — lions should like to prowl, wolves to howl and the pigeons to coo. His concert is disrupted when the animals insist on singing about what they really like. The cows like to dig, the warthogs like to blow big enormous bubbles and the kangaroos prefer ping-pong to hopping around. Absurdly humorous illustrations complete the package for a terrific read-aloud.

I Want My Hat Back by Jon Klassen, Candlewick $15.99, Ages 6 and up

Fans of Emily Gravett’s The Odd Eggand Wolves (both S&S) will welcome this deceptively simple story of a bear who has lost his pointy red hat. His very polite exchanges with the other forest animals that aren’t very helpful. The deadpan humor will tickle the most jaded funny bone while beginning readers will delight that the limited vocabulary speaks volumes.

Blackout by John Rocco, Disney/ Hyperion ages 5 an up

It is evening and the family is very busy, too busy to play a board game with a little sister. Mom is working at the computer, Dad is cooking dinner and the older sister is on the phone. The little girl is resigned to playing a video game all alone when suddenly the lights go out. Rocco’s cartoon graphic panels capture the fear and excitement of the totally dark city in the shadows of the Brooklyn Bridge.

Emma Dilemma: Big Sister Poems by Kristine O’Connell George, illustrated by Nancy Carpenter. Clarion Books

Little sisters can be embarrassing. Little sisters can be annoying. Little sisters snoop and can’t keep secrets. This collection of narrative poems describe the relationship, the ups and downs, the good and the bad between Jessica, the narrator and her little sister Emma.

Me…Jane by Patrick McDonnell, Hachette/LBYR, 15.99 Ages 6 and up

In this picture book biography we see primatologist, environmentalist Jane Goodall as a little girl with her stuffed chimpanzee named Jubilee. Together they observe the natural world – birds making their nests, spiders spinning their webs and squirrels chasing one another up and down trees. McDonnell intersperses his signature sweet cartoons with Goodall’s own original sketches and notes.

You will Be My Friend! By Peter Brown, 16.99 Little Brown ages 5+

Lucy, the bear from Children Make Terrible Pets is aggressively looking for friend. She is very excited about turning cartwheels, having picnics, climbing trees, and going swimming with each new friend. Finding a compatible playmate isn’t that easy. The frogs are too wet and small. The skunk is too smelly and Lucy is a little too big to fit in with the rabbits. Will she ever find the “just right” friend?

A Zeal of Zebras written and illustrated by Woop Studio, Chronicle, 17.99

This arty trip through the alphabet pairs collective nouns with 26 colorful prints.

Did you know that a group of pandas is called an embarrassment? Did you know that a herd of Gnus is an implausibility?

The Information about the animals is accurate and will delight wordsmiths and artists alike.

The Queen of France by Tim Wadham, illustrated by Kady MacDonald Denton, Candlewick, 16.99 ages 5+

“When Rose woke up that morning she felt royal. She opened the box of jewelry. She put on the necklaces. She put on the bracelets. She went to the make-believe basket. She put on the crown.” Rose’s mom and dad play along as she pretends to be royalty and goes about her day. The perfect read aloud for all those little girls begging for a princess book.

Betty Bunny Loves Chocolate Cakeby Michael B. Kaplan illustrated by Stéphane Jorish, Dial, 16.99

Betty Bunny, the youngest of four children, tries chocolate cake for the first time. She loves it. She loves it so much that she says, “When I grow up I am going to marry chocolate cake!” When Betty discovers that she can’t have her favorite food for every meal, she turns into a “handful.” Realistic family relationships create a warm light tone as Betty learns how to manage her impulsive behavior.

The Family Storybook Treasury:Tales of Laughter, Curiosity and Fun, HMH, 18.99

This oversized compendium includes eight classic picture books like Martha Speaks by Susan Meddaugh, Nancy Shaw’s rhyming wonder Sheep in a Jeep and the rambunctious bedtime favorite Five Little Monkeys Jumping on the Bed. The volume also includes poems by eight renowned poets including Kristine O’Connell George, Nikki Grimes and Bob Raczka.

Networking Hour for Bank Streeters Jan. 25

Bank Street Alumni Blog — Tue, 13 Dec 2011 20:27:20 +0000

Bank Street Network: Our First Meeting of 2012

January 25, 2012

6:00 PM Sharp

Location: 1115 Broadway, Floor 12

Light refreshments.

Please RSVP to lreing@bankstreet.edu with subject “BSN” — please make sure your NAME is included in the RSVP.

Agenda

6:00 PM
Welcome and Introduction – Host: Keith Berman, ’03, Bank Street College Alumni Advisory Board, President, Options for College, Inc.

6:05 – 6:45
Introductions
Each member will say the following VERY BRIEFLY
a. Name
b. Current or desired position
c. One thing you are specifically interested in networking for (e.g., to find a new job, to find specific partners, to get ideas on how to complete a certain project — please just don’t say because you like free coffee, that goes without saying!)
d. The best way to contact you (business cards welcome)

Meet and greet
6:45 – 7:00
Talk to the people whose networking interests match yours. Exchange contact information.

What do you do at Bank Street Network events?
You come to the BSN with an idea of what opportunity you want – this can be finding a job, finding potential project partners, finding possible employees, finding partners to start a company, etc. – and then you get about 30 seconds to say why you are here. After everyone introduces themselves, and you and talk to people whose ideas interest you.

Can you bring flyers, materials, business cards, etc.?
Yes– that’s why we are here! There will be folders at the meetings to collect whatever you want to pick up.

Why come?
To meet people!

Current students: Sources of interns, future teachers, innovators, people to mentor
Alumni: Sources of seasoned leadership, people who have applied Bank Street thinking and have theories of action and don’t have to learn Piaget, Dewey, Vygotsky, etc. from scratch!
School leaders: May be hiring, may be teaching workshops, may know someone who is doing either
Business owners: Business-to-business connections, colleagues in the world of small business

Where can I find Bank Streeters in general?
The faculty is still at the college (remember your advisor?), there are alumni events throughout the year listed in the alumni enewsletter and on bankstreet.edu, there is a Facebook group for BSC news, an Alumni Blog, an alumni Twitter feed (@bscaa) and there are 510 active alumni on the networking site LinkedIn.

A Parent and an Educator; Do I Really Have to Choose?

Bank Street Alumni Blog — Mon, 12 Dec 2011 16:25:07 +0000

Dr. Hollee Freeman is a 1994 Bank Street graduate. Visit her blog: http://www.bellabark.wordpress.com/

So…after much back and forth with teachers via email, I was able to make an appointment at my daughter’s school in order to get a better sense of what the curriculum is for my 6th grader. To my surprise, well-not really, the teachers on her team invited the assistant principal to the meeting. Maybe my emails were intimidating. I wrote and rewrote them in order to take out the sting that I was feeling in my gut. I am cognizant of the fact that I have to maneuver between being a parent who happens to know a lot about education and teaching and being a parent who is just interested.

The burden is heavy for us educators (and I dare say, even heavier for us progressive educators). Traditional, progressive or somewhere in between, all of us who are educators and parents have to think about when and how we will interact with teachers and in particular, the ways in which we ask questions; is there a slight lilt in the voice, eyebrows up, fingers on chin, smiling, etc. We have to be mindful of asking authentic questions but sometimes we just want to be parents and be blunt.

Personally, sometimes, I don’t want to think about questions like:

How many parents should speak before I speak in a school meeting?
How many hours, days, weeks should go by before I approach a teacher when I have a question about pedagogy or curriculum?
How do I ask questions in ways that don’t sound judgmental?
When do I involve the principal (this has happened a few times)?
How much do I share about what I know about the very curriculum the teachers are using or teaching standards or benchmarks?

For me, being a parent and an educator is complex enough without the added issue of race. Perhaps this is just my issue because I am attuned to issues of race, equity and access. Somehow though, I have a sneaky suspicion that it’s not just my issue.

Issues of race, equity and access come up often and in these times, it’s much more difficult to choose between being a parent and an educator. You have to be both.

I remember vividly last year when one of Danielle’s teachers requested that she come in for remedial math support. When I asked the teacher to show me the data which suggested that Danielle needed this support, all she could do was admit that she was incorrect and in fact, Danielle was doing well in math. How does this happen? How does the teacher assume that the student of color in the class needs remedial help without first looking at her data? Why can’t the kid of color be assumed to be amazing in math first and not deficient? How does the teacher’s perception affect how she/he interacts with Danielle and with the other kids of color? Does the teacher ask the same open ended, higher order questions to Danielle that she does with Danielle’s white peers?

In another instance, I had to talk with to a principal about why only the white kids in the school received awards at an end-of-the-year celebration. Not one student of color received an academic award. Not one. Surely, there are students of color in the school who fulfilled the requirements of one of these awards. How does this oversight happen? Don’t teachers talk about students and issues of equity? We did at the Westside Community School and at the Muscota New School. This is when it becomes hard to choose between being a parent for one’s own child and being an educator.

All of this stuff is emotionally draining and yet, if unchecked-could mean the difference in your child’s education. Yet, your kid pays the price for this kind of involvement. It’s almost as if they have a target on their back. Danielle, I’m sure, worries about when and where I will unleash the educator parent on the teacher. I don’t want to be THAT parent but I have to advocate for my child because lord knows, it might not happen any other way.

Dr. Hollee Freeman taught elementary school for seven years in New York City schools before focusing her professional attention on training teachers in mathematics education and research across the U.S. She received her B.A. in psychology and elementary education from Columbia University, a M.S. in special education from Bank Street College, and has a Ph.D in Educational Administration from Boston College. Hollee is a nationally certified teacher through the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards. Hollee has worked as a Field Director for the Boston Teacher Residency, Senior Research Associate at TERC, a not-for-profit education research and development organization based in Cambridge. She has authored several articles and book chapters on issues in education focused on both national and international issues. Dr. Freeman currently serves as a National Faculty Professor at Lesley University in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

Faculty Respond to NY Times Block Play Story

Bank Street Alumni Blog — Fri, 09 Dec 2011 15:04:33 +0000

On November 28, the New York Times published an article discussing the importance of block play in early childhood education. As long-time advocates of open-ended play, Bank Street faculty submitted a response, which was published on December 2. An expanded version of that response appears below.

As early childhood faculty at Bank Street College of Education, we are heartened that the article of November 28 on block building has brought attention to the importance of blocks as an essential educational material.

Lucy Sprague Mitchell, the founder of Bank Street College in 1916, studied children’s block building as a teacher at City and Country School, and recognized its unique value in the education of young children. Block building then became and continues to be an integral part of the teacher preparation curriculum. Indeed, we are one of the few teacher education institutions in the country that offers a course devoted specifically to block building.

In the current educational climate, opportunities for children to engage in play are being eliminated in many schools, despite the mounting research by neuroscientists, developmental psychologists, physicians, and educators showing the critical role of play in children’s healthy development, physically, intellectually, socially, and emotionally. The benefits of block play flourish only when children are allowed to engage in open-ended, imaginative play and are given the time to explore, experiment and represent their growing understanding of the world.

Signed,

Nancy Cardwell ’88
Betsy Grob M.S. ’70, Ed.M. ’99
Adrianne Kamsler
Nancy McKeever
Michele Morales
Denise Prince
Rena Rice ’77
Salvatore Vascellaro ’75

Sal Vascellaro’s New Book

Bank Street Alumni Blog — Tue, 06 Dec 2011 20:42:02 +0000

Sal signing a book at his November 16th book launch at Bank Street

Click here to watch Sal Vascellaro talk about what inspired his new book.

Bank Street alumnus and faculty member Salvatore Vascellaro is the author of “Out of the Classroom and into the World: Learning from Field Trips, Educating from Experience, and Unlocking the Potential of Our Students and Teachers ”

In his book, Vascellaro presents a compelling alternative for moving beyond today’s ineffective “teaching to the test” to create opportunities for real learning for both students and teachers that can reinvigorate America’s classrooms. The book’s driving force is that “education should move the learner outward physically and socially, as well as intellectually.”

The three sections of the book demonstrate the power of venturing beyond the classroom as an essential part of the education of children and teachers: first he follows the work of three New York public school teachers and their students as they “experiment with the world;” then he moves back in time to the work of Bank Street’s founder, Lucy Sprague Mitchell, with graduate students of the 1930s, ‘40s,and 50s, always drawing parallels to the work of teachers today; and he concludes the book with the impact of a four-week summer course based on the graduate students’ current ventures into the city.

RUN, DON’T WALK, TO JIM HENSON’S FANTASTIC WORLD AT THE MUSEUM OF THE MOVING IMAGE

Bank Street Alumni Blog — Mon, 28 Nov 2011 16:28:05 +0000

Many of you know that Jim Henson created the Muppets—those lovable creatures who have appeared on Sesame Street and in Muppet movies for decades now. But did you know that Jim was also a legendary pioneer in film and television, creating Muppets inititally as a vehicle to enter into those medium?

A trip, or two, or three—to the Museum of the Moving Image (MOMI) in Queens to experience Jim Henson’s Fantastic World will give you and your students or your family members a chance to further appreciate the creative processes behind Jim’s voluminous and astounding body of work.

The exhibit runs rom July 16, 2011 – January 16, 2012 and features the following: 120 artifacts which include drawings, storyboards, and props from The Muppet Show, The Muppet Movie, Fraggle Rock, Sesame Street, and Sam and Friends; 15 iconic puppets, including Miss Piggy, Bert, Ernie, and Kermit the Frog; photographs of Henson and his collaborators at work; and excerpts from Jim’s early projects and experimental films, including his pioneering work in commercials.

A bit of Q and A with MOMI’s Deputy Director for Education, Christopher Wisniewski, reveals additional reasons to go and see the exhibit:

Eleanor: What makes Jim Henson’s Fantastic World special?

Christopher: Jim Henson is indisputably a singular creative figure in the history of film and television. When one thinks of the legacy he’s left–the Muppets, his characters for Sesame Street, the Fraggles, and his films–one is immediately impressed by how singular they are and how they continue to occupy a special place in popular culture and collective memory. This show is extraordinary in the breadth of its approach. It gives a wide-ranging overview of Henson’s career, his creative process, and his unique artistic sensibility. I think everyone who visits it comes away feeling they’ve learned something new about Henson and his work.

Eleanor: What is the educational value of taking a child or a group of children to this exhibit?

Christopher: For young people, there is great educational value in Jim Henson’s Fantastic World. It gives insight into the creative process, to be certain, and so it helps to teach not only about puppetry specifically but also about how television and films are made and marketed. Also, Henson got his start in advertising, and he very shrewdly adapted what he learned about marketing and branding to projects that were educational and artistic. I think that is a valuable lesson. I also think that in creating characters who appeared across media, Henson anticipated the phenomenon we now refer to as trans-media, and it is valuable for young people to think about that innovation and to see it in a broader historical context.

Additional Information about MOMI and Jim Henson’s Fantastic World:

There’s good news for those of you who would like to get out and see the exhibit with your students and young family members: In the remaining eight weeks of Jim Henson’s Fantastic World, there are plenty more screenings, discussions, and workshops to attend. For a list of those special events, visit The Museum of the Moving Image

Also: MOMI’s education department provides curriculum-based educational experiences to about 60,000 students every year. These offerings include school group visits, tours, talks, workshops and screenings. If you would like information about MOMI’s educational opportunities, click here.

Read Creative Times posts about the Jim Henson exhibit at MOMI:

All Kinds of Crazy Cool Stuff at Jim Henson’s Fantastic World describes “Hands Up! Puppets Down!”: An Inside Look at Puppetry for Television
Jim Henson: Friends and Family documents the reflections of six folks gathered in of the museum’s auditorium to show and talk about film clips from Jim’s body of work.
The Wonderful World of (Frank) Oz reports back on a live interview with Henson’s right hand man and the Muppeteer for Miss Piggy, Bert, Animal, Cookie Monster, and more

Eleanor Traubman (Class of ’95) is the Editor-In-Chief of Creative Times, a blog designed to celebrate and inspire the artists and entrepeneurs of New York and beyond. Eleanor also leads Creative Conversations, a goal-setting group for women artists and entrepreneurs. Eleanor can be reached at ETraubman@aol.com.

Volunteer Opportunity at Harlem Hospital

Bank Street Alumni Blog — Mon, 14 Nov 2011 22:14:46 +0000

It’s 4:30pm and I haven’t finished my To-Do list for the day. Well, that’s not even entirely true- I haven’t finished it, but it’s because I didn’t have a chance to get it out of my bag. On the plus side, I did start the paperwork for pet therapy for my inpatient unit, spoke to several people about a grant for program funding for my outpatient clinic, ordered T-shirts for volunteers, and wrote “Child Life Department, Harlem Hospital: Please Return!” on every surface of three new distraction toys that I’m bringing for use in the pediatric emergency room. (Now that I think about it, why weren’t any of those things on my To-Do list in the first place, so I could cross them off now?) But I didn’t start writing any grants, I still haven’t laminated the prep book for the pre-surgical patients, I haven’t finished writing the prep book for radiology, and I didn’t get a chance to get over to the clinic to help out the staff there today.

I’m a child life specialist. I graduated with my master’s degree fromBankStreetCollege’s child life program in May 2011, and was hired byHarlemHospitalin August, in order to start a new child life department. I cover the inpatient unit, the PICU (pediatric intensive care), the burn unit, the outpatient clinic, and the pediatric emergency department. I am also in charge of fundraising for the department and bringing new programs and volunteers to all of the pediatric units.

Child life specialists promote optimal child and family development in a hospital setting, while trying to minimize the stress associated with hospitalization and invasive, painful, or bewildering medical procedures. Through play and developmentally-appropriate psychological preparation, child life interventions help to facilitate coping and adjustment during times of hospitalization that might feel initially overwhelming to children and their families. We use toys like sparkly magic wands, bubbles, and mobiles to distract infants and toddlers during an IV stick or immunization; we use cloth dolls and play medical tools with school-aged children to help prepare them for an upcoming procedure; we write, illustrate, and produce prep books, to help a child understand and prepare for surgery or a radiology procedure; we work with patients and their families to promote family-centered care, and to lessen the strain experienced by the family of a sick or injured child; we work to support families through the loss of a child; we provide play, reading, and expressive activities for children who stay in the hospital for days, weeks, and months on end; as well as many other things.

HarlemHospitalis a public facility, treating everyone, regardless of ability to pay. We take emergency cases, but are a primary care facility for most of our families, who depend on us for dental, medical, mental, and social healthcare needs. We’re a brand-new department in an under-funded hospital, so I don’t have the budget of an established children’s hospital, like Montefiore or Columbia Prebyterian’s child life department- I have learned to depend on, and greatly value, the contributions we receive from the Starlight Foundation, Project Sunshine, the Pinwheel Project, and the Big Apple Circus Clown Care Unit. Right now, what I need the most, are volunteers- people who share a vision of equal healthcare for all, and who love working with children. We need people to sit and read with our patients, or provide arts-and-crafts activities for them, or play board or card games with a patient, or hold a baby whose mother works during the day and can’t stay with him while he’s in the hospital.

Please consider joining us here in Harlem- Bank Street helped me find, and encouraged my passion for child life- whatever your passion is, I am confident that if you would consider bringing it to our child life department, it will enrich and enliven our patients’ lives as much as the experiences with them will enrich and enliven yours.

Contact Information:
Emily Johnson, MS, CLS
Director of Child Life Services, Harlem Hospital Pediatrics
212-939-4645
emily.johnson@nychhc.org