List of 10 Procedures described in Personalize Your School, a book by Enrique Gonzalez
1: Ask teachers to stop
lecturing. Short lectures are put on video
for the student to view BEFORE the class.
Students should arrive in class ready to discuss the
topic for the day. The class time is for one-on-one
tutoring and small group discussions.
“Research shows it's impossible for students to take in
and remember all the information presented during a
typical lecture.” American RadioWorks
How to make class work more interesting.
PeerInstruction.net
The video (60 seconds)
Katie Gimbar, a teacher in North Carolina, shows
the problems with lectures in a typical classroom.
students to watch before they come to class. Find
this video on Youtube by searching “Katie Gimbar
"Stop repeating yourself. Record your mini-lectures. Flip your classroom."
2: Ask for a Personal
Learning Plan. Ask teachers to start
with your child. Connect the homework and
school work to the child’s interests. This
procedure is used at Big Picture Schools
(MetCenter.org). This is not an Individual
Education Plan (IEP), which helps the student
adapt to the textbook and the system (putting a
square peg in a round hole). The Personal
Learning Plan is unique to each student.
An example of a Personal Learning Plan
Often the plans are completed with the help of the
parents.
Teachers need training to prepare to work together
to make projects and personal learning plans.
3: Collect your child’s school
work in a website. Students at High
Tech High School in San Diego, California use free
Google Sites web space for showing their projects
and school work. TinyURL.com/ExampleDP.
Ben Staley’s website showing his school work and
projects (High Tech High School)
This book shows you how to organize school work
on the website. The book was written by Dennis
Yuzenas, Steve McCrea, Omar Vasile, Ben Staley,
Matt Blazek and Mario Llorente.
www.TinyURL.com/ShowYourWork
www.TinyURL.com/ShowYourWork1
Learning Plan is unique to each student.
An example of a Personal Learning Plan
Often the plans are completed with the help of the
parents.
SiSePuedeLearning.com 36 Tiny.cc/10Expectativas
Teachers need training to prepare to work together
to make projects and personal learning plans.
SiSePuedeLearning.com 37 Tiny.cc/10Expectativas
3: Collect your child’s school
work in a website. Students at High
Tech High School in San Diego, California use free
Google Sites web space for showing their projects
and school work. TinyURL.com/ExampleDP.
Ben Staley’s website showing his school work and
projects (High Tech High School)
This book shows you how to organize school work
on the website. The book was written by Dennis
Yuzenas, Steve McCrea, Omar Vasile, Ben Staley,
Matt Blazek and Mario Llorente.
www.TinyURL.com/ShowYourWork
www.TinyURL.com/ShowYourWork1
4: Ask teachers to let
students discuss the new
information instead of listening
to a lecture. Ask teachers to use the method
called “Turn to Your Neighbor” that Harvard
University developed.
TinyURL.com/EricMazur
TinyURL.com/TurnToYourNeighbor
Julie Schell explains the method of “turn to your
neighbor” and “peer instruction.” Students discuss
a question in class.
5: Ask teachers to guide
students in creating projects
that include several subjects. For example, the
math, science and history teachers can create one
project together with
the student.
This procedure is easier when one
teacher teaches several subjects
(perhaps English Grammar, a foreign language and history).
I recommend a project book by Matt Blazek.
TinyURL.com/BlazekProjects
This video explains how to use the Project Book.
www.TinyURL.com/MattBlazek
“Projects are the way to go.” Bill Gates during a
visit to High Tech High School, San Diego, Calif.
Omar Vasile gives
advice about how
to organize
projects.
Dennis Yuzenas
describes a
project with
National History
Day.
6: Ask teachers to find apps
for the student to use. Many
hours of classroom practice are spent reviewing ...
and some of that reviewing can be done outside
the classroom on apps.
A teacher who can be replaced by a
computer should be replaced by a
computer.
Arthur C. Clarke, author of 2001: A Space
Odyssey.
The teacher becomes a facilitator. The teacher is
not the source of information. The teacher helps
students manage their time.
SiSePuedeLearning.com 44 Tiny.cc/10Expectativas
A vocabulary app.
A math app.
7: Ask teachers to give their
mobile phone numbers to
students and families. “Can
my child send you questions at night and
on weekends?” The questions can often be put
in a photo and sent to the teacher’s mobile phone.
When a student has a question, the student can
take a photo and send the question to the teacher.
The teacher can make a short video and reply to
that student. The student can view the answer and
learn outside the classroom.
The “Just In Time” Learning Method
The student finds a difficult problem.
The student takes a photo and sends the
photo to the teacher’s mobile phone.
The teacher looks at the problem, writes an
explanation, makes a movie and sends the
movie to the student.
The student explains the solution the next
day in class to other students.
8: Ask teachers to look at
your child as an individual.
Ask the teachers to teach your child all four years
of high school. This is the procedure at Big Picture
Learning Schools.
The same teacher stays with the same
students for four years. This often happens
in a small school.
Each student has his own lesson plan for
each day. Ask teachers to ask “What do you
want to learn today?”
Teachers have been told
to teach students the Seven Survival Skills that
Tony Wagner has identified.
Search “Seven
Survival Skills Tony Wagner.”
Initiative and
Entrepreneurship can be developed if the teacher
allows students time to make the first move. Neil
Postman gave this advice: Ask the students,
“What do you want to learn today?”
The only way to know where a kid is 'at' is
to listen to what he is saying. -- Neil
Postman
Jeff Duncan-Andrade, an English teacher in East Oakland,
explains what “literacy” means in a talk to a Big Picture
Learning conference (January 2015):
16:50 -- Stick a crisp $100 note inside any
Shakespearean text, leave that text anywhere in
my classroom, and it is completely safe.
17:37 But if I leave Tupac's
book of poetry out, The
Rose That Grew From
Concrete, it is immediately
snatched up by the same
kids that OSD (Oakland
School District) is convinced
are not interested in literacy.
I have told principals,
superintendents and Arne
Duncan, "Young people
are not interested in the literacy that we are
giving them."
See the entire talk at TinyURL.com/JeffDuncan
tinyurl.com/tupaceastoakland
Tony Wagner interviewed over 200 managers to
find out “what do students need to know.”
Tony Wagner asks students to show their skills.
You can maintain contact with students after they
leave your class by assigning a broad theme on
Facebook and getting more “distance learning”
articles assigned.
9: Ask teachers to put the
Five Guiding Questions on
the classroom walls. (From the
Big Picture Schools)
You can get the exact wording of the
questions by going to
TinyURL.com/metquestions
HOW DO I DESCRIBE THIS SITUATION?
(How do I talk about the problem?)
WHAT NUMBERS DO I NEED TO USE?
(What kind of math do I need for this topic?)
HOW DO I COMMUNICATE THIS
INFORMATION? (Should I use a poster or a
video? Where can I get more information? How
do I get more information?)
WHAT DID OTHER PEOPLE WRITE
ABOUT THIS TOPIC? (What is the history of
this topic?)
WHAT CAN I ADD TO THIS TOPIC? (How
can I make this topic personal to me?)
metcenter.org/about-us/one-student-at-a-time/goals
10: Create Personal
Learning Plans and use the
Personal History Workbook
to capture the history of each
student.
Personal Learning Plans guide teachers to give students
schoolwork that matches the needs and interests of the
student. The student receives the math connected to the
student’s interests. If a student is in an internship at a
hospital, then metric conversions and “cubic
centimeters” and “milliliters” need to be part of that
student’s math work.
Enrique describes the Personal History Workbook in a
video at
www.TINYURL.com/PersonalHistoryWorkbook
The ebook can be found at
www.TinyURL.com/PersonalHistoryEbook
TinyURL.com/MattBlazek
Ask the history teacher to “teach history
backwards.” If we start with the years that the
child knows, then we can connect to the history of
his grandfather. historyinreverse.blogspot.com
GO TO Tiny.cc/10Expectativas
The 10 Expectations from
LeavingToLearn.org
to every teacher in your child’s
school.
These ten "Questions that Parents Can Ask" come from a
video that supports Leaving to Learn, a book by Elliot
Washor and Charles Wojkowski.
LeavingToLearn.org
This video has 100,000 hits (Nov. 2015, 361,000 in March 2019) in English and fewer than 1,000 in Spanish.
Why not click on the Spanish version?
www.TINYURL.com/SpanishVersionvideo
Relationships
Am I just another face in the classroom? or do my teachers
know about me and my interests and talents? Do the
teachers help me form relationships with peers and adults
who might serve as models and coaches?
Relevance
Is the work just a series of hoops to
jump? Or is the work relevant to my
interests? Do my teachers help me
understand how my learning
contributes to my community?
Time
Am I
expected to
learn at a
pace
decided by
my teacher
or can I
learn at my
own pace?
Is there
time for
learning to
be deep as well as broad?
Timing
Do all students have to learn
things in the same sequence or can
I learn in an order that fits my
learning style or interests?
SiSePuedeLearning.com 57 Tiny.cc/10Expectativas
Play
Is there always pressure to perform? Or do I have
opportunities to explore? Make mistakes and learn from
them? Do I have opportunities to tinker and make guesses?
Practice
Do we learn something and then immediately move on to the
next skill? Or can we engage in deep and sustained practice
of the skills that we need to learn?
Choice
Am I following the same path as every student? Or do I
have real choices about what, how and when I will learn and
demonstrate my abilities?
Authenticity
Is my work just a series of worksheets? Or is the learning
and work I do considered significant outside of school, by
experts, family and employers?
Does the community recognize the value of my work?
Challenge
Is the school work just about completing assignments? Or
do I feel challenged? Am I addressing high and meaningful
standards?
Application
Is my learning all theoretical? Or do I have opportunities to
apply what I’m learning in real world settings?
Learn more by searching “YouTube Ten Expectations
Leaving to Learn”
Learning Plan is unique to each student.
An example of a Personal Learning Plan
Often the plans are completed with the help of the
parents.
SiSePuedeLearning.com 36 Tiny.cc/10Expectativas
Teachers need training to prepare to work together
to make projects and personal learning plans.
SiSePuedeLearning.com 37 Tiny.cc/10Expectativas
3: Collect your child’s school
work in a website. Students at High
Tech High School in San Diego, California use free
Google Sites web space for showing their projects
and school work. TinyURL.com/ExampleDP.
Ben Staley’s website showing his school work and
projects (High Tech High School)
This book shows you how to organize school work
on the website. The book was written by Dennis
Yuzenas, Steve McCrea, Omar Vasile, Ben Staley,
Matt Blazek and Mario Llorente.
www.TinyURL.com/ShowYourWork
www.TinyURL.com/ShowYourWork1
4: Ask teachers to let
students discuss the new
information instead of listening
to a lecture. Ask teachers to use the method
called “Turn to Your Neighbor” that Harvard
University developed.
TinyURL.com/EricMazur
TinyURL.com/TurnToYourNeighbor
Julie Schell explains the method of “turn to your
neighbor” and “peer instruction.” Students discuss
a question in class.
5: Ask teachers to guide
students in creating projects
that include several subjects. For example, the
math, science and history teachers can create one
project together with
the student.
This procedure is easier when one
teacher teaches several subjects
(perhaps English Grammar, a foreign language and history).
I recommend a project book by Matt Blazek.
TinyURL.com/BlazekProjects
This video explains how to use the Project Book.
www.TinyURL.com/MattBlazek
“Projects are the way to go.” Bill Gates during a
visit to High Tech High School, San Diego, Calif.
Omar Vasile gives
advice about how
to organize
projects.
Dennis Yuzenas
describes a
project with
National History
Day.
6: Ask teachers to find apps
for the student to use. Many
hours of classroom practice are spent reviewing ...
and some of that reviewing can be done outside
the classroom on apps.
A teacher who can be replaced by a
computer should be replaced by a
computer.
Arthur C. Clarke, author of 2001: A Space
Odyssey.
The teacher becomes a facilitator. The teacher is
not the source of information. The teacher helps
students manage their time.
SiSePuedeLearning.com 44 Tiny.cc/10Expectativas
A vocabulary app.
A math app.
7: Ask teachers to give their
mobile phone numbers to
students and families. “Can
my child send you questions at night and
on weekends?” The questions can often be put
in a photo and sent to the teacher’s mobile phone.
When a student has a question, the student can
take a photo and send the question to the teacher.
The teacher can make a short video and reply to
that student. The student can view the answer and
learn outside the classroom.
The “Just In Time” Learning Method
The student finds a difficult problem.
The student takes a photo and sends the
photo to the teacher’s mobile phone.
The teacher looks at the problem, writes an
explanation, makes a movie and sends the
movie to the student.
The student explains the solution the next
day in class to other students.
8: Ask teachers to look at
your child as an individual.
Ask the teachers to teach your child all four years
of high school. This is the procedure at Big Picture
Learning Schools.
The same teacher stays with the same
students for four years. This often happens
in a small school.
Each student has his own lesson plan for
each day. Ask teachers to ask “What do you
want to learn today?”
Teachers have been told
to teach students the Seven Survival Skills that
Tony Wagner has identified.
Search “Seven
Survival Skills Tony Wagner.”
Initiative and
Entrepreneurship can be developed if the teacher
allows students time to make the first move. Neil
Postman gave this advice: Ask the students,
“What do you want to learn today?”
The only way to know where a kid is 'at' is
to listen to what he is saying. -- Neil
Postman
Jeff Duncan-Andrade, an English teacher in East Oakland,
explains what “literacy” means in a talk to a Big Picture
Learning conference (January 2015):
16:50 -- Stick a crisp $100 note inside any
Shakespearean text, leave that text anywhere in
my classroom, and it is completely safe.
17:37 But if I leave Tupac's
book of poetry out, The
Rose That Grew From
Concrete, it is immediately
snatched up by the same
kids that OSD (Oakland
School District) is convinced
are not interested in literacy.
I have told principals,
superintendents and Arne
Duncan, "Young people
are not interested in the literacy that we are
giving them."
See the entire talk at TinyURL.com/JeffDuncan
tinyurl.com/tupaceastoakland
Tony Wagner interviewed over 200 managers to
find out “what do students need to know.”
Tony Wagner asks students to show their skills.
You can maintain contact with students after they
leave your class by assigning a broad theme on
Facebook and getting more “distance learning”
articles assigned.
9: Ask teachers to put the
Five Guiding Questions on
the classroom walls. (From the
Big Picture Schools)
You can get the exact wording of the
questions by going to
TinyURL.com/metquestions
HOW DO I DESCRIBE THIS SITUATION?
(How do I talk about the problem?)
WHAT NUMBERS DO I NEED TO USE?
(What kind of math do I need for this topic?)
HOW DO I COMMUNICATE THIS
INFORMATION? (Should I use a poster or a
video? Where can I get more information? How
do I get more information?)
WHAT DID OTHER PEOPLE WRITE
ABOUT THIS TOPIC? (What is the history of
this topic?)
WHAT CAN I ADD TO THIS TOPIC? (How
can I make this topic personal to me?)
metcenter.org/about-us/one-student-at-a-time/goals
10: Create Personal
Learning Plans and use the
Personal History Workbook
to capture the history of each
student.
Personal Learning Plans guide teachers to give students
schoolwork that matches the needs and interests of the
student. The student receives the math connected to the
student’s interests. If a student is in an internship at a
hospital, then metric conversions and “cubic
centimeters” and “milliliters” need to be part of that
student’s math work.
Enrique describes the Personal History Workbook in a
video at
www.TINYURL.com/PersonalHistoryWorkbook
The ebook can be found at
www.TinyURL.com/PersonalHistoryEbook
TinyURL.com/MattBlazek
Ask the history teacher to “teach history
backwards.” If we start with the years that the
child knows, then we can connect to the history of
his grandfather. historyinreverse.blogspot.com
GO TO Tiny.cc/10Expectativas
The 10 Expectations from
LeavingToLearn.org
to every teacher in your child’s
school.
These ten "Questions that Parents Can Ask" come from a
video that supports Leaving to Learn, a book by Elliot
Washor and Charles Wojkowski.
LeavingToLearn.org
This video has 100,000 hits (Nov. 2015, 361,000 in March 2019) in English and fewer than 1,000 in Spanish.
Why not click on the Spanish version?
www.TINYURL.com/SpanishVersionvideo
Relationships
Am I just another face in the classroom? or do my teachers
know about me and my interests and talents? Do the
teachers help me form relationships with peers and adults
who might serve as models and coaches?
Relevance
Is the work just a series of hoops to
jump? Or is the work relevant to my
interests? Do my teachers help me
understand how my learning
contributes to my community?
Time
Am I
expected to
learn at a
pace
decided by
my teacher
or can I
learn at my
own pace?
Is there
time for
learning to
be deep as well as broad?
Timing
Do all students have to learn
things in the same sequence or can
I learn in an order that fits my
learning style or interests?
SiSePuedeLearning.com 57 Tiny.cc/10Expectativas
Play
Is there always pressure to perform? Or do I have
opportunities to explore? Make mistakes and learn from
them? Do I have opportunities to tinker and make guesses?
Practice
Do we learn something and then immediately move on to the
next skill? Or can we engage in deep and sustained practice
of the skills that we need to learn?
Choice
Am I following the same path as every student? Or do I
have real choices about what, how and when I will learn and
demonstrate my abilities?
Authenticity
Is my work just a series of worksheets? Or is the learning
and work I do considered significant outside of school, by
experts, family and employers?
Does the community recognize the value of my work?
Challenge
Is the school work just about completing assignments? Or
do I feel challenged? Am I addressing high and meaningful
standards?
Application
Is my learning all theoretical? Or do I have opportunities to
apply what I’m learning in real world settings?
Learn more by searching “YouTube Ten Expectations
Leaving to Learn”
