Wayfinder Learning Lab – Stephen Taylor

Category: Curriculum

  • The Buoyant Force: L2 Talk & FOEN Workshop

    The Buoyant Force: L2 Talk & FOEN Workshop

    This was a great challenge during the Learning2 Conference last week in Nanjing. It was my first time at the conference and I was looking for an experience that would push me and provide something to think about. I presented this short talk, and an extended session on Global Ignorance, Factfulness and Data-Informed Inquiry. You…

  • Reductive Rubrics, Authenticity & Opportunities for Learning

    A quick post to share an animated gif, made in the new Keynote 9 update. It is a rebuild of a lower-quality animation I made years ago and use often, inspired by a cartoon I saw but cannot track down again (and I’d love to find it). I have used it in the context of…

  • Getting Going in MYP: Student Orientation

    Here are some general resources for helping students get oriented in the MYP. Click here to open full-size in GoogleSlides, with instructions in the speaker notes. The goal here is to provide some ideas and printables that can be used to help initiate students into MYP, in an enjoyable but informative way (and not launching…

  • Let’s All Meet Up In The Year 2000… (on #Factfulness)

    … won’t it be strange when we’re all fully grown?  November 1995: I’d just turned 15, Britpop was at its peak (who did you prefer, Oasis or Blur?) and Pulp released this singalong anthem. We loved it. ………..o0O0o……….. I couldn’t predict the year 2000, even in 1995. I had no idea I’d be ringing in…

  • Updated: The Challenge of Interdisciplinary Learning

    Since the original post in early 2016, we’ve made some progress, experienced some great successes and uncovered some further challenges. Enthusiasm is building behind Interdisciplinary Units (IDU’s), though there is still work to be done. I’ve updated the flowchart below to show some other “ways in” to IDU planning, and for potential inclusion in MYP…

  • Is this an inquiry with an ‘I’ or an enquiry with an ‘e’?

    Is this an inquiry with an ‘I’ or an enquiry with an ‘e’?

    This post has been sitting in my drafts for a while, and I was reminded to complete it after a question from a student when I was covering a TOK class: “What’s the difference between inquiry and enquiry?” [tL:dR: Definitions matter in education, especially when a topic is misunderstood or controversial. Using traditional definitions allows for…

  • Bold Moves for Schools

    This is a quick-and-dirty review of a book that ticks all the boxes for a curriculum nerd like me: Bold Moves for Schools, by Heidi Hayes Jacobs & Marie Alcock, from the ASCD (2017, 207 pages). It’s a practical and comprehensive, yet concise and quotable handbook of where to take curriculum, learning and leadership for modern learners.…

  • Webb’s DOK4 & Transfer

    I recently took part in a fabulous Bold Moves Curriculum Mapping Bootcamp, by Dr. Marie Alcock at ISKL. I was there to think about next steps for curriculum planning at CA, and it was a great opportunity to pick the brains of a true expert (and get lots done). I like the bootcamp model for…

  • Capturing the Curriculum, Criteria & “Zooming In”

    Shortlink to this resource: is.gd/mypassess Update Sept. 5 2017 based on edits summarized in this update from the IB. Big Update Dec. 2 2017: added subject group overview (curriculum articulation) tabs for each subject group, with data validation for key, related concepts, ATL.  If you find this useful, please consider making a donation to one of…

  • Standardization: Cycling away from the moderation “event”

    Update 2024: Standardization Cycle 2.0 is here. A quick post to share a resource, based on some of our work at CA. I love cycle diagrams and was thinking about the process of moderation, planning and the challenges of effective collaboration when there are grades (and a big pile of ‘done’ grading) at stake.  If…