New from Community Works Journal: Latest Edition now online

follow us on Facebook follow us on Twitter Connect, Inspire, Transform CWI's Internationally Acclaimed Summer Institutes for Educators CWI's Summer WEST Institute on Service-Learning July 30th - August 3rd, 2012 Los Angeles, California at Loyola Marymount University more information l register online email l 909.480.3966 CWI's Summer EAST Institute on Service-Learning July 16th -20th, 2012 Shelburne, Vermont in partnership with Shelburne Farms more information l register online email l 909.480.3966 "CWI's Institute has helped me refine and strengthen my teaching skills. A wonderful experience!" Margot Glenos, Teacher East Park School District Moss Point, Mississippi "I felt reaffirmed...Thank you for a stimulating, thoughtful, and useful week. I learned a lot, met wonderful people, and had time to think and plan. I was inspired!" Chris Tananone Global Issues/Service Coordinator International School of Bangkok more Institute alumni comments WHO SHOULD ATTEND: K-16 teachers, community based educators, administrators, and program trainers and leaders. CWI Institutes are appropriate for beginner to veteran practitioners. As an Institute Participant you will... * Identify academic connections between service-learning and essential knowledge. * Find practical ways to encourage student voice in the learning process. * Develop a deeper understanding of the role and practice of reflection. * Learn strategies to develop authentic community partnerships * Reinvigorate your practice and commitment to education. * Find practical ways to engage students in compelling community based work. * Become part of CWi's network of passionate educators. “CWI gave me the opportunity to go deep in my understanding of service-learning and the way it can transform education. This Institute has given me a framework with which to return to my community with concrete ideas on how to implement service-learning.” Elizabeth Ferguson, Educator The Lawrenceville School New Jersey  “I feel empowered! Thank you! It was wonderful to see and feel the sincerity of the faculty for service-learning.” Kathleen Harte, Teacher The Gillispie School, La Jolla, California Discover Community Works Journal Online Magazine for Educators l NEW Spring 2012 Edition NOW ONLINE Dear Colleagues, The latest edition of Community Works Journal online magazine is now available, at no cost, to the educational community. GO TO: www.communityworksinstitute.org The ideals of service-learning, education for sustainability, and place based education resonate through Community Works Journal. As you read these inspiring stories written by educators in the field, consider your own place and efforts and think about submitting an article of your own. (Submission guidelines are available on our web site at: www.communityworksjournal.org) CURRENTLY FEATURED ESSAYS and ARTICLES INCLUDE: ESSAY l Of PLACE AND EDUCATION Burning Brush: Playing with Fire By DAVID SOBEL The glad animal play of childhood, the complete immersive quality, is one of the elixirs of life and also one of the indispensable proteins that build a sturdy adult soul. Middle childhood offers a window of opportunity to have these experiences, and if a child misses that opportunity, the quality of immersion is less accessible later in life. When, as adults, we sink into a novel or get lost in creative work or tussle with new ideas or improvise on the job, we’re using the skills that were roughed in during childhood play. read more UPCOMING EVENTS l PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT Join with educators from around the world for a week of intense exploration, learning, and practical application. A reminder that space is limited for Community Works Institute's (CWI) annual summer series of unique professional development events. Registration is well underway and these events will fill rapidly. Among the events being offered are CWI's Summer EAST and WEST Institutes on Service-Learning, along with our partner Shelburne Farms' Education for Sustainability Institute. All events are appropriate for K-16 and community educators and administrators. Register Now, Space is LIMITED!  more info FEATURED ARTICLE Digging a Hole: Clinical Teaching and the Journey of Learning By Dr. STUART GRAUER As educators and students, what gets us ready to commit to an endeavor, to a class or study, to a purpose, rather than grazing half-heartedly through another class?  What makes us tap in to something larger?  What causes us to cast off our timid shadows and engage fully in life and the largest purposes we can find for it? At some point, we believe that probably all the best lessons really are journeys; we hope our students can somehow experience new worlds and that a great lesson is like an expedition.  read more FEATURED REFLECTION Making Sustainability and Service-Learning Mesh in the Classroom By NATALIE LAROSE One way in which my classroom is going to improve the quality of life for all is through a service-learning project that I have designed that aligns with the first history unit I will be delivering, “North Street Then and Now.” Over the course of the unit students will learn about the history of the street on which their school is located, an area with rich cultural diversity and history but also traditionally an economically challenged area of the city. read more FEATURED ARTICLE The Ideal Engaged Citizen? By JAKE GROHS Sometimes the fork in the road also serves as a necessary slap in the face. There I was—an over-caffeinated Master’s student in Engineering Mechanics at Virginia Tech, dutifully working on my thesis in preparation for a May 2009 graduation.  Decent grades. A four-year veteran on a project sponsored by General Motors.  Supportive advisors happy to recommend me to potential employers. read more FEATURED ARTICLE A Wild Experience: The Transformative Power of Nature By KELSEY STAMM What happens when you take a group of inner-city kids from Philadelphia, most of who have never traveled outside the state, and plop them on a remote Costa Rican beach with no electricity? The answer? Magic. Eleanor Boli, a Spanish teacher at Germantown High School in Philadelphia, spent the last year raising money to take six of her students on a field science and cultural exchange program. read more FEATURED ARTICLE The Grief Outreach Initiative: University Students Help Grieving Children in the Community By TRICIA MCCLAM, Ph.D. and MARY ALICE VARGA, M.Ed. She told him that her mother had died on Valentine’s Day. She still wanted to read the book, but Dean Rider could not forget the memory and how the child’s grief affected her—she was held back in school because she could not adjust socially and academically. “Right then and there, sitting outside Mrs. McCoy’s room at the school on a carpeted staircase, I was lost for words,” said Rider. read more PAST PRINT ISSUE ARCHIVE In addition to the featured essays, reflection and articles listed here you will find a large archive of articles, ideas, and resources available through Community Works Journal Online Magazine, including an archive of past print issues of the Journal. Enjoy! Joe Brooks CWI Executive Director jbrooks@communityworksinstitute.org

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