As our students receive their first assignments of the
school year, I would like to reflect on a bit of homework our faculty and staff
completed over the summer.
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| MS teacher Nicola De Torre reading her copy of "Drive." |
Faculty and administrators convened in groups to discuss one
of four thought-provoking
summer reading choices, including (titles linked to
video synopsis):- "Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us," by Daniel H. Pink
- "NurtureShock: New Thinking About Children," by Po Bronson and Ashley Merryman
- "Creating Innovators: The Making of Young People Who Will Change the World," by Tony Wagner
- "How Children Succeed: Grit, Curiosity, and the Hidden Power of Character," by Paul Tough
The titles address the complexities of student motivation
and elicited spirited brainstorming on the topic leading into the 2013-2014 school
year. I look forward to witnessing the fruits of those discussions in our
classrooms and want to thank all of our faculty members for their contributions
during those sessions.
Join us for two
parent discussion groups
I’d also like to invite parents to join USM faculty and
staff members for one of two upcoming book discussions .The parent group
discussion for "Drive" and "NurtureShock" will be held
on Wednesday, October 9 and
a discussion for "Creating Innovators" and "How Children
Succeed" will take place on Wednesday, November 6. Parents will be able to sign up
electronically in the coming weeks.
