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Leaving My Comfort Zone: What I Did on Summer Break

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In a  speech  I delivered to teachers at our convocation last year, I challenged them to do something outside of their comfort zone. Little did I know that on the last day of the school year, I would be boarding a plane to Nairobi, Kenya, to do something way out of my comfort zone. I would be “walking the walk” so to speak. I would be on a mission to help promote literacy and higher level thinking strategies to teachers in rural Kenya. Finding My Mission For many, mission trips are religious in nature or in direct response to natural disaster. For me, my mission stemmed from a global pen pal  course  I wrote and piloted. Through this course, I developed a relationship with  Kenya Connect , a non-profit group whose mission is to keep kids in school with various programs for health and education. The population they serve are generally subsistence farming families that live in extreme poverty (no electricity, no running water, no access to healthcare). In fact, most of the schoo
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Author and Storyteller David Neilsen visits!

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What a treat for myself and my students! Middle Grades author David Neilsen visited our class to talk about how he gets inspired to write and what images specifically inspired him to write his two books:  Dr. Fell and the Playground of Doom and Beyond the Doors ! Being a master storyteller, David captivated students with his varied voices and surprising expressions!  The students laughed, oooed, ahhhed, and really stretched their imaginations creating stories based on some of the surprising images David presented to them.  He even wore a purple hat just like his main character, Dr. Fell. When I asked if I should have David come back next year to visit my new 6th graders, I got an emphatic "Yes!  Definitely!  He was AWESOME!" and I couldn't agree more! Check out more about David, his books, and his storytelling on his website . 
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Help us make our mission teaching trip to Kenya a reality this Summer--June 2018!

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We'd love your help so that we can help other teachers!  We will be working in rural Kenyan schools for two weeks this summer to train Kenyan teachers how to encourage reading, creative writing, and science projects, and to promote critical thinking.  The students we will be working with live in extreme poverty, and the teachers receive little to no staff development, so it is our mission to use our teaching talents and experiences to improve their educational lives.   We hope to raise money to help defray the cost of the trip which will be about $3,800 for each of us.  The cost of rooming, meals, and transportation while in Kenya is approximately $1,000 for each of us. Airfare round trip from New York to Nairobi will be approximately $1,370 for each of us depending on pricing at the time of booking.    Then there are visas, airport transfers, medical kits, teaching supplies...The costs add up! We've had a relationship with Kenya Connect for a few years now.
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My Message to Teachers : Convocation 2017

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As Greenwich's representative for the Connecticut Teacher of the Year program, I was honored to speak at our big kick off meeting today.   We got to meet our new superintendent, Dr. Jill Gildea.  Student Body President Greg Goldstein started off the program by thanking teachers for everything we do.   Carol Sutton, president of the Greenwich Education Association, was a hard act to follow, and our Keynote speaker,  Thomas Murray, director of Innovation for Future Ready Schools, made us laugh, cry, and sing!  What a wonderful way to start the year!
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Conversations with Zimbabwe: Developing a Global Mindset

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By Bridget Suvansri As this school year comes to a close, I can’t help but be filled with joy at the positive experiences my students and I shared. Yes, they improved their writing skills, read wonderful books, conducted research, delivered presentations, took standardized tests, and all of the rest.  And yes, all of that is worth celebrating. But what stands out the most, by far, are the moments that happened during our second Global Conversations literature course with The Anderson School in Gweru, Zimbabwe. After reading Lois Lowry’s The Giver , students explored the concept of Utopia, the impact of rules on a society, and how societies grapple with the issues.  The power in the course lies in the research and sharing of real-world issues that the students face in their local communities such as racism, gender roles, unemployment, pollution, and crime.  Ultimately, students are challenged to think about the solutions to these issues and how improvements can be made.
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The World's Largest Lesson Plan: My Summer PD

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by Bridget Suvansri It’s common for teachers to take large chunks of their summer vacation to teach summer school, work another job, or engage in professional development.  Some teachers even do all of the above.  As one of those teachers who takes some time for PD, I want to tell you my plans. What is the World’s Largest Lesson Plan? The World’s Largest Lesson Plan “aims to introduce the Global Goals for Sustainable Development  to children and young people everywhere, and help them take action,” and I want in!   It’s an amazing and extensive set of resources to help teachers teach students about the Sustainable Development Goals, or SDGs.   The Sustainable Development Goals are 17 goals to achieve 3 extraordinary things by 2030: End extreme poverty. Fight inequality and injustice. Tackle climate change. Don’t be fooled by thinking 2030 is SO FAR away!  It’s only 13 years away which means my incoming 6th graders (11-12 year olds)
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From Wamunyu to Greenwich...The Power of Perspective

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Yesterday started out as a typical school day at Eastern Middle School.  Students intently staring at iPhone screens before the bell; lots of wonderful books in hands throughout the day; kids tapping away on chromebooks in well-lit and air conditioned classrooms.   But then something extra special and different happened during the last period of the day.  We were fortunate to have two visitors from Kenya Connect come to talk with a group of 32 students who are participating in their second Level Up Village global collaboration course this year, this time with students in Africa.  We shared lots of laughs and listened to eye-opening descriptions of life for students in Kenya. Sharon Runge, Executive Director, and James Musyoka, Field Operations Manager, from Kenya Connect visited my 6th grade classroom as part of their two-week United States tour to celebrate the 15th anniversary of the organization. Sharon started out by sharing the work of Kenya Connect and how they help
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