The Back Story: This video was taken in my home the night before our 2018 summit in my hometown of Cedar Rapids, IA… a Jenius Summit 4: educational gurus
Dr. Monte Selby is one of the greatest human beings on planet earth. I’m proud to call him my friend and mentor.
It’s important to know Monte is a Better Dad than he is a National award winning Educational Leader. Awards are cool and this song is a “decent” indicator of his WOW jenius as one of the most respected and top singer songwriters on planet Earth. He would never tell you unless you asked…dude has a Grammy under his belt. #bigtime
Will all that being said… it’s equally fascinating witnessing him order pancakes for breakfast. Burnt. He likes them burnt. Dude is “weirdo.”
On the couch beside me is our mutual friend and one of the top educational leaders in the country. It was this man, Dr. Joe Childs (2019 South Dakota Principal of the year) who asked the question:
“What was the hardest song you have ever written with kids.”
It was at that moment I scrambled to find my phone and pressed record. I trust my WOWs….and can feel when magic is about to happen. I was right. Thank you Monte for allowing me to share and to you Joe for always asking the best questions.
Monte has a gift of helping groups of students or individuals share their story in ways nobody in the world can do. It’s personal. Music is the universal language of which these students (and each one us as students in life) feel safe to share (at times) the worst moments in their life for the first time.
With his guidance and direction being FIRST an educator and then a master craftsman worthy of a grammy in the area of music, collaboration can result in a number 1 hit song. I may be wrong, but this is one of them.
Personal FIRST. then LEARN. Seek it. Create it. Gift it.
If Monte can take a huge group of middle school students and have them work together to create a final product molded into a song like Your True Love … we need to rethink why our students rarely have a voice in their own learning. Who owns the learning? How loud is their “normal” song and dance?
If we expect our students to put hours of time outside of school into homework, or spend weeks in class expecting them to give us their best, as educators and business leaders we need to ask ourselves this: who sees the final product? What’s the value of a grade vs learning and mastering through ones
own passions and play?
We only need to ask these 5 questions each year (starting in Kindergarten)
5 questions.
1. What do you love to learn about
2. What is the best way you learn
3. What do you love to play with and with whom
4. What is hard for you in school and do you feel safe?
5. What does the perfect space look like for you to learn best and what staff member, student, family or adult friend would you pick first if you had the day off and could invite them to play. Help. Laugh …and unspoken Learn?
When educators come together for a child and work to meet their PERSONAL 1st needs, THEN analyze and map cross curricular real life relevance goals for the same common goal of that child, we can give them the greatest gift. A safe environment with a PERSONAL plan to Learn in ways relevant to their unique lives and habitats. It’s a Powerful Plan full of Passion. Shared by both the student and their favorite people in both their school and greater community.
Personal FIRST. then LEARN. Seek it. Create it. Gift it.
Witnessing the power of a child owning and driving the process of their song learning along with Monte leading the way to the final product is more than just inspiring. It’s revolutionary.
It’s a personal level of learning and mastery no assessment could or will ever be able to show. Like this song. What “grade” would you gift those 6th graders? Group project though right? Wait … “not fair this dad did all the work for them…” 🙂
My grade? It’s perfect. Call it whatever you want. It changed my life so A++ ? Okay ��
Mine? “Just Perfect”
