Summer Reading List
Books on the Brain and Learning:
Jen Stanchfield, M.S.

Summer is a great time to relax and rejuvenate. Many educators find that some time away from our students or clients is perfect for reflecting on our professional practice. It can be enjoyable to take some time to learn about new resources and [...]

Latest Wood ‘N’ Barnes Friday Lesson: Thoughts on Sharing Journal Entries With Others

Excerpts from The Me I See: Click Here to Read Full Post

Processing in the Middle of the Experience
Jen Stanchfield

Often when we facilitate reflection with groups, we make time after the experience or lesson is completed to review and reflect. Many educators describe their reflective practice with groups as “debriefing”—a word that originated in the military for the act of eliciting a report from a soldier [...]

The Disappearance of Neighborhood Games of Kick-the Can, Part Two: Strategies for Helping Participants of All Ages Learn Through Play.

 
In Monday’s post I mentioned that I had observed a trend of children and adolescents missing out the development of important social & emotional skills because of a lack of time for “free [...]

Jen Stanchfield’s Upcoming Workshops Designed for Advisory Group Leaders:
Advisory group leaders report that they are always looking for new ideas for facilitating advisory sessions with students. Many educators are planning for the remaining few months of school, summer programs and the start of next school year. The Chewonki Foundation in Wiscasset Maine and the [...]

What is Experiential Education? How is it relevant to my work as an educator or counselor?

The experiential approach to education and group work is based on the idea that change and growth take place when people are actively (physically, socially, intellectually, emotionally) involved in their learning rather than just being receivers of information. The philosophy [...]

(Excerpt from Tips & Tools: The Art of Experiential Group Facilitation, Wood ‘N’ Barnes Publishing 2007)

Group facilitation is like cooking….
When you first start cooking, you follow the tried and true recipes from family, a friend or colleague, or a cookbook. As your skills increase you start to improvise and vary the ingredients. Successful [...]

Just recently I returned from a trip to Ontario where I had the honor of being this year’s guest speaker at the annual Adventureworks! Author’s Symposium.  I  appreciated the positive energy and enthusiasm of everyone who attended my  two workshops: The Art of Experiential Group Facilitation and Teachable Moments : Processing Tools  & Techniques. It [...]

Jen Stanchfield’s workshop The Art of Experiential Group Facilitation. Jennifer Stanchfield and Josh Meyer presented a Holistic Approach to Teaching focused on brain-based learning, differentiated instruction and positive behavioral supports.

Today’s Wood ‘N’ Barnes Friday Lesson:
Two weeks ago I submitted the post “Bringing Learning to Life Through Reflection” which explored the use of metaphor in reflection. I mentioned that by using a variety of reflective methods—ranging from group dialogue, active reflection methods, artwork and the use of tangible objects, images, or metaphor—we can help participants [...]