“We can’t stop the learning for a month.”

It’s not No Learn November. It’s No Grade November.

No one said anything about stopping learning. Ever. Learning won’t be taking a back seat. It will be front and center. The whole idea is to take off the training wheels, to remove the strings, and to take away the crutches.

Learning without the hindrance of grading. Learning about learning.

So what does that look like? Well, it starts in the same place as it would with grades: our priority or focus standards–or whatever language we use to identify the standards at the center of our work. And I think this is a key point to make with those who may have misgivings (principals, department chairs, parents) about the No Grade November campaign. The learning will still be centered, will still be focused upon the same standards. That much will be the same. It has to be. But I think from there, the sameness stops (to a degree). It has to. Taking grades away for a month will create a different dynamic in the room, a reality that will be both liberating and frightening. The wheels are off. The vehicle will change, so we have to drive it differently. And that will require some planning, beginning with, “How do I want it to look? How do I want it to feel–for me and the kids?” Many have dreamed of a reality where they were unencumbered by grading. Here we have a chance to imagine–and create–what that will look like. Exhilarating. Intimidating.

And it is the latter that will keep some from venturing down the path. They will convince themselves that they don’t have the ideas, the time, or the energy to plan for such an occasion. And so, with that in mind, I will seek to support folks in the coming weeks and months with ideas for planning and rolling out the learning during No Grade November.

The learning will not stop; in fact, it may well finally begin.

Happy Monday, all.

Do. Reflect. Do Better.