Author Archives: cshaw97

Welcome Back Innovation Lab!

Posted on September 19, 2018 by cshaw97

Innovation Lab welcomes another year as a program that offers rigor, choice, and real world connections to our students. As many of you already know, Christina Shaw, former Humanities teacher and program associate of Innovation Lab, will now serve GHS … Continue reading →

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Communication in the Cold

Posted on January 16, 2017 by cshaw97

This summer, in conjunction with our friends from Greenwich Leadership Partners, we devised goals and strategies to help move us forward during year two of Innovation Lab. High on our list was implementation and revision of curricula; and the creation … Continue reading →

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The Strength of Community

Posted on September 24, 2016 by cshaw97

According to research, the effects of creating strong community for our students is positive and far reaching, but for some reason this gets complicated for many large schools.  Within Innovation Lab our philosophy and our scheduling make it a bit … Continue reading →

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On March and Motivation

Posted on March 20, 2016 by cshaw97

It is difficult for any student–even the Innovation lab kind–to remain motivated in the month of March.  Spring promises warmer weather and all that goes with it, but the end of the school year seems light years away.  Finishing up … Continue reading →

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On Growth Mindset, Teen Stress, and Creating Resilience

Posted on October 31, 2015 by cshaw97

Several days ago I noticed something wasn’t quite right with my eleven- year-old daughter as she disembarked from the school bus.  Her customary care free gait was replaced by slumped shoulders and deliberate steps toward our home’s patio.  “What’s wrong?” … Continue reading →

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Building a New Beginning

Posted on September 18, 2015 by cshaw97

Today ends another successful week in Innovation Lab. Students spent time buzzing about their STEM classroom researching organic compounds. In Humanities, the focus was persuasive communication, as students explored the ancient art of rhetoric and brainstormed positions they might take … Continue reading →

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Weekly Wrap-up: Examining STEM projects through the lens of Humanities

Posted on May 8, 2015 by cshaw97

This week we focused on tuning our STEM project proposals for our sophomore’s first semester.  Humanities anxiously awaited the ideas of our Science/Math counterparts, feeling excited and at the same time uneasy with our ignorance about STEM. Would the projects … Continue reading →

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Weekly Wrap-up: Tuning for Success

Posted on March 27, 2015 by cshaw97

This week the Innovation Lab team spent time polishing curriculum design, and thinking about the most efficient ways of updating and sharing our newest ideas with parents and faculty. In Humanities, we have discussed and created rough drafts of documents … Continue reading →

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Our Trip to Springfield Renaissance School

Posted on October 14, 2014 by cshaw97

Two Fridays ago I had the pleasure of visiting the Renaissance School in Springfield, MA with a team of teachers from GHS.  The school is considered a magnet school within the Springfield school district.  Its population is typically urban, with a high … Continue reading →

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The Problem of Creating Better Mentoring Solved Through PBL Environments

Posted on August 13, 2014 by cshaw97

In my career as a teacher, and now especially as an Assistant Dean, I have often pondered the tough questions about education.  Why do some students of average or better intellect fail while others succeed?  Why is there an “achievement … Continue reading →

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