Anima Learning

Insights & inquiries for inspired learning

Drawn from the worlds of growth mindset, contemplative practice, improvisational theater, and positive reinforcement training. Also including other oddities and life adventures.

ANIMA Blog •

Confidentiality vs. Privacy (Continued)

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My new friend and colleague, Al Bellg, wrote a thoughtful response to my last post about the differences between committing to confidentiality and honoring privacy when trying to welcome the soul. His powerful questions and insights deserve a wider audience so I thought to share them here. You’ll see another round of my own thoughts [more…]

Confidentiality vs. Privacy

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I used to think that welcoming the soul into group conversations required a promise of confidentiality. The late Rachael Kessler, pioneer in the field of social and emotional learning and author of The Soul of Education, changed my mind. For sure, a spirit of confidentiality helps. When we share unfiltered truth, we’re letting masks drop [more…]

An Invocation for Silence

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At Northfield Mount Hermon, the New England boarding school where I teach, we often begin all-school meetings with a few words of reflection or provocation and then a minute of silence to sit with what we’ve heard. At the beginning of each academic year, when the community re-forms anew, we sometimes decide to open the [more…]

First Idea: Forego or Follow?

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I heard several provocative guidelines for excellent design when our Applied Improvisation group toured Stanford’s graduate Institute of Design (d-School). One principle stood in particular contrast with a foundational tenet of improvisational theater. Now, a day later, I still find myself trying to make sense of the tension: should we follow a ‘first idea’ or [more…]

Helping Goldilocks Grow

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When designing ideal conditions for learning, we do well to consider the case of Goldilocks. If we make a lesson too difficult, our learner may shut down in frustration. Make it too easy and the learner walks away in boredom. In between those two poles lies a “Just Right” moment, a learning location that both fits and stretches.

Spontaneity School: 10 Improv Games to Develop Courage, Compassion and Creativity

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Use improv games to develop mindful presence–for groups and for you. Check out the new Playful Mindfulness book! And for “a curious romp through the worlds of mindfulness and improvisation, subscribe to the Monster Baby podcast by clicking here!     It’s that time of year. Parents have plucked the back-to-school aisles clean and have watched their [more…]

Three Faces of V (as in Venice)

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Like any one us, the city of Venice includes at least three sides: the shiny face she wants to have seen; an unsavory underbelly; and a realistic working element. Getting to know the real Venice—like getting to know the real students or colleagues we work with every day—means making simultaneous sense of all three.

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