This sheet connects the theme with each title of the book. 

Each of my books has a theme - 

or "big idea" for 

my readers to think 

about, talk about, and explore. 

While "bravery" might be a main theme in "The Dot," 

it is not the only one. It is just a starting point. 

It is also about self confidence, great teaching,

kindness, and creativity. 

I'd love to hear what big ideas/messages/themes 

you/your readers come up with! 

Some of the books on the theme sheet

are collaborations with some wonderful writers and thinkers,

like Susan Verde, Marc Colagiovanni, and my 

twin brother, Paul Reynolds. 

For more info: 

https://www.reynoldstlc.org/tlc-books

 

More Time To Spend Together

It's never too late to evolve your life philosophy.

My twin brother, Paul and I were heading into FableVision, our trans-media studios in Boston. We zipped along the back roads of our hometown of Dedham and sailed onto the highway entrance ramp. Paul swiftly stepped on the brakes as he saw the bumper-to-bumper traffic on Route 95. He eased the car into the slow moving mass. We began crawling at a few miles per hour. 

"Well, looks like we're stuck," I groaned, calculating how much of our day would be spent on the road. 

Paul looked at me with a smile and simply said,  

"More time to spend together." 

I couldn't help but smile too. Five words had melted my frustration -- instantly! 

The truth of his words sunk in during our pleasant two hour trip into Boston and have stayed with me ever since. 

If I find myself waiting in long lines at the airport with colleagues, family or friends and hear anyone sigh or complain I reach for the five words.  

"More time to spend together." 

Works every time. Smiles. Blood pressure lowered.

This is a great example of creative thinking, or what I like to call STELLAR THINKING. It's the kind of thinking that allows us to see new possibilities and discover answers to challenges right under our noses. It allows us to see the world in a more generous way. 

For example, a noisy classroom might seem as problematic as a traffic jam. I've been in a few classrooms where exasperated teachers were using lots of their precious energy to control the room. 

What I could see and hear was what I call "BEAUTIFUL NOISE."  

A room full of kids engaged and excited. 

Lots of thinking and exchanging of ideas. 

Laughter and smiles too. 

Joyful noise is much more satisfying than the sound of a "controlled classroom" with the clock ticking away. 

Stellar Thinking thrives on the ability to see patterns among chaos, to keep your sense of humor near at all times, to be ready to try the absolute opposite strategy to a solve a dilemma, to embrace mistakes as opportunities for creative problem solving, and to see the 30,000 foot view on a situation. Some situations might require the 60,000 foot view, but it really helps. 

I'm pretty certain this kind of approach to life will allow me to live longer -which will allow me to say:

"More time to spend together." 

Lost Children

We lose a lot of kids. 

And I mean A LOT of kids. Try well north of a half million kids a year in the USA. 

They simply drop out of public schools. (607,789 kids. (in 2008-9) according to the U.S. Dept. of Education)   That number boggles my mind. That is roughly the population of Vermont.

Let's imagine what the prospects of those "lost children" might be out there in the world with no degree, few skills, and the label of "a failure"? 

And let's venture a guess on who ends up helping shoulder their burden?

That's right: You and I.
 

Our communities have to dig deep to pay for the consequences of these "lost kids."

It's a shame that these kids, who leave school, do so without the skills to help us make things better.  If they could read, write, problem solve - and feel empowered -imagine tapping them on the shoulder to help architect schools that were boredom-proof? 

Ironic, no?

By the way, I'm a creative thinker, so I don't think all of these "lost kids" are truly lost.
Many do actually fight their way through and make a future for themselves.
Some of these "left fielders" actually do some amazing things left to their own devices.

Speaking of devices, technology is a pretty nifty "game changer." Kids don't need to be reminded to use their mobile devices. Keyboards are irresistable to even infants. Kids expect all screens to be touch screens. Tell kids to build a robot and they light up. Ask them to make a movie or an animated film and they'll work through the night. We've just begun to see the tip of the iceberg on how these tools will revolutionize learning.

Pretty obvious to me that with new tools - cross-pollinated with new thinking about what school is, what it can be, what it should be... and then we've got a shot at plugging back in one third of our country's future.
 

Engaged, creative, productive, innovative. 

Hey, isn't that the spirit that a participatory democracy thrives on?

Thinking for ourselves. 

Making own choices. 

Yet remembering that we're all in this together -- that our neighbors matter.

That's why my brother, Paul and I want to help press fast forward by launching a not-for-profit center dedicated to teaching, learning and creativity. We're interested in "out of the box" ideas that improve things- not just by a few percentage points - but by leaps and bounds. Applying  slightly improved "same old same old" approaches won't move the meter for those hundreds of thousands of kids who are falling off the grid each year. 

Those kids are our neighbors and our neighbors matter to us. 

We can't stand by and watch them suffer and miss the dream.

We count our lucky stars that we can make a difference.
That is what drives us. We get energized when we see kids light up. 

Teachers get recharged. Families get plugged in. Communities get energized.
 

We can't do this alone though... we need you. It's a complex challenge, but we love a good challenge. Many of the solutions to these challenges are ones that we already know work- but need room to breathe -and need to be protected and championed: conversation, listening, freedom, human connections- especially from caring mentors. Nothing beats an inspired teacher whose enthusiasm and energy inspires the same from those around them.

Explore our more at The Reynolds Center for Teaching, Learning & Creativity.

Update from my recent 2024 data search: Every year, over 1.2 million students drop out of high school in the United States alone. That's one student every 26 seconds – or 7,000 a day.