HAPPY NEW YEAR!

I hope that everyone who reads my blog has a happy, healthy, safe and successful 2021 and that it brings you and those you love and care about, peace, fulfillment and all the things you really, really want. 

Most importantly, after the year we have just had,  love what you are doing, love the people you are with and simply be happy! And always remember that when it comes down to it the only things that really matter are faith, family and friends!

HAVE A GREAT CHRISTMAS... DESPITE COVID-19!

“I know what I want someone to give me for Christmas. I have known since I was forty years old…. It’s delight and simplicity that I want... foolishness and fantasy and noise, angels and miracles and wonder and innocence and magic. It’s hard to talk about but what I really, really want for Christmas is just this: I want to be five again for an hour and I want to laugh a lot and cry a lot. I know that it doesn’t make sense but since when is Christmas about sense anyway?” Robert Fulghum

WE ALL NEED TO BUY SOME MARBLES!

 In the hurly burly of life and work and our struggle against the challenges and problems life throws at us where there is never enough time or money to get by or to get ahead, we can forget the things that matter and are really important. And it's funny how Christmas brings everything into sharp focus.... it's a time when we need to be with friends, families and those we love.

This is the theory of "a thousand marbles."...

SOMETHING TO REMEMBER ON THESE DARK DAYS!

 

WHAT IS RESILIENCE?

THE SKILLS THAT MATTER!

Involvement with creativity and the arts is crucial to developing the skills that matter in life...resilience, communication, teamwork, problem solving, imagination, self-expression in young people. These are the skills that will fuel the success of the UK’s creative industries, and that will result in the next generation of creative talent across the country.

PASSION, PERSISTENCE AND HARD WORK MATTER!

Interestingly, people who work hard, persevere and have passion are more likely to live longer and be more successful than those with high IQ or those who are simply conscientious. These qualities need to lie at the heart of the curriculum we offer our children and young people...

DEBUNKING THE MYTHS!

"One of the reasons why we get stuck in education is that our thinking is framed by so many myths.

MYTH ONE: The poor will always do badly in school. That’s not true: the 10% most disadvantaged kids in Shanghai did better on an earlier PISA math test than the 10% most advantaged students in large American urban areas.

MYTH TWO: Immigrants will lower the performance of a country on international comparisons. That’s not true: PISA shows no relationship between the share of immigrants and the quality of an education system, and the school systems where immigrant students settle matters a lot more than the country where they came from.

MYTH THREE: Smaller classes always mean better results. That’s not true: in fact, whenever high-performing education systems have to make a choice between a smaller class and a better teacher, they go for the latter.

MYTH FOUR: More time spent learning always means better results. That’s not true: study hours in Finland are little more than half of what students in the UAE spend, but in Finland students learn a lot in little time while in the UAE they learn very little in a lot of time."

OECD Education and Skills Today

THE SKILLS THAT MATTER ARE THE SKILLS OF CREATIVITY AND THE ARTS!

”Work is important to help us reach our targets and goals in life, our dignity, and our happiness and well-being. We know that work helps us meet our most basic and complex needs, providing a path towards financial security, securing our mental and physical health, and giving our lives meaning. The prospect of a good job that pays a fair wage should be part of our promise to all our young people.”

The world of work is changing and employers are increasingly looking for people with the right skills, behaviours and attributes to succeed in the workplace. We need young people to develop the skills that matter in the world of work: skills that help improve productivity, that create great teams and that generate the ideas that every business needs to be successful. We all know that the keys to success in school, at work and in life are creativity, critical thinking, problem solving, communication, learning, and good judgment. These skills lie at the heart of the arts!

These are the skills that employers across industries consistently report seeking in job candidates and our capacity to think critically, communicate clearly, and solve complex problems is more important than our qualifications. In addition, employers are seeking candidates who have other sorts of “soft skills,” such as being able to be adaptable, to make good decisions and be good team players. These sought-after abilities, of course, fit perfectly with the sorts of things that people can do well, but are and will continue to be difficult for machines and technology to do.

All of this suggests that our educational systems should concentrate not simply on how people interact with technology, but also how they can do the things that technology can't do. Developing these skills in our young people is critically important, but we know what works and the latest research on education and employer engagement suggests that we should:

• Do a lot of things… the more the better!
• Do a lot of different things… business mentoring, coaching, employer talks, work place visits, enterprise challenges, work experience, project work, team building etc. 
• Start young… the younger the better!
• Be coercive… “young people don’t know what they don’t know”!
• Be professional… quality matters!
• Ask the students what they think!

YOU CAN CHANGE THE WORLD, BUT REMEMBER...

 

REMEMBER...

 

REMEMBER TO...

 

IF I'VE LEARNED ANYTHING FROM LIFE...

 

ALWAYS REMEMBER...

 

HOW TO LIVE LONG AND PROSPER!

I have said for a long time we simply need stay connected with friends and colleagues and volunteer and give to others whenever and whatever we can. Interestingly, some research gathered on more than 1,500 children who were about 10 years old when they were first studied in 1921 reinforces the point. This study provides the most comprehensive longitudinal evidence for how to live long and prosper.

SMILE OFTEN, DREAM BIG, LAUGH A LOT AND REALISE HOW BLESSED YOU ARE!

The Sunday Times published its latest Rich List a couple of weeks ago, and if like me you are fed up, with the vacuous celebrity culture that dominates everything in this country and the way the media and the rich and famous take advantage of the rest of us, you probably need encouragement to get you through the dark days and the long weekends.

GREAT NEWS: REACH 'Bags of Creativity'

Frances Postlethwaite and the Explore team have done an amazing job and we now have 800 REACH ‘Bags of Creativity‘ ready for delivery! 

The wonderful REACH Postcards were designed by a brilliant team of local artists, creatives and organisations and have been finished by Eloise and Mat at LazenbyBrown and printed and included in the Bags of Creativity! This has been an extraordinary effort from an amazing group of people determined to make a difference and bring the magic of creativity and the arts to some very special children and young people across the City of York over the Summer.

THE THINGS THAT MATTER!

The arts, creativity and culture are essential to our future and what we learn from history is that the arts, creativity and culture matter and make life worth living. 

The arts, creativity and culture enhance and enrich our lives, they tell us where we came from and help us to understand where we are going. What is encouraging in these extraordinary times, is that young people are creative, imaginative and passionate about the arts and sports and culture and many are developing the skills that matter; the creative skills that will give them the edge.  And increasingly, if our work is routine and systematic and organised, a computer can do our work faster, cheaper and better than we can. 

While almost every industrial process can now be automated, the arts, creativity and culture cannot. And, the future will belong to a different kind of young person with a different kind of mind. It will belong to designers, inventors, creators, writers, musicians, performers, artists, carers, teachers and storytellers. 

WHAT IS RESILIENCE?

ALWAYS FOCUS ON BELIEFS, VALUES, ATTITUDES AND BEHAVIOURS!

THE ARTS, CREATIVITY AND CULTURE MATTER!

The arts, creativity and culture are essential to our future and what we learn from history is that the arts, creativity and culture matter and make life worth living. The arts, creativity and culture enhance and enrich our lives, they tell us where we came from and help us to understand where we are going. What is encouraging in these extraordinary times, is that young people are creative, imaginative and passionate about the arts and sports and culture and many are developing the skills that matter; the creative skills that will give them the edge.  And increasingly, if our work is routine and systematic and organised, a computer can do our work faster, cheaper and better than we can. While almost every industrial process can now be automated, the arts, creativity and culture cannot. And, the future will belong to a different kind of young person with a different kind of mind. It will belong to designers, inventors, creators, writers, musicians, performers, artists, carers, teachers and storytellers. 

REMEMBER...

REMEMBER...

SUCCESS comes in CANS not CAN'TS!

Over the last twenty years I have seen so many extraordinary places and learned so much about success and achievement. It seems to me that successful organisations, successful schools and successful teams, all have the following characteristics...

• the vision, values and sense of purpose which shapes the way all colleagues behave;
• leadership that helps everyone know they are making a difference;
• the courage to set challenging goals and have high expectations of everyone;
• the imagination to develop new and cutting-edge solutions;
• the culture that values people and makes them feel special;
• the management that trusts, empowers and engages colleagues' distinct and unique talents;
• a rigorous and relentless approach to accountability;
• a strong focus on evaluating performance and individuals’ contributions;
• a concern for the wider community and the bigger picture;
• a reputation for excellence and hard work; and 
• a passionate commitment for learning.

Chris

THE FOUNDATION FOR YOUNG AUSTRALIANS REPORT: THE NEW WORK SMARTS!

THE FOUNDATION FOR YOUNG AUSTRALIANS REPORT: THE NEW BASICS!

THE FOUNDATION FOR YOUNG AUSTRALIANS REPORT: THE NEW WORK MINDSET!

THE FOUNDATION FOR YOUNG AUSTRALIANS REPORT: THE NEW BASICS!

MORE NOT LESS!

An education full of creativity, the arts and culture enriches and enhances the life chances of a young person. It’s difficult to imagine a truly outstanding school that hasn’t got creativity, the arts and culture at the heart of what it offers its young people. In a world where AI can do most things, creativity, the arts and culture aren’t just an extra-curricular bolt on. In a world where the future job clusters will focus on artisans, creators, designers, artists, and carers we need to be giving them more, not less.

LET'S CREATE!

I have been reading the Arts Council's new ten year strategy...

COPMANTHORPE BANNERS

I attended the Copmanthorpe Banners launch event last night at Copmanthorpe Explore Library. 

WATCH THIS SPACE!

WHY THE ARTS MATTER!

JUST IMAGINE!

Just imagine what a difference we could make if creativity, the arts and heritage experiences were part of an entitlement for all children and young people to give them the skills and attributes they need to thrive and succeed at school and at work and support their health and well-being from birth to adulthood!

EXPLORE LIBRARIES: MORE MAGIC!

We know that the EXPLORE LIBRARIES are as vital parts of the communities we serve and as important as schools, parks and the emergency services! They are wonderful places and they are not just about the books!! Increasingly they are about collections and connections; learning places, cultural centres, creative places, health&well-being centres, young people’s places at the heart of the communities we serve!

Explore Labs urges all York people to challenge their imagination. Under the strapline, “You don’t know what exciting ideas are inside your head until you go there: your dreams start here”, this award winning Arts Council England-funded community arts project coordinated by Explore York, runs activities at York Explore Library and its network of libraries throughout the communities we serve. 

This wonderful video show you a bit about the magic of Explore! https://youtu.be/fku3tog5_M8

EXPLORE LIBRARIES... RELEASING THE MAGIC!

We know that singing releases endorphins and makes you happy... Explore Libraries have a brilliant programme providing opportunities for people to sing in a relaxed, welcoming environment and enjoy a cuppa and a friendly chat! 'Cuppa and a Chorus' sessions are about enjoying making music with a group of friendly people! You do not need to read music or have any previous experience of singing, just a desire to meet new like-minded people in a welcoming environment and to find your own voice. The sessions are led by experienced community choir leader, Chris Bartram, who guides everyone gently through a variety of different music from around the world. This wonderful video gives you a taste of what is on offer!! https://youtu.be/Y75YBPp31L8

SKILLS AND CHARACTER MATTERS!

Involvement with creativity and the arts is crucial to developing the skills that matter in life...resilience, communication, teamwork, problem solving, imagination, self-expression in young people. These are the skills that will fuel the success of the UK’s creative industries, and that will result in the next generation of creative talent across the country.

LIBRARIES MATTER!

ITS A START: Multi-million-pound culture boost for children in schools!

School Standards Minister Nick Gibb announced a multi-million-pound package on Friday 3 January alongside a manifesto commitment to offer an ‘arts premium’ to secondary schools to allow young people to learn creative skills and widen their horizons. Asa usual music gets the biggest share of the funding and we need much more for creativity and the arts and to develop that critical skill set which sets children and young people up to thrive and succeed at school, at work and in life!!

The curriculum schemes that will receive a total of £85 million for 2020/21 are as follows:

• Music Education Hubs
• In Harmony
• National Youth Music Organisations (NYMOs) and Music for Youth; and
• Cultural education (Heritage Schools, BFI Film Academy, Museums and Schools, ACE Bridge Network, National Youth Dance Company, Saturday Art and Design Clubs).