Teaching Teachers

Finding a thread
Melbourne, Australia
Carol Burnes

I  have taught many workshops with teachers, both in the US and abroad, at schools, universities, teaching centers, and international conferences. For example, as a featured presenter for three years at the European Council of International Schools, I held my workshop, Teaching Teachers Live, where I demonstrated my method with fifteen students (new to me) in front of 350 teachers, explaining each step with students to the teachers. For places I have taught, see Master classes.

I invite teachers to participate in the same process I offer students, sparking ideas and finding threads to follow in creating a piece. As teachers create, I am able to address many of their issues, and they are able to understand on a deeper level what the challenges might be for their students in writing or performing. My method is highly interactive and participatory. People write, create spoken pieces, and share – overcoming the doubts and confusion we all feel when we take the risk to create. And they savor the exhilaration of expressing their surprising ideas.

Bubbles
photo by Lyn Hoopes

Comments on my work:
“Carol is not only a talented writer, but she also has a gift for teaching her craft as well as for instructing others how to teach it.”
—Clara Pollerman Duff, principal Merrimack Schools, New Hampshire