Raising Creative, Curious, and Caring Kids with Gregg Behr

Gregg Behr, executive director of the Grable Foundation and co-author of When You Wonder, You’re Learning, joins Joe and TJ on FocusED.​The episode centers on Mr. Rogers’ lessons in creativity, curiosity, care, and what they mean for schooling today.​Fred Rogers is framed as an innovator who used the technology of his time to make what was attractive to kids also good and constructive.​Behr explains that Rogers studied with major child development experts and quietly embedded learning science into puppetry, lyrics, routines, and set design.​The book argues that Fred was ahead of his time and offers a blueprint for education in 2025 and beyond.​Rogers’ classic “crayon factory” episode illustrates starting with something familiar, then moving students into the unknown in a safe way.​Behr parallels this with a 10th grade AP World Cultures teacher who begins each lesson with a concrete artifact to spark curiosity before exploring complex historical content.​TJ raises the idea of teachers developing a deliberate “teacher self” or persona.​Behr emphasizes that Rogers would want adults to bring their full, authentic selves to learning spaces, viewing each interaction with a child as “holy ground.”​He notes that the goal is not to create “modern-day Fred Rogers,” but the most authentic version of each educator.​Behr argues that psychological safety, belonging, and feeling “loved and capable of loving” are prerequisites for academic outcomes.​He describes leaders who successfully blend care and accountability by granting teachers permission: small discretionary funds, time to observe others, and space for peer-led professional learning.​Behr calls wonder a skill that, like empathy, must be practiced intentionally.​He shares the “Ask It Basket” strategy, where off-topic student questions are written down, saved, and revisited together, signaling that wondering is valued and safe.​He also highlights “awe walks” in nature, literature, math, and school hallways as routine opportunities to notice and nurture curiosity.​For leaders focused on test scores and strategic plans, Behr points to evidence from schools that build in “guaranteed wonder time” through personalized learning and maker spaces.​These environments increase student agency, reduce dropouts, decrease charter flight, and improve math and English scores while fostering deeper unmeasured learning.​Behr describes Remake Learning as a 20-year network of 800+ schools, museums, libraries, early learning centers, and creative industries advancing engaging, relevant learning.​Resources at remakelearning.org and remakelearningdays.org include open publications on profiles and portfolios, maker-centered learning, STEM, and human flourishing.​Behr describes his hoped-for legacy as creating a real-life “land of make believe” for children—a connected learning landscape across schools, after-school programs, early learning, and internships.​He wants regional pathways where kids can find passions, interests, and purpose, supported by intentional collaboration among caring adults.