My mother worked as a teacher for twenty-five years. Looking back at old class photos, I can see how much she loved what she did. She put a lot of energy into her work and into her students. I loved listening to her talk about them and the projects she did with them. She had wanted to be a dress designer in New York City. She was a good artist and always encouraged my sister and me to paint and draw. In fact, she painted one wall in our basement pure white and let us paint and design whatever we desired. Once it was up for a while, she’d paint it white again, and we would start anew. Years later, I realized how much she influenced me: I love to draw, write, and read. I love sharing everything I know with small children. I taught many children to sew, just like my mom taught me.
Category: Art
Wonder Studio: Where Crafting Meets Deep Learning
In October, the 4th graders came to the Wonder Studio and got busy building with cardboard. They loved making fidget boards and designing miniature rooms for little potato people that they made with a 3D printer at home. I try to reserve the studio space for hand-crafting without technology, but I loved how the girls used the technology they are learning in CS&E (Computer Science and Engineering) and at home to create projects they build from cardboard scraps and popsicles. There is something so satisfying about that.
Mindful in the Mountains
The first six weeks of school have been filled with busy and hurry. I found myself moving so fast without really thinking. I knew I needed to carve a bit of time out for myself, so my husband and I took a long weekend to head to the mountains. Every October we head north to New Hampshire to take in the splendor of autumn leaves turning into their full golden glory. I cherish this time away and feel myself relax immediately as the mountains rise on either side of the road, enveloping me in their sloping arms.
Connection: Only One You!
Now, while I may not work with all of them directly, I do make sure I know their names and find out a little bit about each one of them. This means that my brain is on overdrive in September, and I have to remind myself to slow down and really connect – connect with faculty, students, and their parents. This means meeting with faculty and parents to discuss the best support paths for many students. This also means connecting with students. I spend the first few weeks of school inviting myself into classrooms, reacquainting myself with our students and getting to know new ones.
Creating Calm: Mindful 8 Poems Inspired by Maine
Since I know August is the calm before the Back-to-School storm, I thought I’d select some of my favorite Maine photographs and write Mindful 8 poems to accompany them. As I wrote them, I was struck by how peaceful I became. I concentrated on nature and tried to distill the essence of its beauty with spare words. This is becoming an important practice for me, and it also helps to alleviate writer’s block.
Empowering Girls Through Poetry
This week, the girls and I return to poetry for a respite. We are still revising our fantasy stories, but needed a little spark of energy. Since the school where I teach is a school for girls, in fact it is the oldest girls’ school in New Jersey, I am keenly aware of the need for raising confident and resilient girls.
Visual Prompts to Enhance Student Writing
To help students keep up their writing skills, I often create a collection of visual prompts to spark their imaginations and help them write. I create stories with them, and we share what we have created back and forth all summer long. Besides giving students practice writing, they also get practice reading and critiquing what I have written. This summer writing project becomes an important collaboration where both student and teacher take risks, think creatively, and revise their work based on mutual feedback.
The Road to Summer
My mind has been on high alert, making yet another “to-do” list. However, a springtime cold slowed me down this week and forced me to sit, sleep, and wonder. June snuck up on me; all of a sudden it arrived. With only two more weeks of school ahead of me, I’m looking forward to getting outside into the air, the green, the blue of nature. I am thirsting for time on my own to roam the woods and shorelines from Maine to Miami. Most of my colleagues and our student body are also weary of indoor school days and are anticipating the freedom that June brings: our own pace, our own activities, our own adventures. This sense of freedom is part of the school cycle that I have been part of since I was four years old.
Working in the Wonder Studio: Crochet Student
Last week, a small group of 5th graders decided they were going to teach me to crochet. I bought crochet hooks and yarn, and tried to remember this skill that I had learned in high school. High school was a very long time ago for me. I remembered nothing. I realized my hands aren't as dexterous as they once were. This crochet adventure was going to be an uphill climb. I needed a good teacher.
Three Pillars of Teaching: Heart, Creativity, and Connection
This week, I was reminded that sometimes good things come in 3’s, and that connecting with students remains my main joy in life. There are three quotations at the end of each email I send. They sum up my philosophy of teaching perfectly: Educating the mind without educating the heart, is no education at all – Aristotle, Creativity is intelligence having fun – often attributed to Einstein but is not confirmed, and Difficult roads lead to beautiful destinations – Zig Ziglar, a motivational speaker. I realize that these three pillars have been the foundation of how and why I continue to teach.
