Four years ago, as we lived through COVID restrictions, I continued to work in the Wonder Studio with students, and crafting became our safe haven. I had considered abandoning for a year, but the children would stop me in the hallway or during classes and ask, “When is Wonder Studio starting again? You need to get it up and running!” I could not disappoint them. I have been privileged to work alongside some of the bravest and most brilliant little girls who would not take “NO!” for an answer. So, I kept offering times throughout that COVID year, stopping occasionally when restrictions prevented us from meeting.
Category: memory
Liftoff to the Moon: Human Hope & Courage
Houston, we have liftoff. My heart swells when I hear that phrase. Today, I think of Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch, the NASA astronauts and Jeremy Hansen, the Canadian Space Agency astronaut who are, as I write this, heading back to Earth on their spacecraft, Integrity, after being the first humans to see the far side of the moon. They are also the first humans to go the furthest away from the Earth, 252,760 miles. Imagine being that far from home! What does that feel like? How courageous and optimistic do you have to be to venture that far? I am amaze and proud that we still live in the Age of Exploration. I was beginning to doubt if humans had that creative bravery anymore, and I’m please tonight to see that we do.
Book. Memory. Promise: Never Forget
I am encouraged and so thankful that Lois Lowry has written Tree. Table. Book. The octogenarian author of Number the Stars and The Giver, Ms. Lowry is an expert storyteller and isn’t afraid to take on controversial subjects. She is a master at presenting hard situations and ethical problems to a young audience. This most recent book spans generations and shows how stories can connect rather than tear people apart. With story and memory, we can build bonds and begin to understand each other. This connection between the old and young is crucial; it is the sticky hope that will ensure “never forget” leads to the promise of “never again.”
Making the Broken, Beautiful
When I read "Broken" by X. Fang and thought about a memory of something broken, I immediately thought about a glass jar that held cigars tightly packed in concentric circles. This jar was not something that I broke. No. But I can see it vividly even though this memory is close to 60 years old. I thought the glass container was so beautiful, encircled by a red satin ribbon, holding something my father enjoyed – cigars. When I saw it in the store, I knew I had to buy it for him for Father’s Day. I was so pleased with myself and knew he would be proud of me.
Joy to Writers: Lessons from 2nd Grade
This week, I had the great pleasure of working with our 2nd grade students. I did a short, guided listening activity in which I gave them multi-step directions and then they drew from memory. The object they were creating was a girl, a simple shape by shape little girl with a party hat on her head and a present in one hand. They all followed the directions perfectly. Then I asked them: What is the girl’s name? Who is the present for? What happened at the party? Then on the back of their paper, they were asked to tell a story. It is still amazing to me what young children can do with a simple prompt.
Put Learning in Their Hands
I’m at a point in my life when I look back and reflect on my decisions, I think about all the steps (and missteps) I’ve made that brought me this far. The one thing that stands out for me is how working with my hands has been a major theme throughout my childhood, teenage years, and all the decades of my adult life.
Crafting Perseverance in the Wonder Studio
...the Wonder Studio is a place where no one is telling them what to do; they can devise their own projects and get messy. This is very important to them, and I dare say, it is a crucial part of growing and learning. Children need opportunities to try out ideas, fail, try again, and keep going until they succeed, which in this case comes in the form of felt, wood, beads, hot glue, and cardboard.
Working in the Wonder Studio: Stitching Meditation
This fall, the 5th graders had four weeks to explore the Wonder Studio. We showcased things made of duct tape, and I had pictures of different projects on the bulletin board for them to see and get inspired. However, what ended up inspiring them was some orange felt and black socks I had in the sewing space. October was mainly spent teaching a group of girls to sew.
Revisiting a Young Writer’s Practice
As a child, I loved to write. The pencil was an extension of my hand and mind. I found that all the stories in my head could be released onto beautiful blank white paper. This revelation was exciting to me. I couldn’t wait to jot down my stories. It took me some time to realize that not everyone in the world finds writing fun and adventurous. It wasn’t until I became a teacher that I learned that there are children who have trouble getting their stories down on paper.
Mapping the Imagination
Much of my preparation for writing takes place in action. I walk in the various woods nearby my house, and as I walk, words come into my head and form a description of what I’m seeing. Each step takes on a cadence, and the words sort themselves out into a rhythm.
Word Dancer: Literature, the Arts, & Education 