Dear Parents,
"Plenty good room, plenty good room," is the beginning of a song we have been singing lately in worship. As we sing the song, I invite the children to come and sit around a table cloth. The parents have been excellent snappers, keeping the rhythm as we sing. What has been incredible to me is how the children are moving to make space for others and how those invited are finding a space. The table is always full, if not crowded, but the children seem to know how to find a place to enter in.
We have been learning through the parables about the Kingdom of God. As I look at how the children are responding to this song, it reminds me of the saying of Jesus that if one wanted to be great one needed to be like a child. The children are showing us the way; they are making plenty good room. One of the ways to be great is to be welcoming, to find space to make room, and to realize that we all bring our unique gifts to the Kingdom of God.
We will celebrate the unique gifts that each child brings to The Nest as we enter the last six weeks of the school year. May is upon us and at the end of the month and through June we will begin honoring each child for the unique gift that he or she has brought to the classroom. We do this during worship. The teachers, who know their students so well, choose a character quality that describes the child. A few of the gifts might be words such as lover, gentle, prepared, builder, thoughtful, cheerful, leader, poetic, and yes, welcoming is among them.
There are many gifts and every year all the way through eighth grade at Mustard Seed, a student is recognized for a new gift. We know that children bring many gifts, a unique compilation of talents and qualities, and each year we highlight one of them. This is our gift to them and to you as parents. At the end of the school year at Mustard Seed, we want each student to know and claim the gifts that we see in each one. Both of my daughters were honored in this way during their years at Mustard Seed, each different in their gifting and each beautiful in the ways they were honored. As they have grown into young women, I still see those gifts in them today. The one who was prepared and graceful continues to be so. The one who was earnest and compassionate remains so. It is a delight to me as I see them bring this into their work and their communities.
What is wonderful about this affirmation and blessing of the students' gifts is that we see the children claim them in a new way. The builder builds with greater confidence. The musical person sings with full voice. The kind person spreads that kindness to more people. All of this benefits the children, the community, and you, blessing even more in this honoring.
The teachers will be contacting you soon about the dates when your child will be honored. Often the honoring happens after Memorial Day and during June. The teachers tell poignant stories that demonstrate the character quality of the student, and your child will receive a very simple medallion stating that quality. You will want to be there if you are able, not only for your child, but also to delight in how your child's classmates are honored. Seeing these gifts in the communities we as adults interact with blesses us all.
Surely, there is "plenty good room" despite our weaknesses and failures, for the truth is that we are invited to come, to "share the light," to share our gifts, to choose our "seat and sit down" as the song says. We are invited to celebrate the goodness in the Kingdom of God, in our life with each other, in the gifts that serve and bless us all. The children show us as they sing and come to join with others, there is plenty good room!
Blessings,
Shanna
Friday, April 29, 2016
Friday, April 22, 2016
Dear Parents,
It is good to struggle. Earlier in the week I asked Gary Lawrence, who had recently returned from a math conference (where they had to close the doors on his presentation) about a highlight, a moment that stood out to him from the conference. He spoke about a man who had arrived early to get a front seat, had asked about a triangle problem Gary had placed in a packet, and throughout the session exuded excitement. He came up to Gary afterwards, as did others, and said that this had been his favorite session at the conference. "Why would that be?" I asked. Gary said he was struggling with thinking about how to share that, but he felt it had a lot to do with who we were as a school since much of his presentation was about students' work. He sometimes takes students with him to these conferences when the conferences are nearby. He told me that he needed more time to reflect on that thought, but was grateful for my question.
Beautiful questions. Recently I listened to Krista Tippet's interview of David Whyte, a poet who works with corporations. One of the thoughts that gave me pause was this idea of beautiful questions. Gary searches for beautiful problems that will engage students in a struggle. The triangle problem, which I now have a copy of, is one of those that shows the beauty in math. That day I asked Gary some questions that shape how we view students and learning and the school, questions that led everyone in the office into wondering and reflecting together. David Whyte believes that we should ask beautiful questions because they shape a beautiful mind and ultimately a beautiful life.
Teachers set out provocations, intriguing invitations to engage students in learning. If things are too easy then there is no struggle and little is learned. The same is true if a task is too difficult. Knowing the student and the task, composing the question to invite thinking rather than just providing the answer, is all part of the work of the teacher. I think more and more that the questions we as teachers and parents ask can be more powerful than the information we present.
Yesterday in the teachers' meeting we were deciding on some team goals. Each team had chosen a habit from the twenty habits we are using as a school. The chosen habit would guide some of their work with their students in the coming month. One team was drawn to the habit of wonder and awe, recognizing and appreciating beauty. But as interesting as this might be, they needed to gather evidence and how would they do that? A beautiful question. We started to grapple with that. How would we see or hear wonder? What does awe look like? How would we note it? The difficulty with trying to gather data on such a habit would not be easy. I encouraged the teachers to go ahead and pursue the habit; surely we would learn something. I was intrigued or perhaps had some of my own wonder and awe about where this might lead us. I offered to help. At the end of that meeting someone said, "I am glad that you struggle with us." To struggle alone is hard, but to struggle with others can expand our views and possibilities. To struggle is good.
Blessings,
Shanna
It is good to struggle. Earlier in the week I asked Gary Lawrence, who had recently returned from a math conference (where they had to close the doors on his presentation) about a highlight, a moment that stood out to him from the conference. He spoke about a man who had arrived early to get a front seat, had asked about a triangle problem Gary had placed in a packet, and throughout the session exuded excitement. He came up to Gary afterwards, as did others, and said that this had been his favorite session at the conference. "Why would that be?" I asked. Gary said he was struggling with thinking about how to share that, but he felt it had a lot to do with who we were as a school since much of his presentation was about students' work. He sometimes takes students with him to these conferences when the conferences are nearby. He told me that he needed more time to reflect on that thought, but was grateful for my question.
Beautiful questions. Recently I listened to Krista Tippet's interview of David Whyte, a poet who works with corporations. One of the thoughts that gave me pause was this idea of beautiful questions. Gary searches for beautiful problems that will engage students in a struggle. The triangle problem, which I now have a copy of, is one of those that shows the beauty in math. That day I asked Gary some questions that shape how we view students and learning and the school, questions that led everyone in the office into wondering and reflecting together. David Whyte believes that we should ask beautiful questions because they shape a beautiful mind and ultimately a beautiful life.
Teachers set out provocations, intriguing invitations to engage students in learning. If things are too easy then there is no struggle and little is learned. The same is true if a task is too difficult. Knowing the student and the task, composing the question to invite thinking rather than just providing the answer, is all part of the work of the teacher. I think more and more that the questions we as teachers and parents ask can be more powerful than the information we present.
Yesterday in the teachers' meeting we were deciding on some team goals. Each team had chosen a habit from the twenty habits we are using as a school. The chosen habit would guide some of their work with their students in the coming month. One team was drawn to the habit of wonder and awe, recognizing and appreciating beauty. But as interesting as this might be, they needed to gather evidence and how would they do that? A beautiful question. We started to grapple with that. How would we see or hear wonder? What does awe look like? How would we note it? The difficulty with trying to gather data on such a habit would not be easy. I encouraged the teachers to go ahead and pursue the habit; surely we would learn something. I was intrigued or perhaps had some of my own wonder and awe about where this might lead us. I offered to help. At the end of that meeting someone said, "I am glad that you struggle with us." To struggle alone is hard, but to struggle with others can expand our views and possibilities. To struggle is good.
Blessings,
Shanna
Friday, April 15, 2016
Dear Parents,
It was the end of the school day. I was tired. There was no brain space. After leading a rather intense meeting, I was about to go off and lead another one at my condo association, where after a year in residence I had reluctantly become co-president (not part of my plan). As I was getting ready to depart, a teacher asked me if I could give her some wording about emergent curriculum. My first thought was, how can I even think about yet another thing, but I said yes and tried to formulate some thoughts amidst the chatter of my colleagues. As she sat down with her laptop I thought about what to say, and the words came, a little more slowly, but from deep within me. During that exchange I was not tired, but fully engaged with the topic, one about which I am passionate.
As I reflected on this occurrence, I was reminded of the summer course I had taken at Harvard last summer, "The Arts and Passion-Driven Learning." Curiosity was one of the components that came out in our working through what creates passion-driven learning. When I think of emergent curriculum, curiosity on the part of the learner is a key component. The teacher's work is to provoke curiosity or to notice it and respond to it.
Recently the first grade spent time on developing provocations in their class to arouse curiosity about civil rights. One example was leaving a big cardboard box in their classrooms for awhile. The children sat in it, wondered about it, and after they had explored the box, the teachers read them the story of someone who had escaped slavery by shipping himself in a box to a free state. (You can read more about the first grade study in the entrance to the third floor.) This was not the first time the teachers had taught this story, but taking the time to allow for exploration of the box brought out a natural curiosity in the children and fostered empathy with the slave who mailed himself. A deeper connection was made in their learning.
Another way teachers try to determine where to direct the learning is based on close observation of the children. What do they seem to be interested in, what captures their attention and moves them. The play some of the students saw last Friday seemed to have that ability, and so the Sky and Trees teachers developed some activities around those ideas. Today Mr. Ortega, Noah and Matteo's father, came into volunteer, and Ms. Chalmers transformed the drama area so that he could take some slow shutter photography while the students used flashlights. The photos that were produced, as well as the transformation of the drama area into a box, has allowed for the possibility of something new to develop. As the teachers are noting where the energy for learning might be, they are also planning on how to embed that learning with the important skills and knowledge students need to know.
Curiosity is a catalyst for full engagement. Preschoolers come by it naturally as there is so much that is new to them. Today I taught a new song in worship that begins with "Behold". It is that sense of wide-eyed wonder of beholding that leads to passionate learning. I often have that sense as I watch the children learn something new. "Behold, behold I make all things new, beginning with you . . ." This is how God sees us and created us, so that we too can behold and make all things new in our learning. I hope you have some beholding moments this weekend.
Blessings,
Shanna
It was the end of the school day. I was tired. There was no brain space. After leading a rather intense meeting, I was about to go off and lead another one at my condo association, where after a year in residence I had reluctantly become co-president (not part of my plan). As I was getting ready to depart, a teacher asked me if I could give her some wording about emergent curriculum. My first thought was, how can I even think about yet another thing, but I said yes and tried to formulate some thoughts amidst the chatter of my colleagues. As she sat down with her laptop I thought about what to say, and the words came, a little more slowly, but from deep within me. During that exchange I was not tired, but fully engaged with the topic, one about which I am passionate.
As I reflected on this occurrence, I was reminded of the summer course I had taken at Harvard last summer, "The Arts and Passion-Driven Learning." Curiosity was one of the components that came out in our working through what creates passion-driven learning. When I think of emergent curriculum, curiosity on the part of the learner is a key component. The teacher's work is to provoke curiosity or to notice it and respond to it.
Recently the first grade spent time on developing provocations in their class to arouse curiosity about civil rights. One example was leaving a big cardboard box in their classrooms for awhile. The children sat in it, wondered about it, and after they had explored the box, the teachers read them the story of someone who had escaped slavery by shipping himself in a box to a free state. (You can read more about the first grade study in the entrance to the third floor.) This was not the first time the teachers had taught this story, but taking the time to allow for exploration of the box brought out a natural curiosity in the children and fostered empathy with the slave who mailed himself. A deeper connection was made in their learning.
Another way teachers try to determine where to direct the learning is based on close observation of the children. What do they seem to be interested in, what captures their attention and moves them. The play some of the students saw last Friday seemed to have that ability, and so the Sky and Trees teachers developed some activities around those ideas. Today Mr. Ortega, Noah and Matteo's father, came into volunteer, and Ms. Chalmers transformed the drama area so that he could take some slow shutter photography while the students used flashlights. The photos that were produced, as well as the transformation of the drama area into a box, has allowed for the possibility of something new to develop. As the teachers are noting where the energy for learning might be, they are also planning on how to embed that learning with the important skills and knowledge students need to know.
Curiosity is a catalyst for full engagement. Preschoolers come by it naturally as there is so much that is new to them. Today I taught a new song in worship that begins with "Behold". It is that sense of wide-eyed wonder of beholding that leads to passionate learning. I often have that sense as I watch the children learn something new. "Behold, behold I make all things new, beginning with you . . ." This is how God sees us and created us, so that we too can behold and make all things new in our learning. I hope you have some beholding moments this weekend.
Blessings,
Shanna
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