Lesson #1: Love

I went out to the front of a school today to pick some roses as models for drawing. Walking back into the classroom, people were sort of…shocked. “You mean you just ran out to the front and cut those flowers?” “You have a lot of energy.”  A teacher commented that I was a little crazy (not in a negative way). I told her, “you haven’t seen the half of it,” and thus began our discussion of the lack of love and fun in school.

It is a very difficult thing to talk about love and beauty and caring in a school system that is struggling to keep its head above water. Recent statistics point to unconscionable levels of illiteracy. Yet without nurturing a culture of empathy, respect and beauty, I don’t foresee test scores rising. If children don’t learn to care–about their environment, their friends, their work–we will remain mired in a cycle of ignorance and mediocrity.

Lesson #2:Details matter

Amelia Gambetti’s (an educator from Reggio Emilia who I worked with for many years) voice still rings in my ear: “Details, details, details.”  It is important to be aware of the choices that we make, from the most minor decisions to the most significant. Drawing the roses, there were two types of markers available, fine line and broad tip. We spent time talking about the differences in the lines, and I asked children to consider which marker they needed, instead of grabbing haphazardly. Attentive decision making, discerning, selecting, choosing, builds self-awareness and consciousness–the opposite of indifference.

Leo is enamored with Rapunzel. He draws and paints her in every scenario possible, and at every opportunity.

I found this drawing to be particularly interesting. We had been on a walk to look at bridges and when we returned to the classroom, a long, narrow piece of paper was available for drawing, as well as some other choices.

Leo drew a bridge, with Rapunzel standing on top. Notice that the head is missing. The image above is not cropped–Leo drew this way intentionally. He asks us, the viewers, to imagine Rapunzel continuing in space (the yellow line is her hair cascading into the water below the bridge). Most children his age (just  turned 4) would have drawn a tiny Rapunzel, or perhaps contort her body to fit in the available space.

For Leo, this is a significant leap in his understanding of the conventions of drawing, and a beautiful example of creativity. He knows that the reality he is inventing extends beyond the boundaries of the page.

How often do adults recognize these important moments, these stories within the story that show the intelligence of children?

“If you want to build a ship, don’t drum up people to collect wood, and don’t assign them tasks and work, but rather teach them to long for the endless immensity of the sea.”

-Antoine de Saint-Exupéry

Overheard in a DC Public School, the day after standardized testing was over:

“I wish the test was in June, so I would have something left to teach.”

See the following article:

National resolution against high-stakes tests released

Lightning Rods – NYTimes.com.

So beautiful.

T Magazine introduces | StyleCaster.

Balloons. How excellent.

My good friend Anya (Smith 2012!) just was awarded a fellowship at the San Francisco Network Ministries. She will be working mostly in the The Tenderloin Tech Lab–one of the programs run by the San Francisco Network Ministries.

“The Tenderloin Tech Lab is the Tenderloin’s only technology center specializing in adult computer and employment skills training, which aids nearly 1,000 homeless and low-income clients each year in overcoming the barriers to employment and accessing technology.  Through our partnership with San Francisco Network Ministries, we offer free intensive computer classes, one-on-one tutoring, job search counseling and life skills courses, all designed specifically for the learning styles of adults struggling with poverty, addiction, mental health challenges or homelessness.”

I am adding this to our recent study group discussion as another way of looking at children (or adults) who are “raised on technology,” and what can come of knowing this language intimately.