Oops.

the first snow, in december

I seem to be taking much more time off from this than I anticipated. But we have friends from the states in town, and are have had an amazing time wandering around Brussels and Amsterdam for the past few days. Tomorrow we head to Paris to ring in the new year.

When I get my film developed, I should share here, even though it is not quite on the topic of early childhood education. It might also be an idea to publicly share my new years' teaching resolutions in a few days as well! Perhaps you have some of your own.

I hope you are enjoying your holidays!

À bientôt!

We're nuts

I am taking a moment off from projects and curriculum and the like to mention something that has been incredibly prevalent in my life as a teacher: the nut-free school. I am in my fifth year of teaching, and every school has been nut-free. It is not hard to adapt, and I am not fighting for the right to have nuts in our cooking activities. But there has to be something unhealthy about a generation of children who are not exposed to peanuts and tree nuts. It is akin to parents not letting their children play outside in the cold or jump in a puddle or eat a handful of dirt.

There are children who have extreme reactions to nuts, and those children should be able to have a classroom environment where there are no nuts and the precautions are taken. But I sit here on a 40 acre nut-free campus. Are we being a little extreme?

This rant was inspired by this article in the New York Times.

Working

You don't have to use tables.

Forest Preschool

While searching for a teaching position at an international school last winter, I came upon the outdoor preschool at Lakeside School in Zurich. My interest was sparked, and I spent a few hours google translating with my jaw dropped, reading about outdoor schools in Europe. In the states, one might think of outdoor education, but this is different. And so so wonderful.

A Wood Kindergarten (or outdoor preschool / waldkindergarten / forest kindergarten) is a school concept that began in Scandinavia, and, as wonderful ideas do, it travelled. These schools can be found in Denmark, Germany, Switzerland, and now in the UK. I'm sure there are more countries...but I feel so lucky because I get to go to The Secret Garden Outdoor Nursery...the first outdoor preschool in the UK. I'll be attending a workshop there in January.

Working with children in the forest for the past few months has shown me how nature can engage children. When we go into the forest, everyone is happy, cooperative, and focused on the task at hand -- exploring nature. In my work in Seattle, we would walk around the block once a week, or take a field trip to one of the many beautiful parks, but that is not quite the same as spending all day, every day, out of doors. Last spring, I took my class on a field trip to Discovery Park, and the children had an amazing time with their arms in the sand, mud all over their pants, and sea slugs in their hands. I wish that could have been every day. Beach preschool!

I'm incredibly grateful for this opportunity, and I can hardly wait to share what I see and hear.

photo by tillwe

Learning About Clay