The fundmental ideas:
- Design - in our age of abundance, it is no longer enough to merely create something functional. It must also have significance, an aesthetic, that transcends the utility. Design brings beauty and meaning to an object or space. This correlates very well with the Reggio philosophy of "the environment as the third teacher". We strive to create an atmosphere for the children that is beautiful, whimsical, and stimulating. We are purposeful in our design of the classrooms. For us, the aesthetic has always been equally important as the utility. We want the children to cross the threshhold of the front door of the school and know that they are in a place that is interesting and inviting. We also strive to create artists who are proud of their talents and see art as a form of communication. We offer the childen from infancy opportunities to explore art materials and experiences.
- Story - an integral part of the human experience that became somewhat lost in the Information Age. But now that facts are ubiquitous and literally at our fingertips via the Internet, they become less important and the emotional impact as well as the context around the facts become more important. "Stories are important cognitive events, for they encapsulate, into one compact package, information, knowledge, context, and emotion." Just spend any time with young children, and you will hear, "Tell me a story" or you will overhear them telling fanciful, wonderful stories to each other. We are our stories. We strive to encourage our children to create their own stories and we infuse their experiences with many of our own stories. Our teachers offer their own experiences freely as teaching tools as well as to enrich a child's understanding.
- Symphony - the ability to put together the pieces, to synthesize rather than analyze, to see relationships and patterns, to invent something new, to seek multiple options and blended solutions. A common response you will hear from our teachers when a children asks a question of them is, "What do YOU think?" We want the children to work to find solutions to their problems, to think about situations and experiences from different points of view, to create new ways of approaching a task. This is also reflected in our choices when hiring our teachers. We tend to gravitate towards people with varied experiences rather those who have been "traditionally trained." We would much rather find a person who is passionate about children but also has a talent, education, or interest in another area. We have had teachers with degrees in geology, fine arts, psychology, and philosophy. We also have had great success with teachers who bring with them rich life experiences and careers in other areas and who have made the decision that their true passion is working with young children. These teachers make our school deeper, richer, and more interesting for all of us.
- Empathy - the ability to imagine oneself in someone else's position and connect to how that person is feeling, not feeling for someone, but feeling with them. It allows us to see other perspectives, understand other sides to an argument, comfort someone, work together, and provides the base for our morality. It is so important to us that our children, our staff, and our families to feel connected to each other and we work to create community among all of us. This is our big picture idea and it affects much of what we do. Whether it is helping two children understand each other and work through a disagreement or planning a community event, connecting is at the base. When a child hurts another child, we do not force them to say, "I am sorry." Rather, we support the child in working to make it better with their peer by allowing them to talk about the situation and each child's feelings about it. We offer the children guidance as they talk to each other about how they can both feel better.
- Play - manifests in games, humor, and joyfulness, and makes us more productive and fulfilled. This is our DNA. "Nothing without joy" is our philosophy and is infused in all aspects of the school. We strive to encourage children's natural instincts to play and explore, and our goal is to learn alongside them. When teachers join our team, one of our most importnat points we make to them is that their happiness is crucial. We expect and require that our teachers find the joy in their profession and we make it clear that if they don't feel that joy, it is important that they make a change. We laugh, tease, play, and giggle a lot as a staff and we hope that our children and our families feel it.
- Meaning - our motivational drive that powers us is the pursuit of meaning. As we continue to live in our abundant culture and are no longer focused on survival, the search for meaning becomes even more central.Engaging in satisfying work, and feeling gratitude, forgiveness and optimism contribute to happiness and well-being. Seeing your work as "a calling" is most satisfying but "knowing your highest strengths and deploying them in the service of something larger" gives meaning to our lives. We both feel in our hearts that we have found our calling and we are accessing our strengths as we grow this school. This gives us our motivation and drive. We know everyday that this is larger than just a school. We are cognizant that we are affecting lives and forming caring, creative, inventive people and we take this responsibilty very seriously. And this also is what makes us joyful.
Glimpse
This week the preschoolers finished their investigation of wheels. As with most projects, it started with a question. We asked the children “What has wheels?” Answers flooded the room and we created a web of the ideas. After studying the web, it became clear that there was a great amount of interest in cars. This was different than the investigation in the middler room in which the same question was asked. The middlers’ minds pushed us to examine all kinds of wheels – wheelchairs, the color wheel, studying velocity with tires on the playground… But the preschoolers were focused on cars. They decided they wanted to make their own cars. They made a list of the materials they needed, brought items from home, and made pieces for their cars. They collected over a hundred caps for their wheels. The children worked so hard to sort them into same sizes and each chose wheels for their car, learning about balance, and stability. We trekked out to the parking lot and closely examined engines in teachers’ cars. We got to take a close look at Mr. Sean’s motorcycle and even took turns beeping his horn! Our dramatic play area became a mechanic’s shop. Each child designed his or her own car and took great care to make the cars their very own. After, the children met in small groups to collaborate on a special car. One group made a convertible, one made a double decker bus, and one made a small “smart car.” These are all on display for the families to enjoy.
Jennifer and Christa
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