weaving in the real world

Yes, we are still weaving! A wonderful parent brought in sunflowers for us to plant, AND also a new weaving project that has challenged my little experts! Our sunflowers have sprouted and are ready to go into the ground, and our woven sunflowers are worked on daily and are in process of completion. I've noticed real learning with this sunflower loom: it's HARD to weave in a circle, and after several failed attempts, the primates shoved them in their drawers in frustration. Adopting my "Zen teacher" mode, I said nothing, and as days passed by, i noticed the sunflower looms appearing at choice time. First primate to proudly complete his sunflower (and interestingly--he was also the first to give up!) rang the bell (our original tradition when someone completes a weaving project), and the crowd cheered as he showed his sunflower. Since, finished sunflowers are celebrated daily. PERSEVERANCE!

This is just a perfect example of supporting classroom learning from home--and it's not the only one this project inspired! Several parents have purchased and/or made looms for their children at home--at the primate's request! This reinforces the idea that what they are doing in school is VALUED by their family--and those are the people the primates learn most from, and what they learn elsewhere is filtered through their personal lenses, which are developed at home.

The parent who brought in the project and made a connection to the season of spring and the natural world (planting, growing, caring for living things--side note: every morning the primates line up at the sink to individually water their flowers. Some have written and sketched in their journals, some have measured and recorded growth--with NO direction from me!!! THIS IS LEARNING!!!!!! THIS IS MI!!!! THIS IS REAL!!!!)...anyways, that parent teaches us that there is more to learn about weaving and gives us a new perspective on connecting nature to art, via weaving.

The families who have encouraged continued learning at home by providing looms teach us that this skill is valued, and that they are proud and inspired by what we have done. Isn't that the approval from our parents we spend our lives chasing?

Finally, and this was the first "home connection", one parent took her family to the textile museum in Lowell. Her son is a self-proclaimed, "weaving maniac". He brought in his own loom--a different one!--and a book, and this quiet, newest member of our group was suddenly the center of attention. Every primate gathered around him as he showed his loom and the potholders he'd made--they begged for him to teach them, and he did. This also sparked an interest in him to work on our wall loom in the hallway that had been dormant for weeks. Within days, and with the help of others who followed his lead, we had 3 finished pieces on the wall loom, and they were begging for more.

This just reminds me of that cheesy poster, (one that I do secretly believe) that says something about throwing a pebble into still water to create a ripple, that creates a wave...etc....this blog makes me increasingly aware of exactly how sappy and sentimental I can be...I suppose it balances out the cynical, defeated teacher I have been known to play at times!

2much good stuff

My primates visited the exhibit several other times throughout the week with other classes, which gave them the opportunity to practice talking about their work and the whole experience. One of the kindergarten classes wrote us a beautiful thank you and asked if we'd teach them how to weave. My primates were impressed that the little ones were so excited about learning to weave, so we wrote back saying yes, we'd be happy to teach them. I sent 2 primates to deliver the note, which the K teacher read in front of my primates, and when they returned to me, they were white as ghosts and said, "They ALL want to learn how to weave and this is going to get crazy!" Still makes me chuckle...we passed crazy awhile ago!...ahh the joys!

more exhibit

I loved watching the primates examine and consider their own work and the work of their peers as we listening to Yo Yo Ma and nibbled on cookies, fruit, and cheese. It was quite the sophisticated event! I made a little yarn-ribbon pin for each primate, so they would be recognized as the weavers/writers featured in the exhibit. Yes, colors reflected our "Pride" theme! (see THIS is why I love Martha so--kindred perfectionists!)

We also provided a "guestbook" for visitors to sign. Of course, it is filled with beautiful sentiments from families (most endearing are the entries from older siblings and grandparents!) and others who admired our work throughout the week.

exhibit cont'd

Each primate's typed story and woven piece (some in progress still!) was displayed on a board. Some primate's chose to type their own stories, while others preferred I type. Either way was fine, but I ended up including my typed version on all since the primate versions still contained inventive spelling. I feel allowing them to work independently without my facilitating dictionary spelling (aka correct spelling), produces work that illustrates their ability authentically--and that is what I prefer to see. We had nine boards in total that displayed the work of 22 primates.

good 2 b back

LOTS to catch up on...it's tough to know where to begin, so this may be a bit out of order, but I'll start with our WONDERFUL exhibit...

These are the first and last of 6 documentation boards that chronicle the journey of teaching and learning our group traveled this year...so far! Rather than post pics of each board, I'll copy/paste some of the text with pics, but the effect of all the boards together was amazing for me...I felt astonished by the evidence of where we began, the different paths we chose, obstacles we faced, and successes--so many successes we achieved.

And YES, those are PRIDE colors forming the color scheme for our display. The colors of Pride symbolize the caring, effort, teamwork, and responsibility we utilized throughout this project, and reflect those same four precious values that drive our school. Here is data evidencing these values at work.

As I was dismantling the exhibit, (which was on display at the college for a week), a professor stopped to tell me how inspiring the work was...that is was "the buzz" on campus all week..great to hear that feedback. Then she asked me what research project I was part of....as if things like this only happen in research projects....and sadly, I realized, for the most part, that is true. We never see or celebrate the journeys our teachers and their students travel in a year. We look at numbers to make us feel good. I am not part of that "we", and I take tremendous pride in the fact that no, this is not a research project, this is what you get in 1st and 2nd grade with me as a teacher. This is what "WE" should all be doing, because amidst this terrible school year, THIS is what sustained my passion, energy, enthusiasm, curiosity, and joy. And without all that, teaching is a deeply depressing thing to do in this country.

quick reflection

I hope to blog later tonight in more specific detail...but right now I am engulfed in preparing my documentation boards of this project for Monday night's exhibit--a task made THAT much more difficult thanks to my perfectionist tendencies...however...

I have to stop for a moment and just reflect on the profoundness of this project for myself as a teacher and learner. I am literally typing through tears of wonder as I sort through pictures, student work, observational notes, etc starting back in September. For me, this work is a beautiful illustration of a journey I have taken with a group of magnificent children, and I am so proud to be a member of their learning group.

Out of what by far has been THE most difficult year I have ever experienced in my teaching career has evolved the most amazing work I could ever imagine. And in this documentation I see the struggles, the laughs, the questions, the discoveries, the mistakes, the success...and the love I have for what I do. Just want to appreciate how lucky I am to love what I do and be able to share this enthusiasm with others. Would this project have the same results if the individuals in this group were different? No, because this work is reflective of THIS group of individuals. Not to say if I repeated this project it would be any less, just different, and keeping in mind one of the themes of learning in my classroom--different is good--I am happy this work is what it is, and I am so proud and excited to share it with the extended members of our learning group, our families on Monday.

update, but not quite

It really is killing me to be away from the blog for so long...but life has just been getting in my way! Despite having the past week off, I've filled my days with house projects, family time, and planning for our BIG SHOW--exhibiting our weaving project at the local college. I'm kind of locked into figuring out the details and making sure we've got adequate documentation of our projects--not an easy task. Anyways, I'm afraid I may be consumed by my "to do" list once again this week, but wanted to post before the whole month gets away from me.

Hoping to catch up on weaving & writing soon, with more pics & some really great primate quotes!