A Note on Students

my bullrush keychain rope

We may be more mature; we may be referred to as colleagues however we are still in some ways, students. I can't recall the last time when I did not hear a single zipper or the sound of someone packing up nearing the end of class. Considering this class went over, this feat is even more astonishing. I remember looking at the clock as it was nearing 12:20 pm and then looking around the class and absolutely nobody was packing their things. They were either consumed with their braiding, or looking at whoever was sharing. Honestly, I found it really interesting and began thinking about why this was the case. We were all in school. It was a relatively early start to the day and it was nearing the end of the week. It was a long class. We were in a classroom. The only difference I could identify was the nature of what we did in class. Rope braiding was very relaxing. It was interesting and there was enough of a variety of material for people to explore and exercise curiosity. It was a simple enough task, with enough complication to require some attention but not all. I don't know - it was almost like a perfect intersection of many things. Throw in Jacob's carrots and the combination was without flaws. A lot more can be said on this and I'm sure I'll look back and ponder on this specific classroom experience for many years to come. 

Kallis and Backsourcing

 As I was reading the short excerpt from chapter two from Sharon Kallis' book "Common Threads", I found myself thinking about another book I had read a bit of. Sharon Kallis mentions the divestment of the responsibility of taking care of oneself. This notion reminded me of something I had read in Gai Eaton's "King of the Castle: Choice and Responsibility in the Modern World"; in it he mentions that at the beginning of the twentieth century over (I think) ninety percent of people were responsible for their own income and the remaining worked for someone else. Due to industrialization (among other things), by (I think) the eighties, those proportions were reversed with a large percentage of the population now working for someone or some company. My memory eludes me however to my faint recollection, he discusses the profound impact on man's inability to sustain his livelihood with his own two hands (going against man's predisposition). There is a sense of unmatched fulfillment in sustaining oneself with their own two hands and Kallis is correct in pointing this out. As I was reading, I was thinking that her idea requires a complete alteration of the current construction of society and she made mention of that (consumerism). 

I go home to visit my family in December, God-willing I'm going to make my niece a scarf using the Turkish lace method. 

Colours in Nature

 I'm writing my exit slip a bit late but I can recall my feelings during the colour matching activity last week in the garden. 

I would first like to mention that before we all set out, I was wishing that I had drew the blackberries the week before because now I was going to be matching something green like most others. I was beyond elated when I walked over to the grapes and saw that one bunch had turned purple! It was an awesome moment. 

There were so many different colours provided in these cards but I loved that absolutely none of them were a perfect match to the things we found in nature - you can't recreate creation. And I think there is a unanimous consensus that every colour found in nature was much nicer than the ones on the cards. 

During and after the activity I couldn't help but feel something I often feel which I can't really put into words with great precision. It is my lack of understanding human nature. We have this innate, obsessive tendency to want to understanding every minute thing. We have this need to label and name things, for naming is the first step in bringing something into the human perspective of the world. It is the step in which we bring something from outside our "understanding" to inside it. Understanding in quotations because we can't be certain that that in fact is what it is. Just something I ponder on I guess...

Susan's Article

There were two points in the article that really stuck out to me, the first can be mentioned briefly. Allotting land to anything but potential entrepreneurial prospects always comes with heavy opposition. A garden is not just a garden, it’s a means to connect with the land and for something so important to be labelled “an obstacle” is a very unfortunate descriptor of the times in which we live. 

The point that stuck out the most to me from the article was around doing the central work of your institution. It is not unknown that the majority of the population does not engage with their natural surroundings. If the Orchard Garden was only used by the individuals cultivating and working with it, it would be relatively unknown to many individuals. Taking the garden, and using it to deliver lectures and classes hits many birds with one stone. You make it a useful and necessary teaching environment, becoming a regular part of many people’s lives. You introduce people (students) to an environment to which many are unfamiliar. You also show a new perspective and experiences; many of us have already had positive experiences being in the garden and I would not be surprised to see many of us implement something similar in our own classrooms.  

Creation vs Manmade - A Drawing Exercise

There was a class-wide consensus today that manmade objects were very straight, filled with right-angles and rigid. This was in contrast to nature with its irregular shapes and lines. Maybe a discussion could be had about the natural disposition of humans – whether it’s order or chaos. Avoiding that tangent, I want to reflect on what a lot of my colleagues mentioned today during our discussion. The words serene, tranquil, peaceful, and mindfulness were some of the words used to describe what we experienced those twenty-five to thirty minutes and I think we should not take that experience so lightly. Future students of ours are also human, and though we may differ in many ways there is something tranquil about being left to do focused work surrounded by nature. I zoned out of class today for a few moments and daydreamt how I could get large whiteboards on wheels and conduct my class outside. It’s definitely something to think about. 

Being a Reflective Teacher

As informative as this article is, it’s hard for me not to question its obviousness. Perhaps that’s because of how dated it is – I think we are much more conscious thinkers now especially in the teaching profession (new teachers). I do think one important point the article brought up was ensuring that you assess and reflect on your own beliefs and preconceived notions, which is not something I had previously thought of. I agree that it is extremely important to critically think about yourself and reflect on how some aspects of your self you may bring with you into your classroom that can adversely affect the direct and indirect curriculum being taught. 

This article also made me reflect on another aspect of teaching – the school system. It stressed open-mindedness, responsibility and wholeheartedness but something it did not consider is the environment that surrounds an individual, specifically in this case a teacher. We can’t fly with clipped wings. So often teachers are asked to constantly review their teaching, assessment, methods of instruction, amongst so many other things but I feel like not enough attention is paid to the system in which we exist. I’m not a teacher yet, but I don’t think you have to be to see all the things teachers have to work against in the education system. I’m not sure that you can reform a single (important) aspect of a machine, and make the machine do something completely different. At some point, you might have to change the machine. There’s a lot that can be said on this topic – however I will say we should contribute positively to the things we can change. 

Exit Slip - September 5

 

I thought Frank McCourt's demeanour was calm and inviting and he seemingly had much more knowledge than he gave on in the short interview we watched. I believe his upbringing is the largest contributor to his effectiveness as a teacher. 

As much as I could revisit Frank McCourt's interview, I think the thing I took away the most away from the first class was the grapes in the garden. I would be lying if I said I was thrilled to hear our class would be held outside in a garden, and lying still if on the walk there I was eagerly looking forward to it. I was sweaty, my bag was heavy and as widely worn as they are, Air Force Ones are not good walking shoes (however I will be using them for Garden days due to their durability). When I got to the garden, I was still caught up in all the feelings of exhaustion I had until I saw grapes...I love grapes. It was the catalyst that allowed me to really see what I was around. 

Something that struck me was my tentativeness to touch the produce. I'm so conditioned to seeing them neatly arranged in a grocery store that I never considered where they came from and it was shocking to me, my inability to touch them and think they needed to be washed before eaten. I forgot that nature isn't the issue, it's us putting pesticides on them that requires washing. 

We need to get outside more.

Hello World!!

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