I'm and Artist

"I'm a painter", exclaimed one of my students today..."If only I had a mustache"

With a little imagination, it was a request that was easy to fulfill. 

It's Better than Broken

There's a bench in our school yard...it's missing the middle wooden slat...and to the adult brain, it is broken, waiting for repair. To a five year old, however, this bench is Better than Broken, it is the perfect place for a morning snack with a friend. 

Harvesting the Watermelon

We harvested a watermelon yesterday...it's been growing in the backyard garden since early May...lovingly watered and tended all summer by one of our co-oping families. Was it ripe? None of us were sure but the whole school was outside to find out. Prepared with 3 extra melons, just in case, we cut into our homegrown fruit, which to our delighted surprise was ripe and sweet. 

Little moments like this are a big part of why I love our school. 

Staff Meeting in the Art Room

It's kind of funny being the art teacher on the first day of school...while the Group teachers are busy meeting their kids and doing first day activities, the art room is empty of action. It came alive, however, in the afternoon as the teachers had a chance to paint, previewing a project Lisa, Rebecca and I have created for our Group Skills Days next Wednesday - Friday. Responding to written clues I  prepared from a mystery picture book, we used dark colors to paint "the circle of a sun", "five rectangles in a line", three puddle shapes", and "stars dancing across the page". As our paint dried I read the book, giving context to the details we had just painted. Finally we added color...filling in shapes and backgrounds...chatting, laughing and wondering why staff meeting isn't always held in the art room.

First Day of School

I realized my school day begins long before I step into the building...I walk to school, an important, meditative part of my whole experience and today, as I walked, you could feel the world filled with "First Day" energy. There was an anticipation, a flurry, bits of nervousness as summer routines moved into fall. As I walk my senses greet the world...the coolness of the morning air, the sound of the traffic circle, a silent wave as I spy an old student waiting for the train to take him downtown. Sometimes the tiniest things take my breath away...a feather camouflaged on the sidewalk was the secret find of the day...a good look charm for the first day of school.