weekly doodles pt. 4

This week's doodles. Promise I was paying attention :)

Harry Potter collage

flora pt. 3

George J. Giraffe (the J is for James)

Ollie O. Octopus (the O is for Ollie)

Discover!

the lost umbrella

 

pinwheels

weekly doodles pt. 3

This week included the Great Lessons course and the beginning of the math courses for my training. There's a lot more for us to participate in with these courses so i only have a few doodles (that's a good thing though).

a spark ignites

flora
 

the solar system (obviously not to scale)

flora pt. 2

a revolutionary education

Education is ever changing. it's constantly developing with the latest research in child development, brain development, and societal norms.

By studying teaching i've come across (or been sent) various TED talks and articles pertaining the hackers, the innovators, and even the do-nots of education.

i've compiled a few of my favorites because they speak to what educating children SHOULD look like.

(P.S. i think a Montessorian education is a fantastic way to achieve these things)


Logan Laplante explains how he hacked his education for the better:

 "when i grow up i want to be happy...i want to continue being happy"

Sir Ken Robinson explains the importance of creativity:

"creativity is as important in education as literacy"

Glennon at the Momastery blog explains how one teacher made sure no one fell through the cracks:

 "the most brilliant Love Ninja strategy i have ever encountered"

the most brilliant Love Ninja strategy I have ever encountered - See more at: http://momastery.com/blog/2014/01/30/share-schools/#sthash.HO7M6EJy.dpuf

the most brilliant Love Ninja strategy I have ever encountered - See more at: http://momastery.com/blog/2014/01/30/share-schools/#sthash.HO7M6EJy.dpuf

the most brilliant Love Ninja strategy I have ever encountered - See more at: http://momastery.com/blog/2014/01/30/share-schools/#sthash.HO7M6EJy.dpuf

the most brilliant Love Ninja strategy I have ever encountered - See more at: http://momastery.com/blog/2014/01/30/share-schools/#sthash.HO7M6EJy.dpuf

http://momastery.com/blog/2014/01/30/share-schools/

Christopher Emdin explains why we need to teach teachers how to create magic:

"magic can be taught!"

Rita Pierson explains why teachers need to care for their students:

 "No learning can occur without a significant relationship"

Also, David Steind-Rast talks about being grateful to be happy. Always good!:

"it doesn't make for equality, but it makes for equal respect"

becoming a Montessorian pt. 1

  First day of the journey!

Last week i began the Montessori training program at Westminster College. Up to that point everyone at Walden would tell me that it is definitely an intense program but completely worth it. That, along with knowing i had quite the commute ahead, had prepared me for this.

Right?

i mean, i only just finished school so i’m still in that mode. And yes, all of that knowledge and schemata has come in handy (APA formatting? Such a pro!). What i wasn’t prepared for was the transformation process.

The Montessori Method is not only an educational theory/philosophy; it’s a way of life. it’s a way of recognizing the spirituality in all things. Everything has purpose, goals, and ways of going about life (sound like Pocahontas?). it begins with the individual’s spiritual preparation by developing patience, control of the will, commitment, and humility. Maria Montessori said, “we have to watch ourselves most carefully. The real preparation for education is a study of one’s self. The training of the teacher who is to help life is something far more than a learning of ideas. It includes the training of character, it is a preparation of the spirit”.

It starts with ‘you’; or rather, with ‘me’. in the Observation course, Paul Epstein questioned, “if we can’t even properly take care of ourselves as adults, how can we be expected to properly care for the development of children?”

Wow.

Two weeks of theory, cosmic education, and personal care plans came into focus. Obviously, i’m in this program/profession to teach children. i care for children and i want to make a difference. But how can i truly care for these precious spirits, these precious individuals, and help them reach their fullest potentials if i am not in a spiritually healthy mindset myself? if i’m exhausted, cranky, rushed, crammed,…how can i honestly focus on the development of the children entrusted to me?

i can’t.

Thus, knowing oneself - one’s wholeness, being, spirit – is essential in the preparation of the teacher.

This astounded me. Not because i don’t agree with taking time for myself to be whole and healthy, but because I didn’t realize how essential it is in my professional goal. i want to make a difference, change children’s lives for the better, and save the world to the best of my ability.

On the way home from FHE on Monday, the folks in the car got into a discussion about desires to save the world and what that means. According to The Lawyer and Mattycakes, people who say they want to save the world are younger than 25; those older than 25 have moved past this illusion and continued on with their lives.

i listened to the conversation and explanations; all the while thinking inside, “but i AM going to save the world”. it’s not about donning a masked cape to flit through the skies and fight crime. it’s about guiding a child through the sensitive stages of his life; helping him develop self-regulation, concentration, and an overall thirst for knowledge; helping him navigate the societal norms set in place and the politics of the classroom culture. it’s about guiding him to understand who he is in this world; helping him understand that he plays an integral part and the world would be in a sad state without him; guiding him to find where he came from.

Now, you can take these thoughts from the religious perspective of a Mormon teacher. While my religious beliefs do influence these thoughts (there’s no way for them not to), it’s so much more than that. it’s an extension of my beliefs. My thoughts are about the knowledge that i will be playing a vital role in the lives of these children, their children, and their children’s children. Will the children in my classroom thrive? Will they become leaders, inventors, those who push beyond the expected? Well they sure have that potential. Every one of them can be ANYTHING they so choose.

What a great responsibility it is to be the teacher of these children. i’ll admit it’s slightly terrifying. But it's also exhilarating because i know i can succeed in this task; and becoming a Montessorian is a wonderful journey in becoming that teacher. 

i didn't make my bed this week

My morning routine is just that – a routine. Wake up, brush teeth, contacts, make bed, get ready, go; always. Unfortunately though, this has become “almost always” due to the fact that i have not made my bed all week. 

To the Average Joe this is no big deal; a fairly common occurrence, in fact. For me? This is chaos. As a Type A, organizational, neat-freak everything has a place and everything needs to be in its place for the world to be right. My bed needs to be made a specific way, my clothes need to be folded (or hung) and put away, my sandals are paired in the darling basket by the door, the books are properly away on the shelves, and the extra blankets are folded neatly at the foot of the bed. There’s an order to all things.

This week though, has been Week 2 of the Montessori training program. i slowly got in the habit of simply going from brushing my teeth to getting ready for the day; thus, nixing making the bed altogether. 

My morning excuse is that i don’t have time (but let’s be real, it takes all of 90 seconds). This frame of mind is starting to bother me, though, because leaving an unkempt bed is not how i operate. it’s just not right!

“So just make your dang bed!” right?

Well…yes and no. Yes, because that’s where the self-control of life comes in and i can just do it. No, because…well because. i realize that isn’t an acceptable answer (do all answers in life have to be acceptable?).

The whole point of this post is not to debate whether or not I am capable of making my bed (obviously, I am). The point is that I haven’t made my bed this week. And that is all.

weekly doodles pt. 2

Here are the weekly doodles from Week 2:

"Good day, sir! This is my moustache!"

"There is sunshine in my soul today, so glorious and bright!"

"Take luck! Take care of that luck you might be having!" - Brian Regan

Hyrum snowboarding down the mountains like a pro.

Fire

 it's party time!

Ocean scene

Bubbles

Pot of gold at the end of the rainbow

"See the rainbow, taste the rainbow" - Skittles

Mountain scene

"Yo-ho, yo-ho, A pirate's life for me"

"it's raining, it's pouring..."

weekly doodles pt. 1

While i love the Montessori training program i'm in (i'll explain that in a different post) it does make for some very long days. True to form, i can't sit still for that long without daydreaming or finding some way to keep my mind on the lecture. i've taken to doodles; fairly mindless, thus allowing me to keep my focus on what is being taught.

Well, i'm actually rather proud of these doodles because i find them rather fab. So without further ado:

Stars

Gentleman fishing for stars

Swirly bits

Peace is rain and a starry night

Dino-buddies

"Shoot for the stars!"

Montessori

"Save the icebergs! They're ever so sad"