Opal School Blog

Gratitude

Today, Opal School gathered for our annual Gratitude Celebration.  One of the students in Magnolia, Oliver, says that gratitude isn't saying thanks for a gift that you are given - it's giving thanks for what you already have.  Each classroom expressed that appreciation to each other through gifts.

Cedar's words and images were linked to their encounters with the natural world.

Alder wrote a book of gifts for each of the classrooms.

Maple Room provided us new ways of thinking about community.

Magnolia cracked open gratitude and found the worlds that live within it.

Opal 3 stitched squares, transformed into pillows.

Opal 4 identified characteristics of friendship in Virginia Wolf and translated them into tokens to hang in the classrooms.

I'm grateful to be constantly surprised and inspired by the quality of ideas developed by Opal School students and teachers - and to have the opportunity to share those stories far beyond our walls with educators whose important work is enhanced through those stories.

And you?  What are you grateful for?  How are your learning communities expressing their gratitude?

 

Creating TEDx (remembering how to jump)

When the organizers of the TEDx West Vancouver conference called to ask if someone from Opal School would like to share at their event, I shot up my hand. I knew it would be a powerful exercise in synthesis – forcing me to develop clarity around what I care most about in the work we are doing together at Opal. I knew it would be an opportunity to address audiences that might not normally come into contact with our work, and who, perhaps, would offer 20 minutes of their time to listen to some fresh ideas.

Judy Graves, Opal’s founder and a great mentor of mine, often laughed as we prepared presentations about our work. She'd quote Mark Twain, who said, “I would have written you a short letter, but I didn’t have the time.”

I had six months.

During the first several months of preparations, I had regular check-ins with the event curator, batting around ideas far and wide, and becoming painfully aware of how much I had to say and how little time I had to say it. I was surprised to learn that I would have to memorize whatever I prepared. Why did I assume that all TED presenters had teleprompters? It felt practically medieval to present without the aid of technology – especially when such marvelous technology exists. There was a part of me that could imagine getting the writing done. But when I imagined myself trying to remember the words while under bright lights with an audience and cameras running, I often saw myself jaw-dropped, mind blanked, stuck and then running for cover. So I tried to ignore that part and focus on the idea to share. What idea would I share?

I started drafts in earnest after our Summer Symposium, in June. Every version I wrote got shorter and shorter and became increasingly clear to me. I felt like I was slowly juicing a bag of fresh fruit, squeezing and sifting for the sweet stuff. I watched my favorite talks again and again and was particularly inspired by the ideas of Sarah Lewis, Brene Brown and Elizabeth Gilbert – all of whom helped me create frames to hang the work of the children on. I knew I wanted to talk about play, but I wanted to talk about play in a way that would create new images of what we mean when we say that play is a strategy for learning and not an activity we need to find time for. I knew I wanted to share the powerful ideas of the children. I knew I wanted to make connections – between play and learning, between agency and empathy, between democracy and inquiry. And I wanted not only to add to what has become a genre of lament over the state of our schools, but also to offer a vision of possibility for new practices.

Now, you can watch the result. 

When the day arrived, I still hadn't dropped the image of abandoning the presentation and running for cover. But as we sat down in the theater, the curator, Craig Cantlie, began by showing this video:

 

You know those moments when the universe drops a great gift out of nowhere that you are certain was meant just for you? This was one of those moments for me. In another part of my life, I was that girl on those skis. I know exactly what it feels like to stand on the top of that slope and look down and know that the worst thing you could do is to snowplow. I know the feeling of heading into a jump with ambivalence and ending up in the ski patrol toboggan. I know the exhilaration of being centered and grounded with determination and flying through the air, landing with the kind of woo-hoo this little girl has.

I remember how terrified my mom was when I jumped. And though she never rarely came to see me, she never put a stop to it. And I realized that it was likely because I had taken those jumps as a young girl many years ago now that I could find the courage to give that talk that day. It made me wonder if I offer children - my own and others' - enough opportunities to confront their own mortality and learn to trust they can survive.

And then I used that memory to walk on that stage. I wish it was a little shorter still. I wish a few other things about it, too. But there it is. And now, of course, I hope you find value in it. I hope that you find it an idea worth spreading. We think Opal School is an idea worth spreading and we're pretty sure you agree. We look forward to hearing your comments and learning what meaning it holds for you and your contexts.

 

Laughter, wonderment, and awe

On The Road and At Home - Update

Investigating conditions that support playful inquiry at Opal School Visitation Days 2015

Periodically, it feels valuable to update blog readers regarding opportunities to connect with Opal School. In that spirit, I'm hoping that the following information might be helpful.

Opal School Workshops: Update

This year, we offer three professional development retreats.  Two take place during the school year and include time observing class in session; the third offers a look back on a year completed.  Registration for January's Visitation Days is now closed: we've reached capacity.  Openings remain for Reading the World, held April 14-15, and Summer Symposium, June 16-18. We expect those to fill ahead of time as well - so if you'd like to join us, I encourage you to sign up now.

We find the process of preparing presentations for these programs to be an important, challenging, transformative experience.  Annually, we invite a few people from beyond Opal School's walls to join us as presenters at our Summer Symposium.  If you think you might have a story to tell and that you want to invest your energy in this way, consider responding to this call for proposals.

Study Tours & Presentations

For teams of educators who want to study at Opal School but for whom the larger workshops aren't a good match, we offer customized study tours.  In the last week, we've hosted visitors from Woodlawn School, a local K-8 with whom we're partnering on a multi-year study of the arts as languages; WL Henry, a dual immersion elementary school in Hillsboro engaged with our Mentorship Program; and The Scandinavian School San Francisco, an early learning center investigating next steps in what it offers its community.  Next month, we'll host Collingwood Neighbourhood House (from Vancouver, BC) and Ochoa Community Magnet School (located in Tucson, AZ).  

For groups that can't make it to Portland, we can come to you.  This year, we've made two trips to Vancouver, BC, and one to Fullerton School District in Southern California.  In coming weeks, we'll work with Barbara Vick Early Childhood Center in Chicago, Edmonton Catholic Schools in Alberta, and present at the NCTE conference in Minneapolis.

Our calendar for study groups and presentations is full for the remainder of this school year, but if you'd like to discuss a visit in 2016-17 please send us a note.

Online

If you don't receive it, you should get on the list for Susan's letter, from the center.  The latest issue came out today: You can read it online and subscribe to future issues here.

Lastly: In early 2016, we'll migrate to a new website - http://opalschool.us - where we're looking forward to developing rich opportunities for learning and community building.  We're excited about the new possibilities this forum offers! Readers, use the Comments Section below to let us know: What are you hoping for from the new Opal School online site?   

 

What perversity allows us to persist with status quo schooling?

Supporting Habits of Heart and Mind in New Terrain

Since "retiring", Opal School Founder Judy Graves has been busy continuing her efforts to inspire greater educational opportunity for all children.  Here's her report on her latest breakthroughs, exploring the implications of Opal School's research with new communities:

Teaching Preschools Offer Opportunities at Two Sites
Two teaching preschools opened this fall to provide opportunities for some of our areas most vulnerable children and families. Teaching Preschools bring the playful inquiry approaches to learning and teaching from Opal School of the Portland Children’s Museum to the Gladstone Center for Children and Families and Prescott Elementary in the Parkrose Public School District. Teaching Preschool Partners, a non-profit organization that co-operates the preschools, offers them as demonstration sites providing resources to early childhood professionals, parents, providers, and policymakers who seek fresh ideas about the environments and experiences we provide for our youngest learners. Teachers from both sites are participating this year in the Opal School Mentorship Program.

Gladstone Teaching Preschool—2nd Year Opening

Gladstone Teaching Preschool’s second year began with a gathering of families and teachers, meeting one another, sharing family stories and making wishes for their children. The wish cards were joyfully received by the young ones. Now they hang from a classroom mobile to greet the children each day. This teaching preschool serves 20 children who are sourced from the Head Start waitlist and children who qualify for special education services. This program is a collaboration between the Gladstone Center for Children and Families, Clackamas County ESD, Teaching Preschool Partners and Portland Children’s Museum.

Prescott Teaching Preschool Opens
“Oh, this is awesome,” said three-year-old Amir on his first visit to his new preschool classroom. Soon he joins classmates and family members in a circle on the carpet where they greet one another, sing songs and make choices about the materials and environments they will explore on this first day of school.

Amir is one of ten children to open Prescott Teaching Preschool (PTP) of the Parkrose School District in October. This gentle start with a small group gives children and parents a chance to meet one another and help shape this new community of learners. In November, ten additional children will join the community. Their peers will welcome and introduce them to materials and environments that are designed to engage inquisitive minds and spark playful curiosity. Enrollment priority is given to children who qualify for English language services and the free lunch program in the catchment area of Prescott Elementary School. Prescott Teaching Preschool is a collaboration between the Parkrose School District, Teaching Preschool Partners, Portland Children’s Museum and Multnomah County EL/ECSE.