City of Care

This is a brief transcription of two of the MANY conversations the XP children and I had over the year.  It reflects their desire to imagine and create a Society that cares for everyone and everything.  A society they called, the City of Care

John         I am going to make a park.

Lila           In our city I want there to be NO bad things happening to the Earth and only good things.  I am building an environmental station to monitor and care for the earth.

Ari            In our city, no one gets scared. So we should not have too much scary movies.

Lila         But some people like them. If we care about people we have to let them watch

Ari         So then they could see them.

Maddie M Everyone needs a house. Everyone needs a good house.  They should be different but all equally good.

Lila Different because we need to have a house we like. Different people like different things.

Maddie S Yeah but equally good so everyone feels cared for.

Henry Maybe everyone gets given a house

Lila But maybe they don’t like that house and who has the money to give away a house to everyone?  

Group Conversation about money ensues.

Lila Money is just a thing, it doesn’t have to be real.  We could make care the most important thing.

Group Animated conversation and eventually agreement that CARE is the most important thing.

Maddie S We care for the earth.  We pick up things.  We give to the earth, for earth because we are part of the earth.

Ari If we don’t take care of the earth we can’t live on it and would have to live on Mars. 

Lila Yeah, if we don’t take care of the earth we might not even have water or trees or food or anything we need to survive.

Ari Yeah and that would be way worse than Death Valley

Group Animated conversation about the planet “burning up”.

Henry We might need healthy food to eat in our city, like fruits and vegetable but we need to grow them ourselves.

Ari Yeah, and we need high protein stuff.  Like beef.

The group looks at him.

Lila Is killing animals really caring?

Ari Okay….I know! We need to find a way to get protein without killing the animals.

William And we need fruits and veggies

The group calls out: lettuce, carrots, radishes, beets, beans, watermelon, blueberries and…

Ari And meat is good for you.  Hey, we need to find a way to find a protein that’s as high as the protein we get from killing cows without killing anything.

Group Discussion and a blank on what that could be.  

We all  agree that we may need to think about that more to come up with a plan.

Henry We need bananas!

Ari Bananas need the  warm.

Lila Yeah! We need a greenhouse with good weather to grow our food.  I’ll make a greenhouse!

Ari So in the city we need a way to take care of our city in case something happens and we have to live in space. 

Angelina What will happen.

Ari We could ruin the earth.

Angelina Will we need to leave if we are taking care of the Earth.

Ari I’m not talking about the Earth.  I’m talking about taking care of human beings. Humans are a really important part of the earth

Are they more important than Nature?

Group Another animated discussion ensues. We decide to vote.

Angelina Who thinks the Earth and humans are equally important ? 11

Who thinks humans are more important? 3

Who thinks Nature/Earth is even more important than humans? 12

Henry We need bathrooms in our city!

Group Big conversation about taking care of water and we can’t make new water

Angelina I heard that the same water on Earth now, is the same water that was on Earth when the dinosaurs lived.  

Group Wow.

Ari That’s a theory.

Angelina I believe that’s a fact.

Ari You don’t know Angelina.

Angelina How bout you research that and get back to us.

Ari Okay!

Maddie S. Did you know that monkeys were one of the first people on earth.  They became smarter and smarter and they became humans

William         And then the first people were cavemen

Angelina Were there women?

Henry No women don’t like caves

Angelina Really?  Let's take a poll. If you are a girl and you like caves raise your hand.

All girls present raise their hand.

All boys present, if you like caves please raise your hand.

Four boys don’t.

More discussion.

The Group decides there were women and so we call them, Cave People

To be continued…

May 4th  meeting

Maddie S So we don’t need money to buy all this stuff because what if no one has money.  We can have a little card to pay

Gareth What if you don’t have a card

At my library I was thinking people can apply for a card and we could give you a card.

William could do the same and it could say toy store on it.  The card would be for everyone and would have limits

Declan Yeah  we’d need it for food

Henry What if we were out of cards. 

Declan Or we had the wrong cards.

Maddie S. You don’t have to have cards that say specific cards.  Maybe you just need a name card.

Ari         Someone needs to make a sky for the city.

Buildings Explained

John A Park

We need parks for people to get to play on.  If there were no parks people would be bored.  Playing is important, it makes you feel happy.

Luke Gardens

We need a garden so we have foods and so we won't get sick. I take care of the garden. I plant the food and everyone gets to eat.

Maddie M Community House

Everybody needs a house, otherwise they will just be wet or cold in the snow and rain.  Home is a cozy place where you eat and sleep.  Every person gets to have a home. Construction workers help build the houses for the people and themselves and we help them in other ways, like food and stuff.

Maddie S. Library

We need a library because it's where you can get books and you can read.  You can even sit at little places and you can read there.  You can read any books you want but you need a library card so you can borrow them.  Anyone can have a library card.  Then you can use it to borrow one to ten books at a time and then you bring them back and other people can borrow them, one to ten at the time.

Riley A Donut Shop 

A Donut Shop is important in our city because it’s also for celebrations.  Celebrations and parties make people feel cared for and sometimes you get donuts and money.  Donuts are delicious. We make vegetable or fruit donuts too for people who need them. There's’ a strawberry one that is gluten free too. Everyone can have a donut. 

Henry A School

This is Children’s Garden Montessori, Preschool through Highschool.  We need to have a school so kids can learn. When they learn and they they learn more and more.  All kids can come to my school. They read books to learn also.  They sometimes make art. They sometimes go outside and into the forest and park and the rest of the city.  It is important to have children around.  When they’re growed up they can make babies and they can go to school, so they can learn more and even better things.

William Toy Store  

It has a ton of toys and if people don’t have toys they can buy it from the toy store. If they don’t have money, some of the toys can be free.  Sometimes if someone misses or loses a toy I can just deliver the same toy back.

Lila Environmental Station

We don’t want bad things to happen to the earth.  Environmental Station.  I came up with it because I was in an earthquake in Palm Springs.  I found out there were other bad things like, droughts, pollution, tornados and so I will take care of them so it’s safe.  I care for the earth to take care of the people.

Murray Fire Station

This is a fire station with a fire truck.  We don’t want fires happening to houses or buildings.  We are first on the scene if there’s a problem.  We definitely need it in a fire station in a city of care.

Sloan A Candy Store

I made a candy store.  If anyone gets hungry for something sweet they can come to my store.  Candy makes you feel loved and safe by all the yummy candy.  Maybe I could make healthy candy like peach lollipops instead of sugar.

Isaac Recycling Center. 

They are good for our world.  This city doesn't create trash, only what is recyclable.  Nothing is new.  We do it so it doesn’t pollute the planet.

Ari Hospital

If people get really sick or really hurt they might need to go to the hospital.  I take care of them.  I give them special medicine, I have a special camera to take pictures inside of them.  We have a kitchen to make like chicken noodle soup or tomato soup to make them feel better.  Of course we need a hospital.  We take care of people!

Gareth A Forest

We need a forest because forests give us care.  They are beautiful.  They’re green.  They have animals.  Forests have lots of animals. We need Wild.  It gives us lots of things. I wanted to make a forest because I love forests.  Forests are important.  We care about the forest in our city and forests care for us.

Declan A Restaurant

We need a restaurant so people can eat or go to dinner or on a date.  If people are poor they can come to the restaurant.  Everyone gets fed at my restaurant.  If you can’t pay, maybe it could be free because everybody deserves to eat.

XP Lunch

Imagination Studio

A Glimpse at the Studio

Cooking Collaborations!

We were thrilled to welcome in Stephanie Patel, an afternoon 440 parent, to cook some traditional (and spectacular) Indian fare!

The children loved the full sensory experience, from colors to aromas to a flavor packed sampling! Do you want to try it at home? You’ll be glad you did! She has been kind enough to share a recipe with us. Enjoy!

 Chana Masala

Ingredients

• 1.5 cups dry Kala Chana (Black Chickpeas ... You can use Regular chickpeas instead canned or dried)

• 1/4-1/2 red onion diced.

• 3 roma tomatoes

• 1-2 Teaspoons of grated ginger (add to your personal taste)

• 1-2 Thai chilis finely chopped. (You can use japalenos or Serrano chilis as substitute)

• 2-3 Table spoons olive oil

• 1 teaspoon cumin seeds

• 2 red dry chili whole

• 1 teaspoon turmeric

• 1-2 teaspoons of chana masala. I buy Badshah Chana Masala.

• Teaspoon Salt (Start with 1 teaspoon and keep adding to taste.

• Teaspoon Jaggery Sugar (Substitute Brown Sugar) ... add sugar to taste

• 1/2-1 lime (add to taste)

• Table spoon or 2 of chopped Cilantro

Directions:

1. Soak Chana for at least 8 hours in water. Cook Chana in pressure cooker. On insta pot - its

high for 15 minutes.

2. Puree the tomatoes, ginger, sugar, lime juice and green chili together and set aside.

3. Heat oil over medium heat... Once hot add cumin seeds (they should crack) turmeric, & red

chilis. Let it cook until cumin seeds begin to brown a bit. Add onions and a little salt and

cook onions until soft

4. Add the tomatoes puree... Let simmer and stir often for about 10-20 minutes so that it

thickens and gets a little richer in color. (You can add a little water if it begins to stick)

5. Add masala. Stir together. Start with 1 teaspoon and add until the flavor comes out how

you like it.

6. Add Chana... Let everything simmer together for 15-20 minutes until sauce thickens up.

You can add water at anytime if it seems a little dry. How “dry” or “soupy” is personal pref-

erence.

7. Add Salt, Sugar and lime to taste if still needed.

8. Top with cilantro

Serve with naan, roti or rice :)

The Days are Full of Space

This has been such a wonderful year of collaboration amongst the studio and the classrooms to support the children’s ongoing interest in space. On March 24 we will be celebrating our year long investigation with an All school celebration. The children have decided that the studio will be an alien kitchen! Complete with alien food. Which apparently is pizza and the green milkshakes. 

The teachers don’t determine all school studies like this. The children’s interest does. How? We pay attention to what their playing, and what they naturally gravitate to. And then we get busy supporting that. It’s truly a beautiful emergent process that I am honored to witness year after year.

 I am so grateful to be among this spectacular teaching team who help to make it possible. 

To Infinity and Beyond! Our Space Study Continues

To Infinity and BEYOND! Our study of space continues! This video, featuring the children, demonstrates how the children's art and ideas guides our study.

The children and teachers met today to discuss where to go next. They asked to learn MORE! A few examples are: What does moon sand feel like? How do you move in space? What are black holes?

Stay Curious and Live the Moment!

Finger Paint and the Art of Discovery

Welcome to the Wonderful World of Finger Paint!

This short video offers a fun peek at the learning inherent in each creative medium. Anytime we, the adults, step back and allow children to discover we see just how essential exploration is to skill acquisition.

 

To try this at home. Have your child help you make this easy Finger Paint Recipe with kitchen supplies you likely have on hand.

ingredients

3 tablespoons cornstarch

1/4 cup cold water

2 drops liquid dish detergent

1 cup boiling water

food coloring

directions

Stir together the cornstarch and cold water in a bowl. Mix until smooth. Add the dish washing liquid and mix well. 

While stirring, carefully add the boiling water and stir until the mixture thickens. Add the desired food coloring a drop at a time, mix well then let cool. 

Store the finger paint in a container with a tight-fitting lid. If it dries out, add water a few drops at a time until it is rehydrated.

Space Studio Studies

Taste testing

Toddlers in Studio

Feelings in Clay

Portrait Introduction

 

An introduction to portraits using simple materials: excess laminate, a black sharpie and a clear box lid.  Voila'!  And the children love it.  After drawing we use water color on mixed media paper to explore layering techniques and abstract portraiture.  We then layered the two together to create our final piece for a wonderful effect!

Continent songs to sing at home!

A Spooky Lunch

To XP or not to XP, is that the question?  

I remember when my son started in the Toddler program at Children's Garden.  He was a mass of blond curls and a whirl of energy. As a parent I was nervous.  I was dropping off my heart masquerading as a two year old each day. I 'd no doubt he'd bite someone, pee his three pairs of pants and come home grumpy and exhausted.  But I was also a teacher and had the rare advantage to witness the magic of our school first hand. He flourished. After Toddlers he spent the next two years in primary and a third in XP. 

His final year was a big one for many reasons.  His parents separated, he was hospitalized for a rattlesnake bite and was contending with more than his share of of uncertainty. The community didn't skip a beat.  Teachers added materials to the classroom to help the children understand loss and snakes.  They empowered. They encouraged. They learned. They grew.  He laughed and played.  He bloomed. With a sixteenth birthday around the corner his XP year remains a pinnacle memory for us.   I wouldn't exchange it for anything in the world. 

 

When trying to weigh options for our child's next steps, parents are often faced with the difficult decision to stay at CGMS or enroll their child early in an elementary school of choice to secure a spot for the years ahead. I understand.  It's a big choice.  And yet...

As the studio teacher, I work with children from the early days at Children's Garden through their graduation/continuation.  The children who stay for their XP or kindergarten year are a big part of our community. Their growth and leadership make the mixed-age classrooms sing.  The environments are designed to support all children.  Our oldest absolutely flourish and inspire the next crop of children to do the same.  The longer XP school day prepares for the journey ahead, equipping them with deep, often lasting, relationships and a tool box of understanding, skills and confidence. In the studio their deep thinking and big ideas often determine our direction of study and creative expression.  

Watching this Spooky Lunch video you get to glimpse a prime example.  This year cooking has emerged as an extension of the XP Feed the People campaign, which involves creating monthly XP lunches and making sandwiches to give away to people in need several times a week.  Which I do, meandering through downtown, passing out handmade goodies wrapped in tinfoil and care.  They are making a difference.  Not because I asked them to, but because they came together as a community to dream of a better world.  That is XP.

Bags of Love

The XP made Bags of Love for people in need, with the help of parent Kate M. and donations from other XP families. Thank you so much!

IIt inspired us to so much, we'd like to do it again! 

This project was an extension of the Feed the People project that the children initiated a few weeks ago and is gaining speed.  In addition to the bags, the children delivered a sandwich.  If you’d like to  share your story of sharing and caring please contact  Angelina at studio@cgmontessori.com

Feeling Jars: Our Study of Feelings Continues

Amy is Back!

Clay with Amy is back in session and we are so excited!!!!

Feed the People

This wonderful project is really taking off in the studio this year.  Click year to find out more!

A Worthwhile Listen to Accompany our Feeling Study

Brené Brown's Life Advice on Emotions Will Leave You Speechless

Listening Jar

This year we are exploring big feelings and big emotions in the studio. Here is a Feeling Jar.  What is a Feeling Jar?  It's feeling touchstone.

When a child asks to make a Feeling Jar I respond, "What is a feeling that is hard to hold... hard to feel?" The child thinks of one and then holds the jar in their lap and feels that feeling.  Once they feel it, really feel it, they put that feeling into the jar and then we quickly pour a bit of clear glue on top to seal the emotion in place,  Next, we add water (everything grows better with a little water), some colorful sparkles and Orbeez . We seal the lid, make a label and voila'... a Feeling Jar is born. 

When shaken the emotion/glitter is stirred up. As the colors swirl, we take time to feel that feeling and breathe it in.  As we watch the glitter settle, our feeling does too.

All feelings have a natural lifecycle.  

Science tells us that a feeling, fully felt, only lasts 90 seconds. Avoided or resisted, that same feeling can morph and persist for days, weeks or even years. How?  The story we tell ourselves and others about that feeling can be a subtle attempt to mask, understand or control it... which is a kind of resistance.  If we act that feeling out at or against other people, we are trying to get rid of it like a hot potato. That doesn't work. What we resist, persists.

Feeling an emotion completely for 90 seconds can take some serious courage and presence.  So how can we help each other?  One way is to provide a caring, non-judgmental listening space.  This allows a feeling to rise and fall and for emotional regulation to develop.  It takes time and practice. We can offer this to one another.

The pictured jar is a Listening Jar made by a child who told me "Listening is hard to feel."  His jar is a feeling touchstone.  When staying on task in the classroom proves too difficult he can shake up his jar and watch it settle. After a few rounds, he is ready to resume his work. When he leaves the studio I'm reminded to approach my own tough feelings with as much willingness and honesty as he does his.

What big feelings or emotions are hard for you to feel? 

Create

Learning as research: Feelings

Emergent curriculum:This is not a box

Back to School in the Studio

The children and I are in full swing talking about our feelings and what constitutes a feeling. It’s really a breathtaking study. So many opportunities to learn for all of us. Here is a relevant article worth reading that relates to our emotions study:

https://www.ahaparenting.com/read/how-to-raise-great-kids?utm_source=Dr.+Laura%27s+Parenting+Tips&utm_campaign=1ec41ae1a9-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2017_09_24_COPY_01&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_45e38f2e1a-1ec41ae1a9-210172649

Research 2023: A Pause to Imagine a New World AND Story time Travels with Angelina: The Lorax

For those of you new to Children's Garden, our school embraces a mix of Montessori and Reggio approaches to education.  Unlike the more Montessori founded classrooms, the studio doesn’t have a set curriculum.  We begin the year with a question and follow the children to see where it will take us. Each year’s question is a response to my observations, reflections and wonderings.  This year I found myself reflecting on the impact the global pandemic has had on people in relation to learning approaches and a current concept that children are falling behind.  There is a growing pressure on schools to demonstrate results and academic gains.  This tendency to focus on assessment and structured approaches to education assumes these procedures will lead to academic success.  But all too often they don’t.   Why? Humans need unstructured, unplanned, open-ended opportunities to play, imagine and discover.  This is not just a childhood need, it is a human one.  Imagination and play allow us to make sense of our world and integrate our experiences. Brains are always changing.  Adult brains might be more fixed but the brains of young children change with each new experience. As it turns out our proclivity toward fun is linked to neuroplasticity and a positive sense of purpose and well being across ages.  
If we rush toward “normal”, we inevitably leave behind many complex emotions.  This can have some pretty negative results. Unintegrated emotions can take our imaginations on a dark twist, leading to anxious ruminations, catastrophizing about the future, void filling and numbing. This is true of children as well as adults. We may become more risk avoidant, distractible and intolerant.   We need a healthy imagination, one freed from fear.  How do we get there? We play. Yep.  Imaginative, unstructured play can lead to emotional integration. And integration shepherds in a healthy world view, seasoned with hope and possibility.
My reflections on the importance of imagination brings to mind a story I read about the holocaust in Frank Ostaseski’s book, The Five Invitations.  In his retelling, the war is ending and there is a frenzied rush on the part of the nazi’s to empty the concentration camps before the allied troops arrive. On a gray day, a somber train packed with men rattled over worn out tracks.  They knew the fate that awaited them.  The mood was heavy.  Even the guards fell silent.  I can imagine no greater fear and yet, amidst the crowd there was a poet.  Overcome with sudden inspiration, he turned to the man beside him and said, “Give me your palm.”  The man obliged.  The poet leaned close, nose nearly touching hand, examining palm lines. Suddenly, he stood beaming, face spread in a grin, eyes locked on the man.  He exclaimed.  “You will live a long, full, happy life. You will marry and have two beautiful children.  You will!  I see it.  Right here!”  Tapping the man's palm confidently.  The man’s eyes sparkled with hope as he closed his fingers, pressing the promise to his chest like a talisman.  Another man nearby thrust his hand forward, “Read mine!”  The poet complied and after a brief study of the lines he announced with elated confidence a similar vision of good fortune.  Joy emerged in that crowded boxcar as men pressed hands forward and were met with possibility.  Hope had arrived where the certainty of despair had reigned just moments before. The guards felt it too, at least I imagine they must have, because no one had ever returned from that one way train ride, not until that day.  When an entire boxcar of men boarded the returning boxcar to a camp that was liberated less than three weeks later.  Many of those men survived. 
This is the power of positive imagination.  
My young niece read the story of The Lorax by Dr. Seuss (watch the video above alongside your child if you need a refresher.)  A story all too familiar these days, amidst news of climate change.  She was upset and crafted her own ending: 
After the Once-ler gave me the seed of the very last Truffala Tree.
I thought about how all of those trees were in need, 
So as fast as I could I planted that seed from the one very Truffula tree.
So that Truffala grew it grew and it grew until the seed was no seed but a full Truffala true.  
But I realized it was not enough, I needed more than just one Truffula tuft.  
So I planted and planted some more and soon there were four.  
Then I saw the brown bar-ba-loots come, they were ready for fun.  
We planted and planted and soon we were done.  
There were exactly one hundred and one.  
Then I saw the humming fish coming!  And soon I saw all the animals come.  From one to one hundred all in a row, 
I saw it I swear!  Soon my job was done.  
I saw the world, it was different but… fun!

Imagination, positive or negative, is arguably what makes humans human.  We can use it for good or to terrorize one another.  We have the ability to imagine and create the future we would like to see!  I have taught children for twenty years and I know without a doubt that each of us possess an innate ability to plant that seed and read those palms.  But our imaginations may become hindered by unmet fears and feelings. 
My question is how to support emotional integration and encourage healthy imagination, collaboration and well being.  I suggest we can all benefit from a prolonged Pause.  A time to allow our proverbial shadow to catch up.  A time to feel the feelings we pushed aside in our efforts to blend or appease or just keep going.  This pause is the foundation for learning and growth. It allows us to integrate the past and the present, freeing our capacity to imagine the future we’d like to see.  If we pause to feel the feelings and welcome any exiled aspects of self, our imagination is freed from the confines of fear.  We reclaim our intrinsic capacity to imagine a sustainable tomorrow, where children’s laughter fills the clean, fresh air alongside bumble-bees and song birds in a nature that flourishes amidst the kindness of everyday strangers.  
Join me for a year of slowing down as we come together to create a future of shared belonging.
Welcome to our school.
Stay Curious and Full of Wonder,
Your Studio Teacher, Angelina Lloyd, MPsyEd

Story time in Maine: Miss Rumphius

Click on this link for a fun video from Maine with a story for the children: https://youtu.be/xHWqjc7BQy8