Nov8

sow a seed.

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my new adventure

an on-call teacher

a couple of mornings a week

at the university of michigan child care center

children from 12 weeks to age 5 spend their days here

while their parents research or teach or take care of others at the hospital

i’m working with the multi-age outdoor class

‘the apple blossoms’

3s, 4s, and a couple of young 5s

getting a hands-on education

all outdoors

learning by doing 

drinking milky tea on a chilly morning

imagination, exploration, discovery, building, caring for nature

trying new things, failing at times, and trying again

gardening, cooking in the mud kitchen, finding animals 

working with others, working alone

we are the guides

we are all learning

eating, sleeping, growing, weeping

laughing, yelling, whispering, hiking, finding

the apple blossoms thrive in the outdoors

this is what we see when we look up 

sleeping under the pines

soft needles below 

tarp and mat and comfy blankets and cuddlies

all tucked in 

hearing stories read aloud

looking to the sky as we drift off to dream. 

—

‘children grow up hearing how broken the environment is,

how broken beyond repair.

plant strawberries together, make wild medicines, paint the sunrise.

show them proof, that for every act of destruction,

they can sow a seed, however small, of beauty.’

-nicolette sowder

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82 responses »

  27. Congratulations on your new gig, Beth. It sounds like a great transition decision for you, keeping your foot in the door to help children without all the responsibility of a full-time teaching job.

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  31. I am jumping for joy! Those lucky children to have you as their teacher/caretaker/nurturer. Nature is the greatest teacher, and you get to pull it all in for the little ones. I hope you will share frequent posts.

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  33. Beth, how wonderful that these children are able to connect with nature as part of their daily experience. It sounds like this work will fill your cup while you play a needed role in allowing this program to continue.
    Thank you for sharing a positive focus forward.

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  35. I have a lot of teacher friends who supply (be on call) in their retirement and they love it. The joy of interacting with young minds but without the administrative headache, like marking and prep. 3-5s are such a wonderful age and getting to spend the time outdoors to nurture their mind, body and spirit is such a treat. Enjoy the time together!

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