Thank You

I would just like to take this time to thank North Haven for the opportunity that they gave me to share what I know with the the kids of their town.  It was a pleasure to work with such an enthused bunch, it defied my notions of what summer school would be like. I must admit that it didn't feel like work at times as we all had a lot of fun.  I hope the best for all of the students this coming school year and I look forward to the possibility of helping you all out more in the future.

Carve! Carve! Carve!

Things are starting to wind down at our summer camp and with some students taking early vacations the thought of ending this session is upon us.  I have to say that so far it has been better than I expected.  All of the campers have made some strides in their own way shape or form.  My hope is that they are able to focus on their work and push themselves to get better results just as they did when they carved their spoons.  Until then, we'll just keep on carving.

A happy group of students that are proud of their work.

Carving let's you relax while you work.

  

Take your time and evaluate your progress.

A good carver must use good technique and concentrate.

Carving Knives and Post Hole Diggers...No Cell Phones.

What do these tools have in common with our students?  Well the students put them to good use and they had fun using them- isn't that enough?  These are the kinds of tools that you don't usually see in school. Hopefully summer school in North Haven can demonstrate to everybody that learning is really, really fun...and it's supposed to be!  I mean really, who wants to sit around and stuff facts into their head for 7...and teachers complain when their kids text in class.  The Greek Philosopher Aristotle told us that people were born with endless amounts of knowledge in their minds and that through our experiences we are able to unlock it and use it to learn.  Get it..through our expereinces.  Learning should be an experience...let me correct myself- it should be an adventure! Well, let me tell you that my students have been utilizing their problem solving, math and science skills throughout summer school so far and will continue to given the work that they will be doing.  Building and carving and doing manual work is an adventure, and a worthwhile one at that.

With all senses engaged, they have been practicing their carving skills with Sloyd and Hook knives.  The term "Sloyd" means "handcraft" in Swedish and the Hook knife is literally a knife blade in the shape of a hook that can be used for hollowing out the bowl of a spoon.  

Caring with a hatchet forces people to concentrate.

Students have been building their forts in the forest as well, collecting limbs and branches and storing them at their sites for what will eventually become their tepee style shelters.  

Students working together to collect vines for some joinery on their tepees.

This time together has been extremely productive and rewarding and is setting a precedent for what education can be if we put our kids interests first.  Keep it up kids- you're the best!!!

With a center post in place this group is getting ready to add some rafters.

The 6 Senses

Most research will tell you that people learn best when most/all of their 5 senses are engaged.  My students learn best when they use all 6!  This is because at their age they have a heightened sense of adventure.  Just ask the video game and technology industries, they capitalize on this all of the time and make huge profits.  Maybe we could learn something from them- or not.  I've been in the fanciest school buildings around, none of them are as stimulating as the outdoors.  I don't think Common Core accounts for the engagement of a child's senses, never mind their sense of adventure.  

It seems like we tend to over value our curriculum or body of knowledge and undervalue our delivery system and the practical use that our standards have in store for our students.  In the end, regardless of the curriculum, the teacher is the only person who can "deliver the goods."

Today my kids explored the forest where the discovered clay deposits in the stream, a project adventure course, the sweet smells of birch and sassafras.  They continued to work on their spoons & forts as well as their ability to work together, solve problems and manage their own time.

Swingin' and Sawin'

Today we discovered a few vines hanging from some trees at the bottom of a small ravine hovering over a stream in the woods.  In case you're wondering what we are doing in the woods- it's an extension to our classroom in Work, Science & Community.  A perfect spot to enjoy ourselves, play and bond.   It was great to see how naturally our kids got along while they played.  According to most educational philosophers, "play" is considered one of the highest forms of learning.  The lesson for today was that education can be whatever you want it to be.  With a little imagination and effort, learning can be fun because learning is an adventure.  And our campers love an adventure!

In addition to swinging on vines our students began working on their spoons in Work, Science & Community.  They chose their species of wood, measured, marked and then cut their limb to size.  The wood they are using came from Wallingford where a small tornado, or microburst, touched down last Tuesday.  Yes, our students are handcrafting wooden spoons from locally harvested wood.  Elm, Cherry and Maple were the woods of choice for the kids today.  They learn pretty fast and did some superb cutting, safely, with their saws.