Auke-Florian Hiemstra/Naturalis Biodiversity Center There was a street light just outside the living room window of my second-story downtown Seattle apartment. On top of the light fixture were ugly spikes, fixed there to prevent birds from landing on it. As far as I could tell, i … | Continue reading
"No climbing to the top!" When our daughter was in kindergarten, her school installed an amazing rope-and-steel climbing structure. The kindergartners were forbidden from climbing to the very top, which meant that adults were always hovering around the thing, "reminding" the chil … | Continue reading
In 1971, architect Simon Nicholson wrote an article for a magazine called Landscape Architecture entitled “How Not to Cheat Children: The Theory of Loose Parts.” Perhaps it wasn’t the first time that the phrase “loose parts play” was used, but it was this manifesto that in many w … | Continue reading
For the past few years, orcas off the coast of Spain and Portugal have been ramming and often sinking smaller boats. Back in the 1980's, pods of orcas in the Pacific Ocean made a fad of wearing dead fish on their heads. The leading theory for these behaviors is play. The orcas do … | Continue reading
I was recently leaving a downtown store. When I came to the exit door, I saw that it had a handle. I grabbed and pulled. The door didn't budge. I then, counter-intuitively, pushed and the door swung open. This is a prime example of a failure in design: a handle means "pull" and a … | Continue reading
A friend recently purchased a new home. The first thing she did was paint the walls, because, as she said, the old color depressed her. We all know that our surroundings can have a significant impact on how we feel and even behave. And this is even more true for young children. A … | Continue reading
The boy was on his knees, sobbing. I don't know why, but I also did nothing because there was already someone caring for him. Two people, in fact: girls, his classmates, children who rarely played with him, but down there with him nonetheless, hands lovingly across his shoulder, … | Continue reading
Kleo I often watch the Great British Bake Off, a competition show that good-naturedly pits amateur bakers against one another. I don't bake myself, but I find the show relaxing. After 13 seasons, there are no surprises, the jokes are predictably corny, and the contestants, hosts, … | Continue reading
When I was a preschooler, I'd beg my mother to play the board games with me -- Candyland, Chutes & Ladders, Hi-Ho Cheerio -- games in which skill was not pitted against skill, but rather luck against luck. Mom was a good sport, but she was grateful when my younger brother was fin … | Continue reading
A five-year-old boy once accused me of being a "bad teacher." He wasn't mad at me. It wasn't intended as an insult. He was grinning as he said it, but he offered it more as a statement of fact than a joke. I've had children tell me that I'm "supposed to be a boy," "you smell stin … | Continue reading
Mister Rogers: "More and more I've come to understand that listening is one of the most important things we can do for one another. Whether the other be an adult or a child, our engagement in listening to who that person is can often be our greatest gift. Whether that person is s … | Continue reading
The boy stood outside the door. I smiled at him from the inside as his mother tried to coax him forward. He smiled back at me, but didn't move. His mother asked him, "Don't you want to go to school?" He nodded that he did, still smiling. Indeed, he appeared relaxed, almost like h … | Continue reading
var addthis_config = {"data_track_clickback":true}; The boy stood outside the door. I smiled at him from the inside as his mother tried to coax him forward. He smiled back at me, but didn't move.His mother asked him, "Don't you want to go to school?"He nodded that he did, sti … | Continue reading
Awhile back, I was experiencing a little lower back pain, concentrated on the right side. After a series of massage appointment, the pain was gone, but, irritatingly, now there was pain on the lower left side. Again, I booked a series of massages, this time focusing on my whole b … | Continue reading
var addthis_config = {"data_track_clickback":true}; Awhile back, I was experiencing a little lower back pain, concentrated on the right side. After a series of massage appointment, the pain was gone, but, irritatingly, now there was pain on the lower left side. Again, I booke … | Continue reading
Teachers in the US have the highest "burn out" rate of any other profession. Over half of all teachers are looking for a new job. A majority of teachers report not being engaged in their jobs, leading to 2.3 million missed workdays. Teachers aren't engaged because they don't feel … | Continue reading
var addthis_config = {"data_track_clickback":true}; Teachers in the US have the highest "burn out" rate of any other profession.Over half of all teachers are looking for a new job.A majority of teachers report not being engaged in their jobs, leading to 2.3 million missed wor … | Continue reading
What is she thinking about? I don't understand. Not even the most fundamental things come to me easily. I seem to be totally unaware, for instance, that the building we're passing is grilling meat because if I was aware, of course I'd turn and go inside . . . And eat the meat! I … | Continue reading
var addthis_config = {"data_track_clickback":true}; What is she thinking about?I don't understand. Not even the most fundamental things come to me easily. I seem to be totally unaware, for instance, that the building we're passing is grilling meat because if I was aware, of c … | Continue reading
var addthis_config = {"data_track_clickback":true}; In his book Propaganda: The Formation of Men's Attitudes, Jacque Ellul writes: People used to think that learning to read evidenced human progress; they still celebrate the decline of illiteracy as a great victory; they cond … | Continue reading
In his book Propaganda: The Formation of Men's Attitudes, Jacque Ellul writes: People used to think that learning to read evidenced human progress; they still celebrate the decline of illiteracy as a great victory; they condemn countries with a large proportion of illiterates; th … | Continue reading
var addthis_config = {"data_track_clickback":true}; I feel that it's important for us, as early childhood educators, to stay abreast of the latest research in our profession (all of which supports a play-based approach) as well as some of the other areas of cognitive and neur … | Continue reading
I feel that it's important for us, as early childhood educators, to stay abreast of the latest research in our profession (all of which supports a play-based approach) as well as some of the other areas of cognitive and neuroscience (all of which supports a play-based approach). … | Continue reading
var addthis_config = {"data_track_clickback":true}; The latest installment of Teacher Tom's Podcast is ready for your ears. In this episode I tell my personal story with a particular focus on the kinds of communities we can create with young children at the center. If you've … | Continue reading
The latest installment of Teacher Tom's Podcast is ready for your ears. In this episode I tell my personal story with a particular focus on the kinds of communities we can create with young children at the center. If you've ever wanted to know more about cooperative preschools, y … | Continue reading
var addthis_config = {"data_track_clickback":true}; Most days, we would have a large ball of play dough for the children to share, but one day a family arrived with a supply of store-bought kinetic sand that she was donating to the cause. I figured we could do with a little c … | Continue reading
Most days, we would have a large ball of play dough for the children to share, but one day a family arrived with a supply of store-bought kinetic sand that she was donating to the cause. I figured we could do with a little change of pace, so I put it on the yellow table instead o … | Continue reading
var addthis_config = {"data_track_clickback":true}; The best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago. The second best time is now. ~Proverb of unknown originMuch of what passes for common sense is found in this concept. It's why we save for a rainy day. It's why we plan. It … | Continue reading
The best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago. The second best time is now. ~Proverb of unknown origin Much of what passes for common sense is found in this concept. It's why we save for a rainy day. It's why we plan. It's why we pack an umbrella no matter how optimistic we are. … | Continue reading
var addthis_config = {"data_track_clickback":true}; One of the things Seattle's teachers won in their 2015 strike was a commitment from the school district that elementary school students would receive a minimum of 30 minutes of recess per day. In fairness, some schools were … | Continue reading
One of the things Seattle's teachers won in their 2015 strike was a commitment from the school district that elementary school students would receive a minimum of 30 minutes of recess per day. In fairness, some schools were already providing more than that, but there were several … | Continue reading
var addthis_config = {"data_track_clickback":true}; There are certain universal experiences. The alpha and omega of birth and death to name the most obvious. Loss and grief is another. And, naturally, there are those feelings that start in the body like hunger, pain, and fear … | Continue reading
There are certain universal experiences. The alpha and omega of birth and death to name the most obvious. Loss and grief is another. And, naturally, there are those feelings that start in the body like hunger, pain, and fear. Not only are these experiences universal today, but th … | Continue reading
var addthis_config = {"data_track_clickback":true}; "There is really only one question that can be answered," writes Ursula LeGuin in her classic novel The Left Hand of Darkness, "and we already know the answer . . . The only thing that makes life possible is permanent, intol … | Continue reading
"There is really only one question that can be answered," writes Ursula LeGuin in her classic novel The Left Hand of Darkness, "and we already know the answer . . . The only thing that makes life possible is permanent, intolerable uncertainty: not knowing what comes next." Of cou … | Continue reading
var addthis_config = {"data_track_clickback":true}; I recently watched the Academy Award nominated short documentary The ABCs of Book Banning, in which director Sheila Nevins, turns the camera on children between the ages of 8 and 16 who attend schools impacted by the wave of … | Continue reading
I recently watched the Academy Award nominated short documentary The ABCs of Book Banning, in which director Sheila Nevins, turns the camera on children between the ages of 8 and 16 who attend schools impacted by the wave of school book banning that has taken place in parts of th … | Continue reading
var addthis_config = {"data_track_clickback":true}; It was a pleasant day so we had our doors open. When whether permits, we like to connect our indoors with the outdoors. The fresh, moving air, the bird song and insect buzz, the scent of plants, of dirt, of moisture. When I … | Continue reading
It was a pleasant day so we had our doors open. When whether permits, we like to connect our indoors with the outdoors. The fresh, moving air, the bird song and insect buzz, the scent of plants, of dirt, of moisture. When I step onto the patio for an al fresco lunch, the food, un … | Continue reading
I've never written about the day I became a father. I think about that day and often tell parts of the story, but so far I've not found all of the words to do so, if words are even adequate. What I need to say is too complex to express in my normal way. Maybe it requires a novel. … | Continue reading
var addthis_config = {"data_track_clickback":true}; I've never written about the day I became a father. I think about that day and often tell parts of the story, but so far I've not found all of the words to do so, if words are even adequate. What I need to say is too complex … | Continue reading
When we're little, people tell us we can be whatever we want to be so we imagine ourselves to be princesses and superheroes. We don't aspire to become these things, we embody them. Then we're taught we're just pretending so we start to aspire. We believe that we can one day be ba … | Continue reading
var addthis_config = {"data_track_clickback":true}; When we're little, people tell us we can be whatever we want to be so we imagine ourselves to be princesses and superheroes. We don't aspire to become these things, we embody them. Then we're taught we're just pretending so … | Continue reading
As I entered first grade, the buzz amongst the kids was that Mrs. Dunn was mean. We all hoped for Miss McCutcheon as our homeroom teacher, who was rumored to be the nice one. I celebrated when I learned I was to be in "good" teacher's class. Two years later, my brother was assign … | Continue reading
var addthis_config = {"data_track_clickback":true}; As I entered first grade, the buzz amongst the kids was that Mrs. Dunn was mean. We all hoped for Miss McCutcheon as our homeroom teacher, who was rumored to be the nice one. I celebrated when I learned I was to be in "good" … | Continue reading
"I'm painting out of my mouth" In the world of play-based learning, when we think about young children making art, we generally say "process over product." Like a mantra. In fact, for many of us, this statement – process over product – is the gateway through which we enter play-b … | Continue reading
var addthis_config = {"data_track_clickback":true}; "I'm painting out of my mouth"In the world of play-based learning, when we think about young children making art, we generally say "process over product." Like a mantra.In fact, for many of us, this statement – process over … | Continue reading
When I was a boy the word "please" was said to be the magic word, and I suppose it was when we were performing for adults in order to get something we wanted, but "let's" is the word with real magic in it. "Let's" is, of course, really two words that we speak as one, meaning "let … | Continue reading