Labyrinth

Last Friday most of the third graders and some of the fourth graders experienced the Labyrinth at the First United Methodist Church.  This is part of the Third Grade Rites of Passage Program.   A labyrinth is a design (in this case painted on the floor) having a single pathway which, after a series of twists and turns, arrives at the center of the design, and then proceeds out again.  Walking it is a contemplative practice in which one pays attention to the experience "in the moment". 

What is interesting is that so much can be experienced within the simple act of walking through this design.    The path is set so there is little need to be lost in thought wondering where to go.  It is possible to relax and open up to the journey:  "The firmness of the boundaries creates the openness of the space."  This is a common characteristic of all contemplative practices, where the integrity, simplicity, and beauty of the  form allows for a deepening to take place, a deepening not usually experienced when traveling on the surface of busyness and thinking.

You are invited to experience the Labyrinth for yourself, as it is open to the public:  http://www.fumcboulder.org/labyrinth.jsp.  It might make for a great winter break activity!

Read more...

Fourth Grade Overnight II

The inaugural fourth grade overnight was a great success.  The students were quite upbeat and thoughtful throughout.  We placed the desks together to form a long row  for dinner, lit candles, and sat in silence for a few minutes before eating.  Students played games, read a lot, and Pentaminos were a big hit.  They helped with serving and clean-up.  About eight of them got up at 5:00 a.m., made their way quietly into the second grade classroom, and were serenely playing games or reading in hushed tones.  All in all, it was a wonderful with many funny or insightful or touching moments.  I am grateful for all the hard work Margaret has put into deepening this fine community of learners and friends, and am also grateful for her work putting together this event itself!  

Now to bed......

Read more...

Fourth Grade Overnight

"You're brave," is something I keep hearing in response to my joining Margaret and the fourth graders tonight for our first annual school overnight.  I'm actually looking forward to it, though am setting the bar low on expectations for sleep.  Right now (5:50) they are all gathered in the classroom playing an impressive array of board games.  Dinner is coming up soon, and the menu looks impressive.  I'll let you know how we all fared in tomorrow's blog.

Read more...

Fourth Graders Contribute to the B r e a t h e

At lunch-time yesterday I went into the fourth grade class and asked for volunteers to write a paragraph for the B r e a t h e about our new school pet, Echo the gecko.  Pretty much every hand shot up!  I also asked for a photographer, which also received a warm response.

We're keeping track of the fourth graders who contribute to our newsletter and hopefully everyone will make an offering by school year's end.  This is all good training  for our special student section of the B r e a t h e in fifth grade and a separate all-student newsletter for middle school, when sixth graders will be responsible for the entire production, from inspiration to publication.

Read more...

Silent Time

This morning I joined the fourth graders for their 10 minutes of sitting practice.  Afterwards we discussed our daily silent time.  Silent time coincides with lunch and is a great opportunity each day to return to the simplicity of just eating, just sitting, just looking around and appreciating the space and the view and the other students in the room.  Appreciation comes from the joining of form and space, from the rose and taking the time to smell it. From the sandwich and and having the space to appreciate its taste.  I invited the fourth graders to remember  to touch back in with this simplicity of sensorial experience.

Read more...

Noticing the Sun

Yesterday I was leading the first-second grade science classes, and the topic was how the Earth's tilt produces the seasons.  We talked about the fact that because our part of the Earth is tilted away from the sun right now, the sun appears lower in its short daily trek across the sky.  I used a head-lamp, globe, and illustrations to convey this idea, but I also encouraged students to notice where the sun is at different times during the day, and how high or low it is in the sky.  The more we are "tuned in" to what's around us, the more we 

locate ourselves and can appreciate where we are at any given moment.

Read more...

Football

Today I had the good fortune of supervising recess and specifically
the football game that takes place regularly on the other side of the
playground. I was so impressed by the sportsmanship, the kindness,
the creativity around "new rules", and the general sense of
fairness. And there was little or no sense of "parroting" these
actions; they seemed genuinely inspired and experienced by the
individual players and by the group as a whole.

Read more...

Winter Solstice Celebration

In a few weeks  (Friday, December 19 from 3:30 - 5:00) we will come together to celebrate the Winter Solstice.  This is not only a celebration of the outer light of the sun, but the inner light of our connection with our own selves and the warmth of our connection with others.    Each year the entire school learns a song honoring both this outer and inner play of light,  and this year we are learning "Love and Happiness" by Kimmie Rhodes.  When I introduced the song with the fourth graders today, I handed them out the words and they almost immediately spotted a typo deep within the lyrics.  I was quite taken by how heart-felt they embraced the song from the very start of learning it.

Read more...

Heartfelt Answer

There is a practice of one way students answer a question at ESA that I'd like to share, a practice that works with intelligence, compassion and confidence simultaneously.  It goes like this:

A teacher asks the class a question, and tells  the students to place a "thumbs up" next to their hearts when they know the answer.   The students are given a period of time to work on the problem silently, and when the teacher sees a certain number of students holding the answer- and sometimes this number is everyone- the teacher then calls on one of them.

This method of responding accomplishes a number of things different from the more traditional "raise your hand and I'll call on the first one" approach.  First of all, placing a thumb up over your heart area feels different than shooting your hand up.... try it!  Also, waiting to respond allows for the answer to sink more deeply into your experience.  And by giving others the chance to come up with the answer is an expression of the  group journey and not just about getting it right yourself.  Sometimes the teacher will write another more difficult problem on the board for the first responders to chew on while waiting for the others, but sometimes just being in the space while others are working it out is a practice of patience, generosity, and self-reflection.

I was having dinner with a friend the other night and he re-counted how in a social gathering he has to work hard on listening to others in a group and letting them reach their own conclusions instead of trying to "seal the deal" for them.  We can give our children a wonderful gift by having them learn the joy, beauty, and power of waiting, waiting in the spirit of allowing others to find their own truths.

My blog is going to take its own holiday break and will be back on December 1st.  Happy Thanksgiving everyone!  

Steven

Read more...

Fourth Grade Poetry Recital

This morning I had the opportunity to attend part of the Fourth Grade Poetry Recital.  I was very taken by the composure, clarity, and fun these students displayed in reciting their poetry.  I was also touched- as I'm sure were the students- by the number of parents and relatives who came out for this event.  Ms. Dodd told me afterwards that the students are very excited about going further with their poetry writing and performances, so stay tune for more in December!

Read more...

Overheard at Pick-up Time

 Norah's newsletters always include a section where she relates what she overhears her students say throughout the week.  So I thought I would share a few things I heard this afternoon at pick-up time:

From one fourth grader to another: "You should really read the cliffhanger at the end of the chapter, it's, it's.....no I won't tell you!"

From a first grader to me: "Ms. Murray told me I could help the kindergartners at pick-up time.  Can I?   They really need my help!"

From one third grader to another: "Wouldn't it be cool if you could pick your nose with your ear?"

Read more...

Meeting with a Student

Yesterday a fourth grader came into my office requesting "a time to meet with me."  So we sat down today and she took out her list!   I offered her some tea which she gladly accepted.

She had a lot of ideas for how to work with "boy energy" which included opening the basketball court a couple of days per week and starting a competitive soccer team, which led to a discussion of a school team mascot and school colors.  This student also had ideas surrounding "some ideas for girls",  which had mostly to do with dance and theatre.  I took careful notes and told her I would consider these good ideas and she could help me by considering a school mascot and school colors.  We agreed to meet again.  

I thanked her for coming in and informed her that while lots of students visit me in my office,  she was the first student who had actually the forethought to make an appointment.   I encouraged her to let her friends  know of this opportunity to meet with me.

I loved that this student took the initiative to affect change in her surroundings.  Certainly feeling empowered in your world is an essential part of our school.  And the other half of this is being empowered in our ability to work with whatever arises in our experience, and this is  where contemplative practice comes in.  It is summed up beautifully in a slogan that returns to me time and time again:

"Engage in virtuous activity as much as you can, and rest naturally in whatever arises."

Steven

Read more...

B r e a t h e

By now everyone should have received the first issue of the all-school newsletter, the B r e a t h e.  We would certainly welcome any feedback you have regarding its content, as we are trying to communicate aspects of the school that are of interest to the entire ESA community.  If you have something you would like to offer to our next edition, please let Karina or myself know.  The deadline for submission is December 8 as the next B r e a t h e is due out on December 12.

Have a good weekend,

Steven

Steven Sachs

Head of School

Eastern Sun Academy

6717 South Boulder Rd.

Boulder, CO   80303

303.443.3302

steven@easternsunacademy.org

www.EasternSunAcademy.org 

Read more...

Tomorrow's Party

I hope you'll be able to join us for tomorrow night's celebration, honoring these first years of Eastern Sun Academy and all that's been accomplished so far.   It will be nice to be together in our new home for such a festivity.

Steven

Steven Sachs

Head of School

Eastern Sun Academy

6717 South Boulder Rd.

Boulder, CO   80303

303.443.3302

steven@easternsunacademy.org

www.EasternSunAcademy.org 

Read more...

Go; Math and Science Club

I have been privileged to participate in the first two sessions of our new Math and Science Club, which is being wonderfully and very generously coordinated by Shawna Reininger.  The first two times were spent with Paul Barchilon of the Boulder Go Club (http://bcn.boulder.co.us/recreation/go/bgcresources.shtml ), who taught us the ancient game of Go.  The level of engagement was quite high on both afternoons, and I myself quickly took a liking to it.  It's a beautiful game, full of twists and turns, simple to learn, difficult to master, and we were grateful that Walker was around to help Paul help the rest of us!

We will be moving onto other math and science activities, but I hope we can keep going with Go.  It feels like a great game for our school!  If any student would like to play, I'll have a board in my office and we can schedule a time.  The Math and Science Club is for third and fourth graders, but I know there are some first and second graders (and maybe even kindergartners!) who know how to play Go, or who are interested in learning.  If that's your son or daughter, let's set up a time to play!

There's also a wonderful interactive web-site that takes you step-by-step through the game:

http://www.playgo.to/interactive/index.html

I know Shawna could use a hand with the Math and Science Club.  If you have any ideas, people resources, or can help out one Thursday, please see her or send her an e-mail (shawnareininger@indra.com).  If each of us helps as much as we can, the total help will be "exponential"!

Thanks,

Steven

Steven Sachs

Head of School

Eastern Sun Academy

6717 South Boulder Rd.

Boulder, CO   80303

303.443.3302

steven@easternsunacademy.org

www.EasternSunAcademy.org 

Read more...

Welcome!

Dear Friends,

Welcome to my blog!  The intention of this forum is to have an ongoing opportunity for me to share what's coming across my desk, inspirations, ideas, questions, or challenges of Eastern Sun Academy, and to dialogue with all interested parties about such things.  I aim to post to this blog each school day, even if it's only a passing sentence or two. 

Feel free to subscribe to this blog using the links indicated here, which will forward my entries  directly to your e-mail inbox each day.

Today Marti is sick and so I will be filling in for her in the first-second grade class.  I enjoy this opportunity to connect with the class and particularly to explore and deepen the link between the classes and contemplative practice (More about contemplative practice in the days ahead!).   

However...  something has to give today and it will be the first issue of the B r e a t h e, our all-school newsletter.  This will now go out on Wednesday (remember, no school tomorrow on account of Veteran's Day).

One important item in the B r e a t h e will be a parent volunteer survey, which was inspired by our last parent community night.  Julia Hellerman, our volunteer coordinator, has put this together and will start matching people of particular interests and/ or skills with the richness of opportunities that exist for parents to connect here.  Please take a moment to fill it out and return it to Karina's box in the front office by Friday.  Thanks!

Steven

Steven Sachs

Head of School

Eastern Sun Academy

6717 South Boulder Rd.

Boulder, CO   80303

303.443.3302

steven@easternsunacademy.org

www.EasternSunAcademy.org 

Read more...