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!

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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......

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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.

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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.

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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.

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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.

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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.

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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.

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