Month: January 2022

Unknown Preparation for the Spark that Ignites

Who can say where and when inspiration may strike? More significantly, why does it matter? I believe, as a teacher and guide for children, it may be the only thing that matters.

Let me share a little story…

Surfing the internet I came across the video of a stage show I’d never heard of, “In Your Face New York.” It’s what one might expect from the title: clever, contemporary, cutting edge, cheeky. That’s what made me stay long enough for the first guest: a female curator from MOMA whose purpose for being on the show was to share three acquired paintings, fulfilling a long-overdue shift in the museum’s values to create more visibility of women artist’s works. 

The last painting was this one: Die. #20 from Faith Ringgold’s series of murals entitled American People. The painting immediately grabbed at my heart. Here was an American version of Guernica, a painting that so moved me in 1972 during my very first visit to NYC, that I returned to sit in its presence countless times over the next decades. I was so moved by Ms. Ringgold’s mural, that I nearly missed hearing the curator tell the story of  Ms. Ringgold’s struggle to be accepted into MOMA’s male-dominated artistic circle, her never-ending efforts to protest the practices, if not the policies, of the MOMA of the 1960’s and beyond, but also her steadfast support of the museum for what it could be. 

It was Faith Ringgold’s connection to Guernica that had inspired her work and it was our common connection to that painting that sent me on a quest to learn whatever I could about this woman who shared my fascination: I looked her up. I read her bio. I fell in love with her paintings and her story. I re-discovered her stories for children, stories I’d once read to my classes, in that moment failing to make the connection between the painter and the writer. 

This chance moment became today’s inspiration. Creative juices began to flow in my veins. I’m filled with ideas for a classroom study, for adding to a historical study I championed a long time ago. 

Before this morning’s moment, my environment had been prepared by a week of watching, listening, and discussing #BlackLivesMatter. Before this morning’s moment, I’d read James Baldwin’s “A Message to Teachers” (Baldwin, 1963) and been brought to tears. Before this moment, my environment had been prepared literally and figuratively by years of doing my best to share a vision of equality and unity with children, while striving to learn and internalize a new way of facing my inherent racism brought on by being white in a society whose systems are skewed on my behalf.

So, my dear teaching friends, never underestimate the possibility of sudden inspiration! Prepare your environments to be rich places where your students may be surrounded by all manner of experience. Prepare your lessons to be a cloud of wonder and fascination that will touch your students’ hearts, souls, and minds. Prepare your schedules with openness and freedom so your students have space to let their imaginations blossom. 

For when you prepare in this way, you are paving the way for inspiration that just may last a lifetime. 

When I was in the classroom, I loved returning to school after the winter break.

We had ended the previous semester with warm, loving celebrations of light. The month of December brought closure on a semester of learning and projects. The final week was spent giving and receiving Secret Friend notes and tiny expressions of love and caring, culminating in a great mass gift-giving in which children demonstrated how very well they knew their classmates by the simple offerings they gave. We said goodbye, looking forward to time with our families and a break from our normal routines.

All those good feelings came back to school with us and January was a time when everything about our classroom felt familiar and calm. Happy to return to the order of the space, with just a few new items on the shelves to pique their curiosity, the children settled quickly into new inquiries with a focused attention born out of familiarity, competence, and confidence. Those first few weeks were idyllic: calm, peaceful, and focused.

After the challenges of 2020, I wonder what this period will be like for many of you. Will students be returning to familiar classrooms, will this be the first time they are seeing each other this school year, or will distance learning remain the norm in the midst of this turbulent pandemic that has rocked our world? 

As a result of the pandemic, 2020 brought an almost frantic pivot for us all…and now, in 2021, I am seeking peace, determined to create greater space for calm in every corner of my life.

Achieving peace will require intention and commitment. It will insist upon self-discipline. It will demand new habits, actions, and activities.  I’ll be called upon to be creative, courageous and strong.

Dr. Montessori’s vision for a peaceful revolution is carried out in Cosmic Education. Through her Cosmic vision, Montessori sought to develop awareness of the natural flow of the Universe: a flow based on a dance of giving and receiving, each entity playing its part and making its unique contribution.

I trust you’ll find ways to bring peace into your life and into the lives of your children. Teaching Peace is a noble goal, a satisfying aim, and the true work of Montessori Cosmic Education. 

“Peace is a practical principle of human civilization and social organization that is based on the very nature of man. Peace does not enslave him; rather, it exalts him…. And because it is based on man’s nature, it is a constant, a universal principle that applies to all human beings. This principle must be our guide in building a science of peace and educating men for peace.”