Every month, we reflect on a particular value as a whole school. November’s value has been gratitude and it has me thinking about what I am grateful for in my first year teaching at Chicago Friends School. I have been grateful to come to work every day and greet my students, to have the opportunity…
As a teacher of adolescents, one of the most important subjects I teach is not often considered a “subject” at all. I teach executive functioning skills. Adolescents and teens are often typecast into the role of rebels, complainers, challengers of authority, and hard to satisfy. These behaviors are normal and are often demonstrating that the…
“Infinity is not a number, it’s a concept!” exclaimed one kindergarten student. “What’s a concept?” questioned another. Over the past month, there has been a lot of chatter between the Sprouts about exactly what infinity is. I decided to take some time in math class the next morning to explore infinity in more detail. I…
At Chicago Friends School, we have very small class sizes. When people talk about small classes, the ability to customize instruction and provide individual students with teacher attention come up a lot. Those are important—part of the reason I wanted to teach here was that I wanted to be in a place where I would…
My first week as the new lead teacher in the Acorns class has been a whirlwind. As I’m catching my breath and doing a bit of reflection, one thing that has been a constant all week is the support from the entire Chicago Friends School community — from my fellow teachers jumping in with their…
How can we encourage kids to think critically from an early age? Through an activity that every child is already an expert at – asking questions! The trick is to go beyond simple “what” questions and start asking more complex “how” and “why” questions. I decided to use the book One Plastic Bag to help…