The BC Ministry of Education Early Years Program has published a wonderful story about the importance of early years education programs. Read the full post on the BC Early Years Blog. There are many factors to a child’s early learning, including parents, caregivers,...
What happens when you ask children what they want to learn? Possibly, months of dolphin discovery or a complete agricultural adaptation of the pop-smash Gangnam Style, complete with choreographed dance moves, called “Oh, Potato Style.” Last week I had the incredible...
Do you remember a moment where someone’s encouragement made a world of difference? Sometimes hearing three simple words like “You got this!” can be powerful. And everyone can benefit from encouragement, no matter their age. When a child receives encouragement from an...
Traditional school buildings were designed for an industrial era that has long since passed. Mirroring a factory assembly line, these spaces were built on a model where students move sequentially from room to room for seated, direct instruction. This system was...
Our current compulsory schooling model was created at the dawn of the Industrial Age. As factories replaced farm work and production moved swiftly outside of homes and into the larger marketplace, 19th century American schooling mirrored the factories that most...
When you hear the phrase “student-centered classroom,” what immediately comes to mind? Do you envision a classroom erupting into chaos, students doing what they want without a clear curricular goal to guide them? A true student-centered classroom is anything but a...
As the green schools movement develops and gains notice, defining what is considered the third pillar of a green school (U.S. DOE, 2017), environmental and sustainability literacy, has gained steam in conversations at school board meetings, state departments of...
As an educator it’s highly probable that one of your top wishes is to have your students meaningfully engaged in their learning. It’s probably the reason you went into teaching, to experience that sense of fulfillment that comes from witnessing a child’s mental and...
Winter in the higher latitudes can feel like an unending story of short days, long nights, and relentless storms that keep us huddled indoors. It’s easy to feel disconnected from the natural world during this time, but at Natural Pod, we believe that connection...
This is a personal story. One which I thought I might never get to write. It’s about being inspired to do great work for others and also wanting those close to you to benefit from that great work. Three years ago I started working with Natural Pod, who are based...
Sprig, the last classroom table you’ll ever need
