Tunnel of Light in the Darkness

Tunnel of Vines.

Walkway to heaven (or hell).

Revisiting old sites, and taking in some new ones. The top photo comes from a tangle of overgrown bushes I pass most every day. I've seen three different types of road kill by the side of the road (groundhog, beaver, and most horribly, a kitten) next to this stand of woods. Heartbreaking, and still some of the untamed wild. I wish I could build an elevated walkway for critters, like they do for koalas and kangaroos that migrate across highways in Australia.

The bottom pic is total nostalgia. I went to a school called Chestnut Grove that doesn't exist anymore, because the kids grew up and moved away. Now it's the seat for a county board, so it still gets some use, but there's nothing eerier than empty, silent playgrounds. 
It started out as one really cool looking old stone building (more on that later), then grew to an addition that's a rather standard box. Many years of my childhood were spent not knowing how my days would go: good or bad, I would never be able to determine if I would be running in fear from violence, or breathing a sigh of relief walking down this walkway to and from school. Isnt' that just like life?

Children's Books: This Girl Isn't Just a Girl

A girl, but not just any girl.

I often find interesting things on the street, mostly because I'm always looking at the world around me, and so I make great finds. I passed by a church that has an elementary school, and I noticed that one young student must have had one heck of a good time with this book. 

BOO! Did I scare you?

Well-loved books, like beloved children's toys, come apart with heavy use, and this darling book about a little girl witch was no exception. As much as I make books to last (as part of my job), I also recognize them for what they are; precious objects that are also made for human use, especially by our littlest ones, who need them the most to learn. Besides, this girl loved finding it among the autumn leaves. 

It just seemed right.

No problem! I got it covered.

Mad about books?

http://www.pinterest.com/mariedoucette/reading-writing-books/

Fall, and school reading.

Street Art: Poetry

Conjunction Junction, what's your function?

I found a piece of paper on the sidewalk, grammar lessons from a child's notebook, and I thought it formed a poetry of its' own. 
Everyday magic is all around you.  Stop for a second look.

To Be And To Have

I watched a wonderful documentary, Être et Avoir, about a teacher in rural France assigned to an all ages, one-room schoolhouse. It captured the spirit of education, but I was disappointed to learn that the director fed the teacher lines to get the kids to talk about certain subjects (found in the DVD extras) and looking back, you can see those scenes are forced.

The best parts of the movie are the teachers' impromptu interactions with his students that are centered around small classes, focused attention, and lots of interpersonal contact. This is the model we should be striving for, with or without the bucolic French countryside as a backdrop, and there are no good reasons why we can't have it.

Teachers already sacrifice their financial security for their vocation, as do those of us who work in fields closely related to education, like publishing. We have the drive and the dedication needed to provide excellent resources for our children. What we don't have is the support and exposure for our collective causes, backed by the popular vote to provide the appropriate funding.

Make it happen. Get out there and speak to your educators, go to your schools, attend meetings, have facts, figures, and research on hand to make the changes needed, so we can all benefit from the types of schools our children deserve. BE LOUD about it, if you aren't heard the first time. Then, do it again.