The Peace Tree

"Let us embrace the beauty of every culture and faith to create peace in our world." - Mitra Sen
When I was little, (well, even when I grew up), my mother called me a gypsy because I wanted to travel the world and see as much as I could.  I haven't been to a lot of places physically, but I've visited a ton of places through books, and continue to travel in my mind.  
When I became a teacher, I taught quite a large unit on prejudice, which included several weeks learning about the Jewish Holocaust during WWII (notice I didn't say "THE Holocaust" - because there have been so many of them throughout time, how can a person decree one of them being THE one?).  My students always asked me during that unit, "Ms. Clasen, are you Jewish?"  To which I would say, "Does it matter?"
Why did I mention those two things?  Because the world is a small place and all of its inhabitants inexorably connected.
I woke up this morning, the last day of school in ISD 191 before winter break, and carefully picked my outfit to wear.  In my sixteen years as a teacher, I've grown as a person and also as an educator.  Today, I deliberately picked a shirt that was blue and white (Hanukkah), had red and green (Christmas), green, red and yellow (Kwaanza), and red/yellow, dark blue/white (Eid).  Why?  Because at this time of year, I am very aware of the over-abundance of Santa hats and candy canes to those who do not fit that profile of belief.  Or to those who do not fit that profile of abundance (we have homeless people in our district for whom Christmas is as tangible as air).  I can leave these halls of learning and celebrate any way I celebrate, but while I am in these halls, I need to be a person who leads by example.  I want my children to recognize, understand, learn about, and embrace the fact that there are many different cultures and religions in this world.  
Did you know that the Golden Rule exists in no less than 13 different world religions?  There's a poster you can buy.  It's cool.  This rule cannot be laid claim to by just one religion.  That tells me something - that maybe we're more fundamentally alike than different.  Mitra Sen, the author of the quote with which I started this blog entry, is a filmmaker from Canada.  Her first independent film was called "Just A Little Red Dot", and with it she empowered young people to challenge racism and embrace the messages of peace and understanding between people of all backgrounds.  In the movie, three little girls find a way to overcome their parents' resistance to observing each others' celebrations (Christian and Muslim).  The girls create a peace tree- a tree that highlights symbols from many cultures and faiths to reflect the beauty of unity in diversity.  (see www.religioustolerance.org/peacetree).  The girls are celebrating peace and hope for out planet.
Many cultures (not just religions) have very important celebrations in December.  I forgot to mention that my earrings today are decorated evergreen trees.  That was a pagan symbol of the winter solstice long before it became a symbol of Christmas.  The white pine tree was a symbol of unity for the Haudenosaunee Confederacy (5 Nations).  It's also known as the tree of peace.  All of the December celebrations, however, have foundations in acceptance, love for one another, and everlasting peace.  That is what I am celebrating today - and that is what I wish for every student here and for every person reading this blog.

A Sense of Accomplishment

I am a perpetual student.  I am one of those people who really, really like to learn new things.  But it's more than that - it's the feeling of urgency that I need to learn some things in order to be effective in different areas.  Saturday, I finished a certificate program at Hamline University.  I was very excited to do so - not just because it meant the end of homework (well hey, that's a nice thing...), but that I had that sense of accomplishment:  that I pursued an avenue of learning, built that avenue as an opportunity for others, and then saw it through from beginning to end.
As adults, I think we have sometimes forgotten what it's like to engage in school learning, from the very beginnings to the "graduation".  We will learn things that we want to learn (community education, etc.), but that's different than a school program of study.  In these economic times, I think that more adults are more apt to HAVE to remember what it is like to go back to school, to read textbooks, to engage in classwork, to study, take tests and do homework.  But this is the life of our children - and frankly, just because we did that as kids, doesn't mean we understand their lives now.  Schooling has changed dramatically since I was in elementary, middle, high school.  Hey - it's even changed since I got my bachelor's degree and my masters degree!  I actually had a conversation with my professor about Skyping a class if the weather was too bad on Saturday to hold the class!  And I'm still learning that aspect of 21st century learning that our children, our students take for granted in their personal lives- the life of continual connectivity, of instantaneous information, of technological engagement.
But that sense of accomplishment on a job well done hasn't changed one stitch from when I received my honors in high school and in college.  It was a great feeling to see it through, to connect the learning to my professional life, to really embed some of the concepts in my thinking as a person.  That's what our children should experience, every single year of their schooling... that "WOW - this school year is done and look what I accomplished!"  "WOW!  I graduated high school and now am off to my next set of learning experiences, because I'm not done learning yet!"  I'm not talking about a dog-and-pony show style of teaching.  I'm not talking about being "buddies" with my students so they're happy every day and learning next to nothing.  I'm talking about instilling the love of learning in a person, to create teaching experiences that are relevant to them so that we are teaching our students how to apply that learning to their lives.  It's this type of learning that will keep them in school - beyond any one school year.
I want them to feel the sense of accomplishment I felt this weekend.
Now.... off to the next set of learning experiences!!!!!  (Yes, another program is on the horizon...)