I worry that as time goes on and, as schools increasingly focus on the “thing” that is the curriculum and the “thing” that is the test, we will forget what is missing at school. So, I want to invite you into my classroom in a school where teachers and their students are free to learn together without the interference of…
“It was as if my long-term students and I were taking a long journey by ship and it was my fault that, in the parlance of the controversial education law, William was being left behind.”
Readers say: Told in an easy to read style, this book is actually a page turner. This turned out to be the best book I’ve read in a long time. It has the emotional impact of a book of fiction, and the educational value of a non-fiction book. Perhaps, long ago, a teacher made a difference in your life.…
“We can wait here at the well until we can see Roland and the animals walking along the high path toward the foothills,” said Mirabel. “Let’s get Giselle and her calf. They can wait with us,” said Rowan. The two children walked along the barn and, at the corner, stepped through the open gate in the the fence that ran…
Sitting on the stone bench near the pear tree in the courtyard, Ronduin noticed a low branch that was just a stick. Unlike the rest of the branches, it had no leaves. “You know, ” he said to the chickens, “if the castle gardener were still here, he would have pruned that branch.” Ronduin stood on the bench. “Maybe I…
“Up to the tower or down to the courtyard?” This is what Ronduin asked himself as he opened the curtains in his bedroom at the first glimmer of light. He dressed and then took Apple and Pear from his pillow and walked over to the window and sat them on the windowsill where they too could survey the fields. …
By Karah Pino with Kim Allsup In the purple darkness of early morning, Mirabel quietly climbed down the ladder and made her way through the barn. She opened the small door and noticed an orange glow coming from the kitchen. Her legs felt bouncy and alive as the dream of running with Ronduin still lived in her. Walking around the corner of the barn,…
Roland led Mirabel and Rowan into the the great barn. The glow of the sunset still lingered in the sky, yet the barn was already a place of deep shadows. Mirabel blinked, but she could not blink away the darkness. Then, as her eyes got used to the dimness, she saw heavy wooden beams above, a dirt floor and cows…
Simone St. John continues her video series reading chapters five through seven of The Secret Prince in period costume. New videos are added to this post as they become available https://childrengrowing.com/2020/08/13/introducing-the-secret-prince-read-aloud-by-simone-st-john-chapter-one/ In these chapters the rain stops and all make ready to send the workers back to the village so they can help their families. How will Ronduin find important…
My teaching memoir, A Gift of Wonder, has suddenly become so relevant that Amazon can’t keep it in stock. When school buildings closed last spring, new homeschooling parents noticed their children’s penchant for self-propelled learning. Then, a few weeks later, when lesson plans showed up, and Zoom school appeared, many were surprised to learn that their child’s school…
Simone St. John continues her video series reading chapters two through four of The Secret Prince in period costume. New videos are added to this post as they become available https://childrengrowing.com/2020/08/13/introducing-the-secret-prince-read-aloud-by-simone-st-john-chapter-one/ In these Chapters a flood grows around the castle and inundates the first floor. While workers carry all the furniture from the first floor to the second floor, and…
(For a text version of this story click here: https://childrengrowing.com/2020/03/15/stories-for-children-in-times-of-trouble-storytelling-help-for-parents-in-the-era-of-covid-19/ ) The Secret Prince is a healing story for children whose lives have been changed due to the pandemic. The story shows a child whose independent spirit helps him deal with being stuck inside for weeks. This story has no mention of disease; it’s about a boy who has to…
Ronduin stepped out onto the balcony. It was strangely quiet now that the chickens had moved to the courtyard. The last glow of the evening sky provided enough light for Ronduin to find his old, gray blanket lying in a heap near the railing. A cool breeze brought Ronduin a sudden chill, so he wrapped the blanket around his shoulders.…
