summer
 |
| "Life's a Beach" by Teachers GK, WH, and WR |
summer comes to the bay area in fits and starts -
a day or two in may
followed by a foggy june,
a three-day heat wave in july,
a few sunny days at the beach in august.
the heat only ever lasts a few days
before it gives in, and sucks up the fog from the pacific
like it, too, needed an ice cream cone
that's when the summer tourists at fisherman's wharf
buy up all those hooded sweatshirts.
"sunny california," they guffaw,
as they marvel at the speed of the fog rolling in.
they blink,
and the golden gate bridge has disappeared.
autumn
 |
| "Untitled" by Teachers MB & JB |
school starts in september;
some places are beginning to feel
that autumn is almost here,
but this is the time, for us,
that summer decides to stay awhile.
there are signs of autumn -
in the cooler morning air
my bare feet almost want slippers,
bare arms almost want a long-sleeve shirt.
stores are decked out in autumn colors,
halloween's monsters get their own aisle
before labor day
we can't start the school year with autumn leaves as most curriculum guides suggest -
they won't show up until late october,
when stores are stocking aisles with christmas decorations
and images of children playing with sleds on white-blanketed hills.
we have hills
but they will be brown,
and the children have never seen snow falling on their homes.
winter
 |
| "Exposed Death" by Teachers MD & AL |
what is winter,
when you have no snow?
when your lemon trees and rose bushes blossom and bear fruit
all year long?
when warm and cold days still alternate at will?
i struggled with this question as a california teacher
for many years
until a four-year-old gave me the answer:
"winter is when it gets dark while we're still at school."
that's how some plants know it's winter around here, too -
by the hours and angle of the sunlight,
the occasional morning frost,
the smell of smoke from fireplaces
on dark and cozy evenings
under the softest blanket.
spring
 |
| "A Bouquet of Flowers" by Teachers AT & ST |
so, what is spring,
if not the melting of the snow?
daffodils pop out and show their sunny faces
in february,
sometimes before the coldest weather.
spring is when the rain comes
(it also comes in winter)
(sometimes it's hard to tell the difference)
and the morning frosts are gone.
the sun seems brighter,
warmer,
stays up longer,
clearer
spring is when the hills turn green
and the flowers just go crazy.
bugs, and birds, and butterflies
wake up and do their springtime dance.
sometimes there are summer days
in spring
and how do we tell the difference then?
"summer is when it's my bedtime and the sun is still up.
isn't that silly?"
and we are back around again.
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Last year there was an amazing natural materials project at our Oakland school. Kids were arranging leaves, sticks, rocks, shells, feathers, flowers, etc. and photographing and naming their creations. At open house night, the materials were out for families to use, and some beautiful arrangements were created by parents and children together.
Inspired by this project, we decided to have "seasons" as an overarching theme for both schools this coming school year. To kick off the theme, the teachers participated in a seasonal natural materials project on the first day of our professional development week. We set out a variety of natural materials in the art room. Pairs of teachers (one from each school, who don't normally work together) were assigned one of the four seasons and created natural arrangements to represent their season (photos above).
Throughout the year, we plan to go for regular walks around our schools' neighborhoods, making note of the changes and consistencies, following the children's curiosity and interest. It will be interesting to see what comes up from being out in the seasons this time around!
