Boulder Journey School

Starting our summer session with a refresh to our materials!

“In summer, the song sings itself.” – William Carlos Williams

Each season brings its own beauty, rhythm, and opportunities for discovery. As summer arrives, our outdoor classrooms take on a new life. The warmth of the sun, blooming gardens, water play, and open-ended materials offer invitations for exploration as children wonder, create, investigate, and connect with the natural world. We are excited to embrace the possibilities that exist within these spaces and to see where the children’s ideas, questions, and discoveries lead us this season.

How does a study of pattern help us to understand and celebrate our role as part of the natural world?

We come together exploring the wonder
Discovering what is beneath
What is under

We delve in deep into the patterns
We think about our place in the world
And how we matter

We converse with nature
Listen to her friendship with children
Why do politicians write the legislature

Starting soft and whispery like a breeze
Slowly connecting with each other
Messing about side by side with ease

To play as an educator is to feel great joy
My role as a partner is to call upon thinking
And engage ready to employ

- Resident Teacher Emily Kaemmerling

Thank you to everyone who joined us to play during our May 11 Messing About Workshop, We are Nature: The Patterns We All Share.

A group of Young Preschool children recently brought their baby dolls for an outside bath. When children care for a doll, they are learning to be empathetic and nurturing towards one another. Whether they are swaddling their baby doll, rocking it to sleep, or giving it a bath, practicing caring for a doll is practice in caring for others.

The teachers have also been mindful of our water consumption during these dry months, thinking of new and different ways to explore the sensory experience of water without large amounts of usage.

“Human learning presupposes a specific social nature and a process by which children grow into the intellectual life of those around them.” - Lev Vygotsky, Educational Psychologist

We are so excited for our friends and colleagues at Reggio Children. What an amazing opportunity for you and for the entire field of early childhood education, and we hope the visit went well!

We are honored to particpate in and share work with The Early Childhood Education in Museums Symposium: Reimagining Museums Through Children’s Participation, a collaborative program dedicated to advancing museums’ roles as dynamic spaces for young children and their adults, hosted by Clyfford Still Museum and co-hosted by CU Denver School of Education & Human Development and Denver Art Museum. Our dear colleague and friend, Dr. Lori Ryan, will be presenting and moderating throughout the event.

Teacher Education Program Director Jen Selbitschka will be leading the closing provocation, 'The hundred languages of children: Seeing the world through the children’s eyes' which will highlight children’s powerful capacity
to express their thinking, curiosity, and identity through the “hundred
languages,” with a focus on graphic representation.

We look forward to connecting with you there!

https://clyffordstillmuseum.org/events/early-childhood-education-in-museums-symposium/

We are thrilled to share that we are relaunching our in-person Messing About Workshops, beginning May 11.

'We are Nature: The Patterns We All Share' will be held on Monday, May 11 from 6pm to 8pm at Boulder Journey School. Registration is $20 and open to the community. A 2 hour Professional Development certificate will be awarded.

Join us to come together in community and play with ideas and concepts. We will share stories of the patterns that shape us and play with materials to deepen our understanding.

The registration form is linked in the comments.

Who will we see at Rocky Mountain Early Childhood Conference - RMECC?

Stop by Booth 11 in the exhibitor hall to chat and come see us share work in three different presentations!

Join Dr. Lori Ryan from the CU Denver School of Education & Human Development and Visionary Director Alison Maher from Boulder Journey School on Thursday from 11:15 am- 12:30 pm for 'Innovative Approaches to Early Childhood and Teacher Education: Sharing and Interpreting Stories Together.'

Join Erin Smarr, Boulder Journey School Pedagogical Coordinator and School Director on Friday at 9:45 for 'Community Partnerships: Extending Curriculum Beyond the Classroom.'

Join Vicki Oleson, Charlotte Hunt, and Becky Dearing, Boulder Journey School Pedagogical Coordinator and School Directors on Friday at 9:45 for 'Building Meaningful Family Relationships through Play, Art, and Inquiry.'

See you soon!

Are you a lead teacher or paraprofessional in an early childhood classroom in Colorado?

Turn your classroom into a graduate learning space. Teach where you are. Learn as you teach. Lead into what’s next while earning your MA, Teaching License, and Director Qualification in a powerful learning community.

Hear from one of our current paraprofessionals as they share their experience.

“This program has helped me shift into being a witness to the revolutionary child. I’ve learned that documentation isn't just about recording memories, it’s how I can facilitate the big questions children are asking about power and identity. My co-teachers and I are constantly comparing our observations to make sure we are co-constructing a day that truly honors the children’s voices. Since we started offering some less traditional materials, I’ve seen how these materials opened up space for the children’s natural capacity as innovators to fully emerge through their play. They aren’t just following an adult’s script; they’re building complex "statues" and working through big ideas together. There is so much pride in the room when they realize their creative transformations and imaginative play are valued as legitimate research.” - Katy, 2025 - 2026 Boulder Journey School Teacher Education Program Cohort, Paraprofessional Pathway

https://www.boulderjourneyschool.com/pathways.html