Ember Commons

In what now feels like a long time ago, even though it has been only a few years…I remember education twisting itself inside out to make pandemic education possible. In the midst of terrible circumstances, I remember a brief moment of feeling immense hope: that we could let go of all our preconceptions of what learning “should” look like, that we could embrace the opportunity to imagine again learning out in the wild and unbounded by conventional classroom walls and schedules. That flicker of hope was soon extinguished as state agencies released requirements for students to attend minimum amounts of classroom minutes over zoom/conference calls. Students were shackled to the indoors, tethered to synchronous online experiences that did not measure their learning but only their supposed presence. I watched joy, wonder, and community fade from my students, and we were all at a loss for how to reclaim these things for ourselves and each other. Strangely, it was during this same peculiar era that I attended graduate school, entirely online, and forged bonds with my classmates as close as any I have had with in person classes. We found joy, wonder, and community in the same forum which resulted in distance and depression for so many of our students. I think perhaps the biggest difference is that my graduate school cohort all chose to be there, already seeking knowledge and chasing answers to questions burning wide of us, answers that we each had been unable to find alone. For public school students, there was no preexisting internal drive to attend…not for many of them, at least. So many students claimed that they learned nothing during this time, and the narratives around the failures of education - before, during, and after the pandemic - have served to reinforce that self assessment in our youth.

What if it isn’t true? At least, not entirely. It is demonstrably true that the children of the pandemic did not learn the content that we would normally have expected of them during those school years. But what if they were learning, and we failed to notice or validate the learning experiences they encountered along the way? I can speak for my own eldest child, who spent much of that year watching WWII documentaries about naval battles and shipwrecks. It was not part of any curriculum for first or second grade, nor assigned by any teacher. No test has ever asked him about these things, and yet - he was absolutely engaged in academic learning. So I wonder about my students, who claim they learned nothing…and wonder if what they really mean is that they learned nothing that authorities care about measuring.

Now, secular homeschoolers have been following such a vision of the entire world being their classroom for many years, it is not actually a new idea.

At the heart of Ember Commons lie a series of questions: what could learning look like if we considered all places to be places of learning - physical and digital? What would it look like to value a much broader spectrum of content as valid and worthy of learning? How do we provide students the combination of freedom to explore and the structure of community that imparts encouragement, motivation, inspiration, perseverance, and accountability for following through our commitments?

One workshop at a time, we are building that community, and illuminating pathways to wonder.

Feeling really honored for these thoughts to be published and shared through Torch & Tinder Press’ Substack! This is part 2 of a three part series, with the final section coming out next week. ☺️

Very thankful for the shoutout from Torch & Tinder Press in their Sunday Signal article this morning.

Collaborating with educators preparing new workshops this week has been exciting work, and we are looking forward to sharing the details for those in the next few weeks!

A couple of weeks ago, a student of mine brought me this delightfully sturdy and versatile box, and it is filled with yarn and craft supplies. It wasn’t a special occasion day of any sort, not a holiday or teacher appreciation week…just a normal school day. But last year I had connected with her over our shared interests in different kinds of crafts, so when she decided that she had some things that she was not going to use and did not want, she brought them to me…and made an ordinary day into a little celebration between us. This student is not the most accomplished in my classroom, although she is quite good and growing fast…but she works extremely diligently, and addresses any little thing I point out in her skills with persistence and attention.

And this box reminds me of the extraordinary power of noticing and listening, of seeing another learning human more thoroughly, even for just a moment. That when we value all of the things that another knows and learns…that we encourage them to value the knowledge and skills of others, to open themselves to listen and notice these in others too. ❤️

So as I begin to pivot my attention to offering extensions and alternatives to the limitations of modern public education and policy, this is something I want to remain at the center of everything that we create as Ember Commons: that we gather together…and we see and value one another, and open to new knowledge and experiences.

How often do we create (or are forced to participate in) learning and collaboration spaces that drain us of energy, that are devoid of passion and purpose?

Sometimes it is very eye opening to exist in the role of a student for a day, and grant us a sense of empathy for their attitudes and behaviors. Such was my experience earlier today, and I felt my frustration manifest in my body language, my internal dialogue, and in a pervasive sensation of tension all over. When I was finally dismissed, I was so angry and exhausted, that even though I had some time remaining in my day, that my focus and drive to create anything at all was depleted. During the sessions I attended, I felt like I was caged up, and prevented from pursuing anything that I found to be a meaningful task. And I wondered if this is how younger students often feel. Caged and kept away from projects and work they find engaging and full of purpose.

I am reminded to pay attention to the learners around me when I am leading them through new knowledge and skills, to consider the environment being created with them…and to remember that the most engaging learning experiences are ones where we can show up fully as ourselves, able to weave together what we are learning, with the things we know and can do that bring us energy, connection, and focus. That when we feel listened to, and seen, and our presence honored…that we open to new experiences and ways of doing things. We connect and collaborate. And when we are dictated to, micromanaged, or feel disrespected or unseen…that we close up, stop listening, stop creating, stop engaging. We instead become defensive, or even antagonistic. All of this that is true for us as adult learners, is true for children and teenagers too.

Today I am seeing classrooms once again with fresh eyes. Not because I didn’t already know these things, but because there is nothing like a visceral reminder of what a negative learning environment feels like to prompt introspection…so I journal, and doodle, and dream, and design.

What does it look like to embrace joy and emergent curiosity in learning?

Many of us have had those learning moments that felt like magic, where the energy and ideas and questions bubbled in a sort of effervescence. When the goal for the day suddenly shifted, at least temporarily, and you went off in pursuit of something else. Maybe that something else eventually tied back to the original goal for the class that day, or resulted in a cool epiphany of synthesis…or maybe not. I describe them as learning moments, not teaching moments, because even as the teacher, I find myself opening to new connections and knowledge when I go on these unplanned curiosity detours…that I learn from them too.

So much of modern public education is increasingly scripted, increasingly narrow in the scope of what learning is enshrined and valued.

What would happen if we turned another direction, and chose to value those moments of spontaneous inquiry as more than sidebars? What would it look like to hold space and time open to explore the world together, to share stories and random discoveries without rushing through them as a frivolous pursuit, and to keep ourselves open to wonder?

I once had a world history teacher who would tell every class on the first day that it was impossible to trick her into being off topic. That she taught WORLD history, and that all of it was connected, all the stories woven together…and that she would simply weave our detours back to the time and place she originally intended us to focus on when she was ready.

Today, I am curious to hear about your own favorite spontaneous learning memories…what caused you to light up and go “chasing rabbit trails”?

"How to Build a Plane While Flying It" is open to any adult who seeks to increase their confidence in exercising personal freedoms and strengthening their communities. This workshop takes inspiration from philosophy, history, and literature - and turns it into practical ideas that participants can apply to the situations they see all around them every day. Not by telling everyone what they should do, but by bringing together knowledge gleaned from the humanities and combining it with the lived wisdom, observations, resources, and skills of each participant. While many people look to individual professional coaches to create these sorts of individual life plans, we are deliberately doing so in a community setting - recognizing that each participant brings their own expertise into the room, and that the resources we need are not found in isolation, but found with one another. Additionally, creating our personal blueprints and plans in community provides each of us with the potential for continued support and encouragement from fellow participants: a new community alongside others who seek similar goals, even if their lives and passions look very different from the outside!

We will be meeting in Discord, at the Refuge Bonne Foi server, Wednesdays from 7:30-10:00pm from September 24-October 29.
If this topic resonates with you, please register through the link here:
https://forms.gle/Kk3QaqN5zknpXsJS6

In times that seem dark, and when it is most tempting to feel powerless to make a positive difference...is when it is most important to be intentional about understanding what we can do, and committing to it. May we all be persistent, and downright stubborn...and obstinately joyful (when we can), in our efforts to improve our own lives and those around us!

*Registration will be capped at 24 participants to protect our ability to engage in deep and meaningful discussions, but for now we still have plenty of room! If registration requests exceed 24, then I will look into offering this course again at a later date. 🙂 All registrations will receive an email response, either confirming their registration and participation in the course (and providing an invitation to the Refuge Bonne Foi Discord server)

For the moment, we have a digital campus housed on Discord at the Refuge Bonne Foi server, and courses will be announced here (among other places) as they become available. We will expand to in person offerings as well, when we can!

Ember Commons will offer courses and workshops for a variety of age groups and interests, and each course will list who it is open to for registration.

Our first workshop series, "How to Build a Plane While Flying It", is open to adults from all walks of life who share an interest in igniting their sense of personal autonomy, strengthening their community, and creating a realistic and sustainable personal plan!