5. “Quit It!”
“We talk about what’s working and what’s not working … then we can have a discussion.” Chapter 5 Click below for story. I’d been in Joensuu about two weeks, maybe three, and I’d visited several schools, many classrooms, had several cups of coffee, met some people, and I went by my colleagues’s office at the University of […]
6. Teaching is Like “Sailing”
I think that teaching is like sailing. You have a target where you want to go but when you go to a classroom you don’t know which way the wind is going to go.” Chapter 6 The railway system in Finland is dependable, clean, and many cars have WiFi and power outlets for computers. Train […]
Chapter 7 Problem Solving in Music Class
“You have to be active in your thoughts when you are involved in music making.” Chapter 7 To get to Kuitinmäki Lower Secondary School I have to take bus 122 in Helsinki and get off at Kuitinniitty. I can’t say the word, “Kuitinniitty,” I can’t see the sign on the bus stop in time to […]
8. Swimming and Dipping in Icy Finnish Water
Chapter 8 Swimming and Dipping in Icy Finnish Water I hate the cold. I hate cold water even more. It takes my body a very long time to warm up after being chilled and because of this I was very nervous to live in Finland for a winter. I’m pleased to report that Finns are […]
9. Candles on the Doorstep
Chapter 9 Candles on the Doorstep There is a lovely tradition in Finland where people put candles on their doorstep as if waiting for a guest to arrive. I don’t know if this is true, but this is how it makes me feel. One person told me that Finns do this simply because it helps to […]
10. A Cottage Pre-School
“Teacher’s role is tutoring, coaching, setting of questions, supporting. We have a very famous approach – scaffolding.” Chapter 10 In the middle of the forest there is a preschool/kindergarten that has no running water, no electricity, and only a stove for heat. It’s a cottage school and the children have their classes outside even if it’s raining, […]
11. Night as a Winter Animal
“If the information is so shallow that they just read it from a book then they can’t relate it to something real and something that is part of their life then it doesn’t actually mean something.” Chapter 11 It’s late on a Friday morning and our vans from the university wind our way along backcountry […]
12. Saddle Shoes and a Pink Ukulele
“If you don’t struggle you don’t learn anything.” Chapter 12 A month later, temperatures are warmer, the piles of snow are melting and spring leaves and flowers are starting to appear. I’m able to find the bus stop in front of Terhi’s school without asking for help and I don’t have to sit in the front seat. The […]
13. The “Silent Church”
Understanding the Whole Person Chapter 13 You’re looking across one of the busiest areas in Helsinki: to your left is Kamppi, the main bus terminal and on the other side of the yellow building is the main Helsinki Central Station. Thousands of people walk through this square every day. What is the odd shaped building? I heard […]
14. The Value of Time in the Learning Process
“It’s better to use a lot of time to something rather than hurry hurry hurry all the time.” Chapter 14 After nearly seventy consecutive days of travel, I take the train from Helsinki to Joensuu and arrive home to much warmer weather. The snow is melting, the songbirds have arrived and it’s no longer safe […]