The most noticeable instances of diversity in my classroom at Prairie Creek have been differences in learning styles. Prairie Creek does a pretty good job of accommodating different learning styles. Their classroom desks were made by a few parents the other year, and they are designed so that students can sit on the ground with the desk over their legs or they can sit on the desk like a chair. Some students sit at normal tables. The variety in seating demonstrates to me that different students need different things, and Prairie Creek has done a good job at accommodating that. I do notice that some students prefer to lie down in class, but Nancy shuts that down. Maybe they would learn better if they were able to, but at some point, Nancy decides that it is too distracting and stops them. There needs to be some amount of control or everyone would just do whatever they wanted.

Additionally, the outdoor education aspect of the school makes it so that students who do better outside, with more space to move around and be active, will thrive in their classes, as opposed to a typical school where they sit inside all day. I have noticed that many of the students need to move or they get too antsy, and that this issue is almost nonexistent when we are outside.

In terms of the possible conflicts between school and cultural expectations, my observations indicate to me that the school accommodates a range of students. There are opportunities to sit and also be active, opportunities to be outside and inside, and opportunities to play on the playground, fields, and in the woods, depending on what the students need and want. The handout states that the school’s expectation is that students will control nature, but the cultural expectation is that students and nature live together. At a progressive school like this, it is evident that these cultural expectations are being met.

I also notice these conflicts with students’ work styles, where Nancy enforces process-oriented group work rather than product-oriented assignments. The way she speaks to me about her goals for her students is less about what they will achieve and more about how they learn to achieve it, work together, and grow as a person. As the reading “White Teachers / Diverse Classrooms” stated, within culturally relevant pedagogy, it is important to focus on the long-term education and growth of a student, not just who they are when they are in your class. Nancy does a great job of this, especially with her intent on teaching them how to collaborate and have better social skills.

In terms of the class makeup, the class is pretty homogeneous, so there is not much to apply about racial diversity here, but some of the takeaways from these readings, such as focusing on long-term goals, learning who the students are as people, and cultivating relationships, are all applicable and I see Nancy doing all of this in the way that she interacts with her students and talks about them with great understanding and care.

It was interesting to listen to the students’ conversations with each other this week. Since the COVID-19 vaccine has been approved for ages 5-11, a lot of the kids were buzzing about it. Some were saying that they were getting it this week, while one kid was saying that getting the vaccine would make you die (spreading a bit of misinformation), and then the kids were disagreeing in their conversation. This brings in a whole new set of diversity; the diversity in opinions on vaccines! I wonder if they have been talking about it in class at all, and how these conversations are framed by the teacher.

When I was at recess, Nancy was talking to me about an elementary school in Hopkins, Minnesota, that implemented outdoor education in their kindergarten classrooms this year; apparently the teachers wanted to do it and the principal let them. This raises the question to me of what happens in first grade? Will outdoor education be expanded? Will more schools start doing this?