An (unexpected) wonder of Winsome

“ Names have power” Rick Riordan (The Lightening Thief)

She was always going to be ‘Winsome’ ,  the curious girl who inhabited my head for a long time before I wrote her into existence.  Maybe it was the alliteration, or the fact that the name itself represents a kind of innocence and lightness - wherever she came from, she was simply there.  She was Winsome, she was so clear in my imagination, and she was born wondering. 

From “The Wonder of Winsome’ by Kath Murdoch. illustrated by Sharyn Madder (2021)

Since publishing the book last year I have had so many delightful conversations with children about it. One of the first questions I hear is “Where did her name come from?” or ‘Why did you call her that?”  It seems that the name itself provokes wondering – it’s a welcome, albeit unexpected, outcome of publishing the story almost a year ago.  These questions have led to some beautiful conversations about names and how writers create their characters and how the name helps bring the person alive in your mind and, hopefully, in your readers’ minds too. 

 Ultimately, a writer hopes to connect with their readers in some way.  I am fortunate to work regularly in schools and have children and teachers talk to me about the way they feel about the story - but there has been one, quite different response I will never forget -one outcome of writing this book I could never have predicted and one gift that Winsome quietly gave, simply because she was called Winsome. 

……………….

One warm summer’s day earlier this year, when the streets of inner Melbourne remained empty and the doors of the magnificent state library were closed to the public, the staff continued to work with their ever-growing collection – receiving, cataloguing and shelving new books.  On this particular day, a staff member was assigned to the children’s book section and busily began the process.  Working her way through the new stack of titles, she picked up ‘The Wonder of Winsome’ and found herself, for the first time, seeing her name on the cover of a book.  Her response to that moment held such significance, she wrote to me: 

“ Holding the book for the first time a rather emotional moment for me...I have never seen another book with my name in it- I would buy books for my children with their names in them but I have never had one of my own. I was teased a lot at school because of my name (Win some, lose some, Winnie the Pooh) and even now as a 54 year old, I have at least one conversation a week about it with lots of people questioning it or making comments about my 'strange name'. I love your book for many reasons...I looked very similar to 'Winsome' at that age (same haircut, same face) and I am also very curious by nature (a self-confessed 'bookaholic', and I love study...I already have two degrees and other various certificates and course completions and am just about to embark on yet another course...). Thank you for writing your beautiful book.”

A couple of weeks later, I headed to the state library (now tentatively open to the public) with a copy of the book tucked under my arm, eager to meet Winsome herself.  It was a strangely emotional moment.  

Sitting in the glorious ‘dome’ room in which I’d spent so many hours reading and writing as a university student, the ‘real life’ Winsome told me a little more about her own story. As she spoke, I was reminded of the hidden power of names – of the ways we see ourselves in relation to the ways others see us and of the identities we attach to our names. I myself, spent my primary school years as Kathleen. The name my family called me and the name my friends called me were one and the same.  Perhaps as a reflection of our need to forge a separate identity in our teens, I became ‘Kathy’ for several years in high school until a teacher I absolutely adored (and who helped me see myself as a writer) called me Kath. From then on, I was Kath.  Our names can signify so much about the relationship we have with others and even with ourselves. Certain friends and family still call me Kathleen (and it would be odd if they didn’t) but when someone calls me ‘Kathy’ it jars … it’s more than simply not my name, it’s not ME. It’s not who I am.  For my new ‘real life’ Winsome, seeing her name used in such a celebratory and positive way seemed to signify a shift in how she could see herself – how she could choose to see, and feel, her beautiful name. 

Winsome and Winsome …

When I work in classrooms, I insist the children have name tags. I know the power of using their names. It is an instant bridge builder, a show of respect, a force for inclusivity and an opportunity to connect to culture. Our names do indeed, have power – the power to help us feel seen and loved and the power to be used as weapons of indifference (when they are forgotten or not used) or even worse, humiliation.  Talking to Winsome that day reminded me of the inextricable link between our names and our identity and how important it is for us to be reminded of that as educators. When we talked, Winsome said she felt a kind of ‘reclaiming’ of the name with which he had had such a conflicted relationship.  And in reclaiming our names, we can also begin reclaim the self that may have once felt unseen or misunderstood. 

 Among my favourite inquiries has long been to offer learners an opportunity to investigate their own names – the origin, meaning, cultural significance, and to share their learning with others which, in turn, can help contribute to the development of a strong, connected community. 

 I remain so grateful to whatever it was that brought the name Winsome to me. This little girl I manifested onto the page whose name held more power than I could have imagined.  

How have the power of names found their way into your teaching and learning experiences?

Just wondering …

(With thanks to ‘the real life Winsome’ who so generously gave me permission to share this story.)

Inquiry in the mist – and midst – of troubling times.

I am writing this post many thousands of miles from my country – Australia.  I left Australia the day after Christmas to share a long planned and much anticipated fortnight with my younger daughter in Europe and then to travel on to work here.  While I have been away two events have happened that have made it harder than ever before to be away from home. A dear friend – who was terminally ill but doing so well before I left, had a fall and died. It has been heartbreaking to be away, to say the least. And parts of my country, my beautiful Australia was (and continues to be) ravaged by fire in ways we have never seen  before.  I have thought long and hard about cancelling work and returning early and have been faced with an enormous, personal dilemma…  but on balance, I decided to stay. There is much work still to do when I do return.   And some of it is grief work.

 Grief work is something I am sadly familiar with – most of us are in one form or another.  But grief is important work and many teachers in Australia will be facing the challenge of engaging in this work in some way over the coming weeks and months.  It might feel like the wrong word to describe the impact of the fires but, for me, the deep sadness,  sense of loss, the bewilderment, the helplessness, the anger, the hunger for community, the longing for what was and the uncertainty about what is to come are as true for my feelings about my country – and about our Earth – as they are for my friend. 

 The overarching purpose of this blog is to explore what it means to bring an inquiry stance to teaching and learning.  Underpinning all my posts are the  values of curiosity, wonder, open-mindedness, courage, open-heartedness, compassion, deep, critical thinking, exploration and agency. I can think of no more important context than right now, this time, to champion these things and to place them firmly at the centre of our work with children. Most importantly - our own bewilderment, anger and uncertainty have the potential to lead to helplessness, disconnection and even cynicism.  Deliberately nurturing our own curiosity, optimism, courage and compassion can help avoid that trap and offer a more constructive way forward. Grief leans on compassion in order to recede  - compassion for self, others and the planet. 

 As I write this, I am gazing out the window of a hotel room in Zurich. When I woke this morning, I could see nothing but fog (eerily like the images of smoke filled vistas that I have seen in news from Australia). Gradually, as the morning progresses, the mist is slowly clearing and the view becoming more apparent. I can now see the detail on the houses directly in front of me while those on the hills further away remain shrouded. I trust that in time today, the fog will lift and I will see more clearly.

This is what grief work is like. Indeed this is also what inquiry as a process is like. It requires trust. It requires the understanding that we CAN’T see it all at once. We don’t know where it will go but, gradually, we see the path and trust in our instincts. We stop, we reflect, we get feedback, we question some more, we check in, we move forward and our understanding grows. We both allow the path to emerge AND we help construct it. 

In returning to our classrooms in the coming weeks we will need, in part, to trust that the learners will lead us – if we take time to listen.  Of course we will need to make some plans, and think ahead about what and how to manage the opportunity and the challenge but if we plan too tightly (even with the best of intentions)  we may miss out on the most important element in the inquiry process – tuning in to the thinking and feeling of the learners themselves in order to get gradual clarity about the best ways forward.  So ask your kids – ask them for permission to have the conversation in the first place, ask them how they feel about talking about it and – if they want to – ask them to share their wonderings and allow yourself to ask “What does this reveal to me? Where might we need to go next?”  

Bringing the spirit of inquiry to the beginning of the school year in Australia may well mean we change what we had intended to do.  If every cab driver, waiter, shop assistant, flight attendant, etc. I meet here on the other side of the world has questions/opinions about the fires – I can only imagine how present it would be at home.   For the remainder of this post, I want to offer some thoughts that might support the discussions you are having.  as teachers ahead of those vital first days and weeks and also link you to some resources

1.     Stay truly open to possibilities. 

 It won’t be until you meet with your learners that you will have a sense of what they night want and need to explore. This will vary enormously across classes, age groups and of course across schools. Some schools are sadly in the very thick of the fire experience while others have not been as directly affected.  Be mindful of “units” and other activities that are offered on the topic. Some will be just right for your learners while others inappropriate for your context.  Inquiries are best born of the interests, questions and needs of your students.

2.    Invite rather than assume

 IF your learners are OK with this, invite them to share their questions but don’t feel that the questions must be answered. Many of the questions associated with this time are not easy, googleable, questions. This is a good opportunity to allow questions to unfurl, to be explored, discussed, pondered – but to also help children understand that the question itself might be all that is needed for now. 

“I suggest that we balance our moral ferocity with humility and tenderness. First, we need the humility of consistent self-examination. This requires us to do something very countercultural: Celebrate questions even when we do not have answers. Our culture rewards certainty, confidence, and definitive answers. By celebrating questions, we increase the likelihood of identifying the potential harm we might do in the name of our values.” (Rabbi Doctor Ariel Berger, 2019) 

3.     Provide options.

For some children, having direct conversations about the situation. might be too confronting while others will be desperate to talk about it.  There may also be teachers who feel more capable of facilitating these conversations who might offer to work with kids on an opt in basis. It is unlikely to be a one-size-fits -all approach. 

4.     Start building a bank of resources

There are so many clips, articles, images) that you MAY find useful depending on the needs of your learners.  - so many incredible stories that illustrate the goodness in humans. The work being done in animal shelters, the fund raising efforts, the day to day compassion and kindness shown to those in need. These are powerful case studies that can inspire and reassure.

5.     Commit to a slower, more open culture in your classroom

Big issues, big questions take time. The NEED time and space to be explored properly.  Know your curriculum for the year really well so you can see how the pathways you might take actually support the curriculum. The general capabilities (especially personal, social and ethical thinking) are central to this work. 

6.     Think conceptually.

“Topic level” inquiries like “natural disasters”  are not necessarily the best way forward with this. But the issue abounds with potential connections to powerful concepts and big ideas.  These are some of the questions that may emerge or be useful to provide a broader conceptual frame:

• How do people make a positive difference to their lives and the lives of others?

• How can we respond to challenges in our lives?

• Who’s got the power? How are decisions made in this and other communities? 

• How do people use their talents and passions to change the world? 

• How have innovations in science changed the world?

• What can we learn from other cultures to strengthen our own?

• How are we connected to the earth?

• What makes places special/unqiue? 

• What is the role of the arts in bringing about change?

• Are we a sustainable school? How can we be even more sustainable?

• What does it mean to be part of a connected community?

• What can we learn from the past in order to shape the future?

• What does it mean to be a leader? 

• What kind of community do we want to be?

• What does it mean to be resilient? 

7.     Take action

Many of us feel more positive about challenging situations when we feel we are taking action – when we have some agency to make a difference.  Your students may wish to explore some of the many ‘actions’ being carried out by people within communities all around the world and be part of these,  This is a great time to make real connections with individuals, community groups, and organisations and empower your students through involvement in real projects. 

 8.     Focus on community building.

This is something we do at the beginning of the year anyway but it is so very important in these times. As Brene Brown says “Rarely does a response make something better, what makes something better is connection”.   This is a powerful time to inquire into the relationships we have with each other and to think deeply about the kind of relationships we want – in our classroom, in our teams, in our staff room, with our leaders, with each other and across the world.  Strong, respectful, caring relationships will be the key to recovery. Of that I am sure. And schools are places in which young people learn about relationships – for better or worse.  Let’s champion kindness, let’s commit to showing kids what it means to truly have each other’s back. Lets model respect and compassion.  In times like these the petty conflicts that seem to pervade some schools have no place. 

 9.     Keep it balanced.

It hardly needs saying but of course none of us wants to inadvertently overwhelm children or exacerbate anxiety.  For many children,  school might be a place that allows them to voice their concerns and curiosities but is also be a place that is an emotional refuge from what they have been hearing/seeing and thinking about over summer.  Routine, a focus on the things that bring us joy, play, continued inquiries into all manner of fascinating things … help bring balance, perspective relief and hope.  

10. Stay connected to nature

 Finally – and most urgently, I want to encourage you to do whatever you can to get your kids out INTO the natural environment and to do whatever you can to foster the deep connection with and love for the earth we all need.   For decades, environmental educators have offered this simple adage that we need to teach children about, for and IN the environment.  This situation could easily create an image of the natural environment as something to be feared and avoided.  It certainly needs respect – but it also needs our love. We are more willing to care for the things we are deeply connected to.  Explore the incredible work of Bush Kindergartens, contact the environment officer in your local council, see if there are walks/tours run by Aboriginal educators and elders in your community,  commit to creating greener spaces in your school grounds, check out the beautiful work done by https://www.natureplay.org.au  or https://www.gould.org.au.  Invite parents and children to share some of their most treasured outdoor places.  Use the outdoors as a context for inquiry. 

As our return to school becomes ever closer, there is a growing number of offerings on this very subject for teachers.  I have shared my thoughts here but you can also find some great thoughts here: 

https://www.smore.com/hcw1t

 and, if you go to my facebook page and see the post there…there are dozens of suggestions  and links to more articles and reflections from teachers to add to my own:

https://www.facebook.com/KathMurdochConsulting/

https://sites.google.com/uldtraining.com/bushfireseduhelp/contacts-map?authuser=0

Finally – one of the most amazing things about this time has been the incredible offerings by artists (writers, singers, dancers, visual artists…)  to help make sense of things and to raise funds. I am unashamedly sharing my daughter’s offering – using her role as a singer and songwriter to make a difference. All proceeds from this song go to Greenmusic which is working hard to make that industry more sustainable

https://open.spotify.com/album/1dpZNak4zAmCvYXwH7a1Eu

 So….

 Are you still with me? If so – thank you for reading through such a long post. I feel that this has been part of MY grief work – processing, clarifying and making a connection to you - the amazing community of inquiry educators who read this.  Outside, the mist has indeed lifted a little more but there remains an unseen, unknown element in my view. I need to trust that this too, will become clear in time and that my heavy heart will lighten. May yours also. 

“In this encounter lies hope for the future. If we can educate new generations to balance ferocity with humility and tenderness, questions with responses, then our encounters with darkness, whether in the study of history or the daily news, can galvanize thoughtful, compassionate action. And maybe one day, when it is very quiet, we will hear, not the cries of the suffering, but laughter.” (Burgur 2019) 

How do you see your role in these challenging times? 

What other thoughts do you have about way an inquiry stance can help us do this important work

Just wondering…

Reference: https://www.globalonenessproject.org/library/articles/learning-and-teaching-heart-troubled-times?fbclid=IwAR2L9vgCnhS2eCE-2fJVz4xxHaWbS9VFKjCsI3DqYH1oSX6u6FKdmmGEp8g

Guest Post: The Role of Personal Inquiries (iTime) in an Agentive Learning Community

I first met Graham at the International School of Manila many years ago and was struck by his thoughtful, reflective disposition. Graham has been ‘inquiring into inquiry’ ever since - working with children in Manila, Japan and now Saudi Arabia. After hearing about the innovative work he has been doing with his young learners, I invited Graham to write a guest post for this blog.  A keen documenter of his own learning, Graham shares with us some of the insights he has gained as he works on nurturing agency in is learning community. In particular, insights drawn from the experience of ‘iTime’ which offers young learners opportunities to design inquiries into their interests 

From Graham:

Much discussion has taken place in my current, and previous, school about the best place/time for personalised inquiries. Perhaps these discussions are taking place in your school too. Are they necessary? Are personal inquiries using up ‘learning time?’ What do students actually learn? Do the students learn anything? Each year after my first visit to Reggio Emilia and thinking more about the purpose of documentation, I record the story of the class that I work with. The documentation usually reveals a ‘bigger picture’ theme and some unexpected outcomes that challenge assumptions and reveal new possibilities.

I have learned that through listening to the children, valuing and supporting personalised learning, we co-create opportunities for deep, connected understanding. Personalised inquiry helps shine a light simultaneously on the what, the how and the why of learning. 

With the children, we built our understanding of what personalized inquiry, or iTime, meant for us.  This understanding grew and changed as we gave ourselves opportunities and structures to reflect and notice how, what and why we were learning. What became clear to us is that the benefits of iTime were layered, varied and extensive. ITime played a pivotal role in our class community. For us, iTime was about finding a purpose and exploring it independently or in small groups. Children selected projects guided by some prompting questions that led us to consider our purpose, who we were helping, what skills and dispositions we were developing and what connections we were making to other areas of learning. ITime projects were varied throughout the year. The projects ranged from researching and designing class logos and t-shirts so that we could find each other more easily on field trips, to building a wooden ramp for our rabbit cage in our learning space so the rabbits could get more exercise, to designing and building iPad holders so that we could photograph and video the books we read steadily and have free hands to turn pages and operate the iPad, to making movies of stories that had been recently written.

iTime allowed these young learners to inquire into authentic projects of their choice

 The benefits of iTime were, I think, partly a result of the work the children and I did on creating individual schedules for their day. Through observation, reflection, argument, data-collection, discussion and negotiation, they decided on daily schedules that suited their brains and bodies and other relevant considerations. In this context, each child selected a time they would devote to their iTime project.

Nurturing agency by involving learners in designing their day

“With the value and time placed on our iTime, the class community, including the teachers, was able to get to know so much more about each other. Initially, during these times, I was an observer. I was eager to see how the children responded to the proposal of using time to inquire into materials, tools, and projects. Documentation of these sessions was frequent and came in the form of photographs, videos and noting the voices of the children as they interacted with these materials, spaces, peers and tools. Standing back led me to see the children in a different light. Having time to discuss projects and proposals as a community led the children to see themselves and their friends differently too. Connections were made. Inspiration was given and received. Collaborations emerged.

I then began to conference with the children, and it became clearer what their passions were. It became clear what they were curious about building, designing or researching. It was also valuable for us to reflect upon how long projects lasted and how invested the children were in these projects. Noticing and talking about this with the students led us to more discussion about stamina, perseverance, desires, interests and resilience. 

“I just do what she (her friend) is doing. I don’t have an idea (for a project) yet.”

“I do a project each day. It is short. I think… I think that if it is longer it could be better. Like his ramp. Mine is okay but not so good.”

 These iTime projects were also part of what really helped us become more aware of the interconnectedness of our learning. Having our iTime projects structured and supported with our personal data-collection documents, and our self-documentation planning and reflection sheets was helping the children see how what they were learning in different parts of their day was transferable and applicable in other, new ways. For example, "We needed to measure something for our project and then we were learning about measuring in our math and we could measure so much to make our iTime project." We then looked together at our mathematics standards to see how this was connected and realized that what we were learning about was what the standards wanted us to understand. We continued to find out more about measuring through exploration of measurement tools and through applying what we were finding out to the project that prompted the initial inquiry. Interest was sparked and soon others were eager to find out more about measurement.

Planning, documenting and reflecting on personal inquiries is key - individual and small group investigations are the perfect opportunity to highlight the ‘how ‘as well as the ‘what’ of learning.

One concern I had initially about how this whole experience would turn out was that it would perpetuate the idea that learning needs to be segmented into discipline-specific times. On reflection, the opposite may be true. Having our iTime projects play such a huge role in the class and placing such high value on that time has given us reason to notice and act upon the connections that exist and are emerging.

 Providing regular opportunities for young learners to explore their interests and passions has been a vital part of our learning community. For others considering something like this with their students, I offer a few suggestions that have arisen from my own learning:

• Listening: Step back and observe what children’s words and actions are telling you they need. This can be prompted by questions about how, when and why we learn best as a part of inquiring into learning itself. Listening can also help us avoid assumptions and learn more about prior knowledge and experiences of our learners.

• Documenting: Record what is happening in the space. Notice as patterns and themes emerge. What are they telling us about the learning? How are they influencing the next steps? What are they telling us that children need from us? What is surprising? What did we not expect? How are our assumptions being challenged?

• Valuing personal inquiry equally: To paraphrase Ron Ritchart, what we value is what becomes valued by those around us. Our iTime became an equally valued part of the day alongside mathematical learning, reading and writing. We had mini-lessons, conferences, reflections and goal-setting, just as we did with other areas of our learning - reassuring for me as a teacher as I do this for other disciplines every day.

• Building routine and structure: Contrary to some misconceptions about inquiry/agency-based learning, this is an important factor. Creating structures together that offer visible reflection, data collection and connection making opportunities helps us reflect, notice, wonder and move to next steps.

• Sharing the focus between the how, the what and the why: As well as reflecting on and celebrating the content (new technical skills, knowledge, conceptual understandings) - place an equal spotlight on the learning assets (skills and dispositions), and the reason for the learning. This provides students with the reason to reflect and with increased ownership over decisions made about learning. Guy Claxton’s ‘Split Screen’ learning intention and reflection technique is a helpful way to make this happen.

• Helping make new learning and connections visible: Help learners notice how all areas of their learning are connected. Use reflection and visibility tools to notice and help make connections visible and clear.

• Trusting and becoming comfortable with different types of learning happening simultaneously: Trust that your systems for documentation and conferencing will ensure that you are regularly in conversation with students about purpose, goals and next steps. Trust that the reflection systems, thinking routines and planning structures in place will help the students dig deeper in an independent and purposeful manner.

• Valuing ALL mistakes: It is something we all say, but occasionally we only value the types of mistakes that we are comfortable with. Reflecting on, for example, how little balance a student is in their learning decisions, can lead to deep and thoughtful dialogue about the decision-making process, responsibility, accountability and so much more.

• Using common language: Building a shared understanding of important vocabulary helps us to understand, question and share coherently in relation to our projects.