The Rivers School – Page 4 – Relentless Robin

January Gallery

Civil Rights Class Week 1

As part of my personal growth in 2022, I am taking a civil rights class at the Rivers School in Weston, Massachusetts. The “Civil Rights Movement” refers to efforts toward achieving true equality for African Americans in all facets of society, but today the term “civil rights” is also used to describe the advancement ofContinue reading “Civil Rights Class Week 1”

Teaching as a Subversive Activity

The first term this year at The Rivers School, I was fortunate to share an office with four middle school educators. One teaches math to reluctant 7th graders. Three teach 8th grade humanities. All had a wealth of interesting books on their desks. Eighth-grade humanities called “Systems of Justice and Injustice,” is an interdisciplinary courseContinue reading “Teaching as a Subversive Activity”

These Precious Days

These Precious Days is a 2021 essay collection by American writer Ann Patchett. The 336-page book of 24 previously published essays was revised for the collection. I read this book as a Rivers Faculty & Staff book club assignment. These are my notes. “Essays never filled my days,” Patchett writes, “but they reminded me thatContinue reading “These Precious Days”

Self Portrait Sunday

Biochemistry Goes Hybrid.

The Rivers School had over 45 people test positive during the second week of January 2022. That number includes teachers, staff and students. All classes were offered hybrid so students and teachers had the option to join in using Google Meet.

Middle School Advisory

One of the things that I promised myself is that I would finish the stack of digital stories that I started yet did not complete in 2021. This is the second. I spent about 10 minutes in a classroom at the Rivers School in Weston, Massachusetts, during a Middle School Advisory meeting. I need toContinue reading “Middle School Advisory”

The Other Black Girl

I read this book to assess its suitability as a 2022 summer reading selection for grades 9 through 12 at The Rivers School in Weston, Massachusett. My conclusion is that high school students will not yet have the life experience and frame of reference to understand the racism and microaggressions that Black women face inContinue reading “The Other Black Girl”

A Day in the Life of a Substitute Teacher

8:30 AM: A Block Foundations of Sculpture Art Around the Sculpture Room Loves in Flowers People Pile The students worked on Wire Sculptures ooking for clear gesture and good craftsmanship. 9:20 AM: B Block Advanced Art Refections of Birds A student paints on a mirror. Birds are connected to memories she has of her grandmother.Continue reading “A Day in the Life of a Substitute Teacher”

Notes on the Lincoln Highway

I read this book as a Rivers Faculty & Staff book club assignment. These are my notes. The Lincoln Highway, a Great American Road Novel by Amor Towles — three 18-year-olds who met in a juvenile reformatory, plus a inquisitive, abnormally smart 8-year-old — journey from Nebraska to New York City in an old StudebakerContinue reading “Notes on the Lincoln Highway”