Interests

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Praxis and Reflection

Letting Go & Letting In

Parenting for Connection

Transformative Inquiry for Teachers

Parenting as Political

Teaching Resistance

Self-compassion and Empowerment

Self-Regulation

Compassionate Communication

Leadership Development

Non-Violent Communication

Storytelling & Narratives

My Story

 

I am teacher, parent, and praxis mentor. I don't think that any of these terms are at all clear in their meaning.  

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For many years, I was the sort of teacher and caregiver who earned accolades for the way in which I calmly got kids to do what I wanted them to do. Children would happily sit quietly for me; I had every student participating in the activity. I had large dinning halls of middle-schoolers wait patiently for their ice-cream because I was good at eliciting such behaviour through my 'progressive' practice in classroom, outdoor education, and recreation settings.

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But only when I was pregnant did I really begin to reflect on the ways in which my practice often failed to consider the humanness of others. I read and learned and thought on my own about the philosophical problems that praise, giving kids 'choices,' and the act of explaining things to others all presented through their relationship to control, power, hierarchy, and inequality.  

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I returned to do a MA in Education and sort through some of my questions surrounding how we teach kids to be 'good.' But, naturally my questions only led to more questions! I went on to complete a PhD in Educational Studies where my research focused on what it means to be a 'progressive' educator or parent, how to teach kids about freedom and democracy, and the practice of self-regulation in classrooms. 

 

I also teach (teachers-to-be and leadership student in university) and parent two kids, Fin (9) and Shay (7), with my partner, Tyler. We also run a small playschool (www.thefarmplayschool.com).