Labor of Love

by Marla McLean | Sep 4, 2017 | 3 year old children, ACES, activism, aesthetics, art, Atelier, Atelierista, awe, beauty, Brain science, community, Constructing, creativity, early childhood, Embodying, explore, family, flight, grow, heart, imagination, Innovation, Joy, Kindergarten, Light, love, Maker Spaces, Marla McLean, materials, meaning, monarchs, observation, painting, pause, PreK, process, project work, Reggio Emilia, studio learning, Trauma Informed practice, Uncategorized, wonder

I was thinking about the complexities of “labor” today, on this Labor Day eve.
I was thinking about the labor or role of the teacher.  The possibilities and power of relationship and transformation that can happen in a learning environment is on my mind as this new school year has begun. For me this is in the Atelier or Art Studio at SWS.
It made me jump to the phrase “Labor of Love.”

Last Spring I became part of a year-long 12 person Art Educator DCPS Fellowship. ACES Art Fellowship. ACES stands for Adverse Childhood Experiences. The fellowship I am a part of aims to create a cadre of trauma –informed art teachers to develop strategies and  practice within their art classes and then share and spread this work within their school communities and throughout DCPS.

What is ACEs science?

ACEs science refers to the research on the prevalence and consequences of adverse childhood experiences, and what to do to prevent them. It comprises:

1. The CDC-Kaiser Permanente ACE Study and subsequent surveys that show that most people in the U.S. have at least one ACE, and that people with four ACEs— including living with an alcoholic parent, racism, bullying, witnessing violence outside the home, physical abuse, and losing a parent to divorce — have a huge risk of adult onset of chronic health problems such as heart disease, cancer, diabetes, suicide, and alcoholism.
2. Brain science (neurobiology of toxic stress) — how toxic stress caused by ACEs damages the function and structure of kids’ developing brains.
3. Health consequences — how toxic stress caused by ACEs affects short- and long-term health, and can impact every part of the body, leading to autoimmune diseases, such as arthritis, as well as heart disease, breast cancer, lung cancer, etc.
4. Historical and generational trauma (epigenetic consequences of toxic stress) — how toxic stress caused by ACEs can alter how our DNA functions, and how that can be passed on from generation to generation.
5. Resilience research — how the brain is plastic and the body wants to heal. This research ranges from looking at how the brain of a teen with a high ACE score can be healed with cognitive behavior therapy, to how schools can integrate trauma-informed and resilience-building practices that result in an increase in students’ scores, test grades and graduation rates.

 “ACEs are still experienced by more than one in three children under the age of six.  Even in higher income families, more than one in four children have ACEs.”

Here is a wonderful link (where I copied the above info from)

https://acestoohigh.com/

So what does this mean for the my work?

It means a more intentional and informed practice of being the safety net for children within the context of the SWS Atelier/Art Studio.

A child does not need to have 1 or more ACES to benefit from me cultivating a compassionate and inclusive classroom based on ACES science. A child who does have one or more ACES has the added potential and benefit of altering their neurology, developing a sense of healthy connection, and developing necessary resiliency.

One of my favorite simple strategies within this work is to offer “unconditional regard.” It means taking a breath and offering love, even when a child presents in an unlovable behavior. It means routines, rituals, and language that lessens triggers. It means learning how to de-escalate children who are acting out with care and thought. It means thoughtful planning and facilitating of materials, environment, and lessons through this lens.

And let us not forget the power of the arts to heal. Materials or the 100 Language of children offer children (and adults!) opportunities to express, explore, experiment, and take risks. It allows one to reflect, make beauty, destroy, make mistakes,  construct, and transform.

When opportunities to create art occurs within a safe inclusive space, with a teacher who verbally and non-verbally defines boundaries, offers freedoms, and unconditional regard, there is fertile ground for growth. And for joy.

SWS and DCPS are systemically committed to this work. It is an honor and privilege to meet consistently with the DCPS ACES Art Fellowship cadre under the facilitation of Lyndsey D.  Vance, ATR-BC, LPC from ProjectCreate, DC in Anacostia.

This year, all the ongoing Reggio practice, Constructivist theory, Art Theory, Art Ed, Early Childhood pedagogy, DCPS Standards, Developmentally Appropriate planning, Project Approach, and Mindfulness practices that are embedded in my teaching at SWS, have a new connecting thread. Unconditional regard. Trauma informed practice. Love.

“Relationship is the evidence based practice.” Dr. Allison Jackson

Intuitively I have always known this. In my life, I have been both on the receiving and giving end. Now I have the science and fellowship to truly understand, share, and further develop my practice.

It seems most appropriate today to declare this work, this year, sincerely, as a Labor of Love.

Looking forward to connecting and reconnecting!