I remember moving into my office at Colorado Academy in July 2019. One of the things I immediately loved about my new space in the Lower School was the large window that faces the outdoor play area. I find this spectacular window to be a place of joy in my days, as each day brings a new scene for me.
Some of my favorites include:
Students create a series of chalk art messages along the sidewalk path. I love to hear them collectively decide what they want to write for others to see. Sometimes the messages are focused on kindness, a holiday, or a teacher they love. I enjoy walking along the sidewalk and seeing their messages—it truly brightens my day!
During a game of soccer, students were running the length of the field passing the ball along trying to score a goal. Unfortunately, a student was hit in the face with the soccer ball, and the student fell to the ground in pain. Other students immediately noticed what happened and called “take a knee” to everyone. The entire group of 30+ students immediately stopped play and allowed the student space while a teacher assisted with the situation. When the injured student was able to stand and recover, everyone stood, clapped, and cheered for their classmate. It was such a heartwarming scene to witness!
As fall comes, our beautiful cottonwood tree outside the Lower School begins to lose its gorgeous red and gold leaves. The rakes come out, and students in all grade levels spend their recess raking and bagging leaves. The students love this job at recess and take great pride in seeing how tall and wide they can make the leaf pile.
The cheers of four square always gain my attention as a game erupts outside of my office window. Everyone is trying their best to move to the King’s Square. My favorite moment is when someone hits the ball out, but they are met with comments like “nice try” or “you’ll get it next time.” Everyone is championing one another!
There was the day that the sprinklers accidentally came on during recess. It was a huge surprise! I immediately ran outside to assist in turning the sprinklers off; however, when I reached the outdoor space, the students were cheering as the spray of the water was creating a beautiful rainbow across the playground.
When the snow finally comes, I absolutely love seeing everyone bundled up in the Big 5 (coat, snow pants, boots, gloves, hat). The snow activities range from ramp building to enhancing the velocity of the snow hill, to children truly rolling in the snow. It’s always exciting to see the snow creations, too. My all-time favorite was an 8-foot caterpillar!
Within all of these scenes, I have the opportunity to see children who truly love playing outdoors, while being kind and caring towards one another. As I arrive each morning and begin my day in the Lower School, I gaze out my window before the children arrive and wonder, what will I see today?