Jo Jo the Puppet and Progressive Teaching — by Ann Douglas During my elementary school years, I think of my French teacher, Madame Greenwood. Madame Greenwood would enter the classroom several days a week pulling her red wagon. In it was an old paper mache and cloth puppet named Jo Jo. He did not appear in every lesson, but when he did, we were enchanted. We had fashion shows, set up cafes, rode tricycles in the hall to commemorate the Tour de France, and ate la pain au chocolat. Along the way, I learned a great deal of French and acquired a lovely French accent. I didn’t go on to become a French major, but I learned to love the language. I attended public schools and while there was a great deal of memorization and rote learning, teachers then were not teaching to a test. A sixth grade teacher in our school asked families to collect pop tops from cans. We scoured the neighborhood and brought in many encrusted with dirt. The host class counted them, hoping to reach a million. They didn’t make it, but it was fun and helped us to gain number sense. This was one of the first exercises in sustainability! I always knew that I wanted to be a teacher. I have taught now for 30 years, 25 of which have been in progressive schools. I became a progressive teacher quite by accident. When my son with Down Syndrome was born, we were directed to a small preschool that used a progressive curriculum, High Scope. I was a parent and a teacher at this dynamic school. What I learned from these gifted teachers was HOW to teach. Not what. Not when. We learned to follow the child’s lead, to honor their stage of development, and to provide opportunities for young children to explore, make plans and work together. I spent ten years teaching here before moving on to a progressive farm school, enrolling children from preschool to eighth grade. Here, I also learned from passionate teachers and came to value outdoor education. I am still thriving there, teaching first graders. Both of these schools embraced the arts. Through the arts children are able to create, problem solve and experiment. They learn to love the process of their learning. Mistakes are made. Children are learning partners with the teacher and reflect on their challenges and successes. They learn to support others in their learning, too. 14
PEN The Journal of the Progressive Education Network Spring 2020
