To Friends of The Willow School:

     Periodically we have issued a commentary on a phrase from our Mission Statement.  Last year we started with academic excellence and joy of learning, and this year we have presented the wonder of the natural world.  Now we address mastery of the English language.                              

	Richard Eldridge Head of School, 2003-2006

Mastery of the English Language

     Recently a kindergarten child interrupted my reading to object to the grammar that the author used.  The sentence read, “We walked, Mama and me.”   The five-year-old raised her hand: “Excuse me, it should be, ‘Mama and I,’ not ‘Mama and me.’” I thought about how most fifth graders would be unable to use the correct form of the pronoun; and if they did it would be in writing, not in everyday speaking.   Incorrect use of language in our society is not surprising.  Children are given few opportunities to speak publicly, to learn that what they say and how they say it matters.  A child learns to speak correctly and effectively by practice and instruction.  If we do not provide the time and space for these, the child will not develop a mastery over his or her speech.

     At The Willow School, the processes that lead to mastery of the English language go beyond speech and are built into the child’s daily experience.  At Morning Gathering the whole school comes together for an opportunity to discuss a piece of literature connected with a virtue, to share ideas about a topic, to present one’s work to peers and adults, and to express opinions.  The children learn that language is the vehicle that enables their views to be acknowledged and their ideas to be implemented.  Language gives substance to a child’s presence in the world.

     Through the daily work of processing and reflecting on the experience of living and learning, children also begin to understand that the purpose of education is not just to obtain knowledge about what others know or have experienced. Children are encouraged to translate sensory, emotional and aesthetic experiences into powerful language.  Kindergarten games ask children to translate feelings into a shape or a sound, or to think metaphorically: which animal might express the qualities of one’s own personality?  In first grade children’s reflections on the literature they read might find expression in a play they create and present in Morning Gathering.  The poetry a fourth grader writes might become the lyrics to a song in music class.  Language becomes the tool for bridging a variety of experiences and connecting children to the inner voice of their creative selves.

     Mastery of language involves a deep understanding of the nuances of literary expression, the acquisition of sophisticated vocabulary, and the acceptance of the challenge of developing work into a publishable piece through writers’ workshops.  Even in kindergarten, discussions of literature go beyond factual retellings to consider what the author infers, what makes the language poetic, and what meanings are added by the author’s word choice.  Age is no deterrent: fourteen Willow School kindergarteners have published their works as books this year.  Their ambition is to contribute to the student-run literary magazine.

     Mastery of the English language involves a willingness to take risks, and children are more willing to take risks in a supportive environment where mistakes are seen as opportunities for deeper understanding and personal growth.  True mastery is the ability to claim the rich inheritance of our language for the creative expression of who we are.

The fourth in a series of commentaries by the
Head of The Willow School and Faculty of The Willow School, June, 2005