Leonie Bolles 28 YEARS NURSERY LO W E R S C H O O L
Dan Wood 6 YEARS
SCIENCE LO W E R S C H O O L Illustrations by:
Before Nursery Associate Teacher Leonie Bolles P’08 returned to her native Nicaragua, colleagues feted her and Dan Wood at a retirement party. It was agreed that Bolles, who taught at Lower School (going back to the Woodward Park days) for 28 years, and Head Teacher Irwin Tawil P’08, had created a magical place in Nursery B. “Observing Leonie interact with the students in her care is like watching a master class on child-centered constructivism at work,” said Terell Cooper P’29 (Head Teacher, Grade 3B; Director of Associates Program). “At any one time, children in Nursery B are engineers building structures with blocks, scientists observing rocks and shells under magnifying glasses, or storytellers embodying characters in the dramatic play area.” “We can all agree that there is magic in Nursery B,” Cooper said, “but it’s not only because the physical environment resembles a naturalist’s wonderland—complete with a tree canopy overhead—but because the curriculum is well-conceived with young children placed lovingly at the center of each decision.”
Lower School was fortunate Dan Wood, an educator for 40 years, spent the final six years of his career as a science teacher in the wondrous fourth-floor classroom he transformed into a discovery center. After earning a BA in biology at Fresno State University, Wood was a naturalist/science teacher in San Francisco before getting a master’s at San Francisco State University. During the next 17 years in Oregon, Wood served as principal at two elementary schools and as adjunct professor of education for Concordia University for seven years.
Deirdra Hazeley ’00 is a proud alumna of Poly, Cornell
University, Florida International University, and Columbia
University. She is a Grade Four
Head Teacher and Co-Director of
the Junior Multi Arts camp. Deirdra was a resident artist at the League Residency at Vytlacil and the Vermont Studio Center. She
is a participant artist in the
Brooklyn Museum’s exhibition
Iggy Pop Life Class: A Project by Jeremy Deller. Her art can be seen at www.deirdrahazeley.com.
Wood called Lower School “a dream job, full circle to being strictly science, as I had once done in San Francisco. I knew I would like teaching science again, but never realized just how wonderful it would be. I have never enjoyed a school atmosphere, or a position in education, more than I have at Poly. The chance to create a program, in which students K-4 were able to enjoy a myriad of experiences and to love science, was an amazing way to spend the last six years of my career.”
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