Portfolio

In my portfolio, you will find examples of student work, lesson plans, curriculum ideas, and more!

Philosophy of Education

Teaching Across Age, Setting, and Ability

Examples of Student Work

Examples of student work from lessons I have led on the Islandwood campus.

Click on each photo to learn more

Tree Ring Prints

Students create tree ring prints using block ink and tree ring cuts. Through this art activity students can learn about the way the environment effects tree growth and changes in the rings. Students often find it interesting to count the rings to try to figure out the approximate age of the trees. Student interest in this art project can lead to interesting discussions on the trails about what impacts on the trees we are actively seeing.

Garden Self Portraits

Amount of Time: 15-25 minutes

Student Learning Objective:
Students will explore the garden and practice creative thinking to create self-portraits using materials from the garden.

Teacher Prompts:
“What is a self-portrait?”
“How will the materials you use reflect who you are?”
“What materials might you use to create hair or eyes?”

Guidelines:
Examples of materials to create portraits - Rocks, leaves, petals, wood chips, grass, etc
Write out clear expectations for materials you may NOT want students to use - any poisonous plants, plants where there may be limited numbers, berries

Extension Activities:
Do a gallery walk (if time allows)
Take pictures to share with families
Nature Journal Reflection - Why did they choose each material? How did they collect each item?

Perspective Storytelling

Students create a story from the perspective of a more than human friend. In this image, a student made a story about the barnacles we saw the day before at the harbor. This activity was done after reading the Islandwood story "The tree that came home," which tells the story of a Douglas fir from the tree's perspective.
I can use these stories students create to understand what they are connecting to and build upon those interests.

Teaching in the Garden Zine

Fall 2024

Informal Pedagogies with Dr. Priya Pugh