Big Hearts

Two Tales of Students and Grief

By Cassia Bardal

Two Montessori classrooms demonstrated the power of compassion and action when facing tragedy and sadness. The nurturing nature of the Montessori approach was obvious as students mourned a loss, but learned valuable life lessons.

Louisville, KY

Finding Hope After Cranes Die in Storm

As a reaction to a classroom exercise studying the events of 9/11, students in teacher Lori Trout’s fourth grade class at John F. Kennedy Montessori School decided they wanted to make the world a better place. The children decided to raise funds for Operation Migration, a program that leads a small group of young whooping cranes to their migration destination in Florida. The human-led migration uses an ultralight aircraft and stretches across seven states, covering 1,250 miles.

The students sent letters to Exxon Mobil seeking funds for the cranes, which are near extinction. “The students chose Exxon Mobil after researching profit margins of oil companies,” Trout said. “They figured Exxon Mobil had two things that could help the cranes: gas and money.” Exxon Mobil responded with a $2,500 check to Operation Migration.

Trout’s class and other classrooms followed the migration through the Internet.

The cranes arrived safely, but the bad news came in early February: 17 of the 18 cranes were killed while trapped in a refuge in a Florida storm.

Though it was a letdown, Trout and the children would not be defeated.

Trout held what she calls a “remembering ceremony” for the class that following Monday. Students shared their reactions, and even their parents’ reactions, over boxes of tissue. Soon, ideas to honor the cranes started flowing.

They wrote sympathy cards to Operation Migration. One student learned origami to make 17 commemorative cranes, while another planned to make a clay sculpture of the scene. The students also planned to plant bulbs outside the school with a wooden whooping crane and crane windsock to mark them. They sewed a quilt made of squares they decorated commemorating the cranes. They asked Operation Migration officials to send photos of the cranes to be transferred to quilt squares.

Their creative work did not stop at remembering the lost cranes, but continued with developing ideas about how to save other cranes. Ideas included a warning system to aid in rescue, a video camera to monitor the birds when they are in the enclosure and funding to find a safer refugee.

Trout said, “ It’s a joy that my students became encouraged and inspired to do more because of this tragedy.”

Lawrence, KS

Comic Book Shows Care for Classmate

When Drew Smith, an eight-year-old student at Raintree Montessori School, learned the mother of a classmate died, he pondered how sad it would be to lose someone that you love so much and sought a way to do something for his grieving friend.

Jaida Weaver, a former classmate, had lost her mother to a brain hemorrhage.

He asked his mother, Kathy Smith, what he could do to help. Their dialogue stopped at his love of drawing comics and she asked him how he could use that.

So began Raintree Comics.

His school helped nurture this idea. “Because of the way a Montessori classroom is set up,” Kathy said, “Drew was able to learn, explore and develop his love of art and drawing.”

He took his idea of creating a comic book and selling it to raise funds for the family to Lleanna McReynolds, the school’s director. “Drew’s school is open to ideas from students,” said Kathy. With McReynolds’ support, he set off to make and sell comics in a fundraising effort for Jaida and her family.

“It all started with a little boy with a big heart,” McReynolds said.

Kathy said the school’s “teachings stressed the importance of community. Out of this Drew has gained a sense of awareness of his classmates and how they feel because he is always looking out for them.”

Drew said he did not want the comics be only his. He wanted to include the school community so he asked for submissions and soon students who didn’t even know Jaida were submitting work. Kathy said, “They felt his passion about it.”

Looking back, McReynolds said, “It was a good diversion for the children to deal with emotions [about their own families’ mortality] in a positive way.”

Drew gained new knowledge about comic books.

He learned that pencil drawings could not be published without first photocopying. He learned about the submission and acceptance process. He also learned his efforts might be helpful for the future. A second publication could bring other families help, but has been put on hold for now.

Drew’s comic books raised $200 for the Weaver family and the school community raised another $800. McReynolds said, “Jaida is doing fine. She is a precious child with a great family and the school is like an extended family.”

Every Tuesday a family from the school makes a meal to be sent home with Jaida’s brother who still attends Raintree Montessori.