Blog Post Care

Throughout Reading this article,  while each teacher expresses care for their students in different ways, I feel as though they are all rooted in creating a safe space in their classroom. Looking at Lee, she does this by working on the room itself. She acknowledges that a outside of school many of her students are not living in community or home environments which are kept organized and clean. She therefore makes sure to keep her classroom as clean and organized as possible to create a space where her students can focus on their work. Not only is she making the space clean so that her students can focus, it also helps to make them feel valued and respected.

Sarah describes her hair as a
"bat signal for LGBT students" 

Looking at Sarah, she creates a caring and safe space through her representation of herself. She is out as a Queer person n her classroom, and reflects that with her clothing and hairstyle. Being out she hosts a support group and has students that stay after class to talk, and she also reflects lessons on gender and sexuality into her curriculum to provide representation and a space for conversation. She is modeling that being queer and being a successful adult is possible, which is something which is rarely represented. I know for myself, I did not personally know a single out queer adult, and especially not in my school. In addition, she is also building a sense of community in her classrooms.
Finally, looking at Michelle’s work, she expresses her care through the amount of outside time, energy, and money she puts into her classroom and work with her students. This is discussed primarily through her taking extra time in the mornings to buy breakfast or snacks for her students. She talks about how they at times will begin to fall asleep in class, and she knows this is that they have busy lives, and may have been working late into the night. Rather than place a judgement on her own teaching or allowing them to continue to sleep through class she offers them a snack to help wake them up and keep their focus on their school work.

Fidelia, one of the awesome staff

While I have only been at my internship for a few weeks, I have noticed care being expressed primarily through relationship building. The Olneyville Community Library is open to the public. The majority of patrons are locals from the Olneyville community. The Staff at the library consists of only three people, but they all work to make sure that they greet every person who comes in, and help them with whatever they are working on. Regardless of how many times people have come in, they

remember their names and whatever they were working on, researching, or just doing the last time. In addition, they work to make sure that the library is a safe space for everyone who will come in. One example of this, is of a young Trans person who comes in fairly regularly who has expressed that she feels safe and accepted at the Olneyville Library, and that she has gone to others in the area and not felt that way.