WESTMINSTER — I had my own experience and impression of Claire Oglesby, who taught my son, Gaetano, for first and second grade in 1976 and 1977 in the Westminster West two-room schoolhouse.
When she passed away on Aug. 5 from cancer at age 77, I knew I'd be attending the memorial services to honor her. I knew they'd be crowded, too.
And at her recent memorial service, I found out why others felt she was so special.
Claire Oglesby made a deep impression on everyone she met, especially on her students and their families. She taught there for about 30 years of her 45-year teaching career, using a very fluid and open-style classroom that some folks described as “chaotic.”
But Claire actually had eyes in the back - and sides and front - of her head and was able to give each child individual attention while being aware of everything that was happening around her.
She would read aloud and listen to each child read aloud every day and was still able to respond when others needed attention. She could intervene in a conflict without putting a child down or shaming him.
In Lisa Merton and Alan Dater's documentary The World in Claire's Classroom, filmed over the academic year starting in 1996, Claire is repeatedly shown demonstrating what we now call “conflict resolution” or “nonviolent resolution.”
She did not believe in removing a child from a conflict to punish; she believed that by staying in the middle of the action and directly addressing the issues at hand, the child would learn how to resolve his or her conflicts and not be shamed.
In the film, one little boy declares loudly that “Girls stink!” - which, of course, offends the girls. Claire asks him why he said that, and he shrugged his shoulders, unclear himself.
“Perhaps it's because so-and-so has four or five sisters that he thinks that,” Claire suggests, “and he's feeling a little outnumbered. But how would you feel if a girl said that boys stink?” Claire asked, the boy responding with a shy, small smile.
Claire believed the children learn from one another and an adult can help orchestrate this learning. She believed the children and their teacher need to respect one another. “If you want the kids to learn to make good decisions, you need to respect them, keep a calm tone of voice and don't talk down to them,” she said.
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Parents were always welcome in Claire's classroom. When you walked in the door you were immediately in the classroom, and you were probably scooped up to get involved in some way. She took time to get to know the parents, families, and community, and to discover their own talents and interests.
Kathy Richardson, a student of Claire's in the early '60s, shared entries in her diary from that time: “We took trips to the beaver pond on horseback,” she wrote.
At the end of the school year, she wrote “School is over” with a sad smiley face, then “I wish school wasn't over,” with a happy smiley face.
In 1993, when her own three children were enrolled at Claire's school, Kathy was recruited to teach gymnastics, chaperone skiing trips, and make caramel apples.
She also accompanied Claire and 20 students on a trip to Puerto Rico with 14 other parents and two volunteers in 1995. Claire always made a point of studying other cultures and submerging everyone as much as possible.
On the year they studied Puerto Rico, they decided to take a trip there, and in the winter of 1997, the families from Puerto Rico came to visit Westminster West - at the time covered with two feet of snow.
Parent volunteers Nick and Jill Keil helped raise money for the trips, finding winter clothing and housing for all the visitors and providing food, entertainment, and winter expeditions for them. “Claire's classroom was the center of our community,” Nick Keil said. “Everything originated there.”
Claire believed that “you have to educate the children to be a world citizen. That way they won't be scared when they meet someone new or different."
In Vermont, she said, “we are predominately white folks. Some people believe 'Well, then, we don't have to deal with race as an issue.' I believe the opposite. That is exactly why we should learn about other cultures."
Children, she continued, “don't even know there are other languages in the world unless we teach them. We explore through things kids like, food, music, art, and field trips. We work for 5-6 months to learn about the culture and understand it. It would be great for us to see inside of a temple when we study India, for instance.”
Claire spent one year studying India, bringing in an intern who spoke Tamil and taught the children to write and speak his language. He taught them how to greet each other and the different way to greet adults. Then, Claire and the families invited guests to come and speak to the children and they could use their new skills.
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Claire used music, art, poetry, writing, and reading, encompassing the entire curriculum.
“Singing is a great way to build community. Singing songs from other cultures opens hearts and minds to people who are different. We learned to sing a song in Latin,” says Mary Cay Brass, local musician and music director.
Children drew pictures and talked about Ganesha, the Indian god who removes obstacles in one's path. Claire read Indian poetry to the children and asked them what they thought it meant. “If you have love you have a soul,” one boy said. “They come in one package.”
Karen Becker helped the children create a mural with an authentic Indian temple. The children and families visited a temple in Framingham, Mass., and one of the fathers, a carpenter, helped the children construct a model temple in their classroom.
They used math, reading, science, and all that comes with manual labor (including patience, accuracy, and foresight) to construct the environment. When it was done and decorated authentically, families were invited to come to a blessing of the site.
Sitar players and dancers entertained the crowds gathered in the tiny space. An Indian priest blessed the crowds and temple and food. People sat and ate, many with their fingers as they do in India, as the children, dressed in beautiful veils and robes, bowed their little bows of greeting.
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At Claire's memorial, four of her former students spoke about her impression on them in their lives.
Claire taught them to respect other cultures and individuals. She taught them to respect themselves and their peers. Many of them have formed lifelong friendships through which they are bound in their early life experience with Claire Oglesby. For students in her tiny school, she was a lens to their individuality and to the world.
My own experience with Claire as a teacher for my son was that she respected him and his individuality enough to give him permission to wear his oversized cowboy hat, leather vest, and boots to school.
She didn't say, “No, you can't, because then all the other kids would want to.” She didn't worry about blocking vision or where he would store it. She respected his individual development of his character and identity.
The way she did for all people.