The Toads: Refocusing the Lens

The toads In 2006, our preschool classroom (a mixed-age classroom of 20 children between the ages of 2 1/2 and 6) had two toads as pets. The deaths of our classroom toads was one of those unplanned moments with the potential for the kind of learning that stays with children long after school is over, and I eventually discovered that the children had much to teach me. The value of reflecting on our actions is that it allows us to focus on how we react to various situations, why we react as we do, and whether our reaction was the appropriate or most responsive way to react given the context and people involved. Children should be engaged and should have voice in the serious matters of community and culture, and this can include matters of religion and spirituality approached in inclusive ways (Nimmo, Abo-Zena, & Leekeenan 2019) Pedagogy and thoughtful action: A delicate balance I was in a very delicate situation, balancing reality and a child's identity related to his faith and religion.