Airplane Paper Mail
Before the Winter Break, a small group of Cilantros discovered a surprise on the grassy area in the Middle Courtyard and gathered to investigate.
Wiley: What is it?
Copper: It looks like a paper airplane.
Cindy: I notice words on it. Let’s read what it says.
The group transitioned to a nearby table and Cindy read the words:
“Mail Paper airplane. Open here.”
To our surprise, there was a message hidden inside:
“From Jack, To Cilantros”, along with the symbol to represent “I love you.”
Jack, hearing his name: That’s not me.
Copper: Who is it?
Leo: Jack?
Cindy: It came from the Basil Group?
Ami: Who is Jack?
Later in the morning the message was brought to our reflection meeting to share with the rest of the group.
Jack: That’s not me.
Leo: It’s not you, Jack?
Jack reiterates: It’s not me.
Cindy: How could we find out who it is?
During the meeting the group offered many questions that we might ask to solve the mystery. We made a plan to meet again and write a message to send to the Basil group.
Dear Jack,
Thank you for the Mail Paper Airplane. We want to know about you. Do you have long hair? Is it black or brown? Do you have yellow eyes or black eyes? What color is your skin?
What do you like? Do you like apples? Do you like flowers? Do you like dresses, pink or red, or blue?
We Love You,
The Cilantro Group
The group wanted to add a heart to represent love.
From a distance, the Cilantros have waved and said hello to many Basil children, but which one was Jack? How could they know? As the questions were gathered the children were clearly wondering what Jack looked like. This is often the first thing we notice on new encounters with people. In addition, this has been an ongoing discussion among the group as they have been noticing differences among themselves through observations of hair, eyes, and skin tone. However, as they first wondered about Jack’s physical appearance, their curiosity grew and began to go a little further as they expanded their questions to include possible interests. For this group, it appeared that they recognize that we are multifaceted and that knowing more might lead us to finding our connection with him.
The letter was delivered and the children waited patiently for a response. One morning, two children stood in the Basil doorway ready to deliver a letter. Following safety protocols, Cindy retrieved the letter and shared with the group:
Jack: See that’s not me. I don’t have those shoes.
Colette: He has a sister and I have Charlie. He’s my brother.
Oona: I have brown eyes.
Jack: I have green eyes. If we had a closer picture, we could see his eyes.
Oona: I love green. That’s my favorite color.
Colette: Of course, we like flowers.
Jack: I like pizza.
This is an ongoing experience as children throughout the school are looking for ways to connect and get to know each other. The Cilantro and Dandelions continue to use their mailbox in the Middle Courtyard and the Basils and Aloe Veras use their mailboxes in the garden. Though we can’t travel throughout the school, this airplane was an inventive way to spark our curiosity and take us on an unexpected journey to learn more about each other.
As Elliot added when passing the note over to Cindy: I’m Elliot. Maybe one day I will send an airplane and you will want to know about me too.
Wiley: Yes, we will!