For Claire, from Heidi Watts, with thanks

About 1969-70 when I was working for the Antioch-Putney Graduate School up on the hill I went down to the Putney Central School to talk to Claire about taking Antioch interns. I had taught elementary school just long enough to know that I didn’t know much, but I didn’t realize, then, that Claire was going to be one of my teachers.

School was in session. We stood in the hall outside the door of her second grade classroom, which was glass about two thirds of the way up, and watched what was happening inside while Claire talked. Oh, Claire talked – we might have been in that hall for an hour.  She talked about her class, about individual children, about the interns, about the community, about how to teach reading, and while we talked I watched through the window a second grade class behaving like no teacher-less class I had ever seen.  Some children were reading, a few were working with the cusinaire rods, others were writing or drawing, all were busy. Occasionally a child would get up to ask another child for help, or to do something else. It was a model of self-motivated, self-directed purposeful learning – and they were 8 years old! That was the Claire magic – she had the vision and the skill to enable even the youngest children to be self-respecting, creative, independent learners. The other half of the magic was in the talking.

Claire talked, endlessly explaining to children how the world worked, often through questions; endlessly interpreting children to bewildered parents and teachers, interpreting to anyone who would listen the meaning of activities, the way children think, the diversity and uniqueness of children, and friends, and adults, whomever. Sometimes a single observation or anecdote would give me an insight which altered the way I thought or worked. Through talk her vision of a connected world emerged; a world in which schools were not just for children and parents but for everyone in the town. Claire connected children with the activities that engaged them, different activities for different children. She connected members of the community with each other, she connected rural Vermont with Puerto Rico, India, Ireland, places next door and halfway around the world.

I never lost the image of that self-sufficient second grade though I had many other opportunities to watch Claire in action; she taught two of my children; we served on state committees together; she worked with Antioch interns and with visiting teachers from Auroville, India. The partnership with Auroville was particularly meaningful because I could always count on Claire to respond directly, with curiosity and respect, to any type of visitor, and within minutes they might find themselves doing something with children.  There were never visitors standing around with their arms crossed in Claire’s classroom, only participants – and listeners.

– Heidi

The Foundation for World Education

The Foundation for World Education is the group responsible for financing the trips of teacher visitors from Auroville to the U.S. and they were well aware of the unique service Claire provided to Auroville by taking in these teachers, often in deep culture shock, and making them feel both needed and understood.  Claire’s work lives on in innumerable and unrecorded changes which made their way into Auroville schools, and occasionally out into the wider world.

Below are several notes received from Auroville exchange teachers mourning Claire’s passing.

From Margo MacLeod
I’ve been thinking about Claire quite often over the last week or so. She was one of those great individuals who was not afraid to be all of herself all the time–or so it seemed to me. I love what she did at the little two room schoolhouse and hope I can see that video again one day. She did, as Vermonters do, a little of everything including real estate and I first encountered her when she arrived unannounced for a swim in Gordon and Jeanne’s pool–she had, after all, found them the house and become friends so she didn’t need to stand on any ceremony. A great and generous soul. I’m sorry she never made it to AV as much for their sakes as for hers.

From Sanjeev
I recall with fondness my days at Claire’s school.
The first important lesson I learned from her was to engage people in the community around in the education of children.  Her ability to invite all who had an interest or a skill in something to talk to the children or do things with them was amazing.

The second important lesson was to keep the children free – they could at any given point be doing different things and she could be aware of what each was doing – there was no confusion, no lack of discipline and yet when things needed to be done together she could gather them with ease.

There are many other things one could list out – but the essential is the spirit with which she worked with the children – treating each as a living soul and giving each individually and all of them together what they needed for their growth.

From Shankar
I feel very sorry that Claire had to leave her body without visiting her friends in Auroville. (I remember Jean tried to bring her to AV). She could have understood how her ideas are carried out here on the other side of the world.  Let the Mother give all strength to her family to bear this.

From Thillai
I regret to hear that Claire Oglesby left us.
To be honest, my days with Claire Oglesby were one of the golden moments of my life. For me she was not only a rare and great teacher, but she also had many facets and qualities within her. She was a great administrator, trainer, admirer, explorer, follower, learner and lover of all, and children in particular. Claire is Claire, therefore, it’s difficult to copy her.

During my internship with Clare and her school in Westminster West, two media people came to record her teaching and the school. A reporter from the local newspaper named ‘Brattleboro Reformer” interviewed Claire and me. An article was published in the newspaper titled “Teaching Tactics” on 30th May, 1997. At the time, she was teaching a huge thematic project called ‘India”. And, the project was lasted more than 3 months. I was invited to help her specially for this project. In the interview she praised me a lot and mentioned about Heidi. During the teaching, she accepted and welcomed all my suggestions and she implemented all in the classroom.

In the interview she mentioned, “it’s all part of an in-depth study of a foreign culture, an annual affair. “Kids have to be educated world citizens,” she emphasized. “When you study another culture, your own becomes clearer.’ “It’s important to have kids welcome diversity.’ She added.

Another media person, probably, you all know, a video-recording of the whole theme about Claire and her school. Fortunate that I was also in the film. It is not only recorded in the media, but also in my heart.

Thank you Claire! Have a peaceful journey to the other world.

I pray for your journey to the Divine Mother!
Thillai