Aloha!
Welcome to the Waimea
Country School 'Ohana. We are a learning community
of students, teachers, parents, extended family members,
board members, and volunteers who work together
to provide a rich, dynamic academic environment for
our keiki.
Blondin Joins Faculty
at Waimea Country School
Waimea Country School
is pleased to welcome Hayley Blondin as the new second
and third grade teacher. Blondin has a Master’s
Degree in Education from the University of Indiana.
She has five years of teaching experience and has lived
and worked in Costa Rica, Peru, Ecuador, and Spain.
Blondin
is happy to have found a position in a school where
the education style is multiage and child-centered.
She said, “My first professional teaching experience
was in a combined first and second grade classroom.
Right away, I fell in love with the multiage model.
I like it because it allows students the flexibility
to pursue challenges in their areas of strength, but
it also affords them the ability to slow down and explore
new learning approaches to concepts and skills that
may be difficult.” Blondin continued, “I
believe in developing and nurturing the whole child.
Purely academic goals for
students ignores the very important emotional, social,
behavioral and physical development of a child. I like
teaching in a way that considers the soul, spirit and
body of the child and that embraces a child’s
natural desire to imagine, to fantasize and to be artistic.”
Level
4 teacher Laurel Matsuda noticed that, “Hayley
fits right in as if she has always been here. She is
a very good fit for the culture and philosophy of Waimea
Country School. It is obvious how much she cares for
the kids and that she really works hard to do a great
job.” Kindergarten teacher
Mary Doty added, “Hayley
is a breath of fresh air bringing wonderful, creative
ideas to inspire her students to appreciate nature
and others around them.”
Blondin said of her management
style, “I believe
students need to be motivated intrinsically. Instead
of rewarding students with material objects, I want
students to feel motivated by their investment in the
classroom community and a real desire to learn. To
create this intrinsic sense of motivation, I believe
it is important to create a student-centered learning
environment, where students have a voice in the types
of projects and assignments they complete, as well
as a role in planning the daily operations of the classroom.”
Blondin’s
methods are clearly working well. Parent Jessica Zolten
enthusiastically exclaimed, “She
has really lit a fire under these kids!”
As for
her transition to Hawaii, Blondin said, “I'm
enjoying learning about Hawaiian culture and the Hawaiian
language. I love living in a place where the indigenous
culture is still alive. I hear Hawaiian words integrated
in everyday speech. We chant at school, and many students
are already very knowledgeable about the plants, such
as the kukui tree. I was surprised when we went to
the Nature Park recently and so many of my students
were able to talk about the uses of kukui nuts.”
In
addition to her teaching experience, Blondin has also
worked on an organic farm, been the leader of
a school garden project and has lead coastal kayaking
adventures in Alaska and Canada.
Head of School Amy
Salling said, “Hayley is a
wonderful addition to our school ‘ohana. She
brings a wealth of experience that complements the
talents and expertise of other faculty and staff. This
makes for an even richer learning environment for our
students.”

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