Connecticut Friends School held a barn raising to launch the Woven House project, and to celebrate the International Day of Peace on September 21. “The Woven House will be an outdoor classroom for our school, providing space for peaceful retreat and reflection, conflict resolution, as well as creative activities,” says Kim Tsocanos, Co-Head and one of the founders of CFS.
In recognition of the International Day of Peace, students, teachers, and parents of CFS students shared a ceremony of peace around the new Woven House structure. Members of the school community constructed the frame of the building, assembled the jute twine warp for the walls, and illustrated fabric pennants with images and phrases about peace that were the first weft materials woven into the walls. Students also gathered and prepared natural items from around property to furnish the house, including measuring and sawing a log bench, and flooring materials. Students provided musical accompaniment for community singing, and a moment of silence was observed. The youngest students at the school provided pita bread for all. Earlier in the day, they had made the bread and baked it on an outdoor oven with their teachers and a parent from their class. They also made peace doves that they could fly around the attendees, spreading the feelings of peace for all, and hand-signed a song sung by all.
The ceremony included this quote by Gerard Vanderhaar: “The story of the human race is characterized by efforts to get along much more than by violent disputes, although it’s the latter that make the history books. Violence is actually exceptional. The human race has survived because of cooperation, not aggression.”
Chelsea Danburg, CFS Fiber Arts Teacher and Rhode Island School of Design graduate, who also wrote the successful grant proposal for the project, developed the Woven House project. The 8 ft x 8 ft house structure was designed with her father, architect Louis Mackall, and built by him in his shop, Breakfast Woodworks of Guilford, CT.
CFS has been awarded two grants by the Friends Council on Education for the Woven House project. This hands-on endeavor will play a significant role in classroom learning about the Quaker testimonies of simplicity, peace, integrity, community, equality and stewardship. The Woven House will be a catalyst for conversation with the students regarding how sharing world resources contributes to peace. This collaborative undertaking will “weave” together a multitude of disciplines at CFS, including math, humanities, fiber arts, carpentry and outdoor education. CFS students will assemble the posts and roof, and weave the walls for the Woven House. The creation of the Woven House will be on-going this entire school year, and is an opportunity for meditative artistry and cooperation.
